20. THE QUR’ĀN, THE LIVING MIRACLE

The Qur’ān is the only living miracle which remains and seen by people. Other miracles of the Prophet and previous prophets can only heard from people and read from books. But the Qur’ān remains and challenges people to produce the like of it. At the beginning, the Qur’ān challenged the Meccan infidels to produce a Scripture like the Qur’ān and the Torah. Allah said:
فَلَمَّا جَاءَهُمُ الْحَقُّ مِنْ عِنْدِنَا قَالُوا لَوْلَا أُوتِيَ مِثْلَ مَا أُوتِيَ مُوسَى
أَوَلَمْ يَكْفُرُوا بِمَا أُوتِيَ مُوسَى مِنْ قَبْلُ قَالُوا سِحْرَانِ تَظَاهَرَا وَقَالُوا إِنَّا بِكُلٍّ
كَافِرُونَ. قُلْ فَأْتُوا بِكِتَابٍ مِنْ عِنْدِ اللَّهِ هُوَ أَهْدَى مِنْهُمَا أَتَّبِعْهُ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ صَادِقِينَ.
فَإِنْ لَمْ يَسْتَجِيبُوا لَكَ فَاعْلَمْ أَنَّمَا يَتَّبِعُونَ أَهْوَاءَهُمْ وَمَنْ أَضَلُّ مِمَّنِ اتَّبَعَ
هَوَاهُ بِغَيْرِ هُدًى مِنَ اللَّهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يَهْدِي الْقَوْمَ الظَّالِمِينَ.
(القصص:٤٨-٥٠).
“But (now) when the Truth has come to them from
Ourselves, they say, ‘Why are not (signs) sent to him, like those
which were sent to Moses?’ Do they not then reject (the signs) which
were formerly sent to Moses? They say: ‘Two kinds of sorcery [i.e.,
Prophet Moses was called a sorcerer by the Egyptians for doing miracles,
such as turning his staff into a serpent and turning his hand into radiant-
white, and Prophet Muhammad’s miracle of the Qur’ān and its wonderful
words were called sorcery by the Meccan idolaters], each assisting the
other!’ And they say: ‘For us, we reject all (such things)!’ Say, then
bring ye a Book from Allah, which is a better guide than either of them,
that I may follow it! (Do) if ye are truthful! ’But if they hearken not
to thee, know that they only follow their own lusts: and who is
more astray than one who follows his own lusts, devoid of
guidance fromAllah? For Allah guides not
people given to wrong doing.”86
The challenge to produce a Book similar to the Qur’ān might be too hard for the Meccans. Then the challenge was reduced into ten chapters. Allah says:
أَمْ يَقُولُونَ افْتَرَاهُ قُلْ فَأْتُوا بِعَشْرِ سُوَرٍ مِثْلِهِ
مُفْتَرَيَاتٍ وَادْعُوا مَنِ اسْتَطَعْتُمْ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ صَادِقِينَ
(هود:۱٣).
“Or they may say: ‘He forged it’. Say: ‘Then bring ten surahs
[i.e., chapters] forged, like unto it, and call (to your aid) whomsoever
ye can, other than Allah!-- if ye speak the truth.’” 87
Then the Qur’ān made the challenge for one chapter only. Allah says:
وَإِنْ كُنْتُمْ فِي رَيْبٍ مِمَّا نَزَّلْنَا عَلَى عَبْدِنَا فَأْتُوا بِسُورَةٍ مِنْ مِثْلِهِ
وَادْعُوا شُهَدَاءَكُمْ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ صَادِقِينَ. فَإِنْ لَمْ تَفْعَلُوا وَلَنْ تَفْعَلُوا
فَاتَّقُوا النَّارَ الَّتِي وَقُودُهَا النَّاسُ وَالْحِجَارَةُ أُعِدَّتْ لِلْكَافِرِينَ.
(البقرة: ‌۲٣-‌‌٤‌‌۲)
“And if ye are in doubt as to what We have revealed from time
to time to Our servant then produce a surah (a chapter) like thereunto,
and call your witnesses or helpers (if there are any) besides Allah,
if ye are truthful. But if ye cannot—and of a surety ye cannot—
then fear the fire whose fuel is men and stones,--which
is prepared for those who reject faith.” 88
This is a test and a challenge to the Meccans to produce a chapter similar to a chapter in the Qur’ān. They could ask any help from anywhere other than Allah, to inspire spiritual truth in such a noble and beautiful language in one chapter as evidence that they could also produce something similar to the Qur’ān. The challenge is repeated in another verse as follows:
أَمْ يَقُولُونَ افْتَرَاهُ قُلْ فَأْتُوا بِسُورَةٍ مِثْلِهِ
وَادْعُوا مَنِ اسْتَطَعْتُمْ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ صَادِقِينَ.
(يونس: ٣٨)
“Or do they say, ‘He forged it!’? Say: ‘Bring then a surah
[a chapter] like unto it, and call (to your aid) anyone
you can, besides Allah, if it be ye speak the truth!’”89

The shortest chapter in the Qur’ān consists of three verses only, namely, Sūrat al-Kawthar, as follows:
إِنَّا أَعْطَيْنَاكَ الْكَوْثَرَ. فَصَلِّ لِرَبِّكَ وَانْحَرْ. إِنَّ شَانِئَكَ هُوَ الْأَبْتَرُ.
(الكوثر : ۱-٣)
“To thee have We granted the abundance.
Therefore, to thy Lord turn in prayer and sacrifice.
For he who hatest thee, he will be cut off
(from future hope).”90
The challenge of the Qur’ān (tah.addī) is an amazing challenge; it challenges not only the poets of Mecca in the time of the Prophet, but also the people of our present time and of the future, so that they can prove that the Qur’ān is the product of Muhammad and not revelation from Allah. Many tried but failed, among them: Musaylimah b. H...abīb, T.ulayh.ah b. Khuwaylid al-Asadī, al-Nad.r b. al-H...ārith, Abū ’l-H...asan Muh.ammad b. Yah.yā known as “Ibn al-Rawandī”, Abu ’l-T.ayyib al-Mutanabbī, Abū l-‘Alā’ al-Ma‘arrī, Labīd and Ibn al-Muqaffa‘. The style of the Qur’ān is beyond their reach.
Labīd became Muslim in the year 9 A.H. One day ‘Umar asked him to cite some of his poems. Instead, he read Sūrat al-Baqarah (chapter 2 of the Qur’ān) and said that after Allah had taught him that surah and Surat Al ‘Imrān (chapter 3 of the Qur’ān) he stopped citing poetry.
Ibn al-Muqaffa‘ (d. 727 C.E.), the famous prose writer of Persian origin, was asked one day to challenge the Qur’ān for hearing that many people would convert to Islam. He promised to do it in one year. After six months his friends came to see what he was doing. He was sitting at his desk, a pen in his hand, pieces of paper scattered on the floor, and confessed he could not produce a single sentence to challenge the style of the Qur’ān. Allah says:
قُلْ لَئِنِ اجْتَمَعَتِ الْإِنْسُ وَالْجِنُّ عَلَى أَنْ يَأْتُوا بِمِثْلِ
هَذَا الْقُرْآَنِ لَا يَأْتُونَ بِمِثْلِهِ وَلَوْ كَانَ بَعْضُهُمْ لِبَعْضٍ ظَهِيرًا
(الإسراء: ٨٨).
“Say: ‘If the whole of mankind and jinns were to gather
together to produce the like of this Qur’ān, they could
not produce the like thereof, even if they backed
up each other with help and support.” 91
The infidel of Mecca would have taken the shortest way in fighting the Prophet and the Muslims if they could, by producing three verses (in one chapter) similar to those of the Qur’ān. But because they could not, they took the long way by fighting them with swords.
In conclusion I would like to cite a short surah and one of my favourites, Sūrat al-D.uh.ā. Whenever I read it I feel as if it were revealed to me. It exhibits a simple but perfect rhetorical balance: an opening oaths by contrasted light and darkness, introduces three triplets matching exactly together.
When revelation stopped for a period of time the Meccan infidels said: “Muhammad’s Lord has forsaken him.” So Allah revealed the following surah:
وَالضُّحَى. وَاللَّيْلِ إِذَا سَجَى. مَا وَدَّعَكَ رَبُّكَ
وَمَا قَلَى. وَلَلْآَخِرَةُ خَيْرٌ لَكَ مِنَ الْأُولَى. وَلَسَوْفَ يُعْطِيكَ
رَبُّكَ فَتَرْضَى. أَلَمْ يَجِدْكَ يَتِيمًا فَآَوَى. وَوَجَدَكَ ضَالًّا فَهَدَى.
وَوَجَدَكَ عَائِلًا فَأَغْنَى. فَأَمَّا الْيَتِيمَ فَلَا تَقْهَرْ. وَأَمَّا السَّائِلَ
فَلَا تَنْهَرْ. وَأَمَّا بِنِعْمَةِ رَبِّكَ فَحَدِّثْ.
(الضحى:‍۱-۱۱).
“By the glorious morning light, and by the night when it is
still,-- [This is the opening with contrasting light and darkness,
two oaths]. Thy Guardian-Lord hath not forsaken thee, nor is
He displeased. And verily the Hereafter will be better for thee
than the present. And soon will thy Guardian-Lord give thee
(that wherewith) thou shalt be well-pleased. [This is the first
triplet. It contains two negations and two promises]. Did He
not find thee an orphan and give thee shelter (and care)? And
He found thee wandering, and He gave thee guidance? And
He found thee in need, and made thee independent? [This is
the second triplet. It contains three rhetorical questions].
Therefore treat not the orphan with harshness, nor repulse
him who asks. But the bounty of their Lord—rehearse and
proclaim!”. [This is the third and the last triplet. It
contains three commandments of which two
prohibitions and one injunction]. “ 92

Footnotes:
86. Qur’ān, al-Qas.as. [28]:48-50
87. Qur’ān, Hūd [11]:13
88. Qur’ān, al-Baqarah [2]:21-24
89. Qur’ān, Yūnus [10]:38
90. Qur’ān, al-Kawthar [108]:1-3
91. Qur’ān, al-Isrā’ [17]:88
92. Qur’ān, al-D.uh.ā [93]:1-11