{ Islam from inside }

Time in the Qur'an

Added Aug 14, 2003

History as memory

When the Qur'an talks of past events it often speaks of them as if these events exist within our own memories or in a collective human memory as an integral part of our own selves and of our human heritage and nature. It has a unique methodology in that it asks us to recall some past historical occurrences in the same manner with which we remember events from our own lives, as if they exist in our own individual, personal storehouse of experiences. "And remember We gave Moses the Scripture and the Criterion (between right and wrong) (Qur'an 2:54).... And remember Abraham and Isma'il raised the foundations of the House (Qur'an 2:127)....And remember We divided the sea for you (Qur'an 2:51)....And remember We took your covenant (Qur'an 2:63).... Remember Your Lord inspired the angels (Qur'an 8:12)....This is a word of remembrance to those who remember (Qur'an 11:114)....And remember Jesus, the Son of Mary, said....(Qur'an 61:6)." It uses a language and a direct mode of expression that encourages us to erase the distance between ourselves and these past events, these historical events, by pulling them to the forefront with a compelling immediacy of attention. It seems to be telling us, through its technique of expression, that this historical distance does not exist in any real, metaphysical, essential sense.

The Qur'an asks us to be present, in our own era, wherever truth requires us to be present and it requires that presence to be a deeply rooted presence, not a superficial, ineffective, fleeting presence. It asks us not to regard humanity's past as merely "tales of the ancients" (Qur'an 83:13), or as quaint historical footnotes that are irrelevant to our times and our own modern notions about the nature of things, about the nature of society, of humanity, of morality. It presents the world as more than just matter, as more than a chronological string of occurences. Rather, it posits an essence and reality to certain events that lifts those events out of time, giving them a presence in a higher reality, in a deeper, more substantial layer of existence, and thereby makes their essential truths accessible to all times and places. So when the qur'an speaks of Moses and Aaron, of Zachariaha and Maryam, of the various prophets and men of knowledge that have walked the earth it raises their stories out of historical time and into a universal time. It presents them almost as universal memories and then it asks us to remember, to recall.

Then it tells us that these memories are family memories - the family is that of Adam (s.a.), and Abraham(s.a), Moses (s.a.) and Aaron (s.a), Jesus (s.a.) and Muhammad (s.a.) and all the other messengers and their supporters recalled in the pages of the Qur'an. Between us and them there is to be no distance in love, respect, or honour. All distances are erased - the chronological time that separates us and them vanishes, like an ephemeral veil that dissolves at our touch. With the Qur'an's methodology we are with Moses (s.a.) when he confronts Pharoah, we are with Abraham (s.a.) when he destroys the idols, we are with the Prophet (s.a.) as he struggles to deliver the message. We are with him as he tells the story of mankind and awakens the memories and lessons and truths of our own past within us.

So the Qur'an teaches us a new way to look upon history. It is not "ancient stories" but living truths. It teaches us to erase the distance between ourseleves and the past and to call forth the past like memories, till a total picture of the history of truth is formed - a history which spans all times and all places, a history whose essence is imprinted in the substance of reality and which is not restricted by any earthbound chronology.

Memories are not distinct from us, they are an integral part of us, of our knowledge, of who and what we are. They define and shape us, they are not intellectual abstractions but are a living part of us, shaping our consciousness and our personalities. The Qur'an asks us to extend our memory beyond our individual selves and so unites our separate histories with the total history of humanity with the aim of giving substance to our ephemeral, fleeting lives and uniting us with the common thread of truth that weaves its way across the centuries.

Meta-historical religion

In the Qur'an, the key "events" which determine man's metaphysical makeup all take place outside the flow of time as we know it. They take place in a different plane of existence than this material plane - in a "trans-historical" or "meta-historical" plane, where time has a different flow and flux so that the relation of that world to this must be viewed as a hierarchical rather than a linear relationship.

One of these events is the creation of Adam and the teaching of the names to him. The Qur'an says, "...Thy Lord said unto the angels: lo! I am about to create a mortal out of mire, And when I have fashioned him and breathed into him of My Spirit, then fall down before him prostrate....And We taught Adam the names (realities) of all things...." (Qur'an 38:72...) These events take place outside of the flow of history as we understand it. They are metaphysical, rather than exclusively physical in nature. They are metaphysical answers to the question "What is man? What is contained in his essential nature and what is his potential?"

Islam is not a religion rooted in a single historical event through which God enters history - instead all the key events take place outside history, in pre-eternity in a different hierarchy of existence. Then a "descent" to this world takes place through which these timeless events enter into the realm of cause, effect, and chronological, linear time.

Another event spoken of in the qur'an is the pre-eternal covenant made between God and the human spirits (all of the descendants of Adam). This is expressed in the form of a question which God asks all of the human spirits before allowing them to enter into the physical plane of existence. He asks, "Am I not your Lord?" (Qur'an 7:172). They all answer in the affirmative, the implication being that everyone who is born into this world has agreed in substance (in the essence of their soul) to this covenant, and that although we may have no conscious knowledge or memory of this pact, its reality is woven into our very nature. This world is a place of distraction and forgetfullness but at our core lies the metaphysical truth of this covenant and one of the purposes of religion is to awaken to consciousness an awareness of this bond between God and man as well as all the concealed potentials that flow from this bond. All of the Prophet's have come throughout the entirety of history to remind men of their promise of fidelity to this pact. The Qur'an also often refers to itself as "a reminder", as a call towards taqwa, towards an awakened, aware consciousness.

A third event spoken of in the qur'an is mankind's acceptance of the "trust" offered to them by God. "We did indeed offer the trust to the heavens and the earth and the mountains; but they refused to undertake it, being afraid thereof. But man undertook it (the trust)...." (Qur'an 33: 72,73).

These key events all deal with the metaphysical nature and capacity with which man is created. A concurrent event, the teaching of the names (or realities) of all things to Adam, is an indicator that within man (within his metaphysical makeup) exist vast storehouses of knowledge, or a capacity for knowledge, through which he can comprehend mysteries that perhaps even the angels are unaware of (signified by their bowing down before Adam).

The Qur'an constantly urges mankind to "remember" - to become aware of their inner nature through this remembrance and to awaken that nature. These "pre-eternal" events are events that are perfectly real without taking place in historical time. If time is considered as a horizontal progression, these events take place along a vertical axis, one which stands hierarchically above all times and all places. Man's essence, because of his origin and nature, participates in this hierarchy. His actions, his movements (mental and physical) in this world, and the state of his nafs (essential self) that results from those actions has an impact on the full substance of his being - throughout its vertical axis. The Qur'an attempts to awaken us to this hidden aspect of ourselves - it is a reminder to a humanity that is "sleeping" and a call for us to awaken from our amnesia, our "forgetfulness" regarding the essential nature of our being. It is a reminder that beyond the horizontal aspect of our existence is a truly vast vertical dimension, an unseen ocean of possibilities and nascent potentials.

- Irshaad Hussain

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This is a very legitimate question and one that deserves careful consideration because the answer lies within the fundamental nature of Islam and of the Qur'an. It lies in the way the Qur'an views history and in the manner in which it illustrates history. The Qur'an is a book of rhythms and patterns both in its sound and construction as well as in its content and meaning. It does not view history simply as a linear process, as a sequence of events which succeed one another.

Rather it sees history as a pattern or series of patterns which occur over a period of time and which arise as the result of certain natural laws at work in society and within men. These patterns or rhythms in history are repeatedly illustrated in the Qur'an, for example, by references to past civilizations which have all followed the same pattern of rise, decay, and collapse. At the same time the Qur'an is a book of principles, of truths, which, if they are implemented, will allow men to understand, and perhaps for a time, break free of the repetitious cycles of history.

So in its approach to history the Qur'an does not reiterate historical events in great detail and length. But instead it distills the events down to their basic components in order to illustrate the principles to be learned from the events.

This can be seen most clearly in the way the Qur'an tells some of the stories found in the Bible. Wheras the Bible gives a detailed, linear account of an incident, the Qur'an boils the same story down to its essential ingredients in order to concisely and clearly illustrate, in a few lines, the lesson to be found at the heart of the event. The Qur'an lays bare the patterns which rule history and the principles which can free us of this rule and which can lead men to a fuller understanding of historical processes and man's place within them.

Just as the hajj brings Muslims from all countries and of all languages and races together to create a form of social and spiritual Tauhid (or social and spiritual unity), so too does Islam's approach to history create a form of historical Tauhid (or historical unity).

History becomes not merely a disjointed sequence of events but is bound by patterns and principles which act as a unifying force - a bridge between widely separated generations. The "principles" or "truths" of history are not bound in the confines of one era or by the rules and customs of one society but span all times and all societies.

For example...why did Muslims choose the Hijrah (or migration), where the Prophet (s.a.) was fleeing for his life, as the event which pinpoints the beginning of the Islamic calendar? Why not choose the moment he recieved his first revelation, or the date of the first victory at Badr, or of the fall of Mecca to his army.

It is because the Hijrah was the transition point (the moment of a phase change) for a number of factors in the early stages of Islam. It marked the transition of the Muslim Ummah (community) from a handful of struggling individuals to a complete society in Medina. It marked the transition of the Prophet from preaching to political, social, diplomatic, and military action. And it marked the transition from virtually no growth to explosive growth of Islam. Migration, or movement from stillness towards a specific goal is a key concept in the Qur'an and one whose truth is borne out by historical reality. All civilizations arise "...on the heels of a migration...."(Ali Shari'ati). From the Biblical Exodus or migration of the Jews from Egypt, and the subsequent creation of Israel, to the most recent examples of Canada and America both of which arose following a migration.

The principle of migration is also true on an interior level in terms of the migration of our inner selves away from personal stagnation and towards an awareness of God.

But the important point to stress here is that by being a specific instance of a universal principle, the Hijrah of the Prophet acquires a meaning and a force which lifts it out of historical time and makes it relevant as a principle to all times. Now there are many such principles in the Qur'an and all these principles have many layers of meanings at many different levels, such as the social level, the political level, the individual level etc. These are all principles which find historical focal points in various persons, in various places, at various times in history.

Our remembrance of the events described in the Qur'an is done in order to acquaint each new generation with these principles. These are learned through our hearts as well as our minds because an intellectual understanding is, by itself, a cold and incomplete understanding. But when Truth is percieved by the "heart's mind", to use a Qur'anic phrase then that truth comes alive in the individual and the centuries which separate him from the historical events and personalities melt away. This is why we remember events that happened so long ago and why we remember them the way we do. The Prophets and Imams were witnesses for the Truth, and their message to us is a message for all ages, all times, and all societies.

"Witness your time. Witness between the truth and falsehood of your age." (Shari'ati)

As already mentioned, the Qur'an does not follow a linear exposition and progressive timeline as, for example, the Bible does. It raises topics, not according to a successive historical progression, but according to its own unique inner pulse and rhythm. If it was in a historical, chronological order like a book of history or a biography, it would have been particularized to the chronology of history. The Qur'an, however, declares itself as timeless, as a book that cannot be particularized and limited to a specific historical context. "Verily this is no less than a Message to all the Worlds." (Qur'an 81:27) Jafar al-Sadiq (a.s.) has said of it that "...it will continue on its course as long as Heaven and Earth endure, because it enshrines a sign and a guide for every person and group to come."

The Qur'an breaks the chronological mould to declare itself free from the ties of time. It originates with God who encompasses time and is not constrained by it. The Book of the Realities of existence which the Qur'an calls "the Mother of the Book" is on a different plane of existence, outside of the flow of time as we know it. It is from this realm that the Qur'an descended to the Prophet's (s.a.) heart, and from there, degree by degree descended in the form of the specific words recited as the Qur'an. Nasir al-Din Qunawi writes, "The writing and the form of the letters and sounds originate in time, but what is written and recited is beyond time".

'And behold, it is with Us in the Mother of the Book, sublime indeed, wise.." (Qur'an 43:3)"

Anyone who reads the Qur'an is likely to be struck by the unique nature of its construction, its unusual and constantly shifting rhythms and the sudden transmutations and displacements in its subject matter. At first this ever changing literary terrain seems an obstacle to understanding, but the more time one spends with this book, the more organic, the more natural the flow of its words feel. It is almost like flying over an ever-changing landscape - rolling valleys punctuated by jagged rocks, forests and plains giving way to upthrust mountains, high plateaus broken by deep lakes, deserts sprinkled with oasis' and cleft by canyons. Despite the variety of the forms, despite the startling contrast of adjacent features, a complex organic beauty underlies and unites all the various elements. These articles emerged from numerous brief scattered notes made while reading the qur'an (along with numerous commentaries) and reflecting on its variations in language, tone, content, rhythm, and cadence. Some of what's here had appeared previously, in a different form, on my (no longer existing) Tawil website.