Salaam, and welcome to our latest episode of “Path towards Enlightenment”, which is an endeavour to make you and us familiar with an easy and fluent explanation of God’s Final Scripture to all mankind, the holy Qur’an that was revealed to the Last and Greatest of all Messengers, Prophet Muhammad (blessings of God upon him and his progeny).

A fortnight ago we completed explanation of “Surah Tahreem” and today we take up explanation of the next Surah, that is, “Surah Mulk” – the number 67 in the serial order of compilation of the holy Qur’an.

Revealed in Mecca, it has 30 Ayahs and is the first Surah of the 29^th or penultimate part of the Heavenly Scripture. It opens with the sentence “Blessed is He in Whose hands is all sovereignty”, thus deriving its name from “Divine Sovereignty” or “Mulk” in Arabic. It is also called “Blessed” from the opening word “Tabarak”. The surah challenges the disbelievers with declarations of God’s infinite power over them and over everything else in the world, in afterlife, and in the universe by focusing on the marvelous and orderly system of creation. In also describes the regret the disbelievers will express on the Day of Resurrection. It is highly recommended to recite Surah Mulk every night.

Let us now listen to Ayahs 1 and 2:

“In the Name of Allah the All-Compassionate the All-Merciful – Blessed is He in Whose hands is all sovereignty, and He has power over all things.

“He, Who created death and life that He may test you [to see] which of you is best in conduct. And He is the All-Mighty, the All-Forgiving.”

The Surah starts by focusing on the significance of Divine Ownership, Sovereignty, and the Almighty Creator’s Everlasting Pure Essence which is indicative of bountifulness and leaves no room for any hopelessness, defect, and limit in the Omnipotence of the Absolute Mighty and Eternally Existent Being. His Wisdom and Knowledge encompasses all things and embraces all creatures.

The next Ayah makes a reference to the goal of creation and the factors of life and death which are indicative of Divine Sovereignty. If life is a Divine Gift for the best of all creation, that is, mankind, death is transference from the mortal world to the next stage for the soul, which even if the body is decayed and has turned into dust, will be raised in its original form on Resurrection Day for the Final Judgement. Hence the emphasis on proper conduct to determine who qualifies for Divine rewards in this arena of trial by doing good deeds based on faith and sincere in quality, rather than in quantity. At the same time, since human beings commit mistakes in such a great arena of trial, they should not despair of Divine Mercy which is all embracing, and by being conscious of death, should rectify mistakes, repent and reform themselves, and seek forgiveness, which is guaranteed by Divine Promise.

These two Ayahs teach us the following points:

1. All claims to ownership, possession, power and rule will ultimately end, while real Sovereignty and Rule belong only to the Almighty Creator.
2. Death does not mean destruction, but is a means of transference of the soul to the next stage even if the body is physically no more and will eventually be resurrected on the Day of Judgement.
3. Life and death are factors meant as a test for mankind to choose between good and evil during the transient life of the mortal world with all its joys and hardships.

Now let us listen to Ayahs 3 and 4 of the same Surah:

“He created seven heavens in layers. You do not see any discordance in the creation of the All-Beneficent. Look again! Do you see any flaw?

“Look again once more; your sight will return to you humbled and weary.”

The system of Creation is perfect, without the least flaw, and is based on Divine Mercy. This fact encourages us to reflect on realities of the world of existence and the universe at large, whose boundless sky has seven layers of heaven that could be visualized with the sight of a heart firmly based on belief, and not with the daily improving means of technology that are also mesmerized with the marvelousness of creation. Thus, the observations of the world around us, even with a naked eye, however limitless the probe, proves the perfectness of the laws of existence that function in accordance with well measured plans, without the least disharmony that would have meant destruction.

Ayah 4, by insisting on observations is a sort of encouragement for all those thirsty of knowledge to look again and again, only to discover that there is not a single flaw in such a marvelous system of creation and thereby gain certitude in the Omnipotent and Omniscient Creator. In other words, the closing phrase “your sight will return to you humbled and weary” is not a discouragement but an emphasis on repeated research without being content with insufficient observation, since many a mystery may remain incomprehensible at the first and second attempts, thereby requiring sharp eyes and insight to discover the ultimate truth. The more a person exercises attentiveness and precision, the more perfect, flawless and systematic the world of creation appears. This is an undeniable fact in spite of the phenomena of seemingly natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, droughts, ailments, and other afflictions. At first glance these appear as blights and blemishes, but have significant and precise causes behind them, thereby disproving the falsity of the retarded minds and visions of the atheists, the materialists, the superstitious, and all other disbelievers, who despite the progress of science and technology, have clearly failed in understanding the wonders of the universe – the handiwork of the All-Wise and Glorious Creator.

From these Ayahs we learn that:

1. The universe and its orderly functioning is not something haphazard, but a Divine Favour of the All-Merciful Creator Who has given mankind the gifts of the intellect and speech, with promises of infinite rewards for the believers.
2. There is no flaw or discordance in the system of creation.
3. Natural disasters like earthquakes, floods, storms, droughts, and volcanic eruptions, are not the signs of disorder, but have certain causes behind them which indicate that mankind should realize its helplessness and adjust to these occurrences by firming up belief and avoiding sins that disrupt the order.

In conclusion of this week’s episode of Path towards Enlightenment, here is Ayah 5 of Surah Mulk:

“And We have certainly adorned the lowest heaven with lamps and made them missiles against the devils, and We have prepared for them punishment of the Blaze.”

Of the seven layers of heaven mentioned in the previous Ayah, the reference here is to the lowest one where the far away planets appear like brilliant and beauteous stars shining like lamps in the sky, with occasional volleys of meteors that are also called shooting stars and are meant as missiles against the devils for whose sins and crimes there is the punishment of Hellfire as well. A glance at the dark but starry night with its beauty, delicacy, majesty, and its awe-inspiring silence, lead us to reflect upon wonders of the universe, thereby enlightening hearts and minds with the ultimate Truth or the Infinite Power and Sovereignty of the Almighty Creator. Our solar system is part of the galaxy known as Milky Way with its millions of planets, and with the invention of more advanced telescopes we are beginning to discover many more galaxies, all of which is undeniable proof of the Majesty of Allah, Who a millennium and half ago when mankind was still living in the age of ignorance, mentioned in the Holy Qur’an what the rapidly advancing science and technology are still unable to comprehend.

We learn from this Ayah that:

1. The system of creation is not only beauteous and wonderful, but is perfect and orderly without the least flaws in its functioning.
2. The more we reflect on the wonders of nature and upon our own physical and spiritual self, the cognizant we become of the All-Merciful Creator.
3. Wicked creatures, whether of the species of Jinn or of mankind, who misuse science and technology to the detriment of the world and the human race, cannot succeed in their devilish designs and are destroyed by Divine factors.

RM/AS/SS