The Quran's Universal Message

The opening ayah of Surah An-Nisa, is one of the many testaments to the universal message of the Quran. By emphasizing that the entire human race is descendant from Adam, Allah is stressing our common humanity despite our superficial differences.

The Quran is remarkable in each and every way possible. One of them is that Allah addresses multiple audiences in a single verse or section. Something applies to everyone. However understanding these audiences is important otherwise its very likely that we may misunderstand or misinterpret its meaning. Some parts of the Quran also reaches out to very specific kinds of audiences. For examples, in Makkah largely the audience were non Muslims. The period of Makkah was mostly to establish Islam and the main focus of those verses were calling people to Islam. Similarly in Madina after Islam was successfully established, the Muslims were no longer a scared small minority of people; they had their own identity. So the verses revealed in Madina were more focused on the laws and regulations of Islam for Muslims who entered the fold of Islam. What rare is a combined address to both the Muslims and non Muslims which can be seen in Sura Nisa chapter 4 in which Allah addresses all of humanity.

Sura Nisa talks of inheritance, the hypocrites and problems of community inside out. The opening verses of the chapter talks about the womb which has borne the child; to honor the relations that are associated with the womb; i.e mother, siblings, father, wife, etc. It reminds all of mankind to be conscious of the overall authority by which they are governed by their common master - Allah. Allah reminds that Allah created all of humanity from a single person - Adam (A.S), which is why both the Muslims and non Muslims are told to have consciousness of their faith at all times.

Because Sura Nisa is commonly addressed to both Muslims and non Muslims, it is one of the largest chapters of the Quran. Let us examine some of the verses and their significance in terms of unity in all of humanity

Verse 1 : Muslims and non Muslims both are told to have Taqwa (god consciousness)

Allah created all of us from a single ancestor; therefore humanity is advised to recognize the authority of Allah. The way you treat your own things and something which belongs to others is different. So, while dealing with other humans this verse reminds us that all humans belong to Allah, therefore we should be careful when dealing matters with them. Here is when Taqwa assumes its importance and influences the behavior of people of faith. When you are consciously aware of the common lineage of you and your fellow human being (Adam (A.S)) your behavior will always be in accordance to the guidelines of the Quran and Sunnah. Good behavior emanates from this fact, regardless of you following Islam or not.

Verse 2 : Women are an extension of men.

Humans, especially men are explained to be kind to their womenfolk; their mothers, sisters, wives and daughters. The arabic word used in this verse is "Zaowja" meaning two parts which are incomplete without each other. Our very existence starts from the womb of a woman. Hence harshness towards them is harshness towards our own existence. One of the elements of complete Taqwa includes being on guard about the relaionships surrounding the womb; i.e father, mother, wife, husband, etc.

Verse 3 : Be conscious and careful of Allah while dealing and making demands with each other.

Refrain from swearing and using Allah' s name in matters dealing with families, workplace etc. Do not call upon Allah in order to demean or demand anything from the other party or just to prove your point. Allah's words and names should not be abused by using it in trivial matters which may not even exist the day after. Explain your point in a just and fair manner and leave it to Allah to decide on its fate. We human beings are not the ones to judge.

Allah has closely linked respect of the womb with Taqwa and faith. The womb gives birth to a child, and with it gives birth to three relations - father, mother and spouse. Marriage is the beginning of all these relationships. Allah commanded in these verses to specifically guard, be cautious and respect the relations that surround the womb of a mother. When a wife is pregnant, she is under the mercy of Allah. Every woman is born with this mercy which is the source of existence of humanity. Hence it needs to be handled with extra care and Taqwa. This womb is a gift; so every woman needs to be conscious of this gift and act in a way that respects the womb and the mercy granted with it by Allah.

We exist in a free society where sexuality is a normal thing and marriage is a formal, complicated thing. A relation with a college friend is the easy and marrying a similar girl/boy becomes an issue in itself. So the mercy of the womb is not taken seriously and everyone including the women themselves have lost respect for this mercy. Even Muslims nowadays have lost this consciousness emphasized so greatly in the Quran. One of the main reasons for this is the unnecessary importance placed on the material things required for marriage. The marriage of Musa (A.S) is the perfect example of placing highest importance on character when deciding on a spouse for marriage.

For this we need to awaken our lost consciousness from these verses of the Quran, maintain communal harmony by our behaviour and conduct. Islam is a religion which is not just spoken and discussed; it is to be lived in each and every moment of our lives.