In His Name, glory be to Him
There is nothing that does not glorify Him with praise.
In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate.
Judging the Qur’an impartially?
Eleven years ago someone asked me: “You regard the Qur’an as highly exalted and radiant. Study it for once in an objective manner and see whether it is so radiant and exalted!”
Answer
Objective reasoning means impartial judgment or not taking sides, but the objective reasoning which you and your disciples suggest is, in fact, taking the part of those in opposition to the Qur’an; not impartiality but an attitude of temporary unbelief. This is really so because to suppose the Qur’an the work of a human being and to build an argument on this supposition is to side with unbelief or falsehood.
The person retorted:
Then, accept it as neither the Word of God nor the work of a human being!
Answer:
That is not justifiable either, for, if some item of property is disputed between two parties, it is deposited in the hands of a trusted third party, provided that the two parties are in reasonable proximity to each other. However, if the parties are quite far apart, the property is left, until the dispute is settled, in the possession of the one who already holds it ñ the matter is not left undecided.
The number of people who have accepted the Qur’an as the Word of God over fourteen centuries amounts to billions. So it falls upon those in opposition to it to prove, if they can, that it is the work of a human being, not upon the Muslims to prove it to be the Word of God.
To follow the analogy through, if the Qur’an may be regarded as a priceless piece of property, there is an infinite distance between its present owner—God—and its claimant—man. So the matter cannot be left undecided as there cannot be, in this case, a third party into whose custody it may be entrusted. That being so, it should be left in the “hands” of God. Second, the number of people who have accepted it as the Word of God over fourteen centuries amounts to billions. So it falls upon those in opposition to it to prove, if they can, that it is the work of a human being, not upon the Muslims to prove it to be the Word of God. If its opponents are able to refute all the proofs that the Qur’an is the Word of God, only then can it justifiably be argued whether it is the Word of God or the work of a human being. Otherwise, not!
Therefore, O Satan! Who would dare to pull out that brilliant Qur’an from the Greatest Throne of God onto which it is fixed with thousands of “nails” of decisive proofs? Despite you, O Satan, the people of truth and justice deal with the issue by just reasoning and strengthen their belief in the Qur’an through even the least of those decisive proofs. As for those who are taken in by you and your disciples, it is very difficult for them to get out of the darkness of unbelief into the light of belief. This requires a proof as strong as all the “nails” with which the Qur’an is fixed to the Greatest Throne of God, once it has been cast to the ground by supposing it to be the work of a human being. It is because of this that many people are deceived by you into that false pretence of “objective” reasoning and ultimately lose their faith.
The person insisted:
The Qur’an resembles the word of a human being in that it follows the style of human speech or conversation. If it were the Word of God, it should be extraordinary in all its aspects. As God’s artistry cannot be likened to what is human, His Word likewise should not resemble human speech!
Answer
Our Prophet, upon him be peace and blessings, was a human being; except for his miracles and states of prophethood, all his acts and attitudes originated in his humanity. Like all other human beings, he was subject to and dependent upon the creational and operational laws of God; he suffered from cold, felt pains and so on. He was not extraordinary in all his acts and attitudes, and set an example to mankind through his conduct. If he had been extraordinary in his conduct and attitudes, he could not have been an absolute guide in every aspect of life and the mercy for all the worlds through all his states. In the same way, the Wise Qur’an is a leader to conscious beings, a director to mankind and the jinn, a guide to men of perfection, and an instructor to truth-seeking people. For that reason, it needs to be in the style of human speech and conversation: for mankind and the jinn take out of it their supplications, they learn from it their prayers, they converse about their affairs in its terms and they derive from it the principles of good conduct. In short, every believer adopts it as the authorized recourse or reference on all his affairs. If, by contrast, it had been like the Word of God which the Prophet Moses heard on Mount Sinai, no one could have borne to hear it, let alone adopt it as a recourse. One of the five greatest Messengers of God, namely the Prophet Moses, upon him be peace, was able to hear only a few pieces of that Word and asked, “Is this Your speech?” God answered, “I have the power of all tongues and languages.”
The person continued:
Many persons give voice in the name of religion to almost the same subjects as those in the Qur’an. So, is it not possible for a human being to produce the like of the Qur’an?
Answer
- First of all, a religious man voices the truth for the love of religion and in the name of God’s commandments; he never lies against God. He would never venture so far as to imitate God and speak on his own for fear of the Qur’anic threat, Who is greater in wrongdoing than the one who lies against God! (39:32)
- It is by no means possible for a man to succeed in doing such a thing for a man can only imitate another one of nearly the same level. Only those of the same species can take each other’s form; only those of nearly the same level can pretend to each other’s level. However, it is very difficult, even in this case, for them to deceive people for long as their pretensions and false display will certainly give them away sooner or later in the sight of perceptive people.
- Suppose the counterfeiter is greatly inferior in rank to the one he tries to imitate. If, for example, an ordinary man were to pretend to the knowledge of Avicenna or a shepherd were to make himself appear to be a king, he would most certainly do nothing other than lay himself open to ridicule.
- Is it at all possible that a firefly could make itself appear as a star to observers for a thousand years? Can a fly make itself appear as a peacock for a year? Also, is it at all conceivable that an ordinary private could pretend to be a famous marshal and occupy his chair for a long time without giving himself away?
- Likewise, is it possible for a slandering, lying man of unbelief to sustain for a lifetime, before the discerning, a false display of the loyalty, truthfulness and conviction of a most pious man?
If all these “ifs” are indeed inconceivable and if they are all unacceptable to any intelligent man, then how can one suppose the Qur’an to be the work of a human being? To do so would mean regarding that Manifest Book, which has been like a star of truths or a sun of perfection radiating the lights of truths in the sky of the Muslim world for centuries, as—God forbid!—a collection of falsehoods invented by—God forbid!—a counterfeiter! It would also mean that those who were in his company for twenty-three years and followed him for fourteen centuries were not aware of his real identity and, although he was—God forbid!—like a firefly, knew and believed him to be a radiant, star-like source of truths! This is the most inconceivable of suppositions and you, O Satan, cannot deceive any sensible man into such an inconceivable supposition even if you were a hundred times more advanced in your devilish craft! What you can manage, however, is to deceive people into looking at the Qur’an and the Prophet from a very great distance and see those star-like objects as fireflies.
- To suppose the Qur’an to be the work of a human being would also mean that a most bright, true and comprehensive criterion of the human world, miraculous of exposition and which brings well-being to that world, is—God forbid!—the product of an unlettered individual. It would mean—God forbid!—pretence and counterfeiting always appeared to even great intellects and exalted geniuses as earnestness, sincerity and purity of intention! It is surely the most inconceivable of allegations. Further, to accept it would mean regarding as reality an inconceivable supposition. It would mean that a most illustrious and virtuous being who, throughout his life, displayed and preached conviction, truthfulness, trustworthiness, sincerity, earnestness and uprightness in all his states, his words and his actions, and who brought up many truthful persons was—God forbid!—a mean and most discreditable rascal, wholly insincere and the foremost in unbelief. That is so great a delirium that even Satan would be ashamed to conceive it.
- There is not a third alternative in this matter because, if the Qur’an is supposed as the work of a human being, it must be something so far debased as if it had fallen the distance from heaven to earth. It would change from being a collection of truths into a source of superstitions. And the rank of the one who brought that wonderful decree—the Qur’an—would likewise be degraded from being a source of perfection to—God forbid!—the greatest cheat; that must follow if he is—God forbid!—not a Messenger of God. For the one who lies in the name of God is the meanest of people. It follows that such a supposition is as inconceivable as always seeing a fly as, and imagining it to have the qualities of, a peacock. Only an intoxicated man, moreover insane from birth, could regard such suppositions as possible.
- The Qur’an directs the Muslim community which includes, among its members (and this has been witnessed for fourteen centuries past) the greatest and most magnificent division of the children of Adam. The Qur’an holds that community in such an order and under such a discipline as to enable them to conquer both worlds—this one and the next. It has equipped them both materially and spiritually, and instructed and educated them in all rational, moral and spiritual matters according to the intellectual capacity of each of their individuals. It has also purified them and employed each member of their bodies and each of their senses and faculties in its most proper place. As for the Prophet Muhammad (upon him be peace and blessings) who brought the Qur’an from God, he also brought to mankind the laws of God exemplified by his attitudes and actions throughout his life. He instructed mankind through his actions throughout his life and through his sincere practice of the principles of truth. He showed and established through his sincere and reasonable sayings the ways of true guidance and well-being; and he is, as testified by his whole life and good conduct, the most knowledgeable of God and the most fearful of His punishment. He also established his splendid rule of perfection over half of the globe and one-fifth of mankind. He truly became, through world-famous manners and world-admired actions as a prophet, statesman, commander, spiritual and intellectual guide, father, husband, friend, and so on, the pride not only of mankind but also of the whole creation. Such being the case, to suppose the Qur’an as the work of a human being would mean that it is—God forbid!—the worthless fabrication of—God forbid!—a dishonest liar who did not recognize God and felt no fear of Him! This is, again, the most inconceivable of suppositions and therefore, O Satan, you cannot deceive into such a supposition any sensible and sound-hearted man, even if you were a hundred times more powerful in your devilish tricks!
Satan retorted:
How can I fail to deceive! I have actually deceived the majority of mankind including the foremost in rational thought and led them to deny both the Qur’an and Muhammad!
Answer
- When looked at from a great distance, the biggest thing can look as small as a tiny particle; a star can be considered as a candle.
- When considered in a superficial way, vulnerable to distraction and illusion, an inconceivable thing can appear conceivable.
Once, an old man was scanning the horizon in order to catch sight of the new crescent of Ramadan. A white hair from his eyebrow which had curved over his eyes came into his line of vision: deceived by that illusion, he announced, “I have seen the moon!” However inconceivable it is that a white hair could be regarded as the crescent, this inconceivability became actual in the eyes of the old man who was deceived by an illusion while searching for the crescent in the sky.
- Denial is different from non-confirmation. Non-confirmation is a kind of indifference and lack of judgment. For this reason, many inconceivable things may exist unintentionally in non-confirmation. As to denial, it is a judgment and means the confirmation of non-existence. A man usually gets to denial through reasoning. A devil like you, O Satan, deprives him of sound judgment and deceives him into denial. So, O Satan, you have used such devilish devices as heedlessness, deviation, sophistry, obstinacy, demagogy, arrogant superiority and conceit, seduction and custom which cause many to see falsehood as truth and the inconceivable as conceivable. Through them you have deceived lots of unfortunate people (human in appearance but it is questionable whether they are so in essence) into unbelief which, in fact, requires the acceptance of many inconceivable things.
- The Qur’an, besides the merits of it mentioned above, is a book of pure truths and matchless value. It has become a guide to the saints, scholars of truth and purity who are like stars in the sky of the human world. It continually invites the people of every age and race and those seeking perfection, to truth and love of the truth, truthfulness and loyalty, trustworthiness and reliability. Through the truths of the pillars of belief and the principles of the fundamentals of Islam, the Qur’an secures happiness in both worlds. As for the preacher of the Qur’an, the Prophet Muhammad (upon him be peace and blessings) is a most trustworthy being, the foremost and firmest in belief and conviction. This is testified by the religion and law of Islam which he preached, and demonstrated by his unanimously acknowledged piety and sincere worship manifested throughout his whole life. It is required by his laudable virtues, and confirmed by all the men of truth and perfection. That being the case, to suppose the Qur’an to be the work of a human being would mean that the Qur’an is—God forbid!—a collection of fallacies and lies, and the Prophet is—God forbid!—an unreliable, unbelieving liar without fear of God. This supposition is the most dangerous kind of unbelief and the most abominable of deviations and wrongdoing, which even devils and sophists would be ashamed to conceive.
In short:
Those who have only the power of hearing to appreciate the miraculousness of the Qur’an acknowledge the Qur’an not to be of the same kind and degree as all the other books they have heard. The Qur’an is, therefore, either inferior to them all or superior. No one in the world, even if he be a devil, can claim that the Qur’an is inferior to the other books, so it should necessarily be accepted that the Qur’an is superior to them all, and that it is, thereby, a miracle. That being the case, based on the two decisive proofs called “dichotomy” and “reductio ad absurdum” we openly declare:
O Satan! and O you disciples of Satan! The Qur’an is either the Word of God manifested through the Highest Throne of God and His Highest Name, or—God forbid!—the fabrication of an unbeliever who does not recognize and fear God. Even you, O Satan, cannot claim the truth of the second alternative; you were not, and will not, be able to voice such an allegation. If this is so, then the Qur’an is, of necessity and undoubtedly, the Word of the Creator of the universe, since, as explained and proved above, there is not a third alternative in this matter.
Likewise, Muhammad (upon him be peace and blessings) is either a Messenger of God, and the most perfect of the Messengers and superior to all other creatures, or he must be regarded as—God forbid!1—a man of unbelief. He must then be regarded as of the lowest nature since he lied against God without recognition of Him and of His punishment. This is, O Satan, an allegation which has been, and will be, made by neither the philosophers of Europe nor the hypocrites of Asia, in whom you place great trust. Since there is no one in the world who will heed and accept such an allegation, even the most corrupt of those philosophers and most unscrupulous of the hypocrites are bound to admit that Muhammad was a very wise man and of exemplary good conduct.
Finally, there are again only two alternatives in this matter. As in the case of the Qur’an, the second is inconceivable and acceptable to no one. Then Muhammad upon him be peace and blessings) is, self-evidently and of necessity, the Messenger of God, and the most perfect of the Messengers, and superior to all other creatures, even if you, O Satan, and your party are averse.
Upon him be blessings and peace to the number of angels, human beings and the jinn!
- Since the Qur’an mentions such a supposition in order to refute the unbelief and bad language of unbelievers, I felt justified in mentioning it, though fearfully and with aversion, only as a most impossible supposition to show how groundless and false are the assertions of the misguided.
This article has been adapted from Risale- i Nur Collection.