The Descent of the Messiah — Page 57
HADRAT MIRZA GHULAM AHMADAS writing happens to coincide with that of another person, for the scope of some literary Arabic expressions is so narrow that one will either have to coincide with other writers or not use an expression that has to be used in that context. It is obvious, for example, that in some places, especially in terms of eloquence, if the word iqtahama¹ )اِقْتَحَمَ( is to be employed and no other can be used, writers will inevitably coincide in the use of that word and everyone will use it. However, an ignorant dunce who is unaware of the intricacies of rhetorical style and is uninformed of the nu- ances of expression would use some other words in its place that would be objectionable in the eyes of the men of letters. Like- wise, it often occurs that even if there are twenty people writing on the same subject, and all twenty of them are men of letters and are highly eloquent, they end up using the same words and structures at the same places. This is a well-established phenom- enon among writers and no one objects to it. If you look carefully, it is the same with every language. For example, if an eloquent person delivers a speech in Urdu and uses certain idioms and interesting anecdotes, and another eloquent person also expresses himself in a similar way, only a mad per- son would accuse the latter of plagiarism. Let alone the works of man, the same is true of the Word of God. If certain eloquent phrases and idioms of the Holy Quran are sought in the odes of the poets of Jahiliyyah [Age of Ignorance], a long list would be produced, and yet none of the scholars see this as objectionable. This is why the rightly guided Imams had memorised thousands of couplets by the poets of Jahiliyyah and would cite them as proof of the eloquence and elegance of the Holy Quran. 1 Iqtahama )اِقْتَحَمَ( means to become engrossed in a matter with hardship- See Munjid. [Publisher] 57