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Nadnaravni jezik Kur'ana
Da, Objava je lijepa sama po sebi. No, Kur’an je, naravno, mnogo više od toga. Bez pretjerivanja možemo reći da jezik Kur’ana, njegova prefinjenost, ritam, bogata imaginacija, tečnost, međusobno prožimanje metafora i koncepata, njegovi raznovrsni i dotad nepoznati stilovi i tehnike proznog izraza, kao i čudesna upotreba riječi – sve to čini ovu knjigu djelom vječnog savršenstva. Ova je knjiga ostavila snažan trag na ljudski intelekt i ponašanje, spektakularno transformirajući arapski jezik i donoseći u ljudsku svijest veličanstvenu viziju, tako što je svoju pažnju usmjerila na najuzvišenije stvari i pojave. Upravo neke od tih osobina Kur’ana ova studija pokušava evocirati i objasniti. Autor je nesumnjivo imao šta kazati o ovoj temi, a njegov doprinos usmjeren je, u suštini, na to šta tačno jezik Kur’ana čini nadnaravnim.
- GenresIslamNonfictionReligion
104 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
December 27, 2017
Bassam Saeh's The Miraculous Language of the Qur'an addresses a frequent problem that Muslims encounter when reading the Quran. For those who don't understand Arabic, there are few resources that do more than merely translate the Quran and mention relevant hadiths. But even readers who understand Arabic experience a difficulty. The text of the Quran becomes familiar to them---they get used to the words and phrases. Instead of contemplating the fascinating linguistic patterns of the Quran, these readers remain stuck in a loop of superficial meanings they are familiar with. This book addresses both of these problems.
This slim volume (only 90 pages long) is a translation by Nancy Roberts of Bassam Saeh's Arabic book al-Mu'jizah, Volume I. The discussion is carefully organized and the language is intelligent without being the kind of reading you expect to be assigned in a college class. The first part of the book is a general discussion of the linguistic miraculousness of the Quran and a concept that Saeh calls "newness." The second part applies these ideas to Surah al-Muddaththir. The text is broken up into small sections that keep the detailed conversation about Arabic grammar from becoming overwhelming. The organization, language, and size of this book make it accessible for a wide audience, and I highly recommend it.
Saeh describes the Quran as a "linguistic revolution," in which Allah (swt) uses new words, new uses of particles, new linguistic units (i.e., an ayah ≠ a sentence), new uses of conjunctions, and new images to create a unique flavor of Arabic, the beauty and complexity of which can only be described as divine. This newness is ironic considering the frequent Quran reader's problem---that they are used to the text. Saeh breathes new life into this subject, making familiar parts of the Quran new sources of contemplation for Arabic and non-Arabic speakers alike.
You can read the rest of this review here.
This slim volume (only 90 pages long) is a translation by Nancy Roberts of Bassam Saeh's Arabic book al-Mu'jizah, Volume I. The discussion is carefully organized and the language is intelligent without being the kind of reading you expect to be assigned in a college class. The first part of the book is a general discussion of the linguistic miraculousness of the Quran and a concept that Saeh calls "newness." The second part applies these ideas to Surah al-Muddaththir. The text is broken up into small sections that keep the detailed conversation about Arabic grammar from becoming overwhelming. The organization, language, and size of this book make it accessible for a wide audience, and I highly recommend it.
Saeh describes the Quran as a "linguistic revolution," in which Allah (swt) uses new words, new uses of particles, new linguistic units (i.e., an ayah ≠ a sentence), new uses of conjunctions, and new images to create a unique flavor of Arabic, the beauty and complexity of which can only be described as divine. This newness is ironic considering the frequent Quran reader's problem---that they are used to the text. Saeh breathes new life into this subject, making familiar parts of the Quran new sources of contemplation for Arabic and non-Arabic speakers alike.
You can read the rest of this review here.
April 7, 2020
“And if you are in doubt about what We have sent down upon Our Servant [Muhammad], then produce a surah the like thereof and call upon your witnesses other than Allah, if you should be truthful.”(Quran 2: 23)
Although the miraculous nature of the Qur'an is its central argument for its divine origin--which, with some other rational arguments, provides grounding for the rest of its metaphysical doctrines--modern Muslims have expanded our scope of faith to include this very doctrine. When probed, Muslims often throw all sorts of claims that can be--in fact, are--used to portray other literary works of human origin such as eloquence, splendor, beauty, and precision of expression. Why then, Dr. Saeh askes, do we describe the Qur'an as "miraculous" and the others not. After rightly rejecting the arguments from rhetoric, expression, and especially science, he develops a young yet promising inductive argument from the "newness" of the Qur'an:
1) The Qur'an is coherently composed of completely new idioms, phrases, imagery, constructions, and vocabulary than what pre-Islamic poetry and the Hadith corpus contain--as if it constructed a new language from the pre-Qur'anic Arabic while being entirely comprehensible by a contemporary Arab
2) If the Qur'an is coherently composed of completely new idioms, phrases, imagery, constructions, and vocabulary than what pre-Islamic poetry and the Hadith corpus contain--as if it constructed a new language from the pre-Qur'anic Arabic while being entirely comprehensible by a contemporary Arab, then the Qur'an is probably a miracle
3) Therefore, the Qur'an is probably a miracle
He does emphasize that this project is in its early developments, and that there is still a lot he needs to cover.
I recommend this book firstly to Muslims who, like the importance of establishing the resurrection of Jesus to Christians, yearn to discover the intellectual bedrock to their faith. Other than that, I think everybody--Muslims as well as non-Muslims--should certainly at least skim through its profound concepts, for it is an easy hundred or so page read.
Although the miraculous nature of the Qur'an is its central argument for its divine origin--which, with some other rational arguments, provides grounding for the rest of its metaphysical doctrines--modern Muslims have expanded our scope of faith to include this very doctrine. When probed, Muslims often throw all sorts of claims that can be--in fact, are--used to portray other literary works of human origin such as eloquence, splendor, beauty, and precision of expression. Why then, Dr. Saeh askes, do we describe the Qur'an as "miraculous" and the others not. After rightly rejecting the arguments from rhetoric, expression, and especially science, he develops a young yet promising inductive argument from the "newness" of the Qur'an:
1) The Qur'an is coherently composed of completely new idioms, phrases, imagery, constructions, and vocabulary than what pre-Islamic poetry and the Hadith corpus contain--as if it constructed a new language from the pre-Qur'anic Arabic while being entirely comprehensible by a contemporary Arab
2) If the Qur'an is coherently composed of completely new idioms, phrases, imagery, constructions, and vocabulary than what pre-Islamic poetry and the Hadith corpus contain--as if it constructed a new language from the pre-Qur'anic Arabic while being entirely comprehensible by a contemporary Arab, then the Qur'an is probably a miracle
3) Therefore, the Qur'an is probably a miracle
He does emphasize that this project is in its early developments, and that there is still a lot he needs to cover.
I recommend this book firstly to Muslims who, like the importance of establishing the resurrection of Jesus to Christians, yearn to discover the intellectual bedrock to their faith. Other than that, I think everybody--Muslims as well as non-Muslims--should certainly at least skim through its profound concepts, for it is an easy hundred or so page read.
January 31, 2024
Nadnaravni jezik Kur'ana izuzetno je korisna i vrijedna lingvistička studija (uglavnom) Kur'ana, njegovog raskošnog i višeznačnog jezika, koja nastoji proniknuti u neodgonetljivu osobenost Svete knjige - nadnaravnost. Istražujući da li se ona krije u samome izričaju ili neponovljivosti stila i ritma, u frazama novim za doba kada je Objava došla, u dubini filozofske refleksije koja se pomalja ispod onih bjelodanih i posve lucidnih znakova (ajeta) ili je pak ona nedokučiva i krije se upravo u tome što je sveobuhvatno nedosežna, Bassam Saeh se usredotočuje na kur'ansko poglavlje (suru) Al-Muddessir raskrivajući njene posebnosti na mikro-primjerima.
Uvid koji Saeh donosi pomaže nam da razumijemo i ponovno sebi razbudimo čitanje Kur'ana u duhu prvih slušatelja Objave, u geistu u kojemu ne podrazumijevamo i ne taložimo naslijeđa civilizacije i raznovrsna tumačenja na naše čitanje, već isključivo težimo da spoznamo i doznamo šta je to bilo inovativno, kreativno-imaginativno i revolucionarno za narod koji se dičio i ponosio svojim poetskim i retoričkim umijećima.
Ova knjiga ne ulazi u preduboke analize niti domišlja nove svjetove, naprosto razbuđuje jedno čitanje Kur'ana koje bi trebalo biti poticajno, motivirajuće, svježe i relevantno. Otuda je vrijedno štivo koje ne traži mnogo vremena a raskrućuje um od uvriježenog motrenja i čitanja Kur'ana.
Uvid koji Saeh donosi pomaže nam da razumijemo i ponovno sebi razbudimo čitanje Kur'ana u duhu prvih slušatelja Objave, u geistu u kojemu ne podrazumijevamo i ne taložimo naslijeđa civilizacije i raznovrsna tumačenja na naše čitanje, već isključivo težimo da spoznamo i doznamo šta je to bilo inovativno, kreativno-imaginativno i revolucionarno za narod koji se dičio i ponosio svojim poetskim i retoričkim umijećima.
Ova knjiga ne ulazi u preduboke analize niti domišlja nove svjetove, naprosto razbuđuje jedno čitanje Kur'ana koje bi trebalo biti poticajno, motivirajuće, svježe i relevantno. Otuda je vrijedno štivo koje ne traži mnogo vremena a raskrućuje um od uvriježenog motrenja i čitanja Kur'ana.
June 21, 2022
Status kemukjizatan Al-Quran selalu menjadi sasaran ‘empuk’ untuk mendelegitimasi kebenaran ajaran Islam. Banyak pihak, sejak masa Rasulullah SAW hingga masa kontemporer, yang berusaha meragukan kebenaran Al-Quran sebagai wahyu Tuhan.
Bassam Saeh melalui buku ini menguraikan bukti ilmiah dan rasional mengapa tuduhan semacam itu sangat tidak berdasar. Pendekatan yang Bassam gunakan adalah pendekatan linguistik Arab untuk merekonstruksi pengalaman bangsa Arab ketika mendengarkan Al-Qur’an untuk pertama kalinya.
Kesimpulannya, Al-Qur’an sebagai Kalamullah adalah sesuatu yang benar-benar baru, bahkan bagi suatu bangsa yang sehari-hari menggunakan bahasa Arab. Kebaruan (newness) inilah yang menjadi salah satu indikator bahwa Al-Qur’an adalah firman Allah dan bukan karangan Nabi Muhammad SAW apalagi manusia lainnya.
Kebaruan tersebut di antaranya adalah kebaruan dalam struktur kalimat yang digunakan untuk menyampaikan suatu maksud serta kebaruan dalam pemilihan kata tertentu untuk menyampaikan maksud tertentu. Susunan kebahasaan Al-Qur'an tersebut belum pernah ditemukan presedennya dalam tradisi sastra Arab pra-Islam dan hingga kini belum ada satupun sastrawan Arab dan non-Arab yang mampu menandingi keakuratan bahasa Arab dalam Al-Qur’an.
Hemat saya, buku ini sangat membantu pembaca, khususnya yang tidak memiliki latar belakang bahasa Arab, untuk merasakan dan memahami mukjizat kebahasaan dalam Al-Qur'an. Semoga Allah berkenan meridhai dan memberkahi Bassam Saeh atas karyanya, amiin.
Bassam Saeh melalui buku ini menguraikan bukti ilmiah dan rasional mengapa tuduhan semacam itu sangat tidak berdasar. Pendekatan yang Bassam gunakan adalah pendekatan linguistik Arab untuk merekonstruksi pengalaman bangsa Arab ketika mendengarkan Al-Qur’an untuk pertama kalinya.
Kesimpulannya, Al-Qur’an sebagai Kalamullah adalah sesuatu yang benar-benar baru, bahkan bagi suatu bangsa yang sehari-hari menggunakan bahasa Arab. Kebaruan (newness) inilah yang menjadi salah satu indikator bahwa Al-Qur’an adalah firman Allah dan bukan karangan Nabi Muhammad SAW apalagi manusia lainnya.
Kebaruan tersebut di antaranya adalah kebaruan dalam struktur kalimat yang digunakan untuk menyampaikan suatu maksud serta kebaruan dalam pemilihan kata tertentu untuk menyampaikan maksud tertentu. Susunan kebahasaan Al-Qur'an tersebut belum pernah ditemukan presedennya dalam tradisi sastra Arab pra-Islam dan hingga kini belum ada satupun sastrawan Arab dan non-Arab yang mampu menandingi keakuratan bahasa Arab dalam Al-Qur’an.
Hemat saya, buku ini sangat membantu pembaca, khususnya yang tidak memiliki latar belakang bahasa Arab, untuk merasakan dan memahami mukjizat kebahasaan dalam Al-Qur'an. Semoga Allah berkenan meridhai dan memberkahi Bassam Saeh atas karyanya, amiin.
January 27, 2022
I wish I spoke Arabic, because this book would make a bigger impact on someone who did. It's still pretty amazing nonetheless.
February 20, 2022
The Miraculous Qur’an analyses the language itself in the Qur’an.
Bassam points out at the start that his study of the Qur’an takes on a less explored angle, and what I enjoyed about Bassam is his honest and reflective account of his study. He points out fantastic aspects of the Qur’an that he has noted and observed, inviting others to further their study into this. He also easily addresses Qur'anic critique using both knowledge from within the tradition and simple logic. He invites more rhetoricians and linguistic researchers to study the Qur’anic phenomena, and relishes in the divine challenge of the Qur’an, happy himself that the Qur’an continues to leave plenty unanswered as we comb its’ words for truth that continues to wow and reveal itself to us even til today. He describes any attempt to understand the Qur’anic language as an adventure - how can one ever expect to understand such perfection in such an imperfect state?
I also love the context this book provides. It is most useful in proving exactly how important contextual, insider knowledge is when it comes to researching and understanding something as nuanced and unique as the Qur’an, which is precisely what the Islamic Tradition founds itself on. This then further proves how outsiders, poking and prodding an ‘Eastern tradition’ from afar and from the comforts of cold brick in the West cannot ever hope to understand such a rich tradition without complete immersion and embodiment.
I can only imagine how much more insightful this text is when familiar with the Arabic language; One day I hope to read this text when I am somewhat intermediate in Arabic [God Willing].
Bassam demonstrates his expertise in the Arabic language and reveals another layer of the Qur’an that I feel so so blessed to have stumbled upon.
He conveys thoughts and feelings I have experienced but not able to put into words, ideas that touched my periphery, which is: How is it that I, as a non-Arabic speaker, someone who has committed small, isolated parts of the Qur’an to memory but without its translation, still able to identify when the Arabic I see or hear is actually Qur’anic?
I also could never comprehend how fluent or native Arabic speakers could differentiate not only between their own dialects, but what was Qur’anic, too? Bassam added another layer to this wonder by highlighting how pre-Islamic literature, Prophetic sayings and Qur’an have never been confused or amalgamated.
The language itself, it’s words, expressions, phrases, pronouns, imagery, grammatical structure, prose, written structure verses vocal structure... all reveals the divine nature of the Qur’an and even then I feel as though I was only able to understand this book on a rudimentary level.
Jazakallah Khayr to Bassam Saeh for being the means through which I learnt so much. May God bless you ameen.
Bassam points out at the start that his study of the Qur’an takes on a less explored angle, and what I enjoyed about Bassam is his honest and reflective account of his study. He points out fantastic aspects of the Qur’an that he has noted and observed, inviting others to further their study into this. He also easily addresses Qur'anic critique using both knowledge from within the tradition and simple logic. He invites more rhetoricians and linguistic researchers to study the Qur’anic phenomena, and relishes in the divine challenge of the Qur’an, happy himself that the Qur’an continues to leave plenty unanswered as we comb its’ words for truth that continues to wow and reveal itself to us even til today. He describes any attempt to understand the Qur’anic language as an adventure - how can one ever expect to understand such perfection in such an imperfect state?
I also love the context this book provides. It is most useful in proving exactly how important contextual, insider knowledge is when it comes to researching and understanding something as nuanced and unique as the Qur’an, which is precisely what the Islamic Tradition founds itself on. This then further proves how outsiders, poking and prodding an ‘Eastern tradition’ from afar and from the comforts of cold brick in the West cannot ever hope to understand such a rich tradition without complete immersion and embodiment.
I can only imagine how much more insightful this text is when familiar with the Arabic language; One day I hope to read this text when I am somewhat intermediate in Arabic [God Willing].
Bassam demonstrates his expertise in the Arabic language and reveals another layer of the Qur’an that I feel so so blessed to have stumbled upon.
He conveys thoughts and feelings I have experienced but not able to put into words, ideas that touched my periphery, which is: How is it that I, as a non-Arabic speaker, someone who has committed small, isolated parts of the Qur’an to memory but without its translation, still able to identify when the Arabic I see or hear is actually Qur’anic?
I also could never comprehend how fluent or native Arabic speakers could differentiate not only between their own dialects, but what was Qur’anic, too? Bassam added another layer to this wonder by highlighting how pre-Islamic literature, Prophetic sayings and Qur’an have never been confused or amalgamated.
The language itself, it’s words, expressions, phrases, pronouns, imagery, grammatical structure, prose, written structure verses vocal structure... all reveals the divine nature of the Qur’an and even then I feel as though I was only able to understand this book on a rudimentary level.
Jazakallah Khayr to Bassam Saeh for being the means through which I learnt so much. May God bless you ameen.
February 25, 2023
Well, i don't really have any knowledge on arabic, so i can't really criticize anything here tbh.
In summary, the book is about how the Qur'an is miraculous due to its literary "newness". Meaning, although the Qur'an is in Arabic, and it can be understood by Arabic speakers, the Qur'an sounds like a new language which makes it comprehensible, yet also distinguishable (With a note that "Arabic speakers" here is mainly referring to 7th century arabs). And this is one of the miracle of the Qur'an, this can also be an explanation on why 7th century arabs are amazed so much by the Qur'an. According to the Author, the reason why we aren't so amazed by the Qur'an is because we've been accustomed to it too much to the point we can't feel its "miraculousness"; but this is not the case for 7th century arabs.
Overall, i think this is a good book.
In summary, the book is about how the Qur'an is miraculous due to its literary "newness". Meaning, although the Qur'an is in Arabic, and it can be understood by Arabic speakers, the Qur'an sounds like a new language which makes it comprehensible, yet also distinguishable (With a note that "Arabic speakers" here is mainly referring to 7th century arabs). And this is one of the miracle of the Qur'an, this can also be an explanation on why 7th century arabs are amazed so much by the Qur'an. According to the Author, the reason why we aren't so amazed by the Qur'an is because we've been accustomed to it too much to the point we can't feel its "miraculousness"; but this is not the case for 7th century arabs.
Overall, i think this is a good book.
July 18, 2021
"Qur'an is Book whose wonder will never cease."
I'd appreciate this so much more if I understand the Arabic language like a native, because the explanation would make more sense and more significant if I know my way around the language's grammar and sentence structure etc etc.
But this is still an eye-opening read, nonetheless.
I'd appreciate this so much more if I understand the Arabic language like a native, because the explanation would make more sense and more significant if I know my way around the language's grammar and sentence structure etc etc.
But this is still an eye-opening read, nonetheless.
November 30, 2023
In this fascinating study the author has endeavored to elucidate the many linguistically miraculous aspects of the sacred text, and why its beauty and perfection were utterly new and wondrous to the ears of 7th century Arabia, speechless with admiration on hearing its verses recited for the first time by the Prophet Muhammad (SAW).
July 30, 2024
I need more like this 😭😭
March 12, 2022
Ahmad Bassam As'sai has done a great job indeed. Highly recommended for anyone interested in this subject.
September 26, 2022
This was a lot more about grammar than I was expecting, so I don't think I got as much out of this as I could have but it was still a fascinating read.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews