Aayatul Kursi - Verse of Power

Qur'aanic Verse 2:255:

Transliteration:

255. Allahu la ilaha illa huwa alhayyu alqayyoomu la ta/khuthuhu sinatun wala nawmun lahu ma fee alssamawati wama fee al-ardi man tha allathee yashfaAAu AAindahu illa bi-ithnihi yaAAlamu ma bayna aydeehim wama khalfahum wala yuheetoona bishay-in min AAilmihi illa bima shaa wasiAAa kursiyyuhu alssamawati waal-arda wala yaooduhu hifthuhuma wahuwa alAAaliyyu alAAatheemu

Translation:

255. Allah! None besides Him is worthy of worship. HE is for ever living, abiding. Neither slumber nor sleep overtakes Him ever. To Him belongs whatever there is in the heavens and in/on the earth. Who could intercede with Him, except by His leave? ^{482, 483} HE knows what is in their hands and what is behind them.⁴⁸⁴ And none can take anything of His knowledge except for what He wills. His seat of authority encompasses the heavens and the earth, and their upkeep tires Him not. And He is the One High above anything, the One Immensely Great.⁴⁸⁵

^{Study Notes:}

482. In the light of the very categorical statement in the preceding Verse that there shall be no intercession on the Day of Judgment, this statement here in the form of an interrogation could only mean emphatic reiteration of that earlier statement. In Allah's presence, no one – not even a Prophet – can dare intercede on one's own initiative, against His Judgment or Will. That is what the interrogative statement here signifies. And if Allah gives permission for any Prophet or Angel to intercede, it means that it is, first of all, Allah's Own Will to pardon the person concerned.

483. It is absolutely important to understand this matter of intercession correctly. In the absence of this understanding, we're likely to fall into a satanic trap, and commit the abominable sin of shirk. Most Christians have already fallen into this trap. They have come to believe, absolutely, that whatever sins they commit here in this world, their Jesus is sure to intercede with God on their behalf and give them an assured entry into Paradise. See now what has happened to the Christians. They have forgotten God almost entirely, and have taken to the worship of Jesus and his mother, Mary. This happening, in front of us all, has provided enough proof that if any group of persons considers any Prophet – or anyone else for that matter – as endowed with the power of intercession, that group is sure to raise that Prophet/person to divinity, and thus commit shirk. Most Muslims today are, I am afraid, dangerously close to following in the Christians' footsteps.

484. Verse 34.9 tells us, "Do they not then consider what is in their hands and what is behind them of the heaven and the earth? ..." This sentence in that Verse gives us a pretty good idea of the divine meaning of the Arabic term maa bayna aydihim wa maa khalfahum, translated literally here as 'what is in their hands and what is behind them'. The context there of the heaven and the earth indicates that 'what is in their hands' means 'what is in their knowledge' or 'what they are capable of knowing'. And 'what is behind them' means 'what is not in their knowledge' or 'what they are not capable of knowing'. The same divine meaning has to be made applicable here to the very same phrase used in Verse 2.255 that we are presently studying.

485. This beautiful Verse is generally known as 'aayatul kursi' because of the word kursi (seat of authority) occurring therein. Along with Chapter 112 of the Qur'aan, this Verse gives us a comprehensive divine description of Allah, our Creator, and our Lord.

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The above is extracted from Qur'aanic Studies Manzil I.

Mohammad Shafi

A Star does Perish

Qur'aanic Verse 53:1:

Transliteration:

1. Waalnnajmi itha hawa

Translation:

1. By the star when it perishes!¹

^{Study Note:}

1. The Arabic word hawa has been used in Verse 20:81in the sense of something getting perished. But, here, the people living at the time the Qur’aan was revealed – and for centuries thereafter – had  difficulty in understanding a star getting perished or destroyed. So those people rendered the said Arabic word as ‘sets’ or ‘disappears’. And they understood the Verse as alluding to a star that disappears from the sky as day breaks. But this obviously is a contrived rendering. At day-break, not one, but all stars [other than the Sun of course] disappear to the naked human eye. It is but an illusion. Now, when human knowledge has taken a quantum jump, we know for a fact that stars do get destroyed! Take a look at this video. Qur’aan is a living Book valid for all times till the Last Day. We cannot hold it hostage to the limited understanding of any people in the past.

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The above is extracted from yet-to-be-published Qur;aanic Studies Manzil VII.

Mohammad Shafi

Houris

Qur'aanic Verse 52:20:

Transliteration:

20. Muttaki-eena AAala sururin masfoofatin wazawwajnahum bihoorin AAeenin

Translation:

20. “Reclining on couches ranged in rows!” And We shall give them Houris⁵ with lovely eyes as companions.

Study Note:

5. Believers may well remember that this Arabic word hoorin is mutashaabih in terms of Verse 3:7. Its exact meaning is beyond understanding of us humans in this world. In terms of the said Verse therefore we should not indulge in our error-prone human opinions about it. Indulging in such an exercise on this word has already created a fitnah [mischief] among the people, Muslim as well as non-Muslim. Muslims particularly should remember that those eligible to go to Paradise would be incapable of doing anything wrong or indecent there.

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The above is extracted from yet-to-be-published Qur'aanic Studies Manzil VII.

Mohammad Shafi

Fascinating!

Qur'aanic Verses 52:2 & 52:3:

Transliterations:

2. Wakitabin mastoorin

3. Fee raqqin manshoorin


Translations:

2. And by Record inscribed

3. On a writing material widely published.³

^{Study Note:}

3. And Verses 2 & 3 above together may as well refer to the Qur’aan! The modern publishing industry had got a boost with the invention of paper. Although paper had been invented in China around the time Prophet Jesus was born, it got world-wide attention during the time the Qur’aan was being revealed. So, along with revelation of His last Book of Guidance for mankind, Allah Almighty was preparing the ground, in another part of the world, for its wide publicity. Readers may like to go through the fascinating History of Paper. In the middle of the eighth century A.D., the Muslims defeated the Chinese and learnt the art of paper-making from the prisoners of war. The Muslims in turn taught the art to the then Wild West. And then we have this amazing facility of internet now! The Qur’aan can be accessed easily and cheaply in any nook and corner of the world!! It’s indeed now ‘on a writing material widely published.’ This could not have been known to the Arabs when the Qur’aan was revealed to them. But this was known even then to Allah Almighty, its Author. Here is yet another proof that the Qur’aan is divine. The prophecy indicated in these two Verses has been fulfilled!

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The above is an extract from yet-to-be-published Qur'aanic Studies Manzil VII.

Mohammad Shafi

Earth Surface

Qur'aanic Verse 51:48:

Transliteration:

48. Waal-arda farashnaha faniAAma almahidoona

Translation:

48. And the earth - We prepared its crust, and how well have We prepared it!⁸

^{Study Note:}

8. Imagine what would happen if the earth surface had not its ups and downs: we would not have any land; water would envelope it entirely!

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The above is an extract from yet-to-be-published Qur'aanic Studies Manzil VII.

Mohammad Shafi