Notes from Quran Intensive
Masjid Wilayah Persekutuan
Kuala Lumpur Malaysia
Grammatically this is an example of the usage of passive and active sentences in the Qur'an.
Surah 16 An-Nahl Ayat 75 is an example of an active statement:
ضَرَبَ اللَّهُ مَثَلًا عَبْدًا
Daraballah Humathalan is translated to ‘Allah struck an example’.
Surah Al-Hajj Ayat 73 is an example of a passive statement:
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ ضُرِبَ مَثَلٌ
Duriba mathalan is translated to’ An example was struck’.
Whenever Allah AWJ addressed the believers he would use Daraballah Humathalan,
Whenever the non-believers are addressed, Duriba mathalan.
The question here is why the difference and does it matter?
This is an example (pun intended) of wisdom in the Qur'an’s communication strategy.
The believers at that time were hungry and eager for the Ayat of The Qur'an. So strong were their believe that whenever they heard the name Allah they would pay extra careful attention to what is being said, hence the usage of’ Allah struck am example’.
But when The Messenger Of Allah SAW were facing the Quraisy, Allah AWJ knows that the mere mention of the name of Allah would make them stop listening, hence the usage of the term 'an example was struck’, so that the Quraisy would listen to what is being revealed.
What can we learn from this?
We need to learn from the wisdom on the Qur'an to make our dakwah more effective. Sometimes when dealing with non-Muslims we should not only focus on sharing and educating them regarding The Messenger Of Allah SAW but also spend time sharing our love for the other Messengers.
Messengers such as Ibrahim AS and Musa AS are not respected and honoured by the people of the book as they are in the Qur'an and by Muslims. Sometimes we need to correct the wrong perceptions and restore the honour and dignity of these older prophets. In other words, share the love that we have for THEIR PROPHETS.
For example, we remember and honour Ibrahim AS as an example of beautiful submission to Allah AWJ so much so that we remember him in our Solat during tasyahud.
But the people of the book believes him to be someone who questions and rebels against Allah.
Today, we get upset whenever an insult is hurled at The Messenger of Allah.
And our love and respect for the other Messenger should compel us to be upset even when Isa or Musa is being made fun of.
It’s not a matter of debating or disputing with others. But a matter of sharing the love we have for all of Allah’s Messengers.
Anyway. This is all I can remember from my notes. Any mistakes are entirely mine and I would appreciate a note so that I can make clarification and corrections.
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Surah An-Nahl, Verse 75:
ضَرَبَ اللَّهُ مَثَلًا عَبْدًا مَّمْلُوكًا لَّا يَقْدِرُ عَلَىٰ شَيْءٍ وَمَن رَّزَقْنَاهُ مِنَّا رِزْقًا حَسَنًا فَهُوَ يُنفِقُ مِنْهُ سِرًّا وَجَهْرًا هَلْ يَسْتَوُونَ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ بَلْ أَكْثَرُهُمْ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ
God presents another illustration: two men, one of them dumb, unable to do anything, a burden to his carer– whatever task he directs him to, he achieves nothing good– can he be considered equal to one who commands justice and is on
the straight path?
(Abdul Haleem Translation)
Surah Al-Hajj, Verse 73:
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ ضُرِبَ مَثَلٌ فَاسْتَمِعُوا لَهُ إِنَّ الَّذِينَ تَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ لَن يَخْلُقُوا ذُبَابًا وَلَوِ اجْتَمَعُوا لَهُ وَإِن يَسْلُبْهُمُ الذُّبَابُ شَيْئًا لَّا يَسْتَنقِذُوهُ مِنْهُ ضَعُفَ الطَّالِبُ وَالْمَطْلُوبُ
People, here is an illustration, so listen carefully: those you call on beside God could not, even if they combined all their forces, create a fly, and if a fly took something away from them, they would not be able to retrieve it. How feeble are the petitioners and how feeble are those they petition!
(Abdul Haleem Translation)
