Miracle of the Quran
“Do they not consider the Qur’an (with care)? Had it been from other Than Allah, they would surely have found therein much discrepancy” [Surah An-Nisa 4:82]
The Quran is not only unique in the way in which it presents its guidance to humanity, 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.
A Miracle in Language
The Arabs of the 6th and 7th centuries CE were masters of the Arabic language. Eloquence and rhetoric were their lifeblood. The liveliness that marked their gatherings, the joy of their fairs, and the virtues of which they boasted, all found expression through poetry and literature. They were so proud of their literary accomplishments that they mockingly dubbed all the other peoples of the world as “’Ajam” or “Dumb.” It was in this atmosphere that there appeared on the scene an unlettered prophet, Muhammad (saw). He presented before them an oration, and declared it to be the Word of Allah, which claimed:
“If mankind and the jinn were to gather together to produce the like of this Quran, they could never produce the like thereof, even if they backed up one another.” [Surah Al-Isra' 17:88]
Such a proclamation was an amazing thing. It came from a person who had never learned anything from the renowned poets and scholars of the time, had never recited even a single piece of poetry in their congregations, and never attended the company of soothsayers.
The Quran challenged the Arabs to produce a literary work of a similar calibre and perfection as the Quran, but they were unable to do so in spite of their well-known eloquence and literary powers in Arabic. They persecuted the Prophet called him insane, a sorcerer, poet and soothsayer, but failed utterly in composing even a few sentences like the Quranic verses. To this day, the challenge has remained unmet, although throughout history and even in modern times, many people have made feeble attempts to do so.
The challenge to reproduce the Quran was presented to the Arabs and mankind in three stages:
l. The Whole Quran
In the Quran, Allah (swt) commanded the Prophet to challenge all of creation to create a book of the stature of the Quran:
“Say: ‘If all mankind and the jinn would come together to produce the like of this Quran, they could not produce its like even though they exerted all and their strength in aiding one another.’” (Surah Al-Isra' 17:88)
2. Ten Chapters
Next, Allah (swt) made the challenge much easier by asking those who denied its divine origin to imitate even ten chapters of the Quran:
“Or do they say that he has invented it? Say (to them), ‘Bring ten invented chapters like it, and call (for help) on whomever you can besides Allah, if you are truthful.” (Surah Hud 11:13)
3. One Chapter/Surah
This final challenge was to produce even a single chapter to match what is in the Quran, whose shortest chapter, 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 chapter like it, and call your witnesses besides Allah if you are truthful.” (Baqara 2:23)
In the following verse Allah (swt) warns them of their punishment if they cannot produce while rejected Islam. “But if you cannot – and surely you cannot – then fear the Fire whose fuel is men and stones, which is prepared for those who reject Faith.” [Baqara 2:24]
These challenges were not just empty words with no one caring to prove them wrong. Prophet Muhammad’s 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 Mecca society in general, and the position of the ruling Quraishee tribe from which the Prophet came in particular. Mecca, the trading center of Arabia, as well as its spiritual center, desperately wanted to stop the spread of Islam. Yet all that the Prophet’s opponents had to do to crush the movement was to make up a single chapter like any one of those which the Prophet and his followers were reciting to the people. A number of Quraishee orators and poets tried to imitate the Quran, 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 Islam. He responded to them by reciting the first thirteen verses of Chapter Fussilat, until they asked him to stop.
The Quran continually challenges all human beings to match its perfection, but indeed they can not.
“And this Qur’an is not such as could ever be produced by other than Allah (Lord of the heavens and the earth), but it is a confirmation of (the revelations) before it [i.e. the Torah, and the Injeel, etc.], and a full explanation of the Book (i.e. laws and orders, etc, decreed for mankind) – wherein there is no doubt from the Lord of the ‘Alamin (mankind, jinns,and all that exists).
Or do they say: “He (Muhammad) has forged it?” Say: “Bring then a surah (chapter) like unto it, and call upon whomsoever you can, besides Allah, if you are truthful!” [Qur'an 10:37-38]
The Quran is Protected and will Never Change
Allah says: “Verily it is We Who revealed the Remembrance (Thikra) and verily We are its guardians (to protect it).” (Al-Hijr, 15:9).
Unlike all previous Scriptures revealed to varying Prophets, the Quran – revealed over 1400 years ago – still remains unchanged, un-adulterated, and its meaning/explanation guarded (through the sunnah). Although the meaning of the Quran has been translated into many languages, the Quran itself is only considered THE QURAN in arabic form, and nothing else.
The Quran – a Sign from Allah (swt)
The complete existence of the Quran is also a miracle in itself. The guidance, and perfection of such guidance, is beyond the scope of any human or jinn. The absolute and intricate detail by which the revelation has come down, is a sign of Allah’s Might, Perfection, Kindness and Mercy.
“He is the One Who sends to His Servant Clear Signs, that He may lead you from the Darkness (of oppression) into the Light (of Islam), and verily Allah is to you most Kind and Merciful”. [57:9]
However, when the Prophet (saw) was commanded to preach this Islam to the people, they fell into the traps as those nations before them. They asked for physical miracles like previous prophet’s performed. However, Allah commanded his prophet to advise them that such miracles will not come to them. When other nations were given miracles to witness, they exclaimed he was a magician, sorcerer, or illusionist. But Allah knows best, and he sent Muhamed with the greatest of all miracles, one which would last not only during his (saw) life, but throughout all ages until the Day of Judgement – the Holy Quran.
A Miracle of Prophecies
Among other things, the Quran contains prophecies of future events, many of which have come to pass. We reproduce here a discussion of one such prophecy, which was fulfilled within the lifetime of the Prophet Muhammad (saw).
While the Prophet (saw) was still in Makkah, after having been entrusted with prophethood, and was being subjected to all sorts of persecutions by the Makkan idolaters, exactly at the same time the two great powers of Rome and Persia were involved in repeated wars. The Romans were beaten, vanquished and suffered a great loss in men and material. At last, the Romans were so utterly exhausted that, far from being in a position to launch a counter-attack, they could not even take a firm stand anywhere. This situation was a matter of jubilation for the pagans of Arabia, as they identified the Persians (being fire-worshippers) with themselves and the Romans as “people of the Book” with the Muslims. In their eyes, the dominance of the Persians, signified their own victory and the defeat of the Muslims. It was under these circumstances that these initial verses of the chapter called Ar-Room (The Romans) were revealed (which mean):
“…The Romans have been defeated, in the land close by. But after (this) defeat of theirs, they will soon be victorious within a few years. To Allah belongs the command before and after and on that day the Believers will rejoice in Allah’s help…” [Surah Ar-Rum 30:2-4]
For those who were aware of the military situation concerning the Romans and Persians, this prediction was absolutely incredible. In fact, the Persians kept marching forward until they reached the city walls of the Roman capital, Constantinople. The renowned historian Edward Gibbon has commented on this prediction thus:
“When this prophecy was made, no prediction could be more unbelievable because the initial twelve years of Heraclius were evidently declaring an end to the Roman Empire.” [Fall of the Roman Empire, v.5, p.73-74]
But exactly seven years after his first defeat, the Roman emperor sallied forth from the capital and inflicted crushing defeats on the Persians at several places, and after that the Roman armies were victorious everywhere.
Meanwhile, a large number of Muslims had migrated to Al-Madeenah and their wars with the idolaters of Makkah had already begun. The day on which 313 ill-equipped Muslims were decisively beating their enemy — 1000 heavily armed Makkan warriors — at the battlefield of Badr, came the news that the Romans had defeated the Persians. It was then realized that the Quranic verse, (which means): “…on that day the Believers will rejoice in Allaah’s help” [Surah Ar-Rum 30: 4-5] was meant to denote the twin happiness of the Romans’ victory as well as their own victory at Badr.
A Miracle in Science and History
Apart from prophecies, the Quran has pointed out many scientific and historical facts which were not only unknown at that time, but could not even be imagined given the development of civilization. Entire books have been written (by both Muslims and non-Muslims) confirming the correspondence of scientific discoveries to the truths expressed in the Quran. An example of this is the verse:
“And of everything We have created pairs that you may take heed.” [Surah Adh-Dhariyat 51: 49]
When this verse was revealed, the general concept was that male and female pairs existed only among human beings and animals or in some vegetation. However, with the advancement of science, the Quranic reality is becoming manifest that male and female pairs exist in everything. In some instances they are termed as male and female, and elsewhere as positive and negative, as electron and proton, or neutron and positron. In another verse, the Quran has also clarified that the occurrence in pairs in many other things is still unknown to people. It says (what means):
“Glorified be He Who created pairs of all things which the earth grows, and of themselves (humans), and of that which they know not.” [Surah Ya-Sin 36: 36]
A Miracle For Us!
Looking back through history, it has been observed that the prophets, may Allah exalt their mention, were sent with miracles that reflected the society and knowledge of the people they were sent to. Thus, Musa (Moses) was sent with a Staff that truly turned into a snake, baffling the trickster magicians of the Pharaoh. ‘Isaa (Jesus) was given the power to cure diseases and give life to the dead, astonishing the Jewish doctors who felt proud of their limited knowledge of healing, and who had begun to disregard and deny the supernatural powers of Allah.
Similarly, the Quran was an immediate miracle for the Arabs so many years ago, since it challenged and far surpassed the limits of their literary expression. Unlike the miracles of previous prophets, which were only applicable for a limited time, to this day the Quran – the Final Testament given to the Last Prophet (saw) – is still a relevant miracle for humanity and will remain so as long as the world exists. We live in an age of science and technology, of knowledge, logic, and reason. Yet, in spite of all the human advancement in every sphere of life, the principles of the Quran have not been proven wrong nor have they become “out-of-date.”
Furthermore, the application of the Quran unlocks further miracles, which are seen when humans follow the guidance and laws of anyone other than Allah. Chaos, turmoil, famine, murders, crimes, oppression, misery, are all problems commonly witnessed of a massive global scale. This is because Kuffar choose to not follow the guidance of The Creator, rather follow that or the creation! Only the guidance of Allah (swt) through the Quran and Sunnah, can truly provide tranquility and solutions for human beings.
This is really the great miracle of the Quran, it has proven itself a timeless, universal message for humankind, relevant to every facet of our life — be it politics, economics, ethics, science, literature, arts or entertainment.
Is it not time we ensure the world views the Quran in the same light?
“Oh you who believe. Respond to Allah and His Messenger when He calls you to that which gives you life” [Al-Anfaal:24]
