The Central Idea Of The Quran
In the preamble of Al-Bayan Ghamidi sahab has introduced the Quran as follows: With regard to its subject-matter, the Quran is a narrative of a messengers indhar.[1] It is known that Muḥammad (sws) was not merely a nabī (prophet), he was also a rasul (messenger). Prophets are personalities to whom the Almighty reveals divine guidance so that they can guide people. However, not every prophet is a messenger. Messengerhood is a position bestowed to only some prophets. According to its details furnished by the Quran, a rasul decides the fate of his addressees and implements the judgement of God on them in this very world. The Quran informs us that this final phase in the preaching endeavour of a rasul comes after it passes through the phases of indhar, indhar-i ‘am,[2] itmam al-ḥujjah[3] and hijrah wa baraah.[4] It is in this phase that the divine court of justice is set up on this earth. Punishment is meted out to the rejecters of the truth and those who have accepted it are rewarded, and, in this way, a miniature Day of Judgement is witnessed on the face of the earth. The history of the preaching endeavours of the rusul related in the Quran shows that at this stage generally either of the following two situations arise. Firstly, a rasul has a few companions only and there is no place available to him for migration. Secondly, a rasuls companions are in substantial numbers and the Almighty also furnishes a place to them where they can migrate and be bestowed with political authority. In both these situations, the established practice of the Almighty manifests itself – the practice which the Quran refers to in the following words: وَ لِکُلِّ اُمَّۃٍ رَّسُوۡلٌ ۚ فَاِذَا جَآءَ رَسُوۡلُہُمۡ قُضِیَ بَیۡنَہُمۡ بِالۡقِسۡطِ وَ ہُمۡ لَا یُظۡلَمُوۡنَ (47:10) For each community, there is a messenger. Then when their messenger comes, their fate is decided with fairness and no injustice is shown to them. (10:47) In the first situation, once a rasul leaves his people, divine punishment in the form of raging storms, cyclones and other calamities descends upon those who have rejected him and completely destroys them. It is evident from the Quran that the people of Noah (sws), Lot (sws), Ṣaliḥ (sws) and Shu‘ayb (sws) besides others met with this dreadful fate. The only exception to this case was the Israelites. Since they primarily adhered to monotheism, instead of annihilation, the punishment of subjugation was meted out to them once the Prophet Jesus (sws) left them. In the second situation, a rasul and his companions subdue their nation by force. In this case, the addressees of the rasul are given some more respite for he delivers the truth to the people of the place he has migrated to, until they too are left with no excuse to deny it. In other words, the truth is conclusively communicated to them. Also, during this time a messenger instructs and purifies his followers and segregates them from his rejecters and organizes them to fight the enemy. He also consolidates his political authority in the place he has migrated to the extent that with its help he is able to destroy his rejecters and achieve victory for his followers. In the case of the Prophet Muḥammad (sws), this second situation arose. Consequently, the subject-matter of the Quran is the account of his indhar which passed through various phases referred to above and culminated in the worldly reward and retribution of his addressees. Each of its surahs has been revealed in this background, and each of its groups has been arranged keeping it in view.