6. RHETORICAL EXPRESSSIONS OF THE QUR’ĀN (5)

 6. RHETORICAL EXPRESSSIONS OF THE QUR’ĀN (5)

6. إِلْتِفَات (iltifāt), sudden transition

Iltifāt literally means “turning away, inclination, a sudden transition.” Technically, it means “turning the style of speech to another,” or “the change of style from the form of the first person (the speaker) or the second person (the person spoken to, the listener), or the third person (who is not present, who is the object of speaking) to another, then the pronoun returns to its previous one.” This iltifāt is used extensively in the Qur’ān.

 Al-Zarkashī in his al-Burhān says that the iltifāt is the change from one style to another as a means to alert and attract the listener, to renew his energy, and to protect his mind from boredom and discontent caused by listening to an incessant single style. He divides the advantages of the iltifāt into general and particular. The general advantage is that it gives an opportunity to use various styles and to shift from one style to another which alert the listener and attract his interest, to broaden the flow of the speech, and to facilitate the use of poetic measure and rhyme. The particular advantages are: to honour the position of the person who is spoken to (the second person), to direct attention to the significance of the statement, to complete the meaning intended by the speaker and to indicate hyperbole, specification, significance and reproach. Among the categories of iltifāt are as follows:

a.     From the third person to the second person, such as:

الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ*الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ*مَالِكِ يَوْمِ الدِّينِ*

 إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ (الفاتحة: 1-4)

All praise and thanks are Allah’s, the Lord of the ‘ālamīn (mankind, jinn and all that exists). The Most Gracious,

 the Merciful. The Only Owner (and the Only Ruling Judge)

 of the Day of Recompense (i.e. the Day of Resurrection).

 You (Alone) we worship, and You (Alone we ask for

help (for each and everything) (Q. 1:1-4)  

          When we start praying and recite the Fātiḥah we start addressing Allah in the third person as “He”. We praise and thank Him. Then we address Him directly as a second person “You”. We say, “You Alone we worship, and You Alone we ask help.” We do not say “He Alone we worship, and He Alone we ask help.” In another word, we talk about Allah praising Him and thanking Him, then we talk directly to Him, telling Him, “You (Alone) we worship…”

          Instead of مَالِكِ (māliki) there is a variant reading مَالِكَ (mālika), so that the verse means “O the Only Owner…!” which means that when we read this variant reading we start talking directly to Allah in the second person “You.”

Al-Zarkashī gives the following example from the Qur’ān:

وَقَالُوا اتَّخَذَ الرَّحْمَنُ وَلَدًا. لَقَدْ جِئْتُمْ شَيْئًا إِدًّا (مريم : ٨٨-٨٩)  

And they say, “The Most Gracious (Allah) has

begotten a son”! Indeed, [by this assertion]

you have brought forth a terrible

evil thing. (Q.19:88-89).

 Instead of جَاؤُا ("they brought forth") it is used جِئْتُمْ ("you brought forth") to indicate that whoever makes a statement like theirs he is to be reproached and rejected.  Here Allah is addressing them directly as if they were present.

b.    From the second person o the third person, such as:

حَتَّى إِذَا كُنْتُمْ فِي الْفُلْكِ وَجَرَيْنَ بِهِمْ بِرِيحٍ طَيِّبَةٍ وَفَرِحُوا بِهَا (يونس:22)

.... And [behold what happens] when you go to sea

in ships: [they go to sea in ships,] and they sailed on

 in them in a favourable wind, and they rejoiced

 thereat...  (Q. 10:22, Asad).

    Here the words  جَرَيْنَ بِهِمْ ("they sail on in them") and فَرِحُوا بِهَا ("they rejoiced thereat") is a sudden transition from جَرَيْنَ بِكُمْ ("you sail on in them") and فَرِحْتُمْ بِهَا ("you rejoiced thereat") respectively. We notice that in translating the above verse Asad says "they go to sea in ships" between brackets to indicate the occurrence of the shift from the direct address and the second person plural "you" to the third person plural "they". The purpose of this shift, as he stated it, is "to bring out the allegorical character of the subsequent narrative and to turn it into a lesson of general validity.”

           Al-Zarkashī mentions three views concerning the purpose of the iltifāt in this verse, as follows: (1) it is to indicate wonder about people's deeds and disbeliefs; (2) it is to single out the rebellious among the people; before the iltifāt the address was to people in general, believers as well as non-believers; then the iltifāt is used to indicate that the reproof is exclusively for those who rebel wrongfully after being delivered from danger, as mentioned in the above verse and that which follows it (Q. 10:23); (3) it is to indicate the two conditions of people: when they were on board a ship they felt confined and feared perishing and changing wind; in this case they were addressed the way people who are present are addressed (in the second person); but when the danger passed with a favourable wind, they were happy, and their presence was no longer required in referring to them; therefore, the  iltifāt is  used,  the address  was  given  in the third person, and it was said وَجَرَيْنَ بِهِمْ "and they sailed on in them”

c.     From the third person to the first person, such as:

وَقَالَ اللّهُ لاَ تَتَّخِذُواْ إِلـهَيْنِ اثْنَيْنِ إِنَّمَا هُوَ إِلهٌ

وَاحِدٌ فَإيَّايَ فَارْهَبُونِ (النحل: 51)

And Allah said (O mankind!): “Take not two gods

  in worship. Verily, He (Allah) is (the) only One God.

 Then, fear Me much (Alone) (Q. 16:51)

    In the beginning Allah said directly to mankind not to worship two gods, as He is the Only God, and then He said, “fear Me” which is stronger expression. Allah as the first person talked to them directly, instead of “fear Him” in the third person, as if He said, “If you fear something, fear Me.”

وَلَقَدْ أَخَذَ اللَّهُ مِيثَاقَ بَنِي إِسْرائيلَ وَبَعَثْنَا مِنْهُمُ اثْنَيْ عَشَرَ نَقِيباً (المائدة:12)

Indeed, Allah took the covenant from the Children of

 Israel (Jews), and We appointed twelve leaders

 among them (Q. 5:12)

       Here Allah talked as a third person (“He”), namely, “Allah took”, then He changed into “We”, namely, “We appointed.”

وَهُوَ الَّذِيَ أَنزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مَاءً فَأَخْرَجْنَا بِهِ نَبَاتَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ (الأنعام: 99)

It is He Who sends down water (rain) from the sky, and

 with it We bring forth vegetation of all kinds (Q. 6:99)

              In this verse Allah Who sends down rain, then He brings forth vegetation using the first person “We” in “We bring forth…” instead of “He brings forth” to indicate that He takes care of the vegetation and the consequence of it.

  An interesting example is the following verse:

سُبْحَانَ الَّذِي أَسْرَى بِعَبْدِهِ لَيْلًا مِنَ الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ إِلَى الْمَسْجِدِ الْأَقْصَى

 الَّذِي بَارَكْنَا حَوْلَهُ لِنُرِيَهُ مِنْ آيَاتِنَا إِنَّهُ هُوَ السَّمِيعُ الْبَصِيرُ (الإسراء:1)

Glorified (and Exalted) is He (Allah) [Above all that (evil)

they associate with Him] Who took His slave (Muhammad)

 for a journey by night from al-Masjid al-Ḥarām (at

 Makkah) to al-Masjid al-Aqṣā (in Jerusalem), the neighbourhood whereof We have blessed, in order

 that We might show him (Muhammad) of Our āyāt

 (proof, evidences, lessons, signs, etc.). Verily,

He is the All-Hearer, the All-Seer (Q. 17:1)

    Here the verse starts with the third person “His” in “His slave”, then turns into the first person “We” in “We have blessed”, as well as is “in order that We might show him” and “Our” in “Our ayat”, then the verse concludes with the third person “He” in “He is the All-Hearer.”

    Instead of لِنُرِيَهُ (linuriyahu) “in order that We might show him” another variant reading is لِيُرِيَهُ (liyuriyahu) “in order that He might show him”, so that the iltifāt of the two pronounces occurs alternately, namely, “His slave”, “We have blessed”, “in order that He might show,” “Our āyāt,” and “He is the All-Hearer.” We notice in this verse the use of:   His – We – He – Our – He.

d.    From the first person to the third person, such as:

 إِنَّا أَعْطَيْنَاكَ الْكَوْثَرَ فَصَلِّ لِرَبِّكَ   (الكوثر: 2،1)

Verily, We have granted you (O Muhammad)

al-Kawthar (a river in Paradise). Therefore, turn

 your prayer to your Lord… (Q. 108:1-2)

    In this verse Allah starts talking to the Prophet (ﷺ) with the first person “We” in “We have granted you”, then He refers to Himself as “your Lord” in “turn your prayer to your Lord” instead of “to Me”, and this is an iltifāt, a sudden transition. Through this transition, the listener pays more attention and to get more information that the speaker was the Prophet’s Lord, Allah, Who gave him al-Kawthar.

If you want to advise your son, for example, it will be stronger to say: “I want you to listen to your father.”, rather than “I want you to listen to me”. Let him remember that you are his father and he is your son, and he belongs to you.

e.     From the first person to the second person, such as:

وَمَا لِي لاَ أَعْبُدُ الَّذِي فَطَرَنِي وَإِلَيْهِ تُرْجَعُونَ (يس: 22)

“And why should I not worship Him (Allah Alone)

 Who has created me and to Whom you shall

be returned” (Q. 36:22)

          As mentioned in the previous verse there was a person who asked people to obey the messengers of Allah. In this verse he said that he had to worship Allah Alone Who had created him, and to Him “you shall be returned” (تُرْجَعُونَ) instead of “I shall be returned” (أُرْجَعُ). The speaker wanted the listeners to know, that not only him who would be returned, but also they would be returned to Allah, as well. So, the speaker shifted from the first person to the second person.

f.       From the second person to the first person, such as:

قُلِ اللّهُ أَسْرَعُ مَكْراً إِنَّ رُسُلَنَا يَكْتُبُونَ مَا تَمْكُرُونَ  )يونس: 21(

Say: “Allah is Swifter in planning!” Certainly

Our Messengers (angels) record of all that

 which you plot. (Q. 10:21)

In this verse Allah addressed Himself when He said, “Say” but shifted to the first person when He said “Our” in “Our messengers.”

g.     Addressing two persons and suddenly the address is directed to one of them only,  for example:    

(قَالَ فَمَنْ رَبُّكُمَا يَا مُوسَى (طه : ٤٩

He replied: 'Who, now, is this Sustainer of you

two, O Moses?'" (Q. 20:49, Asad).

  Here Pharaoh spoke at first to both Moses and Aaron, but later spoke to Moses alone, saying "O Moses.”

h. Addressing somebody, but the address is intended for somebody else, for example:

إِذْ أَنْشَأَكُمْ مِنَ الْأَرْضِ (النجم :32 )

... , and when He brings you into being

out of dust. (Q. 53:32, Asad).

Here Allah means Adam himself, not his descendants.                            (Turner, 20 October, 2016)

المراجع:

 المكتبة الشاملة

تفسير الطبري (ت. 310 هـ  (

تفسير القرطبى (ت. 671 هـ(

تفسير ابن كثير (ت. 774 هـ)

Muhammad Asad. The Message of the Qur’ān.

M.A. Samad. Ibn Quraybah’s Contribution to Qur’ānic Exegesis.

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