A point to ponder

Assalamualaikum.

Its not a usual feat that i take something from other blogpages to be posted here. BUt, this article, taken from his blogsite www.saifulislam.com is, i think, a worth read:

“Quran this, Quran that, Quran blah blah..” Things people say about the Quran – it would never end.

Recently, a right-winged politician in Holland, Geert Wilders also wished to talk about the Quran. It manifested as a fitnah to the world, with his aptly titled movie, Fitna.

Those who wish to criticize, bash, defend and safeguard al-Quran would usually miss one important process. The process is agreed upon by everyone who speaks rationally and thinks with a sound mind, regardless of religion. I’m referring to the process of analyzing the authenticity of al-Quran.

In the discipline of history as a branch of social science, the process of analyzing the authenticity of a material has to be carried out first before it could be used as a reference in a research. Is the coin found really genuine, or just a fake? Was the text really written by that scholar, and is it truly the original text?

On the same ground, the process of editing and examining manuscripts requires at least three different copies of the same manuscript, so that comparisons can be made to ascertain the validity of the material being studied.

The point is, before debating or criticizing the Quran, one has to check first whether the Quran is genuine, authentic, or a fake.

It’s a simple logic.

THE MAP BOOK

“Hmm, I have to buy the A-Z London map book – I don’t want to be lost,” Ahmad said at the Heathrow airport. It was his first time in London.

He went to a bookstore to look for a map to guide him in London.

“Hmm.. printed in Bangalore!” Ahmad was surprised.

The glossy, comprehensive and cheap map in his hand is printed in Bangalore. A London map, printed in Bangalore!

“Oh dear, printed in 1985!” Ahmad exclaimed, even more bewildered.

A London map, printed in Bangalore, India, in 1985!

Would Ahmad buy the map to guide him in London? Obviously not. Ahmad has doubts over the authencity of the map. He wouldn’t use it, even if it were given to him for free.

He’s right. We shouldn’t use something with questionable authencity as a guide.

AS FOR THE QURAN

Let’s have a look at the Quran.

It was revealed in the Saudi Arabia.

Masya Allah. Is the Quran relevant to the issues in the Europe or in Malaysia?

The Quran was revealed not in 1985, but more than 1430 years ago!

Allahu Akbar! What would the Quran know about our situation now in 2008 when it has come to existence more than a millennium ago?

How convinced are we on the authenticity of the Quran?

This is the Book; in it is guidance sure, without doubt, to those who fear Allah; [Al-Baqarah 2: 1-2]

The Quran introduced itself as a guide, for people with taqwa. But the catch is, there can be no doubt. Therefore it is a test not only to those who has not or does not believe in the Quran, but also to Muslims who claim to follow the Quran – where does his conviction to the authenticity of the Quran truly lies?

If a Muslim believes that the Quran is the word of Allah, the One and Only God, where is the evidence?

If a non-Muslim wants to refute the Quran, or talk about the Quran, to believe in it or otherwise, what are the reasons? If you choose to believe in it, what are the grounds?

Therefore, we have to actively choose to believe in the Qur’an, and not take it for granted or blindly inherit it. The question is, how do we then determine the authenticity of the Quran?

LANGUAGE

There are numerous ways that we can use to examine the Quran. Is it really the word of Allah, or just written by a human, or what?

To begin with, we can look at the linguistic aspect.

To those who learnt the Arabic language, try to recall our essays during the SRP/PMR period years ago…

“Hadhizi madrasati. Madrasati kabiratun, waasi’atun, mulawwanatun, jamilatun, mahbubatun…!”, congratulations – you’re deserve an A for that level. It could be embarrassing to read our own essays. The fluency of our Arabic language is so low then, as compared the later years that followed. The same applies to other languages.

But look at the Quran. Can we, from the linguistic aspect, differentiate between the ayahs revealed in year 1, and those revealed in year 23? Can we discern any linguistic discrepancies between Iqra’, Bismi Rabbikalladhee khalaq with Idhaa jaa’a nasrullaahi wal fath?

The language of the Quran is highly consistent. No language went through a mature and premature period within the span of 23 years.

Clearly, the consistency of the linguistic aspect of the Quran is impossible to achieve by any human being. No one can use such a high standard of a language as consistently as the Quran. Therefore it doesn’t make sense to attribute the Quran to any man at all, not even the experts of experts in their languages, because the linguistic consistency is above any human being. Verily, it is the language of the Divine. The Quran is not the words of a human. Not that of Muhammad. Truly, it is the God who have spoken in the Quran.

Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’aala.

But of course, to verify the genuineness of the Quran from this angle requires a strong command of the Arabic language.

ASBAB NUZUL (MOTIVE OF REVELATION)

When Aishah radhiyallahu’anha was slandered by the Munafiqs with zina accusation (the story of al-Ifk), Nabi Muhammad S.A.W and the rest of the Muslims lived in anguish. The Munafiqs were quick to spread the false story to defame Ummu al-Mu’mineen, what with the absence of her defense from the Quran. Had the Quran been the work of Muhammad, he would have written something to defend his wife in this time of dire need. But that is not so. When his wife was slandered, he was further tested by the absence of the Quran revelation that could help vindicate her. To a point that Muhammad himself kept looking up to the sky in waiting.

Because the Quran is the word of Allah. His Words. When Aishah was slandered, Allah had tested Muhammad S.A.W, Aishah and the Muslim ummah by ‘withholding’ the wahyu. Until finally Allah absolved Aishah from the slander and she regained her honour when the ayahs of Surah al-Noor (24: 1-26) were revealed.

The event was written in history, how Muhammad had no ability to influence the Quran, even at the most critical moment. He was merely a recipient from the Quran’s true source, that is the God – Allah Subhanu wa Ta’aala.

However, this story would certainly be deemed irrelevant by those who rejects the Muslim literature, in specific the Hadiths of Nabi Muhammad S.A.W.

THE UNIVERSAL MATHEMATICS

In looking for the truth about the Quran, that it contains the absolute truth, we may need a universal approach. A common language that can be accepted by anyone at all, with the faculty of the mind that differentiates man from animals.

Use mathematics and the probability theory that we all know.

We are aware that one of the many miracles of the Quran, is the presence of amazing scientific facts. So many scientific discoveries that took place this era, are clearly mentioned in the Quran, a text that had existed more than 1000 years ago, at a time when such scientific analysis was beyond man’s capability.

Where does this accurate facts come from then?

“Well… it could just be a lucky guess!” said those who has not or does not believe in the Quran.

Okay, let’s say we accept that the scientific facts in the Quran are lucky guesses, by the so-called ‘author’ Muhammad.

By using the probability theory, is it possible for Muhammad to make all these ‘lucky guesses’ in the Quran?

With a dice, what is the probability for us to get the number “3” in one throw? The answer is one sixth (1/6). Now, what is the probability we would get both number “3” in two consecutive throws? The answer is one sixth multiplied by one sixth which is one over thirty six (1/6 X 1/6 = 1/36).

Use the same theory to analyse scientific facts in the Quran. For example, there is an explanation on the sun and the moon in the Quran. If Muhammad were to take a guess as to whether the moon emits its own light or merely reflect the light emanating from another source, what is the probability for him to make the right pick?

In this case, the probability is one half (1/2). Either the light is from the moon or other source.

This is one scientific fact.

What about the other facts presented in the Quran? The question of whether the earth orbits around the sun, or the other way round, for instance. Or facts about the components that make up a human body. If each of these scientific facts in the Quran were all ‘lucky guesses’ of a man named Muhammad, what is the probability for Muhammad to be right in all his guesses?

1/2 X 1/6 X 1/25 X 1/78…. There’s a thousand scientific facts in the Quran, therefore the probability is 0.00000000007686443547657… but that’s not it, there’s actually more. In other words, it’s IMPOSSIBLE!

Yet, ALL the scientific facts in the Quran are perfectly accurate.

This implied that the Quran comes from one who knows about man and this world VERY WELL. The one who spoke in the Quran, is none other than the Creator of the world and man… the One and Only God, Allah… Allahu Akbar!

The probability theory can definitely be used in search for the conviction of the Quran.

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SCIENCE AS A TOOL

I’m writing this article, not with the intention to prove that there is science in the Quran. That is a cliché.

We have to go back to the explanation in the Quran that its entire contents have been revealed as a guide (Huda). Therefore science in the Quran is meant to guide the mankind towards the truth. If science were claimed to be the indicator of truth, then use science to test the Quran.

Verily the biggest question to be answered by anyone who wishes to speak about the Quran is WHO IS IT BEHIND THE QURAN?

Is it really the word of God?

Is it conceivable to say that it is not?

If you found God in your quest for this answer, all your misunderstanding about the meanings of the Quran, is a proof of your own ignorance, rather than the imperfections of the Quran, because it is the word of Allah the Almighty.

Will ye not then understand? [Al-Anbiyaa’ 21 : 10]

…How is it? Still a non-believer?

Look at ourselves, …and look more closely

Assalamualeikum and a very good evening to all!

It has been quite a while since my last heavy to the brain post. This time I want to ponder deeper – to the very essence of our existence and how ourselves be interpreted by various perspectives. This is undoubtly a boring post indeed. But it suddenly flickered in my mind that somehow I need to share this point of view to all of you. Interested?

Have you ever woke up from sleep one day and jumped straight to the mirror to get a really good look at yourself?

What do you see? Are you just a wretched, crumpled version of yourself, or a person that previously had been you – or your very own, brightly shining persona? As a fact, more often than not, your very own persona has a tendency of changing from time-to-time, unsure of how exactly you should look or be? It is usually seen as a variable, an x – your very own self can transform accordingly to your needs and purposes. Generally, whether we realize it or not, all of us have a lot of different persona or we can say split personalities. These personas govern your actions and your reactions towards internal or external stimulus in our daily lives. Let’s delve deeper, and look more closely.

How do you look exactly?

In actual fact, you are exactly what you are. You are what you see in the mirror everyday. Nothing more, and nothing less. The essence of this blog post is simple: To really know about yourself, about who you really are – you must be highly aware of the various perspectives yourself be seen as. However, more importantly, the challenge here is to make you look transparently the same – regardless in what perspective. Trust me, it really doesn’t matter how exactly do we look – what matters is how truthful and honest we are to ourselves. Confused? Take this plain example: ever heard of a dialog or monologue that sounds similarly like this – “I shouldn’t do this in front of other people, what they will say?” Still confused? Let me elaborate more on the different perspectives of you, of how you are being perceived and understood by you, by others and more importantly, by God.

However, how you portray yourself will vary according to your self esteem and your surroundings. This also can be called as your alter ego. In your very own eyes, we naturally want to look and be the best. People with a very high self esteem will usually regard themselves as an alpha or numero uno – excelling in every aspects of mankind. They will see themselves as attractive, confident and charming… or that is what they want to be, at least!

Be careful: A person can feel like they are a positively assertive person and have exemplary leadership qualities only to found out (sadly, usually you don’t!) in actual fact that other has always seen you as a bossy, sarcastic and having very little empathy towards other. Get me?

Subsequently, people who lack self confidence will usually downgrade themselves and see their own selves as unattractive, timid and boring. To some of you guys that are constantly being blanketed by low self esteem: A lot of them out there thinks that you are cool, man!

Surprise!

What grips me is that in almost all instances the judgment or interpretation of others towards us – are, in fact, very different from what we really are. Ignorance is the main cause of this to happen. Sometimes, we don’t even bother to be aware of what people really think about us. Dangerously enough, we just blindly assume. There are ways to safely assume this – we must acquire sufficient ‘people skills’ for this. You need to be able to interpret body languages, gestures. But hey, we can’t please everybody. In some ways, I can say that to be aware of perceptions made by others can really help us in carving our ideal personality and outlook. But, relying by only this is definitely wrong. Obviously, this is the mistake that they usually do. This is not the ultimate benchmarking of our personal projection.

I guess we are really moving somewhere here…

The ultimate benchmarking for our character and personal projection: God, our creator

What do we need to do, as a creation of God, in this world that we live in now? This perspective simply encapsulate all the stray perspectives into one, solid and sure personal projection. How can this be? The generally overrated and usually misunderstood question is – What is our purpose in this life? You need to directly relate this to your relation to God, as our creator.

As His creation, we must abide to all His Directives – which means that we must do good, and everything good as a whole, while evading all the evil and wrongdoings. Sounds, very corny isn’t it? Its pretty simple though: Black or white, angel or devil and good or evil is all we need. The traits of some people that ignores this important viewpoint are people that are:

Ignorant, Lazy, Lustful, Greedy, Vain, Selfish, Filthy, to name a few.

Well, it shows in your personality and your personal outlook as a whole. This negative qualities is actually the elements that produces different and inconsistent personas. And undoubtly, these traits will produce a negative personal outlook as a whole. We can never be transparent to ourselves if we possess any of these negative elements. We are humans, and due to this fact we are unable to escape from these aforementioned traits. However, if we are constantly trying to be in the know and constantly improving our personal projection from time to time, we will be able to improve our self realization, human-to-human communication and ultimately our relationship to God. Consequently, the traits of some people that is aware of where he is standing -  which is as a creation of God – is:

Hardworking, Friendly, Caring, Righteous, Brave, Dedicated etc.

Nobody in this world will hate all these positive traits (except Satan, that is!). In order to produce a good and transparent character that will appeal to most of the people out there, we have to constantly keep all these traits in check, to enrich the colorful experiences of our lives and for the betterment of our character. Theres only one straight and simple path to betterment. It is to be closer to God!

‘…All people in the world will be better if we have transparency. If we are transparent (as one of His mere creations) to God, all our bewildered personas will eventually become one – becoming a better man…’

- Am Sau Chan