Verses 73 and 74 of Surah Al-Baqarah, continuing the discourse concerning the Children of Israel, delve into profound topics within theology, philosophy, and the human sciences. Verse 73, by referencing the revival of the dead in the incident of the cows slaughter, demonstrates the unparalleled divine power to resurrect the dead and manifest signs for human contemplation. Verse 74, by describing the hardness of hearts and comparing them to stones, analyses the spiritual and scientific complexities of the human heart, offering profound lessons for individual and societal reform. These verses, with their lofty and multilayered expression, emphasise the necessity of scientific transformation in understanding religion and caution against the hardening of the heart. This treatise, adopting a scientific and academic approach, analyses the content of these verses and elucidates the Quranic messages with a dignified language suitable for learned audiences. The objective is not only a deeper comprehension of the verses but also the provision of strategies for scientific and spiritual advancement of the Islamic community under Quranic guidance.
فَقُلْنَا اضْرِبُوهُ بِبَعْضِهَا كَذَلِكَ يُحْيِي اللَّهُ الْمَوْتَى وَيُرِيكُمْ آيَاتِهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَعْقِلُونَ
Then We said: Strike it with a part of it. Thus does Allah revive the dead and manifest His signs to you, so that you may reason.
Verse 73 of Surah Al-Baqarah, in continuation of the incident of the cows slaughter, alludes to the divine command for the revival of the dead. This verse, with clear wording, demonstrates the boundless power of God in resurrecting the dead and exhibiting signs for human guidance. The structure of the verse comprises three key components: the divine command (Strike it), the manifestation of divine power (Allah revives the dead), and the ultimate objective (so that you may reason). This sequence offers a roadmap for understanding divine guidance, commencing with adherence to instructions and culminating in reasoning and knowledge. From a rhetorical perspective, this structure establishes the connection between action and intellect as the two wings of a believers guidance.
The command strike it with a part of it refers to the use of a portion of the cows body to revive the dead. Theologically, this signifies Gods unparalleled power to restore life. The resurrection of the dead is not merely a miracle affirming divine truth but also an invitation to reflection on Gods signs. This miracle acts as a torch illuminating the darkness of doubt and guiding humanity towards reasoning.
The phrase so that you may reason indicates the ultimate aim of the verse: an invitation to reason and deep comprehension of divine verses. Philosophically, reasoning is the human faculty to grasp divine realities and establish a connection with knowledge. This invitation calls believers to ponder divine signs and avoid superficiality. Reasoning serves as the key that opens the doors to divine knowledge.
The miracle of resurrecting the dead is presented as a divine sign to stimulate intellect and faith. Theologically, this miracle not only manifests Gods power but also invites human reason to comprehend divine verses. This relationship acts as a bridge linking faith and intellect.
Verse 73 of Surah Al-Baqarah, by emphasising the revival of the dead and inviting to reason, elucidates divine power and the role of intellect in human guidance. The verse calls believers to comply with divine commands and reflect on signs, presenting reasoning as the ultimate objective of guidance. This message offers profound lessons for strengthening faith and knowledge in light of divine verses.
ثُمَّ قَسَتْ قُلُوبُكُمْ مِنْ بَعْدِ ذَلِكَ فَهِيَ كَالْحِجَارَةِ أَوْ أَشَدُّ قَسْوَةً وَإِنَّ مِنَ الْحِجَارَةِ لَمَا يَتَفَجَّرُ مِنْهُ الْأَنْهَارُ وَإِنَّ مِنْهَا لَمَا يَشَّقَّقُ فَيَخْرُجُ مِنْهُ الْمَاءُ
Then your hearts hardened after that; they became like stones or even harder. Indeed, from among stones there emerge rivers, and from them springs gush forth water.
Verse 74, owing to its scientific and philosophical depth, is content-wise heavy and challenges human analytical capacity. By describing the hardness of hearts and comparing them to stones, this verse introduces multilayered discussions in theology, philosophy, and natural sciences. Scientifically, this complexity is an invitation to meticulous and interdisciplinary examination of Quranic concepts.
Todays world, unlike the past, requires advanced scientific analyses. Traditional exegetical methods, which primarily focused on text preservation and literary matters, no longer suffice for contemporary scientific needs. This difference is akin to the gap between past small torches and todays need for the sun of science.
The Islamic community, particularly the Shia, has lagged in the sciences. Acknowledging this reality can serve as motivation for scientific transformation. This backwardness resembles ashes that must be rekindled by the flame of scientific endeavour.
Acceptance of scientific backwardness can lead to effort and transformation in the Shia community. This transformation must begin at the individual level, analogous to a seed planted in the soil of every persons existence, growing into a robust tree through effort.
Past scholars, lacking necessary tools and sciences, could not provide deep scientific analyses and mainly acted as custodians of religion. This limitation is akin to a lock whose key lies in the hands of future generations equipped with modern scientific instruments.
Past scholars such as Sheikh Saduq, Tusi, Majlisi, and Faiz preserved religious narrations and texts to prevent the loss of religious heritage. This custodianship resembles guarding a treasure preserved for subsequent generations.
Scholars maintained narrations, whether accurate or flawed, to safeguard religious heritage. This preservation is like storing water in a desert of ignorance for future generations.
Due to the absence of tools and sciences, past scholars could not analyse the truths and characteristics of narrations profoundly. This lack resembles fertile land left barren because of missing agricultural implements.
The preservation of religious texts by scholars aimed to enable future generations to analyse and extract scientific results. This purpose serves as a bridge linking the past to the future.
Past exegeses mainly concentrated on text preservation and morphological, syntactical, and rhetorical matters, with limited focus on analysing religious truths. This state resembles a painting with only preliminary outlines drawn, needing profound colouring.
Due to scientific incapacity and absence of tools, past exegeses could not fully examine religious criteria and truths. This incapacity is like a boat adrift in the sea of knowledge without oars.
In works of scholars such as ib al-Kifyah, inability to provide precise definitions is evident due to the complexity of concepts and lack of scientific tools. This inability is akin to trying to see stars in broad daylight.
The failure to define religious concepts results from their intrinsic complexity and the absence of scientific methodologies in the past. This challenge is like a puzzle requiring modern instruments for resolution.
Traditional religious science, focusing solely on rulings without attention to subject identification and criteria, has limited scientific value. This critique serves as a warning to reassess the methods of religious knowledge production.
Religious science, to be valuable, must include subject identification, criteria analysis, and rulings understanding. This triad constitutes three pillars that uphold the edifice of religious science.
The discussed verses, concerning the hardness of the heart and types of stones, necessitate profound scientific analyses. This analysis resembles exploring a mine abundant with countless gems of knowledge.
Verse 74 classifies stones into three categories: the Hbit (fearful), the Tafajjar (gushing rivers), and the Shaqq (splitting open). This categorisation, from a scientific standpoint, refers to the diversity of natural and spiritual features of stones.
The discussion of stone types is scientifically and philosophically intricate and demands detailed examination of their natural and spiritual properties. This complexity is like a riddle solvable only through interdisciplinary knowledge.
Many Persian translations of the Quran, including the most recent, contain numerous errors due to lack of expertise. This critique functions as a caution regarding the necessity of precision in conveying divine meanings.
Non-specialized translations, due to lack of awareness and expertise, fail to accurately convey the Quranic meanings. This error is akin to darkness that dims the light of Quranic knowledge.
The differences among the stones of awe-inspiring, eruptive, and wretched types require scientific analysis to identify their natural and spiritual characteristics. This difference is like the diverse colours painted on the canvas of nature and knowledge.
The heart in the Holy Quran, unlike the physical heart (such as that of a sheep), is a complex and multilayered concept that transcends the mere pumping of blood. This concept is like a gateway that opens towards knowledge and faith.
The sheeps heart is firm, fissured, and torn, whereas the Quranic heart bears multiple attributes distinct from the biological heart. This difference is like the distance between the material body and the spiritual soul.
The Quranic heart cannot be merely the bodys pump, because it possesses many attributes incompatible with this definition. This inadequacy is like attempting to pour an ocean into a small vessel.
Some equate the heart with the brain, soul, or self, but these definitions are erroneous due to lack of scientific research. This error is like being lost on a path without a precise map.
The absence of laboratories and empirical methods in the past prevented the precise definition of the heart and Quranic concepts. This absence is like a journey undertaken without navigation instruments.
Recently, humanity has succeeded in creating a single-celled living organism, which indicates scientific progress and presents a challenge to religious science. This progress is like a step that has expanded the boundaries of human knowledge.
Traditional definitions (such as the heart being the sole of the foot or a wall) are baseless due to lack of scientific research. This critique is like an invitation to reconsider concepts using scientific tools.
Religious science must adopt a scientific approach and pursue scientific digestion in its research. This necessity is like a seed that must be planted in the soil of science to bear the fruit of knowledge.
The hardness of the heart means stiffness and rigidity that are harmful to the heart, unlike stone whose hardness is intrinsic and positive. This hardness is like ice that deprives the heart of the warmth of faith.
The heart must be flexible and capable to perform its spiritual role. This flexibility is like the wind that propels the sail of the ship of faith.
Old machines were heavy and inflexible, whereas modern machines are light and flexible. The heart too must be flexible to avoid hardness. This analogy is like a mirror reflecting the necessity of hearts flexibility.
The hardness of the heart forms gradually over time, not suddenly. This gradual nature is like a drop that slowly perforates a stone.
The phrase "Min Bada Dhalik" refers to all previous miracles and signs, including those of Moses and the cow. This reference is like a thread connecting all the verses of guidance.
The hardness of the heart requires a long period, unlike some sins which occur quickly. This time-consuming aspect is like a journey during which negligence gradually hardens the heart.
The hardness is like a drop that gradually drills a stone, and inappropriate actions gradually harden the heart. This analogy is like a mirror showing the process of hardness.
"Thumma" in the verse emphasises the time gap and the significance of hardness, separating it from previous verses. This structure is like a line that delineates time on the path of guidance.
"Min Bada Dhalik" encompasses all past miracles and considers hardness as a result of negligence towards all of them. This analysis is like a map showing the path of hardness in the history of Bani Israel.
Some interpretations limit "Min Bada Dhalik" to a specific miracle without justification and arbitrarily. This critique is like a warning against unsupported exegeses.
The hardness of the heart is not merely the result of a single sin but arises from the accumulation of neglecting recommended acts, obligatory duties, and committing prohibited and disliked deeds. This relationship is like soil contaminated by the seeds of sin.
Hardness is like brackish water that requires a threshold and is not realised by a minor sin. This threshold is like a line demarcating the boundary between sin and hardness.
Although hardness is gradual, until it reaches the threshold, it is not termed hardness. This process is like water that is not called brackish until the vessel is full.
Hardness occurs more among those knowledgeable in religious sciences due to negligence in acting upon their knowledge. This point is like a warning to scholars that knowledge without action leads to hardness.
Verse 74 of Surah Al-Baqarah, by elucidating the hardness of the heart and comparing it with stones, provides profound lessons in theological, philosophical, and scientific fields. Hardness results from gradual negligence of divine signs, which accumulates faults and neglect of religious duties. This verse, by referring to different types of stones, draws attention to the scientific and spiritual complexities of the human heart and emphasises the necessity of its flexibility. The scientific and philosophical analyses of this verse invite reconsideration of interpretative methods and the production of powerful religious knowledge.
The scientific backwardness of the Islamic society, especially in religious fields, necessitates transformation and reconsideration of methods of knowledge production. This transformation is like a breeze that must sweep away the ashes of backwardness and ignite the flame of knowledge.
Religious science must pioneer in producing comprehensive knowledge to respond to contemporary scientific and spiritual needs. This role is like a bridge that guides society from the darkness of ignorance to the light of knowledge.
Traditional methods of religious science, due to focus on preservation and lack of deep analysis, fail to address todays challenges. This critique is like an alarm for reconstructing the religious scientific system.
Religious science must, through scientific digestion and empirical methods, produce dynamic and efficient knowledge. This digestion is like a current that turns science from stagnation to dynamism.
Religious scholars must, by producing comprehensive knowledge and acting upon it, guide society towards felicity. This responsibility is like a heavy burden placed on the shoulders of the scholars.
Excessive vacations in the religious scientific system have led to reduced productivity and disruption in the learning process. This critique is like a warning for order and continuity in knowledge production.
The story of the late Haji Sabzevari, who continued studying despite heavy snow, is a model for relentless scientific endeavour. This model is like a torch that lights the path of learning.
The religious educational system must be reconsidered with a comprehensive and scientific approach to meet contemporary needs. This reconsideration is like rebuilding a structure whose foundations have weakened.
The challenges of religious science, including scientific backwardness, traditional methods, and excessive vacations, require transformation and reconsideration. Verses 73 and 74 of Surah Al-Baqarah, by emphasising reasoning and avoidance of hardness, offer solutions for producing dynamic religious knowledge. Religious scholars, through scientific digestion and practical application of knowledge, can lead society towards felicity.
Verses 73 and 74 of Surah Al-Baqarah, with profound and guiding expression, offer deep lessons in theological, philosophical, and scientific fields. Verse 73, by explaining the revival of the dead, shows divine power and the role of reasoning in guidance. Verse 74, by describing the hardness of the heart and comparing it with stones, addresses the spiritual and scientific complexities of the human heart and warns against the gradual process of hardness. These verses call religious science to scientific transformation, empirical digestion, and comprehensive knowledge production. The challenges of the Islamic society, including scientific backwardness and traditional methods, can be resolved through reform in the educational system and relentless efforts by scholars. These verses are like a sun that illuminates the path to felicity with its light, provided it is walked upon with reasoning and action.
Supervised by: Sadegh Khademi
