Company in Paradise - Amazed by The Quran

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Transkrip video pendek seri Amazed by The Quran oleh Ustadz Nouman Ali Khan: Company in Paradise

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Assalamu'alaikum everyone welcome to amazed by the quran, a series in which I love sharing with you things I find amazing about the Quran. And today in syaa Allah, it sounds giggy but I'll talk to you about the difference between singular and plural in the quran. And actually sometimes different kind of plulars are in the quran, which yeah it sounds gramatical but I'll make sure that it's easy, easy to understand.

Casual Friend and Intimate Close Friend

First case is actually the description of judgement day, Allah says about people who are lamenting on judgement day. They're about to be thrown into devastation, they didn't make it to heaven. And they're saying, fama lana min syafi'in wala shadiqin hamim. We don't have people that are going to make a case for us, we don't have any friend that is intimate and close.

 فَمَا لَنَا مِنْ شَافِعِينَ (100) وَلا صَدِيقٍ حَمِيمٍ (101 

QS Asy-Syuara ayat 100-101

Now in this language, the first group that they complain they don't have in their favor, on their side is syafi'in which is plural, people who will make a case for us. And then they say, we don't have a single friend that is close to us, shadiqin hamim, an intimate close friend. So they go from people who make a case for us, which is plural, to a single friend which is really powerful.

Because, you know when you ask somebody, "Hey, what do you think of this person?"

"You're alright, they're cool"

You can find a lots of people that are "okay" with you. They don't know you well enough.

"And they're seems like a good person".

That's a syafi' that's someone who came and said, "Yeah, you know what? You're not that bad."

But then to find someone who's closed and intimate, and knows you deeply well and then care about your well-being and stops and tries to plead on your behave that,

"please don't let him go into the hell fire"

"I'll vouch for him", etc.

There's not gonna be a lot of people. There's not a single one.

So the one that tend to have many of, the plural is used. And the one that just, maybe if you find one, that would mean a lot, the singular is used. And there's an immediate switch from the plural to the singular. It's very powerful and beautiful.

Fama lana min syafi'in wa la shadiqin hamim. And in doing so, Allah doesn't just describe something that happen on the judgment day. As a matter of fact He described the matter of relationship. Casual relationship where people will have good opinion of you, are lots of them. There's acquaintances that thinks highly of you, or think okay of you. They don't have a poor opinion of you. They're syafi'.

But then, to have people vouch for you, that are the closest most intimate friend, that's actually a testimony of character. Because people that are very very close to you, they know your flaws, they don't just know the good thing about you. Right? So when they speak highly of you, that's actually means something. That's actually genuinely means something when they speak highly of you.

So that's kind of settle lesson that's taught just by the switch between the plural and the singular.

Company in Paradise

Another example of the plural and the singular that I find really beautiful  is actually about again the day of judgment. Where there's a comparison made between heaven and hell. And in describing heaven.

تِلْكَ حُدُودُ اللَّهِ وَمَنْ يُطِعِ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ يُدْخِلْهُ جَنَّاتٍ تَجْرِي مِنْ تَحْتِهَا الْأَنْهارُ خالِدِينَ فِيها وَذلِكَ الْفَوْزُ الْعَظِيمُ (13) وَمَنْ يَعْصِ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ وَيَتَعَدَّ حُدُودَهُ يُدْخِلْهُ نَارًا خالِداً فِيها وَلَهُ عَذابٌ مُهِينٌ (14

QS An Nisa ayat 13-14

Allah said, yudkhilhu jannatin tajri min tahtihal anhar kholidina fiha. So it begins with, whoever would obey Allah and the messenger, which is singular. Whoever would obey Allah and His messenger,  wa man yuthi-illah wa rasulahu yudkhilhu, He will entered him, all singular. Entered him, not entered them, entered him. Jannatin tajri min tahtihal anhar. In gardens at the bottom of which even at the bottom, from the very bottom from which rivers flow. Kholidina fiha. In which they will remain forever. So, he will be entered, He will enter him into the garden, but they will remain in it forever. Kholidina, it's an immediate switch.

And if you compared this to the next ayah, wa man ya'shillaha warasulahu wayata'adda khududahu yudhilhu naaran, khalidan fiiha. Whoever would disobey Allah and His Messenger and crossed the limit that they've said, He will entered him into the fire, in which he will remain.

So there's they will remain, and then there's he will remain. Immediate switch, right? So what's really fascinating even about the first one is, it's started with he. Like, He will enter this person into heaven, where they will remain. So it went from he to they. And the second one was he and then still remain he. So I want you to appreciate this switch that happen, especially when talking about heaven.

Allah is describing the scenario of someone who didn't have much company in this life. Perhaps because of their faith they were left alone. Perhaps because of their faith, everybody around them abandoned them. Their family disown them, their friends left away from them.

And maybe even if they were around muslims, they were the only one who took islam seriously or something. And as a result they felt isolated. They felt pushed away from other people. And these are people who did not let go of their commitment to good deeds and obedience to Allah and His messenger, regardless of the pressure that came. Regardless of the isolation that they felt.

And Allah want the first gift when He entered him into the gardens, into the gardens of heaven, in jannah, is that they're in a company. They're never gonna be alone again. They will remain. So Allah actually pushed them into plurality.

He gives them a new family. He gives them company, things that they lost out or missed out on as a result of their islam, as a result of their submission. Subhanallah.

Also additionally the subtlety here being told that one of the joy of heaven is company. One of the joy of jannah is actually friends hanging out with each other, talking to each other. Fa aqbala ba'duhum 'ala ba'din yatasa-alun (QS Ash Shaffat ayat 50). They're gonna be facing one another, asking each other all kind of question,

"man, where have you been? Haven't seen you forever"

"oh, you made it too ha?"

like things like that^^

But you know that we're asking each other, hanging out. They're gonna be reminiscing about old times. Inna kunna qablu fi ahlina musyfiqin. (QS Ath Thur ayat 26)

"Man, we used to have such a hard time with our family, man.."

Literally there're ayat like that in the quran. Like they're reminiscing about old times. And that's one of the joy of heaven.

Solitude in Hellfire

On the other end though, Allah is describing the disbeliever, no matter how much he thinks he has company, no matter how many people he or she surround themselves with, no matter how many people are dancing around with them in the club, they're actually always alone. They never genuinely have someone with them. A relationship that will last. You know?

It's not just any disbeliever, the one who violates Allah and His messenger. We're not just talking about any non-muslim there. We're talking about culprit's who go on their way to disobey Allah and His messenger. They take the one thing that'll give them peace, they never find peace in other people's company. They just don't. They're always have only for themselves. And when it happens, like one of the torment of hell from them, is that they are in it and they feel like they're the only one in it.

You know, one of the worst kind of prison, even in this world, is solitary confinement. Prison in itself is torture, but on top of that, the solitude and the loneliness that is imposed on you, for months on it, you lose track of time, people lose their sanity as a result.

And that's actually the feeling these people get. There's not even the consolation,

'at least I'm not the only one being burned'

'At least I'm not the only one being punished.'

No it's not like that. They're gonna feel like they're the only one. Kholidan fiiha. Walahum 'adzabun muhin. And he will have humiliating punishment. May Allah not makes us from those who are punished.

So these are just a couple of examples of the singular and the plural, and how these quick switches create such beautiful lessons, and such powerful insights.

Barakallahuli wa lakum, assalamu'alaikum. See you next time.

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Allahua'lam.