Ulum al Qur'an
The Difference between Literature and the Qur'an
Ibn Khaldun (d. 809H/1406), the well-known author of the muqaddima pointed out in a passage on the literature of the Arabs the difference between literature and the Qur'an in general and between saj' and the Qur'an in particular:
'It should be known that the Arabic language and Arab speech are divided into two branches. One of them is rhymed poetry ... The other branch is prose, that is, non-metrical speech ... The Qur'an is in prose. However, it does not belong in either of the two categories. It can neither be called straight prose nor rhymed prose. It is divided into verses. One reaches breaks where taste tells one that the speech stops. It is then resumed and "repeated" in the next verse. (Rhyme) letters, which would make that (type of speech) rhymed prose are not obligatory, nor do rhymes (as used in poetry) occur. This situation is what is meant by the verse of the Qur'an:
'God revealed the best story, a book harmoniously arranged with repeated verses ...' (Al-Qur'an 39: 23). [Ibn Khaldun: The Muqaddima, Princeton, 1967, Vol. 3, p.368; Ibn Khaldun: Muqaddima, Cairo, n.d., p.424.]
Examples:
A good example for a saj'-like passage in the Qur'an would be Sura al-ikhlas (112: 14). It is somewhat irregular in its rhythm, and it has a rhyme ending with the syllable ad:
| Qul huwa llahu ahad | Say: He is God the One and Only |
| Alahus samad | God the Eternal, Absolute |
| Lam yalid wa lam yulad |
He begetteth not nor is He begotten |
| wa lam yakun lahu kufuwan ahad |
And there is none like unto Him. |
Of the many passages more like plain prose, although not quite identical to it, as the kind of end-rhyme indicates, the following may serve as an example:
| 'Inna auhaina ilaika kama auhaina ila nuhin wa nabiyina min ba'dihi wa auhaina ila ibrahima wa isma'ila wa ishaqa wa ya'quba wa-l-asbati wa 'isa wa ayyuba wa yunusa wa haruna wa sulaimana wa ataina dawuda zabura. Wa rusulan qad qasasnahum 'alaika min qablu wa rusulan lam naqsushum 'alaika wa kallama llahu musa taklima. Rusulan mubashshirina wa mundhirina li'alla yakuna li-nnasi 'ala llahi hujjatun ba'dar rusuli wa kana llahu 'azizan hakima (Al-Qur'an 4: 163-165). |
We have sent thee inspiration as We sent it to Noah and the messengers after him: We sent inspiration to Abraham, Ismail, Isaac, Jacob and the tribes, to Jesus, Job, Jonah, Aaron, and Solomon, and to David we gave the Psalms. Of some apostles We have already told thee the story, of others We have not. And to Moses God direct spoke. APostles who gave good news as well as warning that mankind after (the coming) of the apostles should have no plea against God; for God is exalted in power, wise. |