The Holy Quran, like an inexhaustible ocean of wisdom and knowledge, guides humanity towards the Divine Truth through its verses. The third verse of Surah Al-Baqarah, Those who believe in the unseen, establish prayer, and spend out of what We have provided for them, as one of the foundational verses of this Surah, places faith in the unseen at the centre of the piety of the God-conscious. It opens a window to understanding monotheism and humanitys connection with the Divine Essence. This work, relying on scholarly lectures and theological, philosophical, and mystical analyses, interprets this verse with an exalted language and a systematic structure, elucidating its concepts for specialist audiences and academic environments. Employing allegories and metaphors, the text endeavours to depict the depth of Quranic meanings within a scientific and universal framework, without diminishing the sublime dignity of the Divine Word.
In the third verse of Surah Al-Baqarah, the unseen is introduced as an epitome of the Lord and placed at the pinnacle of the faith of the God-conscious. This description constitutes the axis of religion and monotheism, and faith in it forms the foundation of genuine piety. The unseen is like a key of mystery that connects humanity to a truth beyond their realm of perception.
The description of the unseen, as a sign of the inner reality of the Divine Essence, is distinct from the manifest names such as the names of the idols of the polytheists. If instead of the unseen, a manifest name had been used, there would have been the risk of sharing with the names of idols, thereby compromising the purity of monotheism. The unseen, like an inner light, is safeguarded against any confusion with polytheism.
The choice of the description unseen rather than manifest names such as Allah, Ar-Rahman, or Al-Karim, arises from the need for clarification and explication of manifest names. Each manifest name carries a specific determination and requires explanation, whereas the unseen, as a comprehensive descriptor, directly points to the undefined Divine Essence and is free from specification.
Had a manifest name been used, the Prophet or the Holy Quran would have needed to explain its meaning. But the unseen, like a mirror reflecting the Divine truth without determination, requires no such explanation.
The unseen exists within the realm of the ignorance of creation and points to an existential truth about which humanity lacks complete knowledge. This ignorance does not signify the absence of truth, but rather the limitations of human cognition. Faith in the unseen is the acceptance of this truth that transcends human perception.
The phrase Those who believe in the unseen signifies belief in the undefined essence, reality, existence, and Divine actuality that lies beyond human knowledge and comprehension. This faith connects humanity to an infinite truth that transcends their perception.
Following faith in the unseen, revelation, as mentioned in the verse In what has been revealed to you and what was revealed before you, explicates the names, attributes, and reality of the Lord. Revelation is like a torch that dispels the darkness of ignorance and reveals the details of the truth of the unseen.
Unlike manifest names such as Ar-Rahman, Ar-Rahim, or Al-Karim, the description of the unseen encompasses all Divine names from unity to multiplicity, essential to active, and beautiful to majestic. This comprehensiveness renders the unseen an unparalleled descriptor that encompasses all Divine dimensions.
For example, if Ar-Rahman were used, it would include only the names of beauty and exclude names such as the Killer (May God kill them) or decisive and severe names. However, the unseen, like a vast container, embraces all these names within itself.
No manifest name, even Al-Samad (meaning the Master and Greatest), can describe all Divine names. For example, Al-Samad cannot include names such as the Killer, decisive, or severe, whereas the unseen possesses this capacity.
Due to its existential nature, the unseen cannot refer to non-existence. This descriptor affirms the existence, reality, and Divine essence while taking into account the ignorance of creation. The unseen is like a mirror reflecting the truth of Divine existence, without humanity possessing complete knowledge of it.
The Holy Quran is a book of Divine engineering in which every word and verse is placed precisely in its due position. Replacing the unseen with any other name disrupts this order. The choice of the unseen is an indication of the structural miracle of the Quran, as no other name can substitute it.
The name Allah, as a compound name (Al + Ilah) encompassing attributes of majesty and beauty, cannot replace the unseen, since its concept and exemplar lack the comprehensiveness of the unseen. Common interpretations regarding Allah, which regard it as a name gathering attributes, lack necessary precision and cannot substitute the comprehensiveness of the unseen.
The Holy Quran, as a book of revelation and Divine geometry, has chosen the unseen due to its comprehensiveness and exclusivity in describing all names. No name, not even Bismillah ir-Rahman ir-Rahima compound of several namescan replace the unseen.
The believers heart, like a glass filled with water or pure honey, is filled with faith in the unseen and no virus or anxiety can penetrate it. This metaphor introduces faith as a state that fills and repels all but God. The narration Faith does not enter the heart of a person until he has certainty in what is with God more than what is in his hand emphasises this reality.
The true believer, due to the fullness of his heart with faith in the unseen, is unaffected by material and spiritual threats such as expulsion or execution. This resilience, as mentioned in the narration The believer is like hardened iron: if killed and then resurrected, he never changes, is a consequence of faith in the unseen.
Faith in the unseen manifests through courage, dignity, kindness, compassion, and social conduct. The absence of these traits is a sign of weak faith. The true believer neither fears threats nor attaches to material promises, as his heart is replete with faith in the unseen.
One must, in solitude and without pride in formal acts such as prayer or study, strengthen faith in the unseen so that the heart is freed from anxiety. A heart devoid of faith is like a perforated sack into which whatever is poured is lost.
In the Holy Quran, the word faith is mentioned 871 times, piety 218 times, and certainty 28 times. These statistics indicate the importance of faith and piety and the paucity of certainty in comparison. By calculation, 97.8% of people succeed in faith and piety, but only 2.7% attain certainty. This mathematical analysis reflects the Quranic precision in elucidating the levels of faith.
The educational system of religious knowledge, due to the absence of scientific methods and concentration on formal debates, fails to realise practical faith in the unseen. This approach, sometimes limited to fruitless discussions such as memorising the Quran with multiple narrations, cannot meet the epistemic and practical needs of society.
Apparent problems, such as those related to Prophets or Imams, stem from lack of knowledge of God. Solving the problem through the unseen resolves all issues, since everything returns to the Divine Essence. True faith manifests in social and ethical conduct, and claims of faith without action are worthless.
The exegesis of the third verse of Surah Al-Baqarah, focusing on the description of the unseen, displays the profound theological, philosophical, and mystical depth of the Holy Quran in elucidating monotheistic faith. The unseen, as a comprehensive and unparalleled descriptor, encompasses all Divine names from essential to active, and no manifest name, even Allah or Al-Samad, can replace it. This description connects humanity to a truth beyond their perception, and faith in it protects the believers heart from anxiety and evil. Revelation, as a complement to faith, explicates the details of this truth. The believers heart, like pure honey, is filled with faith in the unseen and remains unaffected by material and spiritual threats. Quranic statistical analysis, emphasising the importance of faith and piety and the scarcity of certainty, reveals the mathematical precision of the Divine Word. Critique of the religious educational system highlights the necessity of self-improvement and strengthening practical faith. Faith in the unseen guides humanity towards courage, dignity, and social conduct, liberating them from spiritual emptiness and anxiety. This exegesis, offering a scientific and universal framework, provides a pathway for deeper understanding of the Holy Quran and realisation of true faith.
Supervised by Sadegh Khademi
