The Quran and Its Lessons

By Muhammad Abdullah Pasha

Humans today are in the midst of an ‘info-biotech’ revolution. The ensuing results may be good in the long run, perhaps with adverse side effects.
Nations on earth, however, are attempting to polarise; powerful politicians agree to disagree. Thus, there is underlying fear and suspicion, leading, I am afraid, to a potential misapprehension. Certainly not a good sign in a multicultural, multi-religious and secular society of our earth – a large global village. It is time to stop and think. We have a moral responsibility to our children’s children and beyond.
Yes, there are and should be differences of culture, ethnicity and religion. Nature around us is orderly and beautiful. There is no flaw in it says the Quran, but there is an underlying unity in diversity, for humans to learn a lesson from nature, a sense of liberality. I do feel strongly that there are more commonalities in humans to be discovered, despite our differences, hopefully leading to a balanced mutual understanding.
This book is a humble attempt to highlight the general teachings of the textbook of Islam, the perspicuous Quran, which hopefully clears the atmosphere.
Islam is universal and as such has a missionary zeal, yet it is the Quran which proclaims loud and clear: “There is no compulsion in religion.”

• Language: English
• Publisher: Austin Macauley Publishers
• Release date: Feb 26, 2021
• ISBN: 9781528985826

Muhammad Abdullah Pasha

Dr Muhammad Abdullah Pasha, M.B.E., an Indian Muslim, was born in Bangalore (Bengaluru), India. He received his primary and secondary education at St Aloysius High School and higher education at Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, India. He graduated in Medicine in 1953 from Andhra University, India. Dr Pasha moved to England, UK, in 1956. He retired from the NHS as consultant physician in 1992. In 2003, he was awarded M.B.E. for services to health and community relations. He is the past chairman and trustee of Southend-on-Sea Essex Mosque. He is also a past president of Southend-on-Sea East Rotary Club. Dr Pasha lives in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, UK.

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Summation

About the Author

Dr Muhammad Abdullah Pasha, M.B.E., an Indian Muslim, was born in Bangalore (Bengaluru), India. He received his primary and secondary education at St Aloysius High School and higher education at Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, India. He graduated in Medicine in 1953 from Andhra University, India.

Dr Pasha moved to England, UK, in 1956. He retired from the NHS as consultant physician in 1992.

In 2003, he was awarded M.B.E. for services to health and community relations. He is the past chairman and trustee of Southend-on-Sea Essex Mosque. He is also a past president of Southend-on-Sea East Rotary Club.

Dr Pasha lives in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, UK.

Dedication

To the memory of my brothers: Muhammad Abdul Aziz, Muhammad Abdul Qadir, Muhammad Abdul Alim and Muhammad Abdul Khaliq.

Copyright Information ©

Muhammad Abdullah Pasha (2021)

The right of Muhammad Abdullah Pasha to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by the author in accordance with section 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

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Any person who commits any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library.

ISBN 9781528985819 (Paperback)

ISBN 9781528985826 (ePub e-book)

www.austinmacauley.com

First Published (2021)

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Acknowledgements

In thinking, planning and processing this book over the past two years, it has been a great pleasure and a happy experience for me and my extended family. Indeed, a fertile family endeavour of mixed generations, young, old, males and females alike.

First and foremost, my most sincere thanks to Sheik Hammad R Fahim of Oldham, Director European Institute of Islamic Sciences, for kindly introducing this book with his commendable foreword.

My very grateful thanks to my nephew Iqbal Pasha Ahmed and his wife Qamar Taj and their sons and daughters, Anwar Ahmed and his wife Mueez Fatima, Umar Azhar and his wife Rafiah, Tahira Lubna and her husband Ateeq Ahmed Khan, and Sarah and her husband Nasrulla Khan for their steady and consistent help in the preparation of this book. In particular for designing the page on Bismillah, placed in the book as it begins. Also, for the illustration page on ‘Prostration in Prayer’ which is placed at the end of Chapter Two of this book. Many thanks for my nephew Javed Pasha, professor of physics, in Karachi, Pakistan, for reading and improving the manuscript.

I am deeply indebted to my younger sister, Dr Fatima Aziz of New Jersey, USA, for stimulating me to take up the study of the Noble Quran and to her son, Dr Shahid Rahim Aziz, professor at Rutgers University, New Jersey, USA, for his help in supplying books, which were of great help to me in writing this.

Thanks to my daughters: Sofi and her husband Ian Robinson, and Yasmin and her husband Jonathan Worsnop. More importantly to my grown-up grandchildren: Adam Pasha Robinson, Lucy and her husband Adrian Maganza, Nataly Robinson at Oxford University, Sophie Worsnop at Glasgow University, and her younger brother, Jack, who is still at school, for their frank criticisms and corrections in the format of the book. Many thanks for my dear friend, Jenny Hawkins, and her friend, Hakan, of Side, Turkey, for their valuable help in general. My sincere thanks to my very good friend, Nicky Burchell, for her help and assistance. Mrs Rebecca Milton of Folkestone typed my handwritten manuscript with great efficiency and I offer my sincere thanks to her.

Finally, my sincere thanks to Princeton University Press, New Jersey, USA and Oxford and to Professor Bruce B Lawrence for allowing me to quote from his excellent and most informative book, The Koran in English, published in 2017.

Reviews

A tremendous read.

— Late Joyce Helen Davey, a convert to Islam

Thought-provoking. Beautifully presented.

— Dr A Ratnakar, Rtd. librarian, Bengaluru, India

"Dr Pasha’s The Quran and Its Lessons is both informative and educative."

— Lucy Robinson, freelance journalist, London

A very useful handbook for those who are curious about Islam.

— Jenny Hawkins, Side, Turkey

Previous Books by the Author

The People of the Book

Sixth Century and Beyond: The Prophet and His Times

Umar Farooq: The Great Caliph

Sir Syed Ahmed Khan: His Life and Times

An Ambitious Woman

Unplanned Seduction

The Feather Whisperer: Short Stories

Preface

To be perfectly honest, I must confess that at my heart I am deeply inspired by that great book of Islam, the Glorious Quran.

There is indeed a lot to be learnt, by the study of the divine verses therein.

I retired in 1992 as a consultant physician having served in the National Health Service, for nearly four decades.

Not being fully conversant with the Arabic language of the Quran, I began the study of the Quran from its many English and Urdu language translations. Urdu is my mother tongue. What little I have learnt over a quarter of a century, I have tried to put down my thoughts in the format of a small book. I chose to write this book in plain English but not in an academic style.

Hopefully it would be read by the beginners and learners of the Quran, an ordinary man and a woman. Today Muslims constitute nearly a quarter of the world’s population. There is thus a need to know and learn about Islam from the pages of the Grand Quran.

As an innovation, about one sixth of the book begins with what I have named ‘Preliminary Presentations’. It is an introductory discourse on some of the essential subjects. It is meant to facilitate a better understanding of the rest of the book that follows.

For example, the very first subject of discussion in the above presentation is Allah.

The first five chapters are a fresh appraisal of the five obligatory Principles or Pillars to be practiced, in the day-to-day life of a Muslim, as enunciated in the Quran, full of wisdom.

The chapter on creation emphasises that in Quranic thinking, evolution is an essential procedure in the overall process of creation and not its antithesis.

While Allah’s action of creation remains as an ongoing continuity, the end of this world and the emergence of a new world in the Hereafter is discussed in chapter seven on Resurrection, which as a reality is certain to come.

Human nature, with all its wiles, is critically analysed and best discussed in the discerning Quran. An extraction is summarised in chapter eight.

I believe the Quran is directly addressed to man and not to a woman, particularly in the discharge of his bounden duties on earth, as a measure of his ‘personal responsibility’, which I have optimised in chapter nine.

Chapter ten deals with the important issue of soul, in all its shades and in its grades.

Jihad is a complex subject of violence and often risks misinterpretation. I have laid down the basic principles, as I understand it, in chapter eleven.

The subject of Quran and science is a challenge to human minds since science became a separate entity, a few decades ago. Right from the beginning, the Perspicuous Quran lays a lot of importance on the search for TRUTH, which science pioneers in the modern world. This is a vast subject, better explored by several minds, in an institution, for research, rather than by individuals. As a truth, the Quran speaks of ‘more than one earth’ (Q65:12) which is now discovered by science as a truth. I have just glanced at it in chapter twelve.

As a supplement on inter-related subjects, I have listed them as Appendices, as the book is nearing its end.

Appendix One is an essay on Muhammad (SAW) as a teacher and a preceptor.

Appendix Two is a modern day account of personal experience in performing Al-Hajj – or the Pilgrimage, by my very good friend Yusuf Gulam Ali, a retired engineer of Southend-on-Sea, Essex; to whom I convey my sincere thanks.

The subject of ‘Abbreviated Letters’ of the Quran are briefly discussed in Appendix Three.

Appendix Four is an essay on the concept of One Supreme Being in Hinduism by Shree Aspari Raghunatha V.C. of Bengaluru, India for whom I am most grateful.

Appendix Five is a short essay on the very first Islamic state of the world, founded and established by Prophet Muhammad (SAW) at the city of Madina, Arabia in 623 C.E.

Appendix Six is a chronology of events from 570 C.E. to 650 C.E. or 30 Al Hijra, in the early formative years of Islamic history.

Generally there is a glossary to a book. Glossary is a list. My glossary is just One: The Noble Quran, Al-Quranulkarim in Arabic.

The letters in brackets, written after the exalted name of our Prophet are PBUH – meaning Peace Be Upon Him – or SAW in Arabic. May the blessings of Allah be ever on the Prophet. This is a mark of respect in tradition.

I hereby offer my humble apologies for any unintended errors in the book and I accept full responsibility.

Finally, with the utmost humility and docility, I offer my sincere thanks from my heart to Allah for granting me in His unbounded mercy, the initiative of my mind and the strength to write this book with my right hand, in my frailty of old age of ninety-four years.

Praise be to Allah – the Cherisher and Sustainer of the Worlds

Foreword

Praise is only for Allah, Lord of the entire creation and the Master of the universe and peace and blessings be up Muhammad al-Mustafa who was sent as a mercy for all of humankind, upon his family, companions and followers.

I am truly humbled and delighted to present this treatise on The Quran and Its Lessons, which though modest in size, is rich in meaning. The author, Dr Muhammad Abdullah Pasha, in drawing lessons from the Quran, addresses critical discussions on Islam in a creative and educational style. The topics discussed are pertinent to common questions and enquiries which many have about Islam today. The discussions are comprehensive, ranging from fundamental tenets of Islamic beliefs to the deeper significance of Islamic rituals.

The narrative of Islam churned out by the media and press can often be disingenuous and misrepresentative of Islam. The need for a clear explanation of Islam has never been timelier in light of these current circumstances.

There is no doubt that the solution to such ignorance and misunderstanding lies at the core of an enlightened Islamic education and dialogue. This treatise will no doubt be an indispensable source of benefit for all those who are desirous of such enlightenment.

This book will also serve as an important reference for those who are aspiring to gain a rudimentary understanding of Islam. The mix of traditional references infused with anecdotal commentaries provides for an engaging read. I pray this work will also prove insightful for those wishing to revisit the deeper meaning of faith and as such will undoubtedly feel enthused both intellectually and spiritually,

May Allah reward everyone involved in this project for their efforts and give us all the ability to advocate for His cause.

Hammad R Fahim

Director European Institute of Islamic Sciences

07/01/2019

1.    Bismillah and Basmallah

The first two letters of the English alphabet are a and b. In Arabic, they are Alif ا and ba – ب . Alif is vertical and ba is horizontal, with a dot underneath.

The vertical signifies the descent from the transcendental to the base on earth, thus both being sanctified in a religious bind. The dot below ba becomes the meeting point of both heaven and earth, when the vertical meets the horizontal.

Professor B Lawrence of the USA, in his excellent book ‘The Koran in English’, says, The three words that launch the Quran are—bismillah ar Rahman and ar Rahim. The first word elides bismi with Allah and hence, the whole phrase is known as Basmallah. The Basmallah begins all but one of the 114 chapters of the Quran.¹

2.    Allah

"Allah! There is no God

But He. The living,

The self-subsisting supporter of all.

No slumber can seize Him,

Nor sleep. His are all things

In the heavens and on earth

Who is thee can intercede

In His presence except

As He permitteth? He knoweth

What appeareth to His creatures

As, before or after

Or behind them

Nor shall they compass

Aught of His knowledge

Except as He willeth

His throne does extend

Over the heavens

And the earth and He feeleth

No fatigue in guarding

And preserving them

For He is the Most High

The Supreme in (Glory)"²

"Allah is He, than whom

There is no other God,

The Sovereign, the Holy One,

The source of peace and perfection,

The Guardian of faith,

The preserver of safety,

The exalted in might,

The irresistible, the justly proud,

Glory Be to Allah

High is He

Above the partners they attribute to Him" (Q59:23)

"Say He is Allah the One,

Allah the Eternal, Absolute,

He begetteth not

Nor is He begotten

And there is none like

Unto Him"³

"Blessed be the name

Of thy Lord

Full of majesty

Bounty and honour"⁴

Allah is an Arabic word. It is applied to One and Only One Supreme Being in existence, of many a universe!

The word ‘Allah’ is a combination of two words, Al and Llah. Al is a prefix like ‘the’ in English. Llah means God, therefore Allah. In Aramaic, it is Alaha. The Hebrew word for Allah is Eloha, but the word more often used is Elohim. This word implies plurality. Allah is one, there is no plural for the word Allah, nor is there a gender, like god/goddess, therefore the Arabic word Allah denotes perfect singularity—a Unity.

Allah is a Creator, none can be a Creator other than Allah.

Creativity is the most sublime attribute—directly applicable to Allah!

3.    Man

"It is We, who have placed you with authority on earth and provided you therein, with means, for the fulfilment of your life. Small are the thanks that you will