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By Hamza Tzortzis
hamza.tzortzis@theinimitablequran.com
The Qur'an combines words, sounds, meaning and word order to achieve its
communicative goal; the result of which is sublime rhetoric, unsurpassable
eloquence and a unique literary form. Another example of how the Qur'an
achieves this is in the following verses:
"He revealved the Torah and the Gospel, aforetimes, for guidance to mankind;
and revealved the Criterion [i.e. the Qur'an]"
waanzala alttawrata waal-injeela min qablu hudan lilnnasi waanzala alfurqana
Qur'an 3:3-4
An alternative order is possible:
waanzala alttawrata waal-injeela waal-furqana min qablu hudan lilnnas
This alternative arrangement has some flaws. Firstly the second arrangement
lacks rhythm, compared to the Qur'anic structure, and it is phonetically inferior.
Secondly, this arrangement has led to a disturbance in the meaning, and in the
communicative and rhetorical effect. This is due to the fact that the key word
'anzala' has been taken out and the final word 'alfurqana', whose position has a
crucial semantic value, has been placed in the middle of the sentence.
The repetition of the word 'anzala' (revealed) and the placement of 'alfurqana'
(the Criterion) are essential devices employed to enhance the communicative,
psycholinguistic and rhetorical effect. The repetition of the word 'anzala' is to
confirm the revelation of the Criterion and that it is indeed a divine scripture
while the placement of the word 'alfurqana' at the end of the sentence* is to
confirm that the Crirterion (i.e. the Qur'an) is the last and final scripture.[1]
Ata refers to examples like these as 'the chemical composition of the Qur'an'.[2]
Which indicates the delicate and balanced linguistic structures of the Qur'an.[3]
* Please note that sentence here does not mean verse, as there can be a few
sentences in one verse.
References
[1] The Linguistic Architecture of the Qur'an. Hussein Abdul-Raof. Journal of
Qur'anic Studies. Vol. II, Issue II, 2000, p. 39
[2] 'Abd al-Qadir Ahmad 'Ata, 'Wujuh i'jaz al-Qur'an, in Mahmud ibn Hamza
al-Karmani (ed.), Asrar al-tikrar fi'l-Qur'an (Cairo: Dar al-I'tisam, 1977), p.
243-63
[3] See also al-Suyuti, Abu 'l-Fadl Jalal al-Din, Mu'tarak al-aqran fi i'jaz al-Qur'an
(Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-'Ilmiyya, 1988), Vol. 1 p 128ff
By Hamza Tzortzis
hamza.tzortzis@theinimitablequran.com
The Qur'an combines words, sounds, meaning and word order to achieve its
communicative goal; the result of which is sublime rhetoric, unsurpassable
eloquence and a unique literary form. Another example of how the Qur'an
achieves this is in the following verses:
"He revealved the Torah and the Gospel, aforetimes, for guidance to mankind;
and revealved the Criterion [i.e. the Qur'an]"
waanzala alttawrata waal-injeela min qablu hudan lilnnasi waanzala alfurqana
Qur'an 3:3-4
An alternative order is possible:
waanzala alttawrata waal-injeela waal-furqana min qablu hudan lilnnas
This alternative arrangement has some flaws. Firstly the second arrangement
lacks rhythm, compared to the Qur'anic structure, and it is phonetically inferior.
Secondly, this arrangement has led to a disturbance in the meaning, and in the
communicative and rhetorical effect. This is due to the fact that the key word
'anzala' has been taken out and the final word 'alfurqana', whose position has a
crucial semantic value, has been placed in the middle of the sentence.
The repetition of the word 'anzala' (revealed) and the placement of 'alfurqana'
(the Criterion) are essential devices employed to enhance the communicative,
psycholinguistic and rhetorical effect. The repetition of the word 'anzala' is to
confirm the revelation of the Criterion and that it is indeed a divine scripture
while the placement of the word 'alfurqana' at the end of the sentence* is to
confirm that the Crirterion (i.e. the Qur'an) is the last and final scripture.[1]
Ata refers to examples like these as 'the chemical composition of the Qur'an'.[2]
Which indicates the delicate and balanced linguistic structures of the Qur'an.[3]
* Please note that sentence here does not mean verse, as there can be a few
sentences in one verse.
References
[1] The Linguistic Architecture of the Qur'an. Hussein Abdul-Raof. Journal of
Qur'anic Studies. Vol. II, Issue II, 2000, p. 39
[2] 'Abd al-Qadir Ahmad 'Ata, 'Wujuh i'jaz al-Qur'an, in Mahmud ibn Hamza
al-Karmani (ed.), Asrar al-tikrar fi'l-Qur'an (Cairo: Dar al-I'tisam, 1977), p.
243-63
[3] See also al-Suyuti, Abu 'l-Fadl Jalal al-Din, Mu'tarak al-aqran fi i'jaz al-Qur'an
(Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-'Ilmiyya, 1988), Vol. 1 p 128ff