by Gary Miller
Calling
the Qur'an amazing is not something done only by Muslims, who have an
appreciation for the book and who are pleased with it; it has been
labeled amazing by non-Muslims as well. In fact, even people who hate
Islam very much have still called it amazing.
One thing which surprises non_muslims who are examining the book very
closely is that the Qur'an does not appear to them to be what they
expected. What they assume is that they have an old book which came
fourteen centuries ago from the Arabian desert; and they expect that the
book should look something like that - an old book from the desert. And
then they find out that it does not resemble what they expected at all.
Additionally, one of the first things that some people assume is that
because it is an old book which comes from the desert, it should talk
about the desert. Well the Qur'an does talk about the desert - some of
its imagery describes the desert; but it also talks about the sea - what
it's like to be in a storm on the sea.
Some years ago, the story came to us in Toronto about a man who was in
the merchant marine and made his living on the sea. A Muslim gave him a
translation of the Qur'an to read. The merchant marine knew nothing
about the history of Islam but was interested in reading the Qur'an.
When he finished reading it, he brought it back to the Muslim and asked,
"This Muhammed, was he a sailor?" He was impressed at how accurately the
Qur'an describes a storm on a sea. When he was told, "No as a matter of
fact, Muhammed lived in the desert," that was enough for him. He
embraced Islam on the spot. He was so impressed with the Qur'an's
description because he had been in a storm on the sea, and he knew that
whoever had written that description had also been in a storm on the
sea. The description of "a wave, over it a wave, over it clouds" was not
what someone imagining a storm on a sea to be like would have written;
rather, it was written by someone who knew what a storm on the sea was
like. This is one example of how the Qur'an is not tied to a certain
place and time. Certainly, the scientific ideas expressed in it also do
not seem to originate from the desert fourteen centuries ago.
Many centuries before the onset of Muhammed's Prophethood, there was a
well-known theory of atomism advanced by the Greek philosopher,
Democritus. He and the people who came after him assumed that matter
consists of tiny, indestructible, indivisible particles called atoms.
The Arabs too, used to deal in the same concept; in fact, the Arabic
word dharrah commonly referred to the smallest particle known to man.
Now, modern science has discovered that this smallest unit of matter
(i.e., the atom, which has all of the same properties as its element)
can be split into its component parts. This is a new idea, a development
of the last century; yet, interestingly enough, this information had
already been documented in the Qur'an which states:
" He [i.e., Allah] is aware of an atom's weight in the heavens and on
the earth and even anything smaller than that..."
Undoubtedly, fourteen centuries ago that statement would have looked
unusual, even to an Arab. For him, the dharrah was the smallest thing
there was. Indeed, this is proof, that the Qur'an is not outdated.
Another example of what one might expect to find in an"old book" that
touches upon the subject of health or medicine is outdated remedies or
cures. Various historical sources state that the Prophet gave some
advice about health and hygiene, yet most of these pieces of advice are
not contained in the Qur'an. At first glance, to the non-Muslims this
appears to be a negligent omission. They cannot understand why Allah
would not "include" such helpful information in the Qur'an. Some Muslims
attempt to explain this absence with the following argument: "Although
the Prophet's advice was sound and applicable to the time in which he
lived, Allah, in His infinite wisdom, knew that there would come later
medical and scientific advances which would make the Prophet's advice
appear outdated. When later discoveries occurred, people might say that
such information contradicted that which the Prophet had given. Thus,
since Allah would never allow any opportunity for the non-Muslims to
claim that the Qur'an contradicts itself or the teachings of the
Prophet, He only included in the Qur'an information and examples which
could stand the test of time."
However, when one examines the true realities of the Qur'an in terms of
its existence as a divine revelation, the entire matter is quickly
brought into its proper perspective, and the error in such argumentation
becomes clear and understandable. It must be understood that the Qur'an
is a divine revelation, and as such, all information in it is of divine
origin. Allah revealed the Qur'an from Himself. It is the words of
Allah, which existed before creation, and thus nothing can be added,
subtracted or altered. In essence, the Qur'an existed and was complete
before the creation of Prophet Muhammed, so it could not possibly
contain any of the Prophet's own words or advice. An inclusion of such
information would clearly contradict the purpose for which the Qur'an
exists, compromise its authority and render it inauthentic as a divine
revelation.
Consequently, there was no "home remedies" in the Qur'an which one could
claim to be outdated; nor does it contain any man's view about what is
beneficial to health, what food is best to eat, or what will cure this
or that disease. In fact, the Qur'an only mentions one item dealing with
medical treatment, and it is not in dispute by anyone. It states that in
honey there is healing. And certainly, I do not think that there is
anyone who will argue with that!
If one assumes that the Qur'an is the product of a man's mind, then one
would expect it to reflect some of what was going on in the mind of the
man who "composed" it. In fact, certain encyclopedias and various books
clam that the Qur'an was the product of hallucinations that Muhammed
underwent. If these claims are true - if it indeed originated from some
psychological problems in Muhammed's mind - then evidence of this would
be apparent in the Qur'an. Is there such evidence? In order to determine
whether or not there is, one must first identify what things would have
been going on in his mind at that time and then search for these
thoughts and reflections in the Qur'an.
It is common knowledge that Muhammad had a very difficult life. All of
his daughters died before him except one, and he had a wife of several
years who was dear and important to him, who not only proceeded him in
death at a very critical period of his life. As a matter of fact, she
must have been quite a woman because when the first revelation came to
him, he ran home to her afraid. Certainly, even today one would have a
hard time trying to find an Arab who would tell you, "I was so afraid
that I ran home to my wife." They just aren't that way. Yet Muhammed
felt comfortable enough with his wife to be able to do that. That's how
influential and strong woman she was. Although these examples are only a
few of the subjects that would have been on Muhammed's mind, they are
sufficient in intensity to prove my point. The Qur'an does not mention
any of these things - not the death of his children, not the death of
his beloved companion and wife, not his fear of the initial revelations,
which he so beautifully shared with his wife - nothing; yet, these
topics must have hurt him, bothered him, and caused him pain and grief
during periods of his psychological reflections, then these subjects, as
well as others, would be prevalent or at least mentioned throughout.
A truly scientific approach to the Qur'an is possible because the Qur'an
offers something that is not offered by other religious scriptures, in
particular, and other religions, in general. It is what scientists
demand. Today there are many people who have ideas and theories about
how the universe works. These people are all over the place, but the
scientific community does not even bother to listen to them. This is
because within the last century the scientific community has demanded a
test of falsification. They say, "If you have theory, do not bother us
with it unless you bring with that theory a way for us to prove whether
you are wrong or not."
Such a test was exactly why the scientific community listened to
Einstein towards the beginning of the century. He came with a new theory
and said, "I believe the universe works like this; and here are three
ways to prove whether I am wrong!". So the scientific community
subjected his theory to the tests, and within six years it passed all
three. Of course, this does not prove that he was great, but it proves
that he deserved to be listened to because he said, "This is my idea;
and if you want to try to prove me wrong, do this or try that." This is
exactly what the Qur'an has - falsification tests. Some are old (in that
they have already been proven true), and some still exist today.
Basically it states, "If this book is not what it claims to be, then all
you have to do is this or this or this to prove that it is false." Of
course, in 1400 years no one has been able to do "This or this or this,
" and thus it is still considered true and authentic. I suggest to you
that the next time you get into dispute with someone about Islam and he
claims that he has the truth and that you are in darkness, you leave all
other arguments at first and make this suggestion. Ask him, "Is there
any falsification test in your religion? Is there anything in your
religion that would prove you are wrong if I could prove to you that it
exists - anything?" Well, I can promise right now that people will not
have anything - no test, no proof, nothing! This is because they do not
carry around the idea that they should not only present what they
believe but should also offer others a chance to prove they're wrong.
However, Islam does that. A perfect example of how Islam provides man
with a chance to verify it authenticity and "prove it wrong" occurs in
the 4th chapter. And quiet honestly, I was surprised when I first
discovered this challenge. It states:
"Do they not consider the Qur'an? Had it been from any other than Allah,
they would surely have found therein much discrepancy."
This is a clear challenge to the non-Muslim.Basically, it invites him to
find a mistake. As a matter of fact, the seriousness and difficulty of
the challenge aside, the actual presentation of such a challenge in the
first place is not even in human nature and is inconsistent with man's
personality. One doesn't take an exam in school after finishing the
exam, write a note to the instructor at the end saying, "This exam is
perfect. There are no mistakes in it. Find one if you can!". One just
doesn't do that. The teacher would not sleep until he found a mistake!
And yet this is the way the Qur'an approaches people. Another
interesting attitude that exists in the Qur'an repeatedly deals with its
advice to the reader. The Qur'an informs that reader about different
facts and then gives the advice: "If you want to know more about this or
that, or if you doubt what is said, then you should ask those who have
knowledge." This too is a surprising attitude. It is not usual to have a
book that comes from someone without training in geography, botany,
biology, etc., who discusses these subjects and then advises the reader
to ask men of knowledge if he doubts anything.
Yet in every age there have been Muslims who have followed the advice of
the Qur'an and made surprising discoveries. If one looks to the works of
Muslim scientists if many centuries ago, one will find them full of
quotations from the Qur'an. These works state that they did research in
such a place, looking for something. And they affirm that the reason
they looked in such and such a place was that the Qur'an pointed them in
that direction. For example, the Qur'an mentions man's origin and then
tells the reader, "Research it!" It gives the reader a hint where to
look and then states that one should find out more about it. This is the
kind of thing that Muslims today largely seem to overlook - but not
always, as illustrated in the following example. A few years ago, a
group of men in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia collected all if the verses in the
Qur'an which discuss embryology - the growth of the human being in the
womb. They said, "Here is what the Qur'an says. Is it the truth?" In
essence, they took the advice of the Qur'an: "Ask the men who know."
They chose, as it happened, a non-Muslim who is a professor of
embryology at the University of Toronto. His name is Keith Moore, and he
is the author of textbooks on embryology - a world expert on the
subject. They invited him to Riyadh and said, "This is what the Qur'an
says about your subject. Is it true? What can you tell us?" While he was
in Riyadh, they gave him all of the help that he needed in translation
and all of the cooperation for which he asked. And he was so surprised
at what he found that he changed his textbooks. In fact, in the second
edition of one of his books, called Before we are born... in the second
edition about the history of embryology, he included some material that
was not in the first edition because of what he found in the Qur'an.
Truly this illustrates that the Qur'an was ahead of its time and that
those who believe in the Qur'an know what other people do not know.
I had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Keith Moore for a television
presentation, and we talked a great deal about this - it was illustrated
by slides and so on. He mentioned that some of the things that the
Qur'an states about the growth of the human being were not known until
thirty years ago. In fact, he said that one item in particular - the
Qur'an's description of the human being as a "leech-like clot" ('alaqah)
at one stage - was new to him; but when he checked on it, he found that
it was true, and so he added it to his book. He said, "I never thought
of that before," and he went to the zoology department and asked for a
picture of a leech. When he found that it looked just like the human
embryo, he decided to include both pictures in one of his textbooks. Dr.
Moore also wrote a book on clinical embryology, and when he presented
this information in Toronto, it caused quite a stir throughout Canada.
It was on the front pages of some of the newspapers across Canada, and
some of the headlines were quite funny. For instance, one headline read:
"SURPRISING THING FOUND IN ANCIENT BOOK!"! It seems obvious from this
example that people do not clearly understand what it is all about. As a
matter of fact, one newspaper reporter asked Professor Moore, "Don't you
think That maybe the Arabs might have known about these things - the
description of the embryo, its appearance and how it changes and grows?
Maybe there were not scientists, but maybe they did something crude
dissections on their own - carved up people and examined these things."
The professor immediately pointed out to him that he [i.e., the
reporter] had missed a very important point - all of the slides of the
embryo that had been shown and had been projected in the film had come
from pictures taken through a microscope. He said, "It does not matter
if someone had tried to discover embryology fourteen centuries ago, they
could not have seen it!". All of the descriptions in the Qur'an of the
appearance of the embryo are of the item when it is still too small to
see with the eye; therefore, one needs a microscope to see it. Since
such a device had only been around for little more than two hundred
years, Dr. Moore taunted, "Maybe fourteen centuries ago someone secretly
had a microscope and did this research, making no mistakes anywhere.
Then he somehow taught Muhammad and convinced him to put this
information in his book. Then he destroyed his equipment and kept it a
secret forever. Do you believe that? You really should not unless you
bring some proof because it is such a ridiculous theory." In fact, when
he was asked "How do you explain this information in the Qur'an?" Dr.
Moore's reply was, "It could only have been divinely revealed."!
Although the aforementioned example of man researching information
contained in the Qur'an deals with a non-Muslim, it is still valid
because he is one of those who is knowledgeable in the subject being
researched. Had some layman claimed that what the Qur'an says about
embryology is true, then one would not necessarily have to accept his
word. However, because of the high position, respect, and esteem man
gives scholars, one naturally assumes that if they research a subject
and arrive at a conclusion based on that research, then the conclusion
is valid. One of Professor Moore's colleagues, Marshall Johnson, deals
extensively with geology at the University of Toronto.
He became very interested in the fact that the Qur'an's statements about
embryology are accurate, and so he asked Muslims to collect everything
contained in the Qur'an which deals with his specialty. Again people
were very surprised at the findings. Since there are a vast number
subjects discussed in the Qur'an, it would certainly require a large
amount of time to exhaust each subject. It suffices for the purpose of
this discussion to state that the Qur'an makes very clear and concise
statements about various subjects while simultaneously advising the
reader to verify the authenticity of these statements with research by
scholars in those subjects. And as illustrated by the Qur'an has clearly
emerged authentic. Undoubtedly, there is an attitude in the Qur'an which
is not found anywhere else. It is interesting how when the Qur'an
provides information, it often tells the reader, "You did not know this
before." Indeed, there is no scripture that exists which makes that
claim. All of the other ancient writings and scriptures that people
have, do give a lot of information, but they always state where the
information came from.
For example, when the Bible discusses ancient history, it states that
this king lived here, this one fought in a certain battle, another one
had so may sons, etc. Yet it always stipulates that if you want more
information, then you should read the book of so and so because that is
where the information came from. In contrast to this concept, the Qur'an
provides the reader with information and states that this information is
something new. Of course, there always exists the advice to research the
information provided and verify its authenticity. It is interesting that
such a concept was never challenged by non-Muslims fourteen centuries
ago. Indeed, the Makkans who hated the Muslims, and time and time again
they heard such revelations claiming to bring new information; yet, they
never spoke up and said, "This is not new. We know where Muhammad got
this information. We learned this at school."
They could never challenge its authenticity because it really was new!
In concurrence with the advice given in the Qur'an to research
information (even if it is new), when 'Umar was caliph, he chose a group
of men and sent them to find the wall of Dhul-Qarnayn. Before the
Qur'anic revelation, the Arabs had never heard of such a wall, but
because the Qur'an described it, they were able to discover it. As a
matter of fact, it is now located in what is called Durbend in the
Soviet Union. It must be stressed here that the Qur'an is accurate about
many, many things, but accuracy does not necessarily mean that a book is
a divine revelation. In fact, accuracy is only one of the criteria for
divine revelations.
For instance, the telephone book is accurate, but that does not mean
that it is divinely revealed. The real problem lies in that one must
establish some proof of the source the Qur'an's information. The
emphasis is on the reader. One cannot simply deny the Qur'an's
authenticity without sufficient proof. If, indeed, one finds a mistake,
then he has the right to disqualify it. This is exactly what the Qur'an
encourages. Once a man came up to me after a lecture I delivered in
South Africa. He was very angry about what I had said, and so he
claimed, "I am going to go home tonight and find a mistake in the
Qur'an." Of course, I said, "Congratulations. That is the most
intelligent thing that you have said." Certainly, this is the approach
Muslims need to take with those who doubt the Qur'an's authenticity,
because the Qur'an itself offers the same challenge. An inevitably,
after accepting it's challenge and discovering that it is true, these
people will come to believe it because they could not disqualify it. In
essence, the Qur'an earns their respect because they themselves have had
to verify its authenticity. An essential fact that cannot be reiterated
enough concerning the authenticity of the Qur'an is that one's inability
to explain a phenomenon himself does not require his acceptance of the
phenomenon's existence or another person's explanation of it.
Specifically, just because one cannot explain something does not mean
that one has to accept someone else's explanation. However, the person's
refusal of other explanations reverts the burden of proof back on
himself to find a feasible answer. This general theory applies to
numerous concepts in life, but fits most wonderfully with the Qur'anic
challenge, for it creates a difficulty for one who says, "I do not
believe it." At the onset of refusal one immediately has an obligation
to find an explanation himself if he feels others' answers are
inadequate. In fact, in one particular Qur'anic verse which I have
always seen mistranslated into English, Allah mentions a man who heard
the truth explained to him. It states that he was derelict in his duty
because after he heard the information, he left without checking the
verity of what he had heard. In other words, one is guilty if he hears
something and does not research it and check to see whether it is true.
One is supposed to process all information and decide what is garbage to
be thrown out and what is worthwhile information to be kept and
benefited from at a later date. One cannot just let it rattle around in
his head. It must be put in the proper categories and approached from
that point of view. For example, if the information is still
speculatory, then one must discern whether it's closer to being true or
false. But if all of the facts have been presented, then one must decide
absolutely between these two options. And even if one is not positive
about the authenticity of the information, he is still required to
process all of the information and make the admission that he just does
not know for sure. Although this last point appears to be futile, in
actuality, it is beneficial to the arrival at a positive conclusion at a
later time in that it forces the person to at least recognize, research
and review the facts. This familiarity with the information will give
the person "the edge" when future discoveries are made and additional
information is presented. The important thing is that one deals with the
facts and does not simply discard them out of empathy and disinterest.
The real certainty about the truthfulness of the Qur'an is evident in
the confidence which is prevalent throughout it; and this confidence
comes from a different approach - "Exhausting the Alternatives." In
essence, the Qur'an states, "This book is a divine revelation; if you do
not believe that, then what is it?" In other words, the reader is
challenged to come up with some other explanation. Here is a book made
of paper and ink. Where did it come from? It says it is a divine
revelation; if it is not, then what is its source? The interesting fact
is that no one has with an explanation that works. In fact, all
alternatives have bee exhausted. As has been well established by
non-Muslims, these alternatives basically are reduces to two mutually
exclusive schools of thought, insisting on one or the other. On one
hand, there exists a large group of people who have researched the
Qur'an for hundreds of years and who claim, "One thing we know for sure
- that man, Muhammad, thought he was a prophet. He was crazy!" They are
convinced that Muhammad (SAW) was fooled somehow. Then on the other
hand, there is another group which alleges, "Because of this evidence,
one thing we know for sure is that that man, Muhammad, was a liar!"
Ironically, these two groups never seem to get together without
contradicting. In fact, many references on Islam usually claim both
theories. They start out by saying that Muhammad (SAW) was crazy and
then end by saying that he was a liar. They never seem to realize that
he could not have been both!
For example, if one is deluded and really thinks that he is a prophet,
then he does not sit up late at night planning, "How will I fool the
people tomorrow so that they think I am a prophet?" He truly believes
that he is a prophet, and he trusts that the answer will be given to him
by revelation. As a matter of fact, a great deal of the Qur'an came in
answer to questions. Someone would ask Muhammad (SAW) a question, and
the revelation would come with the answer to it. Certainly, if one is
crazy and believes that an angel put words in his ear, then when someone
asks him a question, he thinks that the angel will give him the answer.
Because he is crazy, he really thinks that. He does not tell someone to
wait a short while and then run to his friends and ask them, "Does
anyone know the answer?" This type of behavior is characteristic of one
who does not believe that he is a prophet. What the non-Muslims refuse
to accept is that you cannot have it both ways. One can be deluded, or
he can be a liar. He can be either one or neither, but he certainly
cannot be both! The emphasis is on the fact that they are unquestionably
mutually exclusive personal traits.
The following scenario is a good example of the kind of circle that
non-Muslims go around in constantly. If you ask one of them, "What is
the origin of the Qur'an?" He tells you that it originated from the mind
of a man who was crazy. Then you ask him, "If it came from his head,
then where did he get the information contained in it? Certainly the
Qur'an mentions many things with which the Arabs were not familiar." So
in order to explain the fact which you bring him, he changes his
position and says, "Well, maybe he was not crazy. Maybe some foreigner
brought him the information. So he lied and told people that he was a
prophet." At this point then you have to ask him, "If Muhammad was a
liar, then where did he get his confidence? Why did he behave as though
he really thought he was a prophet?" Finally backed into a corner, like
a cat he quickly lashes out with the first response that comes to his
mind. Forgetting that he has already exhausted that possibility, he
claims, "Well, maybe he wasn't a liar. He was probably crazy and really
thought that he was a prophet." And thus he begins the futile circle
again.
As has already been mentioned, there is much information contained in
the Qur'an whose source cannot be attributed to anyone other than Allah.
For example, who told Muhammad about the wall of Dhul-Qarnayn - a place
hundreds of miles to the north? Who told him about embryology? When
people assemble facts such as these, if they are not willing to
attribute their existence to a divine source, they automatically resort
to the assumption someone brought Muhammad the information and that he
used it to fool the people. However, this theory can easily be disproved
with one simple question: "If Muhammad was a liar, where did he get his
confidence? Why did he tell some people out right to their face what
others could never say?" Such confidence depends completely upon being
convinced that one has a true divine revelation. For example, the
Prophet (SAW) had an uncle by the name of Abu Lahab. This man hated
Islam to such an extent that he used to follow the Prophet around in
order to discredit him. If Abu Lahab saw the Prophet (SAW) speaking to a
stranger, he would wait until they parted and then would go to the
stranger and ask him, "What did he tell you? Did he say, 'Black.'? Well,
it's white. Did he say, 'Morning.'? Well, it's night." He faithfully
said the exact opposite of whatever he heard Muhammad (SAW) and the
Muslims say. However, about ten years before Abu Lahab died, a little
chapter in the Qur'an was revealed to him. It distinctly stated that he
would go to the Fire (i.e., Hell). In other words, it affirmed that he
would never become a Muslim and would therefore be condemned forever.
For ten years all Abu Lahab had to do was say, "I heard that it has been
revealed to Muhammad that I will never change - that I will never become
a Muslim and will enter the Hellfire. Well I want to become a Muslim
now. How do you like that? What do you think of your divine revelation
now?" But he never did that. And yet, that is exactly the kind of
behavior one would have expected from him since he always sought to
contradict Islam. In essence, Muhammad (SAW) said, "You hate me and you
want to finish me? Here, say these words, and I am finished. Come on,
say them!" But Abu Lahab never said them. Ten years! And in all that
time he never accepted Islam or even became sympathetic to the Islamic
cause. How could Muhammad possibly have known for sure that Abu Lahab
would fulfill the Qur'anic revelation if he (i.e., Muhammad) was not
truly the messenger of Allah? How could he possibly have been so
confident as to give someone 10 years to discredit his claim of
Prophethood? The only answer is that he was Allah's messenger; for in
order to put forth suck a risky challenge, one has to be entirely
convinced that he has a divine revelation.
Another example of the confidence which Muhammad (SAW) had in his own
Prophethood and consequently in the divine protection of himself and his
message is when he left Makkah and hid in a cave with Abu Bakr during
their emigration to Madeenah. The two clearly saw people coming to kill
them, and Abu Bakr was afraid. Certainly, if Muhammad (SAW) was a liar,
a forger and one who was trying to fool the people into believing that
he was a prophet, one would have expected him to say in such a
circumstance to his friend, "Hey, Abu Bakr, see if you can find a back
way out of this cave." Or "Squat down in that corner over there and keep
quiet." Yet, in fact, what he said to Abu Bakr clearly illustrated his
confidence. He told him, "Relax! Allah is with us, and Allah will save
us!"
Now, if one knows that he is fooling the people, where does one get this
kind of attitude? In fact, such a frame of mind is not characteristic of
a liar or a forger at all. So, as has been previously mentioned, the
non-Muslims go around and around in a circle, searching for a way out -
some way to explain the findings in the Qur'an without attributing them
to their proper source. On one hand, they tell you on Monday, Wednesday
and Friday, "The man was a liar," and on the other hand, on Tuesday,
Thursday and Saturday they tell you, "He was crazy." What they refuse to
accept is that one cannot have it both ways; yet they refuse to accept
is that one cannot have it both ways; yet they need both excuses to
explain the information in the Qur'an.
About seven years ago, I had a minister over to my home. In the
particular room which we were sitting there was a Qur'an on the table,
face down, and so the minister was not aware of which book it was. In
the midst of a discussion, I pointed to the Qur'an and said, "I have
confidence in that book." Looking at the Qur'an but not knowing which
book it was , he replied, "Well, I tell you, if that book is not the
Bible, it was written by a man!" In response to his statement, I said,
"Let me tell you something about what is in that book." And in just
three to four minutes I related to him a few things contained in the
Qur'an. After just those three or four minutes, he completely changed
his position and declared, "You are right. A man did not write that
book. The Devil wrote it!" Indeed, possessing such an attitude is very
unfortunate - for many reasons. For one thing, it is a very quick and
cheap excuse. It is an instant exit out of an uncomfortable situation.
As a matter of fact, there is a famous story in the Bible that mentions
how one day some of the Jews were witnesses when Jesus raised a man from
the dead. The man had been dead for four days, and when Jesus arrived,
he simply said, "Get up!" and the man arose and walked away. At such a
sight, some of the Jews who were watching said disbelievingly, "This is
the Devil. The Devil helped him!" Now this story is rehearsed often in
churches all over the world, and people cry big tears over it, saying,
"Oh, if I had been there, I would not have been as stupid as the Jews!"
Yet ironically, these people do exactly what the Jews did when in just
three minutes you show them only a small part of the Qur'an and all they
can say is, "Oh, the Devil did it. The devil wrote that book!". Because
they are truly backed into a corner and have no other viable answer,
they resort to the quickest and cheapest excuse available. Another
Example of people's use of this weak stance can be found in the Makkans'
explanation of the source of Muhammed's message. They used to say, "The
devils bring Muhammad that Qur'an!" But just as with every other
suggestion made, the Qur'an gives the answer. One verse in particular
states:
"And they say, 'Surely he is possessed [by jinn], 'but it [i.e., the
Qur'an] is not except a reminder to the worlds."
Thus it gives an argument in reply to such a theory. In fact, there are
many arguments in the Qur'an in reply to the suggestion that devils
brought Muhammad (SAW) his message. For example, in the 26th chapter
Allah clearly affirms:
"No evil ones have brought it [i.e., this revelation] down. It would
neither be fitting for them, nor would they be able. Indeed they have
been removed far from hearing."
And in another place in the Qur'an, Allah instructs us:
"So when you recite the Qur'an seek refuge in Allah from Shaytaan, the
rejected."
Now is this how Satan writes a book? He tells one, "Before you read my
book, ask God to save you from me."? This is very, very tricky. Indeed,
a man could write something like this, but would Satan do this? Many
people clearly illustrate that they cannot come to one conclusion on
this subject. On one hand, they claim that Satan would not do such a
thing and that even if he could, God would not allow him to; yet, on the
other hand, they also believe that Satan is only that much less than
God. In essence they allege that the Devil can probably do whatever God
can do. And as a result, when they look at the Qur'an, even as surprised
as they are as to how amazing it is, they still insist, "The Devil did
this!" Thanks be to Allah, Muslims do not have that attitude. Although
Satan may have some abilities, they are a long way separated from the
abilities of Allah. And no Muslim is a Muslim unless he believes that.
It is common knowledge even among non-Muslims that the Devil can easily
make mistakes, and it would be expected that he would contradict himself
if and when he wrote a book. For indeed, the Qur'an states:
"Do they not consider the Qur'an? Had it been from any other than Allah,
they would surely have found therein much discrepancy."
In conjunction with the excuses that non-Muslims advance in futile
attempts to justify unexplainable verses in the Qur'an, there is another
attack often rendered which seems to be a combination of the theories
that Muhammad (SAW) was crazy and a liar. Basically, these people
propose that Muhammad was insane, and as a result of his delusion, he
lied to and misled people. There is a name for this in psychology. It is
referred to as mythomania. It means simply that one tells lies and then
believes them. This is what the non-Muslims say Muhammad (SAW) suffered
from. But the only problem with this proposal is that one suffering from
mythomania absolutely cannot deal with facts, and yet the whole Qur'an
is based entirely upon facts. Everything contained in it can be
researched and established as true. Since facts are such a problem for a
mythomaniac, when a psychologist tries to treat one suffering from that
condition, he continually confronts him with facts. For example, if one
is mentally ill and claims, "I am the king of England," a psychologist
does not say to him "No you aren't. You are crazy!" He just does not do
that. Rather, he confronts him with facts and says, "O.K., you say you
are the king of England. So tell me where the queen is today. And where
is your prime minister? And where are your guards?" Now, when the man
has trouble trying to deal with these questions, he tries to make
excuses, saying Uh... the queen... she has gone to her mother's. Uh...
the prime minister... well he died." And eventually he is cured because
he cannot deal with the facts. If the psychologist continues confronting
him with enough facts, finally he faces the reality and says, "I guess I
am not the king of England." The Qur'an approaches everyone who reads it
in very much the same way a psychologist treats his mythomania patient.
There is a verse in the Qur'an which states:
"Oh mankind, there has come to you an admonition [i.e., the Qur'an] from
your Lord and a healing for what is in the hearts - and guidance and
mercy for the believers."
At first glance, this statement appears vague, but the meaning of this
verse is clear when one views it in light of the aforementioned example.
Basically, one is healed of his delusions by reading the Qur'an. In
essence, it is therapy. It literally cures deluded people by confronting
them with facts. A prevalent attitude throughout the Qur'an is one which
says, "Oh mankind, you say such and such about this; but what about such
and such? How can you say this when you know that?" And so forth. It
forces one to consider what is relevant and what matters while
simultaneously healing one of the delusions that the facts presented to
mankind by Allah can easily be explained away with flimsy theories and
excuses. It is this very sort of thing - confronting people with facts -
that had captured the attention of many non-Muslims. In fact, there
exists a very interesting reference concerning this subject in the New
Catholic Encyclopedia.
In an article under the subject of the Qur'an, the Catholic Church
states, "Over the centuries, many theories have been offered as to the
origin of the Qur'an... Today no sensible man accepts any of these
theories."!! Now here is the age-old Catholic Church, which has been
around for so many centuries, denying these futile attempts to explain
away the Qur'an. Indeed, the Qur'an is a problem for the Catholic
Church. It states that it is revelation, so they study it. Certainly,
they would love to find proof that it is not, but they cannot. They
cannot find a viable explanation. But at least they are honest in their
research and do not accept the first unsubstantiated interpretation
which comes along. The Church states that in fourteen centuries it has
not yet been presented a sensible explanation. At least it admits that
the Qur'an is not an easy subject to dismiss. Certainly, other people
are much less honest. They quickly say, "Oh, the Qur'an came from here.
The Qur'an came from there." And they do not even examine the
credibility of what they are stating most of the time. Of course, such a
statement by the Catholic Church leaves the everyday Christian in some
difficulty. It just may be that he has his own ideas as to the origin of
the Qur'an, but as a single member of the Church, he cannot really act
upon his own theory. Such an action would be contrary to the obedience,
allegiance and loyalty which the Church demands. By virtue of his
membership, he must accept what the Catholic Church declares without
question and establish its teachings as part of his everyday routine.
So, in essence, if the Catholic Church as a whole is saying, "Do not
listen to these unconfirmed reports about the Qur'an," then what can be
said about the Islamic point of view? Even non-Muslims are admitting
that there is something to the Qur'an - something that has to be
acknowledged - then why are people so stubborn and defensive and hostile
when Muslims advance the very same theory? This is certainly something
for those with mind a to contemplate - something to ponder for those of
understanding!
Recently, the leading intellectual in the Catholic Church - a man by the
name of Hans - studied the Qur'an and gave his opinion of what he had
read. This man has been around for some time, and he is highly respected
in the Catholic Church, and after careful scrutiny, he reported his
findings, concluding, "God has spoken to man through the man, Muhammad."
Again this is a conclusion arrived at by a non-Muslim source - the very
leading intellectual of the Catholic Church himself! I do not think that
the Pope agrees with him, but nonetheless, the opinion of such a noted,
repute public figure must carry some weight in defense of the Muslim
position. He must be applauded for facing the reality that the Qur'an is
not something which can be easily pushed aside and that, in fact God is
the source of these words. As is evident from the aforementioned
information, all of the possibilities have been exhausted, so the chance
of finding another possibility of dismissing the Qur'an is nonexistent.
For if the book is not a revelation, then it is a deception; and if it
is a deception, one must ask, "What is its origin" And where does it
deceive us?" Indeed, the true answers to these questions shed light on
the Qur'an's authenticity and silence the bitter unsubstantiated claims
of the unbelievers. Certainly, if people are going to insist that the
Qur'an is a deception, then they must bring forth evidence to support
such a claim. The burden of proof is on them, not us! One is never
supposed to advance a theory without sufficient corroborating facts; so
I say to them, "Show me one deception! Show me where the Qur'an deceives
me! Show me, otherwise, don't say that it is a deception!" An
interesting characteristic of the Qur'an is how it deals with surprising
phenomena which relate not only to the past but to modern times as well.
In essence, the Qur'an is not and old problem. It is still a problem
even today - a problem to the non-Muslims that is. For everyday, every
week, every year brings more and more evidence that the Qur'an is a
force to be contended with - that its authenticity is no longer to be
challenged! For example, one verse in the Qur'an reads;
"Do not the unbelievers see that the heavens and the earth were joined
together, then We clove them asunder, and made from water every living
thing? Will they not then believe?"
Ironically, this very information is exactly what they awarded the 1973
Noble Prize for - to a couple of unbelievers. The Qur'an reveals the
origin of the universe - how it began from one piece - and mankind
continues to verify this revelation, even up to now. Additionally, the
fact that all life originated from water would not have been an easy
thing to convince people of fourteen centuries ago. Indeed, if 1400
years ago you had stood in the desert and told someone, "All of this,
you see (pointing to yourself), is made up of mostly water," no one
would have believed you. Proof of that was not available until the
invention of the microscope. They had to wait to find out that
cytoplasm, the basic substance of the cell, is made-up of 80% water.
Nonetheless, the evidence did come, and once again the Qur'an stood the
test of time. In reference to the falsification tests mentioned earlier,
it is interesting to note that they, too, relate to both the past and
the present. Some of them were used as illustrations of Allah's
omnipotence and knowledge, while others continue to stand as challenges
to the present day. An example of the former is the statement made in
the Qur'an about Abu Lahab. It clearly illustrates that Allah, the
Knower of the Unseen, knew that Abu Lahab would never change his ways
and accept Islam. Thus Allah dictated that he would be condemned to the
Hellfire forever. Such a chapter was both an illustration of Allah's
divine wisdom and a warning to those who were like Abu Lahab.
An interesting example of the latter type of falsification tests
contained in the Qur'an is the verse which mentions the relationship
between the Muslims and the Jews. The verse is careful not to narrow its
scope to the relationship between individual members of each religion,
but rather, it summarizes the relationship between the two groups of
people as a whole. In essence, the Qur'an states that the Christians
will always treat the Muslims better than the Jews will treat the
Muslims. Indeed, the full impact of such a statement can only be felt
after careful consideration of the real meaning of such a verse. It is
true that many Christians and many Jews have become Muslims, but as a
whole, the Jewish community is to be viewed as an avid enemy of Islam.
Additionally, very few people realize what such an open declaration in
the Qur'an invites. In essence, it is an easy chance for the Jews to
prove that the Qur'an is false - that it is not a divine revelation. All
they have to do is organize themselves, treat the Muslims nicely for a
few years and then say, "Now what does your holy book say about who are
your best friends in the world - the Jews or the Christians? Look what
we Jews have done for you!" That is all they have to do to disprove the
Qur'an's authenticity, yet they have not done it in 1400 years. But, as
always, the offer still stands open!
All of the examples so far given concerning the I various angles from
which one can approach the | Qur'an have undoubtedly been subjective in
nature; I however there does exist another angle, among others, which is
objective and whose basis is mathematical. It is surprising how
authentic the Qur'an becomes when one assembles what might be referred
to as a list of good guesses. Mathematically, it can be explained using
guessing and prediction examples. For instance, if a person has two
choices (i.e., one is right, and one is wrong), and he closes his eyes
and makes a choice, then half of the time (i.e., one time out of two) he
will be right. Basically, he has a one in two chance, for he could pick
the wrong choice, or he could pick the right choice. Now if the same
person has two situations like that (i.e., he could be right or wrong
about situation number one, and he could be right or wrong about
situation number two), and he closes his eyes and guesses, then he will
only be right one fourth of the time (i.e., one time out of four). He
now has a one in four chance because now there are three ways for him to
be wrong and only one way for him to be right. In simple terms, he could
make the wrong choice in situation number one and then make the wrong
choice in situation number two; OR he could make the wrong choice in
situation number one and then make the right choice in situation number
two; OR he could make the right choice in situation number one and then
make the wrong choice in situation number two; OR he could make the
right choice in situation number one and then make the right choice in
situation number two. Of course, the(only instance in which he could be
totally right is the last scenario where he could guess correctly in
both situations. The odds of his guessing completely correctly have
become greater because the number of situations for him to guess in have
increased; and the mathematical equation representing such a scenario is
1/2 x 1/2 (i.e., one time out of two for the first situation multiplied
by one time out of two for the second situation).
Continuing on with the example, if the same person now has three
situations in which to make blind guesses, then he will only be right
one eighth of the time (i.e., one time out of eight or 1/2 X 1/2 X 1/2).
Again, the odds of choosing the correct choice in all three situations
have decreased his chances of being completely correct to only one time
in eight. It must be understood that as the number of situations
increase, the chances of being right decrease, for the two phenomena are
inversely proportional.
Now applying this example to the situations in the Qur'an, if one draws
up a list of all of the subjects about which the Qur'an has made correct
statements, it becomes very clear that it is highly unlikely that they
were all just correct blind guesses. Indeed, the subjects discussed in
the Qur'an are numerous, and thus the odds of someone just making lucky
guesses about all of them become practically nil. If there are a million
ways for the Qur'an to be wrong, yet each time it is right, then it is
unlikely that someone was guessing. The following three examples of
subjects about which the Qur'an has made correct statements collectively
illustrate how the Qur'an continues to beat the odds.
In the 16th chapter the Qur'an mentions that the female bee leaves its
home to gather food.l2 Now, a person might guess on that, saying, "The
bee that you see flying around - it could be male, or it could be
female. I think I will guess female." Certainly, he has a one in two
chance of being right. So it happens that the Qur'an is right. But it
also happens that was not what most people believed at the time when the
Qur'an was revealed. Can you tell the difference between a male and a
female bee? Well, it takes a specialist to do that, but it has been
discovered that the male bee never leaves his home to gather food.
However, in Shakespeare's play, Henry the Fourth, some of the characters
discuss bees and mention that the bees are soldiers and have a king.
That is what people thought in Shakespeare's time - that the bees that
one sees flying around are male bees and that they go home and answer to
a king. However, that is not true at all. The fact is that they are
females, and they answer to a queen. Yet it took modern scientific
investigations in the last 300 years to discover that this is the case.
So, back to the list of good guesses, concerning the topic of bees, the
Qur'an had a 50/50 chance of being right, and the odds were one in two.
In addition to the subject of bees, the Qur'an also discusses the sun
and the manner in which it travels through space. Again, a person can
guess on that subject. When the sun moves through space, there are two
options: it can travel just as a stone would travel if one threw it, or
it can move of its own accord. The Qur'an states the latter - that it
moves as a result of its own motion.'3 To do such, the Qur'an uses a
form of the word sabaha to describe the sun's movement through space. In
order to properly provide the reader with a comprehensive understanding
of the implications of this Arabic verb, the following example is given.
If a man is in water and the verb sabaha is applied in reference to his
movement, it can be understood that he is swimming, moving of his own
accord and not as a result of a direct force applied to him. Thus when
this verb is used in reference to the sun's movement through space, it
in no way implies that the sun is flying uncontrollably through space as
a result of being hurled or the like. It simply means that the sun is
turning and rotating as it travels. Now, this is what the Qur'an
affirms, but was it an easy thing to discover? Can any common man tell
that the sun is turning? Only in modern times was the equipment made
available to project the image of the sun onto a tabletop so that one
could look at it without being blinded. And through this process it was
discovered that not only are there three spots on the sun but that these
spots move once every 25 days. This movement is referred to as the
rotation of the sun around its axis and conclusively proves that, as the
Qur'an stated 1400 years ago, the sun does, indeed turn as it travels
through space.
And returning once again to the subject of good guess, the odds of
guessing correctly about both subjects - the sex of bees and the
movement of the sun - are one in four!
Seeing as back fourteen centuries ago people probably did not understand
much about time zones, the Quran's statements about this subject are
considerably surprising. The concept that one family is having breakfast
as the sun comes up while another family is enjoying the brisk night air
is truly something to be marveled at, even in modern time. Indeed,
fourteen centuries ago, a man could not travel more than thirty miles in
one day, and thus it took him literally months to travel from India to
Morocco, for example. And probably , when he was having supper in
Morocco, he thought to himself, "Back home in India they are having
supper right now." This is because he did not realize that, in the
process of traveling, he moved across a time zone. Yet, because it is
the words of Allah, the All-Knowing, the Qur'an recognizes and
acknowledges such a phenomenon. In an interesting verse it states that
when history comes to an end and the Day of Judgment arrives, it will
all occurring an instant; and this very instant will catch some people
in the daytime and some people at night. This clearly illustrates
Allah's divine wisdom and His previous knowledge of the existence of
time zones, even though such a discovery was non-existent back fourteen
centuries ago. Certainly, this phenomenon is not something which is
obvious to one's eyes or a result of one's experience, and this fact, in
itself, suffices as proof of the Qur'ans authenticity.
Returning one final time to the subject of good guesses for the purpose
of the present example, the odds that someone guessed correctly about
all three of the aforementioned subjects - the sex of bees, the movement
of the sun and the existence of time zones - are one in eight!
Certainly, one could continue on and on with this example, drawing up
longer and longer list of good guesses; and of course, the odds would
become higher and higher with each increase of subjects about which one
could guess. But what no one can deny is the following; the odds that
Mohammed an illiterate, guessed correctly about thousands and thousands
of subjects, never once making a mistake, are so high that any theory of
his authorship of the Qur'an must be completely dismissed - even by the
most hostile enemies of Islam!
Indeed, the Qur'an expects this kind of challenge. Undoubtedly, if one
said to someone upon entering a foreign land, "I know your father. I
have met him," probably the man from that land would doubt the
newcomer's word, saying, "You have just come here. How could you know my
father?" As a result, he would question him, "Tell me, is my father
tall, short, dark, fair? What is he like?" Of course, if the visitor
continued answering all of the questions correctly, the skeptic would
have no choice but to say, "I guess you do know my father. I don't know
how you know him, but I guess you do!" The situation is the same with
the Qur'an. It states that it originates from the One who created
everything. So everyone has the right to say, "Convince me! If the
author of this book really originated life and everything in the heavens
and on the earth, then He should know about this, about that, and so
on." And inevitably, after researching the Qur'an, everyone will
discover the same truths. Additionally, we all know something for sure:
we do not all have to be experts to verify what the Qur'an affirms.
One's iman (faith) grows as one continues to check and confirm the
truths contained in the Qur'an. And one is supposed to do so all of his
life.
May God (Allah) guide everyone close to the truth.
SUPPLEMENT
An engineer at the University of Toronto who was interested in
psychology and who had read something on it, conducted researched wrote
a thesis on Efficiency of Group Discussions. The purpose of his research
was to find out how much people accomplish when they get together to
talk in groups of two, three, ten, etc. The graph of his findings:
people accomplish most when they talk in groups of two. Of course, this
discovery was entirely beyond his expectations, but it is very old
advice given in the Qur'an:
Additionally, the 89th chapter of the Qur'an mentions a certain city by
the name of 'Iram (a city of pillars), which was not known in ancient
history and which was non-existent as far as historians were concerned.
However, the December 1978 edition of National Geographic introduced
interesting information which mentioned that in 1973, the city of Elba
was excavated in Syria. The city was discovered to be 43 centuries old,
but that is not the most amazing part. Researchers found in the library
of Elba a record of all of the cities with which Elba had done business.
Believe or not, there on the list was the name of the city of 'Iram. The
people of Elba had done business with the people of 'Iram!
"Say, 'I exhort you to one thing - that you stand for Allah, [assessing
the truth] by twos and singly, and then reflect.....' In conclusion I
ask you to consider with care the following:
"And they say, 'Why are not signs sent down to him from his Lord?' Say,
'Indeed, the signs are with Allah, and I am but a clear warner.' But is
sufficient for them that We have sent down to you the Book [i.e. Qur'an]
which is rehearsed to them? Verily, in that is mercy and a reminder to
people who believe."
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