of Nokounam, may his sanctity be exalted (Session 1518)
Surah Yunus, as one of the Meccan chapters of the Holy Quran, addresses fundamental issues of faith, doubt, hypocrisy, and divine guidance with profound and eloquent expression. Verses 94 to 98 of this Surah, referencing the fate of the people of Yunus and warning those who deny the divine signs, invite humanity to contemplate the essence of faith and to abstain from inner corruption. This treatise, through a deep examination of these verses, elucidates the concepts of doubt, hypocrisy, loss, and the necessity of divine knowledge, employing spiritual metaphors to guide the human being towards the comprehension of truth and deliverance from error. The structure of this text, organised into coherent sections, presents the main content of the lecture and its exegetical analyses clearly and systematically.
The opening verses of this section invite mankind to dispel doubt through contemplation of prior heavenly scriptures. These verses, while ostensibly addressing the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him), in reality speak to communities and individuals who harbour scepticism towards the veracity of divine revelation.
فَإِن كُنتَ فِي شَكٍّ مِّمَّا أَنزَلْنَا إِلَيْكَ فَاسْأَلِ الَّذِينَ يَقْرَءُونَ الْكِتَابَ مِن قَبْلِكَ ۚ لَقَدْ جَاءَكَ الْحَقُّ مِن رَّبِّكَ فَلَا تَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الْمُمْتَرِينَ
So if you are in doubt concerning that which We have revealed to you, then ask those who have been reading the Book before you. Indeed, the truth has come to you from your Lord; therefore, do not be among the doubters.
This verse, with clear and compelling wording, invites humanity to seek truth through dialogue with the knowledgeable of previous scriptures. It is as if the Holy Quran, like a luminous lamp, illuminates the path to truth and dispels every ambiguity from the heart. This invitation not only emphasises the authenticity of revelation but also attests to the continuity of divine messages throughout history, as if all heavenly books, like interconnected links of a chain, guide mankind towards a singular truth.
This concept aligns with verse 48 of Surah Al-Maidah: And We have sent down to you the Book in truth, confirming what was before it. This linkage demonstrates that the Quran is not only a complement to previous scriptures but also a testimony to their veracity.
The following verse warns emphatically against joining the ranks of those who reject the divine signs. Denial is not merely ingratitude towards Gods blessings but leads humanity towards a great loss encompassing both this world and the Hereafter.
وَلَا تَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا بِآيَاتِ اللَّهِ فَتَكُونَ مِنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ
And do not be among those who deny the signs of Allah, lest you be among the losers.
This verse, like a fiery admonition, rouses mankind from heedlessness and ingratitude. Loss here is not only the deprivation of material blessings but also the exclusion from spiritual and eternal happiness. Denial, like a dark shadow, deprives the person of the light of guidance and casts them into the darkness of error.
This notion corresponds with verse 15 of Surah Az-Zumar: That is the manifest loss. This verse identifies denial as the root of loss and stresses the necessity of accepting truth.
Verse 96 refers to those who, owing to persistent denial and deviation, have been deprived of the blessing of faith. This deprivation results from their own actions and is not an injustice by God.
إِنَّ الَّذِينَ حَقَّتْ عَلَيْهِمْ كَلِمَةُ رَبِّكَ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ
Indeed, those upon whom your Lords word has come true they will not believe.
This verse reflects divine justice. The misguided, by their own choice, have closed the path of guidance before themselves; their deprivation is the consequence of their struggle against the truth. Their hearts are like barren land no longer receptive to the seeds of faith.
The subsequent verse completes this notion:
وَلَوْ جَاءَتْهُمْ كُلُّ آيَةٍ حَتَّىٰ يَرَوُا الْعَذَابَ الْأَلِيمَ
And even if every sign came to them until they see the painful punishment.
This verse points to the obstinacy of the misguided who, even when faced with the clearest divine signs, turn away from faith. Their hearts are like hardened stones that admit no light until the divine punishment, like a sharp blade, unveils the truth.
This corresponds with verse 30 of Surah Ar-Rum: Whomever Allah wants to guide, He expands his breast to Islam. This verse conditions guidance upon acceptance and readiness of the heart.
The lecture employs an original metaphor, likening hypocrisy and inner corruption to the stench of impurity that obstructs true faith. This defilement, like a lethal poison, contaminates the human heart and deprives it of perceiving the truth.
This metaphor vividly illustrates mankinds inability to recognise hypocrisy. It is as though hypocrisy, like an unpleasant odour, penetrates the soul, yet the spiritual sense fails to detect it. A person, even while performing outward acts of worship such as prayer, cannot free themselves from this corruption.
This concept aligns with verse 10 of Surah Al-Baqarah: In their hearts is disease, so Allah has increased their disease. This verse likens hypocrisy to a heart disease that obstructs acceptance of truth.
The lecture also provides a concrete example of inability to recognise corruption: a person living with a dog in the house believing that washing alone removes impurity. This example clearly demonstrates that without divine knowledge, a person cannot discern inner corruption. Impurity has not only taken root externally but also internally, depriving the individual of true purity.
Verse 98 of Surah Yunus presents the people of Yunus as an exception among previous nations, who by their pure and timely faith were spared from divine punishment.
فَلَوْلَا كَانَتْ قَرْيَةٌ آمَنَتْ فَنَفَعَهَا إِيمَانُهَا إِلَّا قَوْمَ يُونُسَ لَمَّا آمَنُوا كَشَفْنَا عَنْهُمْ عَذَابَ الْخِزْيِ فِي الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا وَمَتَّعْنَاهُمْ إِلَىٰ حِينٍ
So why was there not a city that believed and its faith benefited it except the people of Yunus? When they believed, We removed from them the punishment of disgrace in the life of this world and granted them respite for a time.
This verse, like a radiant jewel, speaks of the pure faith
