Friday Nasiha

 Commentary:

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  It \r\n is universally agreed that these verses \r\n (ayaat) comprise the very first \r\n Qur'anic revelation. They were sent through \r\n the Angel Jibrail to a young, truthful and \r\n gentle man named Muhammad in the desert \r\n land of Arabia 1422 years ago. This sudden \r\n encounter with the divine left him in a \r\n state of shock at the terrifying power he \r\n had just witnessed but also in overwhelming \r\n wonderous awe of what it may signify     \r\n

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  We \r\n have all read the stroy many times in our \r\n books; either those of the Prophet's biography \r\n or those explaining the meaning of the Qur'an. \r\n But we either read it casually or gave it \r\n little thought and continue on with our \r\n readings. Yet this \r\n is an event which has such an important \r\n bearing on the life of humanity that it \r\n would be no exaggeration to describe it \r\n as the greatest in the entire history \r\n of existence.\r\n

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The \r\n true nature & significance of this event

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  Allah \r\n - the Great, the Almighty, the Supreme, \r\n the God of the universe - out of His benevolence, \r\n Divine care and Infinite love, has turned \r\n to that creation of His which is called \r\n "man", and which takes its abode \r\n in a hardly visible corner of the universe \r\n called "Earth". And He has honoured \r\n this species of creation by choosing one \r\n of its numbers to be the recipient of His \r\n Divine light and the guardian of His wisdom.\r\n

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  For \r\n man, this event signifies that Allah has \r\n bestowed on him an honour the greatness \r\n of which he can hardly ever appreciate and \r\n for which he can never show enough gratitude \r\n not even if he spends all his life in devotion \r\n and prostration. This honor is that Allah \r\n has taken notice and care of him, established \r\n contact with him and chosen one of the human \r\n race as His messenger to reveal to him His \r\n words so that the earth, man's abode, has \r\n become the recipient of these Divine words, \r\n which the whole universe echoes with submission \r\n and devotion.\r\n

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Impact \r\n on human history and consciousness

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  When \r\n this great event took place the people who \r\n recognised its true nature and adapted their \r\n lives accordingly enjoyed Allah's protection \r\n and manifest care. They looked up to Him \r\n directly for guidance in all their affairs \r\n of life, no matter how insignificant. They \r\n lived and moved under His constant supervision.\r\n

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  The \r\n period which followed the event was certainly \r\n remarkable: twenty-three years of direct \r\n contact between the human race and the Highest \r\n Society. The true nature of this period \r\n cannot be recognised except by those who \r\n lived in that period and went through its \r\n experience, witnessed its start and its \r\n end, relished the sweet flavour of that \r\n contact and felt the Divine hand guiding \r\n them along the road. \r\n

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  The \r\n distance which separates us from that reality \r\n is too great to be defined by any measure \r\n of length this world has known. It is a \r\n distance in the world of conscience incomparable \r\n to any distance in the material world, not \r\n even when we think of the gaps separating \r\n the stars or galaxies. It is a gap that \r\n separates the earth and the Heaven; a gap \r\n between human desires and Divine revelation \r\n as sources from which concepts and values \r\n are derived; a gap between Ignorance and \r\n Islam, the human and the Divine.\r\n

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The \r\n revolution continues today

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  The \r\n impact of that period has been in evidence \r\n in the life of humanity ever since its beginning \r\n up to this moment, and it will remain in \r\n evidence until the day when Allah inherits \r\n the earth and all that walks on it. \r\n

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  Man \r\n was reborn when he started to derive his \r\n values from Heaven rather than earth and \r\n his laws from the Divine revelation instead \r\n of his own desires. The course of history \r\n underwent a change the like of which has \r\n never been experienced before or since that \r\n event, the commencement of revelation, was \r\n the point at which the roads crossed. \r\n

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  Clear \r\n and permanent guidelines were established \r\n which cannot be changed by the passage of \r\n time or effaced by events. Human conscience \r\n developed a concept of existence, human \r\n life and its values unsurpassed in comprehensiveness, \r\n clarity and purity of all worldly considerations \r\n as well as its realism and practicability \r\n in human society. \r\n

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  The \r\n foundations of this Divine code have been \r\n firmly established in the world and its \r\n various aspects and essential standards \r\n have been made clear, "so that he \r\n who perishes may perish after having received \r\n a clear sign and he who lives may live after \r\n having received a clear sign. " \r\n (Al-Qur'an 8:42)\r\n

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The \r\n beginning of revelation was a unique event at \r\n a unique moment marking the end of one era and \r\n the start of another. It is the demarcation \r\n line in the history of mankind, not merely in \r\n the history of a certain nation or a particular \r\n generation. It has been recorded by the universe \r\n and echoed in all its corners. It has also been \r\n recorded in the conscience of man which today \r\n needs to be guided by what Allah has revealed \r\n and never to lose sight of it. It needs to remember \r\n that this event was a rebirth of humanity which \r\n can take place only once in history.

[compiled \r\n from "Fi Zilaal il-Qur'an" (In the \r\n Shade of the Qur'an) by Imam Sayyid Qutb, 

entire \r\n commentary of 30th part of Qur'an available \r\n for online reading from http://www.youngmuslims.ca/online_library/tafsir/syed_qutb/index.htm
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