Tafsir of Chapter 024 Verse 35: The Verse of Light [Part 2] Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah ...نُّورٌ عَلَىٰ نُورٍ يَهْدِي اللَّهُ لِنُورِهِ مَن يَشَاءُ وَيَضْرِبُ اللَّهُ الْأَمْثَالَ لِلنَّاسِ وَاللَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَلِيمٌ light upon light Similarly, the heart of the believer is so illumined that he could almost know God solely by way of his own God-given nature [fitra] and his own intelligence, though he had no fuel. Then the fuel of revelation reaches him, gives glad tidings to his heart and mixes with his own radiance. The light of revelation is added to the light of his own God-given nature, and the two combine to become light upon light. He had almost been able to speak of Allah without ever hearing anything about Him. When he hears utterances which his own nature has already perceived, it becomes light upon light. Such is the case of the believer who first experiences the truth in a general way through his God-given nature, and then hears the words brought by [the Prophet] which explain the details. His faith is thus founded on the testimony of revelation and the testimony of his God-given nature. Let a person of insight reflect on this great verse and on how it can be applied according to this noble meaning. Allah mentions His light in the heavens and on earth, and His light in the hearts of His believing servants. - There is intelligible light, perceived by insight, illuminating inner visions and hearts [an-nur al-maqul al-mashhud bil-basair wal-qulub]. - And there is the physical light [an-nur al-mahsus], perceived by the faculty of sight, illuminating the upper and the lower regions of the world: two sublime lights, one more sublime than the other. - When physical light is absent from some place, no human being or animal can live there. Animal life is engendered only where there is light. It cannot thrive in dark places where no light shines. And so, a people for whom the light of revelation and faith has gone out, and a heart in which this light has gone out, must be dead, no more alive than the most lifeless place on earth. - In His words, Allah connects life with light: أَوَمَن كَانَ مَيْتًا فَأَحْيَيْنَاهُ وَجَعَلْنَا لَهُ نُورًا يَمْشِي بِهِ فِي النَّاسِ كَمَن مَّثَلُهُ فِي الظُّلُمَاتِ لَيْسَ بِخَارِجٍ مِّنْهَا كَذَٰلِكَ زُيِّنَ لِلْكَافِرِينَ مَا كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ Or is one who was dead, and whom We gave life and made for him a light by which to walk among people, like one who is in a darkness from which he cannot emerge? [Al-Quran 6:122] Or His words, وَكَذَٰلِكَ أَوْحَيْنَا إِلَيْكَ رُوحًا مِّنْ أَمْرِنَا مَا كُنتَ تَدْرِي مَا الْكِتَابُ وَلَا الْإِيمَانُ وَلَٰكِن جَعَلْنَاهُ نُورًا نَّهْدِي بِهِ مَن نَّشَاءُ... Thus have We inspired you with a spirit from Our command; you had known neither the Book nor faith, but We made it a light by which We guide those of Our servants whom We Will... [Al-Quran 42:52] - About this second verse, it has been said that the pronoun it refers to #command, or to #faith, but the correct reading is that it refers to #spirit. Thus, We made that spirit with which We inspired you a light. In other words, we say spirit when life is brought forth, and light when radiance and illumination are brought together. - But the two are inseparable. If life exists through the Spirit, so does light; and where there is light, there is also light. So the heart of one who does not accept this Spirit is dead and benighted, as dead as one whose soul has separated from his body. [- Al-Wabil al-Sayyib min al-Kalim al-Tayyib]
Posted on: Tue, 25 Nov 2014 11:33:28 +0000
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