Why Quran?

bkanwar2

I have been trying to understand Quran via learning its language for some time now. The path has been at the simplest rocky. I ask and get asked questions. Why? Some say ?it is the eternal word of god and there has nothing changed in it or can be changed?. These folks do not even get the point that what they consider as the real Quran is the translation of Quran, written after over two hundred years its supposed origin.

There are folks who think that it is a worthless book which has lost its relevance to present time. As evidence they bring forwards and high light contradictory themes from same translation to prove their point.

There are also Taliban types who by practicing its translated themes bring force to arguments above.

However reality is, there are over 1.2 billion humans, who believe in this book and do not want to depart from it. Although, their belief is just a belief and they have no knowledge of its actual text. Their belief is in only what was translated 200 years later as Quran and now accepted by all as the real Quran.

For them it is a way of life, as well their ancestral way of life. It is the very source they derive their values of society. Something which is very precious for most humans and they like to cling on to at all cost.

However, it is very apparent that the current understanding of Quran and even worse more closer adherence to its current meanings is not leading them to be successful in this life (although their religious leaders keep promising them a pie in the sky in hereafter).

So if they were to quit their way of life, how can they survive? How would they be able to determine the values for their society?

One answer is to adopt democracy, where values can be decided and determined by individual majority.

However, democracy has its own short comings. For brevity, I will point out only two that can and have undermined the social fabric in western democracies and hence, given ammunition and strength back to religious revival in west again. These are

Subjectivism, and
Relativism, in determining values.

The reason for these both is lack of a big central, timeless value in the value tree from which other eternal values blossom.

Current Quranic translation revolves around the central concept of Allah. Allah is understood as one and only deity for worship. The purpose of human life and creation is to worship and obey Allah. Therefore, it is impossible to accept anything, even by not literally practicing Muslims, that is not consistent with this concept.

Here is where real Quran and not its current understanding stand as rescuer of situation.

The real understanding of word Allah is ?one who is not at all a deity for worship.? It is completely opposite to how it is understood now. This changes everything upside down. It also not only negates the current religion Islam but all other religions. It also negates the Atheistic concept in the sense of a no entity behind this Universe. Furthermore, Quran calls this entity as Rabb (an accomplisher, sustainer, maintainer and foster) for all and everything. This concept is Universal as well binding in contrast with the concept of god, which is divisive by its nature. This common unifying value blossoms into all other eternal values for human society.

With this back ground, I humbly present the preamble of Quran as understood via it language.

Surah 11

A substantive with which to know, one who is not at all a deity for worship, the extreme eternal sympathy, concern for suffering of others and mercy.

Surah 12

The only praise for, one who is not at all a deity for worship, is that he is the Rabb
(sustainer, maintainer, foster and accomplisher) of all the disciplines of knowledge.

Surah 13

Which is in itself, is the extreme eternal sympathy, concern for suffering of others and mercy.

Surah 14

A possessor of this custom and tradition at all times.

Surah 15

You beware of; making us an object of worship also you beware of, to
think of us as a beast.

Surah 16

We direct against fleeing the path thought to be universally original,
straight, undeviating and unceasing.

Surah 17

Those fleeing this path, if you were to inform them, it would be
nothing but the object of anger for them, confounded and perplexed
unable to see the right course.

Mazhar

A substantive with which to know, one who is not at all a deity for worship, the extreme eternal sympathy, concern for suffering of others and mercy.

Please try to make it a complete sentence.

bkanwar2

Please try to make it a complete sentence.

Thanks shouldn't have deleted "is" while posting here. Hope this reads better.

Surah 11

A substantive with which to know, one who is not at all a deity for worship, is the extreme eternal sympathy, concern for suffering of others and mercy.

Mazhar

Thanks shouldn't have deleted "is" while posting here. Hope this reads better.

Surah 11

A substantive with which to know, one who is not at all a deity for worship, is the extreme eternal sympathy, concern for suffering of others and mercy.

Kindly give us the break up of it; What is its subject; what are words after first comma - are they adjectival description of "A substantive". Is "is the extreme eternal sympathy" the predicate. What is that appears after the last comma.

bkanwar2

Kindly give us the break up of it; What is its subject; what are words after first comma - are they adjectival description of "A substantive". Is "is the extreme eternal sympathy" the predicate. What is that appears after the last comma.

I see you want to discuss Syntax now?

= = Subject

= = Predicate

Mazhar

I see you want to discuss Syntax now?

= = Subject

= = Predicate

No, I was talking about your rendition in English. Your English sentence is grammatically incorrect and vague in meanings.

Your Arabic syntax is totally incorrect. A prepositional phrase is never the subject of Arabic sentence.
And the predicate of a sentence is never in genitive case.

FreedomStands

It is my sincere recommendation that if you don't like the Qur'an, simply set it aside or donate it to someone else who might like it more!

If something says stuff you don't like, simply ignore it! Take whatever you can that you can understand and might benefit you from anywhere, and eschew the rest!

bkanwar2

No, I was talking about your rendition in English. Your English sentence is grammatically incorrect and vague in meanings.

Your Arabic syntax is totally incorrect. A prepositional phrase is never the subject of Arabic sentence.
And the predicate of a sentence is never in genitive case.

When people start using words like "NEVER", it implies they have closed their minds. They are not open to learning and would "NEVER" learn. There is no never in language. There are exceptions to all rules more so in Quran Arabic. Without keeping mind open to exception no learning.

Mazhar

When people start using words like "NEVER", it implies they have closed their minds. They are not open to learning and would "NEVER" learn. There is no never in language. There are exceptions to all rules more so in Quran Arabic. Without keeping mind open to exception no learning.

Please quote just one example.

bkanwar2

Please quote just one example.

An example of what?

Mazhar

Your claim about exception to rule I had quoted that subject and predicate are always in nominative case.

bkanwar2

You said that there is no sentence in Arabic that begins with a preposition and asked for an example.

11 is the example of such a sentence. We can use any grammatical terms to describe it and agree and disagree but the fact remains that this book was written first and rules were derived later. With or without rules book could be understood reasonably well.
Even in grammatical rules a sentence can start with a preposition and it is called . So it is never ever kind of situation.

But let me give the detail of this derivation. However, in order to understand it one has to know that Allah does not means the proper name of ?the one and only deity for worship?, rather it means ?one who is not at all a deity for worship? (please refer to analysis ?Linguistic riddle solved for those who want to learn)

this is a in it is , a preposition with several means ?one used here is, in the sense that it acts as instrument to know?. This is followed by , of which First letter is dropped. This traditionally is translated as name. However, it also means ?substantive? which means, ?having basis in reality and separate and independent existence?. Both of these words form together are of the
is not the proper name as explained above. It is the of the

Therefore meaning so far for both these words

?A substantive with which to know, one who is not at all a deity for worship?, or one could incorporate meanings of word ?Substantive? to read as follows.

?A realistic basis of existence with which to know, one who is not at all deity for worship?
These are both Adjectives and in genitive form and hence relating to ?one who is not at all a deity for worship?. If we label these as Predicate, I don?t know, how this label would change meanings. This hold true for first two words as well, if these get a label of ?Subject? or not.

Both of these are verbal nouns. These are from root, using language formula of ?root meanings + Waazan? = word meanings. The first one is translated traditionally, as ?most compassionate? second one ?most merciful?. These meanings are fairly close to achieved by formula. However, one of these brings meanings of eternity. In addition, I have added meanings of word ?compassionate? in the translation, which means ?sympathy, concern for suffering of others accompanied with a strong desire to alleviate it?

So let us put the mumbo jumbo together for common people to understand this verse more clearly.

?A realistic basis of existence with which to know, one who is not at all deity for worship, the eternal sympathy, concern for suffering of others accompanied with a strong desire to alleviate it and mercy?.

Mazhar

Your final rendition is still meaningless; it has no coherence; it is even not a sentence.

The rest of the post is also without substance.

We were talking about nominal sentence. The subject and predicate of a nominal sentence are always in nominative case. Prepositional Phrase is NOT subject of a nominal sentence NOR predicate of a sentence.

bkanwar2

Your final rendition is still meaningless; it has no coherence; it is even not a sentence.

The rest of the post is also without substance.

We were talking about nominal sentence. The subject and predicate of a nominal sentence are always in nominative case. Prepositional Phrase is NOT subject of a nominal sentence NOR predicate of a sentence.

Eyes don't see what mind doesn't know. I may add, or what mind doesn't want to know.

Arif

Thank you Badar. Very interesting interpretations... Right now i am reading your all posts. Meanwhile would like to quote here one of my favorite versions of al-Fatiha translations

I seek refuge in the protective forces of the Names of Allah comprising my Essence from impulses generated by the accursed and rejected (rajim) Satan, which, as a result of preconditioning, causes our sense of illusion to perceive the existent as non-existent and the non-existent as existent, thereby making man believe he is an independent being and body outside the Names of Allah, directing man to the idea of an external deity-God in the heavens.

By the one who is denoted by the name Allah (who created my being with His Names in accord with the meaning of the letter ?B?), the Rahman, the Rahim.
Hamd (the evaluation of the corporeal worlds created with His Names, as He wills) belongs to Allah, the Rabb (the absolute source of the infinite meanings of the Names) of the worlds (the universe created within the brain of every individual)
The Rahman (the quality with which He forms the dimension of Names; the Quantum Potential), the Rahim (the quality with which He continually creates the engendered existence with the meanings of the Names)
The Maleek (the Sovereign One, who manifests His Names as he wishes and governs them in the world of acts as He pleases. The One who has providence over all things) or the Maalik (the Absolute Owner) of the eternal period governed by the decrees of religion (sunnatullah).
You alone we serve, and from You alone we seek the continual manifestation of your Names (By manifesting the meanings of Your Beautiful Names we, as the whole of creation, are in a state of natural servitude to You, and we seek guidance to attain and maintain this awareness at all times)
Enable the realization that leads to our innermost essential reality (sirat al-mustaqeem)
The path of those upon whom You have bestowed favor (those who believe in the Names of Allah as comprising their essential self and experience the awareness of their force) not of those who have evoked Your wrath (who have failed to the see the reality of their selves and the corporeal worlds and who have become conditioned with their ego-identities) nor of those who are astray (from the Reality and the understanding of the One denoted by the name Allah, the al-Wahid-ul Ahad-as-Samad, and who thus associate partners with Allah ).

Source http//www.ahmedhulusi.org/en/quran/001_fatiha.html#ixzz3RTheKrUq

onlyquran01

Eyes don't see what mind doesn't know. I may add, or what mind doesn't want to know.

Interestingly, doctors look at Quran not like everyone else. Obvious evidence of this Badar Kanwar and Qamar Zaman.

Right now i am reading your all posts. Waiting for new interpretations.
It is unclear who wrote Quran and for what? Is there any evidence?