Verse 259 of Surah Al-Baqarah, by describing a profound human encounter with Divine Power, opens a gateway towards understanding the concepts of death, resurrection, and knowledge of God's limitless ability. This verse narrates the story of an individual who passed by a ruined city and, astonished by how God could revive it, underwent a divine experience. This treatise, relying on a meticulous and scholarly analysis of the verse, explores its philosophical, mystical, and social concepts, and critically examines religious educational systems while proposing strategies for scientific and spiritual transformation. The aim is not only to elucidate the verse's content but also to invite inquiry, deep reflection, and knowledge production in alignment with the Holy Qur'an. This text, composed in a refined language and systematic structure, is intended for highly educated audiences and researchers in religious sciences.
أَوْ كَالَّذِي مَرَّ عَلَىٰ قَرْيَةٍ وَهِيَ خَاوِيَةٌ عَلَىٰ عُرُوشِهَا قَالَ أَنَّىٰ يُحْيِي هَٰذِهِ اللَّهُ بَعْدَ مَوْتِهَا ۖ فَأَمَاتَهُ اللَّهُ مِائَةَ عَامٍ ثُمَّ بَعَثَهُ ۖ قَالَ كَمْ لَبِثْتَ ۖ قَالَ لَبِثْتُ يَوْمًا أَوْ بَعْضَ يَوْمٍ ۖ قَالَ بَلْ لَبِثْتَ مِائَةَ عَامٍ ۖ فَانْظُرْ إِلَىٰ طَعَامِكَ وَشَرَابِكَ لَمْ يَتَسَنَّهْ ۖ وَانْظُرْ إِلَىٰ حِمَارِكَ ۖ وَلِنَجْعَلَكَ آيَةً لِلنَّاسِ ۖ وَانْظُرْ إِلَى الْعِظَامِ كَيْفَ نُنْشِزُهَا ثُمَّ نَكْسُوهَا لَحْمًا ۚ فَلَمَّا تَبَيَّنَ لَهُ قَالَ أَعْلَمُ أَنَّ اللَّهَ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ (البقرة: 259)
Or [consider] the one who passed by a town which had fallen into ruin upon its roofs. He said: "How will Allah bring this to life after its death?" So Allah caused him to die for a hundred years, then raised him again. He said: "How long have you tarried?" He said: "I have tarried a day or part of a day." He said: "No, you have tarried a hundred years. Look at your food and your drink; they have not decayed. And look at your donkey; and We will make you a sign to the people. And look at the bones, how We raise them and clothe them with flesh." When this was clear to him, he said: "I know that Allah is over all things competent."
This verse presents a remarkable narrative of a devout human beings encounter with the boundless power of God. His question (أَنَّىٰ يُحْيِي هَٰذِهِ اللَّهُ بَعْدَ مَوْتِهَا) is not born out of denial but from wonderment and inquisitiveness, indicating a dynamic and searching mind. In response, God guides him to a profound experience of death and resurrection to embed the knowledge of Divine power within him. The believers reply to Gods question (لَبِثْتُ يَوْمًا أَوْ بَعْضَ يَوْمٍ) and the Divine correction (بَلْ لَبِثْتَ مِائَةَ عَامٍ) signify the distinction between human perception and Divine reality. This difference forms the basis for a philosophical discourse on the nature of perception and reality.
Verse 259 of Surah Al-Baqarah, by narrating an empirical experience of death and resurrection, emphasises the infinite power of God. The verse not only elucidates philosophical and mystical concepts but also invites inquiry, opening a pathway for a deeper understanding of truth before humankind. Its narrative structure, emphasising the Divine acts (فَأَمَاتَهُ اللَّهُ and ثُمَّ بَعَثَهُ), introduces the believer as a sign for humanity.
One of the pivotal points in interpreting this verse is the distinction between news (akhbr) and expression (insh). News is a proposition that can be true or false, such as a claim about the death or life of a person. Expression, however, is the articulation of inner states and perceptions exempt from judgements of truthfulness. The believers response (لَبِثْتُ يَوْمًا أَوْ بَعْضَ يَوْمٍ) is an expression reflecting his subjective feeling of times passage rather than a factual news statement conflicting with the objective reality (one hundred years). This distinction serves as a key to understanding the difference between human perception and Divine reality.
In philosophy, validity and invalidity exist in degrees. A proposition can be correct, but there are higher or lower levels of correctness. This principle also applies to Divine knowledge. Knowledge of God in His active attributes (Divine actions) and essential attributes differ, yet both are correct. The believers perception of one day or part thereof represents a level of reality consistent with the Divine truth of one hundred years. This relativity teaches us to avoid absolute judgements about truth and to acknowledge levels of knowledge.
The essential and active names of God reflect different aspects. God, in the aspect of essential names, holds a station different from that in the active names, yet both aspects manifest a single truth. This comprehensiveness allows the believer to perceive God in a particular way in one level of perception and differently at another, without either being erroneous.
The philosophical and mystical analysis of the verse, emphasising the distinction between news and expression, levels of validity, and the comprehensiveness of Divine names, shows that the believers response is not an error but a reflection of his mental perception. This analysis teaches us that human knowledge can approach Divine truth at different levels, provided it is accompanied by inquiry and reflection.
A central criticism in this exegesis is directed at the condition of religious educational systems. The term "mixed-level grouping" (al-wafiyyah), derived from verse 243 of Surah Al-Baqarah (أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى الَّذِينَ خَرَجُوا مِنْ دِيَارِهِمْ وَهُمْ أُلُوفٌ حَذَرَ الْمَوْتِ), refers to disorder and the intermingling of different academic levels. In religious schools, students with diverse knowledge levelsfrom beginners to advancedare gathered in one class, which impedes scientific progress. This disorder resembles a society where individuals mingle without a clear goal and out of fear.
أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى الَّذِينَ خَرَجُوا مِنْ دِيَارِهِمْ وَهُمْ أُلُوفٌ حَذَرَ الْمَوْتِ فَقَالَ لَهُمُ اللَّهُ مُوتُوا ثُمَّ أَحْيَاهُمْ ۚ إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَذُو فَضْلٍ عَلَى النَّاسِ وَلَٰكِنَّ أَكْثَرَ النَّاسِ لَا يَشْكُرُونَ (البقرة: 243)
Have you not considered those who left their homes in thousands, fearing death? Allah said to them, "Die," then brought them back to life. Indeed, Allah is gracious to the people, but most people are not grateful.
Unlike verse 259, where the believers experience of death and resurrection was without suffering and peaceful, verse 243 narrates a group fleeing from fear of death, whose death was accompanied by hardship. This contrast reflects two types of encounters with Divine power: one stemming from inquisitiveness and the other from fear and disorder.
Religious educational systems have confined themselves to repeating past memorised knowledge instead of cultivating scholars capable of critical thinking and innovation. Their writings often consist of compilations of previous sources lacking originality. This state, termed as herbaceousness (alafiyyt), indicates the absence of genuine scientific production. A true scholar presents original findings succinctly rather than amassing rote knowledge.
Inquiry is a defining characteristic of a genuine scholar. The learned repeats memorised content, but the scholar, through thinking and questioning, attains new understanding of truth. Verse 259, emphasising the believers question, teaches that an inquisitive mind is key to attaining knowledge and Divine power. Religious educational systems must nurture this inquisitiveness in students to foster innovation beyond repetition.
The critique of religious educational systems, highlighting mixed-level grouping and memorisation repetition, underscores the necessity for reform. Mixed-level grouping impedes scientific progress, and inquisitiveness is the principal means to cultivate true scholars. This section, by comparing verses 259 and 243, demonstrated that order, purposefulness, and reflection are prerequisites for scientific and spiritual success.
The Holy Qur'an is a book encompassing both knowledge and power. Verse 259, emphasising knowledge of Divine power (أَعْلَمُ أَنَّ اللَّهَ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ), demonstrates that profound understanding of the Qur'an can lead to knowledge and power in the contemporary world. By illustrating the experience of death and resurrection, this verse teaches that God is the primary agent of life and death and that humans can reach this truth through inquiry.
One key lesson from this verse is a critique of philosophers view of phenomena as instantaneous. All phenomena, like the unfolding of a flower bud, are gradual, although this gradualness may be imperceptible to human observation. This principle teaches that knowledge without careful and methodical observation lacks validity. Religious educational systems must adopt scientific methods to study phenomena meticulously.
Religious educational systems, as heirs of the Prophets, must possess scientific and practical power. This power is not in repeating Qur'anic stories but in scientific and
