User:Ioannes Pragensis/Sandbox

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my sandbox

todo:


Contents

[edit] Chess Servers

Name URL Description Usage in the articles
Chess Search Engine [17] Google-powered, limits the scope of search to selected chess servers Spam, added by Hellosezoo (talk • contribs). Useful perhaps for finding references
ChessGames [18] Database of games and chess biographies Linked for biographies (Template:Chessgames player) and Notable games
Chessworld.net like [19] Database of games, online chess club Spam if there is a ChessGames entry of comparable or better quality, otherwise tolerated. Added by Kingscrusher (talk • contribs) (=Tryfon), Son of Zeus (talk • contribs), Juicy Plums (talk • contribs), and No65560 (talk • contribs) (possibly one real person)
Chessworld.org [20] Encyclopedia of Chess Language Perhaps for references
WTHarvey.com [21] Chess puzzles taken from games of masters Acceptable in the article(s) about combinations. Otherwise spam, added by WTHarvey (talk • contribs). Useful perhaps for finding Notable games.
Mark-Weeks.com [22] The World Chess Championship Unclear status, may be useful for finding info about WCC matches and games
Supreme-chess.com like [23] Bio + download of games + chess tutorials Acceptable e.g. from articles about PGN and databases of games; in the articles about players usually spam
Muljadi.com like [24] Games in Java interface; downloads all games of the player at once Spam
FICGS.com [25] Small opening wiki on Free Internet Correspondence Games Server Spam, does not look well
WorldChessLinks.net [26] Pages for Wprld Championship matches Uncertain, WCH probably acceptable

[edit] User:Adam12901

  1. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Good Shepherd Community Church Scarborough nn church, December 12, 2006
  2. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Heil Environmental Industries Ltd (no church), Dec 13
  3. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Batesville High School (Arkansas) (no church, notable), Dec 14
  4. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/North Ridge Church nn church, Dec 15
  5. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Stanford Memorial Church notable church, Dec 15
  6. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/XXX Church nn church, Dec 15
  7. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Burnt Church First Nation notable band, deletion reason "Delete Non notable and non verifiable as per WP:CHURCH", Dec 15
  8. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/North Point Community Church notable church, Dec 15
  9. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Puyi Church (2nd nomination) denomination in China, no consensus, Dec 15
  10. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Crosspointe church nn church, Dec 15
  11. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Victory Church nn church, Dec 15
  12. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Parkside Church a church with a notable minister, merged with his article, Dec 15
  13. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Immaculata Church notable church, Dec 15
  14. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Saddleback Church notable church, Dec 15
  15. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Willow Creek Community Church notable church, Dec 15
  16. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Northland Church nn church, Dec 15
  17. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Westchester Church nn church, Dec 15
  18. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Fellowship Church no consensus, Dec 15
  19. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/St Nicholas of Tolentine nn church, Dec 15
  20. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Kishwaukee Bible Church nn church, Dec 16
  21. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Woodward Park Baptist Church nn church, Dec 16
  22. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Friedens Lutheran Church nn church, Dec 16
  23. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Valley Presbyterian Church nn church, Dec 16
  24. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Bayside Community Church a mass nomination of 64 churches and denominations, some clearly non-notable, some extremely notable; because of bad preparation by the nominator, the AfD trainwrecked and wasted a lot of time of many editors
  25. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Emmanuel Church notable church, Dec 22
  26. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Evangelical Catholic Church (second nomination) notable denomination, Dec 22
  27. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Evangelical Church of the Deaf no consensus, Dec 22
  28. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Evangelical Free Church of Naperville nn church, Dec 22
  29. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Faith! Christian Church notable church, Dec 22
  30. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Family Christian Center notable church, Dec 22
  31. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Forge Road Bible Chapel (second nomination) nn church, Dec 22
  32. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Garywood Assembly of God notable church, Dec 22
  33. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Holy Name Church nn church, Dec 22
  34. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Immaculate Heart of Mary Church nn church, Dec 22
  35. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Jubilee Christian Church notable church, Dec 22
  36. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Leeds Reformed Baptist Church nn church, Dec 22
  37. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/MacNab Street Presbyterian Church (Hamilton) nn church, Dec 22
  38. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Metropolitan Community Church of New York notable church, Dec 22
  39. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Metropolitan Community Church of North London nn church, Dec 22
  40. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Morden Alliance Church nn church, Dec 22
  41. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Mt. Olive Church of God no consensus, Dec 22
  42. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/University of Michigan Circle K not a church, Jan 2
  43. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/North Heights Lutheran Church Jan 3
  44. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/WorldVenture, church mission, Jan 4
  45. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Edeals not a church, Jan 5
  46. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/New London Fire not a church, Jan 6
  47. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Asbury Plaza not a church, Jan 6
  48. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Meowth's Party not a church, Jan 6
  49. Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Electric mirror not a church, Jan 6

[edit] Links

[edit] News

[edit] Other


[edit] Overview of official and unofficial World Champions

The following section contains a huge table with names of all leading chess masters (until 1886) and official World Chess Champions (afre 1886). To see it, press [Show] (click [Hide] to hide it again).

[edit] Qur'an and miracles final version before AfD

This is a sub-article to Qur'an and Islamic view of miracles.

People are known to have attributed several miracles to the Qur'an[1], some claiming the Qu'ran itself to be a miracle.

[edit] Claims

[edit] Historical

Some claim historical miracles [2]

[edit] scientific

Quran contains many miracles of biological and scientific knowledge such as the food cycle,relativity,finger-printing identity,menstrual cycle and many more.....

for more go to http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/scientific_index.html

It is very interesting that how can a book predict such a knowledge 1400 years ago when not even Romans were aware of such realities.There is also an Ayat that points towards the classification of living things.There is also description of the Pollination of flowers by Wind.

[edit] Pharaoh vs. King

Some claim the Qur'an differentiation between the word "Pharaoh" and "King" is more accurate that the biblical use of the term for all Egyptian monarchs mentioned therein[3].

The story of Joseph (Q12) only uses the word king - the word Pharaoh not being in use regarding the monarch until the 14 or 13 century BC according to some scholars. Genesis, on the other hand, uses the term starting with the time of Abraham.

[edit] Predictions

Some claim miraculous predictions [4].

[edit] Mathematical

Some claim mathematical miracles [6]

[edit] Statistical miracles

Claims of statistical miracles:

It includes the following warning:

Since the Qur'aan is in Arabic language, it is necessary to know that this study cannot be fully understood except in Arabic, and due to the lack of vocabulary in English, many single words in Arabic appear as sentences! [7]

Equilibrium:

Al-SaliHat (Righteous deeds) * 167 Al-Sayi'at (Evil deeds) * 167 [7]
Al-Hayat (Life) 145 Al-Mawt (Death) 145 [8][7]
Hardship 114 Patience 114[8]
Al-Shiddah (Hardship) 102 Al-Sabr (Patience) 102 [7]
Al-Dunya (This world) 115 Al-Akhira (The hereafter) 115 [8][7]
Al-Mala'ikah (Angles) 88 Al-ShayaTeen (Satan) 88 [8] [7]
Al-MaHabbah (Love) * 83 Al-Ta'ah (Obedience) * 83 [7]
Al-Huda (Right Guidance) * 79 Al-RaHma (Mercy) * 79 [7]
Al-MuSibah (Disaster/calamity) 75 Al-Shukr (Thank) 75 [7][8]
Spending (Sadaqah) 73 Satisfaction 73 [8]
Magic 60 Fitnah (dissuasion, misleading) 60 [8]
Benefi't 50 Corrupt 50 [8]
People 50 Messengers 50 [8]
Al-Salaam (Peace) 50 Al-Tayibaat (Delicacies) 50 [7]
Mind 49 Noor 49 [8]
Muslimeen 41 Jihad 41 [8]
Zakat (Taxes Muslims pay to the poor) 32 Barakah (Increasing or blessings of wealth) 32 [8]
Tongue 25 Sermon 25 [8]
Al-Rajul (Man) 24 Al-Mar'ah (Women) 24 [8][7]
Speaking publicly 18 Publicising 18 [8]
People who are mislead 17 Dead people 17 [8]
Al-Jahr (Saying Aloud) * 16 Al-'Alaniyah (in public) * 16 [7]
Iblees (Satan/Lucifer/king of devils) 11 Al-Isti'azah Billah (seek God's refugee/Seek refuge from Eblees) 11 [7][8]
MuHammed 4 Sharee'ah (Muhammed's teachings) 4 [8]

Theological relation:

Al-Jazaa' (Reward) 117 Al-Maghfirah (Forgiveness) 234 (117*2) [7]
Al-RaHeem (the All-Merciful), 114 times Al-RaHman (The Almighty), 57 =114/2 times [9]
Al-Abraar (The Righteous) * 6 Al-Fujjaar (The Wicked) 3 [7]
Al-Yisr (Facility, Relief) * 36 Al-'Usr (Difficulty) * 12 [7]

Factual relation:

Shahr (Month) 12 Al-Yahom (Day) 365 [7][8]
Al-baHr (Sea) 32 Al-barr (Land) 13 [7] [8]

If we add up the total words of both "sea" and "land" we get 45. A calculation:

  • 32/45 X 100% = 71% = percentages of Water (Sea) in the world [10]
  • 13/45 X 100% = 29% = percentages of Land in the world

[edit] Criticism

Apart the possibility of finding these statistics in every book of more than 200 pages -as has proven by some scientists to contradict the supposed miracles of the bible- the methodology of these statistics are suspicious:

  • The word al yawm (day) appears 372 times in its singular form to express a single day, 3 times to express multiple days of ten and more, and 3 times in its plural form of two. (the plural form from three to ten is excluded) [27], those who made these statistics may have excluded the word "day" when it is followed by a possessive adjective, 'your day' "yawmakum" is thus excluded. Also, the word "month" (shahr) is found 9 times in its singular form to express a singule month and three times (3) to express the plural of more than 10, the plural form from three to ten is excluded. In this example of Day/Month, the methodology seems to be different.
  • Aside from the suspicious methodology, Some words are chosen because they match what is attempted to reach, for example the duality between Sea/Land could be translated into Bah'r/Ard' instead of Bah'r/Birr. And many of the dualities are too vague, Muhammed/sharia or Right Guidance/Mercy, and don't really correspond to a duality.

[edit] Comment Regarding the Word Month

In addition to singular and plural Arabic has a specific form for the dual. The singular is also used for numbers exceeding 10, unless a grammatical device (tamiiz) is used. In short, one has to look at the Arabic text and only use the translations as a guide for such calculations.

The word ‘day’ would be difficult to discuss here. The word month شهر is certainly used 12 times in singular form. Here are the references in the Qur'an:

Twice in 2:185, twice in 2:194, 2:127, 5:2, 5:97, 9:36, twice in 12:34, 15:46, and 97:3.

All other references are either in the dual form (شهرين which occurs twice 4:92, 58:4), or the plural form (أشهر 6، الشهور 1). This tallies with the 21 occurances of month[s] in Arberry's translation.

[edit] Number 19

Several of the claimed miracles are centered around the number 19 [11].

[edit] Criticism

Some have criticism of the number 19 claim [12]

[edit] Perfection

Some claim miracles in its literacy [13]

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/
  2. ^ http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/historical_index.html
  3. ^ http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/historical_05.html
  4. ^ http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/predictions_index.html
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i [1]
  6. ^ http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/mathematical_index.html, http://www.submission.org/miracle/
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Study conducted by Dr. Tariq Al-Suwaidan [2]
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t http://www.islamawareness.net/Miq/stat.html
  9. ^ http://www.free-minds.org/articles/gods_system/rahman.htm
  10. ^ [3] [4] [5] [6]
  11. ^ http://www.submission.org/why-19.html
  12. ^ http://answering-islam.org.uk/Religions/Numerics/
  13. ^ http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/perfection_index.html

[edit] External links

[edit] ver. from Sep 26, 2006

This is a sub-article to Qur'an and Islamic view of miracles.

People are known to have attributed several Miracles to the Qur'an[14], some claiming the Qu'ran itself to be a Miracle.


"If the whole of mankind and Jinn were to gather together to produce the like of this Qur'an, they could not produce the like thereof, even if they backed up each other with help and support. And We have explained to man, in this Qur'an, every kind of similitude: Yet the greater part of men refuse ( to receive it ) except with ingratitude". (Isra 88-89).


Moses came upon the people in the time which people were practicing magical activities therefore he practiced miracles like it such as throwing the walking stick and turning it to a snake which was similar to magic , Jesus came among the time that people were involved with medical proffecion therefore he performed miracle such as healing the blind, and when mohammad was appointed as a prophet the arabs were involved in poetry and eloquent language, so he brought for them the holly quran which includes unique eloquent scripts which remains unique for all times.


[edit] Claims

[edit] Scientific Miracles

In Quran there is a hint of both big bang and big crunch. It is in the Sura Al-Anbiya, verse number 104 as "The Day that We roll up the heavens like a scroll rolled up for books (completed),- even as We produced the first creation, so shall We produce a new one: a promise We have undertaken: truly shall We fulfil it" [28]. You can see that first it hints to big crunch then it hints the big bang as well.

[edit] Linguistic and Literary Inimitability

Introduction


The Qur'an challenges mankind to produce a book like it, 10 chapters like and one chapter like it. This challenge is general which indicates that a thorough analysis of the Qur'anic discourse must be done in order to appreciate the reality of the text. Once the Qur'anic discourse is understood, with regards to its linguistic and literary aspects, then questions can be raised and challenges put forward.


The inimitability of the Qur'an has been established not as a result of blind faith, but as a result of careful analysis and reflecting upon the reality of the text. The conclusion is that the Qur'anic discourse can never be matched as there are too many features and criteria to try to imitate and adhere to. For example, many scholars express that if one chapter is produced as an attempt to imitate the Qur'an it should try and match the Qur'ans literary and linguistic features, which include but are not limited to:


A unique literary form

A cohesive text

Textual Progression

Numerous rhetorical devices

Nummerical and semantic consonance

Concise yet expressive

Informative yet dynamic

Unique rhythm

Aesthetic reception

Eloquence

Unique text buyilding strategy

Unique Phonetic features


To highlight the immense difficulty in producing one chapter; three lines must be informative, in a unique literary form, and establish semantic cohesion (intertexuality) with a book the size of the Qur'an - this is because the Qur'anic chapters contain themes and ideas that are expounded in other chapters, and have semantic relationships with other ideas expressed elsewhere in the book. The smallest chapter in the Qur'an does not stand alone from a thematic point of view, hence the challenge must reflect that reality too. This will then create a intellectual deadlock as other features would need to be included such as an abundance of rhetorcical devices, consonance, use of sound and nummerical symmetry.


All the contemporary challenges are the most poorest attempts to challenge the Qur'an. Hussein Abdur-Raof a contemporary Qur'anic scholar who has refuted all the works on the ijaz (proving the Qur'an to be unique and unmatched) deals with these intellectually bankrupt challenges very well. For example if we accept these claims, the Arabic school rhyme below would have been taken as a good challenge to the Qur'an (The English translation has been provided):


"The beautiful nightingale, is singing on the branches, with the most beautiful melodies..."


What needs to be recongised here is the fact that although the above rhymed prose has provided structures with sweet assonance, it seriously fails to provide any propositional content and fails to match the uniqueness and literary excellence of the Qur'an. It fails to use complex linguistic and literary devices. Throughout the Quran we encounter many linguistic features which can be taken as evidence of its inimitable linguistic nature.


The layman Muslim accepts Islam on the basis that no one has been able to imitate the Quran, although we have the finite 28 letters, grammatical rules and the blueprint of the challenge. When the best of Arab poets, rhetoricians and linguists, of a linguistically homogenous community of the time failed, the layman Muslim wonders how a bilingual/bicultural individual can succeed in reproducing an equivalent “Quran”. The task is so frustrating.


The Qur'an is a unique and sensitive genre that has not been matched with regards to its eloquence, rhetoric, literary form, style, consonance, dynamic style, literary excellence, symmetry, sound and rhyming scheme.[1]


This view is held by many non Muslim Orientalists and Arabists such as H. Gibb, M. Zammit, A. Arberry, H. Johns, N. Robinson, A. Guillaume, E. Palmer and many others. For example,


"... the Meccans still demanded of him a miracle, and with remarkable boldness and self confidence Mohammad appealed as a supreme confirmation of his mission to the Koran itself. Like all Arabs they were the connoisseurs of language and rhetoric. Well, then if the Koran were his own composition other men could rival it. Let them produce ten verses like it. If they could not (and it is obvious that they could not), them let them accept the Koran as an outstanding evident miracle"[2]


"It [the Qur'an] is a literal revelation of Allah, dictated to [Prophet] Muhammad [saas] by Gabriel, perfect in every letter. It is an ever-present miracle witnessing to itself and to [Prophet] Muhammad [saas], the Prophet of Allah. Its miraculous quality resides partly in its style, so perfect and lofty that neither men nor Jinn could produce a single chapter to compare with its briefest chapter, and partly in its content of teachings, prophecies about the future, and amazingly accurate information such as [Prophet] Muhammad [saas] could never have gathered of his own accord"[3]


"It [the Qur'an] has a rhythm of peculiar beauty and a cadence that charms the ear. Many Christian Arabs speak of its style with warm admiration, and most Arabists acknowledge its excellence… indeed it may be affirmed that within the literature of the Arabs, wide and fecund as it is both in poetry and in elevated prose, there is nothing to compare with it" [4]


Eloquence

The language of the Qur'an is precise and accurate in both meaning and expression; each letter and word has its place while the language is free from fault.[5]


Rhetoric

The Quran is a sea of rhetoric. Quranic discourse abounds with rhetorical features more than any other Arabic discourse, classical or modern [6].The purpose of the heavy employment of figures of speech and embellishments is part of the linguistic defiance to mankind to match the Qurans unique stylistic and textural construction. In the study of the rhetorical components of the Quranic discourse it is important to recognise the delicate balance between the use of small linguistic elements, like conjunctions, their rhetorical functions, as well as their semantic impact on the overall meaning of a Quranic structure. Stylistically the Quran stands out from any type of discourse[7]. The Quran exhibit rhyme, rhythm, assonance, alliteration and other qualities which are unique to the text.


A close up stylistic analysis of the Quran can highlight a wide rainbow of textural and rhetorical features which are an extremely unique use of the language.


As an example the interrogative particle is used in the Quran to signify a number of meanings; its employment is stylistically better and semantically more accurate that the interrogative word in certain co-texts i.e. the linguistic environment it occurs in. See Q10:59, Q5:116 etc.


This is a huge subject but just to highlight the Qurans uniqueness and inimitability; the Quranic discourse employs more rhetorical features than any other text.


Analogy: See AL-GHASHIYA 88:15–16, AD-DHUHA 93:9-10

Alliteration See AL-AHZAB 33:71, AL-MURSALAT 77:20 etc

Antiphrasis See AD-DUKHAN 44:49

Antithesis See FATIR 35:7, AT-TAWBA 9:82 etc

Asyndeton See AR-RAD 13:2

Assonance See AL-GHASHIYA 88:25-26, AL-GHASHIYA 88:14-15 etc

Cadence (This is the whole Quran itself, it is a major rhetorical feature which is an inimitable feature of the Quran. The Quranic discourse uses assonance to deliver all the rhetorical features while employing the use of many phonetic features such as assimilation, nasalisation, etc. No other text has done this before, especially in such frequency)

Chiasmus See AAL-E-IMRAN 3:27

Epizeuxis See AL-INSHIRAH 94:5-6

Equivoque See AN-NOOR 24:43

Homonymy See AL-BAQARA 2:14-15, AAL-E-IMRAN 3:54 etc

Hyperbole See AL-ARAF 7:40, AL-AHZAB 33:10,AZ-ZUMAR 39:71-72 etc

Isocolon See AT-TALAQ 65:7-10

Metaphor See MARYAM 19:4, AL-ANBIYA 21:18 etc

Metonymy See AL-QAMAR 54:13, AL-ANAAM 6:127 etc

Parenthesis See Q7:42, Q4:73 etc

Polypton Q80:25-26

Rhetorical Questions See Q55:60, Q37:91-92 etc

Stress See Q:29:62, Q3:92 etc (Stress has a unique semantic function in the Quran)

Synedoche See Q:90:12-13 [8]


Literary Form


Taha Husayn a prominent Egyptian Litterateur said in the course of a public lecture:


“But you know that the Quran is not prose and that it is not verse either. It is rather Qur’an, and it cannot be called by any other name but this. It is not verse, and that is clear; for it does not bind itself to the bonds of verse. And it is not prose, for it is bound by bonds peculiar to itself, not found elsewhere; some of the binds are related to the endings of its verses and some to that musical sound which is all its own. It is therefore neither verse nor prose, but it is “a Book whose verses have been perfected the expounded, from One Who is Wise, All-Aware.” We cannot therefore say its prose, and its text itself is not verse. It has been one of a kind, and nothing like it has ever preceded or followed it.”[9]


The Arabic language has two distinct styles of speech. One of the styles is Poetry and the other is Prose.[10]


Poetry


Arabic Poetry is a form of metrical speech with a rhyme. The rhyme in Arabic poetry is as a result of every line of the poem ending upon a specific letter. The metrical aspect of Arabic poetry is due to its rhythmical divisions, these division are called ‘al-Bihar’, literally meaning ‘The Seas’ in Arabic. This term has been used to describe the rhythmical divisions as a result of the way the poem moves according to its rhythmical pattern.[11]


In Arabic poetry there are sixteen rhythmical divisions (al-Bihar); at-Tawîl, al-Bassit, al-Wafir, al-Kamil, ar-Rajs, al-Khafif, al-Hazaj, al-Muttakarib, al-Munsarih, al-Muktatab, al Muktadarak, al-Madid, al-Mujtath, al-Ramel, al-Khabab and as-Saria'. Each one of the al-Bihar has a unique rhythmical division.[12]


This is seen, for example, in a line of poetry by Ibn el-Abbas al-Asadi:


Akfara men ahlihi Obayd

Falaysa yobdi wala yo’eed

Obeid has lost all his kingsmen

He can no longer initiate or settle matters [13]


Prose


Arabic Prose is that of non-metrical speech, meaning it does not have a rhythmical pattern like the al-Bihar mentioned above. Arabic prose can be further divided into two categories; Saj, rhymed prose, and Mursal, straight prose.[14]


An apt description of Saj is, in the words of A. Von Deffer:


“A literary form with some emphasis on rhythm and rhyme, but distinct from poetry. Saj is not really as sophisticated as poetry, but has been employed by Arab poets, and is the best known of the pre-Islamic Arab prosodies. It is distinct from poetry in its lack of metre, i.e. it has not consistent rhythmical pattern, and it shares with poetry the element of rhyme, though in many cases some what irregularly employed.”[15]


Mursal can be defined as a literary form that goes on and is not divided, but is continued straight throughout without any divisions, either of rhyme or of anything else. Mursal is meant as a way of expression close to the everyday spoken language, examples can be seen in speeches and prayers intended to encourage or frighten the masses.[16]


Qur’anic Style


The Qur’anic style differs as it does not fit in to any of the above categories, it is not like the prose of Saj or Mursal and it is not any of the al-Bihar. This can be seen by the following example:


Wad Duha wal laili idha saja

Ma waddaka Rabbuka wa maa qala

Wa lal akhiraatu khairul laka minal oola

Wa la sawfa ya teeka Rabbuka fa tarda…


By the morning hours and by the night most still

Your Lord has neither forsaken you nor hates you

And indeed the hereafter is better for you than the present

And verily your Lord will give you so that you shall be well pleased…

[Qur’an 93:1-5]


The examination of the whole surah with reference to the above styles indicates that it is not Saj or Mursal as this verse has an internal rhythm, whereas Saj and Mursal are not rhythmic in nature. Also it is does not fit into to Arabic poetry as the Qur’an does not have a consistent rhythmical pattern, in other words it lacks strict structure. Therefore it does not conform to any of the al-Bihar.[17]


This analysis has been summarised by Ibn Khaldun’s in his classical work ‘The Muqadimah’:


“It should be known that the Arabic language and Arab speech are divided into two branches. One of them is rhymed poetry…The other is prose, that is, non-metrical speech…The Quran 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 speech stops. It is then reused 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.”[18]


Dynamic Style


An interesting unique feature of the Qur’an, which is responsible for its dynamic style, is its sudden change of person and number. This feature, also known as grammatical shift, plays a rhetorical role as the sudden changes are perfectly logical and are used to enhance expression. Robinson states:


"…sudden pronomial shifts are characteristic of the quranic discourse....they are a very effective rhetorical device." [19]


The dynamic style of the Qur’anic discourse occurs as a result of the use of grammatical shifts. This is an accepted rhetorical practice that has been termed as the “Daring nature of Arabic”. This rhetorical device is called ‘iltifat’, that is, ‘turning’ from one thing to another. [20]


Orientalists in the past such as Noldeke stated that some of these changes in person and number occur abruptedly. This misconception has been shown to be a superficial understanding of classical Arabic. The changes that are made in the Qur’anic discourse are made according to an effective pattern. The Arab scholars in the past, such as Sututi, al-Zarkashi and al- Athir, unanimously agreed that this use of Arabic was part of the science of rhetoric. Furthermore they exclaimed that rather than being a peculiarity of the Arabic language, it is an effective rhetorical tool. [21]


The Qur’an is the only form of Arabic prose to have used this rhetorical device in an extensive and complex manner. Haleem states:


“…it employs this feature far more extensively and in more variations than does Arabic poetry. It is, therefore, natural to find…no one seems to quote references in prose other than from the Qur'ān” [22]


One example of this complex rhetorical feature is exhibited in the following verse. It changes to talking about God, in the third person, to God Himself speaking in the first person plural of majesty:


“There is no good in most of their secret talk, only in commanding charity, or good, or reconciliation between people. To anyone who does these things, seeking to please God, We shall give a rich reward.” (4:114)


Instead of saying “He will give him…” God In this example speaks in the plural of majesty to give His personal guarantee of reward for those who do the positive actions mentioned in the above verse.


Another example of this sudden change in person and number is exhibited in the following verse:


“He it is who makes you travel by land and sea; until when you are in the ships and they sail on with them in a pleasant breeze, and they rejoice, a violent wind overtakes them and the billows surge in on them from all sides, and they become certain that they are encompassed about, they pray to Allah, being sincere to Him in obedience: 'If Thou dost deliver us from this, we shall most certainly be of the grateful ones.' But when He delivers them, lo! they are unjustly rebellious in the earth. O humankind! your rebellion is against your own souls -provision of this world's life - then to Us shall be your return, so We shall inform you of what you did” (10:22)


Neal Robinson in his book “Discovering the Qur’an: A Contemporary Approach to a Veiled Text” explains this verse in context of its rhetoric:


“At first sight it may appear hopelessly garbled, but the three consecutive pronominal shifts are all perfectly logical. The shift from the second person plural to the third person plural objectifies the addressees and enables them to see themselves as God sees them, and to recognize how ridiculous and hypocritical their behaviour is. The shift back to the second person plural marks God's turning to admonish them. Finally the speaker's shift from the third person singular to the first person plural expresses His majesty and power, which is appropriate in view of the allusion to the resurrection and judgment.”[23]


The dynamic style of the Qur’an is an obvious stylistic feature and an accepted rhetorical practice. The Qur’an uses this feature in such a way that conforms to the theme of the text while enhancing the impact of the message it conveys. It is not surprising that Neal Robinson concluded that the grammatical shifts used in the Qur’an:


“…are a very effective rhetorical device."[24]


TO BE UPDATED


[1] For details about the rhyming scheme, literary excellence and sound of the Qur'anic discourse please see http://www.theinimitablequran.com/InimitabilityOfTheQuranUniqueRhymingScheme.html; M. Abdullah Draz. 2001.The Qur'an an Eternal Challenge (al-Naba' al-'Azim).The Islamic Foundation; and M. Sells. 2000. A Literary Approach to the Hymnic Surahs of the Qur'an. Curzon Press. For examples of the Qur'anic use of sounds please see http://www.theinimitablequran.com/Phonetics.html

[2] H. A. R. Gibb, Islam-A Historical Survey (Oxford University Press: 1980), 28

[3] Harry Gaylord Dorman, Towards Understanding Islam (New York: 1948), 3.

[4] Alfred Guillaume, Islam (Penguin Books: 1990 [Reprinted]), 73-74

[5] Please see Hency Stubbe. 1911. Rise and Progress of Mohammadanism and Professor E.H. Palmer.1820. Introduction to The Koran. For an example please see http://www.theinimitablequran.com/PrepositionOfInVerse4243.html and http://www.theinimitablequran.com/ConciseMinimumWording.html

[6] Please see H, Abdul-Raof. 2003. Exploring the Qur'an. Al-Maktoum Institute Academic Press; and H. Abdul-Raof. 2000. Qur'an Translation: Discourse,Texture and Exegesis. Curzon Press. For a brief historical debate http://www.theinimitablequran.com/ABriefHistoryOfTheQuranicChallenge.html

[7] Please see M. Abdullah Draz. 2001.The Qur'an an Eternal Challenge (al-Naba' al-'Azim).The Islamic Foundation.

[8] See Hana E. Kasis, A Concordance of the Quran (Berkeley-LosAngeles-London: University of California Pres, 1982)and H, Abdul-Raof. 2003. Exploring the Qur'an (Chapter "Understanding Qur'anic Rhetoric). Al-Maktoum Institute Academic Press.

[9] Lecture entitled "Prose in the second and third centuries after the Hijra" delivered at the Geographical Society in Cairo 1930. Dar al Ma-arif.

[10] Please see W. Wright. 1967. A Grammar of the Arabic Language (3rd Edition), Cambridge University Press, 3rd edition.

[11] [12] Please see W. Wright. 1967. A Grammar of the Arabic Language (3rd Edition), Cambridge University Press, 3rd edition; and C J Lyall, Translations Of Ancient Arabian Poetry, Chiefly Pre-Islamic, Williams & Norgate Ltd., London, 1930.

[13] Please see Dr Mostafa Mahmood. Dialogue with an Atheist. Dar-al-Taqwa.

[14] Please see Ibn Khaldun, The Muqaddimah, Franz Rosenthal (Translator), Volume III, Routledge & Kegan Paul, London, 1958.

[15] Ulum al Qu'ran

[16] Please see http://www.islamic-awareness.org/Quran/Miracle/ijaz.html

[17] An example of even the best classical Arabic poetry unable to match the Qur'an's literary form can be seen here http://www.islamic-awareness.org/Quran/Miracle/Quss.html

[18] Please see Ibn Khaldun, The Muqaddimah, Franz Rosenthal (Translator), Volume III, Routledge & Kegan Paul, London, 1958.

[19] Please see Neal Robinson. 2004. Discovering the Qur’an: A Contemporary Approach to a Veiled Text. Georgetown University Press. For an electronic copy please see http://www.islamic-awareness.org/Quran/Text/Grammar/robinson.html

[20] [21] [22] Pleasee Muhammed Abdel Haleem. 1999. Understanding the Qur’an: Themes & Styles. I. B. Tauris Publishers. For an electronic copy please see http://www.theinimitablequran.com/GrammaticalShiftInPersonNumberRhetoricalHaleem.html

[23] [24] Please see Neal Robinson. 2004. Discovering the Qur’an: A Contemporary Approach to a Veiled Text. Georgetown University Press.

[edit] Historical

Some claim historical miracles [15]

[edit] Pharaoh vs King

Some claim the the Qur'an differentiates between the word "Pharaoh" and "King" in a historical accurate way[16].

[edit] City of Iram

Some view the rediscovery of Iram to be a proof of miraculous historical accuracy of the Qur'an [17]

[edit] Predictions

Some claim miraculous predictions [18].

[edit] Mathematical

Some claim Mathematical miracles [19]


[edit] Statistical Miracle

Claims of Statistical Miracles:

It includes the following warning:

Since the Qur'aan is in Arabic language, it is necessary to know that this study cannot be fully understood except in Arabic, and due to the lack of vocabulary in English, many single words in Arabic appear as sentences! [7]


Equilibrium:

Al-Salihat (Righteous deeds) * 167 Al-Sayi'at (Evil deeds) * 167 [7]
Al-Hayat (Life) 145 Al-Maout (Death) 145 [8][7]
Hardship 114 Patience 114[8]
Al-Shiddah (Hardship) 102 Al-Sabr (Patience) 102 [7]
Al-Dunya (This world) 115 Al-Akhira (The hereafter) 115 [8][7]
Al-Mala'ikah (Angles) 88 Al-Shayateen (Satan) 88 [8] [7]
Al-Mahabbah (Love) * 83 Al-Ta'ah (Obedience) * 83 [7]
Al-Huda (Right Guidance) * 79 Al-Rahma (Mercy) * 79 [7]
Al-Musibah (Disaster/calamity) 75 Al-Shukr (Thank) 75 [7][8]
Spending (Sadaqah) 73 Satisfaction 73 [8]
Magic 60 Fitnah (dissuasion, misleading) 60 [8]
Benefi't 50 Corrupt 50 [8]
People 50 Messengers 50 [8]
Al-Salaam (Peace) 50 Al-Tayibaat (Delicacies) 50 [7]
Mind 49 Noor 49 [8]
Muslimeen 41 Jihad 41 [8]
Zakat (Taxes Muslims pay to the poor) 32 Barakah (Increasing or blessings of wealth) 32 [8]
Tongue 25 Sermon 25 [8]
Al-Rajul (Man) 24 Al-Mar'ha (Women) 24 [8][7]
Speaking publicly 18 Publicising 18 [8]
People who are mislead 17 Dead people 17 [8]
Al-Jahr (Saying Aloud) * 16 Al-'Alaniyah (in public) * 16 [7]
Iblees (Satan/Lucifer/king of devils) 11 Al-Isti'azah Billah (seek God's refugee/Seek refuge from Eblees) 11 [7][8]
Muhammed 4 Sharee'ah (Muhammed's teachings) 4 [8]


Theological relation:

Al-Jazaa' (Reward) 117 Al-Maghfirah (Forgiveness) 234 (117*2) [7]
Al-Raheem (the All-Merciful), 114 times Al-Rahman (The Almighty), 57 =114/2 times [20]
Al-Abraar (The Righteous) * 6 Al-Fujjaar (The Wicked) 3 [7]
Al-Yisr (Facility, Relief) * 36 Al-'Usr (Difficulty) * 12 [7]


Factual relation:

Al-Shahr (Month) 12 Al-Yahom (Day) 365 [7][8]
Al-bahar (Sea) 32 Al-bar (Land) 13 [7] [8]

If we add up the total words of both "sea" and "land" we get 45. A calculation:

  • 32/45 X 100% = 71% = percentages of Water (Sea) in the world [21]
  • 13/45 X 100% = 29% = percentages of Land in the world

[edit] Number 19

Several of the claimed miracles are centered around the number 19 [22].

[edit] Perfection

Some claim miracles in its Literacy [23]


[edit] References

  1. ^ http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/
  2. ^ http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/historical_index.html
  3. ^ http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/historical_05.html
  4. ^ http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/predictions_index.html
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r [7]
  6. ^ http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/mathematical_index.html, http://www.submission.org/miracle/
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj Study conducted by Dr. Tariq Al-Suwaidan [8]
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an http://www.islamawareness.net/Miq/stat.html
  9. ^ http://www.free-minds.org/articles/gods_system/rahman.htm
  10. ^ [9] [10] [11] [12]
  11. ^ http://www.submission.org/why-19.html
  12. ^ http://answering-islam.org.uk/Religions/Numerics/
  13. ^ http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/perfection_index.html
  14. ^ http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/
  15. ^ http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/historical_index.html
  16. ^ http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/historical_05.html
  17. ^ http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/historical_07.html
  18. ^ http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/predictions_index.html
  19. ^ http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/mathematical_index.html, http://www.submission.org/miracle/
  20. ^ http://www.free-minds.org/articles/gods_system/rahman.htm
  21. ^ [13] [14] [15] [16]
  22. ^ http://www.submission.org/why-19.html
  23. ^ http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/perfection_index.html

[edit] External links

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