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Al-Baqara

"And if you are in doubt as to that which We have revealed to Our servant, then produce a chapter like it and call on your helpers besides Allah if you are truthful.

But if you do (it) not — and you can never do it— then be on your guard against the fire whose fuel is men and stones; it is prepared for the disbelievers.

And give good news to those who believe and do good deeds, that for them are Gardens in which rivers flow. Whenever they are given a portion of the fruit thereof, they will say: This is what was given to us before; and they are given the like of it. And for them therein are pure companions and therein they will abide." Ch. 2:23-25

Quranic teachings are practical for all times

The first among the three verses quoted above was discussed at length in the previous lesson. To the critics’ objection that the Holy Quran was not the revealed word of God, a simple and forceful answer is given. Another doubt that can arise in this matter is with regards to the feasibility of acting upon the Quranic injunctions in daily life. For a person who lives a monastic life, it is possible to comply with the religious injunctions. Is it, however, possible to do so for the one who is involved in worldly pursuits? The reply to this was given in the words, "Our servant (ab-di-naa)." Allah has called the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) as His servant, the one who served Allah with complete humility and submission. He complied to the fullest extent with all the Quranic injunctions, and at the same time carried out all his worldly obligations. These being far beyond the level of an ordinary person. He carried out the common worldly duties of being a husband, a father, a kinsman and a bread-winner for the family. In addition to this, he was also a king, and a lawmaker. It was his duty to formulate such religious laws (shariat), that would remain useful and viable till the Day of Judgment. As a judge he had to rule in legal matters, and simultaneously meet the heavy burden of his duties as a commander in chief. If somebody fell sick, the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was at his bedside to inquire about his well being. When somebody passed away, he would participate in, and lead his funeral prayers. People seeking religious knowledge flocked to his doorstep day and night. One is amazed at how a single person met all these personal and national obligations. The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) did all this, and at the same time complied with all the Quranic injunctions, thereby demonstrating that it was humanly possible to do so. This perfection as a role model is acknowledged by the Holy Quran in the verse:

"Whoever obeys the Messenger, he indeed obeys Allah" (4:80).

After his death, a group of young people while visiting Hazrat Ayesha (the Holy Prophet’s wife) inquired from her about the character of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). The reply of this noble lady was that his character was the Holy Quran i.e., his morals were a practical illustration of the Quranic teachings. The study of the Holy Quran is in itself a study of the noble character of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). Some religions propound seemingly beautiful teachings, but which are totally impractical to implement while pursuing a normal worldly life. Such an assertion, however, cannot be made in respect of Islam.

In the modern age another doubt arises in the minds of people and is sometimes articulated. It is said that it may have been possible 1400 years ago to act upon the Quranic teachings, but that it is no longer possible today. The answer to this objection was given by Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, the vicegerent (khalifa) of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), and the reformer of this age. By his example, he demonstrated that it is fully possible, and indeed necessary to act upon the teachings of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) today, as it was in the days gone by. He was thus able to find God, and achieve the object of man’s creation in this age of atheism and denial of religion. He was a recipient of Divine communion, which has always been a sign of closeness with God, but has always been looked upon with cynicism by the skeptics. By being a recipient of Divine revelation, he provided a very convincing, and a living proof of their truth. He proclaimed vociferously and repeatedly that the only way to truly find God in this day and age, was by acting upon the injunctions of the Holy Quran, and by following the footsteps of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). He openly challenged all other religions that claimed to establish a relationship with God. Was there even one votary of another religion that had established a relationship with God, in the manner he had done, by following the scripture and the Prophet of Islam? None, however, responded to this challenge.

A challenge and a prophecy

As mentioned before, the Holy Quran collectively challenges all knowledgeable scholars of the past and present, that if they are convinced that the Holy Prophet, (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) who was unlettered, fabricated the Holy Quran (we seek the refuge of Allah from saying so), then they should bring forward the equivalent of its smallest chapter. Another simple, but cogent proof that the Holy Quran is the Divine word is then provided by making a grand prophecy in the following Quranic verse:

"But if you do (it) not—and you can never do it,"

Stones as fuel of fire

If even after this simple, easily understood, and irrefutable evidence, someone still remains skeptic, then it is stated:

"be on your guard against the fire whose fuel is men and stones; it is prepared for the disbelievers."

The concept of Hell and Heaven

The word fuel indicates that the fire of base desires and envy that smolders in the hearts of the disbelievers, and their opposition to the truth in this life will kindle into the fire of hell in the life Hereafter. In chapter 104:6-9 it is stated:

"It is the fire kindled by Allah, Which rises over the hearts. Surely it is closed in on them, In extended columns."

There are few today who worship stone idols, but those who worship their low desires includes all those who do not obey Allah. It is quite obvious that he who does not obey Allah, follows his low desires and emotions, which have the nature of fire. This fire which first appears in the hearts of men, can ignite into the conflagration of warfare, and ultimately appears as pillars of hell-fire in the life Hereafter. The Holy Quran was revealed to control the internal fire of desires in mankind, and to make it useful. An analogy for this is the utilization of controlled energy in rockets and airplanes etc., which makes it a source of progress and development. If this same energy runs out of control, it destroys the vehicle it was suppose to propel. Just as surely unbridled desires can consume man in its aftermath. Whosoever rejects the Holy Quran, will be unable to control this internal fire of his low desires, and it will ultimately flare into the burning fires of Hell. Those who are slave to their emotions and desires, their condition is appropriately described by the Quranic phrase:

"Is there more (hal-mim-mazeed)."

This desire for more could be for wealth, power, or unbridled sexual passions. On the other hand, those who believe in the Holy Quran, and thereby exercise restrain against evil, and purify their souls, their hearts are filled with cool freshness and tranquillity. This is the paradise of the heart with which every believer is blessed in this world, and the Holy Quran points this out in the verse:

"And for him who fears to stand before his Lord are two Gardens" (55:46).

The one who is fearful of the moment when he will have to answer before his Lord, is blessed with two kinds of paradise. Now it is quite apparent that most believers do not get the worldly paradise of material ease and comfort. What they are all blessed with is the paradise of the heart i.e., inner peace and contentment. After death this will assume a more palpable form of the blessing of paradise in the Hereafter. The young people today, who are influenced by the western culture, find it difficult to understand the paradise of the heart. A person who is content and lacks anxiety within his heart, is in paradise, although outwardly he may not be in gardens with flowing streams. The one, within whom burns the fire of discontent, is in a living hell, although he may be the owner of lush gardens with streams of running water.

The last verse in this lesson gives good news to those who believe and do good, that they will have:

"Gardens, wherein rivers flow."

Spirit - the real sensor of pain and pleasure

I would again like to lay stress on the fact that one should not look down upon spiritual blessings. In fact, all that brings happiness to the human mind is truly spiritual in nature. When the body dies, and the spirit leaves it, one is not able to taste even the most delicious of culinary delicacies, or appreciate the most melodious of tunes. The human body is merely the conduit, or channel through which the spirit perceives pleasure or pain. If the spirit is in serenity, it leads to individual satisfaction and likewise if it is in pain, the human body feels the effect of it. It is quite possible that an honest person may go to bed hungry, and a dishonest individual may have a table laden with dainties. The honest person’s heart is, however, free from anxiety, and he is in a paradise of contentment, in comparison to the hell of a crooked individual’s anxious and fearful heart. A person may not have all the worldly goods and luxuries, but he may still be happy for the real happiness of a person lies in spiritual contentment.

Pure companionship and everlasting nature of Paradise

Two more things are mentioned after this, i.e.,

"And for them therein are pure companions and therein they will abide."

In the end I would like to mention that the heart of a righteous person even in this world is in heaven, and from it spring the streams of good deeds which benefit God’s creation. This is the picture of this world’s paradise which is described in the Holy Quran, "Gardens in which rivers flow." In the Hereafter the paradise of the heart takes the shape of external gardens, and the good and beneficial deeds of the righteous towards their fellow beings become the rivers which flow underneath these gardens.

Addendum to Lesson 18

Mr. Muhammad Aslam Rana, from the Center for Research on Christianity, at Shadara, Lahore, sent us the following comments and inquiry on lesson 18. It is being published along with our reply. He writes:

For the students of the Holy Quran, it is refreshing to read Mr. Nasir Ahmad Faruqi’s Quranic lessons which are being published regularly in the periodical Paigham-e-Sulah. In lesson 18, dated January 19-26 1983, in his commentary on verse 23 of Al-Baqarah he states: "Why then one may ask, should the stones be put to fire? Some interpreters of the Holy Quran conjecture that the reference is to the stone idols of the Arab idolaters. This explanation is not satisfactory, however, because what is the fault of the idols, if it was man who created them, and then started to worship them? How could these idols be in the world Hereafter? At the time of the fall of Mecca, the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) had destroyed these idols anyhow. This interpretation is therefore erroneous.

In this matter, it is respectfully stated that the commentators who consider these stones as the idols of Arabs, or other nations, are also correct. When these idols burn along with the idolaters in the fire of hell, the mere site of their predicament, degradation, and worthlessness, and the practical illustration of the teachings of the honored prophets will be a source of spiritual and mental chastisement for those idolaters. As to the question, how could these idols be in the Hereafter, after having been destroyed by the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) at the time of the fall of Mecca? I would like to answer, For the Almighty, Who has the Power to raise mankind from the dust of his bones, it is not difficult to put together the broken pieces of these idols, and restore them to their original shape. The intent of this would be to question and chastise the idolaters. It is clearly mentioned in the Holy Quran that this will occur on the Day of Resurrection in the verses, "And on the day when He will gather them, and that which they serve besides Allah, He will say: Was it you who led astray these My servants, or did they themselves stray from the path? They will say: Glory be to Thee ! it was not beseeming for us that we should take for protectors others besides Thee, but Thou didst make them and their fathers to enjoy until they forgot the Reminder, and they became a lost people. So they will give you the lie in what you say, then you can neither ward off (evil), nor (obtain) help. And whoever among you does wrong , We shall make him taste a great chastisement (25:17-19).

I hope these comments will reach the readers through the pages of your periodical Paigham-e-Sulah, so that they can be appraised of the correct situation.

Mr Muhammad Aslam Rana has ignored the following points in his commentary:

1. As mentioned in Al-Baqarah verses 23, 24, the Holy Quran collectively challenges all knowledgeable scholars of the past and present, that the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is unlettered, and if they are convinced that he fabricated the Holy Quran (we seek the refuge of Allah from saying so), then they should bring forward the equivalent of its smallest chapter. "But if you do (it) not—and you can never do it then be on your guard against the fire whose fuel is men and stones; it is prepared for the disbelievers" (2:24).

   In these verses, clearly those critics are addressed, who do not accept the Holy Quran as the Divine word and not the idol worshipping polytheists of Arabia.

2. Despite this if we interpret this as the stone idols of these idolaters, we are faced with the following objection. What was the fault of those lifeless stones? It was after all the idolaters who fashioned them into idols and started to worship them. This interpretation certainly does not appeal to my mind.

3. Those addressed first in these verses were the people of Arabia. Their stone idols were destroyed by the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) after the fall of Mecca. The contention that they would also be the idols of other nations, and would be put in the fire of hell, to serve as a source of spiritual chastisement for the Arab idolaters, leads to the following objection. How could they be a source of such punishment for those idolaters? They would in fact be happy that their gods were better, because they were saved from that inferno. The gods of other nations were false and were therefore subjected to fire, while their gods (whom Allah could according to Mr. Rana restore to original shape, although they were shattered to pieces) were true because they were saved from such a fate.

   In the reference of Ch. Al-Furqan, that Mr. Rana has quoted, there is no doubt a reference to the false gods. In these lessons I have, however, explained that the Arabic word ibadat means serving with humility. The word salaat has been used where ever prayer is meant. Therefore, the Quranic words in verse 17 of Al-Furqan, "And that which they serve (Tah-bu-dun from Ibadat) besides Allah," signify those political and religious leaders whom people serve instead of Allah. Those leaders who thus misled the masses, will definitely be brought back to life to face such punishment.

4. In any case the verses of Al-Baqarah under discussion do not mention association with God, so that one should bring the idols into this discussion. The discussion is about those who do not consider the Holy Quran as the revealed word of God.

5. My interpretation is therefore not only appropriate, but also the correct one. The ‘stones,’ here signify the stone hearted people, or their political and religious leaders who played a dominant role in misleading the masses, by objecting to the truth of the Holy Quran being the revealed Word of God. I have supported this interpretation by reference to the dictionary meaning of the word hijar in my preceding lesson.

I hope that Mr. Muhammad Aslam Rana will agree with me.