Bediuzzaman Said Nursi said, “I will demonstrate to the world that the Qur’an is a spiritual sun that shall never set and shall never be extinguished.” Thus his voluminous work, The Risala-e-Nur Collection, sets out to do just that. It expounds the truths of the Qur’an and shows that they can stand up to the scrutiny of science and logic, which is often used to discredit religion and Said Nursi invites his readers to reflect on the world around.
Bediuzzaman Said Nursi
What is the Risale-i Nur?
The Risale-i Nur collection is a six-thousand-page commentary on the Quran written by Bediuzzaman Said Nursi in accordance with the mentality of the age. Since in our age faith and Islam have been the objects of the attacks launched in the name of so called science and logic, Bediuzaman Said Nursi therefore concentrated in the Risale-i Nur on proving the truths of faith in conformity with modern science through rational proofs and evidence, and by decribing the miraculous aspects of the Quran that relate primarily to our century. This collection now has millions of readers both in and outside of Turkey. Thanks to the Risale-i Nur, the Turks managed to maintain their religion despite the most despotic regimes of the past decades. Although its author faced unbearable persecution, imprisonment, and exile, while no effort was spared to put an end to his service to faith, he was able to complete his writings compromising the Risale-i Nur and raise a vast group of believers who courageously opposed the oppression and preserved the dominance of Islam in the country.
Bediuzzaman understood an essential cause of the decline of the Islamic world to be weakening of the very foundations of belief. This weakening, together with the unprecedented attacks on those foundations in the 19th and 20th centuries carried out by materialists, atheists and others in the name of science and progress, led him to realize that the urgent and over-riding need was to strengthen, and even to save, belief. What was needed was to expend all efforts to reconstruct the edifice of Islam from its foundations, belief, and to answer at that level those attacks with a ‘manevi jihad’ or ‘jihad of the of the word.’
Thus, in exile, Bediuzzaman wrote a body of work, the Risale-i Nur, that would explain and expound the basic tenets of belief, the truths of the Quran, to modern man. His method was to analyse both belief and unbelief and to demonstrate through clearly reasoned arguments that not only is it possible, by following the method of the Quran, to prove rationally all the truths are the only rational explanation of existance, man and the universe.
Bediuzzaman thus demonstrated in the form of easily understood stories, comparisons, explanations, and reasoned proofs that, rather than the truth of religion being incompatible with the findings of modern science, the materialist interpretation of those findings is irrational and absurd. Indeed, Bediuzzaman proved in the Risale-i Nur that science’s breathtaking discoveries of the universe’s functioning corroborate and reinforce the truths of religion.
The imortance of the Risale-i Nur cannot be overestimated, for through it Bediuzzaman Said Nursi played a major role in preserving and revitalizing the Islamic faith in Turkey in the very darkest days of her history. And indeed its role has continued to increase in importance to the present day. But further to this, the Risale-i Nur is uniquely fitted to address not only all Muslims but indeed all mankind for several reasons. First it is written in accordance with modern man’s mentality, a mentality that, whether Muslim or not, has been deeply inbued by materialist philosophy: it specifically answers all the questions, doubts and confusions that this causes. It answers too all the ‘why’s’ that mark the questioning mind of modern man.
Also, it explains the most profound matters of belief, which formerly only advanced scholars studied in detail, in such a way that everyone, even those to whom the subject is new, may understand and gain something without it causing any difficulties or harm.
A further reason is that in explaning the true nature and purposes of man and the universe, the Risale-i Nur shows that true happiness is only to be found in belief and knowledge of God, both in this world and the Hereafter. And it also points out the grevious pain and unhappiness that unbelief causes man’s spirit and conscience, which generally the misguided attempt to block out through heedlessness and escapism, so that anyone with any sense may take refuge in belief.
To conclude
The Holy Quran addresses the intellect as well as man’s other inner faculties. It directs man to consider the universe and functioning in order to learn its true nature and purposes as the creation and thus to learn the attributes of its Single Creator and his own duties as a creature. This, then, is the method that Bediuzzaman employed in the Risale-i Nur. He explained the true nature of the universe as signs of its Creator and demonstrated through clear arguments that when it is read as such all the fundamentals of beliefs may be proved rationally.
When this method is followed, a person attains a true belief that will be sound and firm enough to be withstand any doubts that may arise in the face of the subtle attacks of Materialism, Naturalism and atheism, or the materialist approach to scientific advances. For all scientific and technological advances are merely the uncovering of the workings of the cosmos. When the cosmos is seen to be a vast and infinately complex and meaningful unified book describing its Single Author, rather that causing doubt and bewilderment, all these discoveries and advances reinforce belief, they deepen and expand it.
Man’s most fundamental need is the need for religion, the need to recognize and worship Almighty God with all His Most Beautiful Names and attributes, and to obey His laws; those manifest in the universe and those revealed through his prophets. In explaining the message of the Quran, Almighty God’s final Revealed Book, brought and perfectly expounded by His final Prophet, Muhammad (PBUH), and Islam, the complete and perfected religion for mankind, Bediuzzaman Said Nursi demonstrated in the Risale-i Nur that there is no contradiction or dichotomy between science and religion; rather, true progress and happiness for mankind can, and will, only be achieved in this way, the way of the Quran.
To enrich our reading of the Quran in the coming month of Ramadan, Al-Furqaan has embedded the summarized translation of Tafsir Ibn Kathir published by Darussalam on our website. Click here to browse the page. Produced below is a brief description of Tafsir Ibn Kathir:
Tafsîr Ibn Kathîr, by Isma’il bin ‘Amr bin Kathîr al-Dimashqî (d.774/1372) under the title Tafsîr al-Qur’ân al-Azîm, one of the better-known books on tafsîr, perhaps second to Tabarî, with more emphasis on soundness of reports, in particular rejection of all foreign influences such as isrâ’îlîyât, discussing the sanad of various reports often in detail, which makes it one of the more valuable books of tafsîr. Makes much use of tafsîr al-Qur’ân bi’l Qur’ân, referring a reader to other relevant ayat on the topic discussed. This book has been printed on various occasions (in 8 volumes) and an abridged version (mukhtasar) has been edited by Sâbûnî.
No English translation available.This book although of greatest importance to Muslims has been widely ignored by the orientalists. (description taken from islamic-awareness.org)
As Ramadan looms ahead, we would like to give the simple reminder that the Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) will complain to Allah on the Day of Judgment that his people neglected the Qur’an (Surah al-Furqan 25:30). Neglect of the Qur’an is of different levels, as Ibn al-Qayyim writes:
“The month of Ramadan is the one in which the Quran was sent down, a guidance for mankind, clear proofs for the guidance, the Criterion; so whoever amongst you witnesses this month, let him fast it.” (Surah al-Baqarah 2:185)
Ibn ‘Abbas narrates “that the Messenger of Allah (SAW) was the most generous person, and he would be at his most generous in Ramadan because Jibril would come to him every night and he would rehearse the Qur’an with him.” (Sahih al-Bukhari).
Ramadan is a time to reconnect with the Quran. We leave you with a lecture delivered by Shaykh Omar Baloch titled “Are You a Ramadan Mu’min?”
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Courtesy of Columbus Dawah
by Mustafa Masih
We live in a time where many people conciously or subconsciously feel that the idea of hell, jahannam, is unfair. If Allah SWT loves His creation, they argue, why should he create Hellfire? How can a Merciful Creator justify punishing His creation?
To appease the anguish of imagining hellfire underneath our feet on the Day of Judgment, we conjure wishful thoughts of Allah as Al-Ghafur (Most Forgiving) and Al-Rahim (Most Merciful). We should take heed of the perished nations of the past as mentioned in the Quran for their transgressions.
The horrifying torment of Hellfire as depicted in the Quran lends credence to the adage that human beings are much more motivated by the stick than the carrot. How can there be a moral society in which the people have no concept of being accountable for what they do? It is due to the same reason that an average person would not speed on the highway for fear of getting a traffic ticket.
Thus it is pivotal for us to be reminded of hellfire to stay on the straight path. To forget the reality of the stick is like being neglectful of cops waiting to catch a driver speeding.
Fear and Hope
Having said this, it is not to deny that Allah is All Merciful. The believer should always live between fear and hope (bayna al-khauf wa al-raja). When you are blessed with good health, you should instill fear of incurring the wrath of Allah SWT. When you are in hardship, have hope, raja‘, and bear patiently for it is merely a trial from Allah the All Merciful. When you are poor, know that Allah is the one Who provides whom He Wills. When you are rich, do not forget that Allah knows what you spend with your wealth.
This life, this dunya, is no more real than the Hereafter. The human soul, the ruh or nafs, is a most indestructible creation of Allah SWT that no nuclear weapons can annihilate. The great Imam Al-Ghazali, left a poem under his pillow upon his death in which the first lines read “I was a shell. Now the shell is open and I am free.” Know that the real self is not our body. If a person loses his hand, it does not mean the person lost his self. His self is his soul, the ruh.
Just as This Life is Real, the Next Life is Even More Real
As the Prophet SAW said, the bodies of people in Hellfire will be made bigger. Why? So that they can feel more pain. This is the reality of it. Yet we should not understand this as meaning there is no mercy from Allah SWT. His Mercy is everywhere and as Imam Ibn Taymiyyah states, the Mercy of Allah SWT is felt even in hellfire because the person is given the ability to tolerate this punishment.
Punishment in the Grave
This raises the question of why should there also be punishment in the grave. The punishment in the grave is given as a kafarah (atonement) so that perhaps it will put you in a better more pure state before you stand in front of Allah SWT on the Day of Judgment.
Another reason is that it is the angels who will question you in the grave. Whereas in the Hereafter Allah SWT is the one who will question you. The angels can only see what you do externally, the Shari’ah aspect, and question those acts but they do not know what is in your heart. Only Allah will take you into account for that in the Hereafter.
The Hellfire
After the stage of barzakh in the grave, a person proceeds to walk on the sirat, the straight path. Underneath this path is the hellfire, a fire that is alive, constantly trying to reach and grab every single person into its pit. The person’s first test is salat, the obligatory prayers. If its rights were not fulfilled, he goes falls down into hellfire and takes the punishment. Then the person will be brought to the beginning and start again. Then, perhaps the person participated in riba, and that is haram, he falls down again. This cycle is repeated until Jannah is reached.
For such a horrifying punishment, keep in mind that Allah SWT does not put us in a situation that is unfair for us. We are between His Justice and His Mercy. For the people in Hellfire, the mercy of Allah SWT is that they can bear the punishment. In fact, we don’t even deserve Jannah for it is only by the Mercy of Allah that He grants us Jannah insha Allah. Therefore, we ask for Allah’s Forgiveness because He is Al-Ghafurur Rahim.
In the hellfire, we will neither be dead nor alive. This is mentioned in Surah Al-A’la, “Wherein he will neither die nor remain alive.” The reality of hell fire and jannah is something no human being has full comprehension, not even the Prophet SAW.
Our knowledge of the Hereafter is merely a taste of its reality. It is analogous to the guest who is first given an appetizer as he enters the host’s home. Everything we know of the hereafter, is like this appetizer. The real delight of Jannah and torment of Jahannam cannot be comprehended in this physical world. For example, the people in the hellfire will have their skin burnt and then the skin comes back. This is only something we can imagine. The point you should understand is that Allah is saying verily His punishment is severe indeed.
Note that when Allah mentions in the Qur’an the delight of Jannah, it is matched by mentioning the opposite, Jahannam. Both of these realities have to be kept in mind.
What About Those Who Do Not Know the Truth?
In the aqidah of Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jamaah, we believe that Allah will not punish anyone until He sends them a messenger. It is the justice of Allah SWT to not punish who the message did not reach them. This is mentioned in the beginning of Surah Yasin for example. We cannot say anything about the people that did not receive the message in our aqidah. What is clear is the warning for those who the message reached.
The condition of those who did not receive the message is like the narrative of Luqman Al-Hakim. No messenger reached and no book of Allah reached Luqman The Wise. It was from his own fitrah, his human nature, to come to the conclusion that there must be Allah. We believe it is the natural predisposition of human beings to know of a Supreme Being just like we feel hungry when we don’t eat. A person with good fitrah knows thath this whole vast gigantic universe did not come by accident. It is in this light how Luqman advised his son, “O my dear son, do not associate partners with Allah, because this is the greatest oppression.” It is the ultimate denial of your master.
There is no way to determine who the message did not reach. For these people, there has to be some element of tauhid, some belief in their hearts of the Lord of the heavens and the earth. However this should not be our preoccupation. We should be concerned about our own state of iman. It is sufficient to know that Allah will not punish whom the message did not reach. We can merely say that as far the Shariah is concerned, the person died as a non-Muslim. Whether he believes in Allah in his heart, that is a matter for Allah to judge.
Injustice
Let’s say a Muslim is in hellfire for stealing. And some non-muslim is also there for committing the exact crime. In this case, the punishment for both of us is the same. The treatment from Allah for the same sin is the same punishment.
Is this unjust? How do human beings know what is just and unjust? We know justice not by experiencing justice, but through experiencing injustice and vice versa. Since we have established above that everyone is treated with the same punishment for the same crime,.the issue of justice versus injustice is a false dichotomy.
In surah al-Bayyinah, Allah SWT says we are created to be exclusive servants of Him. In addition, we are to establish regular prayer and give zakat. This is the pure servant. After that, Allah SWT mentions hellfire for the people who do deny His signs. For hellfire, the description is khalidina fiha (they will dwell therein). In the next ayah, Allah describes jannah as khalidina fiha abada (they will dwell therein forever). So Allah does not attribute hellfire with “abada” (forever) as is attributed to for jannah. In addition, the Prophet SAW says whoever has a mustard seed of iman, he will come out of hellfire and will enter jannah.
The common denominator of people in hellfire is that they have lost their humanity. Allah SWT describes in Surah Al-Maun the characteristics of those who denied the impending judgment. “Have you considered him who calls the judgment a lie?” When these people feel accountable to no one, their fitrah dies.
Fitrah and Gratitude
Talking about fitrah, there is a very subtle point in surah Luqman where Allah says “We gave Luqman al-hikmah (wisdom) so that he gives shukr (gratitude). This is how you tell whether a person has good fitrah. He does shukr to whoever does good to him. We observe that among the non-muslims, one of the qualities of those who convert to Islam is that they had good feelings towards their parents. Likewise for Luqman, he advises his son to have gratitude to his parents. This is human fitrah. People who have lost fitrah lose the feeling of gratitude to repay people’s kindness.
So as you grow older, your knowledge increases. However, if your fitrah is diluted, you cannot see the world as it is supposed to be seen despite the knowledge that you gain. If you have a clean heart, and you get the knowledge around you, you will see it in its reality.
Hence people with a corrupted fitrah cannot undertand tauhid (monotheism). Only with a pure fitrah can you see the Oneness of Allah. The urge of shukr is like how a child’s sense of shukr towards the mother. As he grows, he starts to have friends, relatives. and know the universe. When the urge of shukr is there, some of them start thanking the monkey, the cow, the sun and so on. This is all incomplete until the person recognizes that this whole universe is created by one Being. When we do things to filth our fitrah, we become deaf, dumb and blind as Allah mentions in Surah al-Baqarah. These people will not return because their fitrah is dead. Thus Allah says He seals their hearts (khatam Allahu ala qulubihim). They have hearts, but they can’t see with their heart.
The Heart is Dominant Over the Brain
If the brain is smart but the heart is jealous, the brain interprets everything according to that jealousy. The brain merely calculates what the hearts see. “They have hearts that have no understanding”. For them, good and bad is measured in terms of pleasure and pain. This is hedonism. The pop culture around us promulgates such an ethic of pain as bad and happiness as good.
When Allah says they have eyes that cannot see, it is referring to their hearts. Abu Jahl had clear eyesight, but his heart is the one that was blind. They are like animals. Rather, they are worse than animals. They have reached a point of no return. We have to be vigilant that we do not corrupt our soul with sin to the point of no return. This is the state of the soul of people in the global corridors of power to utter such statements as the lives of innocent Palestinians being akin to coackroaches who “we should just step on.” How can there be no hellfire for such people as these whose hearts cannot see? Clearly, Allah has set hellfire for such people of inhumanity.
The Punishment of Hellfire Purifies Your Sins
As for those who have not reached perfection that Allah SWT wanted, the hellfire for them is a source of purification. Even in fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence), we know that fire purifies. You take the skin of an animal, tan it, and it becomes pure. Thus, we are tormented in hellfire so that when we enter jannah, our hearts are like the purified ones. For example, there will be no idle talk in jannah, this is such a pure state of fitrah the average Muslim will attain after the “purification” of hellfire. Note, however, that hellfire is a most severe punishment that nobody can bear for even a moment.
Some ahadith point to the fact that the hellfire will ask when people are thrown in it, “Is there any more humans?” Jahannam will never be full. It will constantly ask Allah, “Is there more?” Then Allah puts His Foot in the hellfire, and the hellfire will say enough. Some ulama like Ibn Taymiyyah says this is the justice of Allah. Ibn Arabi has a similar opinion.
At that moment, the hellfire will be made full by this act of Allah. People with no iman will go into a state of non-existence. After all that punishment, like what Ibn Arabi says, maybe because of Allah’s mercy, he will put them in jannah. This is however not the popular opinion but so we know there is also this opinion and Allah knows best. Most ulama say the people of hellfire will be put into a state of non existence. There is also a third opinion which says hellfire is forever and jannah is forever. What is meant in this opinion is that the abodes of hellfire and paradise is forever but the people will either end up in Jannah or, as for the ones who still deny Allah, will cease to exist.
However, the essential message is that nobody will want to be in hellfire. The Hereafter is such that somebody who is suffering so much in this world, when Allah puts them in jannah, he will forget all of that suffering. When Allah puts a rich person in hellfire, he forgets all the luxury he had in this world.
Surah Al-Mulk begins with tabarakal lazi biyadihil mulk. So blessed is in whose hand is kingship. He has the ability to do all things. Here, qadr also means measurement. So Allah has measured everything, the qudrah of everything. The one who created death and created life. He created death before he created life. Because death is not a state of non-existence. Death is a state of existence in a different form. Like water heated into vapor.
He made life and death, to see who amongst you does the best deeds. The One who created the seven heavens one above another. You will never find in the creation of Allah any faults. Then Allah says, look into space, do you see any faults? And Allah says look again. Your eyes will come back tired, but you will not find fault in Allah’s creation.
The sky is dunya, these galaxies are all as-sama ad-dunya. Adna means closest, worthlest, smallest. Masabih is the bright starts etc. We made the starts hit the shaitan. Then Allah says those who deny their rabb, their caretaker, for them is the punishment of the hellfire. and what a bad returning place to go.
As they go down into the pit of the hellfire, you will be hearing the hellfire as if snatching you in. Why? Has no one come to warn you about this hellfire? You ignored, pretended it did not exist? Yes of course.
All it takes to get out of hellfire is only if we actually listened. If only we used our brain, we would have not been of the people of the hellfire. You did not listen to sincere advice. What Islam has to say is simply common sense. It is so much common sense, its like the analogy of when you are in a great palace, and you are sitting, waiting for your food. Someone is coming serving your food, everything is provided, would you deny there is a great owner of that palace?
In surah Ibrahim, in the last scene of the hellfire, when everyone is finally in hellfire, they will ask angels how to get out, they will try to escape, but not able to. They will then plead Allah, though that will not help. they will all gather together and see iblis (known as Lucifer in the Biblical tradition) in the hellfire. They say to iblis you are the one who’s the real culprit. This happens because when you are tormented in hellfire, you want to have someone to blame for such a punishment. So everyone assembles in front of iblis, and after everyone’s done everything, pleaded all they can, Iblis says, “Allah promised you a true promise, I also promised you but I can’t keep my promise. I had no power and control over you. I called you and you answered. I gave you waswasa. a thought. and you answered me. i have no control over you and you have no control over me. I do kufr, I deny you, reject you for all sins you did before.” Then Allah says “Indeed for the wrongdoers is a very severe punishment.” When all that it takes for you to avoid this is common sense.
You see everything has distance with Allah. Angels have fixed ranks before Allah. The sun can’t get closer to Allah. But Adam was given the choice. This is statement of Ibn Abbas, that Adam was given choice to come as close as he wanted with Allah. But it comes with a danger. That if you don’t struggle to get as close as you can to Allah, there is the danger of the opposite, Hellfire. This is the ni’mah that is given to no one. So you have this blessing, and you will be punished if you dont use this blessing right.
And at the end of the day, we are His property. To Him will we all return.
Artistic Imagery of the Qur’an: A Visual Translation of Surah Al-Fil (The Chapter of the Elephant)
by Khurram Murad
One: One member, should, first, make a presentation of the results of his study.
Two: The rest should then join in, further elaborating, correcting, modifying, raising questions, or providing answers.
Three: If all the members are required to study, then you may either designate beforehand who will do the presentation; this will result in better standards of presentation; this will keep everyone alert and working hard.
Four: It will always be useful if at least one member of the circle is more knowledgeable and has access to sources. He would, then, during the discussion, overcome any deficiencies and shortcomings in the original presentation. He may also set and steer the tone and direction of discussion.
Five: If one member who is learned in the Quran participates, he should not intervene from the beginning. Rather he should let the participants say what they want to say, and only then, gently correct them if they are wrong, or add to their knowledge. His method should be suggestive and interrogative rather than discursive.
Six: Towards the end, one member, preferably the leader or teacher, should always sum up the broad message of the passage, its main themes, its call to action.
Maulana Amin Ahsan Islahi
by Saleem Kiyani
The eminent Islamic scholar, Mawlana Amin Ahsan Islahi, 93, who died in Lahore, Pakistan, on 15 December 1997, will long be remembered for his lasting contribution to Qur’anic studies, especially for his approach based and evolved around the concept of order and coherence in the contents of the divine book. Historically, the idea of coherence in the Qur’an has always been present in the writings of various scholars, both old and new, but in modern times, it was Farahi, the renowned scholar and teacher of Islahi, who first made it the focus of his scholarly research, and wrote systematically on this subject.
Amin Ahsan Islahi, a most prominent pupil of Farahi, and later a principal of Madrasah Al-Islah, the educational institution associated with Shibli Nu‘mani and Farahi, learned and mastered Farahi’s concept of internal order and coherence in the Qur’an and became the most important proponent of this school. Where as the teacher had left a few isolated writings — mostly in Arabic and beyond the access of common readers — his illustrious pupil developed, elucidated and explained the subject through his monumental nine volume Urdu Tafthir, Tadabbur-i-Qur’an (Reflecting on the Qur’an).
Mawlana Islahi was born in 1904 at Bhamhur, a village in Azamgarh, UP, India, and completed his scholastic Islamic education under the prevalent religious system covering the Qur’an and Hadith and Arabic language and literature. Like many of his scholarly contemporaries, he was also influenced by the Indian freedom movement and, for some time, he acted as the president of the local Congress party.
Freedom of India, and by implication of the Muslims, from the British imperialism, was of paramount importance to him, as it indeed was in the eyes of other ‘ulama. In the early 1930s, Mawlana Mawdudi developed a critique of ‘nationalist’ politics represented by the Congress and the Muslim League and called for the formation of an Islamic party dedicated to presenting and projecting Islam as a complete way of life. This led to the formation of Jama‘at-e-Islami in 1941 and Islahi was one of its founding members. When some people left the Jama’at over some minor differences, Islahi reportedly remarked: ‘I am not fanatical enough to jeopardize the future of Islam over the length of Mawdudi’s beard.’
In the Jama‘at, Islahi occupied a position, second only to Mawdudi; and he was generally regarded as the successor to Mawdudi. An eloquent orator, Islahi actively worked in the election campaigns of the Jama‘at, but his heart was never in politics. Even during his most active days, he never enjoyed politics. He left the Jama‘at in 1958 over some policy differences.
He considered electioneering a useless exercise for the purposes of bringing about an Islamic change. According to him the politicians cannot establish Islam: their sole aim is to gain power, by whatsoever means possible. And if some people use the name of Islam, they do so to achieve their political aims.
Islamic da‘wah (message), Islahi wrote, relies on tabligh (propagation of the message) and shahadah (testimony — by observing what one preaches to others), whereas the main tool of the political parties is propaganda to achieve their aims.
The difference in the word propaganda and tabligh is not merely of semantics, but they are also world apart in their spirit: The purpose of tabligh is to disseminate the message of Allah faithfully in its true form fully and completely, while propaganda is aimed at making the movement succeed by all possible means, right or wrong. Propaganda is an art developed by modern political movements, and one of its prominent features is its indifference to all the moral obligations which the Prophets of Allah have always regarded as an imperative and a necessary condition for establishing Islam and the Islamic way of life.
Though Mr Goebbels alone is notorious in history for his propaganda skills, to be fair and just, we find that in the political arena almost everyone has to follow in his footsteps, and it makes little difference whether one does so under the banner of politics or uses the name of religion or recites the Kalimah of Islam while entering the arena.
Those who would like to work for the cause of Islam and its revival, he suggested, should work among people selflessly, without any desire for power, gaining votes or indulging in political manoeuvres. They should approach the people solely in order to serve them, to educate them, and to help them reform their lives morally and Islamically.
In his view, the Pakistani society was a broken and disintegrated one, afflicted with a most dangerous malaise: hypocrisy. As such he differed with the view that if free and fair elections were held the masses would vote for Islam and Islamic parties.
Soon after the establishment of Pakistan, when its leaders seemed to be going back on their promises of making it a model Islamic state, Islahi wrote: ‘Hypocrisy is a deadly disease, and there have been in every age and society some people who were afflicted with it, but we do not find in history a single nation whose leaders have chosen it as a national policy, taking it to be the key to the resolution of all their problems. In history there seems to be only one such nation, and that is unfortunately our nation (Pakistani).’
In his book Pakistani Awrat do Rahay Par (Pakistani Woman at the Cross-roads), he explains the dangers inherent in such bifurcated social policies of the Pakistani leadership, as manifest in its attitude towards women and Muslim institution of family — perhaps the best example of their hypocrisy. ‘In our view, for healthy national life it is essential that the leaders should invite their people resolutely and single-mindedly to the policies that they want to follow and pursue, but to follow one path in practice, while portraying beauties of a completely opposite path, is a most stupid policy from which nothing but only harm can result.’
In the light of his social analysis, Islahi believed fervently that no superficial efforts at reform would succeed in transforming the present Pakistani society into a vibrant dynamic progressive Islamic polity. Like Mawdudi before him, he held that an Islamic intellectual transformation in the light and guidance of the Qur’anic teachings was an essential pre-requisite to make changes.
Islahi had himself witnessed how Mawdudi the Jama‘at — despite their initial, clear long-term plan for a total intellectual transformation touching on all disciplines and branches of knowledge as a necessary condition for any genuine Islamic change — were soon sucked into Pakistani politics.
He was wary of this danger, and shortly after leaving the Jama‘at, he embarked with a single-minded dedication on his final intellectual journey from where Mawdudi and Jama‘at had left. All his time and energies were focused on studying, teaching a group of students, and completing his masterpiece, Tadabbur-i-Qur’an, the exegesis of the Qur’an which he considered pivotal as a reference work for any future work for Islam.
Leaving the Jama‘at after devoting 16 years was a painful experience. But he was steadfast in his commitment to Islamic ideals that had initially taken him into the Jama‘at. Now he had a fresh opportunity to re-assess his own position and talents, and needs of the society, concentrating on what he considered to be the most important task of his life: to explain and to elucidate coherently the message of the Qur’an in order to pave the way for the true Islamic renaissance world-wide. The success in recent years of his approach and thought in attracting attention and interest of the educated classes within his own country and outside, including the West, shows his assessment was not wrong.
When this writer joined Islahi’s study circle at Lahore in 1963, he seemed to be in a hurry, not sure how much time was left for the work, and concerned lest the intellectual trust that he carried from his great teacher should be lost for ever. He would often say: ‘Listen attentively, you will have ample time to ruminate and ponder.’
Mawlana Islahi was totally engrossed in the study of the Qur’an. His pupils were the beneficiaries of his painstaking efforts. His advice was: ‘Study a surah over and over again, until when you close your eye you are able to see it clearly in your mind’s eye, its full splendour from top to toe, from the beginning to the end’.
During my seven years of studying under him, I found Mawlana Islahi very sensitive, courteous and caring, frank yet very reasonable, warm and loving. Anyone who came to see him felt important, a focus of his undivided attention; he would not intimidate people or make them feel insignificant. His grasp and sweep of knowledge of literature, poetry, social sciences and human psychology turned any encounter or even a seemingly meaningless question into a major learning experience, the taste of which would remain long after the event.
In 1925, Islahi came under the tutelage of the renowned Qur’anic scholar, Hamiduddin Farahi which changed the course of his life. During the next five years, he imbibed from his teacher his theme about the internal order in the Qur’an and mastered his technique and methodology for understanding the Qur’an and the wisdom enshrined therein, the crux of which, according to Farahi, was its unique consistence and coherence.
The presence of order in the Qur’an and its parts is nothing new. The tradition goes back to the Prophet (sws) who was visited every Ramadan by the angel Gabriel and recited the entire Qur’an with him. Similarly, when any revelation was received, the Prophet (sws) would advise his companions where to place it in the book. As such, the idea of the Qur’an being a book that is well arranged and has a definite internal order was fairly known and accepted.
However, to explore and explain it to every age, is a difficult and arduous task. And both Farahi and Islahi believe that earlier people did not pay enough attention to this aspect of the Qur’an, which is, in their understanding, the most important of its intrinsic wisdom and message. Once they realised its importance, Farahi and Islahi dedicated their lives to studying and explaining the marvels of the Qur’an.
Hamiduddin Farahi first became interested in this particular aspect during his student days at the Aligarh Muslim University. He has written about it in Arabic and also written the exegeses of some short surahs in the light of these principles. Some of these were later translated by Islahi into Urdu and were published under the title of Majmu‘a Tafasir Farahi.
Farahi’s writings were however, aimed at the Islamic scholars, and were couched in scholarly language beyond the access of most readers. It was Islahi who completed the unfinished work of his great teacher by writing an exegesis of the entire Qur’an based on his methodology and principles. He started his Urdu tafthir Tadabbur-i-Qur’an in 1958, completing it in 1980. His 23 year work contains some six thousand pages.
In his tafsir, Islahi repeatedly pays tribute to his teacher for the exegesis, saying it is all based on what he learned form him, and that all the credit goes to Farahi. The fact, however, is that Islahi added greatly to what he had inherited. Farahi had given some rudimentary ideas and principles but did not have the opportunity to elucidate his philosophy in tangible terms.
Islahi’s great achievement lies in the language and form that is both scholarly and easily accessible to an educated reader. Considering the complexity of the task this is not small accomplishment. His frequent references to his teacher show not only his enormous love and reverence for him, but his own forthright sincerity and humility.
Islahi’s tafsir, in his works, comprehends a century’s thinking and work on the Qur’an by him and his teacher. Starting his critical study at Aligarh, Farahi carried on for the next 30-35 years until his death. Similarly, Islahi tells us that the Qur’an has been at the centre of his own thought and study for the last 55 years. Thus, the book covers an entire century of hard work by both.
Islahi’s methodology is based on a direct approach to the Qur’an. Both Farahi and Islahi seek to explain the Qur’anic message by focusing on the Qur’an itself. They stress the importance of understanding the Qur’an in the context of its language, Arabic idiom (classical Arabic literature) as used and understood at the time of its revelation, supported with internal evidence found in the Book, and the fact that the Qur’an explains and elucidates its own meaning in diverse forms and contexts:
This is a book with verses basic or fundamental [of established meaning] – further explained in detail from One Who is Wise and Well-Acquainted [with all things]. (Hud 11:1) (11·1)
Above all, this methodology revolves around the Qur’an’s internal order and the core idea of the entire tafsir is to elucidate it.
According to Islahi’s concept of the Qur’anic coherence, all the surahs are found in pairs just as there are pairs in life. Every surah is a well-knit unit, has a definite theme, an introduction, leading to an exposition of its message and arguments, and ending on a suitable epilogue. Just as there is coherence within a surah and all its verses are inter-related and bear remarkable relationship to each other, so also there is coherence between surahs of the Qur’an. Islahi points out seven distinct groups of surahs in the Qur’an, each of which has a definite theme and a distinct flavour of its own, with a most eloquent exposition of its respective theme.
Islahi holds that the division of the Qur’an into seven distinct groups is based on clear evidence from the Qur’an. He cites the famous Qur’anic verse (al-Hijr 15:87) as evidence to prove the presence of these seven distinct Qur’anic groups. According to him, this verse refers to these seven groups, rather than to ‘seven-oft-repeated (verses)’ (or Surah al-Fatiha, as it is generally understood). Thus being the most important element of his methodology of study of the Qur’an, Islahi gives prime importance to the elucidation of coherence in the Qur’an throughout his masterly work. Every surah is preceded by an explanation of its special theme, and an analysis of its contents.
Islahi believes that the principles elaborated by him in his tafsir are scientific, rational, and based on common sense, without which the true message and beauty of the Qur’an cannot be understood or appreciated. In the preface to the ninth volume, he says that he has written this exegesis not out of any desire of authoring a book, but purely and solely in response to a call of duty.
‘Although we have the Qur’an with us, its true knowledge is non-existent. The Qur’an has rather been reduced to a means of earning reward or supplications for others; it has been turned into a commercial object. Those who talk about it most vociferously are that much ignorant of its knowledge and are remote from it … But if this Ummah is to survive and exist as a living community, mere, repetition of the need for unity will not be enough, nor will the repetition of the name of the Qur’an will be of any use. Instead, the most important thing to achieve these goals is to explain and propagate the true understanding and knowledge of the Qur’an. Those who have its true knowledge will be able to act rightly, and only through their efforts will this Ummah find the cure for all its ills.’
In the light of experience of those who have regularly followed his methodology in studying the Qur’an, including the writer of these lines, it can be said without hesitation that Islahi has given us in explaining the coherence and the intrinsic order of the Qur’an the master key to unravel its inexhaustible treasures. He has provided us with a set of rules and principles to study and understand the Book of Allah, and to explore and imbibe its wisdom. Islahi was a prolific writer; he has to his credit more than 16 titles.
During the anti-Qadiyani movement in the Punjab in 1951, Mawlana Islahi together with Mawlana Mawdudi and Mian Tufail Muhammad was imprisoned in Rawalpindi and Multan jails. In 1956, when the government of Pakistan set up the Islamic Law Commission, Mawlana Islahi – also an eminent expert on Islamic law – served as a member until the commission was abolished in 1958 by the martial law regime of General Ayub Khan.
Mawlana Amin Ahsan Islahi is survived by two sons and two daughters. He has also left behind a group of dedicated pupils determined to carry on his noble mission.
(Courtesy of The Impact International)
This book is an effort to understand the Qur’an with a modern mind. These reflections see the Divine Book as encountering the situation we face today – guiding the present-day world which it sees as being on the verge of destruction, due to its neglect of the Hereafter and prevalent lordship of Man over Man.
Every Qur’anic surah(chapter) is a complete discourse with perfect systematic coherence. The author’s aim is that the readers should be able to develop such a familiarttiy with the Divine Text as enables them to percieve how variuos themes within a surah are organized to highlight the basic insight of the surah. Obviously, it needs training and excercise.
The main book is composed of a study of al-Faitha and al-Baqarah. For the purpose of study, al -Baqarah is divided inot thirty-six sections. Every sectin is followed by study notes or reflections of very different lengths. There are eighteen notes on al-Fatiha and six hundred and thirty-nine on al-Baqarah.
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