The Holy Qur’an, the Greatest Miracle

By: Bahram Samii
Muhammad (SA), faced many people in his lifetime who did not believe in him. They challenged him to produce a miracle to match those produced by other prophets in the past. He retorted that it was quite unnecessary, as the Noble Qur’an Itself was the supreme miracle for all times and all places.
Many Muslim and non‑Muslim scholars have proved, in various ways, that the Holy Qur’an is a miracle. This conviction is reflected in many books and articles throughout the history of Islam. They render a variety of sound and just reasons to substantiate this fact. As I have chosen to let the Glorious Qur’an answer most of the questions, I think it would be approآ­priate to continue the same technique, and see how the Munificent Qur’an Itself proves Its own miraculous nature.
Let us first define "miracle". The Arabic equivalent of miracle is mujizah, which is a derivative of the root "’A‑J‑Z". This root reflects the idea of being unable to, inability, impossibility. Mu’jizah (or miracle) means something that no one can do except Allah the Exalted (or His Messengers, with His Leave). What is the difference between magic and miracle? The difference is that the former can be done by a talented human being either out of his own creativity or by learning from others. The latter, however, cannot be done by mankind. Humankind is unable (â€کajiz) to do it on its own initiative, without the Will of Allah the Exalted. In order to perform a miracle, one must be empowered by Allah the Omnipotent exclusively. With this in mind, let us now see how the Precious Qur’an Itself proves that It is a miracle:
آ 82nd and 83rd revelations, [1] 9 years B.H.
Allah the Exalted challenges the enemies of Muhammad (SA), to produce a book like the Great Qur'an.
آ "33 ‑ Or do they say "He fabricated the (message)"? Nay They have no faith! 34 ‑ Let them then produce a recital like unto it, if they speak the Truth!" LII:33 & 34
آ 118th revelation, 4 years B.H.
Five years later, the challenge is reduced to only ten Surahs, instead of a similar book.
آ "Or they may say `He forged it' say: `Bring you then ten Surahs forged, like unto it, and call (to your aid) whomsoever you can, other than Allah! If you speak the truth!"' XI:13
آ 121st revelation in the same year
He confirms that the entire human race and the jimis cannot produce a similar book.
آ "Say: `If the whole of mankind and jinns were to gather together to produce the like of this Qur’an, they could not produce the like thereof, even if they backed up each other with help and support."'آ  XVII: 88
131st revelation, 2 years B.H.
The challenge continues:
آ "Say: `Then bring you a book from Allah, which is a better Guide than either of them (the Tawrah and the Qur’an) that 1 may follow it! (Do), if you are truthful!"' XXVIII:49
آ 160th and 161st revelations, in the 4th year A.H.
Now, after 13 years of frequent challenge, Allah the Omnipotent confirms again that people are unable to produce a Book like the Holy Qur'an. He now further reduces the challenge from ten to only one Sarah:
آ "37 ‑ This Qur an is not such as can be produced by other than Allah; On the contrary it is a confirmation of (revelations) that went before it, and a fuller explanation of the Book ‑wherein there is no doubt‑ from the Lord of the worlds. 38 ‑ Or do they say, `He forged it'? Say: `Bring them a Sarah like unto it, and call (to your aid) any‑one you can, besides Allah, if you speak the truth."' X:37 & 38
164th and 165th revelations, in the 5th year A.H.
Again, He confirms the invitation to produce even one surah similar to the Qur'anic surahs. For those who claim they can produce a similar book but in reality have not been able to do so, He clearly reminds them of the excruciating consequences:
آ "23 ‑ And if you are in doubt as to what We have revealed from time to time to our obedient, then produce a Surah like thereunto; and call your witnesses or helpers besides Allah if your (doubts) are true. 24 ‑ But if you cannot ‑and certainly you cannot‑ then fear the Fire whose fuel is men and stones ‑which is prepared for those who reject Faith." II:23 & 24
آ Therefore, the contestation continued for fourteen years during the lifetime of Muhammad (SA), with frequent reminders. Today, after over fourteen centuries, no one has matched even the smallest surah of this Book. I hope that the above passage illustrates how the Noble Qur'an Itself proves its miraculous nature (i.e. the inability of humankind to produce a similar Writing).
آ Some people have claimed that their writings are Divine or their books are comparable or even superior to the Glorious Qur'an. There are also people who believe in these claims without either having assessed these writings in the original text (excerpts, translations, interpretations and commentaries are unacceptable for this assessment), or having realised the perfection and glory of the true wahy from the Miraculous Qur'an. I hope this and the next sections of this book can provide a basis for the examination of such claims.
آ Notes:
[1] Revelation numbers are based on an appendix to the following Qur'an: al‑Qur'an ul‑Karim, donated by the Union of the European students Islamic societies and the student Islamic societies of Canada and America, with compliments from Kayhan Inc., P.O. Box 638, Oakland Gardens, NY 11364, U.S.A. Translated by Muhammad Kadim Mucizzi (to Farsi) including various appendices produced by Mahmnd Ramyar and distributed by Book Distribution Center, P.O. Box 22933, Houston, TX 77027, U.S.A.

Is there any Parallel to The Miraculous Qur’an?
As The Holy Bible is the closest Scripture that people commonly compare with the Noble Qur'an, and because these two Books are considered as being of the same importance by some people, it might be appropriate briefly to compare the two Books to get an idea about their fundamental differences. This comparison is only superficial. It does not include any quotations from either one of these Books. It is meant to be a purely academic exercise, without the slightest prejudice.
First of all, any "book" must have a title, and it shall identify its author(s) so that people can gain confidence about what they expect to read, and whose voice the "book" represents. If someone is writing a book about, say, computers, the word "computer" must appear in that book at least once! Otherwise, it would be an irrelevant title, and could confuse people. In the case of the Holy Bible, for example, not only does the author remain unidentified, but also the title of the book, Bible, is not even mentioned one single time. To begin with, this lack of assurance compels the reader to assume that this is the word of Allah the Exalted, or of The Prophet Jesus Christ (PBUH), or of others.
Unlike the Holy Bible, the Glorious Qur'an addresses Its title subject within the Book frequently. In fact, the word "Qur'an" appears 58 times in the Holy Qur'an. The count should increase when words other than "Qur'an" such as "The Book" or "al‑Furqan" (the Criterion ‑to distinguish between good and bad), dhikr (remembrance), Tanzil (gradual descending of wahy to humankind), etc., were added. This indicates how meaningful the title name "Qur'an" is, and how well it blends with the material explained in it.
Table 1 [1] is a brief comparison of the Holy Bible and the Miraculous Qur'an. One can easily see that the Holy Bible is composed of 66 books and missionary letters, "according to" various Prophets, Disciples, Saints, historians or other religious dignitaries, from memory. None of them are "according to" the rasuls of Almighty Allah, The Prophet Moses (PBUH) himself, or The Prophet Jesus Christ (PBUH) himself.
آ The Glorious Qur'an is only one Book, in it, every word of Allah the Exalted is "according to" the rasul of Allah the Exalted, Muhammad (SA) himself. In the Islamic world, the Scripture that contains the sayings and traditions of Muhammad (SA), "according to" the Disciples and religious historians, is called a book of hadith (plural, ahadith), not the Qur'an Itself. Most ahadith were collected and published in the 4th Islamic century. Each hadith must clearly identify every individual who related a quotation, as well as the one who received it. This linkage of information transmittal by prominent figures must go all the way back to The Prophet (SA) himself. One of the most important criteria by which a wrong With can be distinguished is the very quality of linkage. A hadith is unacceptآ­able even if only one of the links of the chain is unrenowned. Therefore, to be perfectly correct, the Holy Bible should, at best, be compared with the books of ahadith, not with the Great Qur'an.
آ The New Testament in English is a translation of another translation of yet another translation. Even the best translator in the world has "limitaآ­tions", as a human being, when it comes to interpreting a Divine Book, which originates from a source of "absolute" Knowledge. In the case of the Noble Qur'an, science, research, time, history, nature and analytical learnآ­ing have proved, again and again, that some of the multifarious words were indeed wrongly translated in the past. Even simultaneous translations differ from one person to another, sometimes significantly. One can envisage how much misrepresentation would have been entered into the Glorious Qur'an if the original Scripture in the original Arabic language had been unavailable for reference. The problem is that the Holy Bible is not availآ­able in the original words for reference (an Old Testament in Hebrew and a New Testament in Aramaic). Consequently, there is an inherent superآ­imposed misrepresentation in this Book causing errors and contradictions. Some 50,000 errors and contradictions in the Holy Bible have been recorded by the Christians themselves, back in 1957. [2]
آ Books of the Old Testament were written years and centuries after the death of our great prophet Moses (PBUH); similarly, Books of the New Testament were written many years after the departure of our cherished prophet Jesus Christ (PBUH). Unlike these two Testaments, the single Book of the Final Testament (The Glorious Qur'an) was revealed, recited, fully memorised, written and distributed within the lifetime of The Prophet Muhammad (SA). This unique feature guarantees the authenticity and accuracy of this Book. Universally accepted "original" volumes of the Qur'an
آ exist for reference in the exact original language. Therefore, this collection of Divine Revelations is well preserved in its original exactness and purity. All of these features generate faith and interest in reading the Noble Qur'an without a shadow of a doubt about its authenticity and legitimacy. Almighty Allah says that The Qur'an will be saved until the end.
آ "We have, without doubt, sent down the Message and We will assuredly guard it (against corruption)." XV:9
آ Almighty Allah's pure wahy and holy Truth will never be eclipsed even though the enemies of Islam constantly mock it, and are determined to abate, disparage, and invalidate It; as they have attempted to do for over fourteen centuries.
آ 
A Few Words about Islam
This is intended to be a very short resume of Islam, based only on a few ayat of the Glorious Qur'an. To begin with let us consider this ayah:
آ "So set thy face (purpose, heart) steadily and truly to the din. Instincts Allah has bestowed upon mankind are in harmony with the nature He has created it. There is no altering of Allah's creation. By Allah, that is the right religion (din), but most people know not."آ  XXX: 30‑31
آ Dan is an instinctive part of humankind. We are all born with it. If a person does not feel this instinct, it is because of the influence of the family and/or society that either has disassociated him (or her) from it or has diverted him (or her) from the inborn natural Divine religion, din, to some kind of man‑made, temporal sect. Without din, a person wanders around aimlessly and spoils his life in darkness, though he may be an "intellectual" in the eyes of some people. The entire creation follows certain rules, conforms with certain conditions and has a certain goal, all set by Allah the Exalted. Humankind is no exception. Therefore the question remains: what is the dan (a way of life) that would conform with the rules and conditions and aims for our lives as set forth by our creator? Humankind had no choice in its own creation, and is only a "created" being. Therefore, it cannot depend on itself to search for the right way of life (din), as it does not know all about the entire creation, and all the rules and laws of the universe. Consequently, its own created creed is compelled to be inadequate for the guidance of all people at all times.
آ Allah the Exalted has chosen Islam as the right way of life for all people and all times (also refer to ayah V:3, on page 29) Islam is in accord with the creation of mankind, and its instinct and intuition. It is harmonious with the universal mandate of creation, which is total submission to the Will of Allah the Exalted. Consider how the entire creation submits to the rules and conditions set forth by Him; the entire galaxy, the moon, the earth, the earthquake, the wind and the hurricane, the rain and the snow, the bees and the birds, the trees, the vegetables and the flowers, and an endless list of other beings. They all submit entirely to the set formula which has proved to be the best for them for millennia. And this is the true meaning of Islam. We should all learn Islam from Nature. Only the human beings keep challenging Allah the Exalted, His messengers and His Message, making life difficult for themselves.
آ "Do they seek for other than the din of Allah while all creatures in the heavens and on earth have, willing or unwilling, submitted to His Will (embraced Islam)? And to Him shall they all be brought back." III:83
آ "Verily the din (religion) before Allah is Islam (Submission to His Will). And `people of the book' did not dissent therefrom except through envy of each other after knowledge had come to them. But if they deny the Signs (ayat) of Allah, Allah is certainly swift in reckoning." III:19
آ According to Islamic belief, this world is only a farmland. We harvest what we sow in it. Prosperity and success in the mind of a Muslim are not conآ­ceived as worldly affluence and a rich life only. It is to fulfil the worldly obligations in the way Allah the Exalted has prescribed to earn His satisآ­faction for ultimate peace and security of the soul in the next world. This life is short, the next is forever. Which one is worth satisfying? This might be significant to observe that both "this world" and "the next "are mentioned equally, 115 times each, in the Noble Qur'an.
We said that the entire universe, including humankind, has a purpose. Let us now see what the Glorious Qur'an says in this connection:
آ "And I have not created the jinn and the human except that theyshould worship (obey) Me." LI:56
آ Jinnkind and humankind are both free to choose, and it is up to them to follow the instructions of Allah the Exalted or not. The Munificent Qur'an teaches us that total submission to the Will of Allah the Exalted will make our spirit, intellect, and talents flourish towards perfection of our insight and toward the transformation of our "potential" abilities into "real" abilities.
آ This causes great pleasure, and constitutes a "real" success, which is but the reflection of our serving Allah the Exalted, and obeying Him like a slave.
آ If we are not obedient to Allah the Exalted, then we are a slave of our own wishes, and of satanic agents. The Glorious Qur'an is quite clear on the fate of such people. Let us examine the following two ayat:
آ "Have you then not seen him who takes his low (vain) desire for his god. And Allah has made him go astray having knowledge, and has sealed his hearing and his heart (understanding), and put a cover on his sight. Who can then guide him after Allah (has withdrawn guidance)? Will you not then be heedful?" XLV:23
آ It seems clear that selfish desires can seal Allah's guidance resulting in ignorance and going astray, no matter how intelligent and successful one may appear to be. And:
آ "Verily, Allah admits those who believe and do righteous deeds to Gardens beneath which rivers flow. While those who reject Allah (cover His words and disobey him) enjoy (this world) and eat as cattle eat. And the Fire is their abode." XLVII:12
آ Therefore, it appears that the enjoyments of humankind, the most honourآ­able part of creation, can become as low as those of animals when they choose to disobey Allah the Exalted. Choosing, by free will, not to reject, disobey and challenge Allah the Exalted seems to be the dividing line between mankind and animals. This total submission to the Will of Allah is the true meaning of Islam. Humankind adheres to it by free will while the rest of beings do it automatically.
آ Having come to this point, we now ask what is the secret formula and the procedure to achieve this position. The Glorious Qur'an has the answer:
آ "... And We have sent down to thee the Book explaining all things, a Guide, a Mercy and Glad Tidings to those who submit to the Will of Allah (Muslims)." XVI:89
آ This means that the Munificent Qur'an includes and explains everything humankind needs to know. Or:
آ آ " Nothing have We neglected in the Book " VI:38
آ And:
آ "There is no compulsion in religion, the Right way is just made clear from the wrong (by the Glorious Furqdn)..." II:256
آ Therefore according to the Glorious Qur'an Itself the secret formula to ultimate bliss can be found in this Book. Everything that humankind needs to know is in It and nothing is neglected in this Book of Guidance. Allah the Exalted leaves people free to choose after the Final Testament, al‑Furqan (the distinguisher between right and wrong), has been sent down to humankind.
آ The Glorious Qur'an is the "written" form, and the Life of Muhammad (SA) and the infallible Imams (PBUT all), is the "practical" form of guidance to the Straight Path for the ultimate and true pleasure, prosperity, peace and tranquillity (salam).
In my humble opinion, the most important issue in any religion is the quesآ­tion of Divine Scripture. This is the focal point of all ideas, concepts, rules and laws, social orders, important events and figures in that religion. This is why in the Holy Qur'an Allah the Exalted frequently talks about "people of the book".
Due to the paramount importance of the Scripture, the enemies of Islam have done their best to discount the value of the Glorious Qur'an. Maurice Bucaille in his book, The Origin of Man, says:
"As most people in the West have been brought up on misconceptions concerning Islam and the Qur'an; for a large part of my life, I myself was one such person .... As I grew up, I always thought that `Mahomet' was the author of the Qur'an; I remember seeing French translations bearing this information. I was invariably told that the `author of the Qur'an' simply compiled, in a slightly different form, stories of sacred history taken from the Bible; the `author' was said to have added or removed certain passages, while setting forth the principles and rules of the religion he himself had founded .... This description of the origins of the Qur'anic text, which is so out of touch with reality, might lead one immediately to assume that if there are scientific errors in the Bible, there must also be errors of this kind in the Qur'an! This is the natural conclusion to be drawn in such circumstances, it is based on misconception ...."
I hope that with this introductory book I have been able to draw a more representative picture of the Glorious Qur'an. It may be a drop in the ocean to remove the satanic misconceptions brought about by those who felt the Glorious Qur'an conflicted with their interests.
I hope I have been humbly able to explain the yardstick with which a Divine Scripture may be gauged. I sincerely feel sad, particularly for the young people seeking a way, to see that they become victims of Western propaganda against Islam and the Glorious Qur'an, and to see that they are deceived by some so‑called religions which have no Divine legitimacy. May Allah the Exalted be with them, protect them and guide them to the Straight Path. I hope this small contribution will be found helpful in this respect.
I have seen, and heard of, people who cannot bear the initial impact of the Glorious Qur'an when they open this Great Book for the first time. This fright often causes them to close the Book, and thus close to themselves that ocean of wisdom and blessings. I hope this book has served the purpose of providing a comprehensive image of the Glorious Qur'an, the perfected and the unique Divine Book, so that the reader may have some idea about what he or she should expect from this Noble Scripture. No doubt there are shortcomings in this treatise, as we, the created, are limited in our abilities.
This ends all that was intended to be included in this work, though there is no end when it comes to writing about the Noble Qur'an. May Allah bless this service, and all the good intentions that have been my motivations for it. Without His consent and will, nothing could have been accomآ­plished. So, thanks to Almighty Allah for His graceful inspiration and strength with which we have been able to produce this work. He is Sufficient and the best Guide.
May the peace and blessings of Allah the High, be on all nabiys of Allah, on the seal of the prophets and his kinsfolk, and upon those who transcend in following His Path.
15 Sha’ban [1] 1416, L.H.C.
17 Day 1374, S.H.C
7 January 1996, A.D.

Notes:
[1] This book was almost completed some six months ago, needing only a final review. For reasons unknown to me then, a host of pressing matters prevented me from accomplishing this small task. Irritated (naively), I set the target of 27th of Rajab for completion, a noble Holy Day, commemorating the Mab’ath of the Holy Prophet (PBUH) and the receipt of the first wahy, see A)19 on page 27. But serious unexpected matters still prevented me from finalising the work even by this date.
Today, I was pleasantly astonished when I put 15th of Sha’ban down as completion date! This is not a coincidence. I believe Allah the Exalted intended this sacred and blissful completion date for this work, and I did not know it. I cannot thank Him enough for granting me such a great blessing. The 27th of Rajab and the 15th of Sha’ban are both very honourable and important sacred dates. They both are as vital as ever today. The latter is a noble Holy Date, much‑celebrated as the birthday of Al‑Mahdi al‑Qa'im, the 12th infallible imam (A.F.), the Divine Saviour whose Noble manifestation shall guide the misguided to the Straight Path, dissolve all religious differences, and establish Almighty Allah's Universal code of justice and His world government on earth, in a true sense of Tawhid: One Allah, One din, One planet, One humankind, and One standard of Justice, i.e., One order of government for all. The gravity of today's laic world "order" and its associated oppression and double standard calls urgently for the much‑needed Noble manifestation of our Saviour. May Allah the Exalted grant me the potential and the honour to compile a presentation of this Munificent infallible holy personality, in English. Inshd Allah!