The Qur'ān's Miraculous Effects on the Hearts & Lives of People
Chapter Four explores the profound and supernatural impact of the Qur'ān — on believers and disbelievers alike — through the insights of the greatest scholars of Islam.
Chapter 4 Summary
The Qur'ān's Effect on the Listener — Al-Khaṭṭābī
An Overlooked Miracle
Abū Sulaymān al-Khaṭṭābī (d. 388 H) identified an aspect of the Qur'ān's miraculousness that most people overlook: its impact on hearts and its influence on souls.
No speech — whether in verse or prose — can so purely convey pleasure and sweetness in one moment, and awe and reverence in another, as the Qur'ān does when it reaches the ear.
"The souls rejoice and the chests expand. However, once they have had their share of it, their hearts go back to a state of wonder, made vulnerable by anxiety and worry, overwhelmed by fear and separation. The skins shiver from it and the hearts become unsettled."— Al-Khaṭṭābī
Many enemies of the Prophet (ﷺ) approached intent on assassination, but upon hearing verses of the Qur'ān, they changed their opinion entirely — their enmity transformed into loyal support and their disbelief into faith.
Awe Upon Believers & Disbelievers — Al-Suyūṭī
Upon the Disbeliever
Al-Suyūṭī (d. 911 H) noted that the awe of the Qur'ān is even more severe upon those who disbelieve — they find it difficult to hear and are increased in aversion. Yet they cannot escape its power.
Upon the Believer
For the believer, awe and reverence never stop drawing them in, increasing the heart's softness due to its inclination toward and belief in the Qur'ān. Allah says: "Their skins shiver from it who fear their Lord."
A Universal Experience
Remarkably, this awe is experienced even by those who do not understand its meanings or know its exegesis — proving its supernatural origin. Many embraced Islam at first hearing.
Al-Suyūṭī: "And this awe has been acknowledged by a number of people prior to embracing Islām and afterwards. Among them are those who embraced it at first glance and believed in it."
The Authority of Proof — Ibn al-Qayyim
'Abd Allāh b. 'Abbās said: "Every (instance of) Sulṭān (authority) in the Qur'ān means a proof." Ibn al-Qayyim (d. 751 H) elaborates on why the authority of knowledge surpasses all other authority:
Authority of Knowledge
The authority of knowledge is greater than the authority of the hand. People submit to proof more than they submit to force.
The Heart Surrenders
The proven argument captures and leads the heart. Even if the opponent shows stubbornness, his heart is still subjugated under its authority.
Knowledge vs. Force
Authority without knowledge is like the authority of predator animals — strength without knowledge or mercy. The authority of proof is fortitude with knowledge, mercy, and wisdom.
The Qur'ān's Supernatural Effectiveness
Beyond All Books & Laws
A contemporary manual of Qur'ānic studies explains: the Qur'ān's effectiveness reaches a degree that is supernatural — surpassing all other divine books and human writings. The global reform it produced would not have occurred in any era of history without deep faith and strong consciousness that has overwhelming power over souls, feelings, and yearnings.
Human books and laws, at best, can only explain truths and clarify aspects — but they cannot compel faith, submission, and action inspired by that faith. Even if people believe in man-made ideas, their belief is devoid of the driving force and impetus for transformation.
Two Insufficient Methods
Human systems rely on only two methods to influence the masses:
- Upbringing of the young from childhood — but this produces imitation, lacking evidence and proof
- Ruling authority forcing adults through coercion — but this never reaches true submission and consciousness
Neither method achieves what the Qur'ān alone achieves: genuine conviction, volition, satisfaction, and submission.
The Qur'ān Alone — No State, No Army, No Compulsion
"It was the Noble Qur'an alone which instilled faith in both adults and children, and spread emān as a general source of spiritual life. The one who brought forth this Qur'an was an illiterate man who had no state, no authority, no government, no army, and did so without inflicting persecution or compulsion. It was embraced out of conviction, volition, satisfaction, and submission: 'There is no compulsion in religion; the right path has become distinct from deviance.'"
No Compulsion in Faith
Jihād in Islam was never meant to force belief, but to repel those who would persecute believers and prevent the free call of truth.
The Secret of Its Rise
The Qur'ān's miraculous method stirs souls and emotions, ruling over hearts and minds — its enemies fear its influence more than conquering armies.
Unmatched in History
The authority of armies extends only to bodies, but the authority of this Book has reached the noblest of souls — unmatched by any revival in history.
Four Aspects of the Qur'ān's Effect on Its Followers
These four aspects demonstrate how the Qur'ān transformed its followers from within — producing a new creation with upright beliefs, noble character, and unparalleled historical impact.
The Four Aspects in Detail
1
Memorization & Recitation
The Companions competed to memorize the Qur'ān, abandoning sleep to recite it in the early hours. Passersby at night heard their homes humming like bees. A woman would be delighted if her dowry was a chapter of the Qur'ān.
2
Implementation in All of Life
They executed the Qur'ān's teachings in every aspect of life, abandoning what contradicted it. The Qur'ān molded them in its melting pot and presented them to the world as a new creation: upright in belief, pure in custom, noble in character.
3
Heroism in Defense
They were sincere and true to their covenant with Allah — some met their end defending the Qur'ān, others sacrificed themselves in its cause. The Prophet (ﷺ) said: "I would love to fight in the cause of Allah and be killed, then fight and be killed, then fight and be killed."
4
Remarkable Worldly Success
No prophet, reformer, philosopher, or ruler before — nor all of them combined — produced the awakening Muhammad (ﷺ) achieved. In less than twenty years, the Arab nation was revived. In less than a century and a half, their flag flew over half the inhabited world.
Knowledge That Humbles the Heart — Ibn Rajab
Al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī said: "When a man sought knowledge, it would not be long before it could be seen in his humility, sight, speech, hands, prayers, and asceticism."
Al-Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Rajab al-Ḥanbalī (d. 795 H) explains that beneficial knowledge refers to two things:
Knowledge of Allah
Knowing Allah's most beautiful names, lofty attributes, and extraordinary actions — necessitating honor, veneration, fear, love, hope, trust, and patience with His decree.
Knowledge of His Commands
Knowing what Allah loves and is pleased with, and what He detests — causing the one who knows to race toward Allah's pleasure and be distant from what He dislikes.
Ibn Rajab: "When knowledge is beneficial and settles in the heart, the heart becomes humble and serene — broken and tamed out of respect, majesty, fear, love, and veneration."
The Fruits of Beneficial Knowledge
Contentment with the World
When the heart is humble before Allah, the self becomes content with a small amount of lawful sustenance — producing detachment from wealth, status, and worldly excess.
Special Closeness to Allah
A special familiarity exists between the humble servant and his Lord — if he asks, Allah grants; if he supplicates, Allah answers. "Safeguard Allah's religion and He will safeguard you."
Sweetness in Worship
The servant finds comfort in Allah in privacy and experiences sweetness in remembrance, du'ā, and service — but only one who obeys Him in private and in public attains this.
The Sign of Useless Knowledge
Knowledge that does not humble is a punishment against its possessor — causing pomposity, pride, and boastfulness, seeking worldly prestige and contending with scholars.
The Qur'ān is the Best Cure for the Heart — Ibn al-Qayyim
"There is nothing more beneficial for the heart than reciting the Qur'ān with contemplation and reflection. It is the source of love, longing, fear, hope, repentance, reliance, contentment, submission, gratitude, patience, and all other states that bring life and perfection to the heart."— Ibn al-Qayyim (d. 751 H)
Contemplation Over Quantity
Ibn al-Qayyim emphasizes that reading a single āyah with contemplation and understanding is better than reading the whole Qur'ān without reflection. It is more beneficial for the heart and leads to increasing faith and experiencing the sweetness of the Qur'ān.
When one reads with reflection and comes across an āyah needed for the healing of his heart, he should repeat it a hundred times or more, even if it takes all night. This was the practice of the Salaf.
"Reading the Qur'ān with contemplation is the key to the rectification of the heart."
Two Types of Heart Sickness — Al-Sa'dī
Al-Sa'dī (d. 1376 H) explains: the perfect health of the heart is found in two things — the wholeness of its knowledge and certainty, and the wholeness of its will and love for what Allah loves. Both types of sickness are cured by the Qur'ān.
The Qur'ān Cures Both Types of Sickness — Ibn al-Qayyim
Cure for Doubts
The Qur'ān contains clear proofs and evidence distinguishing truth from falsehood. There is no book under the sky like it for addressing Tawḥīd, the affirmation of Allah's attributes, the Day of Judgment, prophethood, and refuting false creeds — in the most complete, eloquent, and mind-accessible way.
Cure for Desires
Through wisdom, fair exhortation, encouragement, warning, renouncing the world, motivating for the Hereafter, and parables — the sound heart becomes interested in what benefits it and disinterested in what harms it. It becomes one that loves righteousness and hates deviancy.
Nourishment Like Food
The heart nourishes itself with emān and the Qur'ān, which purify, strengthen, support, delight, and stabilize it — just as the body feeds on what develops and strengthens it. There is no way to achieve this except through the Qur'ān.
Five Examples: How the Qur'ān Cures Evil Characteristics — Al-Sa'dī
Al-Imām Al-Sa'dī
Al-Sa'dī provides detailed examples of how the Qur'ān diagnoses and cures the heart's diseases through its commands, prohibitions, encouragements, and warnings — transforming the innate human condition into its opposite through divinely revealed remedies.
1
Stinginess
Greed is deeply ingrained in all human souls. The Qur'ān heals it through the strength of emān, encouraging spending on Zakāt, Jihād, and the needy, with promises of multiplied reward and warnings of punishment for the miserly.
2
Insincerity (Riyā')
Showing off is the trait of the worst hypocrites. The Qur'ān continuously exposes its vileness, reminding that the sincere are those with high aspirations — and that a small sincere deed outweighs great insincere ones.
3
Arrogance
The worst of diseases — rejecting truth and belittling others. The Qur'ān portrays it in the most hideous description until it is uprooted from believers' hearts and replaced with the humility of the prophets and righteous.
4
Envy & Malice
The Qur'ān teaches that sincerity and purity of heart are the qualities of prophets. It continuously cures servants from envy through lofty remedies, until its effects, illumination, and blessings appear on those who respond.
5
Heedlessness
Turning away from Allah causes one to forget their own interests and move from misery to misery. The Qur'ān contrasts this with the state of those devoted to Allah — who receive blessings no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has conceived.
The Qur'ān: Healing, Mercy & Guidance
"What illness then remains in light of these successful and lofty cures, which are the remedy of the Mighty, Wise, Merciful Lord who is more merciful to His servants than a mother to her child? So blessed be Allah, the Lord of the Worlds!"— Al-Sa'dī
A Healing for the Chests
"O mankind, there has come to you an admonition from your Lord and healing for what is in the breasts." — Qur'ān 10:57
A Mercy for the Believers
"And We send down of the Qur'ān that which is healing and mercy for the believers." — Qur'ān 17:82
A Life-Giving Call
"O you who have believed, respond to Allah and to the Messenger when he calls you to that which gives you life." — Qur'ān 8:24