‘THE OBSTACLES IN READING THE QUR'AN
In addition to the language of the Qur'an, the form of the is unique. It dif.
fers somewhat from previous revelations—and not just because it is in Arabic.
‘When people (even Muslims) who have never read the Qur'an in ther lives, start to
read it with concentration, their frst reaction is often one of surprise and even
confusion. Some people cannot seem to make sense of it at all. This is because
there are obstacles to overcome in reading the Qur'an. These obstacles are not
difficult to overcome, but it helps to be aware of them,
In fact there are three kinds of obstacles that prevent people from under-
standing the Qur'an. These are: (1) obstacles in the act of reading; (2) obstacles in
‘the reader; and (3) obstacles in the Qur'anic text itself.
regards (1) obstacles in the act of reading, we should briefly consider the fol-
lowing:
The Qur'an is in Classical Arabic in the dialect of the tribe of Quraysh
(notwithstanding a few words of non-Arabic origin). It is not the same
كه‎ colloquial or Modern Standard Arabic. Because of its linguistic richness it can-
not be translated properly ts ‘translations’ are al only
Arabic has to be learnt anew even by native Arabic speakers. Nevertheless, this is
usually a question ofa limited number of Arabic words.
{(b) The Qur'an was an oral revelation, set in an oral culture. Without hearing it
read aloud according to its own rules of recitation, the reader misses not only the
melody of the verses, but also the power and resonance of the words—as well as,
their inner connections with each other.
Modern education leads people to expect to read simple, short texts which
immediately offer up all their information and which are nothing more than they ap-
pear. Usually these also have even simpler executive summaries of their important
points. But the Qur'an must be read slowly and in depth because the Author is
Omniscient and so all the different linguistic possible meanings of the words are
pre-intended by the Author. Also it is full of symbols, similes, metaphors, alle-
gories, hints, leads, allusions and internal references. This is perhaps because cer-
‘tain truths cannot be fully conveyed by the surfaces of words alone. Moreover, itis
not a short pages in most Arabic editions—and needs time and patience
‘to even begin to contemplate it. Indeed, most devout Muslims learn it in childhood
(anywhere between one to 10 million Muslims know the Qur'an by heart) and
spend between 30 minutes and an hour every day of their lives reading it.
(4) The Qur'an is not a ‘chronological’ or a ‘linear’ text. The Bible is basically
historical, chronologically-arranged tex. It starts with the beginning (the Book of
Genesis) and goes right through to the end of the Hebrew Prophets—
notwithstanding an interlude of timeless ‘wisdom books’ (such as the Psalms).
‘Then the New Testament tells the story of Jesus i, then his disciples, and it ends
with the Book of Revelation, looking ‘forward’, as it were. But the Qur'an is not ar-
ranged in the order it was revealed and does not refer to events chronologically It
does not seek to tell a histon—even م‎ sacred one. Rather, it is atemporal, or at
least achronological. So it often returns to the same themes, again and again.
Equally, it is not a systematic exposition of philosophy (lke Plato's dialogues); nor
of morality and theology (like Plotinus's Enneads); nor finally of cosmology and
logic (like Aristotle's Metaphysics and his Organon). Rather, it contains different
kinds of wisdom scattered throughout, and the reader has to piece them together.
The Qur'an is an operative text, not a speculative text. Reading itis meant to
be transformative and informative. It has to be approached like a student begging for
knowledge, not a film critic passing judgement on a pastime. Without this attitude
and intention—different from when reading normal book—the Qur'an does not
‘transform, or even really, inform. It merely confirms the reader’s prejudices. God
says: And indeed We have explained things in various ways in this so that they
‘may remember, but it only increases them in aversion. 17:41)
As regards (2) obstacles in the reader, these come from:
{@) The difference in time, place, culture, circumstance, experience and context
between the reader and the Qur'anic revelation.
Distraction, ‘scatteredness’, lack of concentration, wandering imagination,
interruption by bodily functions and needs, lack of patience, improper intentions,
lack of openness, lack of humility and blindness to spiritual truths, all of which
lead to an inability to contemplate the Qur'an and an inability to meditate upon it.
Now God calls upon people to ‘contemplate’ ff, see: 16-43-44; 59:21;
133; 3190-192) His signs (‘ayat’) in the Qur'an and ‘meditate’ upon the
(‘todabbur, see: 4:82; 23:68; 38:29; 47:24; see also 50:37). The difference between
the two is that ‘contemplation’ (‘tafakkur is active (it requires having ‘an image
in the mind’ according to Raghib Mu‘jam Mufradat Alfazh al-Qur‘an)
whereas as ‘meditation’ is more passive but more profound (‘dubur
literally means ‘the bottom’ of something, and therefore means to ‘turn
back, but also to ‘get to the back of something’). Nevertheless, both can set
off in the heart of the listener either a rainfall of startling and luminous intuitions,
or even a kind of internal silent flash of understanding so that he or she instantly
understands dozens of things at once with their multiple connections. God says in
the Qur'an:
Is he whose breast God has opened to Islam, so that he follows a light from his Lord
he who disbelieves]? So woe to those whose hearts have been hardened against
the remembrance of God. Such are in manifest error. | God has revealed the most
beautiful of teachings, a Scripture that is consistent and draws comparisons; that
causes the skins of those who fear their Lord to quiver; then their skins and their
hearts soften to the remembrance of God. That is God's guidance, by which He
guides whomever He wishes; and whomever God leads astray, for him there is no
‘guide. (AL-Zumar, 39:22-25)
The demands that the Qur'an makes upon people: the Qur'an urges not
only laws but also ethical principles and they can be quite demanding. So there is
bound to be something in the soul that shrinks from these. This is because the ego
does not want to be told what to do or leave its ‘comfort zone’, much less to have
‘to change its ways completely.
Finally, as regards (3) obstacles in the text itself, there are providen-
tially @ number of these and they take some getting used to. They include:
{2) The constant shifts (in Arabic called ‘iltfat’), not only of subject but also of
narrative tone. Even the pronominal narrative voice changes: God sometimes refers
to Himself as ‘He’; sometimes as ‘'; sometimes as ‘We’, and sometimes by His
Divine Names. God clearly cannot be limited or contained by pronouns or by @ sin-
gle point of view, and each of these shifts contains a secret and a meaning. Some-
times the Qur'an also shifts whom it is talking to: sometimes it is the Prophet,
sometimes it is believers, sometimes disbelievers, and sometimes everybody: Each
of these shifts draws attention to something new. In so doing it shocks the reader
out of hs or her mental habits in order to show them something about
themselves.
(b) The at first seems to contain a number of apparent obscurities,
repetitions, interrupted sentences, abridgements and ellipses. These too each have
certain secrets and meanings that have to be penetrated. They force people to stop
and think deeply, and that is perhaps part of the reason they are there. They are like
geodes—rocks that look plain from the outside, but once they are cracked open, re-
‘veal a pattern of unexpected and beautiful cystals.
There are also a number of things that can seem strange and unlikely to the
modem reader. Some of these we have already mentioned (such as the explicit de-
scriptions of the afterlife), and some will be discussed later (such as jihad
and ‘the heart’). Some of them seem to reflect the context of seventh century ce
Arabia (such as descriptions of the natural desert environment, tales of ancient
Arabian and Biblical prophets and even business imagen). The important thing to
bear in mind is that the Qur'an seeks to address every possible human mentality,
motif and level of education and sophistication—not to mention every
spiritually-elevant subject. So it contains something that speaks to every kind of
person,