An important topic

 

 

The Qur’an says:

 

Say: “If the ocean were ink for the words of my Lord, assuredly the ocean would be used up before the words of my Lord were finished, even if We brought another (ocean) like it, for its aid.” (18:109)

 

If you ask how the Qur’an is superior to all speech, whether spoken or written, the answer will be: It is God’s Word on account of His being the Lord of the worlds having the title “Deity of the worlds,” and the Name “Lord of the heavens and Earth,” and in respect of His absolute Lordship and universal Sovereignty. It is God’s Word by reason of the all-embracing Mercy, because of Divinity’s magnificence and grandeur, and because it issues from the all-encompassing field of the Greatest Name and addresses the circle encompassed by the Supreme Throne.

Other words of God are words of God because of the particular manifestations of His Lordship and Divinity with particular Names and titles, and as part of particular Sovereignty and Mercy. They are like most Divine inspirations. For this reason, a saint can say: “My heart informs me from my Lord,” but not: “My heart informs me from the Lord of the worlds.”

A Prophet receives radiance and enlightenment from the Lord of the worlds’ manifestation with His Greatest Name in the mirror of the Supreme Throne, the “mother” of thrones. Compared to this, a saint’s particular enlightenment and radiance, received from the Lord’s manifestation in the mirror of his or her heart, is limited to the heart’s capacity. Consider the difference between the sunlight reflected in your little, dim mirror, and the light the sun provides to the solar system. Another example is the difference between a king’s address to a subject on a particular matter specifically for that subject, and a royal decree issued to all subjects by his envoys, due to his supreme authority and its full majesty.

This also explains why most Divine Revelations come through the greatest angels, while inspirations come without mediation, and why even the greatest saint cannot reach the rank of a Prophet. It also explains the Qur’an’s supremacy and incomparable dignity and sacredness, as well as the sublimity and beauty of its miraculous conciseness. In addition to many other mysteries, it explains why the Seal of the Prophets had to ascend to the heavens as far as the Farthest Lote Tree, why he ascended to the nearness of “two bows’ length” to supplicate Him Who is nearer to him than his jugular vein, and then returned to the world in the twinkling of an eye.

Like Knowledge and Will, God’s Speaking to Himself is one of His eternal Attributes. Its existence is known and its nature is unknown. His words are without end.

 

Glory be to You. We have no knowledge save what You have taught us. Surely, You are the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.

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Said Nursi