Islamic Online University

Bachelor of Arts in Islamic Studies

Tafseer 101
The Unique Book
Maps of Reality:
The plane had been up in the air for a while when the captain came on the intercom.
Ladies and gentlemen, I have some good news and some bad news. The good news
is that we have a tailwind behind us and were making good time. The bad news is
that were lost.
Its one thing to have an idea of where youre heading but lose your way. Its another
to travel without any notion of your destination. If you dont know where youre
headed, all your movements will be wasted efforts. Outwardly, things may seem to be
going well in your life. You have a good job. The bills are paid. You can buy what
you want. You have a significant other.
But certain questions wont go away: Why am I here? What am I supposed to be
doing? What happens when I die? Is there life after death? If there is, what
should I be doing to prepare for it? If you dont have satisfactory answers for these
questions, they will gnaw at your heart, no matter what other trappings of success you
achieve. Too much of nothing can make a man feel ill at ease.
Science claims to provide a system for finding out what is real. The scientific method
provides a very powerful tool for telling us how things work. But by its nature, it cant
answer questions like Why am I here? and the others just mentioned. Religions
claim to answer these questions. They provide maps of reality. Having an accurate
map is crucial to getting where you need to go.
Before the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Communist government made a policy of
printing inaccurate maps. They figured accurate maps would help invading armies. A
person trying to navigate by a Soviet map would see on the map that a certain
highway went straight to his destination. But as he was driving along, he would find
that it actually ended suddenly in a cornfield.
What if you were trying to pass through a piece of ground that has been planted with
landmines? Trial and error would not be a good strategy. An accurate map becomes
essential under such circumstances. Life presents us with constant choices. Some of
the choices we make might be disastrous, but we may not find out until years later.
When radium was first discovered no one knew it could cause cancer.

Marie Curie, who discovered it, handled it constantly. More than thirty years after she
won the Nobel Prize for physics, she died from leukemia, exhausted and almost
blinded, her fingers burnt and stigmatized by her dear radium.
Without an accurate map, a person may make some choices that he will only realize
were wrong after he dies. At that point it is too late. So how does one figure out which
map is accurate and which is not? There are some objective criteria for doing so. The
first place to look is the scripture of each religion.
Criteria for Judging Scripture:

Has it been accurately preserved?

Is it free of internal contradictions?
When it speaks about the past, is it accurate or mistaken?
When it speaks about scientific realities, is it accurate or mistaken?
When it predicts the future, was it accurate or mistaken?
Are its teachings about God clear or garbled?
Does it give us a clear understanding of the purpose of life?
Do its laws promote human well-being?
Are its laws realistic, or do they demand that people act in ways that go
against the grain of human nature?

We should also look at the life of the religions founder:

How much did he live by his own teachings?

What kind of a model did he present for his followers?

While all religions pass some of these tests, no other religion passes all of them as
well as Islam does.
Shaykh Mahmood al-Zayns Thought Problem:
He wrote:
A common opinion heard these days among the masses is that the
miraculous nature of the Quran is something that only specialized
scholars can appreciate. This opinion is incorrect, for some aspects of
the Qurans miraculous nature can be understood by every person,
while others can only be appreciated by scholars, and certain aspects can
only be appreciated by the most proficient scholars.
The aspect that all people can appreciate is mentioned in the Quran
itself, in the statement of Allah, the Exalted:
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Will they not then ponder on the Quran? If it had been from other
than Allah they would have found in it much inconsistency.1
That is, some parts of it would contradict each other, some parts would
be deficient, some parts would be inaccurate, and some parts would be
weak. If any of that were present, it would disprove the claim that it is
miraculous, whatever else was found in it to be correct, for it is
impossible that Allah would make any mistake.
So if any book is found to be error free, it would be indisputable proof
that it is from God, Who is perfect and free from all defects, and it is
impossible that anyone except Allah would be free from error, unless
Allah Himself protected him.
The meaning of error whose presence the Quran denies is real error, not
matters of dispute between people of intellect, which some see as error
and others see as correct, each according to his understanding and
knowledge. If this type was admissible as evidence, the enemies [of
Islam] could present the most dubious arguments and tricks as proof of
the presence of error and refuse every valid item of evidence, based
upon this methodology.
To properly appreciate the fact that the absence of error is miraculous,
we need to take a look at the reality of writing and publishing in any
branch of knowledge. No one publishes a book without someone else
finding an error in it.
In fact, the author himself frequently finds errors when reviewing his
own book, especially if he does so after an interval during which his
knowledge has matured and he has reconsidered his earlier views on the
subject. If there were any errors in the Quran, people would have
discovered them, particularly Islams opponents, who contrive charges
against it, for if they found any real errors they would not have to resort
to invention.
The following example will make it clear that anyone who ponders upon
it can appreciate the Qurans miraculous nature. Let us suppose that a
book exists which concentrates on one aspect of one branch of
knowledge, ophthalmology, for instance, which is an empirical science.
Let us suppose that every professor of ophthalmology in the world
participated in composing this book and checking it for errors. Is it
possible for this book to contain an error? Scientists themselves will
readily admit that this is not farfetched at all. But let us suppose that they
denied the possibility of any error or claimed that if there were any error
that it would be extremely minor, not exceeding one ten-thousandth of
the whole.

Soorah an-Nisaa (4):82.

The Impact Of Time Upon The Information In The

Book:
But if we were to repeat the question to the same specialists after ten
years, in the light of recent developments in knowledgeespecially in
our era, in which the results of new research are constantly overturning
the accepted conclusions of previous researchwould they continue to
deny the possibility of error? Or would they maintain that the proportion
of error was only one in ten thousand?
A fair-minded person would say, No. If the question were put to
experts after a hundred years, we would find them saying that the
presence of mistakes is an absolute certainty. Now, what would they say
if we asked them to review the book a thousand years later? I once asked
a doctor this question, to which he replied, The development of medical
knowledge over a thousand years would have to reveal that most of the
original book was error.
The Impact of Varied Subjects on the Possibility
of Error in the Book
In our example, we supposed that the book was about one field of
knowledge, medicine, and one specialty in that field, i.e.,
ophthalmology, which would reduce the possibility of error. Wouldnt
the possibility of error increase if we supposed that the book also dealt
with other specialties with a bearing on ophthalmology, such as diseases
of the brain, nerves and blood system, or surgery, or general health and
nutrition?
We would say so, even if we maintained the same criterion, that all the
leading experts in those related fields participated in the composition
and checking of the book. The proportion of error in the new book
would increase, even if the increase is not large. However, if we
expanded the scope of the book to include all aspects of physical and
mental health, the proportion of error would grow quite large.
Now if we added other sciences which supplement and support this
topic, such as pharmacology, chemistry, laboratory analysis, biology and
botany, medical technology, such as surgical instruments, imaging
devices and analytic tools, the proportion of error would increase with
every increase in the number of specializations and fields of knowledge.
And the certainty would surely increase with the passage of a thousand
years, as we previously established.
The Impact of a Single Author on the Possibility
of Error in the Book
So far we have considered the effect that a lengthy passage of time
would have on revealing the errors of the book in question. Then we

considered the effect of an increase in the number of specialized

branches of knowledge discussed in the book. Both considerations
increase the possibility and proportion of error, and make it more
certain.
Now let us consider the number of authors cooperating to produce the
work. We originally supposed that all the authorities in that field in the
world consulted together. Would you expect the proportion of error to
increase if we only had half the specialists for each field participating in
our project?
No doubt, this decrease in the number of participating specialists would
increase the proportion of error. If we suppose that only five such
scholars cooperated to produce the work, the proportion would be large.
Now, if we suppose that there was only one author and no one helped
him, the proportion, possibility and certainty of error would increase,
especially bearing in mind the great passage of time and the variety of
specialized subjects discussed in the book, no matter how learned the
author is.
The Impact of the Authors Level of Education on
the Possibility of Error in the Book
What is more important than all of the previous considerations is the level
of knowledge of the author. What percentage of error would be found in
a book that discusses a great variety of subjects a thousand years after its
initial appearance, when the author had no help from anyone, and when
the formal educational attainments of the author are insignificant? Lets
say that the author was a qualified doctor, but he was not on the level of
a professor of medicine.
No doubt, his errors would exceed those of a qualified professor, for the
level of knowledge possessed by an author is the most important factor
in determining the quality of his work. The errors would increase still
further if the author was not a doctor, but only a nurse. The number and
seriousness of the errors would become horrendous if the author had
only completed elementary school. What would be the condition of the
book if the author was illiterate and composed the book by dictating it to
some of his companions?
This example makes clear to us the status of the Quran as well as the
status of the one who presented it to humanity and called them to believe
in it. He was the unlettered prophet, completely illiterate, raised in a city
of illiterates that was part of an illiterate nation. Yet he brought this
Quran, which encompasses the knowledge of Islamic belief with all its
details, along with knowledge of comparative religion, comparing the
beliefs of various religions with mention of the relevant evidence,
contending with its opponents with arguments and evidence.

It also contains the fundamentals of legislation from all its aspects: the
various types of worship, along with their goals and effects; the laws
governing family life, laws regulating economic affairs, criminal law,
military law, international relations. It also contains the principles of
litigation, such as witnesses, confession, rules of evidence, etc. It also
contains an entire system of morality for humanity, highlighting the
most important ethical issues.
It also contains a summary history of mankinds presence [on this
planet] highlighting its most important stages. It also contains a
summary of the history of religions and the distortions that befell them.
It also contains critical principles of human psychology, sociology and a
selection of comments on matters related to medicine and the natural
sciences. All of this is presented in a manner that not only imparts
education but develops the personality, leaving a deep impact on the
soul through an exquisite use of language, which is a separate miracle,
independent of our current topic.
Some Examples of Accuracy of Information in the Quraan
Scientific facts: Some things established by science are incontrovertible [Ar. qat'ee]
while some things are conjecture [thannee]. The following are some qat'ee
conclusions of modern science compared with Quranic statements about the same
phenomona.
The Earth is a sphere rotating on its axis
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He wraps the Night over the Day, and wraps the Day over the Night. (39:5)
The verb "yukawwir" is also used for wrapping a turban, which is wrapped by
winding it around the head. 'so the verse gives a sense of the night and day
being wrapped around each other on a sphere.
If we add this image to the information provided by two other verses the
image becomes clearer still:
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He draws the night as a veil over the day, each seeking the other in rapid
succession. (7: 54)
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Allaah swears by the Night when it 'as'asa. (81:17)

'As'asa is an interesting verb because it has two opposite meanings. The

verse could be translated "by the Night when it approaches," or "by the
Night when it goes away." The interesting thing about the physical reality
of the night is that it is always withdrawing from one part of the earth as
it approaches another part.
The universe is expanding
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We have built the heaven with might, and We [continue to] expand it. (51:47)
There is a barrier between seas
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He has loosed the two seas. They meet.
There is a barrier between them. They encroach not (one upon the other). (55:1920)
The earths crust is splitting, due to the movement of tectonic plates
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And by the earth which splits (86:12)
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Oh, but I call to witness the planets that recede; Those that run [their courses] and
disappear [i.e. set] (Takweer 15-16)
: to sweep
: a broom

: trash
: a lair of a wild animal, especially gazelles and wild cows, in a thicket, where it
hides from the heat; so-called because the animal brushes away the sand to uncover
the moist earth
: an animal hides in its lair
It refers to the disappearance of the stars by day, as if hiding in the light of the sun.
An interesting variant explanation: big planets like Jupiter sweep the debris of the
solar system, asteroids and the like, confining them in the asteroid belt. Without
Jupiters restraining influence the Earth would be unlivable, due to the constant rain
of meteors. One current theory is that Jupiter actually swept a huge number of
comets into the Earths path very early in its history, which was the source of all the
water now on Earth.

The examples are too many to go into in any detail here.

Historical facts:
The Quranin contrast to the Old Testamentdoes not call the ruler of
Egypt at the time of Yoosuf by the title Pharoaoh. Pharoaoh was a title for the
Egyptian rulers that was adopted after the Egyptians overthrew the Hyksos invaders
who ruled Egypt at the time that Yoosuf entered it. If the Quran was a mere imitation
of the Old Testament, why didnt it copy its mistakes?
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54 And the king said, Bring him to me
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He could not have taken his brother according to the kings law unless Allah
willed. (12:76)
Predictions of the future
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The Romans have been defeated
In the nearer land, and they, after their defeat will be victorious
Within ten years (30:2-4)
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(27 )
Allah has fulfilled the vision for His Messenger in very truth. You will indeed
enter the Inviolable Place of Worship, if Allah will, secure, (having your hair)
shaven and cut, not fearing. But He knows what you know not, and has given
you a near victory beforehand. (48:27)
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Indeed, We, even We, have revealed the Reminder, and indeed, We verily are its
Guardian. (15:9)
Material means for preservation of the Quran were seriously lacking. The Arabs were
an illiterate culture. They had no paper, no papyrus, no clay tablets. But despite that it
was authentically preserved, due to the efforts of hundreds of the Sahaabah to

memorize it and the recording of it on whatever was available during the lifetime of
the Prophet .
Then Aboo Bakr and 'Uthmaan collected these scattered records and made
authoritative copies. Other factors that helped preserve it were the sciences of writing
the mus-haf, Qiraaaat, Tajweed, and the intensive efforts to codify the rules of Arabic
Grammar (Nahw) and etymology (Sarf), and the science of Tafseer.
Lack of contradiction
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(82
Will they not then ponder on the Quran? If it had been from other than Allah
they would have found in it much inconsistency [ikhtilaaf]. (4:82)
Some critics objected that the word ikhtilaaf (inconsistency) is found more than once
in the Quran. They said if the verse was accurate it should appear only once. For
instance:
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(190
Indeed, in the creation of the heavens and the earth and (in) the difference of
night and day are tokens (of His Sovereignty) for men of understanding
(3:190)
Answer: It appears in 4:82 with an additional alif because it is in the accusative case.
All other places it appears without the alif. If one wants to nitpick on the basis of
outer form, then the criticism is invalidated by the difference in outer form.
Critics claim to have found inconsistency in the verses about inheritance:
Allah directs you as regards your children's (inheritance): to the male, a
portion equal to that of two females: if only daughters, two or more, their share
is two-thirds of the inheritance; if only one, her share is a half. For parents, a
sixth share of the inheritance to each, if the deceased left children. If there are no
children, and the parents are the (only) heirs, the mother has a third; (but) if the
deceased left brothers (or sisters) the mother has a sixth. (The distribution in all
cases is) after the payment of legacies and debts. You dont know whether your
parents or your children are nearest to you in benefit. These are settled portions
ordained by Allah; and Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise. (11)
In what your wives leave, your share is a half, if they leave no child; but if they
leave a child, you get a fourth; after payment of legacies and debts. In what you
leave, their share is a fourth, if you leave no child; but if you leave a child, they
get an eighth; after payment of legacies and debts. If the [deceased] man or

woman left neither parents2 nor descendants, but has left a brother or a sister,
each one of the two gets a sixth; but if there are more than two, they share in a
third; after payment of legacies and debts; so that no loss is caused (to anyone).
Thus is it ordained by Allah; and Allah is All-Knowing, Most Forbearing. (12)
Soorah an-Nisaa (4:11-2)
They ask you for a legal decision. Say: Allah directs (thus) about those who
leave no descendants or ascendants as heirs. If it is a man that dies, leaving a
sister but no child, she shall have half the inheritance. If (the deceased was) a
woman who left no child, her brother takes her inheritance. If there are two
sisters, they shall have two-thirds of the inheritance (between them): if there are
brothers and sisters, (they share), the male having twice the share of the female.
Thus Allah makes clear to you (His law), lest you err. And Allah has knowledge
of all things. (4:176)
Note: The brothers and sisters mentioned in 4:12 are related to the deceased through
the mother only. Their fathers are different. The brothers and sisters mentioned in
4:176 are related to the deceased through the father. They may or may not have the
same mother.
Critics say, It just doesnt add up: If the deceased left a husband and two paternal
sisters, the inheritance would be as follows, based on verses 4:12 and 4:176:
Heir

Share

Equivalent in twelfths

Husband

/2

/12

2 Sisters

/3

/12

Total

14

/12

Obviously, the number of shares is greater than the inheritance.

A: Muslims first became aware of this problem during the caliphate of 'Umar, the
second ruler of the Muslims after the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him). It had
not arisen during the lifetime of Prophet Muhammad because of the following
principle:
Ibn 'Abbaas narrated that Allahs Messenger (Peace be upon him) said, Distribute the
property among those given prescribed shares according to the Book of Allah, and
what is left goes to the nearest male heir.3
That means that if the deceased left a son the inheritance will always come out
evenly. In such a situation, the daughters do not inherit by fixed share. The sons and
5

Parents includes grandparents, etc. The term ascendants is more precise, but some readers may
not be familiar with it, so I used parents instead.
3
This is perhaps the single most important hadeeth on the issue of inheritance, as the prescribed shares
mentioned in the Quraan rarely consume the entire estate. The Quraan, in verse 11 of Soorah anNisaa, makes allusions to the rule declared in this hadeeth, but the hadeeth makes it explicit.

10

daughters inherit what is left of the inheritance, with each male getting twice the share
of his sister.
The presence of children means that the surviving spouse would get either a quarter or
an eighth share, and each parent will get a sixth. Brothers and sisters will not get a
share at all if there are surviving children or parents. Thus, if there is a surviving son,
the maximum number of shares by fixed inheritance will be 7/12. The children will
divide the remainder.
The Muslims suffered no crisis of faith over this problem. That was because they
understood that the nature of the Quran is to lay down broad principles. Further
details are found in the Sunnah, the statements and actions of Prophet Muhammad
(Peace be upon him). They understood that even the Sunnah will not give an explicit
ruling on every situation encountered in life.
The Muslims will always encounter real-life situations that will require scholars to
make ijtihaad. Ijtihaad is the exertion of effort by a qualified scholar to determine the
rule of Allah concerning a given problem. The vast majority of scholars among the
Prophets Companions solved the problem of the husband and two sisters in the same
way: Instead of dividing the inheritance into twelve shares, they divided it into
fourteen shares. The husband would get 6/14ths and each sister would get 4/14ths. This
methodology became a matter of consensus among Muslim scholars.
As Muslim scholars made systematic analysis of the mathematical possibilities
inherent in the field of inheritance, they discovered that there are eight ways for the
number of shares to exceed the inheritance. When the denominator of the shares is 6,
an excess of shares may cause it to shift to 7, 8, 9 or 10. When the denominator is 12,
an excess of shares may cause it to shift to 13, 15 or 17. When the denominator is 24,
an excess of shares will cause it to shift to 27.
For the Quran to enumerate all of these variations would make for mind-numbing
reading. Once again, it is not the nature of the Quran to cross every t and dot every
i. It is a book of general guidance. Having identified the basic share for those who
receive fixed inheritance, the Quran trusted that human beings would have the
intelligence to work out the necessary adjustments, should the need arise. The fact
that the solution became a matter of consensus among Muslim scholars indicates that
it is the obvious extrapolation of the text.4

AntiAnti-Islamic claim: Was Jonah cast on the desert shore or was he not?
(37:145-146) "But We cast him forth on the naked shore in a state of sickness,
and We caused to grow, over him, a spreading plant of the gourd variety,"

The information on inheritance came from the book, At-Tahqeeqaat al-Mardiyyah fil-Mabaahith alFardiyyah, by Saalih ibn Fawzaan ibn 'Abdullaah al-Fawzaan, Madeenah: The Islamic University of
Madeenah, 1990 CE/1410 AH, pp. 161-6.

11

(68:49) "Had not Grace from his Lord reached him, he would indeed have
been cast off on the naked shore in disgrace."
Muslim Response: What is affirmed in verse 37:145 is not the same thing that is
denied in verse 68:49. Yes, he was cast on the shore, but he was not in a state of
disgrace when that happened, because he had prayed in the belly of the whale:
There is no God but You. Be You glorified! Indeed, I have been a wrong-doer.
Then we heard his prayer and saved him from the anguish. Thus we save
believers. (21:87-8)
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And We did not create the heavens and the earth, and all that is between them,
in play. (Dukhaan 44:38)
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And We created not the heaven and the earth and all that is between them in
vain. (Saad 38:27)
1.

What will be the food for the people in Hell?

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No food will there be for them but bitter thorn-fruit (ar), Which does not
nourish nor release from hunger. (88:6)
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But as for him who is given his record in his left hand, he will say, Oh, would that I
had not been given my book Nor hath he any food except the corruption
from the washing of wounds, Which none but sinners eat. (69:36)
88:6 mentions no food except Dhari while 69:36 mentions no food except
washing of wounds.
Muhammad al-Ameen al-Shinqeetee summarized the response of scholars to this
apparent contradiction in two basic answers:
The first is that the punishments of hell will vary according to the various categories
of its inmates; so for some their only food will be daree, while for others it will be
ghisleen (69:36), and for others still it will be zaqqoom (44:43).
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12

Support for that interpretation is found in 15:43-44:

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And indeed, for all such, hell will be the promised place. It has seven gates, and
each gate has an appointed portion.
The second answer is that in reality they will have no food at all, for neither daree
nor ghisleen nor zaqqoom can rightfully be called food. This is similar to an Arabic
expression, So-and-so has no shade but the sun, and no daabbah but the daabbah of
his clothes. This is a play on words, for the word daabbah originally referred to any
creature with legs, but it came to be used primarily for a riding animal, like a horse or
camel.
The first use of daabbah in this saying negates possession of a riding animal, while
the daabbah of his clothes refers to lice. In other words, he has no shade at all and
nothing at all to ride. At first appearance, the grammatical construction seems to make
an exception from the negation; but, in fact, the exception is used rhetorically to
emphasize negation.
[See Daf eehaam al-idtiraab an aayaat al-kitaab, Cairo: Maktabat Ibn Taymiyyah,
n.d., 300-301]
2. To Intercede or Not To Intercede?
O Children of Israel! call to mind the (special) favour which I bestowed upon you,
and that I preferred you to all other (for My Message).
Then guard yourselves against a day when one soul shall not avail another nor
shall intercession be accepted for her, nor shall compensation be taken from her,
nor shall anyone be helped (from outside). (2:47-28)
O Children of Israel! call to mind the special favour which I bestowed upon
you, and that I preferred you to all others (for My Message).
Then guard yourselves against a Day when one soul shall not avail
another, nor shall compensation be accepted from her nor shall
intercession profit her nor shall anyone be helped (from outside). (2:123124)

O you who believe! spend out of what We have given you before the day
comes in which there is no bargaining, neither any friendship nor
intercession, and the unbelievers - they are the unjust. (2:254)
ONE SOUL" not availing another naturally includes every human being. In
addition verses 2:254 & 6:51 addresses the believers as well. However other
verses state that intercession would be accepted;
Allah! There is no god but He, the Living, the Self-subsisting, Eternal. No

13

slumber can seize Him nor sleep. His are all things in the heavens and on
earth. Who is there can intercede in His presence except as He
permitteth? He knoweth what (appeareth to His creatures as) before or after
or behind them. Nor shall they compass aught of His knowledge except as He
willeth. His Throne doth extend over the heavens and the earth, and He
feeleth no fatigue in guarding and preserving them for He is the Most High,
the Supreme (in glory). (2:255)
Verily your Lord is Allah, who created the heavens and the earth in six days,
and is firmly established on the throne (of authority), regulating and governing
all things. No intercessor (can plead with Him) except after His leave (hath
been obtained). This is Allah your Lord; Him therefore serve ye: will ye not
receive admonition? (10:3)
On the day when We shall gather the righteous unto the Beneficent, a goodly
company. And drive the guilty unto hell, a weary herd, They will have no
power of intercession, save him who hath made a covenant with his Lord.
(19:85-87)
On that Day shall no intercession avail except for those for whom
permission has been granted by (Allah) Most Gracious and whose word
is acceptable to Him. ( 20:109)
The first set of verses you quoted were used by the Mutazilah to negate intercession
altogether. The Sunnis reconciled the two sets of verses by calling attention to a
fundamental feature of the Arabic language known as al-aamm wal-khaass (the
general and specific).
There are some general expressions which are intended to be entirely general, such as,
Allah has knowledge of all things. However, there are certain passages in which, for
rhetorical reasons, general wordings are used by a speaker without intending the allencompassing meaning they would normally indicate; for instance, in the Quran:
And when they saw it as a cloud approaching their valleys, they said, This is a
cloud bringing us rain! Rather, it is that for which you were impatient: a wind
wherein is painful punishment, destroying everything by command of its Lord.
And they became so that nothing was seen [of them] except their dwellings.
(46:24-25)
Obviously, the wind didnt destroy their dwellings, since they were seen the next day;
so the use of the general wording was hyperbolic, to give a vivid impression of the
winds devastating effects upon the tribe of Aad. The specification of the general can
occur by an indicator in the same text, or it may come in a different text entirely, and
that is a very common feature of the Shareeah texts.
The use of general negation with regard to intercession in the first set of texts is to
dispel the misimpression that intercession in the hereafter works in a way similar to
intercession in this life. If a seeker of intercession in this life can find someone
powerful enough to do the interceding for him, the third party has no choice but to
accept the intercession.

14

If he doesnt, the interceder has the power to harm him in some way. Intercession in
the hereafter is not like that, because Allah only accepts intercession from whom He
chooses, and He only accepts it on behalf of whom He chooses. Therefore, Allah uses
intercession to highlight His favor upon both the interceder and the one for whom
intercession is made. In other words, those individuals for whom Allah accepts the
intercession of the Prophet (pbuh) or some other interceder are individuals whom
Allah had already decided to forgive.
In one hadeeth, the Prophet (pbuh) warned people about misappropriating booty from
the spoils of war, Dont let me find any of you coming on the Day of Judgment with
a grunting camel mounted on his neck, and him saying, Messenger of Allah! Help
me! for I will say, I can do nothing for you; I already conveyed [the warning] to
you. Dont let me find any of you coming on the Day of Judgment with a whinnying
horse mounted on his neck, and him saying, Messenger of Allah! Help me! for I will
say, I can do nothing for you; I already conveyed [the warning] to you. Dont let me
find any of you coming on the Day of Judgment with a bleating sheep mounted on his
neck, and him saying, Messenger of Allah! Help me! for I will say, I can do
nothing for you; I already conveyed [the warning] to you. Dont let me find any of
you on the Day of Judgment carrying a screaming person on his shoulders and him
saying, Messenger of Allah! Help me! for I will say, I can do nothing for you; I
already conveyed [the warning] to you. Dont let me find any of you coming on the
Day of Judgment with a fluttering cloth around his neck, saying, Messenger of Allah!
Help me! for I will say, I can do nothing for you; I already conveyed [the warning]
to you. Dont let me find any of you coming on the Day of Judgment with gold and
silver on his neck, saying, Messenger of Allah! Help me! for I will say, I can do
nothing for you; I already conveyed [the warning] to you. [Sahih Muslim, Siddiqi
trans. no. 4505]
The hadeeth may appear on its surface to negate the possibility of the Prophet (pbuh)
interceding for those persons, but other hadeeths indicate that he will intercede for
people who did worse than that. Therefore the point of the hadeeth is to remove
complacency, the attitude that I can do whatever I want, because I have a Get-out-ofjail-free card. That is the same intent behind the first set of verses. And if you
examine the reality of religious sensibilities, you find this attitude to be widespread,
amongst Jews, Christians and Muslims.
I had a friend who became a Muslim while serving in the US Army. His conversion
was preceded by an intense investigation of different religions and a wide array of
Christian denominations and sects. He mentioned one of his fellow soldiers to me, a
born-again Christian, who would actually sit there and recount his various perverse
acts performed after he had accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior as proof of Gods
grace, that, despite all of his nasty behavior, he was going to go straight to heaven.
The same attitude was prevalent among the Jews. The whole context of the passages
you cited is to warn the Jews against complacency and being deluded by the fact that
Allah chose them from the rest of humanity. After confirming that they were chosen,
Allah brings the warning.
3. One Creator or many?

15

23:14 "Then We made the sperm into a clot of congealed blood; then of that
clot We made a (foetus) lump; then we made out of that lump bones and
clothed the bones with flesh; then we developed out of it another creature.
t)=s:$# |mr& !$# x8u$t7tFs
So blessed be Allah, the best to create!"
Best of Creators implies that there are other creators as well. Like Human
beings creating cars, computers etc. However, verse 39:62 states that Allah is
the creator of all things.
.u &x e. 4n?t uu ( &x e2 ,=yz !$#
(39:62) "Allah is the Creator of all things, and He is the Guardian and
Disposer of all affairs."
The verb khalaqa is sometimes used to mean fashion or shape, as in 5:110, in which
Allah addresses Jesus, reminding him of His favors upon him:
*/ #Ms 3tFs $p tFs */ 9$# tyx. e9$# z ,=rB )u
and [remember] how you did shape (takhluq) from clay [what was] like the
form of a bird by My permission, and did blow upon it, and it became a bird by
My permission
So human beings have the ability to make things, in the sense of shaping, molding and
assembling. Obviously, if taken in that sense, Allahs creative abilities outstrip that of
any human creator, for Allah creates out of nothing, whereas humans refashion and
recombine what is already existent; no human can match the precision of Allahs
creation; and no human can bring an inanimate form to life. (Jesus and Abraham
didnt actually do so; Allah did it, being the actual cause of the manifest effect.)
The simultaneous affirmation of human ability to create while attributing creation
ultimately to Allah is manifest in 37:95-96, when Prophet Abraham challenges his
people,

t =
y ?s $t u / 3
)
s =n {
s !
#$ u
t G s
?s $t t
7 ?s &r
t $%s
Do you worship that which you [yourselves] carve, while Allah created you and
that which you do?
t)=s:$# z|mr& xs?u Wt/ ts?r&
A different explanation has been offered for 37:125 "'Will ye call upon Baal and
forsake the Best of Creators,'" The mention of creators here could be an example
of accepting an opponents position temporarily for the sake of argument. In other
words, Elias is addressing these people based upon their belief; although they
believed in a multiplicity of gods with creative powers, they still acknowledged Allah

16

as the Supreme Being and ultimate creator. That is similar to the admission of the
pagan Arabs:
=y9$# y9$# s)n=yz 9)us9 uF{$#u Nuy9$# t,n=y{ tF9r'y s9u
And if you should ask them, Who has created the heavens and the earth? they
would surely say, They were created by the Exalted in Might, the Knowing.
(43:9)
A similar use of temporary acceptance of an opponents position can be found in
Abrahams statements in Soorah al-Anaam:
So when the night covered him [with darkness], he saw a star. He said, This is
my lord. But when it set, he said, I love not those that set [i.e. disappear].
And when he saw the moon rising, he said, This is my lord. But when it set,
he said, Unless my Lord guides me, I will surely be among the people gone
astray.
And when he saw the sun rising, he said, This is my lord; this is greater. But
when it set, he said, O my people indeed I am free from what you associate
with Allah.
Indeed, I have turned my face [i.e. self] toward He who created the heavens and
the earth, inclining toward truth, and I am not of those who associate others with
Allah. (6:76-79)
In these verses, beginning from the peoples own assertions, Abraham presents a
picture of his dissatisfaction as the only logical conclusion one could reach, in order
to show them the futility of their false objects of worship.
That this is the correct interpretation of this passage is indicated by 6:83, in which
Allah says:
%s
4 ?n
t
z
t / ) $!
y o ?s #u $! u F f
m
7
y = ? u
And that was Our [conclusive] argument which We gave Abraham against his
people.
C.f. Fakhr al-Raazee, Mafaatih al-Ghaib, and Muhammad al-Ameen ibn Abdillaah
al-Uramee al-Hararee, Hadaaiq al-Rooh wa al-Rayhaan, (Beirut: Dar Tooq alNajaah, 2001, 19:27.)
And Allah knows best.
The Authenticity Of The Qurans Preservation.
The Quran reached us by a process of transmission called tawaatur. A report
of that nature is called mutawaatir.

17

Definition of mutawaatir: A report based on sensory perception conveyed by so many

people at every stage of the process of transmission that it is impossible they could
have conspired to tell a lie.
Masrooq narrated, We used to go to 'Abdullaah ibn 'Amr and talk to him.
One day we mentioned 'Abdullaah ibn Mas'ood. He said, You mentioned a man I
have never stopped loving since I heard Allaahs Messenger () say, Learn the
Quran from four persons: Ibn Umm 'Abd [i.e. 'Abdullaah ibn Mas'ood]he started
with him5and Mu'aath ibn Jabal,6 Ubayy ibn Ka'b and Saalim, the freed slave of
Aboo Huthayfah.7
Anas mentioned that four persons memorized the whole Quran during the
lifetime of Allaahs Messenger (), all of them from the Ansaar: Mu'aath ibn Jabal,
Ubayy ibn Ka'b, Zayd ibn Thaabit and Aboo Zayd.8
Anas hadeeth has been misunderstood by some to limit the number of
memorizers to these four. This cant be right because narration no. 6024 mentions the
names of a number of the Muhaajiroon as well. And there is evidence of others having
memorized the whole Quran too. Aboo Bakr was chosen by the Prophet to lead
salaah when he was too sick to do so, and he stipulated that the person who knows the
most Quran should be the imaam.9
'Abdullaah ibn 'Amr would recite the whole Quran in Tahajjud on a weekly
basis.10 Seventy men who had memorized the whole Quran died at the ambush of
Bir Ma'oonah during the Prophets lifetime.11 Seventy men who had memorized the
whole Quran died at the Battle of Yamaamah less than a year after the death of the
Prophet ().12
The men Anas mentioned may have been the ones who personally told him
they had done so or the ones who came to his mind when he made the statement; or
they were the closest to him or the most famous.13 The number of qurraa exploded
during the lifetime of the Sahaabah after the death of the Prophet . When Aboo
Moosaa al-Ash'aree was governor of Basrah he collected approximately 300 of its

Although he started with him, the Prophet () mentioned in an authentic hadeeth that Ubayy ibn Ka'b was the
best reciter among his Companions. Sunan Ibn-I-Majah, 1:86, no. 154; authenticated in Saheeh al-Jaami' asSagheer, 1:216, no. 895.
6
The Prophet () said about him that he was the most knowledgeable of his followers about what is lawful and
unlawful. Saheeh al-Jaami' as-Sagheer, 1:216, no. 895. He reported 156 hadeeths from the Prophet (), of which
six were collected by al-Bukhaaree or Muslim. Al-Mufhim, 6:377.
7
Sahih Muslim, no. (6024). [The no. is according to Siddiqis English trans.] There were many other
Companions who memorized the Quraan in the Prophets lifetime, but these were among the most accomplished,
and they specialized in teaching recitation.
8

Sahih Muslim, no. (6029).

Sahih Muslim, nos. 832, 1417, 1420.
10
Sahih Muslim, no. 2587-8.
11
Sahih Muslim, nos. 1437-8. Sahih Al-Bukhari , nos. 947, 1217, 2836, etc. The numbers given for
Sahih Al-Bukhari are as per the Harf CD.
12
Sahih Al-Bukhari, no. 4311,
13
Al-Mufhim, 6:379-80.
9

18

men who had memorized the entire Quran to give them some advice about the
Quran.14 That was just one city of many cities of the Islamic lands.
Doubts
Orientalists have traditionally focused their attacks on Islams textual sources by
trying to discredit the hadeeth literature. They could and did question the source of
the Quran, i.e., was it from God or just a product of Muhammads mind? But they
found it difficult to challenge the authenticity of the text of the Quran insofar as it
being the same book taught by Muhammad to his companions. That was because it
reached us by tawaatur.
No one would question that JFK was assassinated in Dallas on November 22, 1963.
That is because so many people saw it happen and that news was conveyed to so
many other people until it reached us that it is not possible that they were all liars or
suffering from a delusion. And despite some conspiracy theorists claims to the
contrary, the fact that three astronauts from Apollo 11 landed on the moon in 1969 is
also established by tawaatur. Although we were not there in person to see it, and
although it is conceivable that it could have been staged in a desert somewhere in the
world, there were so many people working for NASA and so many neutral and hostile
nations tracking the Apollo spaceship in its way to the moon, the fact that no one of
credibility has challenged the official version of this event, should be sufficient to
dispel any doubts about it having happened.
A new generation of Orientalists have launched an assault on the authenticity
of the Quran. The dean of this school is John Wansbrough, formerly of the
University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies.15 Wansbrough
applied an entire arsenal of what he called the "instruments and techniques" of
biblical criticism form criticism, source criticism, redaction criticism, and much
more to the Koranic text. He concluded that the Koran evolved only gradually in
the seventh and eighth centuries, during a long period of oral transmission.16
One of his students was Patricia Crone, currently based at the Institute for Advanced
Study, in Princeton, New Jersey. She co-wrote a book called Hagarism: The Making
of the Islamic World (1977), in which she says:
There is no hard evidence for the existence of the Koran in any form before the
last decade of the seventh century.
Mecca was not the initial Islamic sanctuary: [The evidence] points
unambiguously to a sanctuary in north-west Arabia ... Mecca was secondary.
The Arab conquests preceded the institutionalization of Islam. "The Jewish
messianic fantasy was enacted in the form of an Arab conquest of the Holy Land.

14

15

Sahih Muslim, no. 2286.

Wansbrough's two main works -- Quranic Studies: Sources and Methods of

Scriptural Interpretation (1977) and The Sectarian Milieu: Content and Composition
of Islamic Salvation History (1978).
16

Atlantic Monthly

19

The idea of the hijra, or the migration of Muhammad and his followers from
Mecca to Medina in 622, may have evolved long after Muhammad died. "No
seventh-century source identifies the Arab era as that of the hijra.
The term "Muslim" was not commonly used in early Islam ("There is no good
reason to suppose that the bearers of this primitive identity called themselves
'Muslims' [but] sources do ... reveal an earlier designation of the community [which]
appears in Greek as 'Magaritai' in a papyrus of 642, and in Syriac as 'Mahgre' or
'Mahgraye' from as early as the 640s").

The methodology of such critics is based on a wholesale rejection of Muslim

historical sources. Anything the Muslims transmitted is unacceptable to them because
they claim that it is all fabrication. A careful study of hadeeth methodology shows us
how farfetched that presumption is. The Muslim scholars transmitted all the reports in
circulation among them, even reports that posed problems to their tenets. But they
established a rigorous methodology for evaluating the accuracy of those reports.
A stir was created a few years ago in Orientalist circles by the discovery of
some ancient scraps of ancient Quranic manuscripts in a mosque in Yemen. The
Atlantic Monthly relates it thus:
In 1972, during the restoration of the Great Mosque of Sana'a, in Yemen,
laborers working in a loft between the structure's inner and outer roofs stumbled
across a remarkable gravesite, although they did not realize it at the time. Their
ignorance was excusable: mosques do not normally house graves, and this site
contained no tombstones, no human remains, no funereal jewelry. It contained
nothing more, in fact, than an unappealing mash of old parchment and paper
documents damaged books and individual pages of Arabic text, fused
together by centuries of rain and dampness, gnawed into over the years by rats
and insects. Intent on completing the task at hand, the laborers gathered up the
manuscripts, pressed them into some twenty potato sacks, and set them aside on
the staircase of one of the mosque's minarets, where they were locked away
and where they would probably have been forgotten once again, were it not for
Qadhi Isma'il al-Akwa', then the president of the Yemeni Antiquities Authority,
who realized the potential importance of the find.
Al-Akwa' sought international assistance in examining and preserving the
fragments, and in 1979 managed to interest a visiting German scholar, who in
turn persuaded the German government to organize and fund a restoration
project. Soon after the project began, it became clear that the hoard was a
fabulous example of what is sometimes referred to as a "paper grave" in this
case the resting place for, among other things, tens of thousands of fragments
from close to a thousand different parchment codices of the Koran, the Muslim
holy scripture. In some pious Muslim circles it is held that worn-out or damaged
copies of the Koran must be removed from circulation; hence the idea of a
grave, which both preserves the sanctity of the texts being laid to rest and
ensures that only complete and unblemished editions of the scripture will be
read.
Some of the parchment pages in the Yemeni hoard seemed to date back to the
seventh and eighth centuries A.D., or Islam's first two centuries they were

20

fragments, in other words, of perhaps the oldest Korans in existence. What's

more, some of these fragments revealed small but intriguing aberrations from
the standard Koranic text. Such aberrations, though not surprising to textual
historians, are troublingly at odds with the orthodox Muslim belief that the
Koran as it has reached us today is quite simply the perfect, timeless, and
unchanging Word of God.
The German who worked on the preservation project said, So many Muslims
have this belief that everything between the two covers of the Koran is just
God's unaltered word. They like to quote the textual work that shows that the
Bible has a history and did not fall straight out of the sky, but until now the
Koran has been out of this discussion. The only way to break through this wall
is to prove that the Koran has a history too. The Sana'a fragments will help us to
do this.
Muslim response:
Nowhere in this entire article or in any of the articles that I have seen about
this issue, have they mentioned a single concrete example of a discrepancy. They
merely quote one Orientalist after another making statements of opinion without
evidence. Then they quote Orientalists with Muslim names to make it sound like these
views are shared by Muslims. However, the people they quote, such as Muhammad
Arkoun and Nasir Abu Zaid, are the products of Orientalist schools, and some have
been declared disbelievers in courts of law. The fact that there are slight textual
variants between the six mus-hafs that 'Uthmaan had ordered copied is a fact that has
been acknowledged by the Muslim experts in the field down through the ages. You
can open virtually any famous tafseer book and find references to the variant
recitations for any given verse. But those variants are not contradictory, and in fact
expand the meanings.
The fact remains that the Quran was memorized and conveyed by too many
people to allow for doubt about its authenticity. And if the Quran developed over
centuries, as Wansbrough claims, how does he explain the behavior of the Islamic
sects. It is well known that the Khawaarij were a full-blown sect by the middle of
'Alees caliphate, and he died around 40 AH. The ideas of the Sheeah had already
manifested during 'Uthmaans caliphate with the preaching of 'Abdullaah ibn Saba, a
Yemeni Jew who accepted Islam in order to subvert it from within.
'Alee ordered him and his followers to be executed when they refuse to retract
their claim that he was God incarnate. The Qadarees, who denied Allahs
predestination of events, had appeared during the lifetime of 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar, as
is clear from the opening hadeeth of Sahih Muslim. Many other sects sprang up to
oppose the views of the early sects with their own diametrically opposed views. Many
of these sects fabricated hadeeths, but they all referred to the same Quran to support
their views. That is because they couldnt hope to get away with fabrications of
Quran. It was too widely known, and its contents were precisely defined.
There is a report that a Mu'tazilee, who opposed the idea that a human could
hear the speech of Allah, came to a reciter of Quran and offered to bribe him if he
would change one vowel in verse 164 of Soorah an-Nisaa:

21

 $V=6s? 4y !$# z=x.u

and Allah spoke directly to Moses
By changing the dammah on the name of Allah to a fat-hah, the meaning changes to
Moses spoke directly to Allah. However, the reciter pointed out to him that even if
he changed that, the verse in Soorah al-Araaf could not be fiddled with in that
manner:
s9) r& r& b>u t$s% /u y=x.u $uFs)9 4y u!%y` $s9u
And when Moses came to Our appointed tryst and his Lord had spoken to him,
he said, My Lord! Show me (Your Self), that I may gaze upon You. (7:143)
To return to the topic of the Qurans uniqueness:
It is characterized by great clarity in the world view it presents:
Nature of God
Nature of human being
Nature of kuffaar
Nature of hypocrites
The Miraculous Nature of Legislation in the Quran
Shaykh Mahmood Zayn writes:
The legislative miracle is manifest in the following three matters:
1.
the admission of academics throughout the world
2.
the admission of legal experts throughout the world
3.
the fact that it does not need to be modified, as opposed to all the
other legal systems in the world
As for the admission of academics throughout the world regarding it, it
is manifested in all the masters and PhD theses written about the Islamic
Sharee'ah in universities around the world, not simply in universities of the
Islamic world, but also in the universities of the West, a civilization opposed
to both the Islamic world and Islam as a religion. The same phenomenon is
found in many non-Western countries in the rest of the world. This
admission is of an implicit nature from all these parties, even Islams
opponents, that the Islamic Sharee'ah deserves to be studied at the highest
levels of academic inquiry. The question arises again: Could an illiterate
man from a city of illiterates in an illiterate nation produce such a book?
As for the admission of legal experts throughout the world regarding it,
it is manifested in the resolutions of various international legal conferences:

22

a.
The conference on comparative law held at the Hague in 1356 AH
(August, 1937 CE) approved the following resolution: The Islamic
Sharee'ah is to be recognized as one of the sources of common law.17
b.
The international conference of lawyers held at the Hague from the
15th to the 22nd of August, 1938 approved the following resolution: In
consideration of the Islamic legal codes flexibility and its importance, the
international lawyers guild must undertake and encourage comparative
studies of this legal system.18 Of course, the Quran is the basis of the
entire Islamic legal system.
c.
The International Association for Comparative Legal Studies held
a conference at the law college of the University of Paris on July 2nd, 1951
entitled Islamic Law Week. One of the resolutions they approved was the
following: The principles of Islamic jurisprudence have legal and
legislative value that no one can dispute.The conferees would like the
Islamic Law Week to continue its activities on an ongoing yearly basis.19
Is it imaginable that a single person, no matter how learned he was,
could have composed this entire Islamic legal system, which even its
opponents have acknowledged in these resolutions? So how about an
illiterate man from a city of illiterates in an illiterate nation? Or is it
revelation from the Omniscient, the Wise?
As for the fact that it does not need to be modified, as opposed to all the
other legal systems in the world, this is something that any educated person,
no matter how simple his educational attainments, can check out. All other
legal systems are in need of modifications in accord with changing
conditions, changing peoples and changing nations.
An obvious example of this is Roman law, which the Romans refined
over a period of centuries and which became the source of law for the
Western world. It is constantly being modified, so that the difference
between the present legal systems and their source is huge, just as there are
major differences between all the current legal systems derived from it.
Ongoing modification is a recognized feature of this legal system
throughout the world.
However, the Islamic legal system, whose foundations are laid down in
the Quran, remained dominant in Islamic societies for thirteen centuries
without need for any modification, except on the basis of principles and
rules contained in itself. In such cases the modifications were on the basis of
what the scholars discovered in it, not by changes brought to it from outside
it, for it itself is not in need of change, despite changing times, peoples and
national entities. It has remained as a fount of security and peace for the
Muslims except when rulers and judges go against it.

17

Quoted in al-Madkhal al-Fiqhee al-'Aam, by Prof. Mustafaa az-Zarqaa, 1:307, Daar al-Qalam.
Ibid.
19
Ibid, 1:23-4.
18

23

The lingering traces of that security can still be found in the Islamic
lands even after the rule of Islamic Sharee'ah has been dismantled in them.
The extent of security enjoyed by any particular land is in direct proportion
to how close its system and the customs of its people are to the Islamic
Sharee'ah, and how well they understand its teachings and incorporate them
into their behavior and character.
Consider this: All the other legal systems in the world are in need of
constant modification, despite their reliance upon legal studies of various
types conducted in their universities, and despite consultations carried out
by legal experts in specialized legal panels.
On the other hand, the Islamic legal system doesnt require any
modification, except by way of its own principles, laws, and axioms; yet this
system was brought by an illiterate man from a city of illiterates in an
illiterate nation? Is that conceivable unless the one who brought it was a
messenger supported and guided by Allah, the Exalted?20
The Literary Style of The Quran:
Direct speech: Most people who accept Islam mention that one of the things that
struck them was how the Quran addresses the reader directly and seems to know your
weaknesses. One feels like the prisoner caught by the beam of a searchlight from
which there is nowhere to hide.
Looping: The structure of the Quran is, no doubt, unusual. The same story may
be repeated twenty or thirty times in different places. Laws regarding divorce and
other issues are scattered throughout it in different soorahs. There is something almost
like stream of consciousness about it. This has led many to dismiss it as rambling and
haphazard. One frequently hears that the soorahs are a hodgepodge of unrelated
topics and that the only organizing principle of the soorahs is length, from longest to
shortest, and that even that principle is not systematically applied.
However, there are certain clear intellectual benefits to be derived from
pondering the Qurans organization deeply. The fact that the same stories keep
coming around points to the cyclical nature of history, that the particular individuals
keep changing, but the struggle between those who submit themselves to the will of
the Creator and those who rebel against Him is unending. As Aboo Sufyaan said in
describing the war between the Prophet and the pagans of Makkah:

The war between us is give and take (a seesaw struggle).

The presence of laws in a scattered fashion throughout the Quran impels the
reader to become a researcher. The Quran invites the reader not to merely recite it but
20

Dr. Mahmood Ahmad Zayn, Tayseer al-Bayaan 'an I'jaaz al-Quran,

Dubai: The Institute for Research in Islamic Studies and Revival of Islamic Heritage, 1423 AH (2002
CE) pp. 17-22.

24

to ponder its meanings, as it also invites us to study Allahs creation. One aspect of
research is gathering evidence and a second aspect is systematizing it and analyzing it.
The structure of the Quran thus trains the reader in observation, the extraction of
evidence, synthesis and analysis.
Another important point is that what may at first glance seem to be digressions
are actually relevant. For example, in the middle of a passage about the laws of
divorce in Soorah al-Baqarah, we find the following verse:
tFs% ! (#%u 4s9$# 4n=9$#u Nun=9$# n?t (#ym
(238 )
Be guardians of your prayers, and of the midmost prayer, and stand up with
devotion to Allah. (2:238)
This is relevant to the issue, because divorce is a process that involves conflict,
emotional distress and the temptation to take more than ones right from the other
spouse or harm them to get even for pain inflicted. The only protection against that is
taqwaa, God-consciousness, and the most important practice for instilling that is
guarding ones salaah.
Likewise, in the middle of a lengthy passage analyzing the Battle of Uhud and the
lessons to be learned from that defeat, we find the following verse:
ts=? 3=ys9 !$# (#)?$#u ( Zxy $Zyr& (##t/h9$# (#=2's? (#t#u %!$# $yr't
(130 )
O you who believe! Devour not usury, doubling and quadrupling (the sum lent).
Observe your duty to Allah, that you may be successful. (3:130)
This is part of a three-verse digression on the issue of usury. Shaykh 'Atiyyah ibn
Saalim, pointed out that there is a direct relevance to the two issues. It takes money to
fight a war. The temptation for quick money by any means is something that Muslims
must beware of, because it will ultimately be a cause for the loss of Allaahs help,
which will result in defeat in this world and punishment in the hereafter.
For a lengthy discussion of Coherence in the Quran, see Mustansir Mirs
book of the same title.
Inimitability of the Qur'an
I'jaz literally means "the rendering incapable, powerless". Mu'jizah means miracle.
Both terms, i'jaz and mu'jizah come from the same verbal root. The Qur'an is a
mu'jizah because it renders human beings helpless of producing the like of it.
s9u &#W/ t?'t #u)9$# #xy V/ (#?'t r& #n?t f9$#u M}$# MyytG_$# 9 %
(088 )#Zs <t79 t/ %x.

25

Say: Verily, though mankind and the jinn should assemble to produce the like of
this Quran, they could not produce the like thereof though they were helpers
one of another.
) !$# i FstG$# t (#$#u ;MtutI &#Vi 9u y/ (#?'s % ( 1utI$# 9)t r&
(13 )t%| F.
Or they say, He has invented it. Say: Then bring ten soorahs, the like thereof,
invented, and call on everyone you can beside Allah, if you are truthful!
i .u!#yy (#$#u &#Vi i ;u/ (#?'s $t7t 4n?t $u9t $i 5=u F2 )u
(23 )t%| F. ) !$#
And if you are in doubt about what We have sent down upon Our servant
(Muhammad), then produce a soorah the like thereof, and call upon your
witnesses21 beside Allah if you are truthful.
Some scholars said that the miracle of the Qur'an consisted of Allah's turning the
competent away from taking up the challenge of imitating it. This process is called
sarfah ("turning away"). The implication of sarfah is that the Qur'an otherwise could
be imitated. The mainstream scholars rejected sarfah because of four obvious
weaknesses:
It contradicts the verse of the Qur'an stating that neither jinn nor human can
rival the Qur'an.
It makes a miracle of something other than the Qur'an, i.e., the sarfah, the
prohibition from production, and not the Qur'an itself.
It ignores the well-known fact that the Arabs of Muhammad's time had
acknowledged the superior quality of speech of the Qur'an;

Ibn 'Abbaas related that al-Waleed ibn Mugheerah came to the Prophet , who recited
the Quran to him. It seemed to affect him. [He softened to it] Aboo Jahl heard about
that and went to his uncle, informing him that his people wanted to collect some
money for him. Waleed asked why. He replied, To give it to you, for you came to
Muhammad to hear what he had with him.
He told him, The Quraysh already know that I am one of the richest among them.
Aboo Jahl said, Then say something that will convince your people that you object to
him. He responded, And what will I say? By Allah, There is no man more
knowledgeable about poetry than me, no one more knowledgeable about rajz nor
qaseedah nor the poetry of the jinn.
By Allah, what he says resembles none of that. By Allah, the speech he speaks has a
sweetness to it, and it is imbued with elegance. It is fruitful from on top and lushly
watered from below. It is elevated and nothing will be over it. It demolishes what is
21

i.e., supporters

26

beneath it. Aboo Jahl said, Your people will not be satisfied with you until you say
something [negative] about it. He said, Let me think.
After thinking about it, he said, This is magic which he receives from someone else.
Upon this the verses were revealed, Leave Me (to deal) with him whom I created
lonely[And then bestowed upon him ample means, And sons abiding in his
presence And made (life) smooth for him. Yet he desires that I should give more.
Nay! For indeed, he has been stubborn to Our revelations. On him I will impose
a fearful doom. For indeed, he did consider; then he planned (Self-)destroyed
is he, how he planned! Again (self-)destroyed is he, how he planned! Then he
looked, Then he frowned and showed displeasure. Then he turned away in pride
And said,
|u;9$# s% ) !#xy ) rO t ) !#xy ) t$s)s
This is nothing else than magic from of old. This is nothing else than speech of
mortal man. (Soorah al-Mudath-thir 74:11-25)22

It asserts that the Arabs were out of their minds. This doctrine, in fact, implies
that they could have produced a rival to the Qur'an, but simply decided against
doing so. It effectively calls into question either their motives or their sanity.

The challenge of the Quran for man to produce its like is not, as some
suppose, merely like the uniqueness of Shakespeare, Shelly, Keats, or Homer. The
Qur'an differentiated itself in its very structure. Poetry in Arabic falls into sixteen
different "Bihar" (literally "Seas", so called because of the way the poem moves,
according to its rhythmic patterns), and other than that they have the speech of
soothsayers, rhyming prose (saj'), and normal speech. The Quran's form did not fit
into any of these categories. It was this that made the Quran inimitable, and left the
pagan Arabs at a loss as to how they might combat it.
There is also a talk by Christian missionaries that there are grammatical 'errors' in the
Qur'an. In retort, it can be mentioned that the Arab contemporaries of Muhammad(P)
were most erudite and proficient in the idiosyncrasies of Arabic speech; and hence, if
they had found any grammatical 'errors' in the Qur'an, they would have revealed it
when Muhammad(P) challenged them with to do so. Therefore, since they did not take
up his challenge on this issue, we can rest assured that no such grammatical 'errors'
exist in the Qur'an.

22

HK 2:550.

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