Melayu | English

Introduction

How can we be sure that the words we read in religious texts, especially in Islam, truly come from the God who created the heavens and the Earth?

This question is not specific to Muslims only, but is also a universal question that is not only posed to those who doubt the truth of a religious text, but also to those who claim to believe in whatever religion they adhere to.

If we think about it logically, it should have evidence that is absolutely irrefutable if challenged in any way.

When examining Islam, the primary source of this divine revelation is the Quran. To determine its divine origin, one must examine the evidence that shows it is truly from God. One of the primary and most convincing pieces of evidence lies in the unique language of the Quran.

The Quran, written in Arabic, has a quality that distinguishes it from all other holy books: it cannot be imitated.

This characteristic has been recognized not only by Muslims but also by non-Muslims, especially non-Muslims from among the Arabs who have tried to imitate his style.

Although many attempts have been made, no one has succeeded in producing a text that matches the height of the Quran in Arabic.

This is not just a subjective opinion based on the beauty of the text, but a solid fact acknowledged by linguists and scholars.

So for this video, we will discuss one of the greatest miracles in the Quran, which is the height of its language, and also Allah’s challenge to humans who reject his message.

Quranic Language

The language of the Quran is so unique that it has its own genre in Arabic literature, further emphasizing its miraculous nature.

The Quran presents a special challenge to humanity as a whole, namely to produce a text that is in keeping with its eloquence and style. This challenge has stood for over a thousand years and has yet to be met. Allah has challenged humanity through his revelations.

Surah Al-Baqarah verses 23-24:

And if you are in doubt about what We have revealed (the Quran) to Our servant (Muhammad), then produce a chapter like it, and call upon those whom you believe can help you besides Allah, if you are truthful.

Challenges That Still Stand

Allah challenged mankind to produce a surah that was comparable to the Quran that He revealed and it is repeated several times in the Quran in other verses such as Surah Al-Isra’ verse 88 (17:88), Surah Hud verse 13 (11:13), Surah Yunus verse 38 (10:38) and Surah At-Tur verse 34 (52:34)

The challenge of producing a surah, which is at least similar to the surahs of the Quran in beauty, eloquence, depth of language and also the depth of meaning, has not been met to this day. 

That’s not to mention any statements in it that can be tested with scientific methods or historical studies to prove their truth, such as in Surah An-Nahl which talks about bees, Surah Nuh which talks about the moon and many more.

The Quran was revealed in Arabic and most of us only understand the contents of the Quran through translated versions that have been translated into our spoken language.

The translation uses the best words we have to understand the Arabic words in the Quran, even though in reality our translation does not match the true meaning of the verse or word.

Let me give you a perspective to make it easier to understand. Imagine I ask you to speak to me in Malay, about something.

However, you are not allowed to use any existing Malay grammatical structures. Instead, you must create new grammatical structures that we have never used before and your speech must be fluent.

In addition, you need to introduce words that we don’t normally use, but we can still understand them today and in the future.

Apart from that, take old words that were previously used in a certain context and insert them in a new way in the sentences you construct and it can be understood and accepted as part of Malay grammar today, and in the future even a thousand years from now.

In the sentence, also include any statement that we can test for factual accuracy, either using scientific or historical methods, and that does not contradict proven facts that exist today, or that will only be able to be proven in the future.

Not only that, your speech must be able to be preserved for several centuries without any changes or contradictions.

It should be remembered that the Quran was revealed 1400 years ago and was conveyed through its Messenger, our beloved Prophet Muhammad SAW, who could neither read nor write in the middle of the desert, but to this day there is still a lot of knowledge and secrets that we can still learn to this day, and also in the future.

This challenge posed by God is very challenging, isn’t it?

To further strengthen the challenge, Allah reduced the level of difficulty level by level, starting with the challenge of producing a book comparable to the Quran, then reduced to 10 surahs, then reduced to just 1 surah. Now, to make things easier, try producing just 1 verse that has these characteristics.

It’s no wonder you think you can’t do it. 

It is indeed a very difficult task for us except for the creator of this universe who is the All-Wise. He is also the All-Knower of everything that is visible and also hidden.

By examining the challenge posed by the Quran to humans to produce something comparable to it, especially in terms of language and scientific content, we can recognize the uniqueness and greatness of the Quran as a divine miracle.

This challenge, which has stood firm for more than a thousand years, emphasizes the unique and inimitable language and its content that exceeds the understanding and knowledge of humans of its time.

Conclusion

We are reminded to understand the Quran not just as a collection of words, but as guidance for life from the All-Wise God.

Even though we can translate its meaning into a language we understand, the beauty and depth of the Arabic language of the Quran remains a testament to divine majesty that cannot be achieved by human effort.

Therefore, God’s challenge to humanity through the Quran remains a call to contemplate and acknowledge the incomparable majesty of His creation.

---

| Linguistics | Astronomy | Biology | Entomology | Genetics | Oceanography | Geology | Physics |

Citations:

1. Najib, S. H. A. (2022, August 2). Cabaran mencipta kitab seperti al-Quran. IKRAM. https://ikram.org.my/cabaran-mencipta-kitab-seperti-al-quran

• Naik, Z. (2007). The challenge of the Quran. In The Qur’ân & Modern Science: Compatible or incompatible? essay, Darussalam.

• The Muslim Lantern. (2023, February 23). Arab Christian introduced to the challenge of the Quran! Muhammed Ali [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-flvFktgzU

• Arberry, A.J (1955). The Koran: Interpreted. New York: Macmillan.pp. xi

      –  The Koran cannot be translated. That is the belief of old-fashioned Sheykhs and the view of the present writer. The Book (the translation) is here rendered almost literally and every effort has been made to choose befitting language. But the result is not the Glorious Koran, that inimitable symphony, the very sounds of which move men to tears and ecstasy. It is only an attempt to present the meaning of the Koran — and peradventure something of the charm — in English. It can never take the place of the Koran in Arabic, nor is it meant to do so.

• Armstrong, K (1994). A History of God.p.169

–  “It is as though Muhammad had created an entirely new literary form that some people were not ready for but which thrilled others. Without this experience of the Koran, it is extremely unlikely that Islam would have taken root.”

• Leaman, Oliver (2006). The Qur’an: an Encyclopedia.p.404

      –  “the verses of the Qur’an represent its uniqueness and beauty not to mention its novelty and originality. That is why it has succeeded in convincing so many people of its truth. it imitates nothing and no one nor can it be imitated. Its style does not pall even after long periods of study and the text does not lose its freshness over time”

• William, Gary (1977). The Amazing Quran. p57

–  The odds that Muhammad (S.A.W), an illiterate, guessed correctly about thousands and thousands of subjects, never once making a mistake, are so high that any theory of his authorship of the Quran must be completely dismissed ‐ even by the most hostile enemies of Islam!