Similarities between beginnings of Surah Israa’ & al-Kahf

Surah Isra and Surah Kahf are the 17th and 18th Surahs in the Quran. Isra has 111 ayaat, and Kahf has 110 ayaat.

Surah Isra begins with:

سبحان الذي أسرى بعبده

Glory to (Allah) Who did take His servant for a Journey by night from the Sacred Mosque to the farthest Mosque…

And Surah Kahf begins with:

الحمد لله الذي أنزل على عبده

   Praise be to Allah, Who has sent to His Servant the Book…

Notice the similarities and differences here? Both are glorifying and praising Allah, and both are discussing revelation.

In Surah Isra, the Prophet (sal-Allahu alayhi was-Sallam) is ascending up to receive the revelation, and in Surah Kahf the revelation is being sent down.

Both of them have the word ‘abdihi [His slave].

The Story of Iblis (in Surah Israa’ & al Kahf)

In the middle of both surah’s [Israa’ & Kahf] is an ayah/verse talking about the story of Iblis [satan] refusing to prostrate to Adam (alayhis Salam).

In Surah Isra [17:61] the ayah is as follows:

And (remember) when We said to the angels: “Prostrate unto Adam.” They prostrated except Iblis (Satan). He said: “Shall I prostrate to one whom You created from clay?”

In Surah Kahf [18:50] it reads:

And (remember) when We said to the angels; “Prostrate to Adam.” So they prostrated except Iblis (Satan). He was one of the jinns; he disobeyed the Command of his Lord.

This is an example of something that some Non-Muslims may claim is an incoherency. Why is the same story split up into different places with different details? Good question.

Let’s take a quick step back. We know that Surah Isra is also sometimes called Surah Bani Israa’eel [children of Israel/the Jews]. It also contains a series of ayaat that Ibn Abbas(ra) mentioned were similar to the 10 commandments given to Musa (alayhis Salam). So this surah is primarily addressing Bani Isra’eel, who had knowledge but became arrogant.

Surah Kahf is addressing the Christians. We can see this from ayah 18:4, “And to warn those who say, ‘Allah has begotten a son (or offspring or children).’” The Christians disobeyed their Lord.

So when the surah is addressing those who were afflicted with arrogance (i.e. the Jews), the part of the story mentioned is the one pertaining to them [i.e. Iblis did not prostrate to someone Allah ordered him to prostrate to, out of thinking that he is superior. Similarly, the Jews rejected Prophet Muhammad while thinking thinking they are superior]. 

When the surah is addressing a different audience (i.e. Christians), it uses the part of the story most pertinent to them [i.e. Iblis disobeyed the Command of his Lord, and many Christians disobey their Lord while still thinking their on the right path]. 

Furthermore, Allah tells us in Surah al Kahf that Iblis was of the Jinn. This clears the doubts of Christians who say that Iblis was a ‘fallen angel’. 

SubhanAllah!!

http://muslimmatters.org/2007/05/25/quranic-incoherence-2-miracles-respond/

Some gems from Divine Speech!

One of the ideas of the class is to show the perfect and always-consistent positioning of each word in the Qur’an. Each word means precisely what it’s supposed to in that context, there’s no mismatch. And the consistency of those words being used whenever a similar context arises is amazing and beyond human capacity. For example, one could ask why is the word “Yathrib” used at Ahzab:13 whereas in other places it’s always “Madinah” (e.g. Munafiqoon:8)? Even more intriguingly, this surah is Madinan, and the word Madinah is used later on in the same surah at verse 60! One of the wisdoms for doing so (and Allah knows best) is that Madinah is a nickname (short for Madinat-un-Nabi – The City of the Prophet) given after Hijrah, and so the use of the the term “Madinah” by people signifies allegiance to the Prophet (saws). Now if we look closely at Ahzab:13 we see that it captures a part of the saying of the munafiqoon at the time – they’re exposing their hypocrisy at Khandaq by calling on the people of Yathrib (not Madinah!) to give up and go home. These were those who had lost their claim to power in the city as a result of Hijrah, and are using old associations to rouse the people, thereby making their nifaaq clear. So the use of Yathrib is not a mistake or slip-up as people might assume, it’s actually perfectly positioned.

Another example of word choice is with the plural words for blessing at Nahl:121 and Luqman:20. In Surah Luqman, the word used is “ni`am” which is a stronger plural form of “ni`amah”, and in Surah Nahl it is “an`um”, which is still plural but a weaker form. Now if we look at the context, in Surah Luqman Allah SWT is talking about how He SWT has perfected and endowed His MANY blessings upon us. In Surah Nahl however, the context is about how we as humans are unable to account in thankfulness for even one blessing (and the fact that Ibrahim (as) did so for even a few is remarkable). So Allah blesses us with “ni`am” (many) but our gratitude is only for “an`um” (few).

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Surahs Isra’ and Kahf are very closely intertwined. In fact according to one of Amin Ahsan Islahi’s theories (author of Tadabbur-e-Qur’an) all 114 surahs can be divided into consecutive pairs, with such connections between each pair. Both talk about how the angels and Iblees were told to prostrate before Adam (as), but Iblees refused. Now Surah Isra (or Bani Israeel) is about the refusal of the Jews to accept Muhammad (saws) as a Prophet because he wasn’t “one of them.” The reason given for Iblees’ refusal in that surah is that he claimed he was superior because he was made of fire and Adam (as) of clay. So Allah SWT is drawing a parallel between the two refusals (being Arab vs. being Bani Israeel and being made of fire vs. clay) and warning the Jews of Iblees’ fate. In Surah Kahf, partly directed at the Christians (toward the beginning Allah SWT destroys their argument of having taken a son (audhubillah)) the reason given in Surah Kahf is that he was of the jinn and he disobeyed the command of Allah (fa-fasaqa `an amri rabbih). And this is a warning to the Christians who made one into three and who mistakenly believe they’re already saved – they need to hear what happened to the Disobeyer who also abandoned Allah’s Command. Also it refutes their theology of Iblees being a fallen angel – this verse categorically states he was of the jinn.

Another fascinating connection in those two surahs: they begin respectively by saying that the Prophet (saws) was raised up and the Book came down. And if you look at the beginnings and ends of both surahs, they cover all four popular dhikrs: at the beginning of Surah Isra you have tasbiH and at the end you have takbir, and with Surah Kahf you start off with taHmid and end with tahlil!

There are more that Br. Nouman talks about in class, but the point is that these are intricate connections that we can only appreciate superficially – imagine a human being actually constructing them. It’s just not possible.

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Consider Hadid:20.

Know that the life of this world is only play and amusement, pomp and mutual boasting among you, and rivalry in respect of wealth and children. (It is) as the likeness of vegetation after rain, thereof the growth is pleasing to the tillers; afterwards it dries up and you see it turning yellow; then it becomes straw. But in the Hereafter (there is) a severe torment (for the disbelievers – evildoers), and (there is) forgiveness from Allâh and (His) Good Pleasure (for the believers – good-doers). And the life of this world is only a deceiving enjoyment.

We’ve all read this verse and moved on. At least I didn’t pay much attention to it. But if you think about it, this one verse concisely summarizes and sums up our entire lives. And it’s not a pretty picture. Consider our lives – we start as toddlers. This verse starts with play (la`ibun), which is what toddlers are engrossed in, it’s most important to them. Then when we get a little older we need entertainment to keep us busy – amusement (lahwun). A little later in our teens we are obsessed with pomp, or appearance and how things look (zeenatun). Then as we get independent and make money we deal with urges to show off (boasting – tafaakhur). Then we get married and have kids (rivalry in wealth and children – takaathur fi al-amwaal wa al-aulaad). In just a few words, Allah SWT has compressed our entire thought process throughout our lives! Then He (SWT) makes an analogy of it in the same verse. Heavy rain impresses the farmer as he is burying seeds, green shoots make him happy and make him feel like he’s close to achieving something big, and then the crop matures. But why doesn’t the farmer cut it and harvest it? Why does he watch it turn yellow? It’s because we humans run after a lot of things, but when we get them we immediately lose interest most of the time and newer shinier things take our attention. Then those crops turn into straw and crust and eventually become worthless. And so this is Allah SWT telling us that nothing in this life will make us content and that only Allah can give us true contentment (riDwaan). And the verse finishes – and what is this life except a deceptive enjoyment?

Subhanallah … one verse!

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I’ll finish with the example from Surah Yusuf. That one really blew my mind. There are a number of noteworthy connections to be drawn from the story of Yusuf (as) as detailed in that surah but consider this. This is the layout of the plot:

1 – Yusuf (as) has a dream
2 – His brothers plot against him
3 – His owner’s wife attempts to seduce him
4 – Her friends attempt to seduce him
5 – He (as) is imprisoned
6 – The king has a dream
6 – The king’s dream is interpreted
5 – Yusuf (as) is released from prison
4 – The ladies confess
3 – His former owner’s wife confesses
2 – His brothers learn their lesson
1 – Yusuf (as)’s dream is interpreted and realized

This is spread out in exactly this order over 100 ayaat. Problems are introduced and solved in reverse symmetric order. Remember, these are verses of speech. Qur’an wasn’t revealed as a book. It was revealed in parts over 23 years! The thing is, humans just don’t think like this! You need a stack to process a story and say it like this.

To have this kind of consistency in speech over 23 years, forming what would later be compiled as a book and analyzed as a book is beyond human capacity. Armies of the best authors couldn’t do it, even with the luxury of being able to make mistakes the first few times and correct them.

http://fikrpad.wordpress.com/2010/03/03/some-gems-from-divine-speech/

Quranic Incoherence? 2 Miracles Response.

Just read this on *muslimmatters.org and thought it was amazing.

Quranic Incoherence? 2 Miracles Response

One of the claims brought about against the Quran is the claim that it is incoherent, and the stories are scattered around. I wanted to share some notes on a few things that Nouman Ali Khan (one of the instructors at Bayyinah Institute) touched upon in this regards that I thought were absolutely beautiful. The first miracle is amazing, but the second one I mention here completely blew my mind.

Rhyming Scheme

The first miracle is regarding the rhyme scheme used in the Quran. In Surah Maryam the rhyming pattern is very distinct and consistent throughout the beginning of the Surah all the way up until the point that it begins to address Isa (alayhis Salam). After that part is finished and it starts talking about Ibrahim (alayhis Salam) it returns back to the original pattern.

Part of the characteristics of the Quran is that it is something meant to be recited and heard by the people. When someone is listening to this, and they notice an abrupt change they will automatically pay more attention. The rhyme scheme is not beautification only, but it serves a very real purpose in drawing attention to a very important point in the Surah.

Coherency between Surah Isra and Surah Kahf

Surah Isra and Surah Kahf are the 17th and 18th Surahs in the Quran. Isra has 111 ayaat, and Kahf has 110 ayaat.

Surah Isra begins with:

سبحان الذي أسرى بعبده

And Surah Kahf begins with:

الحمد لله الذي أنزل على عبده

Notice the similarities and differences here. Both are glorifying and praising Allah, and both are discussing revelation. In Surah Isra, the Prophet (sal-Allahu alayhi was-Sallam) is ascending up to receive the revelation, and in Surah Kahf the revelation is being sent down. Both of them have the word ‘abdihi.

In the middle of both surah’s is also an ayah talking about the story of Iblis refusing to prostrate to Adam (alayhis Salam).

In Surah Isra the ayah is as follows:

And (remember) when We said to the angels: “Prostrate unto Adam.” They prostrated except Iblis (Satan). He said: “Shall I prostrate to one whom You created from clay?”

In Surah Kahf it reads:

And (remember) when We said to the angels; “Prostrate to Adam.” So they prostrated except Iblis (Satan). He was one of the jinns; he disobeyed the Command of his Lord.

This is an example of something that some Non-Muslims may claim is an incoherency. Why is the same story split up into different places with different details? Good question.

Let’s take a quick step back. We know that Surah Isra is also sometimes called Surah Bani Israa’eel. It also contains a series of ayaat that Ibn Abbas(ra) mentioned were similar to the 10 commandments given to Musa (alayhis Salam). So this surah is primarily addressing Bani Isra’eel, who had knowledge but became arrogant.

Surah Kahf is addressing the Christians. We can see this from ayah 4, “And to warn those who say, ‘Allah has begotten a son (or offspring or children).’” The Christians disobeyed their Lord.

So when the surah is addressing those who were afflicted with arrogance, the part of the story mentioned is the one pertaining to them. When the surah is addressing a different audience, it uses the part of the story most pertinent to them. SubhanAllah!!

If that was not enough, there is still more (and this is only touching upon a small treasure of the many treasures of the Quran). The second to last ayah in each surah is,

Surah Isra:

Say (O Muhammad SAW): “Invoke Allah or invoke the Most Beneficent (Allah), by whatever name you invoke Him (it is the same), for to Him belong the Best Names…

Surah Kahf:

Say (O Muhammad SAW to mankind). “If the sea were ink for (writing) the Words of my Lord, surely, the sea would be exhausted before the Words of my Lord would be finished, even if we brought (another sea) like it for its aid.”

There are 2 primary ways in which we get to know Allah (Subhanahu wa Ta’ala). First is by His Names and Attributes, and this is mentioned in Surah Isra. The other way is by recognizing Allah by His creation, and this is what is mentioned in Surah Kahf. It is amazing the way that they line up together. These 2 sets of ayaat form a foundation of Tawheed. Knowing and recognizing the Oneness of Allah(swt).

Also His Words actually are manifested in two ways, and both of these meanings are indicated in the verse from Surah Kahf:

1. His Creation (as in how Allah says “kun fa yakoon” i.e. “be and it is”, so His Words are immediately apparent in Creation)
2. His Revelation (as in the Qur’an itself, the literal Word of Allah)

The last ayah in each surah takes it to the next step and gives a protection from shirk. The last ayaat of each surah are as follows,

Surah Isra:

And say: “All the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has not begotten a son (nor an offspring), and Who has no partner in (His) Dominion, nor He is low to have a Wali (helper, protector or supporter). And magnify Him with all the magnificence, [Allahu-Akbar (Allah is the Most Great)].”

Surah Kahf:

Say (O Muhammad SAW): “I am only a man like you. It has been inspired to me that your Ilah (God) is One Ilah (God i.e. Allah). So whoever hopes for the Meeting with his Lord, let him work righteousness and associate none as a partner in the worship of his Lord.”

Lastly, the last ayah of Surah Isra begins with,

وَقُلِ الْحَمْدُ لِلّهِ الَّذِي

And this is exactly what Surah Kahf begins with. When one ponders on this, it is amazing that anyone could then come and make a claim against this book, and surely had it not been from Allah we would have found within it much discrepancy, not the uncovering of gem after gem, jewel after jewel, and miracle after miracle.

*Bonus Miracle

One other thing we discussed in the class was the use of the royal We (nahnu), and proving that it is really not the plural. In the Quran, Allah refers to Himself by using, Nahnu (We), Ana (I), and the pronoun meaning He. If it was truly meant in the sense of the plural, then the pronouns referring back to Allah would also have to be in the plural, but they are not, and are in the singular.

This is just a small point that never crossed my mind before, and I find it to be a much easier (and maybe stronger) answer than trying to always explain the historical etymology of the royal we.