Mr. Katz, in
one of his writings, has pointed out
a contradiction in the Qur’ān, on the basis of three separate verses of its
Qur’ān.
These verses
of the Qur’ān are as follows: 23:101, 37: 27, 52:25.
For when the
trumpet is blown, that day there shall be no kinship any more between them,
neither will they question one another. (23:101)
And they
will turn to each other, questioning. (37:27), (52:25)
For a person
who does not know the Arabic language, the two kinds of verses are so obviously
contradictory that Mr. Katz has, rightly, just stated the translation of these
verses and has allowed the reader to make his own deductions from these verses.
But for a person who has some knowledge of the Arabic language, the two kinds of
verses imply two different kinds of meanings.
The Arabic verb
yatasā’alūn means: ‘they [will] mutually question one another’, ‘they [will]
mutually inquire from one another’ or ‘they [will] mutually ask one another’
etc. But the noun su’āl normally implying ‘question’, ‘inquiry’ etc. is used in
a number of connotations. For instance, it is used to connote ‘to demand’ or ‘to
beg’ or ‘to ask for help’ etc. Now, The Arabic verb yatasā’alūn may be used in
all these connotations. Thus, it may mean: ‘ They mutually demand from one
another’, or ‘They mutually beg each other’ or ‘ They mutually ask one another’
etc. In this sense, the word is quite close to the English word ‘ask’. We know
that the English word ‘ask’ is not just used to imply ‘asking a question’. It is
used to request information about something or somebody (as in: ‘Ask him about
your dog’), it is used to request that somebody gives or does something (as in:
‘Ask him to solve your problem’), it is used to request permission to do
something (as in: ‘He asked me for my car’), it is used to invite somebody (as
in: ‘He asked me out’), it is used to request something as a price (as in: ‘They
are asking too much for this piece of cloth’).1
Now suppose if
someone says: ‘Don’t ask him for anything’ and then immediately following this
sentence he says: ‘Ask him: Why did he not return our calls’. The two statements
may seem contradictory to a person who is not well versed with the English
language due to the obvious reason that one says ‘Don’t ask him’ and the other
says: ‘Ask him’. But anyone who is familiar with the different connotations of
the word ‘ask’ will easily understand that the two statements imply two
different meanings and are, therefore, not contradictory. The first statement
actually means: ‘Don’t request him to give you anything’, while the second
statement means: ‘Inquire from him: Why did he not return our calls’.
In more or less
the same way, the Arabic word yatasā’alūn has been used in the Qur’ān in more
than one connotation. For instance, in 4:1, it is used to imply ‘pleading with
one another’ or ‘mutually asking one another for help’. The verse reads as:
O mankind,
fear your Lord, Who created you all from a single being, and created from like
nature his mate and from these two, He scattered innumerable men and women. Fear
God, in whose name you plead with one another and [respect] the wombs [that bore
you]. (4:1)
With this
explanation in mind, let us now once again consider the two kinds of verses that
Mr. Katz has referred to. The first among these verses is once again reproduced
below:
For when the
trumpet is blown, that day there shall be no kinship any more between them,
neither will they ask of one another’s help. (23:101)
The verse
simply states that when the Day of Reckoning comes, and the trumpet is blown,
the rejectors -- who considered themselves to be very strong -- shall find
themselves all alone. The relationship that exists between them, which makes
them strong and the mutual help that they extend to each other in fighting
against the Prophet of God shall all cease to exist. All relations between them
shall be severed and they shall not even be able to ask one anothers’ help.
The word
yatasā’alūn in this context is clearly used to negate the possibility of asking
or getting each others’ help on the Day of Judgement. This connotation is so
obvious that even N. J. Dawood has also translated this verse as:
And when the
trumpet is sounded, on that day, their ties of kindred shall be broken nor shall
they ask help of one another.
In contrast to
this verse, 37:27 clearly uses the word yatasā’alūn to imply ‘mutual
conversation’. The verse with its following verses reads as:
And they
shall turn toward each other mutually conversing. They shall say: [So] you were
the ones who would come to us from the right... They shall reply: No! it was you
yourselves who would not believe. We had no power over you, you yourselves were
a transgressing people.
Obviously, the
word yatasā’alūn in this verse refers to the dialogue that follows it. Thus, in
this verse it implies ‘mutual conversation’ or ‘mutual inquiry’. It is exactly
the same case in 52:25. The verse, with three of its following verses reads as:
And they
shall turn toward each other, mutually conversing. They will say: We used to be
fearful, when among our family. But God has bestowed upon us [His mercy] and has
saved us from the fiery scourge. Indeed, we used to call Him [asking for His
mercy]. He is indeed faithful to His promises, Ever merciful. (53:25-7)
In the light of
the explanation given above, we can say that the contradiction pointed out by
Mr. Katz is actually based on an incorrect understanding of the Arabic word in
question. Because the connotation of the word is different in the two kinds of
verses, therefore there does not arise the question of any contradiction(s).
(Courtesy: ‘Understanding Islam’.
http://www.understanding-islam.com/articles/quran/iip.htm)
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