Tuesday, April 28, 2015

Emphasis In The Holy Quran

Many techniques of emphasis exist across various forms of expression. In phonetics for example a pause or a moment of silence is used for emphasis. Pause can be used in writing as well through a dash or ellipsis points(the three dots). Emphasis is also observed in details and expanded explanations. Similarly artists can create an emphasis in their painting using colors and contrasts, like a prominent portion in a drawing that captures first attention of the viewer. 
Sculptures and architecture also has emphasis techniques, the emphasis is the shown sculpture needs no words to explain.

Similarly there is emphasis in photography, architecture, interior designing etc. too. Also children exercise emphasis by repeating a question or comment infinitely for the whole day or days or weeks! And the question has to be answered as many times! 

Hence we can conclude that emphasis/ repetition/ over statement is for importance, prominence, highlighting a certain thing and seeking attention. Also it is the beauty of any form of expression. 

The Holy Quran, the most sophisticated expression, has calculated verses and well ordered format. It also has emphasis; one of the way being "repetition". There are many kinds of repetitions in the Holy Quran like the repetition of certain phrases across Quran, repetition of sometimes a word or phrase in back to back verses and also repetition of concepts or incidents like the story of Hazrat Mosa A.S. mentioned at various places in chunks. Also there can be repetition of a verse/phrase across a Surah (like Surah Al-Rahman)Of course in a meaningful and sequenced divine Book like the Holy Quran this repetition is much significant means Allah is emphasizing certain points which require more attention. 

Just wondering about this bit, I thought that the verses that are repeated back to back, i.e. contiguously must be very important that Allah has stressed them to the point of mentioning them twice. I tried finding out how many verses are repeated in such a manner. As far as I have been able to dig out (though its not a personal effort) from various sites is that such repetitions occur at five places in the Holy Quran.

[Image Source]
Main concepts in Repeated verses:

All these are the things that take us away from Allah that have been stressed in these verses first being arrogance that comes due to ignoring the day of judgement or a decisive day in this world hence planing against Prophets. Second being the love of this world and worldly desires. Third being attitude towards problems or tough situations spiritual and worldly both. All these are the factors that might drive us away from our objective i.e. Allah

1. Allah has stressed that those who think their deeds will not be returned or paid back are in negligence and shall one day see for themselves. Hence they out of arrogance lay plans against Prophets which will all be in vain. Allah has stressed very strongly that you will see what you ignore with your own eyes! 

2. Those driven by worldly desires (takathur being abundance of wealth) shall see how useless and wasteful their activities were. This is an endless struggle for whomsoever falls into it. An endless struggle for worldly desire may help us pile up wealth but can never bring peace and happiness. No desire must be bigger than our love for Allah. The smaller objectives in life hence must be directed towards the bigger purpose. 

3. With every difficulty there is relief. For nations Allah sends Prophets when they are in a tough situation spiritually. For the individuals also there is relief with every difficulty maybe sometimes we ignore it due to negative thinking but as per the Holy Quran there always is relief with every difficulty. The first relief with the difficulty is within it i.e. you go through it for Allah! If we don't think positively in tough situations they may easily pull us away from Allah and lead us to hopelessness. 


The repeated Verses:

1. Surah Al-Takathur
[102:4] خبردار! تم ضرور جان لو گے۔
[102:5] پھر خبردار! تم ضرور جان لوگے۔
[102:4] Nay! you will soon come to know.
[102:5] Nay again! you will soon come to know.

2. Surah Al-Inshirah
[94:6] پس یقیناً تنگی کے ساتھ آسائش ہے-
[94:7] یقیناً تنگی کے ساتھ آسائش ہے-
[94:6] Surely there is ease after hardship.
[94:7] Aye, surely there is ease after hardship.

3. Surah Al-Naba
[78:5] خبردار! وہ ضرور جان لیں گے۔
[78:6] پھر خبردار! وہ ضرور جان لیں گے۔
[78:5] Nay, soon they will come to know.
[78:6] Nay, We say it again, they will soon come to know.


4. Surah Al-Qiyamah
[75:35] تجھ پر ہلاکت ہو۔ پھر ہلاکت ہو۔
[75:36] تجھ پر پھر ہلاکت ہو۔ پھر ہلاکت ہو۔
[75:35] ‘Woe unto thee! and woe again!
[75:36] ‘Then woe unto thee! and woe again!’


5. Surah Al-Muddathir
[74:20] پس ہلاکت ہو اُس پر، اُس نے کیسا اندازہ لگایا۔
[74:21] اُس پر پھر ہلاکت ہو، اُس نے کیسا اندازہ لگایا۔
[74:20] Ruin seize him! how he calculated!
[74:21] Ruin seize him again! how he calculated!


Looking forward to Corrections, comments and suggestions!

Saturday, April 4, 2015

Grace, The best Trend Ever!

I write the following lines with due respect for all the women who go to beauty Saloons, further respect for those who work there to earn a living, nothing is totally bad.

Its a usual matter whenever I have to go along someone to the beauty Saloon, I initially feel like an alien who has missed all the progress that was made in the previous year. And there they are, the groomed and up-to-date accomplished ladies who have kept themselves with the technological advances! Later you feel sorry for them. At one side you would see hair being dyed in all those funky shades, at the other there would be faces being polished , all sorts of outer beauty treatments and a seriousness of purpose prevails in the atmosphere.

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Basically I have no issues with looking good or dressing up or all the girls stuff like jewelry or moderate use of makeup even. The point is that it is our psychology that we keep moving, direction becomes very important. When we jump into the world of fashion and make it a priority the results get horrible with the passage of time. I have literally seen hair dyed with colors which make you look like a character of a science fiction movie perhaps. Or as though you're trying to prove life on other 
Planets! Allah chooses a color for your hair, why on earth do you have to change it? Nothing can suit us better that what He who loves beauty and is 'Al-Musawwir' (The Fashioner/The Shaper of beauty) chose for us. Same goes of nail colors. They call it nail 'art' It is blasphemy to call it 'art'. Women go for it even if it does not suit them, they follow it because its a trend! Suits you or not is a secondary issue, first you have to survive in the race!

 At a sale on designer/brand outfits women be like:

اس راہ میں جان کی کیا پرواہ جاتی ھے اگر تو جانے دو

(Why worry about life, for the cause is so great, losing life would be no loss at all)

There are long ques and women try to reach the place before dawn, so as they don't miss out anything. Further there is this desire to be the first one to wear a certain outfit. Women direly need to revisit the purpose of their lives! That being the only solution.

If one tries to figure out the reasons behind this fashion stampede, it comes out to be complicated business. We are probably trying to prove our worth, trying to make our presence felt or probably trying to show-off. I fail to figure out why do you have to get all dressed up and put on heavy makeup to visit a market? Why do you have to be fashionably dressed while going to an educational institution? Do we have an underlying inferiority or perhaps superiority complex?

We need to think what is a trend? Anything that is followed by the people. Many don't realize that a trend is of no use if it doesn't suit you. Rather becomes counter-productive. Makes you look pitiable instead.

At the end its the personality that covers all that you wear. Personally I feel that one should remain closer to natural looks. Even if we follow a trend it should suit our age, values and personality. I am no one to comment on anyone or pass judgments though.

Grace is the best outfit, honesty the best make over and smile the prettiest look you could possibly have. Those beautiful at heart are a pleasure to be with and pretty to look at, always.