Similar Quranic Verses and Definitive Ones in a Practical Study: "It Is but a Revelation Revealed." (Quran 53:4)
Published in August 13, 2006
Translated by: Ahmed Fathy
Firstly:
Sunnites deliberately misinterpret 53:4 to forcibly include their hadiths as part of divine revelation:
1- As per the Quran, those with sick hearts and minds follow and misinterpret similar verses while disregarding and overlooking definitive verses, as they seek to misguide others. In contrast, the objective methodology to understand the Quran entails that one would read it without prior views, prejudices, bias, or preconceptions so that one would research a certain topic at hand; then, one is to collect all Quranic verses related to the topic at hand, studying them in their contexts as objectively and neutrally as possible, seeking the Truth without a prior opinion one wants to prove. Eventually, one will see that definitive verses assert ONE view in different ways and that similar verses assert in detail what is found in the definitive ones. This makes one believe that the Quran is a Book perfected by God; this Book cannot contain contradictions or discrepancies; it has clear views on the topics we research, and NOT multiple, different views and angles regarding one topic, a lie asserted by enemies of our Lord God. Most Salafists/Wahabis are sick in their hearts and minds as they hate God's Word so much; when they research Quranic topics, they quote and focus ONLY on one similar verse and disregard other similar verses and all the definitive verses. For instance, regarding the topic of the alleged 'infallibility' of Prophet Muhammad, there are more than 150 verses that negates this myths, while asserting that Muhammad was a mortal and fallible human being who committed mistakes many times and some of the Quranic verses actually contain reproach and rebuke addressed to him to guide and command him to adhere to piety and Islamic Shura consultation and to stop obeying polytheists, disbelievers, and hypocrites. Wahabi Salafists choose to ignore these verses, as they decontextualize similar verses and deliberately misinterpret their meanings to fit and accommodate their warped views and silly notions, especially about their myth of considering anything uttered by Muhammad in his daily life as part of divine revelation and that he never uttered anything without being guided by our Lord God. This is what Salafists do in their misinterpretation of 54:4 away from its context: "By the star as it goes down. Your friend has not gone astray, nor has he erred. Noor does he speak out of desire. It is but a revelation revealed." (54:1-4).
2- Objective pondering and contemplation of the verses 54:1-4 indicates something totally different from what Middle-Ages authors dissembled and inferred, as they focused instead on misusing the Quranic verses to serve and assert their false narratives/hadiths and their myths that include the assumed 'infallibility' of Muhammad and his alleged ascension to heavens. These two myths in particular are 'supported' by deliberate misinterpretation of the first verses of the Quranic Chapter 53, which tackle the revelation/descent of the entirety of the Quran into the heart of Muhammad when he saw arch-angel Gabriel for the first time, within the Night-Journey in the Night of Decree, when Muhammad was transported into Mount Al-Tur in Sinai, Egypt, during the month of Ramadan.
Secondly:
We quote the following details from a book yet to be published soon enough on our website; this book is titled "The Night-Journey Is The Night of Decree: When the Entire Quran was Revealed to Muhammad's Heart".
1- The Quran asserts that the revelation of the entirety of the Quranic text into the heart of Muhammad was done on the Night of Decree; and Quranic verses would be revealed to his memory to utter/recite them within certain occasions separately until the very last Quranic verse: "Today I have perfected your religion for you, and have completed My favor upon you, and have approved Islam as a religion for you." (5:3).
2- The Quran asserts that the revelation of the entirety of the Quranic text into Muhammad's mind/heart was in a blessed night during the lunar month of Ramadan, and as a written One Book or Scripture, as we infer from these verses revealed in Mecca: "Praise be to God, who revealed the Book to His servant..." (18:1); "...We have revealed to you the Book, as an explanation of all things..." (16:89); "Does it not suffice them that We revealed to you the Book, which is recited to them?..." (29:51). After these verses were revealed in Mecca, some other verses were revealed in Yathreb; this means that the entire Book was inside Muhammad's mind/heart all the time, but he would utter/recite certain verses as per occasions that occurred and as per divine command.
3- Thus, the entirety of the Quran descended in one night; the Night of Decree: "By the Enlightening Book.We have revealed it on a Blessed Night..." (44:2-3). This is mentioned repeatedly in the Quranic text; some verses emphasize the role of the Holy Spirit (i.e., arch-angel Gabriel) who conveyed – or rather wrote – God's Word into Muhammad's heart: "Say, "Whoever is hostile to Gabriel-it is he who revealed it to your heart by God's leave..." (2:97); "Say, "The Holy Spirit has brought it down from your Lord, truthfully..." (16:102); "It is a revelation from the Lord of the Worlds. The Honest Spirit came down with it. Upon your heart..." (26:192-194). These verses refer also to Gabriel and the Quran: "This is the speech of a noble messenger. Endowed with power, eminent with the Lord of the Throne. Obeyed and honest." (81:19-21), and this very next verse refers to Muhammad when he saw Gabriel : "Your friend is not possessed. He saw him on the luminous horizon." (81:22-23) . this means that God here has addressed the Meccan polytheists of Qorayish to tell them that Muhammad was not a madman, as they knew his reasoning mind, his honesty, and his excellent qualities long before he became a prophet of God, and it is out of the question to accuse him of being mad. Muhammad saw Gabriel on the horizon, and this is a brief indication of how Muhammad saw Gabriel clearly in the angelic form, not disguised as a man, without clouds to hinder the sight. Of course, details of this within the early verses of the Quranic Chapter 53 are more than the brief indications in the Quranic Chapter 81, as the former explain the latter; this was the Night of Decree also known as the Night-Journey: "By the star as it goes down. Your friend has not gone astray, nor has he erred. Nor does he speak out of desire. It is but a revelation revealed. Taught to him by the Extremely Powerful. The one of vigor. He settled. While he was at the highest horizon. Then he came near, and hovered around. He was thin two bows' length, or closer. Then, he revealed to God's servant what he revealed. And his heart did not lie about what it saw." (53:1-11). This means that Gabriel (a celestial being) descended into the Earth and came very near to Muhammad (an earthly being), while carrying God's Last Word to humanity, conveyed to Muhammad's heart first as he was the chosen seal of the prophets of God to deliver the divine Quranic revelation.
4- A query is raised: how come then that the Quranic verses were later on revealed separately? We assert from the above that after Muhammad's heart/mind had received the entirety of the Quran on the Night of Decree known also as the Night-Journey, Muhammad uttered its verses separately within certain occasions by God's command, as we infer from this verse: "A Quran which We unfolded gradually, that you may recite to the people over time. And We revealed it in stages." (17:106). Hence, after the Quran was written inside his heart, its verses were conveyed to people by his tongue gradually and in stages, till all verses were uttered and then collected by Muhammad in their current order we know, within guidance of God.
5- This revelation of the entirety of the Quranic text into Muhammad's heart and then his uttering/reciting it in stages within certain occasions is like when one would have a vision while sleeping and this vision settles in the subconscious, then details of it would remember it within gradual stages. The verses were uttered by his tongue (by God's command) after being conveyed from his heart; we infer this from this verse: "...Do not be hasty with the Quran before its inspiration to you is concluded, and say, "My Lord, increase me in knowledge."" (20:114). It is no surprise at all that the number of this verse is 114; i.e., the number of all Quranic chapters. The same meaning of 20:114 is repeated in these verses; this is why the Quranic verses explain one another: "Do not wag your tongue with it, to hurry on with it. Upon Us is its collection and its recitation. Then, when We have recited it, follow its recitation. Then upon Us is its explanation." (75:16-19). These verses show that God has prohibited Muhammad to recite very fast the Quranic verses he memorized, but to utter them as per occasions related to them, and not to worry as God undertakes the mission of collecting all the verses together without error and making them explain one another. Indeed, the verses 75:16-19 explain the verse 20:114.
6- Another question is posed: where and when the Quran was revealed in its entirety? There is nothing called ascension to heavens; this is a myth; neither Muhammad or any other mortal ascended into heavens. There was a Night-Journey, which is the Night of Decree, when Muhammad was transported miraculously to Mount Al-Tur, in Sinai, Egypt, in the same location where Moses received the tablets of the Torah. The Sunnite myth of Muhammad's alleged ascension to heavens is based on the misinterpretation o 53:1-11. Sunnite scholars deliberately ignored that it was Gabriel who descended upon Muhammad, and NOT Muhammad who ascended to Gabriel into the heavens: "He saw him on another descent." (53:13). In fact, the Quranic Chapter 53 negates the myth of Muhammad's purported ascension to heavens. It is funny that even some Sunnite authoritative books deny both the Night-journey and the assumed ascension as mere dreams that Muhammad saw during his sleep! Another Sunnite narratives negates the ascension and assert the physical Night-journey; for further details, we refer readers to the interpretation of 53:1-18 in the book by Ibn Katheer. Within other Quranic verses, the myth of ascension is refuted: "Or you possess a house of gold. Or you ascend into the sky. Even then, we will not believe in your ascension, unless you bring down for us a book that we can read." Say, "Glory be to my Lord. Am I anything but a human messenger?"" (17:93); "If you find their rejection hard to bear, then if you can, seek a tunnel into the earth, or a stairway into the heaven, and bring them a sign. Had God willed, He could have gathered them to guidance. So do not be of the ignorant." (6:35). The contradictions in the heritage, traditional books of the Sunnites entails that we are to use the Quran as the only arbiter and criterion regarding the topics of the Night-Journey and the Quranic revelations. We personally have discovered that the Quranic text links both the Night-Journey and the Night of Decree; both are the same event that occurred in Ramadan when Muhammad received the Quran in Mount Al-Tur in Sinai. It is strange and illogical that Sunnite books assume that the Night-Journey occurred in the lunar month of Rajab!
The Night-Journey is exactly the same event called Night of Decree:
Within that Night of Decree, Muhammad was transported miraculously from the Sacred Kaaba Mosque of Mecca to the Mount Al-Tur, in Sinai, named by God as the Farthest Mosque in the verse 17:1. "Glory to Him who journeyed His servant by night, from the Sacred Mosque, to the Farthest Mosque, whose location We have blessed, in order to show him of Our wonders. He is the Listener, the Beholder." (17:1). Middle-Ages scholars misinterpreted the phrase [to show him of Our wonders] by saying that it refers to the supposed Muhammad's ascension to heavens, as this Night-journey event was a test; people ascribed many myths and falsehoods (e.g., the supposed ascent into heavens) to such event and thus failed the test: "...We did not make the vision We showed you, except as a test for the people..." (17:60). So as to avoid such myths and falsehoods to pass the test, we are to adhere to Quranic facts about that topic of the Night-journey. This is why we assert here that the verses about Muhammad seeing Gabriel in the Quranic Chapter 81 are explained in the Quranic Chapter 53, and both groups of verses explain 17:1.
Here ends our quotation from our book to be published, titled "The Night-Journey Is The Night of Decree: When the Entire Quran was Revealed to Muhammad's Heart".
Thirdly:
We focus here on the context of the verse 53:4. Within this verse: "It is but a revelation revealed." (53:4), God refers ONLY the Quran. the Meccan people of Qorayish used to praise mortality, honesty, and integrity of Muhammad before his prophethood; we believe this historical fact as it matches these verses: "And you are of a great moral character." (68:4); "...God knows best where to place His message..." (6:124). The stance of the Qorayish people toward Muhammad changed once he preached the Quran to them; they accused him of being possessed by madness, sorcery, temptations of devils, and misguidance. This is why we read in 53:1-11 that God refutes these accusations and defends Muhammad; he was their friend whom they knew his honesty and integrity as he lived with them in the same location and era; he could not be a mad man who talked out of his own mind or told lies. Muhammad was uttering the revelation of the Lord God. This is why 53:1 refers to the falling star; an indication of something descending from heaven, a precursor to the Quranic revelation coming from the highest heaven from God. thus, God asserts in these verses that Muhammad did not utter Quranic verses out of his own accord, but as per the divine command of our Lord God. This verse: "It is but a revelation revealed." (53:4) refers only to the Quran and nothing else. It certainly does NOT refer to any other words uttered by Muhammad; the Sunnites assume this verse to apply to ALL words of daily life of Muhammad so that they would lend sham credibility to their invented hadiths ascribed to him after his death. The revelation in 53:4 means the Quran; even haters of the Quran among the Qorayish tribesmen desired that Muhammad would change the Quran himself; this means he brought to them no other message at all: "And when Our clear revelations are recited to them, those who do not hope to meet Us say, "Bring a Quran other than this, or change it." Say, "It is not for me to change it of my own accord. I only follow what is revealed to me. I fear, if I disobeyed my Lord, the torment of a terrible Day. Say, "Had God willed, I would not have recited it to you, and He would not have made it known to you. I have lived among you for a lifetime before it. Do you not understand?"" (10:15-16). These two verses explain further the verses 53:1-11; as in both chapters we find response to their rejection of the Quran and denying Muhammad's prophethood, as Muhammad lived long before his being a prophet and they knew him too well. Thus, the verse 53:4 refers exclusively to the Quran, and it was revealed in its entirety into the heart of Muhammad on Mount Al-Tur, which is the Farthest Mosque in Sinai. This is explained briefly in the Quranic Chapter 81, which contains God's swearing by some type of stars, the black holes, in a miraculous scientific indication: "I swear by the stars that vacuum and move fast" (81:15-16), and then the indirect scientific indication of the roundness of the Earth by referring to the moving night and day in 81:17-18. Thee verses linked to the outer space and the heavens are followed by the ones about Gabriel seen by Muhammad: "This is the speech of a noble messenger. Endowed with power, eminent with the Lord of the Throne. Obeyed and honest. Your friend is not possessed. He saw him on the luminous horizon." (81:19-23). Thus, these verses share the same topic and context of 53:1-11, and they are asserted in other group of verse: "It is a revelation from the Lord of the Worlds. The Honest Spirit came down with it. Upon your heart, that you may be one of the warners...And it is in the scriptures of the ancients. Is it not a sign for them that the scholars of the Israelites recognized it?" (26:192-197).
Fourthly:
Months ago, we have received this question and we have answered it in our fatwas section: (Dear Sir,... you seem to disregard the topic of the Night-Journey of Muhammad and his Ascension to the heavens; are they Sunnite myths or not?). Of course, we told the sender of this message to wait for our book titled "The Night-Journey Is The Night of Decree: When the Entire Quran was Revealed to Muhammad's Heart", to be published soon on our website, but we briefly assert the following points.
The Quran mentions clearly the Night-journey in 17:1, and this verse does NOT refer to the so-called Al-Aqsa (farthest) mosque in Jerusalem, as this city did not contain any mosques at all at that point as Arabs did not conquer it yet. Let us bear in mind that 17:1 was revealed in Mecca. The Umayyads later on (for political reasons) created the myth that their so-called Al-Aqsa mosque they built in Jerusalem is the location of the Night-Journey where Muhammad was transported from Mecca. The orators and narrators serving the Umayyads misinterpreted 53:13-18 to twist their meanings to propagate the myth that Muhammad ascended to heavens from that mosque in Jerusalem. We assert here that the verse: "He saw some of the Great Signs of his Lord." (53:18) about the Night-Journey is about things cannot be imagined by our limited minds and God has chosen not to tell us about them. We must not fail the test (as it was failed by our forefathers) by inventing tales about the Night-Journey, as we are only to believe in the verses about it without adding any details never mentioned in the Quran: "...We did not make the vision We showed you, except as a test for the people..." (17:60). Thus, to recapitulate, the Night-Journey is mentioned in the Quranic Chapters 17, 53, and 81, and we are NOT to believe any myths that Sunnites have added to this event, if we would like to pass the test mentioned in 17:60. Myths of ascension are never acceptable to Quranists and the Night-Journey event is confined to what God has chosen to tell us in the Quran about it. the Quran contains verses that negates the myth of Muhammad, or any other mortals, ascending to heavens.
1- Of course, the Quranic Chapter 53 negates the purported ascension by asserting that it was Gabriel who descended to Meet Muhammad on Earth, and NOT Muhammad ascending to meet Gabriel in heavens. We are not to imagine or add details from our own minds regarding this event, a grave sin committed by Sunnite polytheists in the Middle-Ages. It is ironic that Sunnite scholars, or rather ignoramuses, quote 53:1-17 to lend fake credibility to the myth of ascension of Muhammad into heavens.
2- Polytheists in Mecca demanded that Muhammad would prove his being a prophet by performing miracles, including to ascend to heavens, but God has refuted their demands and commanded Muhammad to respond to them in that way: "Or you possess a house of gold. Or you ascend into the sky. Even then, we will not believe in your ascension, unless you bring down for us a book that we can read." Say, "Glory be to my Lord. Am I anything but a human messenger?"" (17:93).
3- The more the polytheist rejected the Quran and adamantly refuse to believe Muhammad who never performed miracles before their eyes, the more Muhammad was saddened, and God thus has told him the following: "We know that what they say grieves you. It is not you they reject, but it is God's verses that the unjust ones deny." (6:33). Thus, they were stubborn in demanding miracles to see as they hated the Quran very much. This verse proves the fact that Muhammad never ascended to heavens: "If you find their rejection hard to bear, then if you can, seek a tunnel into the earth, or a stairway into the heaven, and bring them a sign. Had God willed, He could have gathered them to guidance. So do not be of the ignorant ones." (6:35). If the so-called ascension were to occur, God would not have said that to Muhammad. This so-called ascension to heavens is a Sunnite myth that leads orientalists and haters of Islam to mock and ridicule God's religion. Islam (i.e., Quranism) is innocent of such myth invented by Sunnites who are arch-enemies of Islam; indeed, the Sunnite religion contradicts the Quran 100%. Ironically, Sunnite books record that caliph Omar Ibn Al-Khattab rejected all hadith narratives altogether. Yet, the myth of ascension is ascribed to narratives/hadiths authored by series of narrators who were either born after Muhammad died or were small children under 10 years old when he died! Their myths include that prayers were ordained during this alleged ascension to heavens; this is easily refuted by the Quranic Chapter 96, the very first one revealed in Mecca and it talks about prayers: "Have you seen him who prevents? A servant when he prays?" (96:9-10); "No, do not obey him; but kneel down, and come near." (96:19). Prayers are inherited by Arabs from Ishmael from the religion of Abraham, and it was learned from one generation to the other until now; prayers have nothing to do with the Night-Journey in which we, Quranists, believe, and likewise, prayers have nothing to do with the ascension myth in which we disbelieve.
Lastly: we briefly recapitulate and assert the following points:
1- The verses 53:1-11 show that the entirety of the Book (the Quran) was revealed into Muhammad's heart on the Night-Journey, known as the Night of Decree, on Mount Al-Tur, in Sinai, Egypt, during the lunar month of Ramadan.
2- The verses 53:1-11 negate and refute the ascension myth; Muhammad saw Gabriel who descended to him, and Muhammad did NOT ascend to heavens to meet with Gabriel. Further details are found on our book titled "The Night-Journey Is The Night of Decree: When the Entire Quran was Revealed to Muhammad's Heart".
3- As for the verse: ''It is but a revelation revealed.'' (53:4), it refers solely to the Quran, and NEVER to Muhammad's words in his daily life. The reason: as per the Quran, Muhammad in several instances uttered words that made God reproach and rebuke him (and such words can NEVER be part of the divine revelation), as we infer from these verses: "O prophet! Why do you prohibit what God has permitted for you, seeking to please your wives?..." (66:1); "May God pardon you! Why did you give them permission before it became clear to you who are the truthful ones, and who are the liars?" (9:43); "...But you hid within yourself what God was to reveal. And you feared the people, but it was God you were supposed to fear..." (33:37). Thus, when Sunnites consider all words of their imaginary 'infallible and holy deity' Muhammad to be inspired by God, they contradict this verse by deifying the last prophet of God: "Whatever good happens to you is from God, and whatever bad happens to you is from your own self. We sent you to humanity as a messenger, and God is Witness enough." (4:79); "Say, "If I err, I err only to my own loss; but if I am guided, it is by what my Lord inspires me..." (34:50)