The Holy Quran, like a profound ocean, presents divine knowledge to humanity in the form of illuminating verses, among which verse 34 of Surah Al-Arf speaks eloquently about the lawfulness of creation concerning the finitude of nations and individuals. This verse, with a deep perspective on the philosophy of history and divine destiny and decree, unveils a truth that every entity, whether individual or society, possesses a limited period within the cycle of existence. This writing, through reflection on this verse and an expansion of its meanings, endeavours to elucidate its philosophical, religious, and social dimensions with clear and dignified language for truth-seeking audiences. Employing literary allusions and analogies, the meanings of the verse are presented in a coherent structure so as to illuminate the path to understanding the system of creation like a guiding light.
وَلِكُلِّ أُمَّةٍ أَجَلٌ ۖ فَإِذَا جَاءَ أَجَلُهُمْ لَا يَسْتَأْخِرُونَ سَاعَةً ۖ وَلَا يَسْتَقْدِمُونَ
For every nation, there is a fixed term; so when their term arrives, they neither delay it by an hour nor bring it forward.
The word Ummah in the Holy Quran refers to a collective of humans with a shared religious, ethnic, or social identity. This verse, emphasising لِكُلِّ أُمَّةٍ أَجَلٌ, expresses the lawfulness of the finitude of human societies. Just as every individual, like a flower in the garden of existence, has a limited period for blossoming, so too nations, akin to a forest of humans, possess a predetermined lifespan. This principle is rooted in the system of creation wherein every phenomenon, from human beings to societies, is caught within a cycle of beginning and end.
The lecture text, with a meticulous viewpoint, considers lifespan as applicable not only to individuals but also to nations. Just as an individuals death is inevitable like the extinguishing of a candle before the wind, the extinction of a nation is likewise certain, akin to the collapse of a grand edifice, occurring at its predetermined time. This metaphor beautifully illustrates that lifespan is a universal law applying equally to individuals and societies.
For example, an individuals death may occur due to old age, illness, or a sudden accident. Nations, such as those of Jesus, Moses, or Abraham (peace be upon them), come to an end after their course is completed. This end may coincide with the emergence of a new nation or internal degeneration. According to the lecture, the Islamic nation too will one day, perhaps after millennia, come to an end and give way to another reality.
This section, by clarifying the concept of lifespan (ajl), demonstrated that every individual and nation in the system of creation has a limited lifespan. This law, like an invisible thread, interlinks the destiny of humans and societies and attests to the divine inevitability of the finitude of beings.
The verse, through the phrase فَإِذَا جَاءَ أَجَلُهُمْ لَا يَسْتَأْخِرُونَ سَاعَةً وَلَا يَسْتَقْدِمُونَ, underscores the inevitability of lifespan. This phrase, like a golden key, opens the gateway to understanding divine destiny and decree. The lecture explains this principle through examples of individuals dying from illness or accidents, and the extinction of nations due to decline or historical upheavals.
For instance, a person bedridden with illness may have their life extended through medical means, yet when their appointed term arrives, no power can delay it. Nations, like the peoples of d or Thamd, when they reach decadence, fall like a tree whose roots have dried.
The lecture points to the influence of apparent factors such as medicine or accidents, stating these are merely channels for the realisation of lifespan, not determinants of it. For example, a person who dies due to improper medication or a sudden accident is, in reality, experiencing their destined lifespan. This perspective reflects, like a mirror, the role of human will alongside divine decree.
The inevitability of lifespan, as an unalterable law, governs the lives of individuals and nations. Apparent factors, such as medical tools or social behaviours, merely provide the context for the realisation of this lifespan, but its final timing is embedded in divine destiny and decree.
The lecture criticises viewpoints that conflate the end of nations with the Day of Resurrection, emphasising the eternity of the world. The world, as the manifestation of the Greatest Name of God, is eternal and everlasting, and does not perish with the extinction of nations or even with the occurrence of Resurrection. This view, like a breeze over a calm lake, guides the mind towards a deeper understanding of the system of creation.
For example, major changes such as global warming or migration to other planets are merely transformations in the form of the world, not its end. The lecture, citing verses like إِذَا الشَّمْسُ كُوِّرَتْ and إِذَا النُّجُومُ انْتَثَرَتْ, states that even with cosmic alterations, the world continues its existence.
This section, by clarifying the eternity of the world, showed that nations arise and vanish like waves on the surface of the ocean of existence, but the world itself, like the ocean, endures.
The lecture, referring to the nations of Jesus, Moses, and Abraham (peace be upon them), asserts that with the advent of each new prophet, the preceding nation comes to an end and adherence to the new religion becomes obligatory. This principle, like a stream of light, illuminates the truth of the unity of the divine religion.
The Holy Quran states in another verse:
إِنَّ الدِّينَ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ الْإِسْلَامُ
Indeed, the religion in the sight of God is Islam.
This verse points to the unity of the divine religion (Islam meaning submission), yet religious nations emerge and vanish like branches of an ancient tree across historical epochs. The Islamic nation too, will one day in a distant future, yield place to another reality.
The historical cycle of religions, like flowing rivers of knowledge, demonstrates that each nation in its time carries divine light but, upon the expiration of its lifespan, makes way for a new nation.
The lecture, by citing examples from societies, states that the conduct of nations, such as justice or oppression, influences their longevity. A government afflicted by corruption and tyranny falls sooner, like a diseased tree. This principle, like a mirror, reveals the role of collective will in the fate of societies.
This section, emphasising the role of social behaviours in the survival of nations, showed that justice, like pure water, sustains societys life, whereas oppression, like a lethal poison, leads to its extinction.
The lecture, with a critical viewpoint, highlights the weakness of religious science in subject identification. Subject identification is like a key to unlocking the gates of rulings, a prerequisite for issuing correct legal opinions. For example, discerning intoxication, insanity, or gender-related matters requires precise knowledge of subjects. The lecture, pointing to the incapacity in understanding new subjects such as intersex or transgender individuals, stresses the necessity of revising scientific methodologies.
The lecture criticises unsupported beliefs such as the prohibition of pork or the consumption of fish without scales. These beliefs, like dust upon the mirror of truth, result from the absence of subject identification. For instance, obesity in some societies is not due to pork consumption but due to overeating. This critique, like a breeze, removes the dust of ignorance from the face of rulings.
Subject identification, like a lamp in darkness, illuminates the path to issuing correct rulings. Religious science, to respond to contemporary needs, requires revision and precise understanding of subjects.
The lecture, referring to racial, gender, and biological diversity among humans, critiques stereotypical views such as the simple binary division of male and female. Humans, like a rainbow of creation, have been created in endless diversity. This diversity, like a garden full of various flowers, demands precise knowledge in religious and social sciences.
This section, emphasising the diversity of creation, demonstrated that precise understanding of humans is a prerequisite for religious rulings and sciences. This understanding acts as a bridge linking religion to lifes realities.
The lecture, referring to the traditional concept of Ajl Muallaq (sudden death such as accidents), states that every form of death is part of the destined lifespan. Apparent factors such as human errors or accidents merely serve as the means for realising lifespan. This view, like a mirror, displays the role of human will alongside divine decree.
Lifespan, like an inevitable destination, arrives at its appointed time. Apparent factors merely smooth the path to this destination.
The interpretation of verse 34 of Surah Al-Arf, like a brilliant gem, reveals the lawfulness of creation in the finitude of nations and individuals. This verse, with eloquent expression, speaks of divine order in the life and death of beings. The lecture, with a deep and critical perspective, not only elucidated the meanings of this verse but also, through critiquing the weaknesses of religious science and emphasising subject identification, opened a new path towards a more precise understanding of religious rulings and knowledge. The world, like a boundless ocean, is eternal; however, nations and individuals, like waves upon its surface, arise and vanish. This writing, with lofty language and a coherent structure, endeavoured to present these insights in a clear and pleasant manner for truth-seekers.
Under the supervision of Sadegh Khademi
