The Quran continues to surprise me even though I've read it from cover to cover in English
at least, I just came across a couple of verses today I just wanted to share
uh with you which surprised me even though I've read them before and by the way I was reading
this book called classical Islamic theology it's a Cambridge companion it's an academic work I'm
reading it through um just to educate myself and the first chapter is called Quran and Hadith by
professor Abdul Haleem, he's a very distinguished professor at SOAS at the University of London
and he's a brilliant translator of the Quran and his celebrated translation of the Quran
into English this is it here the Quran a new translation by professor Abdul Haleem
published by Oxford university press which is the gold standard I'm told in academic courses
at universities on the Quran at least when people refer to the English of course anyway
the point of this is I was reading this chapter very familiar actually to be honest with its
themes but I want to just refresh myself again and then it says things which are beautifully put says
the Quran describes itself as a scripture which God sent down to his prophet and this expression
sent down in its various derivations is used in the Quran well over 200 times
in Arabic this locution conveys immediately and implicitly the principle that the origin of the
book is heavenly and that the and that Muhammad is no more than its receptacle
God is the one who speaks in the book Muhammad is addressed as o prophet o messenger do do do not do
they ask you say this last command appearing more than 300 times
sometimes the prophet is reproached and then it gives two verses uh 9 43 and 80 verses 1 to 11.
now I looked up these passages having written them before and I thought yeah I just looked
them up you know and I was just stunned again to read Surah 80 again I wanted to share it with you
because I thought it was very revealing not only about the Quran but also its relationship with the
prophet to the prophet himself and Abdul Haleem in his translation has a little paragraph before
his translation introducing the chapter very helpful concise to the point and he says
a Meccan Surah so is revealed in the first stage of the prophet's career rather than later on in
Medina while the prophet was speaking to some disbelieving notables hoping to convert them
a blind Muslim man came up to learn from him but in his eagerness to attract the
disbelievers to Islam the prophet frowned at him and that's the title in English of this chapter
he frowned this is chapter 80 of the Quran he frowned the prophet is then reproached and told
not to concern himself with the disbelievers the prophet himself is reproached by God in the Quran
in the second paragraph which I'll also read in a second there is a condemnation of man's
ingratitude this is the human race in general man becomes self-satisfied and forgets his
origin and his final return to God excuse me so I'm going to read um read this chapter
uh mainly for the first section where there's a lesson to that to the prophet here so it begins
in an English translation in the name of God the most compassionate most merciful he
frowned and turned his attention away simply because the blind man came to him interrupting
you never know oh prophet perhaps he may be purified or he may be mindful
benefiting from the reminder as for the one who is indifferent you gave him your undivided attention
even though you are not to blame if he would not be purified as for the one who came
to you eager to learn being in awe of God you were inattentive to him but no this revelation
is truly a reminder let's so let whoever wills be mindful of it it is written on pages
held in honor highly esteemed purified by the hands of angel scribes honorable and virtuous
this extraordinary passage this passage and there are others as I mentioned critical
of some things the prophet did proves that the prophet delivered the revelations in all honesty
even when his own self was uh being criticized it seems by God himself so that this speaks of
a very I think a very noble and beautiful way that God reproaches the prophet in a quiet gentle way I
think for being inattentive it seems and then in the second part of this surah surah 80 he frowned
we read a reminder to those people mankind who deny the resurrection and the last day and these
are very powerful powerful words condemned are disbelieving humans how ungrateful they are
to God from what substance did he create them he created them from a sperm drop and ordained
their development then he makes the way easy for them then causes them to die and be buried
then when he wills he will resurrect them but no they have failed to comply with what he ordered
let people then consider their food how we pour down rain in abundance and how meticulously
split the earth open for sprouts causing grains to grow in it as well as grapes and greens and
olives and palm trees and dense orchards and fruit and fodder all as a means of sustenance for you
and your animals then when the overwhelming the deafening blast is the the last day
comes to pass on that day every person will flee from their own siblings and even their
mother and father and even their spouse and children for then everyone will have
enough concern of their own on that day some faces will be bright laughing and rejoicing
while other faces will be dusty cast in gloom those are the disbelievers the wicked ones
so it's extraordinary uh chapters as I say uh it really brings home the sense of uh
how the prophet uh delivered the revelations that he received with complete honesty even when God
is addressing him and in a sense criticizing him and there's several passages like this in
the Quran what a remarkable book how honest it is and uh anyway I just wanted to share with you my
renewed amazement at the Quran when I read it again and again, till next time.