the Lectures of Nokounam Session 1751
Surah An-Nur, one of the Medinan chapters of the Holy Quran, comprises sixty-four verses and encompasses a treasury of legal, ethical, and social injunctions. This Surah, which has gained particular renown due to its thirty-fifth verse, famously known as the Verse of Light, exhibits a transcendent gem amid the routine laws and regulations. It elucidates, in a symbolic and profound manner, the reality of Divine Light and the gradations of human perfection. This treatise, relying on the lectures of a distinguished scholar, analyses the structure of the Surah, the status of the Verse of Light, and its jurisprudential, mystical, and philosophical dimensions. The aim is to reveal, through eloquent language and a coherent framework, the exalted dimension of this verse within the ordinary legal context of Surah An-Nur, as though a brilliant jewel concealed among mundane chaff, visible only to the eyes of insight.
Surah An-Nur, with its sixty-four verses, is predominantly dedicated to legal and social rulings. Revealed in Medina, it contains verses regulating social relationships, preserving chastity, and enforcing Divine limits. From verse two to thirty-three, and from thirty-six to the end, it addresses rulings such as punishment for fornication, laws concerning married women, slander (qadhf), mutual cursing (lian), and social etiquette. These laws, described by the exegete as straw and greenery, provide an ordinary, everyday framework for the life of the believers. Yet, amidst these rulings, the Verse of Light (verse thirty-five) shines like an unparalleled jewel, unveiling a transcendent reality.
The opening verse of Surah An-Nur underscores the Divine origin of the Surah and the obligatory nature of its rulings:
Surah which We have sent down and made obligatory, and in it We have sent down clear verses, that you may take heed.
This verse introduces the foundation of the Surah and emphasises the clear verses referring to legal injunctions. Verse thirty-four reiterates this theme:
And indeed We have sent down to you clear verses and an example from those who passed away before you and a reminder for the God-fearing.
These two verses delineate the framework of the Surahs rulings and highlight their guiding and admonitory role. Nonetheless, the Verse of Light, situated in the middle of the Surah, transcends this framework and points to a sublime truth unmatched elsewhere in the Quran.
Verse thirty-five of Surah An-Nur, famously known as the Verse of Light, is as follows:
Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The example of His light is like a niche within which is a lamp, the lamp is within glass, the glass as if it were a pearly star lit from a blessed olive tree, neither of the east nor of the west, whose oil would almost glow even if untouched by fire. Light upon light. Allah guides to His light whom He wills. And Allah sets forth examples for mankind, and Allah is Knowing of all things.
This verse, through a wondrous metaphor, portrays the reality of Divine Light and the levels of perfection and guidance by means of profound visual imagery. The exegete considers this verse a precious antique that God has hidden within the ordinary rulings of the Surah, accessible only to the perceptive.
The verse begins by declaring Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth
, presenting God as the origin of existential light and perfection. The heavens and the earth, as Divine creations, possess an intrinsic light, yet the Divine Light is a transcendent illumination that supplements the created light. Philosophically, Divine Light connotes absolute existence and perfection, from which all beings partake. This Light is the foundation of life, knowledge, and guidance in the cosmos, akin to a sun casting rays upon all creation and illuminating each entity according to its capacity.
The metaphors employedniche (mishkat), lamp (misbah), glass (zujajah), and the blessed olive tree (shajarah mubarakah)indicate ontological gradations:
The phrase neither of the east nor of the west
implies the universality and boundlessness of Divine Light, which is not confined by time, place, or culture but flows like a pure spring nourishing all worlds.
From the mystical perspective, Divine Light is an existential reality manifesting within the hearts of the faithful. This Light is transmitted through revelatory and intellectual channels to the human soul. The mishkat signifies the believers heart or intellect, the container capable of receiving this Light. The misbah symbolises revelation or active intellect that conveys Divine Light to the heart. The
