Essence of the Holy Qur’an — Page 76
76 Chapter 35 F at ir @A (Revealed before Hijrah) Date of Revelation and Context The S u rah was revealed at Mecca, probably at the time at which the preceding S u rah was revealed. In that S u rah Muslims were told that like the Israelites they will be given wealth, power, prosperity and prestige and that if in the heyday of their glory and greatness they consigned God to oblivion and abandoned themselves to a life of luxury and ease, they will draw upon their heads His wrath as did the Israelites before them. In the present S u rah they are promised honour and eminence through the Qur’ a n whose commandments they should not fail to observe. Subject-Matter The S u rah opens with the declaration that all praise belongs to God Who is the Originator of the heavens and the earth. The declaration implies that being the Creator of the universe God has not only provided for the physical needs of man but also for his moral and spiritual needs, and that for this purpose He has created angels through whose instrumentality He controls the physical universe and conveys His Will to men. It further says that since the creation of man God has been sending Prophets and Messengers to convey His Will and that now He has decreed to bestow His mercy upon mankind in the form of the Qur’ a n. After this announcement of the bestowal of Divine mercy upon man he has been warned not to reject it, as this will entail grave consequences. The S u rah proceeds to draw a moral lesson from the quite insignificant beginning of man, that Islam will, from a humble start, grow into a mighty organization. It further compares it to a sea whose water is sweet which slakes the thirst of spiritual wayfarers. Next, it observes that Islam is no novel phenomenon. Alternate periods of spiritual light and darkness continue to come over the world as day follows night and vice versa. After a long period of darkness and cessation of revelation, the sun of Islam has risen to illumine the dark world and God has decreed to bring into being a new creation and a new order of things through its teachings. Through the Qur’ a n God will give eyes to the blind and ears to the deaf and the dead will also receive a new life, but those who will deliberately shut the avenues of their hearts and refuse to listen to the Divine Call will incur spiritual death. The S u rah then invites attention to the study of the physical phenomenon which bears a striking resemblance to a similar phenomenon in the spiritual realm. When rain falls on dry and parched land, it begins to bloom, blossom and vibrate with a new life, and crops, flowers and fruits of varying hues, tastes and forms, are brought forth. The water that comes down in the