Divinity Atlas

Sacred Correspondences
Articles

Smoke as a Sign, and Every Nation Made to Kneel

Citation Formats

General Reference

APA Style

BibTeX

Learn More
Smoke as a Sign, and Every Nation Made to Kneel

Hizb 50 closes Az-Zukhruf with Abraham's declaration of innocence from his people's idols, a brief further mention of Moses and Pharaoh's mockery, and a passage on Jesus offered as an example of God's power, a verse the sura frames as later distorted through sectarian dispute among those who came after him about his true nature.

The hizb then carries the whole of Ad-Dukhan, the Smoke, describing a Book sent down in a blessed night, a phrase later tradition connects to Laylat al-Qadr, and warning of a Day when a visible smoke will spread over people as a sign preceding punishment. It briefly retells Moses and Pharaoh once more, describes Pharaoh's destroyed gardens and springs left behind for others to inherit, and contrasts the bitter tree of Zaqqum, food for the wicked in Hell, with the gardens prepared for the righteous.

The hizb closes carrying the whole of Al-Jathiya, Crouching, which points to signs throughout creation for those willing to reflect, warns against following mere desire as one's only guide, and describes every nation made to kneel before God on the Day of Judgment to receive the record of its own deeds.

The Jesus passage carried in this hizb's opening quarter is one several traditions of tafsir have devoted considerable attention to on its own, since it touches directly on how later sectarian dispute over his nature is itself described within the Quran's own text rather than only in outside commentary on it.

Cross-Tradition Connections

Article On

Sources
Comments (0)
No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.
Reader Challenges (0 open reader challenges)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.

View At A Past Year

The atlas records no dated fact of its own for this entry, so there is no other year to choose.