- The Constituents of the Divine Assignment
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- The fourth constituent
The Noble Quran is guidance and warning, preaching and evidence, light and cure, remembrance and notification, a promise and a menace, and a glad tiding and a warning. Furthermore, it guides people to the truth, to consciousness and to the Right Path. It brings people out of darkness unto light by the Will of their Lord, and it guides them to the Path of Al-Aziz (The Almighty) Al-Hameed (The Ever-Praiseworthy) Who will judge between people in everything they disputed over.
Needless to say, in the Quran man finds the answers to all questions and finds the healing of doubts in chests.((Narrated Al-Harith Al-A'war: "I passed by the Masjid when the people were absorbed in story-telling. So I entered upon 'Ali and said: 'O Commander of the believers! Do you not see the people are becoming engrossed in story-telling?' He said: 'They have been consumed with it?' I said: "Yes.' He said: 'As for me, I heard the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) saying: "Indeed there comes a Fitnah" So I said: "What is the way out from it O Messenger of Allah?" He said: "Allah's book. In it is news for what happened before you, and information about what comes after you, and judgement for what happens between you. It is the Criterion (between right and wrong) without jest. Whoever among the oppressive abandons it, Allah crushes him, and whoever seeks guidance from other than it, then Allah leaves him to stray. It is the firm rope of Allah, it is the wise remembrance, it is the straight path, and it is the one that the desires cannot distort, nor can the tongues twist it, nor can the scholars ever have enough of it, and it shall not become dull from reciting it much, and the amazement of it does not diminish. It is the one that when the Jinns hear it, they did not hesitate to say about it: 'Verily, we have heard a wonderful Recitation (this Qur'an)! 'It guides to the Right Path, and we have believed therein.' Whoever speaks according to it then he has said the truth, and whoever acts according to it he is rewarded, and whoever judges by it he has judged justly, and whoever invites to it then he guides to the straight path."))
The Quran is the main source of getting acquainted with Allah the Almighty, for the Quran is His Words, and upon pondering over it, we know Allah. Moreover, we know Allah by reflecting on the creation of the heavens and the earth, and observing His Actions is a third way to get acquainted with Him.
When man buys a very complicated, expensive and useful machine, he is so keen on having the manual that is produced by the manufacturing company in order to follow the instructions of usage and maintenance of this machine. Thus, he makes sure to have this manual, to translate it, to understand its constructions and to follow them to the letter. His keenness is because he cares about the safety of this machine, and he wants to get the best of it. Similarly, man's body is the most complicated machine in this universe, for it is made of cells, tissues, limbs and systems that are very accurate and complicated, given the best scientist is incapable of understanding how his systems work. Man also has a self that is full of sentiments and emotions, and inside this self, lusts clash with values, and his needs versus principles, and this self is far from being analyzed by the best psychologists. Moreover, man has a mind that works according to rational principles, axiomatic matters and intellectual, analytical and creative powers, which make him the master of all creatures.
With all these potentials and powers man has, do you not think that this honored creature (i.e. man) needs a guidance book from the One, Who created him and from the Educator, the Disposer of affairs and the Manager of matters, in order to tell him the purpose of his creation and the effective means to achieve that purpose? Does this honored creature (i.e. man) not need a book with a method to follow and to abide by in order to correct his moves and activities according to it, and to safeguard himself from following the course of purposeless life and the course of mere playing? Is this amazing creature (i.e. man) who is a wonder in his creation not in dire need of a book in which he finds the instructions for the safety of his body, lest it malfunctions, of his soul, lest it is damaged and of his mind, lest it is counteracts or follows falsehood. Does this Divinely honored creature (i.e. man) not need a book in which he finds the principles which lead him to happiness individually and collectively in the worldly life and in the Hereafter?
It is the Noble Quran, whose greatness in being a guidance and Tashree', is not less than the greatness of creating the heavens and the earth. Allah says:
﴾ All praises and thanks be to Allah, Who (Alone) created the heavens and the earth ﴿
Allah also says:
﴾ All the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has sent down to His slave (Muhammad PBUH) the Book (the Qur'an), and has not placed therein any crookedness. ﴿
Allah is praised for the grace of guiding man through the Quran to the path of his safety and eternal happiness as much as He is praised for the grace of creating the heavens and the earth. Allah the Almighty starts with teaching the Quran then He mentions the creation of man, and keep in mind that this order is not chronological, because there is no point of creating a man on this earth without a method for him to follow. Allah says:
﴾ The Most Beneficent (Allah)!* Has taught (you mankind) the Qur'an (by His Mercy)* He created man. ﴿
Allah the Almighty testifies to man that this Quran is His Words, and He testifies also through the matters He preordains to the advantage of man or against him. Then, Allah testifies to man through the Quran that the person, to whom this Quran was revealed (i.e. Muhammad PBUH), is the Messenger of Allah. Allah says:
﴾ But Allah bears witness to that which He has sent down (the Qur'an) unto you (O Muhammad ), He has sent it down with His Knowledge, and the angels bear witness. And Allah is All-Sufficient as a Witness.﴿
Allah the Almighty says in another Surah:
﴾ Whoever works righteousness, whether male or female, while he (or she) is a true believer (of Islamic Monotheism) verily, to him We will give a good life (in this world with respect, contentment and lawful provision), and We shall pay them certainly a reward in proportion to the best of what they used to do (i.e. Paradise in the Hereafter). ﴿
Thus, if man believes (in Allah) as he should and offers good deeds honestly and sincerely, Allah will grant him a good life (in this world) that is full of tranquility, stability, prosperity, success, ecstasy and happiness, and only then man feels through this life that it is the fulfillment of Allah's Promise to him in the Quran which is a clear proof and testimony that the Quran is Allah's Words, that this good life he has is the outcome of Allah's Action, and that Allah grants it to him as a fulfillment of His Promise. When Allah's Actions manifest what is mentioned in the Quran, this will be an irrefutable evidence that the Quran is Allah's Words.
The opposite case of the one who lives such a good life is mentioned in the following Ayah:
﴾ "But whosoever turns away from My Reminder (i.e. neither believes in this Qur'an nor acts on its orders, etc.) verily, for him is a life of hardship, and We shall raise him up blind on the Day of Resurrection." ﴿
According to this Ayah, whoever turns away from remembering Allah (i.e. Quran), abandons it, casts it back and does not abide by its orders and prohibitions or its promises and menaces, Allah will make him taste the life of hardship that is full of fear, worries, stress, tension, difficulties, desperation, misery and alienation. Only then he will know that this life of hardship is a manifestation of Allah's Menace, and it will be a testimony that this Quran is His Words and that this life of hardship is the outcome of Allah's Action as a manifestation of His Menace.
No matter how amazingly the human eye is created, how perfect its parts are and how exalted its functions are, man cannot see objects without sunlight. Similarly, no matter how big and intelligent man's mind is, how many its functions are, how reasonable its judgment is, and how creative it might become, man cannot realize the truth without the Light of Allah, and Allah's Light is presented in the Noble Quran. Allah says:
﴾ O mankind! Verily, there has come to you a convincing proof (Prophet Muhammad PBUH) from your Lord, and We sent down to you a manifest light (this Qur'an). ﴿
When man is enlightened by Allah's Light, his mind shall never go astray and his soul shall never fall into distress and misery. Allah says:
﴾ (Allah) said:"Get you down (from the Paradise to the earth), both of you, together, some of you are an enemy to some sh3er. Then if there comes to you guidance from Me, then whoever follows My Guidance shall neither go astray, nor fall into distress and misery.﴿
How can the man, who reads the Quran, be misguided, as the Quran puts forth the right explanation directly from the Creator and the Giver of life about the truth of the universe, of life and of man? The heavens and the earth are created with the truth through being constant and perfect, and they are not created purposefully or falsely by being pointless. Besides, the heavens and the earth are subjugated to man in order to honor him (by using them in his favor) and in order to be his means to know Allah, so that he would believe in Allah and thank Him.
The worldly life is the abode of trials, it is not eternal and it is the abode of offering deeds, whereas the Hereafter is the abode of recompense, of eternity and of honoring.
The worldly life, as described in the Quran, is mundane, it is not exalted and it is mere play and amusement, pomp and mutual boasting among people, and rivalry in respect of wealth and children, whereas the Hereafter is eternal and the abode of the final destiny. Allah says:
﴾ And whatever you have been given is an enjoyment of the life of (this) world and its adornment, and that (Hereafter) which is with Allah is better and will remain forever. Have you then no sense?* And whatever you have been given is an enjoyment of the life of (this) world and its adornment, and that (Hereafter) which is with Allah is better and will remain forever. Have you then no sense? ﴿
Man is not created purposelessly and will not be left vainly. Moreover, man will be a witness against himself though he may put forth his excuses (to cover his evil deeds). As I have mentioned previously, man is the honored creature who was created by Allah of the best stature (mould) and was highly honored. Also, he is the creature who bore the trust of which the heavens and the earth got afraid.
Man is created weak, hasty, impatient and irritable (discontented) when evil touches him and niggardly when good touches him except those devoted to Salat (prayers). Man can have nothing but what he does (good or bad), and his deeds will be seen, then he will be recompensed with the full and the best recompense.
Man shall achieve success if he obeys Allah and His Messenger PBUH, if he remembers (glorifies) the Name of his Lord (worships none but Allah), and if he prays (five compulsory prayers and Nawafil additional prayers). Moreover, there shall be a Day whereon neither wealth nor sons will avail, except him who brings to Allah a pure heart.
﴾Verily! Man is in loss* Except those who believe (in Islamic Monotheism) and do righteous good deeds, and recommend one another to the truth (i.e. order one another to perform all kinds of good deeds (Al-Ma'ruf)which Allah has ordained, and abstain from all kinds of sins and evil deeds (Al-Munkar) which Allah has forbidden), and recommend one another to patience (for the sufferings, harms, and injuries which one may encounter in Allah's Cause during preaching His religion of Islamic Monotheism or Jihad, etc.). ﴿
How can a person who reads the Quran be misguided while the Quran shows him that there is no Deity but Allah, and that Allah has full power and control over His Affairs, but most of men do not know? How can the one who reads the Quran be misguided and the Quran says that Allah is the only Ilah (God to be worshipped) in the heaven and the only Ilah (God to be worshipped) on the earth, to Him return all affairs (for decision), He has power over all things, He judges and there is none to put back His Judgment, He makes none to share in His Decision and His Rule, there is not a moving (living) creature but He has grasp of its forelock, whatever of mercy (i.e. of good), Allah may grant to mankind, none can withhold it, and whatever He may withhold, none can grant it thereafter and that Allah will not change the good condition of a people as long as they do not change their state of goodness themselves (by committing sins and by being ungrateful and disobedient to Allah)?
The mind of the one who is guided by the guidance of the Quran shall never be misled, and his soul shall never be distressful and miserable. How could his soul grieve or fall in misery after Allah grants him the mother of physiological graces at all, which is the grace of security? Verify, the grace of security is very hard to reach by the majority of people, but when man believes in Allah alone and stays away from hidden and apparent Shirk (polytheism), he will never be tormented psychologically. Allah says:
﴾So invoke not with Allah another ilah (god) lest you be among those who receive punishment.﴿
When man believes in Allah Alone and believes beyond doubt that to Him all affairs return, this sound faith of his pushes him to obey Allah and not to harm His creatures. Only then he deserves the grace of security. Allah says:
﴾(So) which of the two parties has more right to be in security? If you but know."* It is those who believe (in the Oneness of Allah and worship none but Him Alone) and confuse not their belief with Zulm (wrong i.e. by worshipping sh3er besides Allah), for them (only) there is security and they are the guided.﴿
How could the soul of a person who reauthors the Quran grieve or fall in misery while he reads Allah's saying?
﴾Or do those who earn evil deeds think that We shall hold them equal with those who believe (in the Oneness of Allah Islamic Monotheism) and do righteous good deeds, in their present life and after their death? Worst is the judgement that they make.﴿
Could there be greater tranquility than that of the assured by Allah that He would count his sound faith, He would not waste his good deeds and his life would not be like the life of the common people who turn away from remembering Allah, commit sins and get lost in the darkness? How could the soul of whoever reauthors the Quran grieve or fall into misery while it reads Allah's saying?
﴾Verily, those who say: "Our Lord is Allah (Alone)," and then they Istaqamu, on them the angels will descend (at the time of their death) (saying): "Fear not, nor grieve! But receive the glad tidings of Paradise which you have been promised!* "We have been your friends in the life of this world and are (so) in the Hereafter. Therein you shall have (all) that your inner-selves desire, and therein you shall have (all) for which you ask for* "An entertainment from (Allah), the Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful."﴿
Is there a feeling more destructive to the soul than fear? If you fear illness, then you are already ill, and if you fear poverty then you are already poor, for anticipating the disaster is a greater disaster unto itself. Is there a feeling more destructive to the soul than being in grieve and sorrow for what man missed? When man is taken aback by the closeness of death, he gets stunned and says:
﴾"Alas, my grief that I was undutiful to Allah (i.e. I have not done what Allah has ordered me to do),﴿
He also says:
﴾He will say: "Alas! Would that I had sent forth (good deeds) for (this) my life!"﴿
He says:
﴾"Oh! Would that I had taken a path with the Messenger (Muhammad).﴿
Also, he says:
﴾"Ah! Woe to me! Would that I had never taken so-and-so as a friend!﴿
Unlike this man, the believers who believe in Allah and who follow His Path are assured in the Quran that there shall be no fear on them in the worldly life, because Allah is their Wali (Supporter and Protector) and their triumph Granter. Moreover, He will defend them, and He will guide them to the Right Way. Actually, the believer never regrets leaving the worldly life, simply because death moves him from the hardship of the worldly life to the prosperity of the Hereafter just like when the newborn gets out of the narrow womb of his mother to the vast world.
How can a believer relinquish redeeming his violated right while Allah the Almighty pacifies him? Allah the Almighty says:
﴾Indeed Allah took the covenant from the Children of Israel (Jews), and We appointed twelve leaders among them. And Allah said: "I am with you if you perform As-Salat (Iqamat-as-Salat) and give Zakat and believe in My Messengers; honour and assist them, and lend to Allah a good loan. Verily, I will remit your sins and admit you to Gardens under which rivers flow (in Paradise). But if any of you after this, disbelieved, he has indeed gone astray from the Straight Path."﴿
Allah also says:
﴾Allah made it only as glad tidings, and that your hearts be at rest therewith. And there is no victory except from Allah. Verily, Allah is All-Mighty, All-Wise.﴿
﴾If Allah helps you, none can overcome you; and if He forsakes you, who is there after Him that can help you? And in Allah (Alone) let believers put their trust.﴿
In another Ayah, Allah says:
﴾O you who believe! If you help (in the cause of) Allah, He will help you, and make your foothold firm.﴿
How can a believer relinquish redeeming his violated right while Allah addresses the sincere believers in the Quran and tells them what to do? Allah the Almighty says:
﴾O Prophet (Muhammad PBHU)! Urge the believers to fight. If there are twenty steadfast persons amongst you, they will overcome two hundred, and if there be a hundred steadfast persons they will overcome a thousand of those who disbelieve, because they (the disbelievers) are people who do not understand.﴿
In another Ayah, Allah the Almighty says:
﴾And do not be weak in the pursuit of the enemy; if you are suffering (hardships) then surely, they (too) are suffering (hardships) as you are suffering, but you have a hope from Allah (for the reward, i.e. Paradise) that for which they hope not, and Allah is Ever All-Knowing, All-Wise.﴿
It was reported by AlHafiz (the one who memorizes the Quran by heart) Muhammad bin Nasr Al-Marwazi in the section of Night Prayers, he said that while AlAhnaf bin Qaism was sitting one day, he overheard the following Ayah:
﴾Indeed, We have sent down for you (O mankind) a Book, (the Qur'an) in which there is Dhikrukum, (your Reminder or an honour for you i.e. honour for the one who follows the teaching of the Qur'an and acts on its orders). Will you not then understand?﴿
He was alerted upon hearing it, so he said, "Bring me the Quran in order to perform Dhikr (reciting the Quran and remembering Allah) today and see to which group I belong". This means that since he knew that all the characteristics of people are mentioned in the Quran, and that Allah defines people's ranks and classes in the Quran, he was eager to know to which group he belonged and what rank he achieved. He started reciting the Quran, and he stopped for a while at the following Ayah:
﴾They used to sleep but little by night [invoking their Lord (Allah) and praying, with fear and hope]. And in the hours before dawn, they were (found) asking (Allah) for forgiveness,﴿
Then, he read about this group:
﴾Their sides forsake their beds, to invoke their Lord in fear and hope, and they spend (charity in Allah's Cause) out of what We have bestowed on them.﴿
After that, he read about this group:
﴾Those who spend [in Allah's Cause - deeds of charity, alms, etc.] in prosperity and in adversity, who repress anger, and who pardon men; verily, Allah loves Al-Muhsinun (the good-doers).﴿
Then he read about this group:
﴾And those who, before them, had homes (in Al-Madinah) and had adopted the Faith, love those who emigrate to them, and have no jealousy in their breasts for that which they have been given (from the booty of Bani An-Nadir), and give them (emigrants) preference over themselves, even though they were in need of that. And whosoever is saved from his own covetousness, such are they who will be the successful.﴿
He stopped reciting and said, "O Allah, I know that I do not belong to those." He did not find any of these characteristics in him that would make him consider himself one of them. Then, he continued reading about other groups, and he read about this group:
﴾Truly, when it was said to them: La ilaha ill-Allah "(none has the right to be worshipped but Allah)," they puffed themselves up with pride (i.e. denied it).﴿
He read about those who will be asked as mentioned in the following Ayah:
﴾"What has caused you to enter Hell?"* They will say: "We were not of those who used to offer their Salat (prayers)* "Nor we used to feed Al-Miskin (the poor);* "And we used to talk falsehood (all that which Allah hated) with vain talkers* "And we used to belie the Day of Recompense"* Until there came to us (the death) that is certain."* So no intercession of intercessors will be of any use to them.﴿
He then stopped reading and said, "O Allah, I renounce this group, and I do not belong to them." He went on and on reading Ayat in the Quran trying to know to which group he belonged, until he reached the following Ayah:
﴾And (there are) sh3er who have acknowledged their sins, they have mixed a deed that was righteous with another that was evil. Perhaps Allah will turn unto them in forgiveness. Surely, Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.﴿
He said, "I belong to those", but I think that he aid it out of humbleness. The main point is that whenever one of us reads the Quran, he should try to define himself by comparing his characteristics to the characteristics mentioned in the Quran.
We move to the importance of the Quran in Sunnah, there are so many As7adeth in the authenticated Prophetic Sunnah with this regards, among which are the following ones:
(('Uthman reported the Prophet (PBUH) as saying: "The best among you is he who learns and teaches the Qur'an.))
(('Umar bin Al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Prophet (PBUH) said, "Verily, Allah elevates some people with this Qur'an and abases sh3er."))
(('Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported: The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said, "The one who is proficient in the recitation of the Qur'an will be with the honourable and obedient scribes (angels) and he who reauthors the Qur'an and finds it difficult to reauthor, doing his best to reauthor it in the best way possible, will have a double reward."))
((Narrated Abu Musa Al-Ash'ari: The Prophet (PBUH) said, "The example of him (a believer) who reauthors the Qur'an is like that of a citron which tastes good and smells good. And he (a believer) who does not reauthor the Qur'an is like a date which is good in taste but has no smell. And the example of a dissolute wicked person who reauthors the Qur'an is like the Raihana (sweet basil) which smells good but tastes bitter. And the example of a dissolute wicked person who does not reauthor the Qur'an is like the colocynth which tastes bitter and has no smell.))
((Salim narrated on the authority of his father (Ibn 'Umar) that the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said: Envy is not justified but in case of two persons only: one who, having been given (knowledge of) the Qur'an by Allah, reauthors it during the night and day (and also acts upon it) and a man who, having been given wealth by God, spends it during the night and the day (for the welfare of sh3er. seeking the pleasure of the Lord).))
Narrated our master Mu'adh, may Allah be pleased with him:((O Mu'adh, the believer is restrained by the Quran from following his lusts and desires, and it prevents him from being doomed because of the things he loves))
It was reported that the Prophet PBUH said:
((Whoever reauthors the Quran, shall never grieve. Verify, Allah will not punish a heart that perceives the Quran, and whoever memorizes the Quran shall be rewarded by Allah by keeping his mind intact and sound until he dies.))
The Prophet PBUH also said:
((Reciting the Quran should make you refrain from doing whatever is forbidden, lest you never reauthor the Quran as you are supposed to.))
The Prophet PBUH said in another Hadith:
((He does not believe in the Qur'an who makes lawful what it prohibits.))
[At-Tirmizi by Suhaib]
