Edited and modified by the MuslimAnswers.net Team

There is one question one of our writers asked concerning the Qur’an and its miraculous effect on the hearts of people. The query went as follows:

There is one question I have concerning one of the reasons given in a number of works concerning the I’jaaz of the Qur’an. It is said that one of the miracles of the Qur’an is that it touches the hearts of the people in a certain wonderful way, and that this is something that is unique to it among the sacred books of the world.

I would like to ask, is this something universal, or does there have to be a certain predisposition in the heart of the listener before he is moved by the Qur’an? I ask this, because many people (even Muslims who are unfortunately in doubt about Islam, etc.) say that the listen to this or that recitation of the Qur’an, but they are not moved by it at all, and they see (or hear) nothing special about it whatsoever.

To make an analogy with the “miracle of the heart” with another well-known miracle of the Qur’an, for example, the Arabic eloquence of the Qur’an is something that may not be known to most people (even Arabs) today, but it was definitely known to the Jaahili Arabs who had a high proficiency in their Arabic expression – that is, if someone really knows Arabic properly, he will understand the tremendous eloquence and rhetorical qualities of the Qur’an. So is the “moving of the hearts by the Qur’an” something that is universal to everyone, or is it specified by the cleanliness of the listener’s heart? From what I understand, the cleanliness of the heart is also essential to receiving the true purport of the miracle in this regard.

Answer:

The Qur’an has both inward and outward miracles. A non-believer can see the eloquence outwardly but not inwardly. This in fact changes from person to person. You have to keep in mind that miracles are not necessarily for people to accept the Creator, as we know that many Arab polytheists saw the miracles of the Prophet ﷺ, including the eloquence of Quran, but nevertheless they rejected the Prophet ﷺ. They did not want the message although they accepted the miracles, they mentally believed/accepted that Muhammad ﷺ was a Prophet, but they rejected the consequences of this, that is, following him and submitting to Islam.

Note also that even Muslims have different levels of understanding, so it depends on a personal level. The message is universal, but the hearts belong to Allah. A drunkard or a Non-Muslim may get affected by the beauty of a Qur’anic recitation, but a high-ranking Muslim scholar may not get affected in the same way. There is no ruling as such, that an Arab person will undoubtedly see the beauty because he can speak or understand Arabic. It all depends on the sincerity and level of the people.

There is also a difference between knowing many sciences and living through your life according to just one Verse of the Qur’an sincerely. The latter one can see the miracle while the first one will never taste the beauty of Quran. There are many Ahadeeth regarding this issue as well as some verses in Qur’an.

Consider that even the Khawaarij knew Qur’an inside out, were very learned in the Arabic language, and there were many other advantages they possessed, but they were Ahlul Bid’a, people of innovation. Even among the best of Muslims, the way that Abu Bakr (Radhia Allahu Anhu) understood and felt the Qur’an was different from the way Umar (Radhia Allahu Anahu) understood it. All I can say about this now is that may Allah help us to appreciate the Qur’an in a way that we are not only affected by it, but also act upon it.

Hafiz Mahmut

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The above were just a few words said about this matter, and the Hafiz has said he will perhaps develop this matter in more detail since it is a worthwhile matter to expand upon.