Usool at-Tafseer Part 4 (THE QUR’AAN: THE UNIQUE BOOK) by Dr. Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips
Usool at-Tafseer (The Fundamental Principles of Qur’aanic Interpretation)
Dr. Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips
THE QUR’AAN: THE UNIQUE BOOK.
The word “Qur’aan,” a verbal noun, is equivalent in meaning to “qiraa’ah,” as both come from the verb “qara’a” which means “to read.” That is, Qur’aan literally means “a reading or reciting.”27 However, the term “Qur’aan” has
been historically used specifically to refer to the book which was revealed to Prophet Muhammad (r). The term “Qur’aan” is mentioned in a number of places throughout the book in reference to itself. For example:
“Verily, this Qur’aan guides (humanity) to that which is most just.”28 The name Qur’aan is used to refer to both the Qur’aan as a whole, as in the previously quoted verse; as well as to each verse or group of verses, as in the following verse: “And if the Qur’aan is recited, you should listen to it and be silent, that you may receive mercy.”29
27 Arabic-English Lexicon, vol. 2, p. 2502.
28 Soorah al-Israa’ (17):9.
29 Soorah al-A‘raaf (7):204.
The Book has also been referred to by other names; for example, the Furqaan
(The Distinction): “Blessed is He who revealed the Furqaan to His slave in order that he
may be a warner to all the worlds.”30 and the Thikr, (The Reminder):
“Verily, I revealed the Thikr and verily I will preserve it.”31 The Qur’aan could be defined as Allaah’s words which were revealed in Arabic in a rhythmical form to Prophet Muhammad (r). Its recitation is used in acts of worship and its smallest chapter (soorah) is of a miraculous nature.
The Prophet’s divinely inspired statements which were recorded by his followers are generally referred to as hadeeths. For example, the Prophet’s companion (sahaabee), ‘Umar ibn al-Khattaab, reported that he once said,
“Verily, deeds are (judged) by their intentions.” 32
30 Soorah al-Furqaan (25):1
31 Soorah al-Hijr (15):9.
32 Collected by al-Bukhaaree (Sahih Al-Bukhari, vol. 1, p. 1, no. 1) and Muslim (Sahih Muslim,
vol. 3, p. 1056, no. 4692).
However, in some of his statements, the Prophet (r) attributed what he said to
Allaah; for example, another sahaabee, Aboo Hurayrah, reported that the Prophet
(r) said,
“Allaah, Most High, says, ‘I am as My slave thinks of Me and I am with him when
he remembers me. So if he remembers Me to himself, I will remember him to
Myself and if he remembers Me in a group, I will remember him in a better
group.’ ” 33
In order to distinguish this type of hadeeth from the previous type, it is referred
to as hadeeth qudsee (sacred hadeeth) and the former referred to as hadeeth
nabawee (prophetic hadeeth).
The Qur’aan, however, is not the same as hadeeth qudsee for a number of
reasons. First, the Qur’aan is from Allaah both in its wording and in its meaning,
while in the case of hadeeth qudsee, its meaning is from Allaah but its wording
was the Prophet’s (r). Second, Allaah challenged the Arabs and mankind in
general to produce even a chapter equivalent to one of the Qur’aan’s chapters, and
their inability to do so proves its miraculous nature. This is not so in the case of
hadeeth qudsee. Third, the recitation of the Qur’aan is used in salaah and is itself
considered a form of worship. The Prophet (r) said,
“Whoever reads a letter from the book of Allaah, the Most High, will get a good
deed (recorded for him), and each good deed is worth ten times its value. I am not
only saying that Alif Laam Meem is a letter, but I am also saying that Alif is a
letter, Laam is a letter, and Meem is a letter.” 34
33 Collected by al-Bukhaaree (Sahih Al-Bukhari, vol. 9, pp. 369-70, no. 502) and Muslim (Sahih
Muslim, vol. 4, p. 1408, no. 6471).
34 Reported by Ibn Mas‘ood and collected by at-Tirmithee and Ahmad. See footnote 154, p.75.
However, the recitation of hadeeth qudsee carries none of these properties.35
The Main Theme Not only is the Qur’aan unique among books today in its origin and purity,
but it is also unique in the way it presents its subject matter. It is not a book in the
usual sense of the word wherein there is an introduction, explanation of the
subject, followed by a conclusion. Neither is it restricted to only a presentation of
historical events, problems of philosophy, facts of science or social laws, though
all may be found woven together in it without any apparent connection and links.
Subjects are introduced without background information, historical events are not
presented in chronological order, new topics sometimes crop up in the middle of
another for no apparent reason, and the speaker and those spoken to change
direction without the slightest forewarning.
The reader who is unaware of the Qur’aan’s uniqueness is often puzzled
when he finds it contrary to his understanding of a book in general and a
“religious” book in particular. Hence, the Qur’aan may seem disorganized and
haphazard to him. However, to those who understand its subject matter, aim and
its central theme, the Qur’aan is exactly the opposite. The subject matter of the
Qur’aan is essentially man: man in relation to his Lord and Creator, Allaah; man
in relation to himself; and man in relation to the rest of creation. The aim and
object of the revelations is to invite man to the right way of dealing with his Lord,
with himself, and with creation. Hence, the main theme that runs throughout the
Qur’aan is that God alone deserves worship and, thus, man should submit to
God’s laws in his personal life and in his relationships with creation in general.
Or, in other words, the main theme is a call to the belief in Allaah and the doing
of righteous deeds as defined by Allaah.
If the reader keeps these basic facts in mind, he will find that, from beginning
to end, the Qur’aan’s topics are all closely connected to its main theme and that
the whole book is a well-reasoned and cohesive argument for its theme. The
Qur’aan keeps the same object in view, whether it is describing the creation of
man and the universe or events from human history. Since the aim of the Qur’aan
is to guide man, it states or discusses things only to the extent relevant to this aim
and leaves out unnecessary and irrelevant details. It also repeats its main theme
over and over again in the presentation of each new topic.
35 See Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, p. 15, and Qawaa’id at-Tahdeeth min Funoon Mustalih
al-Hadeeth, p. 56.
In the preface of one of the best orientalist translations of the Qur’aan, the
translator, Arthur John Arberry, writes: “There is a repertory of familiar themes
running through the whole Koran; each Sura36 elaborates or adumbrates37 one or
more—often many—of these. Using the language of music, each Sura is a
rhapsody composed of whole or fragmentary leitmotivs;38 the analogy is
reinforced by the subtly varied rhythmical flow of the discourse.”39
The following four principles should be kept in mind by the new reader of the
Qur’aan if he or she is to avoid unnecessary confusion and disorientation:
1. The book is the only one of its type in the world.
2. Its literary style is quite different from all other books.
3. Its theme is unique.
4.Preconceived notions of a book are only a hindrance to the understanding
of the Qur’aan.40
THE MIRACLE OF THE QUR’AAN
Man has a natural distaste towards submitting to another man unless he is
forced to by the latter’s physical strength or his mental superiority, or if he is
shown feats far beyond the abilities of any man. In the first two cases, he yields
reluctantly, while in the third, he yields because of his belief in a higher force or
power defying all human comparison. Therefore, Allaah favored His messengers
not only with revelation, but also with miracles, clearly proving to the people the
divine origin and truthfulness of their messages. The inability of the people to
imitate the miracles of the prophets made them willingly bear witness to Allaah’s
unity and obey the commandments of the prophets.
Due to the difficulties involved in communication and transportation, the
early prophets were sent only to the people among whom they were raised up.
36 Qur’aanic chapter.
37 Indicate faintly or in outline.
38 Recurring features.
39 The Koran Interpreted, p. 28.
40 These four statements are quoted from Abu’l A‘la Maududi in The Meaning of the Qur’aan, vol.
1, p. 7.
Thus, the miracles which they brought were particularly suited to the areas of
knowledge in which their people excelled in order for the miracles to have the
maximum effect on them. For example, Prophet Moosaa (Moses), may Allaah’s
peace be on him, was raised up among the Egyptians, who were noted for their
mastery of the occult arts, sorcery, and magic. Hence, Allaah gave him the
miracle of being able to place his hand in his cloak and extract a brilliantly
shining hand. And when sorcerers and magicians were gathered to challenge
Prophet Moosaa, and the staffs which they had cast appeared to the audience as
snakes, Allaah turned Prophet Moosaa’s staff into a huge, real snake that
devoured the “snakes” of his opponents. That defeat was sufficient proof for the
magicians and sorcerers, who knew that no one could change the nature of a stick
as Moosaa apparently had done. They fell on their faces in submission and sincere
belief in the God of Moosaa, in spite of the threats on their lives uttered by their
master, the Pharaoh.
Another example is that of Prophet ‘Eesaa (Jesus), who was chosen by Allaah
from among the Jews. The Jews were especially noted for their exceptional
abilities in the field of medicine. Jewish doctors were highly respected and
revered for their seemingly magical ability to mend bones, heal wounds, and cure
the sick. Thus, Allaah favored Prophet ‘Eesaa with the miraculous ability to make
the blind see, the lame walk, and to bring the dead back to life. These abilities
were clearly beyond those of the Jewish doctors of that day, and they knew well
that no regular man could do them. Yet, Allaah gave Prophet ‘Eesaa an even
more dazzling miracle: he was able to mold birds out of clay, breathe on them,
and they would fly away.
Since the Prophet Muhammad (r) was to be the last of the prophets sent not
only to a particular people, but to all of mankind, he was given a miracle which
not only amazed people among whom he was raised, but which would challenge
and amaze the human mind until the last days of this world. Prophet Muhammad
(r), like the other prophets before him, was given a number of other miracles
whose effects were basically limited to the people of his time; for example, the
splitting of the moon upon his tribe’s request for a sign, the outpouring of water
from his hands on one occasion when he and his companions were short of water,
and the phenomenon of pebbles and rocks giving salaams to him (i.e., greeting
him with the phrase: “as-salaamu ‘alaykum,” meaning, “peace be on you”), just
to mention a few.41 However, the miracle of Prophet Muhammad (r) which was
consistent with Allaah’s aid to the prophets before him was a literary miracle.
The Arabs had very little in the way of unique skills or accumulated
knowledge, but they took great pride in their oratory and literary skills. Yearly
contests were held in fairs like that of ‘Ukkaath, in which many lines of speeches
and poetry were recited from memory. Their language had reached its peak of
development, and eloquence was considered the highest quality a man could
possess. In fact, the ten most famous poems were so revered that they were etched
in gold and hung in the Ka‘bah for solemn adoration.42 Consequently, Allaah
revealed to His last prophet a book, beginning some parts with unintelligible
letters like, “Alif Laam Meem” or “Qaaf” or “Noon,” tantalizing the Arab mind,
as if to say, “From these letters which you combine to form your daily
conversations, as well as great works of prose and poetry, is formed a book whose
shortest chapter does not exceed three lines, yet you cannot imitate it, no matter
how hard you try!” Thus, his standing miracle was none other then the Qur’aan
itself, as the Prophet (r) himself stated,
“All prophets were given something which would cause people to believe in them.
The thing which I was given is none other than a revelation (the Qur’aan) which
Allaah revealed to me. So I hope that I will have the most followers among them
on the Day of Judgment.” 43
The Challenge
The Qur’aan is not only unique in the way in which it presents it subject
matter, but it is also unique in that it is a miracle itself. By the term “miracle,” we
mean the performance of a supernatural or extraordinary event which cannot be
duplicated by humans. It has been documented that Prophet Muhammad (r)
41 See Sahih Al-Bukhari, vol. 5, p. 336, no. 473; vol. 6, p. 365, no. 387; and Sahih Muslim, vol. 4,
p. 1230, no. 5654.
42 See The Concise Encyclopaedia of Islam, pp. 277-8.
43 Reported by Aboo Hurayrah and collected by al-Bukhaaree (Sahih Al-Bukhari, vol. 6, p. 474,
no. 504) and Muslim (Sahih Muslim, vol. 1, pp. 90-1, no. 283).
challenged the Arabs to produce a literary work of a similar caliber as the
Qur’aan, but they were unable to do so in spite of their well-known eloquence and
literary powers. The challenge to reproduce the Qur’aan was presented to the
Arabs and mankind in three stages:
1. The Whole Qur’aan:
In the Qur’aan, Allaah commanded the Prophet (r) to challenge all of creation to
create a book of the stature of the Qur’aan,
“Say: ‘If all mankind and the jinn would come together to produce the
like of this Qur’aan, they could not produce its like even though they
exerted all their strength in aiding one another.’ ”44
2. Ten Soorahs:
Next, Allaah made the challenge ostensibly easier by asking those who denied its
divine origin to imitate even ten soorahs of the Qur’aan:
“Or do they say that he has invented it? Say (to them), ‘Bring ten
invented soorahs like it, and call (for help) on whomever you can
beside Allaah, if you are truthful.’ ”45
44 Soorah al-Israa’ (17):88.
45 Soorah Hood (11):13.
This final challenge was to produce even a single soorah to match what is in the
Qur’aan, whose shortest soorah, al-Kawthar, consists of only three verses:
“And if you all are in doubt about what I have revealed to My servant,
bring a single soorah like it, and call your witnesses besides Allaah if
you are truthful.”46
These challenges were not just empty words with no one caring to prove
them wrong. Prophet Muhammad’s (r) call to monotheism, to the abolition of
idolatry in all its forms, and to the equality of slaves and their masters threatened
the whole socio-economic framework of Makkan society in general, and the
position of the ruling Qurayshee tribe from which the Prophet (r) came in
particular. Makkah, the trading center of Arabia, as well as its spiritual center,
desperately wanted to stop the spread of Islaam. Yet all that the Prophet’s
opponents had to do to crush the movement was to make up a single soorah like
any one of those which the Prophet (r) and his followers were reciting to the
people. A number of Qurayshee orators and poets tried to imitate the Qur’aan,
but they failed. They then resorted to offering him vast amounts of wealth, the
position of king over them, and the most noble and beautiful of their women in
exchange for his promise to stop inviting people to Islaam. He responded to them
by reciting the first thirteen verses of Soorah Fussilat, until they asked him to
stop.47 The Quraysh also resorted to torturing their slaves and relatives who had
embraced Islaam in a vain attempt to cause them to revert to paganism. Later
they organized an economic boycott against the Prophet (r), his followers and the
members of his clan, Banoo Haashim, in an attempt to starve them into
submission. But even this plan eventually failed. Finally, they plotted to kill him
46 Soorah al-Baqarah (2):23
47 Collected by al-Haakim, al-Bayhaqee, Aboo Ya‘laa and Ibn Hishaam, and declared hasan by
Ibraaheem al-‘Alee in Saheeh as-Seerah an-Nabaweeyah, p.64.
in his home by sending armed young men from each of the clans of Quraysh in
order that the guilt of his murder be shared by all the clans, making revenge by
the Prophet’s clan impossible.
However, Allaah enabled the Prophet (r) and his followers to flee Makkah
and join a new band of converts who had arisen among the tribes of a city to the
north called Yathrib. Islaam spread rapidly through the clans of Yathrib, and
within a year Muslims became the city’s majority. Prophet Muhammad (r) was
then made the ruler, and the name of the city was changed to Madeenah. Over the
next eight years, the clans of Makkah and its neighboring lands mounted a series
of unsuccessful battle campaigns against the emerging Muslim state in Madeenah,
which ended with the Muslim invasion of Makkah itself.
All of this bloodshed could have been avoided if only the Quraysh and their
allies had been able to produce a mere three lines of poetry or flowing prose
similar to the shortest soorah of the Qur’aan. Hence, there can be no doubt about
the inimitability of the Qur’aan’s literary style, about the miracle of its rhyme and
the marvel of its rhythm.
It has been suggested that the inimitability of the Qur’aan is not necessarily
unique, for great English poets like Shakespeare, Chaucer, or great poets in any
language tend to have distinctly unique styles which set them apart from their
contemporaries. However, if, for example, some leading poet of today were to
make an in-depth study of Shakespeare’s writings and write a sonnet in
Shakespeare’s style in old ink and on old paper, then claim that he had discovered
a lost poem of Shakespeare’s, the literary world would probably accept this claim,
even after careful study. Thus, even the greatest of poets could be imitated, no
matter how unique his style was, just as the famous painters have been imitated.48
The Qur’aan, however, is way above this level, as attempts to forge chapters have
been made throughout the ages, yet none has withstood close scrutiny. And, as
was mentioned before, the incentive to imitate the Qur’aan was more intense
during the time of its revelation when literary skills were at their peak than at any
other time, yet there was no successful attempt.
Other Aspects of the Qur’aan’s miraculous nature
48 In fact, some English scholars consider much of what has been attributed to Shakespeare to have
been written by his contemporary, Christopher Marlowe.
For a scripture to qualify as divinely revealed it must be totally accurate in its
descriptions of reality: the past, the present and the future. The Qur’aan has many
stories about previous prophets and their peoples. Some of these stories have
elements in them that can be checked out for their accuracy.
One example of the Qur’aan’s precision in its historical descriptions is in the
story of Prophet Yoosuf (Joseph), who was sold as a slave in Egypt, but rose to
become an important official in the government, which made it possible for him
to bring his whole family to live there in honor. Most historians agree that the
entry of the Children of Israel into Egypt occurred when the northern half of the
country was ruled by the Hyksos, Semitic invaders who were the first non-
Egyptians to rule that country since the rise of the Old Kingdom. The Qur’aan
always calls the Egyptian ruler who confronted Moses by the title of “Pharaoah.”
Every Egyptian ruler was called by this title starting from the reign of Amenhotep
IV in the 14th century BC, but not before that. Yoosuf lived at least two hundred
years before Amenhotep IV. The Qur’aan consistently refers to the ruler in
Yoosuf’s time, as “al-malik,” the king:
“The king said, ‘Bring him to me.’ ”49
It should be noted that the Bible refers to the ruler of Joseph’s time as “Pharaoah,”
which was an anachronism inserted by the scribes who wrote the books of the Old
Testament centuries after Moses.50
Some critics have seized on certain details to try attack the Qur’aan’s
historical accuracy. A famous example is the statement of her people to Mary (Ar.
Maryam) when she appeared with the baby Jesus after giving birth to him in an
isolated place:
49 Soorah Yoosuf (12):50.
50 Moses and Pharaoah: The Hebrews in Egypt, p. 176.
“O sister of Aaron! Your father was not an evil man nor was your
mother a prostitute!”51
The critics argue that the author confused two historical figures: Mary, the mother
of Jesus, and Miriam, the sister of Aaron. The confusion here is really a result of
their ignorance about how the Arabs use their language. The Qur’aan refers to
Prophet Hood as the brother of ‘Aad:
“And mention the brother of ‘Aad when he warned his people among
the sand dunes.”52
The Arabs refer to tribes by the patriarch from whom they are descended. The
tribe of ‘Aad was descended from a man named ‘Aad. Hood was not literally that
man’s brother, nor was he literally the brother of every member of his tribe, but
this is an expression used by the Arabs to indicate association with a people. Mary
was a descendant of Aaron. That is why she is referred to as the sister of Aaron.
In a similar usage, the New Testament refers to Elizabeth, the mother of John the
Baptist as a daughter of Aaron.53
Predictions about the Future
The Qur’aan accurately predicted the military victory of the Romans
(Byzantines) over the Persians:
51 Soorah Maryam (19):28.
52 Soorah al-Ahqaaf (46):21.
53 Luke 1:5.
The Romans have been defeated in the nearest land; and after their
defeat they will conquer, within a few years.”54
The Arabic word bid‘ is more precise than the English word “few.” Bid‘ is used
for a number between three and ten. The Persians dealt the Romans a crushing
defeat in the year 616 CE, taking away Greater Syria and Egypt from them and
eventually besieging them in their capital of Constantinople. In 622 CE, the
Byzantines won a decisive victory against the Persians at the battle of Issus,
which allowed them to regain all the lands they had lost.55
The Qur’aan also accurately predicted that the Muslims would be able to
enter Makkah peacefully in order to make
‘umrah, the Lesser Pilgrimage.56 The prediction came in the middle of a long
bitter war between the Muslims and the idol worshippers who ruled Makkah. It
also promised the Muslims that if they fulfilled the conditions of complete faith
and good deeds that Allaah would deputize them to rule the world and would
establish their religion and replace the fear they were currently living in with
security.57 That is precisely what happened.
Descriptions of Natural Phenomena
The Qur’aan calls the reader’s attention to numerous natural phenomena
that are indicators of Allaah’s power, wisdom, mercy, etc. As humanity’s
understanding of the workings of the natural has increased, the miraculous nature
of these Qur’aanic descriptions has become manifest. This is not the forum for a
detailed discussion of this issue, but a few examples are mentioned by way of
illustration.
54 Soorah ar-Room (30):2-4
55 See The Holy Qur-an: English Translation of the Meanings and Commentary, pp. 1202-3.
56 Soorah al-Fat-h (48):27.
57 Soorah an-Noor (24):55.
“The heaven I created by might, and, verily, I am expanding it.58
The Arabic word moos‘ioon is an active participle. It indicates an ongoing action
that is occurring at the present time and will continue into the future. It was not
until the invention of the spectrograph and the development of a huge (100 in.
diameter) reflecting telescope that Edward Hubble was able to discover other
galaxies in 1926 and to document in 1927 the red shift of their spectra that
indicates they are moving away from ours. The Encyclopaedia Britannica says
about this: “The implications of this discovery were immense. The universe, long
considered static, was expanding.”59
Allaah says in Soorah an-Noor:
“Have you not seen how Allaah makes the clouds move gently, then
joins them together, then makes them a heap? And you see raindrops
issuing from their midst. He sends down hail from the sky from
mountains of hail therein, causing it to fall on whom he wills and
averting it from whom he wills.”60
Gulf News of Friday, May 30th, 1997 carried the following item:
58 Soorah ath-Thaariyaat (51):47.
59 The New Encyclopaedia Britannica, vol. 6, p. 114.
60 Soorah an-Noor (24):43.
Earth is bathed by a steady “cosmic rain” of previously undetected objects
from outer space that pour vast quanti-ties of water into the atmosphere,
according to startling new evidence released Wednesday.
The objects, 20- to 40-ton snowballs the size of two-bedroom houses,
streak into the atmosphere by the thousands each day, disintegrate harmlessly
600 to 15,000 miles up and deposit large clouds of water vapor that
eventually falls on Earth’s surface as rain, according to Louis A. Frank of the
University of Iowa. He led the research team that for the first time has
captured images of these objects...taken at both ultraviolet and visible
wavelengths by Frank’s specially designed instrument aboard NASA’s year
old Polar spacecraft.61
These examples are just the “tip of the iceberg.” There are other remarkably
accurate statements about oceanography, geology, cosmogony, physics, biology,
embryology, etymology, hydrology and other subjects.62
Contradictions in the Qur’aan
The Qur’aan challenges its readers to find any errors in it if they do not
believe it is really from God.
“Will they not consider the Qur’aan carefully? Had it been from
other than Allaah, they would have found many contradictions in it.”63
The few apparent “contradictions” commonly mentioned by critics are easily
explained.
61 Gulf News, Friday, May 30th, 1997, p. 10.
62 For further reading, see The Qur’aan and Modern Science, by Maurice Bucaille and The
Amazing Qur’an, by Gary Miller.
63 Soorah an-Nisaa’ (4):82.
Case One:
One critic writes: “Calling together or ripping apart? In the process of
creation, heaven and earth were first apart and are called to come together
[41:11], while 21:30 states they were originally one piece and then ripped apart.”
First let us look at the text of each verse. Verse 30 of Soorah al-Ambiyaa’
states:
“Have not those who disbelieved known that the heavens and the earth
were joined together, then I split them apart?
On the other hand, verses 11 and 12 of Soorah Fussilat say:
“And64 He turned to the heaven, when it was smoke and said to it and
the earth: ‘Come, both of you willingly or unwillingly!’—to which
both responded, ‘We come in obedience.’ And He decreed that they
64 The Arabic word is thumma. It is a conjunction which generally indicates an order of events but
at other times is used for a more abstract ordering. Muhammad Asad understood it not to be
ordinal here, so he translated it as ‘and.’ See Diyaa’ as-Saalik ilaa Awdah al-Masaalik for an
explanation of the meanings and usage of thumma. See the Qur’aan, 2:198-9 and 6:154 for other
examples of its nonordinal usage.
become seven heavens in two periods of time, and imparted unto each
heaven its function.”
It is surprising that a critic educated in an American university would find a
contradiction between these two verses, considering that the dominant theory of
cosmogony taught in such universities is the Big Bang theory. According to
astronomers and physicists, all the matter in the universe emerged from a state of
extremely high density and temperature, which then split apart in an explosion
that led to a rapid decrease in temperature and density. This allowed for the
formation of certain atomic nuclei. They say that after a million years the universe
was sufficiently cool for hydrogen and helium atoms to form. After a few hundred
million years, fluctuations in density in the expanding gas cloud led to an eventual
separation into galaxies. Clouds of gas in the galaxies then pulled together to form
individual stars.65 This model envisions two stages in the process of creation. The
first is an unimaginably dense solid mass. The second is an expanding cloud of
high energy particles which eventually cooled enough to be called a gas cloud,
from which the galaxies formed.
The two Qur’aanic passages cited by this critic describe two stages in the
history of the universe. Neither passage explicitly indicates which state came first,
but it is not far-fetched to suppose that there was an original compacted mass that
was split asunder, which led to a gaseous (“smoke”) stage, from which the
heavens then became differentiated.
Case Two:
The same critic writes: “What was man created from? A blood clot [96:1-2],
water [21:30, 24:45, 25:54], ‘sounding’ (i.e. burned) clay [15:26], dust [3:59,
30:20, 35:11], nothing [19:67] and this is then denied in 52:35, earth [11:61], a
drop of thickened fluid [16:4, 75:37].”
Let us look at the verses cited:
65 See The New Encylopaedia Britannica, vol. 16, pp. 776-7. Of course, this scenario is highly
speculative, but there are some observable features of physical reality that support the broad
outlines of the theaory.
“Doesn’t the human being remember that I created him before, when
he was nothing.”66
“Were they created from nothing or were they themselves the
creators?”67
“And I created every living thing from water.”68
“And Allaah created every crawling creature from water.”69
( #ZŽ|³o0 Ïä!$yJø9$# z‘ÏB t,n=y{ “Ï%©!$# uqèdur )
“And He it is who created the human being from water.”70
66 Soorah Maryam (19):67.
67 Soorah at-Toor (52):35.
68 Soorah al-Ambiyaa’ (21):30.
69 Soorah an-Noor (24):45.
70 Soorah al-Furqaan (25):54.
“And, indeed, I have created the human being out of sounding clay,
out of dark, smooth mud transmuted.”71
“He (Allaah) brought you forth from the earth.”72
“And among His signs is that He created you from dust.”73
“Read in the name of your Lord who has created—created the human
being from a clinging thing.”74
“Was he not a drop of fluid that gushed forth?”75
71 Soorah al-Hijr (15):26. The term ‘salsaal’ used in this verse means ‘clay mixed with sand,
which, when dried makes a sound’ (i.e., when it is struck.). Arabic-English Lexicon, vol. 2 , p.
1711.
72 Soorah Hood (11):61.
73 Soorah Room (30):20.
74 Soorah al-‘Alaq (96:1-2). The word ‘‘alaq’ is more accurately translated as ‘a clinging thing’
rather than ‘a blood clot’ in this context.
75 Soorah al-Qiyaamah (75):37.
“He created the human being from a drop of fluid, then, behold, he
becomes an open opponent.”76
The perception of contradiction here is a result of confusion between
metaphysics, chemistry and biology, and between different stages of the process
of biological creation. The first two verses above are dealing with creation in
metaphysical terms. In the first verse, Allaah reminds human beings that He
created them and all of creation ultimately from nothing, which is one of His most
sublime attributes. In the second verse, He poses a rhetorical question to highlight
the untenable implication of atheism, “If you deny the existence of God, then do
you believe that nothingness brought you into existence?” Therefore, there is no
contradiction between these two verses.
The next three verses state that all living creatures, including those that crawl
and human beings, are created from water. This is a biological fact that no one
denies. All living creatures have water-based physiologies.
The next set of verses state that the human being was created from dust and
clay and was brought forth from the earth. There are two acceptable tafseers for
these verses. One is that they refer to Aadam, the ancestor of mankind. The other
is that they refer to the chemical composition of every human being. The elements
of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, etc. are present in the earth. Through
photosynthesis these elements are transformed into vegetable matter, which
human beings consume directly or by eating the flesh of animals that have
consumed plants. The source of all living creatures is thus, ultimately, the earth,
or, by another expression, the dust of the earth, which when combined with water
is called ‘clay.’
The rest of the verses refer to the biological aspects of human creation. The
word nutfah is commonly used to refer to male seminal fluid, but it is also
linguistically possible to use it to refer to the female reproductive fluids. The
fertilized zygote is referred to in the Qur’aan as nutfah amshaaj, that is, ‘a
mingled fluid’.77 In a hadeeth, the word nutfah is explicitly used to refer to the
76 Soorah an-Nahl (16):4.
77 Soorah al-Insaan (76):2. There is a wonderful subtlety in this expression that puzzled early
commentators; the word nutfah is a singular noun, while amshaaj, the adjective that modifies it, is
a plural. Normally, the adjective must agree with the noun it modifies in number, gender and case.
fluid of the woman. It was reported that the Prophet (r) was asked from what the
human being was created, and that he replied,
“He is created from both the nutfah of the man and the nutfah of the woman.” 78
After fertilization, the embryo implants itself in the uterine wall. It is at this stage
that it is called an ‘alaq in Arabic.79 Therefore, there is no contradiction between
any of these verses, al-hamdulillaah.
The Numerical Miracle of the Qur’aan
The most famous proponent of this idea was Rashad Khalifa, an Egyptian
biochemist educated in the United States. According to Dr. Khalifa, there is a
miraculous numerical code to the Qur’aan based on its “first” verse (Bismillahir-
Rahmaanir-Raheem), which consists of 19 letters. This miraculous code is
supposedly referred to in verse 30 of Chapter 74 (al-Muddath-thir) which states
“Over it are 19.” Based on these two premises, Dr. Rashad claims to have
discovered an intricate mathematical pattern involving 19 and its multiples
throughout the Qur’aan and especially in what he calls the Qur’aanic initials
which precede 29 chapters (Alif, Laam, Meem, etc.). From this discovery, Dr.
Khalifa concludes that the complexity of this mathematical code’s pattern in a
literary work of the Qur’aan’s size is far beyond human capabilities, and that it
alone constitutes the only real miracle of the Qur’aan which proves its divine
origin.80 He further concludes that 19 and its multiples represent the key to the
The nutfah is a single entity after fertilization, but it’s chromosomes are half from the father and
half from the mother. “Therefore, from the scientific point of view, amshaaj is entirely accurate as
a plural adjective modifying the singular nutfah, which is really a multifaceted single entity.” The
Qur’an and Modern Science: Correlation Studies, pp. 27-9.
78 Musnad Ahmad, no. 4206. The isnaad has weakness in it due to the presence of al-Husayn ibn
al-Hasan al-Fazaaree, who was truthful but prone to mistakes. (See Taqreeb at-Tahtheeb, p. 166,
no. 1317.) This part of the hadeeth is supported by the hadeeth of ‘Abdullaah ibn Salaam reported
by al-Bukhaaree which mentions that if the fluid of the woman (maa’ al-mar’ah) supersedes the
fluid of the man, then the child will resemble the mother. (Sahih Al-Bukhari, vol. 5, pp. 189-90,
no. 275.)
79 The Qur’an and Modern Science: Correlation Studies, p.31.
80 See Rashad Khalifa’s presentation of his theory in the article “Problem of 19,” Impact
International, 13-26 Nov., 1981, pp.14-15.
correct interpretation of the Qur’aan and Islam, and the reason why 19 was chosen
is that 19 means “God is One,” which is the message of the Qur’aan.81
Many Muslims at first received Khalifa’s theories with uncritical enthusiasm.
However, when more rigorous critics began checking his numbers, they found
numerous discrepancies and some outright fabrications in his data. His claims
were based on the number of times a given letter or word occurs in a given soorah
or group of soorahs. It was discovered that he would sometimes treat hamzahs
like alifs and sometimes he wouldn’t, depending on the totals he needed in a
given soorah to confirm his theory. Sometimes he counted letters that weren’t
there, sometimes he failed to count existing letters, sometimes he counted two
words as one, sometimes he added to the Qur’aanic text and sometimes he deleted
from it, all for the purpose of making the letter and word counts conform to his
theory. On top of that, his letter counts changed over time, depending on whether
he wanted to establish a pattern for a soorah by itself or as part of a group of
soorahs. When confronted with inconsistencies in his data, he began claiming that
certain verses had been inserted into the Qur’aan that did not belong there. After
this clear statement of disbelief he went on to claim knowledge of the exact date
of the Day of Judgment and eventually claimed prophethood for himself. He
attracted a group of followers in Tucson, Arizona, but his career was cut short
when he was stabbed to death by an unknown assailant in 1990.82
81 Quran: Visual Presentation of The Miracle, pp.70-73, 243.
Note: This calculation is based on the Abjad system of numerology in which the letters of the
Arabic alphabet are given numerical values, a system borrowed from the Jewish mystical system
known as Kabbalah.
82 See Mission to America , pp. 137-168. A detailed refutation of this theory can be found in my
book, The Quran’s Numerical Miracle: Hoax and Heresy.
Dr. Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips
THE QUR’AAN: THE UNIQUE BOOK.
been historically used specifically to refer to the book which was revealed to Prophet Muhammad (r). The term “Qur’aan” is mentioned in a number of places throughout the book in reference to itself. For example:
“Verily, this Qur’aan guides (humanity) to that which is most just.”28 The name Qur’aan is used to refer to both the Qur’aan as a whole, as in the previously quoted verse; as well as to each verse or group of verses, as in the following verse: “And if the Qur’aan is recited, you should listen to it and be silent, that you may receive mercy.”29
27 Arabic-English Lexicon, vol. 2, p. 2502.
28 Soorah al-Israa’ (17):9.
29 Soorah al-A‘raaf (7):204.
The Book has also been referred to by other names; for example, the Furqaan
(The Distinction): “Blessed is He who revealed the Furqaan to His slave in order that he
may be a warner to all the worlds.”30 and the Thikr, (The Reminder):
“Verily, I revealed the Thikr and verily I will preserve it.”31 The Qur’aan could be defined as Allaah’s words which were revealed in Arabic in a rhythmical form to Prophet Muhammad (r). Its recitation is used in acts of worship and its smallest chapter (soorah) is of a miraculous nature.
The Prophet’s divinely inspired statements which were recorded by his followers are generally referred to as hadeeths. For example, the Prophet’s companion (sahaabee), ‘Umar ibn al-Khattaab, reported that he once said,
“Verily, deeds are (judged) by their intentions.” 32
30 Soorah al-Furqaan (25):1
31 Soorah al-Hijr (15):9.
32 Collected by al-Bukhaaree (Sahih Al-Bukhari, vol. 1, p. 1, no. 1) and Muslim (Sahih Muslim,
vol. 3, p. 1056, no. 4692).
However, in some of his statements, the Prophet (r) attributed what he said to
Allaah; for example, another sahaabee, Aboo Hurayrah, reported that the Prophet
(r) said,
“Allaah, Most High, says, ‘I am as My slave thinks of Me and I am with him when
he remembers me. So if he remembers Me to himself, I will remember him to
Myself and if he remembers Me in a group, I will remember him in a better
group.’ ” 33
In order to distinguish this type of hadeeth from the previous type, it is referred
to as hadeeth qudsee (sacred hadeeth) and the former referred to as hadeeth
nabawee (prophetic hadeeth).
The Qur’aan, however, is not the same as hadeeth qudsee for a number of
reasons. First, the Qur’aan is from Allaah both in its wording and in its meaning,
while in the case of hadeeth qudsee, its meaning is from Allaah but its wording
was the Prophet’s (r). Second, Allaah challenged the Arabs and mankind in
general to produce even a chapter equivalent to one of the Qur’aan’s chapters, and
their inability to do so proves its miraculous nature. This is not so in the case of
hadeeth qudsee. Third, the recitation of the Qur’aan is used in salaah and is itself
considered a form of worship. The Prophet (r) said,
“Whoever reads a letter from the book of Allaah, the Most High, will get a good
deed (recorded for him), and each good deed is worth ten times its value. I am not
only saying that Alif Laam Meem is a letter, but I am also saying that Alif is a
letter, Laam is a letter, and Meem is a letter.” 34
33 Collected by al-Bukhaaree (Sahih Al-Bukhari, vol. 9, pp. 369-70, no. 502) and Muslim (Sahih
Muslim, vol. 4, p. 1408, no. 6471).
34 Reported by Ibn Mas‘ood and collected by at-Tirmithee and Ahmad. See footnote 154, p.75.
However, the recitation of hadeeth qudsee carries none of these properties.35
The Main Theme Not only is the Qur’aan unique among books today in its origin and purity,
but it is also unique in the way it presents its subject matter. It is not a book in the
usual sense of the word wherein there is an introduction, explanation of the
subject, followed by a conclusion. Neither is it restricted to only a presentation of
historical events, problems of philosophy, facts of science or social laws, though
all may be found woven together in it without any apparent connection and links.
Subjects are introduced without background information, historical events are not
presented in chronological order, new topics sometimes crop up in the middle of
another for no apparent reason, and the speaker and those spoken to change
direction without the slightest forewarning.
The reader who is unaware of the Qur’aan’s uniqueness is often puzzled
when he finds it contrary to his understanding of a book in general and a
“religious” book in particular. Hence, the Qur’aan may seem disorganized and
haphazard to him. However, to those who understand its subject matter, aim and
its central theme, the Qur’aan is exactly the opposite. The subject matter of the
Qur’aan is essentially man: man in relation to his Lord and Creator, Allaah; man
in relation to himself; and man in relation to the rest of creation. The aim and
object of the revelations is to invite man to the right way of dealing with his Lord,
with himself, and with creation. Hence, the main theme that runs throughout the
Qur’aan is that God alone deserves worship and, thus, man should submit to
God’s laws in his personal life and in his relationships with creation in general.
Or, in other words, the main theme is a call to the belief in Allaah and the doing
of righteous deeds as defined by Allaah.
If the reader keeps these basic facts in mind, he will find that, from beginning
to end, the Qur’aan’s topics are all closely connected to its main theme and that
the whole book is a well-reasoned and cohesive argument for its theme. The
Qur’aan keeps the same object in view, whether it is describing the creation of
man and the universe or events from human history. Since the aim of the Qur’aan
is to guide man, it states or discusses things only to the extent relevant to this aim
and leaves out unnecessary and irrelevant details. It also repeats its main theme
over and over again in the presentation of each new topic.
35 See Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, p. 15, and Qawaa’id at-Tahdeeth min Funoon Mustalih
al-Hadeeth, p. 56.
In the preface of one of the best orientalist translations of the Qur’aan, the
translator, Arthur John Arberry, writes: “There is a repertory of familiar themes
running through the whole Koran; each Sura36 elaborates or adumbrates37 one or
more—often many—of these. Using the language of music, each Sura is a
rhapsody composed of whole or fragmentary leitmotivs;38 the analogy is
reinforced by the subtly varied rhythmical flow of the discourse.”39
The following four principles should be kept in mind by the new reader of the
Qur’aan if he or she is to avoid unnecessary confusion and disorientation:
1. The book is the only one of its type in the world.
2. Its literary style is quite different from all other books.
3. Its theme is unique.
4.Preconceived notions of a book are only a hindrance to the understanding
of the Qur’aan.40
THE MIRACLE OF THE QUR’AAN
Man has a natural distaste towards submitting to another man unless he is
forced to by the latter’s physical strength or his mental superiority, or if he is
shown feats far beyond the abilities of any man. In the first two cases, he yields
reluctantly, while in the third, he yields because of his belief in a higher force or
power defying all human comparison. Therefore, Allaah favored His messengers
not only with revelation, but also with miracles, clearly proving to the people the
divine origin and truthfulness of their messages. The inability of the people to
imitate the miracles of the prophets made them willingly bear witness to Allaah’s
unity and obey the commandments of the prophets.
Due to the difficulties involved in communication and transportation, the
early prophets were sent only to the people among whom they were raised up.
36 Qur’aanic chapter.
37 Indicate faintly or in outline.
38 Recurring features.
39 The Koran Interpreted, p. 28.
40 These four statements are quoted from Abu’l A‘la Maududi in The Meaning of the Qur’aan, vol.
1, p. 7.
Thus, the miracles which they brought were particularly suited to the areas of
knowledge in which their people excelled in order for the miracles to have the
maximum effect on them. For example, Prophet Moosaa (Moses), may Allaah’s
peace be on him, was raised up among the Egyptians, who were noted for their
mastery of the occult arts, sorcery, and magic. Hence, Allaah gave him the
miracle of being able to place his hand in his cloak and extract a brilliantly
shining hand. And when sorcerers and magicians were gathered to challenge
Prophet Moosaa, and the staffs which they had cast appeared to the audience as
snakes, Allaah turned Prophet Moosaa’s staff into a huge, real snake that
devoured the “snakes” of his opponents. That defeat was sufficient proof for the
magicians and sorcerers, who knew that no one could change the nature of a stick
as Moosaa apparently had done. They fell on their faces in submission and sincere
belief in the God of Moosaa, in spite of the threats on their lives uttered by their
master, the Pharaoh.
Another example is that of Prophet ‘Eesaa (Jesus), who was chosen by Allaah
from among the Jews. The Jews were especially noted for their exceptional
abilities in the field of medicine. Jewish doctors were highly respected and
revered for their seemingly magical ability to mend bones, heal wounds, and cure
the sick. Thus, Allaah favored Prophet ‘Eesaa with the miraculous ability to make
the blind see, the lame walk, and to bring the dead back to life. These abilities
were clearly beyond those of the Jewish doctors of that day, and they knew well
that no regular man could do them. Yet, Allaah gave Prophet ‘Eesaa an even
more dazzling miracle: he was able to mold birds out of clay, breathe on them,
and they would fly away.
Since the Prophet Muhammad (r) was to be the last of the prophets sent not
only to a particular people, but to all of mankind, he was given a miracle which
not only amazed people among whom he was raised, but which would challenge
and amaze the human mind until the last days of this world. Prophet Muhammad
(r), like the other prophets before him, was given a number of other miracles
whose effects were basically limited to the people of his time; for example, the
splitting of the moon upon his tribe’s request for a sign, the outpouring of water
from his hands on one occasion when he and his companions were short of water,
and the phenomenon of pebbles and rocks giving salaams to him (i.e., greeting
him with the phrase: “as-salaamu ‘alaykum,” meaning, “peace be on you”), just
to mention a few.41 However, the miracle of Prophet Muhammad (r) which was
consistent with Allaah’s aid to the prophets before him was a literary miracle.
The Arabs had very little in the way of unique skills or accumulated
knowledge, but they took great pride in their oratory and literary skills. Yearly
contests were held in fairs like that of ‘Ukkaath, in which many lines of speeches
and poetry were recited from memory. Their language had reached its peak of
development, and eloquence was considered the highest quality a man could
possess. In fact, the ten most famous poems were so revered that they were etched
in gold and hung in the Ka‘bah for solemn adoration.42 Consequently, Allaah
revealed to His last prophet a book, beginning some parts with unintelligible
letters like, “Alif Laam Meem” or “Qaaf” or “Noon,” tantalizing the Arab mind,
as if to say, “From these letters which you combine to form your daily
conversations, as well as great works of prose and poetry, is formed a book whose
shortest chapter does not exceed three lines, yet you cannot imitate it, no matter
how hard you try!” Thus, his standing miracle was none other then the Qur’aan
itself, as the Prophet (r) himself stated,
“All prophets were given something which would cause people to believe in them.
The thing which I was given is none other than a revelation (the Qur’aan) which
Allaah revealed to me. So I hope that I will have the most followers among them
on the Day of Judgment.” 43
The Challenge
The Qur’aan is not only unique in the way in which it presents it subject
matter, but it is also unique in that it is a miracle itself. By the term “miracle,” we
mean the performance of a supernatural or extraordinary event which cannot be
duplicated by humans. It has been documented that Prophet Muhammad (r)
41 See Sahih Al-Bukhari, vol. 5, p. 336, no. 473; vol. 6, p. 365, no. 387; and Sahih Muslim, vol. 4,
p. 1230, no. 5654.
42 See The Concise Encyclopaedia of Islam, pp. 277-8.
43 Reported by Aboo Hurayrah and collected by al-Bukhaaree (Sahih Al-Bukhari, vol. 6, p. 474,
no. 504) and Muslim (Sahih Muslim, vol. 1, pp. 90-1, no. 283).
challenged the Arabs to produce a literary work of a similar caliber as the
Qur’aan, but they were unable to do so in spite of their well-known eloquence and
literary powers. The challenge to reproduce the Qur’aan was presented to the
Arabs and mankind in three stages:
1. The Whole Qur’aan:
In the Qur’aan, Allaah commanded the Prophet (r) to challenge all of creation to
create a book of the stature of the Qur’aan,
“Say: ‘If all mankind and the jinn would come together to produce the
like of this Qur’aan, they could not produce its like even though they
exerted all their strength in aiding one another.’ ”44
2. Ten Soorahs:
Next, Allaah made the challenge ostensibly easier by asking those who denied its
divine origin to imitate even ten soorahs of the Qur’aan:
“Or do they say that he has invented it? Say (to them), ‘Bring ten
invented soorahs like it, and call (for help) on whomever you can
beside Allaah, if you are truthful.’ ”45
44 Soorah al-Israa’ (17):88.
45 Soorah Hood (11):13.
This final challenge was to produce even a single soorah to match what is in the
Qur’aan, whose shortest soorah, al-Kawthar, consists of only three verses:
“And if you all are in doubt about what I have revealed to My servant,
bring a single soorah like it, and call your witnesses besides Allaah if
you are truthful.”46
These challenges were not just empty words with no one caring to prove
them wrong. Prophet Muhammad’s (r) call to monotheism, to the abolition of
idolatry in all its forms, and to the equality of slaves and their masters threatened
the whole socio-economic framework of Makkan society in general, and the
position of the ruling Qurayshee tribe from which the Prophet (r) came in
particular. Makkah, the trading center of Arabia, as well as its spiritual center,
desperately wanted to stop the spread of Islaam. Yet all that the Prophet’s
opponents had to do to crush the movement was to make up a single soorah like
any one of those which the Prophet (r) and his followers were reciting to the
people. A number of Qurayshee orators and poets tried to imitate the Qur’aan,
but they failed. They then resorted to offering him vast amounts of wealth, the
position of king over them, and the most noble and beautiful of their women in
exchange for his promise to stop inviting people to Islaam. He responded to them
by reciting the first thirteen verses of Soorah Fussilat, until they asked him to
stop.47 The Quraysh also resorted to torturing their slaves and relatives who had
embraced Islaam in a vain attempt to cause them to revert to paganism. Later
they organized an economic boycott against the Prophet (r), his followers and the
members of his clan, Banoo Haashim, in an attempt to starve them into
submission. But even this plan eventually failed. Finally, they plotted to kill him
46 Soorah al-Baqarah (2):23
47 Collected by al-Haakim, al-Bayhaqee, Aboo Ya‘laa and Ibn Hishaam, and declared hasan by
Ibraaheem al-‘Alee in Saheeh as-Seerah an-Nabaweeyah, p.64.
in his home by sending armed young men from each of the clans of Quraysh in
order that the guilt of his murder be shared by all the clans, making revenge by
the Prophet’s clan impossible.
However, Allaah enabled the Prophet (r) and his followers to flee Makkah
and join a new band of converts who had arisen among the tribes of a city to the
north called Yathrib. Islaam spread rapidly through the clans of Yathrib, and
within a year Muslims became the city’s majority. Prophet Muhammad (r) was
then made the ruler, and the name of the city was changed to Madeenah. Over the
next eight years, the clans of Makkah and its neighboring lands mounted a series
of unsuccessful battle campaigns against the emerging Muslim state in Madeenah,
which ended with the Muslim invasion of Makkah itself.
All of this bloodshed could have been avoided if only the Quraysh and their
allies had been able to produce a mere three lines of poetry or flowing prose
similar to the shortest soorah of the Qur’aan. Hence, there can be no doubt about
the inimitability of the Qur’aan’s literary style, about the miracle of its rhyme and
the marvel of its rhythm.
It has been suggested that the inimitability of the Qur’aan is not necessarily
unique, for great English poets like Shakespeare, Chaucer, or great poets in any
language tend to have distinctly unique styles which set them apart from their
contemporaries. However, if, for example, some leading poet of today were to
make an in-depth study of Shakespeare’s writings and write a sonnet in
Shakespeare’s style in old ink and on old paper, then claim that he had discovered
a lost poem of Shakespeare’s, the literary world would probably accept this claim,
even after careful study. Thus, even the greatest of poets could be imitated, no
matter how unique his style was, just as the famous painters have been imitated.48
The Qur’aan, however, is way above this level, as attempts to forge chapters have
been made throughout the ages, yet none has withstood close scrutiny. And, as
was mentioned before, the incentive to imitate the Qur’aan was more intense
during the time of its revelation when literary skills were at their peak than at any
other time, yet there was no successful attempt.
Other Aspects of the Qur’aan’s miraculous nature
48 In fact, some English scholars consider much of what has been attributed to Shakespeare to have
been written by his contemporary, Christopher Marlowe.
For a scripture to qualify as divinely revealed it must be totally accurate in its
descriptions of reality: the past, the present and the future. The Qur’aan has many
stories about previous prophets and their peoples. Some of these stories have
elements in them that can be checked out for their accuracy.
One example of the Qur’aan’s precision in its historical descriptions is in the
story of Prophet Yoosuf (Joseph), who was sold as a slave in Egypt, but rose to
become an important official in the government, which made it possible for him
to bring his whole family to live there in honor. Most historians agree that the
entry of the Children of Israel into Egypt occurred when the northern half of the
country was ruled by the Hyksos, Semitic invaders who were the first non-
Egyptians to rule that country since the rise of the Old Kingdom. The Qur’aan
always calls the Egyptian ruler who confronted Moses by the title of “Pharaoah.”
Every Egyptian ruler was called by this title starting from the reign of Amenhotep
IV in the 14th century BC, but not before that. Yoosuf lived at least two hundred
years before Amenhotep IV. The Qur’aan consistently refers to the ruler in
Yoosuf’s time, as “al-malik,” the king:
“The king said, ‘Bring him to me.’ ”49
It should be noted that the Bible refers to the ruler of Joseph’s time as “Pharaoah,”
which was an anachronism inserted by the scribes who wrote the books of the Old
Testament centuries after Moses.50
Some critics have seized on certain details to try attack the Qur’aan’s
historical accuracy. A famous example is the statement of her people to Mary (Ar.
Maryam) when she appeared with the baby Jesus after giving birth to him in an
isolated place:
49 Soorah Yoosuf (12):50.
50 Moses and Pharaoah: The Hebrews in Egypt, p. 176.
“O sister of Aaron! Your father was not an evil man nor was your
mother a prostitute!”51
The critics argue that the author confused two historical figures: Mary, the mother
of Jesus, and Miriam, the sister of Aaron. The confusion here is really a result of
their ignorance about how the Arabs use their language. The Qur’aan refers to
Prophet Hood as the brother of ‘Aad:
“And mention the brother of ‘Aad when he warned his people among
the sand dunes.”52
The Arabs refer to tribes by the patriarch from whom they are descended. The
tribe of ‘Aad was descended from a man named ‘Aad. Hood was not literally that
man’s brother, nor was he literally the brother of every member of his tribe, but
this is an expression used by the Arabs to indicate association with a people. Mary
was a descendant of Aaron. That is why she is referred to as the sister of Aaron.
In a similar usage, the New Testament refers to Elizabeth, the mother of John the
Baptist as a daughter of Aaron.53
Predictions about the Future
The Qur’aan accurately predicted the military victory of the Romans
(Byzantines) over the Persians:
51 Soorah Maryam (19):28.
52 Soorah al-Ahqaaf (46):21.
53 Luke 1:5.
The Romans have been defeated in the nearest land; and after their
defeat they will conquer, within a few years.”54
The Arabic word bid‘ is more precise than the English word “few.” Bid‘ is used
for a number between three and ten. The Persians dealt the Romans a crushing
defeat in the year 616 CE, taking away Greater Syria and Egypt from them and
eventually besieging them in their capital of Constantinople. In 622 CE, the
Byzantines won a decisive victory against the Persians at the battle of Issus,
which allowed them to regain all the lands they had lost.55
The Qur’aan also accurately predicted that the Muslims would be able to
enter Makkah peacefully in order to make
‘umrah, the Lesser Pilgrimage.56 The prediction came in the middle of a long
bitter war between the Muslims and the idol worshippers who ruled Makkah. It
also promised the Muslims that if they fulfilled the conditions of complete faith
and good deeds that Allaah would deputize them to rule the world and would
establish their religion and replace the fear they were currently living in with
security.57 That is precisely what happened.
Descriptions of Natural Phenomena
The Qur’aan calls the reader’s attention to numerous natural phenomena
that are indicators of Allaah’s power, wisdom, mercy, etc. As humanity’s
understanding of the workings of the natural has increased, the miraculous nature
of these Qur’aanic descriptions has become manifest. This is not the forum for a
detailed discussion of this issue, but a few examples are mentioned by way of
illustration.
54 Soorah ar-Room (30):2-4
55 See The Holy Qur-an: English Translation of the Meanings and Commentary, pp. 1202-3.
56 Soorah al-Fat-h (48):27.
57 Soorah an-Noor (24):55.
“The heaven I created by might, and, verily, I am expanding it.58
The Arabic word moos‘ioon is an active participle. It indicates an ongoing action
that is occurring at the present time and will continue into the future. It was not
until the invention of the spectrograph and the development of a huge (100 in.
diameter) reflecting telescope that Edward Hubble was able to discover other
galaxies in 1926 and to document in 1927 the red shift of their spectra that
indicates they are moving away from ours. The Encyclopaedia Britannica says
about this: “The implications of this discovery were immense. The universe, long
considered static, was expanding.”59
Allaah says in Soorah an-Noor:
“Have you not seen how Allaah makes the clouds move gently, then
joins them together, then makes them a heap? And you see raindrops
issuing from their midst. He sends down hail from the sky from
mountains of hail therein, causing it to fall on whom he wills and
averting it from whom he wills.”60
Gulf News of Friday, May 30th, 1997 carried the following item:
58 Soorah ath-Thaariyaat (51):47.
59 The New Encyclopaedia Britannica, vol. 6, p. 114.
60 Soorah an-Noor (24):43.
Earth is bathed by a steady “cosmic rain” of previously undetected objects
from outer space that pour vast quanti-ties of water into the atmosphere,
according to startling new evidence released Wednesday.
The objects, 20- to 40-ton snowballs the size of two-bedroom houses,
streak into the atmosphere by the thousands each day, disintegrate harmlessly
600 to 15,000 miles up and deposit large clouds of water vapor that
eventually falls on Earth’s surface as rain, according to Louis A. Frank of the
University of Iowa. He led the research team that for the first time has
captured images of these objects...taken at both ultraviolet and visible
wavelengths by Frank’s specially designed instrument aboard NASA’s year
old Polar spacecraft.61
These examples are just the “tip of the iceberg.” There are other remarkably
accurate statements about oceanography, geology, cosmogony, physics, biology,
embryology, etymology, hydrology and other subjects.62
Contradictions in the Qur’aan
The Qur’aan challenges its readers to find any errors in it if they do not
believe it is really from God.
“Will they not consider the Qur’aan carefully? Had it been from
other than Allaah, they would have found many contradictions in it.”63
The few apparent “contradictions” commonly mentioned by critics are easily
explained.
61 Gulf News, Friday, May 30th, 1997, p. 10.
62 For further reading, see The Qur’aan and Modern Science, by Maurice Bucaille and The
Amazing Qur’an, by Gary Miller.
63 Soorah an-Nisaa’ (4):82.
Case One:
One critic writes: “Calling together or ripping apart? In the process of
creation, heaven and earth were first apart and are called to come together
[41:11], while 21:30 states they were originally one piece and then ripped apart.”
First let us look at the text of each verse. Verse 30 of Soorah al-Ambiyaa’
states:
“Have not those who disbelieved known that the heavens and the earth
were joined together, then I split them apart?
On the other hand, verses 11 and 12 of Soorah Fussilat say:
“And64 He turned to the heaven, when it was smoke and said to it and
the earth: ‘Come, both of you willingly or unwillingly!’—to which
both responded, ‘We come in obedience.’ And He decreed that they
64 The Arabic word is thumma. It is a conjunction which generally indicates an order of events but
at other times is used for a more abstract ordering. Muhammad Asad understood it not to be
ordinal here, so he translated it as ‘and.’ See Diyaa’ as-Saalik ilaa Awdah al-Masaalik for an
explanation of the meanings and usage of thumma. See the Qur’aan, 2:198-9 and 6:154 for other
examples of its nonordinal usage.
become seven heavens in two periods of time, and imparted unto each
heaven its function.”
It is surprising that a critic educated in an American university would find a
contradiction between these two verses, considering that the dominant theory of
cosmogony taught in such universities is the Big Bang theory. According to
astronomers and physicists, all the matter in the universe emerged from a state of
extremely high density and temperature, which then split apart in an explosion
that led to a rapid decrease in temperature and density. This allowed for the
formation of certain atomic nuclei. They say that after a million years the universe
was sufficiently cool for hydrogen and helium atoms to form. After a few hundred
million years, fluctuations in density in the expanding gas cloud led to an eventual
separation into galaxies. Clouds of gas in the galaxies then pulled together to form
individual stars.65 This model envisions two stages in the process of creation. The
first is an unimaginably dense solid mass. The second is an expanding cloud of
high energy particles which eventually cooled enough to be called a gas cloud,
from which the galaxies formed.
The two Qur’aanic passages cited by this critic describe two stages in the
history of the universe. Neither passage explicitly indicates which state came first,
but it is not far-fetched to suppose that there was an original compacted mass that
was split asunder, which led to a gaseous (“smoke”) stage, from which the
heavens then became differentiated.
Case Two:
The same critic writes: “What was man created from? A blood clot [96:1-2],
water [21:30, 24:45, 25:54], ‘sounding’ (i.e. burned) clay [15:26], dust [3:59,
30:20, 35:11], nothing [19:67] and this is then denied in 52:35, earth [11:61], a
drop of thickened fluid [16:4, 75:37].”
Let us look at the verses cited:
65 See The New Encylopaedia Britannica, vol. 16, pp. 776-7. Of course, this scenario is highly
speculative, but there are some observable features of physical reality that support the broad
outlines of the theaory.
“Doesn’t the human being remember that I created him before, when
he was nothing.”66
“Were they created from nothing or were they themselves the
creators?”67
“And I created every living thing from water.”68
“And Allaah created every crawling creature from water.”69
( #ZŽ|³o0 Ïä!$yJø9$# z‘ÏB t,n=y{ “Ï%©!$# uqèdur )
“And He it is who created the human being from water.”70
66 Soorah Maryam (19):67.
67 Soorah at-Toor (52):35.
68 Soorah al-Ambiyaa’ (21):30.
69 Soorah an-Noor (24):45.
70 Soorah al-Furqaan (25):54.
“And, indeed, I have created the human being out of sounding clay,
out of dark, smooth mud transmuted.”71
“He (Allaah) brought you forth from the earth.”72
“And among His signs is that He created you from dust.”73
“Read in the name of your Lord who has created—created the human
being from a clinging thing.”74
“Was he not a drop of fluid that gushed forth?”75
71 Soorah al-Hijr (15):26. The term ‘salsaal’ used in this verse means ‘clay mixed with sand,
which, when dried makes a sound’ (i.e., when it is struck.). Arabic-English Lexicon, vol. 2 , p.
1711.
72 Soorah Hood (11):61.
73 Soorah Room (30):20.
74 Soorah al-‘Alaq (96:1-2). The word ‘‘alaq’ is more accurately translated as ‘a clinging thing’
rather than ‘a blood clot’ in this context.
75 Soorah al-Qiyaamah (75):37.
“He created the human being from a drop of fluid, then, behold, he
becomes an open opponent.”76
The perception of contradiction here is a result of confusion between
metaphysics, chemistry and biology, and between different stages of the process
of biological creation. The first two verses above are dealing with creation in
metaphysical terms. In the first verse, Allaah reminds human beings that He
created them and all of creation ultimately from nothing, which is one of His most
sublime attributes. In the second verse, He poses a rhetorical question to highlight
the untenable implication of atheism, “If you deny the existence of God, then do
you believe that nothingness brought you into existence?” Therefore, there is no
contradiction between these two verses.
The next three verses state that all living creatures, including those that crawl
and human beings, are created from water. This is a biological fact that no one
denies. All living creatures have water-based physiologies.
The next set of verses state that the human being was created from dust and
clay and was brought forth from the earth. There are two acceptable tafseers for
these verses. One is that they refer to Aadam, the ancestor of mankind. The other
is that they refer to the chemical composition of every human being. The elements
of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, etc. are present in the earth. Through
photosynthesis these elements are transformed into vegetable matter, which
human beings consume directly or by eating the flesh of animals that have
consumed plants. The source of all living creatures is thus, ultimately, the earth,
or, by another expression, the dust of the earth, which when combined with water
is called ‘clay.’
The rest of the verses refer to the biological aspects of human creation. The
word nutfah is commonly used to refer to male seminal fluid, but it is also
linguistically possible to use it to refer to the female reproductive fluids. The
fertilized zygote is referred to in the Qur’aan as nutfah amshaaj, that is, ‘a
mingled fluid’.77 In a hadeeth, the word nutfah is explicitly used to refer to the
76 Soorah an-Nahl (16):4.
77 Soorah al-Insaan (76):2. There is a wonderful subtlety in this expression that puzzled early
commentators; the word nutfah is a singular noun, while amshaaj, the adjective that modifies it, is
a plural. Normally, the adjective must agree with the noun it modifies in number, gender and case.
fluid of the woman. It was reported that the Prophet (r) was asked from what the
human being was created, and that he replied,
“He is created from both the nutfah of the man and the nutfah of the woman.” 78
After fertilization, the embryo implants itself in the uterine wall. It is at this stage
that it is called an ‘alaq in Arabic.79 Therefore, there is no contradiction between
any of these verses, al-hamdulillaah.
The Numerical Miracle of the Qur’aan
The most famous proponent of this idea was Rashad Khalifa, an Egyptian
biochemist educated in the United States. According to Dr. Khalifa, there is a
miraculous numerical code to the Qur’aan based on its “first” verse (Bismillahir-
Rahmaanir-Raheem), which consists of 19 letters. This miraculous code is
supposedly referred to in verse 30 of Chapter 74 (al-Muddath-thir) which states
“Over it are 19.” Based on these two premises, Dr. Rashad claims to have
discovered an intricate mathematical pattern involving 19 and its multiples
throughout the Qur’aan and especially in what he calls the Qur’aanic initials
which precede 29 chapters (Alif, Laam, Meem, etc.). From this discovery, Dr.
Khalifa concludes that the complexity of this mathematical code’s pattern in a
literary work of the Qur’aan’s size is far beyond human capabilities, and that it
alone constitutes the only real miracle of the Qur’aan which proves its divine
origin.80 He further concludes that 19 and its multiples represent the key to the
The nutfah is a single entity after fertilization, but it’s chromosomes are half from the father and
half from the mother. “Therefore, from the scientific point of view, amshaaj is entirely accurate as
a plural adjective modifying the singular nutfah, which is really a multifaceted single entity.” The
Qur’an and Modern Science: Correlation Studies, pp. 27-9.
78 Musnad Ahmad, no. 4206. The isnaad has weakness in it due to the presence of al-Husayn ibn
al-Hasan al-Fazaaree, who was truthful but prone to mistakes. (See Taqreeb at-Tahtheeb, p. 166,
no. 1317.) This part of the hadeeth is supported by the hadeeth of ‘Abdullaah ibn Salaam reported
by al-Bukhaaree which mentions that if the fluid of the woman (maa’ al-mar’ah) supersedes the
fluid of the man, then the child will resemble the mother. (Sahih Al-Bukhari, vol. 5, pp. 189-90,
no. 275.)
79 The Qur’an and Modern Science: Correlation Studies, p.31.
80 See Rashad Khalifa’s presentation of his theory in the article “Problem of 19,” Impact
International, 13-26 Nov., 1981, pp.14-15.
correct interpretation of the Qur’aan and Islam, and the reason why 19 was chosen
is that 19 means “God is One,” which is the message of the Qur’aan.81
Many Muslims at first received Khalifa’s theories with uncritical enthusiasm.
However, when more rigorous critics began checking his numbers, they found
numerous discrepancies and some outright fabrications in his data. His claims
were based on the number of times a given letter or word occurs in a given soorah
or group of soorahs. It was discovered that he would sometimes treat hamzahs
like alifs and sometimes he wouldn’t, depending on the totals he needed in a
given soorah to confirm his theory. Sometimes he counted letters that weren’t
there, sometimes he failed to count existing letters, sometimes he counted two
words as one, sometimes he added to the Qur’aanic text and sometimes he deleted
from it, all for the purpose of making the letter and word counts conform to his
theory. On top of that, his letter counts changed over time, depending on whether
he wanted to establish a pattern for a soorah by itself or as part of a group of
soorahs. When confronted with inconsistencies in his data, he began claiming that
certain verses had been inserted into the Qur’aan that did not belong there. After
this clear statement of disbelief he went on to claim knowledge of the exact date
of the Day of Judgment and eventually claimed prophethood for himself. He
attracted a group of followers in Tucson, Arizona, but his career was cut short
when he was stabbed to death by an unknown assailant in 1990.82
81 Quran: Visual Presentation of The Miracle, pp.70-73, 243.
Note: This calculation is based on the Abjad system of numerology in which the letters of the
Arabic alphabet are given numerical values, a system borrowed from the Jewish mystical system
known as Kabbalah.
82 See Mission to America , pp. 137-168. A detailed refutation of this theory can be found in my
book, The Quran’s Numerical Miracle: Hoax and Heresy.
No comments