The Message of the Qur’an

The Message of the Qur’an

1985 9 September 18-20 The Message of the Qur’an (1115)

Chapter II (contd.)

“Say: ‘Whoever is an enemy of Gabriel?’ For surely he has revealed it by God’s will to your heart, a confirmation of what went before and a guidance and glad tidings to believers. Whoever is an enemy of God, of His angels and His apostles, of Gabriel and Michael shall make God Himself his enemy: God is the enemy of the unbelievers. We have sent down to you clear revelation: none will deny them except the evildoers. Whenever they make a covenant, must some of them cast it aside? Most of them do not believe. And now that an apostle has come to them from God confirming their own Scriptures, some of those to whom the Scriptures were given cast off the Book of God behind their backs, as though they knew nothing (2:97-101).”

Owing to their own rebelliousness the Jews were meted out severe punishments in ancient times. It was God’s way to warn them of these punishments, and such warnings came to them through the prophets who were acting on the words of the Archangel Gabriel. The moral of these incidents was that people had to follow God’s commandments; for if they persisted in a sinful life, they would be exposing themselves to His wrath. But, instead of heeding this lesson, the Jews came to regard Gabriel as their enemy, because it used to be he who gave prior warning through the prophets of their impending doom. Consequently, when the prophet Muhammad proclaimed that he was receiving his revelation through Gabriel, they said: “So, our old enemy Gabriel. That explains why the scriptures, the birth right of the Israelites, are being conveyed to a person belonging to another tribe.”

To react with impunity in such a senseless manner is the result of leading an insincere life, free from all restrictions. The Jews had allowed self-interest, empty convention, and racial prejudice to dominate their lives. Religion had been adhered to only on a superficial level, just to keep up the pretence, that they were, in fact, faithfully treading the path of God. Those who make an outward show of following their religion are, inevitably, loath to accept the proclamation of true, unadulterated religion. Having built an edifice of national pride on the basis of religion, they cannot abide the message of pure humility that true religion conveys: they view it as a challenge to their worldly honour and status. That is why they fall into the habit of saying things which are correct enough in form, but totally bereft of any inner meaning. Obviously, angels do not hold grudges against ordinary mortals; they descend to earth only by divine command, and reveal the Scriptures to those prophets whom God Himself has chosen. In the face of clear proofs that the Arab prophet had received the same revelation received by Abraham, Moses and Jesus and that it was in accordance with the previous divine scriptures, there was no ground for their rejection of the message. People resort to religious terminology in order to prove their faith; whereas, in actual fact, hollow meaningless words have nothing to do with true faith and piety.

“And they follow what the devils tell of Solomon’s kingdom. Not that Solomon disbelieved; it is the devils who disbelieved, teaching men witchcraft. And (they follow) what was revealed to the angels, Harut and Marut, in Babylon. Yet they would never instruct any man without saying to him beforehand: ‘We have been sent to tempt you; do not disbelieve.’ From these two, they learn that by which they can create discord between husband and wife, although they can harm none with what they learn except by God’s leave. They learn, indeed, what harms them and does not profit them; yet they know full well that anyone who chose it would have no share in the life to come. Vile is that for which they have sold their souls, if they but knew it.’ Had they embraced the Faith and kept from evil far better for them would His reward have been, if they but knew it (2:102-103).”

Salvation in the Hereafter can only be achieved by virtue of righteous actions. It is when People of the Book seek to achieve it without actually doing anything to earn it that they go astray. The real aim of the Scriptures is to convey this message – to call on man to earn God’s blessings by leading a righteous life. As long as people maintain their moral and spiritual vitality they respond positively to this call, applying the teachings of the Scriptures to their practical lives. When they suffer a decline, however, they search for less exacting methods of earning salvation. It is easier, for instance, to write down a few verses of the Holy Scriptures, or recite them, than to actually practice their teachings. So that is what people tend to do. The Scriptures, which are meant to form a part of one’s life, are reduced to a kind of talismanic textbook – a talismanic – from which magical prescriptions are prepared and sorcerors’ spells cast. And they do not only see this as a way of reaching Heaven; they come to regard it as a path to worldly success also. Veneration of the souls of dead saints, for example, becomes a solution to all their problems. This mentality then finds expression on a social level. It serves as the very basis for a people’s efforts to achieve political and religious reform. What can only come from conscientious and committed struggle, they seek to obtain by magical schemes.

When superstition and apathy set in the declining Jewish race, some people exploited this tendency in order to make commercial capital, by providing them with magical prescriptions. To make their business flourish these unscrupulous profiteers attributed their art to Solomon, saying that the extraordinary powers he exercised over the spirits and winds were, in fact, based on his knowledge of magic, and claimed that this knowledge had been passed on to them by the spirits. This authority accounted in great measure for the rapid spread of sorcery, which soon developed into a highly popular art among the Jews.

When angels came to Lot’s people, who were practicing homosexuals, they came in the garb of handsome boys in order to test them. Similarly angels were sent to the Jews in Bablon in the garb of holy-men to teach them magic, at the same time making it quite clear that they were only putting the Jews to the test, this being a form of knowledge that should not be practised. But the Jews took no head of this warning: they practised magic with great fervour and even used it for illicit ends.