Verse 217 of Surah Al-Baqarah, as one of the pivotal verses of the Holy Quran, introduces the concept of fitnah (trial/temptation) in a profound and multilayered framework. This verse considers fitnah as a sin graver than killing and links it to the enemies efforts to divert the believers from their faith. The concept of fitnah, rooted in ancient sciences such as alchemy, is multifaceted and can be examined within theological, philosophical, psychological, and sociological domains. This treatise, adopting a scholarly and systematic approach, analyses this verse and its related concepts. By employing refined metaphors and spiritual allegories, it endeavours to elucidate the dimensions of this concept in a manner that is both clear and engaging for erudite audiences and researchers of religious sciences.
In the Holy Quran, fitnah is a key concept that manifests in diverse forms in humans, nature, and other beings. This term, which appears 65 times in the Quran30 times specifically as فِتْنَةٌdenotes trial and examination. Fitnah is a test accompanied by intensity and transformation, placing humans before divine challenges. Neglecting this concept results in entrapment within its snares; hence, a precise understanding of fitnah in both quantitative and qualitative aspects is essential.
The term fitnah (فتنتُ, فُتنت) in ancient sciences, especially alchemy, referred to the process of testing gold and silver with fire for purification or separation of impurities. Alchemy, alongside other sciences such as limya and simya, was a prominent discipline among ancient scholars, considered not as poetry or fantasy but as an empirical and operational science. Alchemists, by subjecting materials to fire in furnaces, attained insights into psychology, ethics, and anthropology. This interconnection between industry and human sciences demonstrates the fundamental role of empirical sciences in the formation of spiritual knowledge.
Ancient scholars, through their engagement in alchemical sciences, achieved profound understanding of human nature and ethics. Contrary to theologians and jurists confined to legal rulings, alchemists and sages explored the esoteric aspects and derived anthropology from within the craft. This linkage illustrates the deep influence of empirical sciences on the advancement of human sciences. Nevertheless, in the contemporary world, where empirical sciences have progressed significantly, seminaries need not pursue alchemy but should focus on human and contemporary issues.
Theologians and jurists, limited to legal rulings, have been unable to enter into esoteric sciences such as alchemy and anthropology. This limitation hindered their progress compared to sages and mystics who engaged with empirical and spiritual sciences. Today, religious knowledge should transcend individual fatwas and address macro and universal issues, issuing rulings aimed at societal health and prosperity.
Fitnah, as a key concept in the Holy Quran, has roots in ancient sciences such as alchemy. This concept, associated with trial and examination, draws inspiration from testing gold and silver with fire and places humans before divine challenges. Alchemists, through the nexus of industry and human sciences, achieved insights into psychology and ethics, while superficial theologians made little progress in this path. Contemporary religious knowledge must engage with grand and contemporary issues and overcome superficial limitations.
يَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنِ الشَّهْرِ الْحَرَامِ قِتَالٍ فِيهِ ۖ قُلْ قِتَالٌ فِيهِ كَبِيرٌ ۖ وَصَدٌّ عَنْ سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ وَكُفْرٌ بِهِ وَالْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ وَإِخْرَاجُ أَهْلِهِ مِنْهُ أَكْبَرُ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ ۚ وَالْفِتْنَةُ أَكْبَرُ مِنَ الْقَتْلِ ۗ وَلَا يَزَالُونَ يُقَاتِلُونَكُمْ حَتَّىٰ يَرُدُّوكُمْ عَنْ دِينِكُمْ إِنِ اسْتَطَاعُوا ۚ وَمَنْ يَرْتَدِدْ مِنْكُمْ عَنْ دِينِهِ فَيَمُتْ وَهُوَ كَافِرٌ فَأُولَٰئِكَ حَبِطَتْ أَعْمَالُهُمْ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةِ ۚ وَأُولَٰئِكَ أَصْحَابُ النَّارِ ۖ هُمْ فِيهَا خَالِدُونَ
Translation: They ask you about fighting during the sacred months. Say: Fighting therein is a grave sin, but preventing from the way of Allah, disbelieving in Him, obstructing access to the Sacred Mosque, and expelling its people therefrom are graver in the sight of Allah. And fitnah is greater than killing. And they will continue to fight you until they turn you back from your religion if they can. Whoever of you reverts from his religion and dies while he is a disbelieverthen those have their deeds rendered null in this world and the Hereafter, and they are the companions of the Fire, wherein they will abide eternally.
Verse 217 of Surah Al-Baqarah introduces fitnah as a sin graver than killing. This fitnah refers to the enemies endeavour to divert the believers from their faith, accompanied by continual warfare and pressure. Fitnah in this verse is a test marked by intensity and transformation, confronting humans with spiritual and material challenges. This concept is likened to a furnace that melts gold and purifies it, subjecting humans to divine trials so that the measure of their faith is revealed.
Fitnah, like fire in alchemy, melts resilient substances such as gold and silver to separate impurities. This metaphor presents fitnah as a transformative process imposing great challenges on humans. Unlike substances such as wheat and legumes, which burn away in fire, gold and silverdue to their resilienceare susceptible to fitnah. Similarly, humans, due to their existential resilience and impurities, become subject to divine trials.
