FAQ in the category of Miracle, Miracles of Prophets

One of the most important indicators showing the miraculous eloquence of the Quran is the theory of “the Semantic Order of the Quran”.

This theory can be defined as "arranging the words of a phrase or a sentence based on the rules of the science of semantics and literary arts by establishing fine connections among the words that are used" (see Muhâkemat, 86-88)

- Each of the Quran’s words may be like a heart or seed. (It may function as a heart contained in an immaterial body formed of mysteries, or the seed of an immaterial tree around it.)

Thus, words like those of the Quran, and even phrases or verses, may occur in man’s speech, but an all-encompassing knowledge is necessary to situate them exactly as they are in the Qur’an, taking into account the many relationships. (Mektubat, 187)

- It is possible to see the miracle of the Quran from the linguistic viewpoint in this theory. Along with a wonderful “nazm al-maani (semantics/meaning order)”, a miraculous “nazm al-mabani (syntax/word order)” is in question in this theory.

The level of the eloquence of the statement is strengthened when these two orders support each other harmoniously.

- From this viewpoint, it can be said that eloquence is semantics that includes syntax. That is, it is a way of expression that includes preeminent meanings in distinguished words. 

The most miraculous aspect of the Quran is its eloquence. Eloquence is conformity with the necessities of the current state. This becomes possible through choosing appropriate words in the style of expression. Choosing appropriate words becomes possible when the writer or speaker has enough vocabulary in his memory – where he can find the words that are suitable for his expressions.    

From this point of view, the secret behind the Quran’s being at the peak of eloquence is understood better. For, Allah has all kinds of vocabulary that expresses what He wants to say with his endless knowledge, wisdom and power. The existence of different styles like itnab (wordiness) and ijaz (conciseness) in the Quran is an indication of this reality. 

The following determinations of Badiuzzaman Said Nursi expresses this reality:  

“Yes, there should be artistry in wording (the words that are used should be stylish and attractive) 
but only in a manner that serves the meaning (but the nature of the meaning should not be away from these artistic words).

The meaning of the form should be majestic (the words used to embellish the meaning should reflect the majesty of that meaning through literary arts like simile, metaphor and allegory), 
but it is necessary to get permission from the meaning (but the words should not be away from the identity of the meanings that the words need to indicate).

The style should be bright (the style of expression that is used should be bright),
but the purpose should be suitable for it (but the purpose of this style of expression should be harmonious with the purpose of the expression).

The similes should be attractive (The style of expression should be made attractive by using similes and similar literary arts),  
but the appropriateness of the purpose should be considered and consent should be taken from it (but the real point that needs to be stated should not be overlooked).

It should activate the imagination and cause luster (The style of expression that is used should enliven the imagination of the addressee and activate it in a lustrous way) 
but it should not damage and overwhelm the truth, and it should be an example of the truth and should receive help from the truth (but while activating the imagination, the truth should not be hurt and imagination should not be a burden on the truth. On the contrary, this style of expression should be an example showing the truth and should be supported by the truth.” (Muhakemat, 88).

After this short introduction, we can explain the issue of linguistics, which is a miraculous gleam of the Quran, with a few examples:

a) Eachof the words in the verse that we will quote includes some realities that are not mentioned in the content of the verse within the linguistic theme. 

“وممارزقناهمينفقون and spend out of what We have provided for them.” (al-Baqara, 2/3)

The words in this sentence and the order of the sentence itself are arranged in a way that indicates the conditions for "infaq (giving away in the way of Allah)" to be accepted:

It is necessary to give away so that the person himself who gives away will not be needy. The preposition "من" (from)in the phrase "مما" (from what) expresses this condition. An acceptable sadaqah (something given away) should not be something taken from Peter and given to Paul; it should be from a person’s own wealth.The phrase "رزقناهم" (We have providedfor them) expresses this condition.  

The third condition for sadaqah is not to rub it in. The pronoun "نا" (we) used for first person plural in the phrase "رزقناهم" (We have providedfor them) shows that Allah is the real owner of all wealth. With the indication of this verse, Allah spiritually states the following: "I give you sustenance. When you give something to My slaves from what I have given to you, you have no right to rub it in."

Anothercondition for sadaqah is to give it to good places and needy people, not to bad places and people. 

It is not acceptable to give sadaqah to people who spend it on debauchery. The phrase "ينفقون "(spend out) indicates this condition. The fifth condition is to give sadaqah on behalf of Allah. The phrase "رزقناهم" (We have providedfor them) indicates this condition. With tongue of this sign, Allah says, "Wealth belongs to me; you should give on behalf of me."

It means this verse reminds the rich people that they are not the real owner of the wealth but only cashiers.

In addition, the word "ما" (what) indicates that sadaqah can be given from knowledge, intellect, mind, power and advice along with wealth (money and goods). (Sözler, 387-388)

b) The compliance of the words with the reality in beings informs about a real miracle.

For instance,

“It is He Who made the sun to be a shining glory and the moon to be a light (of beauty), and measured out stages for it.” (Yunus, 10/5),

"Blessed is He Who made Constellations in the skies, and placed therein a Lamp and a Moon giving light." (al-Furqan, 25/61) As it is seen in the verses above, it is remarkable that the word "ziya" (light) and words like "siraj" (candle/cresset) are used for sunlight in the Quran, and that the word "nur" (light) and the word "munir" (illuminating/bright) of the same root are used for the noon.

These words give different clues to people and increase the opportunities of the people with different levels of education and culture to benefit from the verses of the Quran. In fact, different meanings were understood from the same verse, all of which are true. For instance,

an ordinary person understands from this verse that both the sun and the moon send light to the earth.

With the indications of the words “ziya” and "siraj", an Arab philologist deduces the meaning that the sun gives heat in addition to light.  

The clue that an astronomer gets from the same words is the fact that the sun is the source of the light and that the moon receives the light from outside. For, the word "ziya/muzi" is used for the things that are the source of light and the word "nur/munir" is used for the things that receive light from outside in Arabic.

For instance, the phrase "ghurfatun muziatun" is not used for a bright room; on the contrary, the word "munira­tun" is used because the light of the room comes from an outside source. However, the phrase "qabasun munir" is not used for cinder/ember but the word "muzi" is used because the light belongs to the cinder/ember itself. 

The reason why the Quran uses "nur-munir," for the moonand "ziya-siraj" for the sun is to express this difference. (see Niyazi Beki, interpretation of verse 5 of ar-Rahman)

c) Each of the words in a verse serving the purpose that the verse aims is a miraculous gleam in terms of linguistics. 

The following verse can be an example for it:

"If but a breath of the Wrath of thy Lord do touch them they will then say "Woe to us! We did wrong indeed.” (al-Anbiya, 21/46)

In this statement, the Quran expresses the effect of the least wrath in a very severe way in order to show the wrath horrible:

“ولئنمستهمنفحةمنعذابربك If but a breath of the Wrath of thy Lord do touch them” Each of the six words in the clause above expresses "littleness", serving the aim of the Quran "frightening a lot with a little wrath".

The first word "if" expresses doubt. It indicates “littleness” by expressing doubt.

The second word is the verb "مس" (touch). The meaning of this word is “to touch slightly”. It also expresses littleness.

The third word is "نفحة" (breath). This word expresses “littleness” in three aspects.

a. It expresses littleness since its meaning is a small smell.

b. In terms of the science of morphology, the structure of the word is"ism al-marra (noun of instance)". It means "only once" and indicates "littleness".

c. The "tanwin" at the end of the word is for indefiniteness and reduction.It also expresses littleness.

The fourth word "من" (from) expresses "tab'iz", that is, part of something, a small part.

The fifth word is "عذاب" (punishment). It is a small penalty compared to "nakal" and "iqab". It indicates littleness.

The sixth word is "ربك" (your Lord). The use of this word instead of Allah's names like al-Jabbar (the Compeller), al-Qahhar (the Subduer) and al-Muntaqim (the Avenger) aims to express "littleness". Based on those indications, the verse can be translated as follows:

"O Messenger!If but a small part of the breath of the wrath of your Lord happens to touch them only once, they will then say "Woe to us! We did wrong indeed."

As Badiuzzaman Said Nursi puts it, "Each of the words used in the verse strengthens the real purpose of the verse." (see Muhâkemat, 93-94; Sözler, 386-87)

d) A single word supporting the purpose of the verse linguistically is a miraculous gleam.   

It is possible to see this fineness in the meaning of the following verse:

“Do not the Unbelievers see that the heavens and the earth were joined together (as one unit of Creation), before We clove them asunder? We made from water every intelligent thing. Will they not then believe?” (al-Anbiya, 21/30)

The Arabic word meaning “joined” in the phrase “the heavens and the earth were joined together” in the verse is “ratq”.

In a normal Arabic statement, “matruqatayn”, which is a noun used for two things would be used instead of “ratq”, which is an infinitive in the form of object. For, the word “ratq=joined” here is used for two things: the heavens and the earth.

However, in the verse, the word meaning “joined”, is preferred not the word “matruqatayn”, which means “two joined things”. For, what is meant to emphasize by the verse is that the heavens and the earth were a single substance, a cosmic soup, a creational dough at first.

The word “ratq”, which eliminates duality and expresses a homogenous structure in the best way, has a miraculous state regarding the issue.

e) As for the analysis of the chapter of al-Kafirun, which is especially asked in the question,

since the analysis is made in terms of linguistics, it will be useful to write the original Arabic text of the chapter.

قُلْياأَيُّهَاالْكافِرُونَ(1) لاأَعْبُدُماتَعْبُدُونَ(2) وَلاأَنْتُمْعابِدُونَماأَعْبُدُ(3) وَلاأَناعابِدٌماعَبَدْتُّمْ (4)

وَلاأَنْتُمْعابِدُونَماأَعْبُدُ(5) لَكُمْدِينُكُمْوَلِيَدِينِ (6)

The translation of the chapter:

1. Say: O ye that reject Faith!

2. I worship not that which ye worship,

3. Nor will ye worship that which I worship.

4. And I will not worship that which ye have been wont to worship,

5. Nor will ye worship that which I worship.

6. To you be your Way, and to me mine.

1) The first verse of the chapter starts with “Qul= Say”. We can state a few fineness of eloquence about it as follows:

a) The addressees of the chapter are unbelievers. The order Qul=Say indicates that Hz. Muhammad is a prophet receiving commands from Allah.

It is a nice compliment, merciful guidance and eloquence that conforms to thenecessities of the current state to teach unbelievers Hz. Muhammad is a prophet.

b) The addressees of the chapter are certain unbelievers. According to the narration, the polytheists called Walid b. Mughira, As b. Wail, Aswad b. Abdulmuttalib and Umayya b. Khalaf made the following offer to the Prophet: “If you worship our idols, we will worship your Lord. If your religion is better, we will receive our share from this goodness. If our religion is better, you will receive your share from it.” Thereupon, this verse was sent down. (see Qurtubi, relevant place)

That Allah did not address these insolent unbelievers directly and that He addressed them through His prophet in the form of “Qul=Say” indicate the value of the Prophet in the eye of Allah and their valuelessness. This indicates the place of Allah’s respectable friends and the despicable place of His enemies.

The phrase “Ya ayyuhal-kafirun” (O unbelievers) in the verse is wonderful in terms of linguistics:

a) The phrase “Ya ayyuhal-kafirun” meaning “O unbelievers” is an exclamation. The letter hamza (a) is used to address people who are near, the words “aya-haya” people who are away and the word “ya” people who are both near and away.

The use of the word “ya” for unbelievers is wonderful here. For, those unbelievers were near the Prophet physically since they were in the same place but they were away from him in terms of the spiritual friendship attained by belief. The use of “ya” here indicates both states of the unbelievers who were the addressees of this verse.

b) There is another point in indicating that the unbelievers are both distant and near. The unbelievers are away from Allah due to their spiritual values, or rather, their valuelessness. However, Allah is close to them with His knowledge and power to punish them.

c) As we have just mentioned, the unbelievers who are the addressees of this chapter are certain people. The prefix “al” (the) at the beginning of the word “al-kafirun” indicates certain, known people.For, it is indicated in the verse that these “unbelievers” will not believe after that.

It is not possible for all unbelievers to be included in this news about the future in terms of the test of the religion, justice or reality.

The prefix “al” (the) mentioned here aims to eliminate such a wrong thought. 

d) The reason why the word “al-Kafirun” (the unbelievers), which is a noun, is preferred to “alladhina kafaru” (those who unbelieved), which is a relative clause is to indicate that the unbelievers who are addressed by the chapter continued their unbelief in the past and that they will continue their unbelief in the future too.  (see Alusi, relevant place)

This word is like a projector shedding light on the truthfulness of the decree that “they will not believe” in the verses to come.

2) The analysis of verse 2 “La A’budu Ma Ta’budun” can be made as follows:

a) The word “La” (not) at the beginning of the verse shows negativity for the future. It makes the verb “A’budu” indicating present/future time negative.

b) The word “Ma” is a relative pronoun. It is used for mindless things more commonly. The reason why this word is used is to indicate that what the polytheists worship are inanimate and mindless.

c) The word “Ta’budun” (worship) has a form that includes the present and the future. Accordingly, the explained meaning of those two verses are as follows: 

“O Messenger! Say: O unbelievers who persist in their denial! (Do you offer me to accept each other’s religion and worship the deities of each other?) Know it very well that I will not worship the deities that you worship and you will worship.”

3) The analysis ofthe sentence “Wa la Antum Abiduna Ma A’budu”:

a) Waw (and) is a conjunction. La is a negative word at the beginning of a noun clause. Abidun (worshippers) is a plural noun. This word is a noun; therefore, it indicates that the unbelievers mentioned above will not believe in Allah and worship Him now or in the future.

b) Ma A’budu: It means what I worship. The reason why the pronoun “Ma (which/what)”, which is generally used for mindless things, is preferred to “Man (who)”, which is used for intelligent beings has a few eloquent purposes:

Firstly: That the pronoun “Ma”, which is used for wrong deities, is used for the real Deity is an art of mushakala (reiterating a word of another person other than its intended meaning). Although they mean the same thing, they are related to different things. For instance, when “ma” is used for Allah here, it means “man”, which is used for intelligent beings.    

Secondly: It indicates a spiritual mushakala. In Arabic, the word deity (mabud) is also used for temples though it is wrong. Since the word deity is used for both Allah and idols, the use of “ma” for this common term shows a nice fineness. 

Thirdly: The relative pronoun “Ma” (which/what) has two aspects of usage: it is used for both mindless beings and intelligent beings. The reason why ma, which is used for both mindless beings and intelligent beings, is used instead of “man” (who), which is used only for intelligent beings, aims to indicate that idols and polytheism are irrational. For, the polytheists also know that the relative pronoun “man”, which is used only for intelligent beings, cannot be used for idols. Then, they understand that what they worship are mindless.   

4) In this verse, the word “abid” (worshipper), which is a noun showing the doer of an action, for the Prophet (pbuh). The reason why a noun is preferred to a verb is to indicate that Hz. Muhammad (pbuh) is not hesitant in his religion and that he will continue in his religion in the future as he did in the past.

Although a present verb was used for the unbelievers before, a past verb is used in this verse. The following message is virtually given in the verse: The Prophet knows what kind of religion you have since he has seen it so far. He will never accept your religion as he has not accepted it so far.

5) In the verse “Nor will ye worship that which I worship”, the word “Abiduna”, which is a plural noun showing the doer of an action,is preferred, indicating that the deniers mentioned above will never abandon unbelief throughout their lives.  

6) It is possible to understand the following messages from the verse “To you be your Way (Religion), and to me mine”:

a) O the unbelievers who are known! I inform you that you will not believe from now on and you will not accept Islam. Your religion will go to grave with you. And I will never accept your religion. 

In fact, it is a challenge. For, if only one of those unbelievers had pretended to believe, Islam would have ended before it spread.

b) Everybody will receive what their religion offers. You will receive what your religion offers and I will receive what my religion offers. This is a serious warning for unbelievers.

According to what Ahl as-Sunnah accepts, Paradise and Hell were created as places and they exist. However, there are no people in them now. Both of them will receive their inhabitants after Doomsday strikes and people are called to account.

The Prophet saw the states of the people of Paradise and Hell on the night of Miraj because Allah probably showed him their states in the future. God Almighty has knowledge that encompasses everything. In some science fiction films, the world of the future is shown imaginarily; similarly, the future states of the people of Paradise and Hell were shown to the Prophet (pbuh) in the form of a scene.     

A discrimination about time like the present and the future is something valid for humans who are limited with time and space. Such a discrimination is not valid for the Being who created time and space.

Answer 1:

The miracles of our Prophet (pbuh) regarding the resurrection of the dead:

“The first one is this: Hasan al-Basri, an important and loyal student of Imam ‘Ali and the greatest authority among the scholars of the external and esoteric sciences in the time of the generation subsequent to the Companions, related: “A man came weeping to God’s Messenger (Upon whom be blessings and peace). He said: ‘I had a little girl; she drowned in such-and-such stream nearby. I left her there.’ He pitied the man and said they would go there together. They went, and the Messenger (UWBP) called to the dead girl, saying her name. At once the dead girl replied: ‘I am present and answer your call gladly.’ He asked her: ‘Do you want to return to your father and mother?’ She replied: ‘No, I have found something better here!’” (Qadi Iyad, ash-Shifa, 1:320; Khafaji, Sharhush-Shifa, 3:106)

The second one: Important authorities like Imam Bayhaqi and Imam b. ‘Adiyy relate from Anas b. Malik: Anas said: “An elderly woman had a single son who suddenly died. The righteous woman was very grieved and prayed: ‘O God, I left my home and migrated here only to obtain Your pleasure and to pay allegiance to God’s Noble Messenger (UWBP) and to serve him. For the sake of Your Messenger, return my son to me, who was the only person to look after me.’” Anas said: “The dead man rose up and came and ate with us.” (Qadi Iyad, ash-Shifa, 1:320; Ibn Kathir, al-Bidaya wan-Nihaya, 6:292)

In the following lines from the celebrated poem Qasidat al-Burda, Imam Busiri refers to this extraordinary event:

“Were his wonders to correspond to his virtue in greatness / Mere mention of his name would have animated decayed bones.”

Third incident: Scholars like Imam Bayhaqi relate from ‘Abdullah b. ‘Ubaydullah al-Ansari: ‘Abdullah said: “I was present when Thabit b. Qays b. Shammas fell as a martyr in the Battle of Yamama and was buried. As he was being put in his grave, a voice suddenly came from him, saying: ‘Muhammad is the Messenger of God, Abu Bakr is the Veracious Siddiq, ‘Umar, the martyr, and ‘Uthman, pious and merciful.’1 We uncovered him and looked: he was dead and lifeless, yet he was foretelling ‘Umar’s martyrdom even before he had succeeded to the Caliphate. (see Qadi Iyad, ash-Shifa, 1:320; Aliyyul-Qari, Sharhush-Shifa, 1:649; Ibn Kathir, al-Bidaya wan-Nihaya, 6:157-158)

The fourth incident: Imam Tabarani, and Abu Nu’aym in his Dala’il al-Nubuwwa, relate from Nu’man b. Bashir: “Zayd b. Kharija suddenly dropped down dead in the marketplace. We took his body to his house. That evening between sunset and the night prayer, while the women were weeping all around him, he exclaimed: ‘Silence! Silence!’ Then, saying: ‘Muhammad is God’s Messenger! Peace be upon you, O Messenger of God!’, he spoke most eloquently for a while. We looked: he was dead, without life. (Ibn Kathir, al-Bidaya wan-Nihaya, 8:291 (with various chains of narrators); al-Haythami, Majma’uz-Zawaid, 5:179-180, with two different chains of narrators)

Thus, if lifeless corpses affirm his prophethood and the living do not, for sure they are more dead than the dead and more lifeless than corpses (see Said Nursi, Mektubat, On Dokuzuncu Mektub)

Answer 2:

First Incident:

The opinion of Aliyyul-Qari regarding the issue is as follows:

“The real narrator of that narration by Hasan al-Basri is unknown. But I (Qari) saw a similar one in Bayhaqi’s Dalail. It is as follows: The Prophet invited a man to Islam. The man said: “I will not believe in you unless you resurrect my daughter.” The Prophet said, “Show me her grave”. He showed it. The Prophet (went to the grave of that girl and) called to the dead girl, saying her name. At once, the dead girl replied: ‘I am present and answer your call gladly.’ He asked her: ‘Do you want to return to your father and mother?’ She replied: “O Messenger of Allah! By Allah, I don’t want because I see that the neighborhood/closeness/protection of Allah is better than that of my parents. I see that the hereafter is better for me than this world,” (see Aliyyul-Qari, Sharhush-Shifa, Beirut, 1421, 1/650-651)

- The same miraculous event is mentioned in other sources. (see al-Qastalani, al-Mawahibul-Ladunniyya, Cairo, nd., 2/296)

On this occasion, Aliyyul-Qari, also mentions that the Prophet brought together the bones of the sheep he ate with his Companions, in Jabir’s house, and brought the sheep back to life by Allah’s leave. (see ibid)

Second Incident

- Ibn Kathir includes the narrations that came through three chains of narrators regarding the issue. (al-Bidaya wan-Nihaya, 6/171, 291, 323)

- This incident is included in Ibn Abid-Dunya’s work called “Man Asha Badal-Mawt / Those Who Lived After Death” (Beirut, 1413, 1/12) with two full chain of narrators   - one reported from Anas and the other from another narrator. The above scholars trusted him since they included in their works.

- Bayhaqi includes three narrations with chain of narrators - all of which are reported from Anas. (see Bayhaqi’s Dalail an-Nubuwwa, 6/50, 51,52)

We could not come across anyone who corrected this narration and we could not come across anyone who criticized it.

Third incident:

Reporting from Bayhaqi (Dalail, 6/58), Ibn Kathir states that there are sound narrations about those who spoke after death. (see Ibn Kathir, Ibn Kathir, al-Bidaya wan-Nihaya, 6/174-175)

In some of these sources, it is written that this incident took place in the Battle of Yamama, and some in Jamal or Siffin. As a matter of fact, Bayhaqi includes two different narrations showing those two places. (ibid)

Fourth incident:

Bayhaqi states that the narration he made regarding the issue was “sound”. And he includes some other narrations that support it. (see Dalail, 6/55-56)

- Bukhari briefly confirmed this event and included it in his history by saying, “Zayd b. Kharija is one of those who died during the caliphate of Uthman and spoke after death.” (at-Tarikhul-Kabir, 3/383)

- The majority of Islamic scholars agree that Masjid al-Aqsa, which was the first qiblah of Muslims, is in Bayt al-Maqdis (in Quds), whose precincts were blessed.

It is stated in some historical resources that Quds (Jerusalem) was destroyed in 70 AD and that Bayt al-Maqdis was also demolished then. However, that place was still known as a worshipping place and the ruins of Bayt al-Maqdis were kept. The Prophet gave information about those ruins.

The wall that is called the "Wailing Wall" by Jews and "Buraq Wall" by Muslims is a remnant of the old temple.

In 638 AD, Masjid al-Aqsa was built in the place of Bayt al-Maqdis after Quds was conquered during the caliphate of Hz. Umar. The reason why Hz. Umar built the mosque there was the holiness and importance of that place.

Masjid al-Aqsa was expanded during the caliphate of Abdulmalik bin Marwan, who was an Umayyad caliph. The temple that is next to Masjid al-Aqsa and that has eight corners and called Qubbatus-Sahra was built upon the order of Abdulmalik bin Marwan.

The claims that the mosque mentioned in the first verse of the chapter of al-Isra is not Masjid al-Aqsa is not regarded as appropriate by Islamic tafsir scholars. All famous tafsir scholars agree that what is meant by the mosque in the verse is Masjid al-Aqsa in Quds. However, it is historically true that there was not a mosque like the one today at that time in Quds and that there were ruins of the building mentioned as "Mabad (Temple)" in the Quran.

That place was called “Bayt al-Maqdis”. It is stated by all famous scholars that the place the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) visited was this “Bayt al-Maqdis”.

For instance, when the name "Masjid al-Aqsa" is explained the tafsir of Qadi Baydawi, the following is stated: "What is meant here is Bayt al-Maqdis  because there was not a mosque there at that time." We see the same statement in the tafsirs of Nasafi and Hazin. The tafsir reported from Ibn Abbas is like that too. The following explanation is made in the tafsir of Elmalılı Hamdi Yazır about the phrase "Masjid al-Aqsa": "Masjid al-Aqsa is Bayt al-Maqdis in Quds. As a matter of fact, the following is stated in the hadith of Isra: 'I mounted Buraq. I arrived at Bayt al-Maqdis.' Its precincts means Quds and the places around it." (Elmalılı, Hak dini Kur’an Dili, 5/276)

For the hadith of Isra mentioned here, see Bukhari, Bad'ul-Khalq, 6; Muslim, Iman, 259, 264; Nasai, Salat, 10; Tirmidhi, Tafsiru Suratil-Isra 2, 17; Ahmad b. Hanbal, III/148, IV/208, V/387, 392,394.

- There are tens of tafsirs in which the phrase “Bayt al-Maqdis”, which indicates Quds, is used to explain Masjid al-Aqsa. (For instance, see Tabari, Zajjaj / Maanil-Qur’an, Mawardi, Tha’labi, Baghawi, Zamahshari, Razi, the interpretation of the relevant verse)

- Muhammad Hamidullah prefers the view that "Masjid al-Aqsa", which is used in the sense of "the farthest mosque", cannot be the mosque in Quds and that it must be a heavenly mosque (a mosque in heavens). However, it is clear according to us that this view is not true.  

Firstly, there is no information about the existence of a temple called "Masjid al-Aqsa" in the sky in the verse or hadiths.  

Secondly, there are a lot of sound hadiths mentioning the journey of the Prophet (pbuh) from Makkah to Quds in the incident of Miraj-Isra. It is definitely not possible to accept an interpretation that is contrary to this information accepted by the ummah unanimously.  

Thirdly, in the relevant verse of the chapter of al-Isra, when Masjid al-Aqsa is mentioned, the place it is located in is also mentioned; there is no doubt that this place is Quds:

“Glory to (Allah) Who did take His servant for a Journey by night from the Sacred Mosque to the farthest Mosque, whose precincts We did bless,- in order that We might show him some of Our Signs: for He is the One Who heareth and seeth (all things)!”

The Prophet (pbuh) states the following in a hadith:

“Allah blessed what is between the Throne and Euphrates and He made Palestine sacred." (Muslim, Iman, 282)

The sacred quality of Quds mentioned in the hadith above is mentioned in the verse in the same way. It shows that the place where Masjid al-Aqsa is located is Quds.

That the precincts of Masjid al-Aqsa were made blessed means that it has fertile land, that there are rivers, trees and greenness there and it is the qiblah of prophets; it is not possible to think of something like that for heavens.

Fourthly, the following is stated in verse 7 of the chapter of al-Isra:

“If ye did well, ye did well for yourselves; if ye did evil, (ye did it) against yourselves. So when the second of the warnings came to pass, (We permitted your enemies) to disfigure your faces, and to enter the mosque as they had entered it before, and to visit with destruction all that fell into their power.”

The phrase “enter the mosque” in the verse expresses a known mosque. In the Arabic phrase it is used as “al-masjid”; the prefix “al” in Arabic is the definite article “the”.

According to the Arabic grammar, the prefix (article) “al” at the beginning of “masjid” refers to something mentioned before. Its meaning becomes “the masjid (mosque) you know”. The word masjid is mentioned twice previously. One of them is Masjid Haram in Makkah and the other is Masjid al-Aqsa. Since the addressees are Sons of Israel in the last verse, it shows that the masjid that is known and that is in Quds is Masjid al-Aqsa.

- According to some, Masjid al-Aqsa is Ji’rana Masjid. Ji’rana is a place 9 kilometers away from Makkah between Makkah and Taif; it is a region that became famous as the place where the booty obtained at the Battle of Hunayn was distributed. There is a mosque that was built to remember the incidents that took place there when the booty was distributed. It is not logical at all to imagine that the phrase “Masjid al-Aqsa”, which means “the farthest mosque”, was used for a place only 9 km away. Besides, it is not mentioned in any historical resources that there was a such a mosque in Makkah at that time. 

- As some people express appropriately, those claims are used by some people who say that they act in accordance with "rationalism", stating that there was no mosque in Quds at that time. We hear that some people who have the title "theologian" put it forward as if they have made a scientific discovery and have found some information that has not been known before. In fact, those claims have no coherent aspects; they are claims that will pave the way for the Zionist invaders who do their best to demolish Masjid al-Aqsa. For, the Zionist invaders aim to break the bond of love between Masjid al-Aqsa and Muslims in order to attain their goal.

1. Mystery of testing exists. As a matter of fact, the following is stated in a verse:

"We granted not to any man before thee permanent life (here): if then thou shouldst die would they live permanently? Every soul shall have a taste of death: and We test you by evil and by good by way of trial: to Us must ye return." (al-Anbiya, 21/34-35)

2. Mystery of testing can be eliminated by showing people the realities in a way that will remove their will. However, the free will of nobody in this world is removed. Miracles open doors to the mind but they do not remove the will. A person who does not want to believe can find an excuse so as not to believe. If miracles had been in a state that removed the will of man, mystery of testing would have been eliminated.

3. Human beings were not created based on fixed, unchanging, certain abilities like other creatures. Man can ascend and descend a lot due to his nature. He can improve spiritually and be superior to angels but he can also regress ethically and be much lower than animals.

Allah Almighty did not leave people unattended after creating him with this nature. He taught people through prophets the conditions of ascending to high targets by improving and showed the barriers that will prevent progress and the reasons for demeaning and lowering him; he gave the following order:   

"Here are two ways for you: If you follow one, you will ascend; if you follow the other you will ascend. Do not demean yourself by obeying Satan. Otherwise, you will be accounted for it and suffer eternal frustration."

Man's spiritual and material ascension depends on choosing this true path, which is shown, through his own free will. Life is an opportunity and test for making such a choice.

It is necessary for man not to be under pressure while choosing so that this test will be a real test and he will be held responsible for what he does. He has to see everything through his mind and choose through his will. 

Prophets came in all ages and renewed this divine message; they explained the truths that were forgotten and covered in the course of time in a way that minds will understand and left. However, they did not force people. No prophet forced people to accept something while conveying the divine message to them. In a way, even the miracles that astonished minds were not fully silencing and forcing everybody. For instance, when the staff of Hz. Musa (Moses) swallowed the magic ropes of the magicians and eliminated their tricks, the magicians said,   

"We believe in the Lord of Aaron and Moses" and believed but the Pharaoh said, "Surely this must be your leader, who has taught you magic" (Ta-Ha, 20/71) and continued his unbelief. Similarly, upon the demand of the Makkan polytheists, the Prophet (pbuh) split the moon into two with the gesture of his finger but they continued resisting by saying, "Muhammad started to affect the sky with his magic."

It means religion is a test. In this test, doors are opened to the mind but the will is not removed.

The incident of shaqq as-sadr (splitting of the chest), whose exact nature we do not know, occurred twice. In a way, this incident was a preparation for the Prophet (pbuh) to carry the lofty and heavy burden of prophethood and to be the recipient of an unprecedented miracle like Miraj.

We can also say that it served to make the human aspect of the Prophet (pbuh) comply with his spiritual aspect.

That is to say, when the Prophet (pbuh) was near the Kaaba on the Night of Miraj, his chest was split open by the angels and washed with Zamzam water and filled with knowledge and wisdom so that he would be ready for the miracle of Miraj. By divine wisdom, the Prophet (pbuh), who would embark on the journey of Miraj, was prepared for this wonderful journey physically as well as spiritually.

There may be a subtlety like this in the washing of the heart: Making the physical heart resistant and suitable for the realms of the hereafter so that it will not be damaged in that rapid journey of Isra and Miraj. Just as astronauts take certain precautions and wear special clothes when they go into space so too may the angels have made the body of the Prophet (pbuh) immune to those realms.

On the other hand, the heart, which is the center of biological life, is associated with both the mental and emotional life of the person in religious terminology. The incident of the splitting of the Prophet’s chest was an operation performed by Gabriel in order to eliminate the Prophet’s human desires and equip him with superior qualities.

The narrations stating that the splitting of the chest took place while the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was in the company of his wet nurse and before his ascension to heaven are accepted as valid in terms of hadith criticism. (1)

The narrations regarding the issue point to both the physical and spiritual dimensions of the splitting of the chest.

According to Shah Waliyyullah ad-Dihlawi, who argues that this incident occurred in a state between the visible realm and the realm of similitude, shaqq as-sadr means “splitting the chest open and filling it with belief, the angelic lights becoming prevalent, the human feelings becoming weakened, and the heart structure being made ready to accept the revelations from the sacred world.” (2)

Some tafsir scholars state that the verse in the chapter of al-Inshirah, “Have We not expanded thee thy breast?” (3) refers to the incident of shaqq as-sadr.

Elmalılı Muhammad Hamdi states that the material shaqq as-sadr is disputed among scholars, whereas there is unanimity on the spiritual shaqq as-sadr that filled the heart of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) with belief, wisdom and truth. (4)

Ibn Ashur reports that most of the tafsir scholars interpret the sharh as-sadr in the first verse of the chapter of al-Inshirah as knowledge, wisdom and the light of prophethood (5)

References:
1) Musnad, III, 121; Muslim, Iman, 261, 265; Musnad, IV, 184-185; Darimi, Muqaddima, 3; Ibn Ishaq, pp. 27-28; Musnad, V, 139; Musnad, IV, 208; V, 143; Bukhari, Salah, 1, Bad’ul-Khalq, 6; Anbiya, 5; Tawhid 37; Muslim, Iman, 263, 264; Tirmidhi, Tafsir, 94.
2) Hujjatullah al-Baligha, II, 557, 561.
3) al-Inshirah, 94/1.
4) Hak Dini, VIII, 5914-5916.
5) at-Tahrir wat-Tanvir, XXX, 360-361.

Miracle means for a prophet to be allowed by Allah to do some things that people cannot do in order to prove their prophethood. Allah allows miracles in order to support and confirm His prophets when necessary. Miracles happened in the lives of all prophets. Therefore, it is like a divine law.

There are three kinds of miracles:

The first one is spiritual (mental) miracle: The greatest and perfect example of it is the Quran. This miracle will continue forever; it is timeless. Scholars of rhetoric have proved that the Quran is a miracle based on definite evidences.

The second one is material miracle: Those miracles are material miracles that are based on time and place and that are not continuous. Those miracles occurred when they were necessary or after certain obligatory states. Those miracles occurred in the lives of prophets a lot. Hadith scholars narrated about one thousand miracles as a result of definite investigation.

For instance, about a thousand miracles like the splitting of the moon, Miraj (Ascension), water gushing forth from the fingers of the prophet, feeding a lot of people with a little food were conveyed to us through definite chains of narrators.

The third one is miracle of giving information about the things to happen in the future: They are related to the news given by the Prophet about the things to happen in the future. For instance, the news about the end of time, Day of Judgment and similar hadiths are examples of it.

"If their spurning is hard on thy mind, yet if thou wert able to seek a tunnel in the ground or a ladder to the skies and bring them a sign,- (what good?). If it were Allah´s will, He could gather them together unto true guidance: so be not thou amongst those who are swayed by ignorance (and impatience)." (al-An’am, 6/35)

It is stated in the verse above that miracles are not compelling and clear enough to make people believe unavoidably.

On the other hand, we, Muslims, learn about our personal lifestyle as well as our social life from the Prophet; we will do as he did. It was necessary for the Prophet to do those things in his life and live as a human being so that we would imitate him. If his life had been full of miracles, he would not have served as a model for us and we would not have taken him as an example.

Yes, if he had wanted, he would have buried all polytheists like Qarun (Croesus) with the permission of Allah; he would not have suffered hunger and any troubles; he would have lived in the world as if he were in Paradise. However, in that case, he would not be an imam and model for his ummah.

Due to this secret, he showed miracles from time to time in order to make people approve his cause, to persuade the unbelievers, to motivate the believers and when it was necessary. At other times, he obeyed the laws of Allah in the universe imposed by Him more than everybody else did as he obeyed Allah’s orders and prohibitions.

He ate, drank, felt hungry and sad, got ill, got married, slept, got tired, etc. like all human beings. When the Companions wrapped a stone around their stomachs not to feel the pain of hunger, he wrapped two stones. He put on his armor when he fought against the enemy. He ordered his Companions to take shelter in the war; he got wounded and suffered.

Every state and deed of the Prophet were evidences for his truthfulness and prophethood but not all of his states and deeds need to be extraordinary and miraculous. For, Allah sent him as a human being so that he would be a model to his ummah in all aspects and would be a guide and leader that will enable the community to attain happiness both in the world and the hereafter 

On the other hand, the world is a place of testing and experience; therefore, things would not be very clear to force everybody to believe. The door is open for the mind in the hall of testing and the will of the mind is not removed.

If everything were to shown by miracles, human will would be of no use. Abu Jahl would have believed like Abu Bakr. Testing and offer would be useless; coal and diamond would be in the same level.

We should try to make his life our life.

The Decree about Believing in Miracles:

It is unbelief to deny the miracles that are definite by verses or mutawatir hadiths. However, denying the miracles that are narrated by one person or weak narrations does not make a person an unbeliever.

Scholars divide hadiths into two as mutawatir and ahad.

Mutawatir news (hadith) is the news narrated by a group of people that is impossible to agree on a lie from another group with the same quality and number. This news must be something that the narrators saw; it must not be based on an idea. It must also express knowledge. According to the majority of scholars, the group does not have to consist of a certain number of people; besides, they do not have to be Muslims or just people. There are other weak views explained in detail in the books of usul (methodology) regarding the issue.

Wahid news is the news that does not have the qualities of a mutawatir hadith. There is no difference between news narrated by one person or more people at this point. There is disagreement about its decree. The majority of the Companions, Tabiun and the hadith, fiqh and methodology scholars coming after them state that the news given by one (wahid) person is religious evidence, that it expresses thought and knowledge and hence it is necessary to act based on it. Acting upon khabar wahid is definite based on shari'ah, not mind.

It is fard for every Muslim to believe that Allah sometimes gave His prophets miracles showing that they were loyal to and right in their causes and that they were supported by Allah. There is no prophet that was not granted a miracle by Allah Almighty to approve him. This issue is proved by various verses about the prophets mentioned in the Quran and the miracles granted to them are explained. 

Then belief in the fact of miracle is definite by the Book, Sunnah and consensus of the ummah. Denying miracles that are definite by the Quran like "Isra" and "Splitting of the Moon" related to feelings and phenomena makes a person an unbeliever. There are several verses stating that all prophets were given miracles; the following hadith of the Prophet (pbuh) can also be mentioned regarding the issue:

"Every prophet was given miracles because of which people believed, but what I have been given, is Divine Inspiration which Allah has revealed to me. So, I hope that my followers will outnumber the followers of the other prophets on the Day of Resurrection." (Bukhari, Fadailul-Quran, 1; Muslim, Iman, 239).

The clearest evidence showing that it is logically possible for prophets to show miracles is that Allah Almighty, who creates the miracles, is "the Absolutely Powerful one" that can create anything. For, when the realm of living and non-living beings in the universe, world and sky is viewed carefully and the subtlety, unerring order and strong system in it are studied and contemplated, it is easily understood that it is logically possible for Allah Almighty, who is the creator of all of them, to create something extraordinary called a miracle through His prophets in accordance with His pre-eternal knowledge and universal will in order to confirm them when it is necessary.    

Everybody who believes in Allah, His endless power and majesty believes in miracles without hesitation and that they are logically possible and virtually definite. History of humanity is full of live examples of this fact.