Surah Al-Baqara (2) — Ayah 23

23. And (O disbelievers!) if you are in doubt about the message [27] We have sent down to Our servant (Muhammad ﷺ), then produce a surah like it, and call upon all your helpers besides Allah, if you are truthful.

[27]
The Challenge of the Quran and Its Miraculous Nature:

In this verse, the disbelievers are being addressed directly: if you doubt that this speech (the Quran) is the word of Allah, then all of you together should produce a single surah like it. The reality will become clear to you by itself. This kind of challenge has been given to the disbelievers at four other places in the Noble Quran, namely in Surah Yunus verse 14, Surah Hud verse 13, Surah Bani Isra'il verse 88, and Surah Tur verse 34. And this is such a challenge that the disbelievers could not meet in that era, nor have they been able to meet it to this day, nor will they ever be able to meet it until the Day of Judgment. The miraculous status of the Noble Quran remains established to this day. Allah's way is that prophets are given such miracles as are renowned in their time. In the time of Musa ؑ, magic had reached its peak, so Allah granted Musa ؑ such miracles before which even the greatest magicians of Pharaoh had no choice but to prostrate. In the time of Isa ؑ, medicine had reached its heights. The likes of Hippocrates, Aristotle, Luqman, and Galen were celebrated physicians, so Allah granted Isa ؑ such miracles that were beyond the reach of those physicians. After all, what physician could bring the dead back to life? Similarly, in the time of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, the eloquence and rhetoric of the Arabic language had reached its zenith. Poets would compete in eloquence and rhetoric, and the poetry of those declared best in competition would be hung on the door of the Ka'bah. The Sab' Mu'allaqat are a relic of that era, still in circulation today. It was such poets, writers, and orators whom Allah challenged, saying: take the help of all your supporters, whether jinn or humans, and your gods and deities, and produce even a single surah like this Quran. But all these people proved incapable of producing such speech.

Moreover, the miracle of the Quran was not limited to eloquence and rhetoric alone; the novelty of its subjects, the unveiling of realities, and the information about the unseen were such qualities that were beyond human capacity.

Evidence for the Prophethood of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ:

On the other hand, the situation was that the one presenting this Quran, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, was himself unlettered, not knowing how to read or write. He had no teacher either. For such a person to present such speech was even more astonishing and amazing.

Thus, from the miraculous nature of the Quran, three things are proven by themselves:
(1) The existence of Allah Almighty,
(2) The proof that the Noble Quran is from Allah,
(3) And the proof that he ﷺ is the true Messenger.

Now we will present some distinctive aspects of the Quran.

Distinctive Aspects of the Quran:

1. All the miracles granted to previous prophets were temporary and momentary; some people saw them, and some only heard about them. But everyone can see the Quran, and from that time until the Day of Judgment, it can be seen. In this respect, it is a living, everlasting, and eternal miracle.

2. Its miraculous nature is not only that the eloquent and articulate of that era failed to produce anything like it, but even today its language is considered the language of literature. The status that Urdu-e-Mualla has in India is the same status the Quran has over the common people's literary language, and its imprint on the Arabic language is so deep that the Arabic language has remained largely protected from the ravages of time. If, hypothetically, the language of the Quran had not been preserved, today's Arabic would probably not even be recognizable.

3. The third aspect of the Quran's miraculous nature is that it was uttered by a person who, far from being familiar with eloquence and rhetoric, did not even know how to read or write. Before his prophethood, his language was like that of ordinary unlettered people. Before prophethood, he was certainly interested in worship, but he was completely unfamiliar with Arabic literature.

4. The theoretical wisdom of the Quran is that its arguments are extremely simple and easy to understand, whether they are about monotheism, the establishment of the Hereafter, or resurrection, and they are presented through things that every person observes and experiences. Here, there is no puzzle of trinity, nor separate gods for good and evil, nor the management of countless gods. Therefore, no one faces any ambiguity or difficulty in understanding it. Then, since the arguments are presented in eloquent language, even the Bedouins who herded camels enjoyed it just as much as the eloquent and articulate did. When the words of ﴿فَاصْدَعْ بِمَا تُؤْمَرُ﴾ were revealed, a Bedouin fell into prostration and said, "I prostrate to its eloquence." When the three brief verses of Surah Kawthar were revealed, Sayyiduna Ali ؓ hung it in the Ka'bah where famous Arab poets used to hang their poetry, and someone wrote underneath it: ﴿ما هٰذَآ قَوْلُ الْبَشَرِ﴾. In short, there are countless such incidents, and probably for this reason, the disbelievers used to call the Quran magic, even manifest magic.

The Reason for the Failure of Communism:

5. The practical wisdom of the Quran is that all its commands are in accordance with its presented ideology and are practicable, whether they pertain to individuals or collective matters, or to acts of worship, social commands, economic matters, foreign policy, or internal policy—all are practicable and have been put into practice. In April 1917, a communist government was established in Russia, and not even three-quarters of a century had passed before it collapsed. In those 75 years, not a single day came when the communist ideology could be implemented even in the center of communism, Russia. The reason for this failure was that communist ideologies were against human nature, and individual interests were crushed for the sake of collective interests. But the teachings and commands of Islam are exactly in accordance with human nature. There is no contradiction or conflict between its theoretical and practical wisdom. If Muslims truly adhere to Islamic commands, there is no reason why they should not attain honor and success in the world. Thus, the teaching of the Quran is not only practicable, but it also has the ability to elevate its followers to a high status.

6. The sixth distinction of the Great Quran is its comprehensiveness and universality, which encompasses all aspects of human life, and this is a characteristic not found in any other revealed book or religion. Moreover, it does not only provide guidance for worldly life but also sheds full light on metaphysics.

7. The seventh distinction of the Quran is that its commands, in normal circumstances, take into account the capacity of an average human being. Then, considering the disabled in society and changing circumstances, concessions or allowances have been provided in these commands, so that at no time do people face difficulty in acting upon its commands. In other words, there is no command in the Noble Quran that falls under the category of unbearable hardship.

The Real Subject of the Quran:

8. The eighth and very important distinction of the Holy Quran is that it never deviates from its subject. Its real subject is the guidance of mankind—that is, the path by which a person's worldly life is improved as well as his Hereafter. Take out any page, any surah, any verse, any line of the Great Quran, whether it is related to commands, arguments, or the stories and outcomes of previous nations, at every point there will be some lesson for your guidance.

Avoidance of Useless Debates in the Quran:

9. The ninth distinction of the Quran is brevity—that is, it never goes into such detail that has nothing to do with guidance. For example, the Quran mentions the revelation to the mother of Musa, but does not mention her name. It mentions the command to Sayyiduna Adam ؑ not to go near a tree in Paradise, but does not mention the name of the tree. People asked the Messenger of Allah ﷺ about «اَهِلَّه», that is, about the new moons or phases of the moon, so Allah Almighty, instead of explaining the reason for the phases of the moon, directed the answer towards what was related to human guidance, because knowing the reason for the phases of the moon had no aspect of guidance for mankind. Allah even forbade His Messenger from delving into the number of the People of the Cave, because such useless debates have nothing to do with guidance, and such debates not only waste time and lead to inaction, but often become the basis for discord.

10. And the tenth and important distinction of the Holy Quran is that it has never tarnished the character of any prophet or messenger. The way some prophets' character has been attacked in a vulgar manner in the Bible, we are mentioning elsewhere.

11. And the eleventh distinction is its refined and cultured language. It completely avoids abuse or obscene words. Zulaikha did indeed have the kind of love for Sayyiduna Yusuf ؑ that is well-known, but even there Allah Almighty did not use that word, because it is a vulgar and lowly word that carries a sense of obscenity. Similarly, even the worst enemies of Islam are not named; rather, some of their characteristics are described in such a way that it is clear whom the verses are addressing. The only exception to this rule is Abu Lahab, for whom there are several reasons, which are mentioned at the appropriate place in Surah Lahab.

In short, the distinctions and wonders of the Quran are so numerous that it is beyond human capacity to encompass them. The reason is that the more deeply and thoughtfully it is studied, the more new aspects come to light. That is why the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said that the Quran is a book whose wonders will never cease.