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Semitic Rhetoric - the entire sequence of S.111 "Al-Masad" and S.112 "Al-Ikhlas"

Started by Iyyaka, January 16, 2025, 05:25:24 AM

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Iyyaka

Salam aleykoum,

S.111
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- The two hands of Abû Lahab perished
- And he perished!                                                           -ab

   = His fortune was useless to him
   = And what he acquired                                               -ab

+ He will be burnt in a blazing fire.                                 -ab
+ And his wife, a fire-wood carrier,                                 -ab
+ On her neck there is a cord made of fibres (masad).  -ad
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S.112
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- Say: "He [is] God, One,                                                 -ad
- God, the Rock (Samad),                                               -ad

= He neither begot any nor was He begotten,              -ad
= And there is no equal for Him not one."                    -ad
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A paronymy between two words serving as median terms links Surah 112 to the previous one : masad (last word of Surah 111) and Samad (Surah 112). This seems even less due to chance as the last verse of Surah 111 is the only one in this surah to rhyme in -ad, a rare rhyme in the Quran, but common to all four verses of Surah 112 that immediately follow (it's the only surah that rhymes entirely in -ad). This paronomasia is likely coupled with a semantic relationship of opposition between the two words: masad, the rope of fibers, leads Abu Lahab's wife to her final ruin in Hell, while al-Samad, the protective Rock, ensures the salvation of believers. This opposition is in continuity with the global antithesis governing the two surahs: on one hand, the definitive ruin of polytheism (S. 111), symbolized by Abu Lahab and his wife, who, according to Tradition, were obstinately hostile to the Prophet, and on the other hand (S. 112), the triumph of strict monotheistic faith proclaimed by the Prophet Muhammad.

We can see also an ironic opposition between Abû Lahab, the "Father-of-the-flame" who only begets the fire that will burn him in Hell, and God, who does not beget (112:3) because He is the absolute One. The fact that Abu Lahab has a wife also opposes God who has no equal to beget! Finally, Abu Lahab found no help in "his fortune and what he has acquired" (111:2), for God alone is the helpful Rock.

The symbolism of wood, which is perishable, fragile and burns easily (111:5), is contrasted with the symbol of the rock, which is solid, without hollows, and provides a reliable refuge. (112:2).

In conclusion, fortune as a refuge will only lead Abû Lahab to Hell, a worshipper and generous devotee of the "false" goddess al-'Uzza, and likewise for his wife who participated in the goddess's cult by lighting sacred wood fires, and who wore a shell necklace to ensure her magical protection. Thus, the antithesis of the paronomasia masad/Samad is particularly evocative: the pagan amulet (referred to as "ropes of fiber," or rather "pieces of string"!) is powerless to protect the devotee of al-'Uzza: only God is the protective Rock of believers! Here we have two assonant images to designate divine protection: one totally illusory, the other very real[4][2].
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Iyyaka

Further explanation regarding the word al-Samad interpretative as "The Rock" in verse [112:2] :
 
Several terms connect the last two surahs of the Quran to the previous one, acting as mediating terms between two sections of the text (surahs 113 and 114 forming a separate pair of surahs -> a whole section). The same imperative: "Say" (113:1; 114:1 and 112:1) introduces the three surahs. They include the names of "God" (Allâh, 112:2; 114:3) and its equivalent "Master" (Rabb, 113:1 and 114:1).
But more significant is the synonymous correspondence between the expression "I seek refuge with the Master" (113:1 and 114:1) and the term al-Samad (112:2), which we have seen refers to the divine metaphor of the "Rock," precisely meaning "The One in whom one seeks refuge in times of need." This correspondence provides a new argument for interpreting the enigmatic term samad in this sense.
Furthermore, after defining Himself as the "Rock" in [112:2], the Quran specifies in the following two surahs (113 and 114) what this refuge consists of: surah 113 deals with listing external evils to Man and surah 114 internal evils.

Finally, let us note that the symbolic notion of God as a "Rock" is also found in the Psalms (62:2; 18:3) and Deuteronomy (32:4 and 32:31-39)

NB :
- Read more about Semitic rhetoric here : The_Semitic_rhetoric_in_the_Koran_and_a_Pharaonic_papyrus
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