The morality,ethics and integrity and honesty in Islam and other religions.

 

The purpose of human life in light of Islam and other comparative dominant religions around the world.

 

The holy Quran recitation and tilawat

 

The power, strength, tranquility and peace and happiness and joyfulness and delight in remembering Allah.

 

The hassle and torment of the disbelivers and Kafur

 

The beauty and benefits of remembering Allah an excellent way of achieving mental peace and tranquility and strength

 

The Quran and modern geology a detailed study and experiments

 

The historical events in the Quran

 The historical events in the Quran

This article is adapted from The Mystery Of The Historical Jesus: The Messiah in the Qur’an, the Bible, and Historical Sources

Those who are familiar with the style of the Bible get surprised, and even baffled, when they read a translation of the Qur’an. Unlike the Bible which addresses most issues in the context of relating history, the Qur’an is not a history book. Although it contains historical stories about righteous and sinful individuals and nations, these are very limited. Additionally, the Qur’an has a unique style even in relating history. Understanding this aspect of the Qur’an is vital when studying its historical accounts. This short appendix should be particularly useful to the reader who is not familiar with the Qur’an or expects the Qur’an to have a similar style to other religious or historical texts, such as the Bible.

One attribute that characterizes the Qur’anic text in general and appears in different forms is succinctness. One manifestation of the Qur’an’s succinct eloquence is that its text often does not mention explicitly information that can be concluded from or found in another Qur’anic text. This is better explained with examples from the Qur’an, such as the following set of verses which start with God’s command to Prophets Moses and Aaron:

So go you both to him (Pharaoh) and say: “We are two messengers from your Lord; therefore send the Children of Israel with us and do not torment them; we have brought to you a sign from your Lord, and peace be upon him who follows the right guidance (20.47). Verily it has been revealed to us that torture will come upon him who rejects [the message] and turns away” (20.48). He said: “So who is your Lord, O Moses?” (20.49). He said: “Our Lord is He who created everything, then guided it [to its course]” (20.50). He said: “Then what about the former generations?” (20.51). He said: “The knowledge thereof is with my Lord, in a book; my Lord errs not, nor does He forget” (20.52).

The Qur’an reveals in verses 20.47 and 20.48 the essence of the message that God ordered Moses and Aaron to convey to Pharaoh. When it informs us in verse 20.49 of the debate that Moses and Aaron had with Pharaoh, the Qur’an does not mention what the two Prophets said to Pharaoh, because it is the same message mentioned in the previous two verses. The verse starts with Pharaoh’s reply to the message. It is as if the Qur’an says implicitly after verses 20.48 “and Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and conveyed to him what God had ordered them to tell him.”

Note also the Qur’an’s use of “He said” without specifying the identity of the speaker in each case. The reason is that the context leaves no ambiguity that the speakers are Moses and Pharaoh, and it makes clear also who said what.

The Qur’an often bypasses details that are given prominence in traditional recounting of history. For instance, it is common for the Qur’an not to mention the names of main characters and places in a story. Examples of prominent characters in Qur’anic stories whose names are not mentioned include Adam’s wife and two sons and Joseph’s eleven brothers. The latter are referred to throughout chapter 12 of the Qur’an, but never with their names. This is another example of a prophet that the Qur’an refers to but without mentioning his name:

Have you not considered [O Muhammad!] how the chiefs of the Children of Israel who came after Moses said to a Prophet of theirs: “Set up for us a king and we will fight in the way of Allah.” He said: “May it be that you would not fight if fighting was ordained for you?” They said: “Why would we not fight in the way of Allah having been driven out of our homes, and for the sake of our children?” But when fighting was ordained for them, they turned away except a few of them; and Allah knows the wrongdoers (2.246). And their Prophet said to them: “Surely Allah has raised Saul to be a king for you.” They said: “How can he hold kingship over us when we have a greater right to kingship than he, and he has not been granted abundant wealth?” He said: “Surely Allah has chosen him in preference to you, and He has increased him abundantly in knowledge and body; Allah grants His kingdom to whom He pleases”; and Allah is Embracing, Knowing (2.247). And their Prophet said to them: “Surely the sign of His kingship is that there shall come to you the Ark, in which there is tranquility from your Lord and a remnant of what the house of Moses and the house of Aaron have left, which will be carried by angels; surely there is a sign in this for you if you are believers” (2.248).

Although God refers to Saul with his name, He refers to the prophet in the three verses with his title only and does not reveal his name.

There are also many instances of places and cities that God refers to in various places in the Qur’an without naming or specifying them explicitly, such as the place to which Adam descended (2.36, 7.24), the village to which Jonah was sent (10.98), and the birthplace of Jesus (19.23).

Let us take another example. The Qur’an mentions in lengthy detail in several places the suffering of a certain prophet at the hand of his disbelieving people, and God’s subsequent revenge on those people. Nevertheless, not many details are given about the revenge itself, as often only the type of punishment is mentioned and the perishing of the disbelievers stressed. For instance, God reveals in several chapters various details of the story of Prophet Hūd, but He does not mention many details of the punishment of his disbelieving people:

So We saved him (Hūd) and those with him by a mercy from Us, and We cut off the last of those who rejected Our signs and did not become believers (7.72).

And when Our decree came to pass, We saved Hūd and those who believed with him with a mercy from Us, and We saved them from a severe torment (11.58). And that was [the people of] ‘Ād; they denied the signs of their Lord, disobeyed His Messengers, and followed the bidding of every insolent oppressor (11.59). And they were pursued by a curse in this world and on the Day of Resurrection; Lo! Surely ‘Ād disbelieved in their Lord; away with ‘Ād, the people of Hūd! (11.60).

So they rejected him (Hūd); therefore We destroyed them. Surely there is a sign in this, but most of them (the disbelievers in general) would not believe (26.139).

The punishment represents the end and climax of the struggle of Hūd against his people. Details of this event would have been given particular importance in traditional story telling. The Qur’an, in contrast, mentions only God’s aid to His prophet and His destruction of the disbelievers.

Another attribute of the Qur’an’s style in recounting historical stories is that the details of any particular story are usually found in more than one place. Building a complete picture of that story in the Qur’an would require compiling all its details from the various chapters. One example is the story of Jesus. The story of Joseph is mentioned in its entirety in the chapter that is named after that prophet; but this is an exception, not the rule.

An event may be described in different, but consistent, ways in different chapters, to reflect what God wants to emphasize and highlight in each chapter. For example, a historical conversation may be cited in different chapters using a number of different wordings to convey the meaning of that dialog. We must not forget that often the original language of a dialog was not the Arabic of the Qur’an, if Arabic at all, such as the dialogs between various prophets and their peoples. The verses below, which come from different chapters, describe the first dialog between God and Moses. They use different wordings to describe the same events. These chapters also differ with respect to the type and amount of information they give about that dialog:

When Moses said to his family: “Surely I have perceived a fire. I shall either bring you tidings thence, or I shall bring you a burning firebrand so that you may warm yourselves” (27.7). So when he came to the fire he heard a call: “Blessed is Whoever is in the fire and whoever is around it, and glory be to Allah, the Lord of the people (27.8). O Moses! It is Me, Allah, the Invincible, the Wise” (27.9). [And it was said to him]: “Throw down your staff.” And when he saw it moving as if it was a snake, he turned away fleeing without retracing his steps; [and it was said to him]: “O Moses! Fear not, for messengers are not to fear in My presence (27.10). Neither he who, after doing wrong, does good instead of evil, for surely I am Forgiving, Merciful” (27.11). [And it was said to him]: “Enter your hand into your bosom, it will come out white, showing no harm; [go with this] as one of nine signs to Pharaoh and his people; surely they are a rebellious people [against Me]” (27.12).

Then, when Moses had fulfilled the term and left in the night with his family, he perceived [at a distance] a fire at the side of the Mount and said to his family: “Tarry here; I have perceived a fire that I might bring to you tidings thence, or a firebrand that you may warm yourselves” (28.29). And when he came to the fire, he heard a call from the right coast of the valley in the spot that was blessed because of the tree: “O Moses! It is Me, Allah, the Lord of the peoples” (28.30). [And it was said to him]: “Throw down your staff.” And when he saw it move as if it was a snake, he turned away fleeing without retracing his steps. [And it was said to him]: “O Moses! Draw nigh and do not fear for you are one of those who are secure (28.31). Enter your hand into your bosom and it will come out white, showing no harm; and guard your heart against fear, for these shall be two proofs from your Lord to Pharaoh and his chiefs; for they are a rebellious people [against Me]” (28.32). He said: “My Lord! I have killed one of them and I fear that they will kill me (28.33). My brother Aaron speaks better than me, therefore make him a messenger and a helper to confirm me; I fear that they will accuse me of telling lies” (28.34). He said: “We shall strengthen you with your brother, and We shall give to you both authority so they shall not be able to reach you [for harm] on account of our signs; you both and those who follow you will be the victorious” (28.35).

And when your Lord [O Muhammad!] called Moses [saying]: “Go to the wrongdoing people (26.10) — the people of Pharaoh. Will they not act dutifully?” (26.11). He said: “My Lord! I fear that they will accuse me of telling lies (26.12). And my breast will be straitened, and my tongue will not speak fluently, therefore make Aaron a messenger [to help me] (26.13). And they have a charge of crime against me, so I fear that they will kill me” (26.14). He said: “By no means [will they hurt you]. So go you both with Our sings; We shall be with you, hearing (26.15). So, both of you go to Pharaoh and say: ‘We are messengers of the Lord of the people (26.16). Let the Children of Israel leave with us’” (26.17).

There is another prominent attribute that characterizes the Qur’an’s untraditional style in relating historical stories. Events that are mentioned in successive verses may or may not be related, and if they were related, the fact that they are mentioned immediately after each other does not necessarily mean that the latter event happened immediately before the first. In such cases, starting the narration of the second event with the article idh (when), rather than with thumma (then) or fa (“therefore” or “so”), often indicates the lapse of a period of time since the first event, the unrelatedness of the two events, or both. This is one example of two verses which we studied in detail in the book (§16.4 and §21.2.1). Both events are parts of the Jesus story, but the second event is unrelated to the first and is separate from it temporally, so the second verse is started with idh (when):

Lo! When I inspired the companions: “Believe in Me and in My messenger.” They said: “We believe. Bear witness that we are Muslims” (5.111). Lo! When the companions said: “O Jesus son of Mary! Can your Lord send down for us a table of food from heaven?” He said: “Observe your duty to Allah, if you are true believers” (5.112).

One last point that should be mentioned is that there are a number of verses that refer to historical details revealed in the Qur’an and stress that this information became known to Prophet Muhammad only through the Qur’an. These verses imply or explicitly state that had Muhammad not been a true Prophet of God, he would not have known these historical accounts. For instance, after relating the story of Prophet Noah, God states:

Those are some tidings of the unseen which We reveal to you [O Muhammad!]; you did not know them nor did your people before this [the Qur’an]; so be patient; the [prosperous] end is for the dutiful ones (11.49).

The term “tidings” in the following verse denotes the plot of Joseph’s brothers to get rid of him — another story that the Prophet learned about through the Qur’an: These are some tidings of the unseen which We reveal to you [O Muhammad!], and you were not with them (Joseph’s brothers) when they concerted their plans together when they were scheming (12.102). Another example is God’s following words about His revelation to Prophet Moses:

And We gave Moses the Book, after We destroyed the generations of old, [as] clear testimonies for people, and a guidance and a mercy, that they may remember (28.43). And you [O Muhammad!] were not on the western side [of the Mount] when We handed the matter to Moses, and you were not one of the witnesses (28.44). But We brought forth generations, and their lives dragged on for them; and you were not dwelling with the people of Midian, reciting to them Our verses, but We have sent [you as] a Messenger (28.45). And you were not on the side of the Mount when We called [Moses], but this [knowledge that We have revealed to you] is a mercy from your Lord for you to warn a people to whom no warner before you came, that they may give heed (28.46).

God stresses that the Prophet was not on the western side of the Mount to know about the Tablets of the Torah, which He wrote for Moses there, nor was he living among the people of Midian to know of what happened to Moses there after he left Egypt escaping Pharaoh’s wrath. God explains that Muhammad acquired this knowledge because God made him one of His Messengers: “but We have sent [you as] a Messenger.” In other words, that knowledge is proof that Muhammad is indeed a Messenger of God. Finally, God reminds His Messenger that he was not on the side of the Mount when God called on Moses, but that He has given him this knowledge as a mercy from Him so that he would warn people who had not had a warner before him “that they may give heed.” Confirming the prophethood of Muhammad and the divine source of the Qur’an is one goal that historical accounts in the Qur’an has.

Verse 3.44 makes a similar statement about God’s revelation of historical details about Mary’s childhood.

The primary and main source of true history-The Quran is miracle in itself.

 There are primary and secondary sources of history. The Qur’an, which is very much history-oriented, can be categorized as neither. Rather, it is the ultimate historical source. This article explains why.

Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was the final messenger of Allah to mankind. His honorary and the operative title was the Seal of the Prophets. The Qur’an, which was given to him, was likewise the final revealed guidance of Allah to people.

As such, the Qur’an looks as much to the present and the future, as to the past. While it aims to diagnose the present, providing answers for it and paving the way for the future, it also, in equal measure, amends and remedies the past.

This is so on account of the principle that one has to know his past in order to understand his present and to be able to build up his future. The past is the foundation of the future. The present brings the two poles together and gives each one life as well as a sense of purpose.

The Qur’an speaks not only about some of the critical episodes of mankind’s history, but also about the history of life in general, and even about some aspects of the history of the universe. It intends to provide man with a complete spiritual, together with intellectual, framework concerning existence as a whole. It knows that only such can give a man a firm foothold to deal with the present and confidently look forward to the future.

What is special about the Qur’an is that its author is the Creator and Sustainer of the universe and life in it. Allah vows in addition that He will preserve its integrity and authenticity until the end. It follows that everything in the Qur’an is accurate, trustworthy, undisputable, and normative.

Hence, a historical dimension is one of the many dimensions of the Qur’an as the permanent miracle. It was given to the unlettered Prophet (pbuh), who in no way could have been familiar beforehand with the Qur’an’s content.

For example, in various contexts and with diverse degrees of attention, the Qur’an speaks about the creation of the universe and life, the creation of man, the commencement and earliest episodes of man’s vicegerency mission on the earth, various Prophets and their holy missions, various nations and their civilizational successes and failures, etc.

The Qur’an also evidences and preserves some of the most significant chapters of Prophet Muhammad’s mission, which was destined to forever change the course of human history and civilization.

The Qur’an does so by turning frequently its attention to extraordinary facts and minutest details. It occasionally addresses the Prophet (pbuh) to the effect that he was not around to witness a historical occurrence, and that neither he nor his people had any knowledge about it, implying thereby that the divine revelation was the only source of the knowledge in question.

To the Qur’an, history is a compendium of infinite signs, lessons, admonitions, and approvals. History is a book, so to speak, to be read and a “school” to be “attended.” Islam’s greatest enemies, it can be inferred, are myths, forgeries, legends, and superstitions, i.e., untruths.

The case of the Ka’bah

The instance of the Ka’bah (al-Masjid al-Haram or the Holy Mosque) in Makkah serves as a perfect example of how serious Islam’s treatment of history is.

The Ka’bah was first built by Prophet Adam and then rebuilt by Prophets Ibrahim and Isma’il. It was the first House of worship (House of God) appointed for mankind, “blessed and a guidance for the worlds” (Alu ‘Imran, 96).

The structure and the metaphysical message it exemplified stood for the divine truth, the intent, and the story of existence, and for the human honourable destiny. It was a representation of micro-and macro-history. However, prior to the Prophet’s liberation (opening to Islam or fath) of Makkah, the Ka’bah was under the control of the polytheists of Makkah. As such, it was immersed in falsehood, darkness, fabrications, and other sorts of spiritual and physical impurities.

It was filled and surrounded with 360 idols, symbolizing 360 wrong visions, ideas, and interpretations relating to myriads of historical and current things and events. Moreover, on the pillars and walls of the Ka’bah there were depictions of the Virgin Mary and the child Jesus (as Son of God) seated on his mother’s lap, of Prophets Ibrahim and Isma’il holding divination arrows, and of angels as beautiful women.

These were extra confirmations that people either deliberately distorted, or simply misconstrued, history.  

In the midst of both monotheistic and polytheistic tendencies, the Ka’bah’s status and role were meant to be universal. Before the Prophet’s purification of it, it testified that people’s worldviews and life standards were faulty and that their fundamental aspects of history were erroneously articulated.

There was virtually no hope for optimism, and no faith left to fall back on. People lived in the darkness and ignorance of the present time because of the historical ubiquitous darkness-es and ignorance-s. The former was the effect, the latter the cause.

The mere presence of Christianity, Judaism, polytheism, and the primitive forms of hedonism and agnosticism, was proof of such spiritual, moral, and intellectual conundrums humanity had to put up with. The lack of their historicity was as debilitating as the lack of their ideological assurance.

Thus, while he was ordering that those misrepresentations be obliterated, and the truth about history and Heaven restored, the Prophet (pbuh) said about Prophet Ibrahim and Isma’il: “By Allah, neither Ibrahim nor Isma’il practiced divination by arrows.”

He additionally said about Ibrahim, the father of Prophets: “Accursed be the Makkans! They have made our ancestors an idolater and a diviner. What does Ibrahim have to do with divination arrows? He was neither a Jew nor a Christian nor yet an associationist, but a hanif, and a Muslim.”

The Prophet (pbuh) similarly denied that angels had any bodily forms as depicted in the pictures of the Ka’bah walls and that they were either male or female.

While cleansing the Ka’bah and restoring it to its original purpose and character, the Prophet (pbuh) recited these Allah’s words: “Truth has (now) arrived, and falsehood perished, for falsehood is (by its nature) bound to perish” (al-Isra’, 81).

It was only after the past had been rectified - both theoretically and practically - that the present was able to be duly served and the future planned.

History and the biggest problems people face today

Those who decline to follow the message of Islam, decline the prospect of knowing and following the historical truths as well. Their most consequential theories and assumptions are based – as the Qur’an verifies – on sheer conjectures and what their own souls desire, which however avail nothing against the truth (al-Najm, 28).

Ignorance about history begets confusion about the present and uncertainty about the future. That spells a perfect storm for creating and then perpetuating some of the biggest predicaments of man. For instance, the painful scourges of modern times, such as racism, endless conflicts, nationalism, environmental destruction, and spiritual and moral decadence, are mainly due to the engrained ignorance of history – as well as the truth - of mankind, religion, life, and the earth as the home.

Racism, ceaseless and fluid forms of colonialism, and conflicts are rampant because some people think they have been created superior to others, and that they should rule over them either by a divine or an acquired right. 

Religious degeneracy is prevalent because the Prophets have been rejected and their teachings deformed, resulting in good being bartered for evil, and honesty for deceit.

This is obviously an upshot of certain people’s misreading and outright distortions of history. The Qur’an, as an instance, brings the Jews and Christians to task over their tampering with and altering of Holy Scriptures and of the terms of their ancient covenants with Allah, “changing and displacing words from their right places.”

Darwinism, as especially Western modernity’s state creed, is also a big culprit. Its main ideas that man evolved from apes (with Stephen Hawking saying that man is nothing more than an advanced breed of monkeys); that natural selection processes govern not only plants and animals but also individuals, groups, and societies; that only the fittest and strongest will survive, while the rest will grow weaker and will eventually go extinct – caused irreparable damage to human civilization.

The fault of Darwinism was two-fold. It negated and blurred the true history, while, at the same time, helping inscribe a fraudulent one.

Darwinism promoted imperialism, racism, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness. It cemented the principle that might is – and makes - right. The powerful ones can do whatever they want unchallenged, even if what they do is unjustified. 

Such people believed that by virtue of being powerful (fittest), they have been mandated (selected) by the laws and forces of life (and history) to do what they do.

Moreover, the bio-capacity of the earth is abused to the point that mankind is steadily approaching an environmental crisis of global proportions. The culprit, unsurprisingly, is a being – man – which is still in the dark about its origins, significance, purpose, and destiny (history), and which not only turned its back on spirituality and morality but as well declared war against them.

As long as man does not show respect to himself and his authentic past, he will never be able to show genuine respect to anything else in the present as well as in the future. All the fancy talk about sustainability and conservation is only a cover-up. It is but a sign of panic rooted in embarrassing ignorance. 

The chickens are coming home to roost. All of a sudden, the fact that man’s whole existence is in jeopardy started to emerge. It is finally dawning upon man that for the sake of his venal, greedy, and muddled ends he will not be able to devour ad infinitum the capacities of the natural world. 

It is very little that is sincere in the sustainable development discourses. It is all about that confused and avaricious being that is trying to save his own skin.

Clearly, those problems will refuse to go away. People do not have what it takes to properly diagnose - much less cure - them. As consequence, they will persist as long as the historical causes that produced and sustain them remain alive.

Equally true is the verity that if man knew his existential history, and if he held on to it, things would be different. Such knowledge of history is a precondition for effectively tackling any menace that may rear its ugly head and trouble humanity. 

Things would be definitely different, furthermore, if man knew and subscribed to the truths that he was created by the Creator with a noble purpose and that he was fully accountable to Him; that the earth was created for man to be Allah’s vicegerent on it; that everything in the heavens and the earth has been subjected to man and his noble mission; that the natural world has been created as a realm of Allah’s faithful servants, boons and blessings to man, enlightening signs, and as part of a universal equilibrium and harmony; that Allah deliberately created people different in every way, and made the nations and tribes so that they could know and learn from each other (“Indeed, the noblest of you, in the sight of Allah, is the best in conduct” (al-Hujurat, 13)); and that Allah continuously sent His Prophets so as to make sure that mankind stayed the course and did not deviate into the abyss of ignorance and falsehood, etc.

All these factors are not merely historical, but also ontological, facts. Apart from being history themselves, they likewise signify a determining factor in human history-making procedures. They are the foundation that dictates the legitimacy and strength of each and every historical unfolding and its generated civilizational legacy.

The people whose identities and thoughts are the products of “wrong” and “problematic” histories are headed for creating more “wrong” and “problematic” histories. They fashion the present and the future in their own historical image, creating a snowball effect.

It is for a reason people say the winners write history. However, “winners” here means bullies, intimidators, and exploiters, too. The losers are vilified and the inferior and weak ones suppressed. They are constantly being proselytized, democratized, civilized, acculturated, enlightened, liberated, and rendered ever more “progressive”.

In those cases, history is a socio-cultural construct and the truth is its nemesis. Hence, Napoleon is reported to have said that history is but a fable agreed upon.

The role of the Qur’an in the science of history 

All this shows that to Muslims, studying the Qur’an as the ultimate source of history is paramount. There is no substitute for the matter.

The Qur’an is the first and final source of history, in the sense that all primary and secondary sources derive their sense of correctness from it. They also articulate history along the lines of the general guidance and ethical framework of the Qur’an, and finally return to it with outcomes for validation and approval.

It must be stressed that in studying history, plain historical facts are only one dimension of the task. Correspondingly important are the subjects of historians’ overall integrity (ethics) and the integrity of adopted methods, perceptions, interpretations, and applications.

One cannot say enough about the importance of the holistic approach to knowledge in general, and to the science of history in particular. That is why the Qur’an abounds with direct and indirect references to the orb of what later came to be known as the sciences of history and historiography.

Everything that is anti-history the Qur’an denounces in emphatic terms. It condemns lies, fabrications, manipulations, misinterpretations, negligence, vested interests, blind faith and credulous following, and unfounded beliefs and their acceptance. 

These verses stand for an epitome of the Qur’anic outlook: “O you who have believed, if there comes to you a disobedient one with information (naba’: news or report), investigate (ascertain the truth), lest you harm a people out of ignorance and become, over what you have done, regretful” (al-Hujurat, 6).

“O you who have believed, when you go forth (to fight) in the cause of Allah, investigate carefully; and do not say to one who gives you (a greeting of) peace ‘You are not a believer,’ aspiring for the goods of worldly life” (al-Nisa’, 94).

“(Prophet) Sulayman (Solomon) said (to the hoopoe who had brought him some extraordinary news): ‘We will see whether you were truthful or were of the liars” (al-Naml, 27).

It was this spirit of the Qur’an, and nothing else, that produced Ibn Khaldun, the father of sociology, historiography, the philosophy of history, economics, and demography (social sciences). It also produced the sciences of Hadith (‘ulum al-hadith) at the heart of which stand the principles of meticulous evaluation of the matn (text) of hadiths and of the narrators of hadiths (‘ilm al-rijal: biographical evaluation, or the knowledge of men).

The sciences of Hadith grew hand in hand with the development of the sciences of Islamic history and historiography. They behaved like twins. 

Lastly, Islam is the religion of the truth, so to it, nothing but the truth - earthly and heavenly, spiritual and worldly - is ever acceptable.

The miracles of the Holy Quran: Description and livelihood of various animals like bees, ant, spider, cows, birds and others.

 In this busy and fast paced world we live in, sometimes I struggle to be able to find that illusive ‘connection’ with God, but you don’t need to look far to be stunned by His exceptional design of creation to be able to recognise and witness his majesty.

This three part piece, starting with the humble bee, seeks to look at the fascinating design of three animals. Animals after which chapters in the holy Quran are named; the bee, the ant and the spider. Unlike other chapters, such as the cow or elephant – in which the animal plays a minor role in a much more poignant central story, the three I want to explore are more cryptic titles of chapters. There must be something special therefore about each of these animals, and for me, nature is a perfect way to stimulate my mind and ponder about God.

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The chapter of The Bee is number sixteen of the holy Quran, and the direct reference to the bee is in verses 68 to 69,

“And your Lord inspired the bee, saying: “Take you habitations in the mountains and in the trees and in what they erect. Then, eat of all fruits, and follow the ways of your Lord made easy (for you).” There comes forth from their bellies, a drink of varying colour wherein is healing for men. Verily, in this is indeed a sign for people who think.”

Before writing this piece I knew there were some thought-provoking facts about bees, but after some more research I have truly been blown away, and, to make easier reading, I shall share 8 insights:

1. Bees are specifically made up of either 16 pairs of chromosomes (in the case of the queen bee) or 16 single chromosomes (in the case of drones). The chapter of The Bee is the sixteenth of the Quran…go figure!

2. The verse referred to above is all in the feminine tense. Those of you familiar with basic Quranic grammar, know that the Quran is very specific in its use of gender. In the world of bees, it is a female’s world. The male has no real input apart from the reproduction process. The females are the workers, builders and defenders of the hive. (Male readers alike are envying bees right about now).

3. The Quran says God inspired (Arabic word used is wahiy) the bee, which indicates a level of intense divinity as this word usually depicts God’s communication with holy/chosen people. This is what makes the bee stand out as an important creature to reflect and ponder over.

4. The residence of a bee, the beehive, is a true wonder in itself. In fact, the hexagonal structure, according to ancient Roman scholar Marcu Terentius Varro’s Honeybee Conjecture, is the best tessellating shape that could have been used in order to create a compact and easily replicable structure.  

5. Not only are the foods and residence of the bee something divine, but also the movement and travel. At this juncture, allow me to introduce you to The Honey Bee Waggle Dance. This phenomenal dance like movement allows a bee to communicate the whereabouts of pollen to its fellow hive-dwellers. The figure-eight dance first maps the bearing, coupled with an internal clock tuned to the horizon, to allow a definitive angle to be calculated. The time spent ‘waggling’ gives a proportional distance to the treasure chest of pollen, with the possibility that releasing pheromones signals the quality and availability of the pollen. This divine spectacle is summarised in the video below (guaranteed to blow your mind!):

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6. After all the waggling and building, the bee produces a sweet elixir which in itself is a wonder; honey. With it’s use as a home remedy, sweetener, natural wound healing agent as well as for beauty and therapeutic applications, honey is a miracle from the belly of the bee.

7. The verse of the Quran states the drink (honey) comes in varying colours, which as we see today is true. Honey can be obtained in numerous colours including gold, amber, red and bronze. This range in colour is down to the varying flowers from which the bee extracts its pollen, which also contributes to the intensity and flavour of the honey.

8. Worker bees tend to live up to 6 weeks, whilst the queen will live for up to 5 years, and she tends to lay 2500 eggs a day. In addition, a hive of bees will fly 90,000 miles, the equivalent of three orbits around the earth, to collect 1 kg of honey.

More facts about the bee could be spoken about, but I’m sure you’ll agree that, for a creature roughly the size of a thumbnail, the bee is remarkable and unique in design. Pondering over creations like the bee often allows me to feel God (through the heart and soul), and open up a conversation with Him and admire His unparalleled wisdom and design. It is this awe that leads me to humble myself in front of the exalted one who gives life to, and nourishes, every one of His creations.

There is thus a clear argument in this that the exactitude in skill and ingenuity is not due to the bee but due to the Omnipotence of Him, Who has created it on such pattern and appointed it to the service of mankind.

– Tawhid al-Muffadhal

And surely God is all-knowing.