EL SHA'rawy-G26.Pdf

26 26 In the Name of God, the Most Merciful, the Dispenser of Mercy. 26 26 Published by : Tel +97126265151 [email protected] Printing & Binding: Printing Group [email protected] --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ISBN: 978-9948-36-806-9 First edition 1441 H. - 2020 ©All rights reserved to Al Hosn Research & Studies Centre No part of this book maybe reproduced or transmitted including printing, publishing, photocopying, or storing by any electronic or mechanical means without written permission from the publisher. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Chapter of al-Qalam the chapter of al-Qalam 5 The Chapter of al-Qalam In the Name of God, the Most Merciful, the Dispenser of Mercy T he chapter of al-Qalam (1): ~ } | { zy Nun, By the pen! By all they write! [1] (The Quran, al-Qalam: 1) Islam puts the pen, the inkwell, reading and writing in a high position, as Allah the Almighty has named this chapter in question al-Qalam (The Pen) and it is also named ‘Nun’ which means the inkwell that was used in writing. The first thing that was created is the pen, and then Allah the Almighty ordered it to write everything that will happen in the world till the Day of Judgment in the Preserved Tablet. So, the pen has written everything that would happen till the Day of Judgment, including the actions, the provisions and the appointed times of death. In this regard, Prophet Muhammad peace and blessings be upon him said, ‘The first thing Allah created was the pen. He said to it, ‘Write.’ It asked, ‘What should I write, my Lord?’ He said, ‘Write what was decreed about everything till the Last Hour comes.’(2) This is what is meant by His saying: ‘Nun. By the pen! By all they write!’ (al-Qalam: 1) (1) The chapter of al-Qalam is number 68 in the Quranic order and it was revealed in Mecca. All its verses are clear, including no abrogating or abrogated verses. It is also named ‘Nun’ because it starts with the same word. It was the second chapter to be revealed in Mecca and the number of its verses is 52. It was revealed after the chapter of al-Àlaq. Thus, the time of its revelation was between the beginning of the revelation and the migration to Abyssinia. (2) This Hadith is narrated on the authority of Abu Hurayra Allah be pleased with him. See Al-Qiryabi, Al-Qadar, 1/29; and Al-Ajurri, Ash-Sharià, Hadith no. 179. 7 EL SHA'RAWY REFLECTIONS / vol- 26 Allah the Almighty has written what the people will do because He knows it even before it is done, for He is the Omniscient. He knows what will happen in His Universe even before it occurs. In this connection, Allah Glorified is He says: ‘And there is not a town but We will destroy it before the Day of Resurrection or chastise it with a severe chastisement; this is written in the Divine ordinance.’ (al-Isra’: 58) Thus, everything is written and recorded in the Preserved Tablet. As for the saying of Allah ‘Nun’ (al-Qalam: 1), we know that the Arabic letters are twenty-eight. In the Quran, half of them exist in the form of discrete letters at the beginning of some chapters. Some chapters begin with one of those letters, like the letter Qaf in Allah’s saying: ‘Qaf. By the honoured Quran’ (Qaf: 1); the letter Sad in His saying: ‘Sad. By the Quran containing a reminder’ (Sad: 1); and the letter Nun here in the verse in question: ‘Nun. By the pen! By all they write!’ (al-Qalam: 1) Some chapters yet begin with two of these letters, like His saying: ‘Ha Mim.’ (al-Jathiya: 1); some others begin with three letters as in His saying: ‘Alif, Lam Mim.’ (al-Baqara: 1); some begin with four letters: ‘Alif, Lam, Mim Sad.’ (al-A‘raf: 1); and some begin with five letters: ‘Kaf, Ha, Ya, Àyn Sad.’ (Maryam: 1). We notice that the letter in the chapters that start with one letter is not considered a verse. The two or more letters are sometimes considered a verse, as in Allah’s saying: ‘Àyn Sin Qaf.’ (ash-Shura: 2); ‘Ta Ha’ (Ta Ha: 1); ‘Ya Sin’ (Ya Sin: 1); ‘Kaf, Ha, Ya, Àyn Sad’ (Maryam: 1) and ‘Alif, Lam, Mim Sad’ (al-A‘raf: 1) However, these letters constitute only part of a verse in His saying: ‘Alif, Lam, Mim Ra. These are the verses of the Book…’ (ar-Ra‘d: 1) and ‘Ta Sin’. These are the verses of the Quran and the Book…’ (an-Naml: 1). These discrete letters are pronounced by their names, not their sounds as in other words. They may refer to a name, like in Ta-ha, which is said to be one of Prophet Muhammad’s names.(1) The letter Nun may also refer to the (1) There is no authentic Hadith proving that Ta Ha is one of Prophet Muhammad’s names, but this was only mentioned in some books of Tafsir. 8 The Chapter of al-Qalam Whale, as in His saying: ‘And remember the man with the whale, when he went off angrily…’ (al-Anbiya’: 87); and Qaf may refer to a name of a mountain. One of the miraculous aspects of the Quran is that it consists of the same letters and words of the normal speech. That is why Allah the Almighty often says after these discrete letters: ‘These are the verses of the clear Book.’ (ash-Shu῾ara’: 2), and ‘These are the verses of the Quran and the Book that makes (things) clear.’ (an-Naml: 1) This means that the Quran consists of these discrete letters and their likes. Each of these letters has secrets that we have not reached yet. All the previous interpretations of these letters are just humble trials. He the Almighty mentions them many times throughout the Quran to remind us always about them. When we want to recite these letters correctly, we must read them separately. In this regard, Prophet Muhammad peace and blessings be upon him said, ‘I do not say Alif Lam Mim is one letter; rather, Alif is one letter, Lam is one letter and Mim is one letter.’(1) To emphasise this meaning, these letters must be recited separately. These letters are the main components of the words of the Quran. Let us give an example for this; if you have some textile workers and you want to know the most skilful one among them, you must give them the same material. It is not accepted to give someone of them cotton, the other wool and the third silk, that is to say that it is not accepted to give them different materials. Silk, for example, will be naturally softer. If you really want to know the most skilful one, give them all the same material. In the same sense, the Quran is miraculous because it is formed from the same letters that they use; however, they could not meet its challenge. The Quran used their letters and words, and put them in such an eloquent way that they could not bring even one chapter like it. The Quran was revealed in Arabic and challenged the Arabs who were then the people of eloquence and magnificent ways of expression and styles. It was revealed among the people of Quraysh whose dialect enjoyed all the (1) This Hadith is narrated on the authority of Àbdullah ibn Masùd Allah be pleased with him. See At-Tirmidhi, Sunnan, Hadith no. 2910; and Ibn Al-Mubarak, Az-Zuhd, Hadith no. 808. 9 EL SHA'RAWY REFLECTIONS / vol- 26 accents of the Arabic tribes. There were among them very strong disbelievers, but none of them asked about the meaning of ‘Alif Lam Mim’ or ‘Ha Mim’. If they had found that these discrete letters give them a chance to attack the Quran, they would have never missed this opportunity. But in fact, they have never asked about them which proves that they understood these letters and knew that they have a meaning. At least, they considered them letters for attracting attention, like what they were using in their poetry and speech. Some scholars have said that the letter Nun at the beginning of this verse refers to the whale. That is why Prophet Yunus (Jonah) was named Dhan-Nun (The man of the whale) in Allah’s saying: ‘And remember the man with the whale, when he went off angrily…’ (al-Anbiya’: 87). Then Allah Glorified is He says: ‘…By the Pen…’ (al-Qalam: 1). Here, He the Almighty swears by the pen, as He swears by whatever He wants about whatever He wants. The oath is used to emphasise something because someone has doubts about it. Allah Glorified is He has taken oaths by many things in the Quran. He swears by the figs, the olives, the Quran etc. In some verses, the word La (no) precedes the oath, as in Allah’s saying: ‘Nay! I swear by this city. And you shall be made free from obligation in this city—And the begetter and whom he begot. Certainly, We have created man to be in distress.’ (al-Balad: 1-4), the word ‘nay’ refutes their allegation, and then comes the oath to emphasise the issue that He states. It means that the disbelievers have no right to deny it. So, Allah Glorified is He swears by whatever He likes about whatever He wants. He has sworn by the sun, by the places of the stars, and with the falling star.

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