Why cant we understand the Quran
Mu' meneen Brothers
and Sisters,
As Salaam Aleikum wa
Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh. (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be
upon all of you)
One of our
brothers/sisters has asked this question:
I read all your
answers and have pondered over them. What i note in some of your answers
is that the interpretations are based on some unanimous decision by some
scholars. This means that if majority scholars agreed on one thing, the
minority did not. If Quran was so so simple for us to understand, then
why the minority arose? As far as i can judge, it is that God claimed that
Quran is very simple to understand, but the person should have the optimum
utilization of his mind. It is said that scientists use their minds to
around 2.5 -- 3.5% (einstein) whereas the capacity is more. If we
utilize our minds to its capacity, ofcourse then we can understand the Quran
very easily. But if a person is mentally low or something, then how
come he would understand Quran although Allah has said that Quran is made
simple for mankind to understand. Aren't mentally retarded persons included
in mankind? So i presume it is that to understand Quran in its true sense, we
have to utilize our minds to its capacity, and then we would go for the truth
and not on the majority decisions since majority decisions can also be
wrong. Majority can go against the truth as well. That is why no
prophets were chosen by any people but sent down by God, because
Allah knows that majority can be wrong. Since Quran is a beauty in its own, its
the truth, and we all know the truth is one, so the source of the
interpretation should also be one and not based on people who are still
confused whether Rasool Allah had short hair or long. So interpretation
of Quran by majority can also be mis-leading.
Furthermore, It is
mentioned in the Quran that Quran is a guidance for mankind, and it is also
mentioned that Quran is a guidance for the believers. That has two
aspects. Believers would seek guidance as to achieve Jannat,
whereas non-believers would want to just seek guidance as to for instance
astronomy, astrology, cosmology, etc. Non-believers are mankind as well
and their purpose differs from the believers. This gives rise to a
concept that Quran serves as a guidance to the believers as well as to
the non-believers. The non-believers would thus gain knowledge by
the literal interpretation whereas the believers would seek guidance to reach
jannat. Since the purpose differs, the comprehension of quran would also
differ.
You have reiterated
in your answer that Quran's mystic words are miraculous and its eloquence and
beauty cannot be captured. Who said anything about duplicating such a
beauty? The question was what are the meanings of such words.
Obviously Quran is for us to seek guidance from and thus these words must have
some meanings attached to them. If scholars are unanimous on deciding
that such words only Allah knows, then isnt it true that Rasool Allah had full
knowledge of the Quran? If not, then there is no point in arguing 'cos
the beauty of Rasool Allah is then eradicated. If we agree that Rasool Allah
had full knowledge of Quran, rather I had read in school that aisha, daughter
of abu bakar, had said that "Quran aap ka ikhlaaq hai" to Rasool
Allah. SO if Rasool Allah knew the meanings, how come he didnt tell
anybody? Probably he didnt think it feasible, right? then if it wasnt
feasible for mankind, then why are they in the Quran? forget the argument of
beauty of Quran 'cos here we are talking about seeking guidance from
the Quran. Scholars say that only Allah knows the meanings is because they
dont know themselves. Allah has sent Quran for the guidance of mankind
and not for the sake of people only appreciating the poetic style of Quran.
Any comments are
most wellcome. Please do reply.
(There may be some grammatical and spelling
errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from
questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in
confidentiality.)
Answer:
In the name of Allah, We praise
Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can
misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We
bear witness that there is no one (no idol,
no person, no grave, no
prophet, no imam, no dai,
nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that
Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.
The guidance of the Glorious
Quran is clear and anyone who wants to leave aside his bias and prejudice, can
obtain guidance from the Book. The
Quran is a not a book of hints and riddles, whereby the names of people are
hidden deep inside the aayahs of the Quran!
People who claim this using the Quran as a tool to further their own
cause and create fitnah in the Ummah of Islam.
The Holy Quran speaks about the
seen, like the skies, the earth, the animals, the vegetation, etc. The Holy Quran also speaks about the
unseen, like the Heavens, the grave, the Hell Fire, the Angels, the Day of
Qiyaamah, etc. Thus there are many
things which we are not able to comprehend today, and Allah has called such
aayahs ‘mutashabehaat’(ambigious) in
the Holy Quran.
Allah says in the Holy
Quran in Chapter 3 Surah Ale Imran verse 7:It is Allah, Who sent down this
Quran to you. (There are two kinds of
verses in the Book.) In it are verses
Basic or Fundamental (of established meanings which can be easily understood),
and they are the essence or foundation of the Book. And the other verses are Allegorical or Ambiguous. Those in whose hearts is perversity will
always go for the Allegorical or Ambiguous verses, seeking discord and trying
to search for their hidden meanings.
None, except Allah, knows their real meanings (Ta’aweel)! In contrast to them, those who are firmly
grounded in knowledge, say: “We believe in them all, because all of them are
from our Lord.
Allah Himself states that the
basic or fundamental aayahs of the Quran are the foundation of the Book. These are enough for the guidance of
mankind. Then there are the Allegorical
or Ambiguous aayahs, whose meanings are known to Allah Alone! Allah has not made it our duty to figure
out the meanings of these Ambiguous aayahs.
But the ones who have perversity and disease in their hearts, Allah
says, will ALWAYS go after the ambiguous verses in search of their hidden
meanings! Allah says the true
believers are those who obey and follow the clear verses, and believe in the
whole Quran because it is indeed from their Lord.
But to claim that the whole Quran
is ambiguous is mis-guidance. The people
who do that are those who have never taken the time and effort to understand
the Quran; they just sit there and point fingers at the ambiguous or
allegorical aayahs and give the verdict that since these cannot be understood,
the Quran cannot be a Book of guidance!
They then go and appoint a human being as their guide, and obey, follow
and invoke him instead of invoking and worshipping Allah Alone! hese are the ones who have bartered away
guidance for mis-guidance!
Allah says in the Holy
Quran Chapter 29 Surah Ankaboot verse 38:Shaitaan made their deeds fair-seeming
to them and misled them from the right path, although they were sensible
people.
Allah says in the Holy
Quran Chapter 28 Surah Qasas verse 86-88:You never hoped that the Book would be
sent down to you. Only through your
Lord’s Mercy (has it been sent down to you), therefore, do not be a helper of
those whose who do not believe! And
let it never happen that the unbelievers should divert you from Allah’s
‘aayahs’(Revelations) after they have been sent to you. Invite towards your Lord and do not join
those who invoke others with Allah, nor invoke any deity other than Allah.
There is no deity but He. Everything
is perishable except Him! Sovereignty
is His, and to Him will all of you be returned.
Allah says in the Holy
Quran Chapter 41 Surah Ha Meem As Sajdah verses 4-5:Yet most of these people
have turned away from it (The Quran), and they pay no heed. They say, “Our hearts are covered with veils
from that to which you are calling us; our ears have become deaf; and between
us and you there is a curtain, so do as you please, and we shall do as we
will!”
Allah says in the Holy
Quran Chapter 16 Surah Nahl verse 82:But if they turn away, your only
responsibility is to convey the plain Message of Truth! They recognize the blessing of Allah, yet
they deny it, for the majority of them are not inclined to accept the Truth!
Allah says in the Holy
Quran Chapter 18 Surah Kahf verses 103-106:Tell them (O Mohamed), “Should We
tell you who are the most unsuccessful people and miserable failures in regard
to their deeds? They are those, all
whose endeavors in the worldly life, had gone astray from the Right Way, but
all along they were under the delusion that everything they were doing, was rightly directed! Those are the people who rejected the
Revelations of their Lord and did not believe that they would ever go before
Him. Therefore all their deeds were
lost, for We shall assign no weight to them on the Day of Resurrection. Their recompense is Hell for the disbelief
they showed, and for the mockery they adopted in regard to My Aayahs and My
Messengers!”
Allah says in the Holy
Quran Chapter 25 Surah Furqan verses 26-30:The Real Kingdom on that Day will
belong only to the Merciful. And it will
be a very hard Day for the disbelievers.
The unjust man will bite at his hand and say, “Would that I had stood by
the Messenger! Oh, woe to me! Would that I had not chosen so and so for a
friend! For it was he, who had deluded
me to reject the Admonition which had come to me. Shaitaan has proved indeed very treacherous to man.” And the Messenger will say, “O my Lord, my
people had made this Quran the object of their ridicule.”
May Allah give us the wisdom and
the knowledge to read and understand the Quran, which He Himself has revealed
for our guidance.
Allah says in the Holy
Quran Chapter 43 Surah Zukhruf verses 43-44:So, hold fast to the Book that has
been revealed to you, you are surely on the Siraat al Mustaqeem. The fact is that this book is a great honor
for you and your people, and soon you shall be CALLED TO ACCOUNT for it.
Whatever written of Truth and
benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error
is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He
is the Only Source of Strength.
Your brother and well-wisher in Islam,
