Conversations in the Quran

CONVERSATIONS IN THE QURAN

Syed Sharfuddin

This essay aims to categorise the various conversations reported in the holy Quran in ten broad sections with a view to introducing the reader to the fundamental Message of the Quran. The themes in these conversations revolve around Tauheed, Worship, Belief in the Messengers of Allah, His other Creations, Life after death and accountability on the Day of Judgement. There is also emphasis in these conversations about avoiding evil and engaging in charity and good deeds. This essay can also be taught to young children in several chapters as an Islamiat Course on the Introduction of the Quran to Muslim Kids. If you notice any omission or error in this essay, please do not hesitate to contact the Author. May Allah reward you immensely for sharing this onwards to your family and friends and other believers and non-believers and their contacts. The essay is also available at http://deeni.co.uk/conversations-in-the-holy-quran-a-long-essay/

TABLE OF CONTENTS

EXECUTIVE SUMMANY

INTRODUCTION

ADAM’S CHILDREN

SECTION ONE: ONE-ON-ONE CONVERSATIONS

CONVERSATION OF JIBRIL WITH PROPHET MUHAMMAD
CONVERSATION OF A BELIEVER WITH ALLAH
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET IBRAHIM WITH ALLAH
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET IBRAHIM WITH NIMRUD
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET UZAIR WITH ALLAH
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET IBRAHIM WITH ALLAH ABOUT RESURRECTION
CONVERSATION OF SHAITAN WITH A DYING PERSON
CONVERSATION BETWEEN ADAM’S TWO SONS
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET ISA WITH ALLAH
CONVERSATIONS OF PROPHET MUSA WITH ALLAH FOR PARDONING BANI ISRAEL
CONVERSATIONS OF PROPHET YUSUF WITH HIS FATHER
CONVERSATIONS OF ZHULAIKHA
CONVERSATION OF TWO FRIENDS
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET ZAKARIYA WITH ALLAH
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET MUSA WITH ALLAH
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET ZUN NOON WITH ALLAH
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET SULAIMAN WITH QUEEN SHEBA
CONVERSATION OF LUQMAN WITH HIS SON
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET IBRAHIM WITH HIS SON ISMAIL
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET AYUB WITH ALLAH
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET NUH WITH ALLAH

SECTION TWO: CONVERSATIONS OF ONE-TO-MANY

CONVERSATION OF ALLAH WITH ADAM AND HAWA
CONVERSATIONS OF ALLAH WITH THE CHILDREN OF ADAM
CONVERSATIONS OF ALLAH ABOUT THE KAFEROON
CONVERSATIONS OF ALLAH ABOUT THE MUSHRIKOON
CONVERSATIONS OF ALLAH ABOUT THE MUNAFIQOON
CONVERSATIONS OF ALLAH ABOUT THE MOMINOON
CONVERSATION OF THE PROPHET WITH CHRISTIANS, JEWS AND UNBELIEVERS
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET MUSA WITH BANI ISRAEL ABOUT A COW
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET YAQUB WITH HIS CHILDREN
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET MUSA WITH BANI ISRAEL ABOUT PALESTINE
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET SHAMUEL WITH BANI ISRAEL
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET ISA WITH HIS DISCIPLES
CONVERSATIONS OF DHUL-QARNAYN
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET MUSA WITH GOLDSMITH SAMEREE AND OTHERS
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET NUH WITH HIS NATION
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET HUD WITH HIS NATION
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET SALEH WITH HIS NATION
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET LUT WITH HIS NATION
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET SHOAIB WITH HIS NATION
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET YUSUF WITH HIS INMATES
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET YUSUF WITH HIS STEP-BROTHERS
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET IBRAHIM WITH HIS NATION
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET SULAIMAN WITH TWO MEN
CONVERSATION OF QUEEN SHEBA WITH HER ADVISERS
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET DAWOOD WITH TWO DISPUTING MEN
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET MUSA WITH TWO FIGHTING MEN
CONVERSATION OF A BELIEVER WITH THE PHARAOH

SECTION THREE: CONVERSATIONS OF MULTIPLE PARTICIPANTS

CONVERSATIONS OF THE TWO ANGELS WITH BANI ISRAEL
CONVERSATIONS OF THE PEOPLES OF THE HEIGHTS
CONVERSATIONS OF PROPHET MUSA WITH THE PHARAOH AND HIS ADVISERS
CONVERSATIONS OF BANI ISRAEL ABOUT THE PROHIBITION ON SABBATH
CONVERSATIONS OF ANGELS WITH PROPHET IBRAHIM AND HIS WIFE SARAH
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET YUSUF WITH HIS MASTER
CONVERSATION OF THE COMPANIONS OF THE CAVE
CONVERSATIONS OF PROPHET MUSA WITH KHIDR
CONVERSATION OF MARYAM WITH THE PEOPLE OF BETHLEHEM
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET SULAIMAN WITH QUEEN SABA’S ENVOYS
CONVERSATION OF THREE PROPHETS WITH THEIR TOWNSFOLKS
CONVERSATION OF PROPHET MUSA WITH PROPHET SHOAIB
CONVERSATION OF HARVEST PICKERS

SECTION FOUR: CONVERSATIONS OF ANGELS

ALLAH’S MESSENGERS
WARRIOR ANGELS
KIRAMUN KATIBEEN
GUARDIAN ANGELS
ANGELS OF DEATH
MUNKIR NAKEER
CONVERSATION OF JANNATIS WITH ANGELS
CONVERSATION OF JAHANNAMIS WITH ANGELS

SECTION FIVE: CONVERSATIONS OF JIN

CONVERSATIONS OF IBLIS WITH ALLAH AND ADAM
CONVERSATIONS OF SHAITAN WITH ADAM AND HIS PROGENY
CONVERSATIONS OF GOOD JIN

SECTION SIX: CONVERSATIONS OF JANNATIS

SECTION SEVEN: CONVERSATIONS OF JAHANNAMIS

SECTION EIGHT: CONVERSATION OF BODY PARTS

SECTION NINE: CONVERSATIONS OF ANIMALS

SECTION TEN: OTHER CONVERSATIONS

CONCLUSIONS

RESOURCES

EXECUTIVE SUMMANY

This essay explores dozens of conversations in the holy Quran spoken by Allah, His angels, His messengers, as well as humans and animals. Allah’s conversations with humans are encapsulated in the commandments, parables, accounts of earlier nations and former prophets, comparisons, difficult to interpret Verses that have multiple meanings (mutashabihat), good news and warnings. The holy Quran is a divine book that speaks to us and inform us about the purpose of our coming to this world and how we will be brought to life again after death when the universe is all wrapped up and the earth is recreated as another world. There are conversations of angels with Allah, both before and after the creation of Adam, their conversations with Allah’s messengers and other selected humans, and their conversations with human beings at the time of their death, at the entrance of Jannah and Jahannam and during their stay there. There are also conversations of Iblis with Allah, conversations of Shaitan with human beings in this world and the hereafter, and conversations of Jin among themselves. The conversations include Allah’s conversation with Adam and Hawa in Jannah and the many conversations of the children of Adam on earth. There are several parables, stories of the prophets and conversations of humans on earth with each other and with angles, and their conversations after resurrection, particularly the conversation of Jannatis and Jahannamis. These conversations explain the purpose of creation, life after death and the triumph of virtue over evil and the end of those who engage in them. All his is possible by submitting human will to the will of Allah and following divine guidance that has reached us through the prophets, culminating in the Sharia of Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be on him.

INTRODUCTION

The Quran employs different techniques of communication in the conversations. These take place between one individual speaking to another individual, between one individual and several individuals, and between several individuals talking to each other, with a few central speakers taking the lead. The conversations provide information, prove a point or enhance mutual understanding by sharing different perspectives. The speaker who wins the dialogue is a good listener, kind and patient. He is also knowledgeable, and his speech is convincing. He also gives reason and evidence to back up what he says.

The many conversations in the Quran are aimed at drawing lessons from them. They speak of faith in one Allah and His right to be worshipped. These conversations call for having faith in Allah’s messengers and the holy Scriptures, faith in angels, resurrection and destiny. The Quranic conversations are adapted to human nature. They guide the believers to the right path, and they also expose the dark side of man, such as ignorance, arrogance, selfishness, oppression, vanity and tendency to plot evil deeds, murder, fight and destroy.

In the Quran there is a distinct approach to dialogue. It is not a closed conversation in camera. It addresses people of all nations irrespective of race, gender and ethnicity to see and acknowledge the universality of Islam. The Quranic dialogue is based on reason and evidence. It places emphases on rights, social justice and tolerance.

The style of Quran is conversational. It talks to its reader through a plain everyday talk instead of engaging with him in a philosophical discourse or hard to follow theology. In the Quran, there are long conversations concerning prophets and ordinary folks. All are meant to re-enforce the message of Allah’s sole ownership of everything, and resurrection of human beings to a permanent life after death. In this world, man is nothing but a servant and representative of Allah on earth. He is empowered and commanded by Allah to take responsibility for his actions and be good to his fellow human beings. Man is also free to disobey and transgress but he is warned about consequences if he chooses this path. The objective of these conversations is not merely story telling or getting overwhelmed by their details, but to emphasise the importance of obedience to Allah and His prophets, and doing good on earth because the earth is good and nourishes goodness. Everyone is accountable to Allah on the day of judgment and will be rewarded or punished according to his actions.

For a conversation to take place there must be a speaker and a listener; or two speakers listening and talking to each other. A conversation is a two-way process. It must be meaningful and productive; and it must be reported so we get know about it. We learn about the various conversations in the Quran in three time zones; the time before the creation of Adam; the time after the creation of Adam until the end of this world, and the time in the future to come in the hereafter. The initiators and participants of these conversations are Allah, the angels, the messengers of Allah who were given the divine law and those who reinforced the Sharia of their predecessor prophet, the Jin and humans. The latter are participants in the conversations in different capacities, as individuals and community, and as the dwellers of the earth, Jannah and Jahannam, and the Heights.

Some conversations are long. Others are short. Still there are conversations that are reported but not described in detail such as the conversations of a section of Bani Israel who violated the Sabbath prohibition and were punished for having turned into apes and pigs (Surah Al-Maeda, Verse 60), or the conversation of the townsfolk with the man whom Allah gave his signs to elevate himself (Balaam bin Baur), but he followed Shaitan and was condemned to Fire. (Surah Al-Araaf, Verses 175-176), or the prayer of the wife of the Pharaoh who prayed to Allah to build her a house in Jannah and deliver her from Pharaoh’s evil deeds and save her from the nation of the wicked people. (Surah Al-Tahreem, Verse 11). There is also a scantily detailed conversation when Allah informs us that when Musa took Bani Israel across the sea, and they saw a people intent in devotion to idol worship they said to Musa to make them a god just like these people have their idols; and Musa chided them for behaving like ignorant people (Surah Al Araaf, Verse 138). Or when the wicked people of Bani Israel accused Musa of some deformity Allah exonerated him from the allegations they had uttered against his honour. (Surah Al-Ahzab, Verse 69). Or in Surah Al Takasir where Allah mentions the questioning of the angels to those who lived a life of power and luxury in this world but did not believe in Allah and the hereafter. In this questioning their answer is not mentioned because whatever they denied will be seen by them with the proof of their own eyes and the certainty of their own conscience. (Verses 1 to 8). There are also Verses in the Surahs in which a full conversation is not reported but has a reference to a historical event that occurred either in the life of Prophet Muhammad such as the agreement with the Kafirs of Makkah at Hudaibiya in Surah Al Fatah in Verse 10; Prophet Sulaiman’s visit to his stables in Surah Saad in Verses 31 to 33 and Prophet Ayub’s promise to admonish his wife for listening to the Shaitan in Surah Saad, Verse 44.

Adam’s children
The children of Adam multiplied on earth and were divided into nations and tribes. They made their choices for physical and spiritual paths to follow in accordance with their circumstances and understanding and the guidance sent to them by Allah through His messengers. The divine messengers informed them about good and evil and the temporary nature of life on earth, the fact of life after death and accountability for their actions. They gave good tidings to those who believe in Allah and follow His commandments doing good deeds, and warned those who disobey Allah, follow Shaitan and do evil deeds that a great Fire awaits them in the hereafter. These children of Adam broadly fall into four categories; kaafir, who deny the existence of Allah, the Lord of the universe; mushrik those who accept that there is Allah but they associate kin or partners with Allah; munafiq who claim verbally that they are Muslims but they are not Muslims from heart and they try to stab Muslims from inside; and fasiq who were or are Muslims but they follow a life quite opposite from what they were commanded to do by Allah by either ignoring the divine scripture completely or by editing it with their own interpretations and explanations to justify their actions.

In this essay, the conversations narrated in the holy Quran have been summarised from the English translations of Dr. Mustafa Khattab (The Clear Quran), Muhammad Muhsin Khan and Muhammad Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali (The Noble Quran), and the English translation of the commentary of Ibn Katheer (Maarif Al-Quran). The translations have been further edited in easy English and are not the exact word by word translations of the original Arabic text of the Quranic Verses. Readers are strongly advised to open the Arabic Quran and its authentic translation from the many available English translations and Tafaseer, should they wish to cross check these conversations.

The conversations in the essay are only examples. They are not complete conversations in the Quran especially in relation to the commands of Allah to Muslims in their belief, worship, contracts, etiquettes and duties, and their other social obligations and rights on human beings.

SECTION ONE: ONE-ON-ONE CONVERSATIONS

These conversations are between two participants who take turns in answering questions and usually end with a lesson for the reader. Sometimes the participants are two people; sometimes, the conversation is between Allah and His servant, usually a Prophet with whom Allah has spoken either directly such as Musa, or indirectly such as Nuh, Ibrahim, Yahya and other prophets through revelation or archangel Jibril or other messengers from His creation.

Conversation of Jibril with Prophet Muhammad
The very first conversation in the Quran is in Surah Al-Alaq in Verses 1 to 5. Allah sent archangel Jibril to Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, in the cave of Hira. Jibril said: ‘Read. In the Name of your Lord, who has created all that exists. Your Lord created man from a clot of blood. Read. And your Lord is the most generous. He has taught man to write by the pen. He has taught man that which he did not know.’ (1-5). Although this is not strictly a conversation because there is no follow up communication between Prophet Muhammad and Jibril on this occasion and neither we are told whether the Prophet read these Verses back to Jibril at that time. But it is the start of the several visits of Jibril to prophet Muhammad bringing the divine revelation from Allah, which included on many occasions answers to questions put forward to him by the pagans of Makkah and by the followers of earlier Scriptures either seeking clarification or testing his prophethood.

Conversation of a believer with Allah
Allah listens to and answers the supplications of His servants. In Surah Al-Baqarah Allah says: ‘O Prophet, if my servants ask you about me, tell them I am near them. I respond to the call of him who calls me, whenever he calls me; let them then respond to me and believe in me so that they follow the right way (Verse 186). Not every man has the privilege of having been spoken by God, but everyone can read and hear the word of God in His scriptures. Man has the freedom and ability to talk to God and express his secrets and desires to Him in his Salat and in his individual supplication (Dua).

Conversation of Prophet Ibrahim with Allah
This conversation is recorded in Surah Al-Baqarah from Verses 124 to 132. Allah says: ‘And remember when the Lord of Ibrahim tried him in certain things with His commands, he was successful in them.’ Allah said to Ibrahim: ‘Verily, I am going to make you a leader of mankind.’ Ibrahim asked: ‘And of my offspring?’ Allah said, ‘My covenant does not include those who are polytheists and wrong doers.’ (124). ‘And remember when We made the House at Makkah a place of benefit and safety for mankind. And Muslims should mark the place where Ibrahim stood to build the Kaaba and bowed in prostration to Allah. We commanded Ibrahim and Ismail that they should purify my House for those who come for circumambulation, or to stay there in Allah’s remembrance, or bow or prostrate themselves in prayer’. (125). And remember when Ibrahim said: ‘My Lord, make this city (Makkah) a place of security and provide its people with fruits, such of them as believe in Allah and the last day.’ Allah answered: ‘As for him who disbelieves, I shall leave him in contentment for a while, then I shall compel him to the torment of the fire, and indeed it is the worst destination.’ (126). And (remember) when Ibrahim and Ismail were raising the foundations of the House saying: ‘Our Lord, accept this service from us. You hear everything and know everything. Our Lord, make us submissive unto you. Make our offspring a nation who submits to you and teach us the rituals of pilgrimage and accept our repentance. You are all forgiving and most merciful. Our Lord, send to our offspring a messenger from their own who shall recite unto them Your verses and teach them wisdom and purify them. You are the almighty and all wise.’ (127 -129). Allah says: ‘And whoever turns away from the religion of Ibrahim befools himself. We chose Ibrahim in this world and verily, in the Hereafter he will be among the righteous. (130). When his Lord said to Ibrahim: ‘submit’, he said: ‘I have submitted myself as a Muslim to the Lord of the universe and all that exists.’ (131).

Conversation of Prophet Ibrahim with Nimrud
In Surah Al-Baqara there is a conversation between Ibrahim and the unbelieving king of his land (Nimrud). Like the Pharaoh, Nimrud had also disputed about the existence of Allah. ‘Have you not looked at him who disputed with Ibrahim about Allah, because Allah had given him the kingdom’? When Ibrahim said to Nimrud: ‘My Lord is He Who gives life and causes death.’ Nimrud said, ‘I give life and cause death.’ Ibrahim said: ‘Allah causes the sun to rise from the east; can you cause it to rise from the west?’ So, the disbeliever was utterly defeated. And Allah does not guide those people, who are wicked. (258).

Conversation of Prophet Uzair with Allah
This conversation is recorded in Surah Al-Baqarah in Verse 259. In a town, a man who is believed to be Prophet Uzair, was walking when he saw a ruined town that was totally decayed and levelled to the ground. A thought crossed his mind: ‘How will Allah ever bring its inhabitants to life after destruction?’ So, Allah caused the man to die for a hundred years. Then Allah raised him up from death and asked him: ‘How long did you remain dead?’ The man replied: ‘Perhaps I remained dead for a day or part of a day’. Allah said: ‘No, you have been dead for a hundred years. Look at your food and your drink, they have not gone stale; but look at your donkey. And thus, We have made of you a sign for the people. Look at the bones of your donkey, how We bring them together and cover them with flesh and skin’. When this was clearly shown to him, the man said, ‘I know now that Allah is able to do all things.’ (259).

Conversation of Prophet Ibrahim with Allah about resurrection
This conversation is recorded in Surah Al-Baqarah in Verse 260. Prophet Ibrahim also asked Allah how He will bring the dead to life. He said: ‘My Lord, show me how you give life to the dead.’ Allah asked Ibrahim: ‘Do you not believe?’ Ibrahim replied: ‘Yes, I believe, but I ask You so that I can be stronger in Faith.’ Allah said to Ibrahim: ‘Take four birds, then cause them to get familiar to you so that when you call them, they come to you. Then slaughter them and cut them into pieces and scatter their pieces on different hills. When you have done this, call them toward you. And it happened that that they rose and came to Ibrahim immediately. And know that Allah is All-Mighty, All-Wise.’ (260).

Conversation of Shaitan with man at his death
Although there is no direct Quranic reference to Shaitan appearing before a believer at the time of his death to make one last attempt to abandon his faith in Allah, there are other references to Shaitan attacking man for this purpose. In Surah Al-Baqarah Verse 275 there is reference to those who take usury rising on the Day of Judgement in a state as one who has been tormented by Shaitan’s touch. In Surah Al-e-Imran Verse 102 Allah says: ‘You who believe, be mindful of Allah as is his due, and make sure you do not die except in a state that you are a Muslim. Shaitan approaches man in his dying moment to disobey Allah’s command. To guard against this, Muslims recite the Shahada ‘La Ilaha Illa Allah Muhammad Al-Rasool Allah’ when they know their time to leave this world has come. Our Prophet advised believers to seek Allah’s help in resisting Shaitan’s desperate attempts to confuse us in trying times with this Dua: ‘O Allah, I seek refuge in you from my house falling on me, I seek refuge in you from falling into an abyss, I seek refuge in you from drowning, burning and decrepitude; I seek refuge in you from Shaitan swaying me on his side at the time of my death, I seek refuge in you from dying in your path while retreating, and I seek refuge in you from dying of the sting of a poisonous creature (Abu Dawood 1552).

Conversation between Adam’s two sons
This conversation is reported in Surah Al-Maeda from Verses 27 to 32. The conversation takes place between the two sons of Adam who had opposite nature. The brother whose name was Qabeel was weak in faith, but he was physically aggressive and jealous. The other brother Habeel was strong in faith, but he was physically weak and kind. When they argued on taking a woman as wife, Qabeel was told that according to the convention of the time, he could not marry his twin sister, but Habeel could marry her because she was not his twin sister. Qabeel disputed this convention, and it was a settled that both would offer a sacrifice to Allah to ascertain who was right. Qabeel was a farmer and offered agricultural produce for sacrifice, but Habeel offered a ram because he was a cattle herder. The offerings were placed in the open air. The lightning from the sky struck the offering of Habeel. It was a sign that the sacrifice was accepted from Habeel but not from Qabeel. The losing brother said to Habeel: I will surely kill you. Habeel said: verily, Allah accepts only from those who are God-fearing and pious. If you raise your hand to kill me, I will not reciprocate because I fear Allah who is the Lord of the universe. Verily, I intend to let you draw my sin on yourself as well as yours, then you will be one of the dwellers of the fire, and that is the recompense of wrong doers. Still, Qabeel didn’t stop. He convinced himself to kill his brother and proceeded in his act and became a loser. Then Allah sent down a crow who dug a grave in the ground to bury another dead crow. When Qabeel saw this, he cried and said: ‘Woe to me. I have fallen below this this crow who loves his fellow crow and is burying his corpse, but I have killed my brother and don’t even know how to bury him. Then he became one of those who regretted.’ Because of that Allah ordained for the Bani Israel that if anyone takes a life, unless it is as a punishment for murder or mischief in the land, it will be as if they killed all humanity; and whoever saves a life, it will be as if they saved all humanity. Although Allah’s messengers already came to them with clear proofs, many of them still transgressed afterwards through the land.

Conversation of Prophet Isa with Allah
This conversation is recorded in Surah Al-Maeda in Verses 119 to 120. ‘Allah will ask on the Day of Resurrection: ‘O Isa, son of Maryam, did you say unto men: ‘worship me and my mother as two gods besides Allah?’ Isa will respond: ‘Glory be to you; It was not for me to say what I had no right to say. Had I said such a thing, you would surely have known it. You know what is in my inner self though I do not know what is in Yours, truly, you, and only you, are the all-knower of all that is hidden and unseen. Never did I say to them anything except what you commanded me to say which was: ‘Worship Allah, my Lord and your Lord.’ And I was a witness over them while I dwelt amongst them, but when you took me up, you were the watcher over them, and you are a witness to all things. O Allah, if you punish them, they are your slaves, and if you forgive them, verily you, only you are the all-mighty and the all-wise.’ (116 – 18). Allah will say: ‘This is a Day on which the truthful will profit from their truth. The Jannah under which rivers flow shall be theirs and they shall abide therein forever. Allah is pleased with them and they with Him. That is the great success. To Allah belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth and all that is therein, and He is capable to do all things.’

Conversations of Prophet Musa with Allah for pardoning Bani Israel
There are two conversations recorded in this section. The first conversation is recorded ion Surah Al-Baqarah in verses 55 to 56. After the drowning of the Pharoah when Musa brought Bani Israel out of Egypt, Allah called him to Mount Tur to worship and glorify Him for 40 nights and receive the divine commandments. When Musa departed, leaving his nation under the care of his brother Haroon, seventy elders from his nation also insisted that they would also go with Musa to the Mountain. When they reached there, they said to Musa: ‘We won’t believe in your God unless we see Him. A lightening feel on them from the sky and they lay lifeless on the ground. Then Allah brought them back to life so that they would be grateful. (Verses 55 – 56).

This second conversation between Prophet Musa and Allah is recorded in Surah Al-Araaf in Verses 155 to 156. After the incident of the Sameree who presented the golden calf to Bani Israel and asked them to worship it, Musa became angry with the idol worshippers of his nation and dropped the slates on which he had written the commandments of his Lord. Allah revealed to Musa that Bani Israel thought poorly of Musa’s God, and it was their demand to see Him physically to believe in Him. So, Musa collected the slates and took seventy elders from his nation to climb the mountain to meet Allah at the appointed time. When they reached there, a severe earthquake shook them. Musa said to Allah: ‘O my Lord, if you wanted to kill me and them, you could have done this before we came here. Will you, my Lord, make us die because some foolish people in my nation have disobeyed you. Truly, it was a trial from you. It is your decision whoever you let go astray in your trial and whoever you guide. You are our Lord. So, forgive us and have mercy on us. Truly, you are the best of forgivers.’ (155). O, our Lord, write in our destiny goodness in this world and goodness in the hereafter. We have decided to follow your guidance. Allah said: I send my torment on anyone I wish, and my blessings surround everything. So, I will make a blessed destiny for those who fear me and give charity and believe in my commands’ (156).

Conversations of Prophet Yusuf with his father
This conversation is in two segments in Surah Yusuf in Verses 4 to 6, and 96 to 101. The first segment is when Yusuf saw a dream and discussed it with his father. ‘Remember when Yusuf said to his father: ‘Dear father, I saw in a dream eleven stars and the sun and the moon prostrating to me. What does this mean?’ His father (Yaqub) said: ‘My son, keep this dream to yourself and do not discuss it with your brothers, lest they hatch a plot against you. Verily, Shaitan is an open enemy. Your Lord will choose you and teach you the interpretation of dreams and other things and perfect His favour on you and on my offspring, as He perfected it on your fathers, Ibrahim and Ishaq earlier. Verily, your Lord is all-knowing and all wise.’ (4 -6). The second segment of this conversation is many years later, when Yaqub learns from his sons that Yusuf is alive. ‘When the bearer of the glad tidings arrived, he cast the shirt of Yusuf over Yaqub’s face, and he became clear-sighted. Yaqub said: “Did I not say to you: ‘I know from Allah that which you do not know.’ His sons said: ‘O our father, ask forgiveness from Allah for our sins. Indeed, we have been sinners. Yaqub said: ‘I will ask my Lord for forgiveness for you. Verily He is the most forgiving and the most merciful.’ When they all travelled to Egypt, Yusuf, came to meet his parents at the border and said to them: ‘Welcome to Egypt and stay safe with Allah Will’. And Yusuf raised his parents to the throne, and they all bowed to Yusuf in prostration. Yusuf said: ‘O my father, this is the interpretation of my childhood dream. My Lord has made it come true. He was indeed good to me when He took me out of prison and brought you all here out of the Bedouin life, after Shaitan sowed enmity between me and my brothers. Certainly, my Lord is the most kind unto whom He will. Truly, only He is the all-knowing and all-wise’. Yusuf said: ‘My Lord, You have indeed bestowed on me of the sovereignty and taught me the interpretation of dreams. You are the creator of the heavens and the earth. You are my protector in this world and in the hereafter. My Lord, cause me to die as a Muslim and join me with the righteous people.’ (96 -101).

Conversations of Zhulaikha
In Surah Yusuf, the lady who caused Prophet Yusuf’s imprisonment on a false accusation of assault is not named but in the commentaries of the Quran, her name is mentioned as Zulaikha, the wife of the Aziz of Egypt. Aziz was a high-ranking official in Egypt at the time of Prophet Yakub. He had taken young Yusuf from a caravan and brought him to his house to adopt him as his son because he had no offspring of his own with his wife. Zulaikha lived in this house and was related to this nobleman. The conversation appears in Surah Yusuf in three places. The first place is when Zulaikha is enchanted by Yusuf’s personality, and she invites him to commit sin with her. The second place her conversation is mentioned is when she invites her female companions to her house and convinces them that she is justified in trying to seduce Yusuf. The third time is when she admits that Yusuf is innocent and that she is solely responsible for his imprisonment.

The lady in whose house Yusuf lived tried to seduce him. She locked the doors of the house and said to him: ‘Come on to me.’ Yusuf replied: ‘I seek refuge in Allah. It is not right to betray my master, who has taken good care of me. Indeed, the wrongdoers never succeed.’ She made an advance toward him, and he would have done likewise had he not seen a sign from his Lord. This is how Allah kept evil and indecency away from Yusuf, for he was truly one of Allah’s chosen servants. Yusuf raced for the door, and she ran after him, and she tore his shirt from the back, only to find her husband at the door. When she saw him: she posed innocent and cried: ‘What is the penalty for someone who tried to assault your wife, except get a jail sentence or suffer a painful punishment?’ Yusuf responded: ‘It was she who tried to seduce me.’ Then a witness from her own family advised: ‘If Yusuf’s shirt is torn from the front, then she has told the truth, and Yusuf is a liar. But if Yusuf’s shirt is torn from the back, then she has lied, and Yusuf is truthful.’ So, when her husband saw that Yusuf’s shirt was torn from the back, he said to his wife: ‘This must be an example of the cunning of you women. Indeed, your cunning is so shrewd.’ He told Yusuf to forget about the incident, and he asked his wife to seek forgiveness for her act. He said to her: ‘It certainly has been your fault’. (Verses 23 to 29).

And the women in the city said: ‘The wife of the Aziz (Minister) is seeking to seduce her youthful slave; indeed, she loves him violently and we think she is making an error.’ When Zulaikha heard of their accusation, she invited them to a meal at her house. When they came, she gave a knife to each one of them to cut the served food and she asked Yusuf to present himself before them. When the women saw Yusuf, they were so enchanted by his handsomeness and in their astonishment, they cut their fingers. They said: ‘By God, how perfect is this man. No, he is not a man but a noble angel.’ Zulaikha told them: ‘This is the man about whom you were accusing me of falling in love with, and I did seek to seduce him, but he refused. And now if he refuses to obey my order, he shall certainly be cast into prison and will be disgraced.’ (Verses 30 to 32).

After some years, when the king of Egypt learnt that the interpretation of his dream had come from Yusuf, he ordered his release from prison and summoned him to speak to him. Yusuf wanted to get himself cleared of the wrong accusation for which he was sentenced. The King said: ‘Bring him to me.’ When the royal messenger came to Yusuf, he said: ‘Go back to your master and ask him about the case of the women who cut their hands at Zulaikha’s house. Surely, my Lord has full knowledge of their cunning.’ The King investigated the matter and asked those women: ‘What did you get when you tried to seduce Yusuf?’ They replied, ‘God forbid, we know nothing indecent about Yusuf.’ Then Zulaikha admitted: ‘Now that the truth has come to light, it was I who tried to seduce him, and he is surely truthful.’ Then Yusuf said: ‘I asked for this enquiry in order that my Master should know that I did not betray him in his absence. Verily, Allah does not guide the betrayers in their plots.’ Yusuf said: ‘I do not seek to free myself from blame, for indeed the human ego (Nafs) is inclined to succumb to evil, except those who are blessed by my Lord. Surely, my Lord is all-forgiving and most merciful.’ (Verses 50 to 53).

Conversation of two differing friends
This conversation takes place in Surah Al-Kahf between two friends, one of whom was poor and the other owned two green orchards which were watered by a lake. Allah had surrounded both orchards with date-palms; and had put between them green crops of cultivated fields. The two gardens brought forth quality produce, and nothing was wasted therein, and Allah caused a river to gush forth in the midst to irrigate them. When the two friends were having a casual talk, the rich man said to his poor friend: ‘I have more than you in wealth and I am stronger’. He went into his garden while in a state of pride and disbelief and being unjust to himself he said: ‘I don’t think that this will ever perish. I also don’t think the final hour would ever come, and if it indeed happens and I am brought back to my Lord if there is a Day of Judgement, I surely shall find better than this when I return to Him’. During the conversation the poor man said to his rich friend: ‘Do you disbelieve in Him who created you out of dust, then out of sperm and then He fashioned you into a handsome man? But as for my part I believe in Allah, my Lord, and I shall not associate anyone as partner with my Lord. It would have been better for you to say, when you entered your garden: whatever Allah wills shall come to pass and there is no power but with Allah. If you see me less than you in wealth and manpower, perhaps my Lord will grant me something better than your orchards and send down upon your garden a thunderbolt from the sky, turning it into a barren waste. Or its water may sink into the earth, and you will never be able to take it out’. Soon thereafter, the arrogant man’s orchards were totally ruined in a natural calamity, and he started to wring his hands recalling what he had invested in it, while it had collapsed on its trellises. He cried: ‘I wish I had never associated anyone with my Lord. And he had no people to help him against Allah, nor could he defend his loss or save himself.’ (Verses 32 to 42). Allah says: wealth and children are the adornment of this worldly life, but the everlasting good deeds are far better with your Lord in reward and in hope (Verse 44).


Conversation of Prophet Zakariya with Allah
This conversation is recorded in Surah Maryam in Verses 4 to 11. Further details on this conversation are mentioned in Surah Al-Anbia in Verses 89 to 90. Zakariya was the keeper of the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem and was a ward on Maryam who had been given away to a monastery by her mother to serve Allah. Zakariya was old and issueless. He wished he had a son to continue his family tradition to serve Allah after his death. The conversation starts when Zakariya called out to Allah in a humbling voice, saying: ‘My Lord, my bones have grown feeble, and my hair on my head has turned grey. I have never been unblessed in my invocation to you.’ (4). I fear my relatives after I am gone, because my wife is unable to bear a child. So, grant me an heir from your bounty.’ (5). If you grant me a son, he will inherit my religious knowledge and piety, and inherit the posterity of Yaqub in your glorification and the duty of prophethood. My Lord, make him one with whom you are well-pleased’. (6). Allah replied to Zakariya’s prayer: ‘O Zakariya, verily, We give you the glad tidings of a son. His name will be Yahya. We have given that name to no one before.’ (7). Zakariya was pleased with the good news, but he was also astonished. He said: ‘My Lord, how can I have a son, when my wife is unable to conceive, and I have reached the extreme old age.’ (8). Allah said: ‘So, it will be. Your Lord says: ‘It is easy for Me. Certainly, I have created you before, when you were nothing.’ (9). Zakariya said: ‘My Lord, give me a sign.’ Allah said: ‘Your sign is that you shall not speak unto anyone for three continuous nights. (10). Then Yahya came out to his people from his prayer chamber and told them by signs to glorify Allah’s praises daily in the morning and in the afternoon.’ (11).

Conversation of Prophet Musa with Allah
This conversation is recorded in Surah Ta-Ha in Verses 11 to 36. When Musa was travelling with his family from Madyan to Egypt, he saw a fire at some distance. He went out to bring them a burning coal to light the wood or get some light for his tent. When Musa came close to the burning bush, Allah called him by name and said: ‘O Musa. I am your Lord. Take off your shoes. You are in the sacred valley of Tuwa. I have chosen you. Listen to that which is being inspired from Me. Verily, I am Allah. No one has the right to be worshipped but I, so worship Me, and perform the salat for My remembrance. Verily, the Hour shall happen, and My Will is to keep it hidden so that every person may be rewarded for that which he strives. Therefore, let no one who is an unbeliever and follows his own lusts, divert you from your belief, lest you perish.’ (11 to 16). Then Allah asked Musa: what is that in your right hand, O Musa?’ (17). Musa replied: ‘This is my staff, whereon I lean, and wherewith I bring down branches of trees to feed my sheep, and wherein I find other uses.’ (18). Allah said: ‘Musa, put down your staff’. (19). When Musa put down the staff, it assumed the shape of a live serpent moving in fast turns. (20). Allah said to Musa: ’Now grasp it and have no fear. We shall return it to its former state. And press your hand under the arm, it will come forth bright like a white shining light, and it won’t hurt you or cause you any disability or disease. This is so that We may show you some of Our great signs. You should go to the Pharaoh. Verily, he has transgressed all bounds in disbelief and disobedience and has behaved as an arrogant and as a tyrant. (21 to 24). Musa said: ‘O my Lord, open my chest and grant me confidence and boldness. And make the task you have assigned me easy for me. And open the knot of my speech from my tongue so I can speak fluently to make them understand my talk. And appoint for me a helper from my family. My brother Haroon. Increase my strength with him. And let him share my task. So that we may glorify you much and remember you much. You are our overseer. You see us very well.’ Allah said: ‘Musa, I grant you your request’. (25 to 36). ‘We conferred a favour on you earlier as well, when you were an infant, and We inspired your mother to place you in a casket and put it in the river Nile. Then the river cast it up on the bank, and there, an enemy of Mine and an enemy of Musa shall take him. And I endued you with love from Me in order that you may be brought up by our enemy (the Pharaoh) under My care. ‘When you stopped taking the milk from every nurse and your sister went and said to them: ‘Shall I show you a lady who will nurse him?’ So, We brough you back to your mother for weaning, so that she might cool her eyes from your sight and should not grieve. Then you killed an Egyptian, but We saved you from great distress and tried you with a heavy trial. Then you stayed several years with the people of Madyan. Then you came here according to your destiny which I ordained for you. Musa, I have selected you for a special mission. So go now and take your brother for your task and do not slacken and become weak in My remembrance.’ (37 to 42)

Conversation of Prophet Zun Noon with Allah
In Surah Al-Anbia there is a short conversation of Prophet Yunus, also called Zun Noon, with Allah in Verses 87 to 88. Further details on this conversation following Prophet Yunus’s supplication are mentioned in Surah As-Saffaat in Verses 139 to 148. Allah says: ‘And remember Zun Noon when he went off in anger without seeking our permission and imagined that We shall ignore him for walking away from his nation fearing that we will punish them for their sins. But he realised he was wrong and cried through the darkness of the belly of the whale fish, saying: My Lord, there is no God except You and no one has the right to be worshipped except You. You are most glorified and exalted. Truly, I have been of the wrong doers.’ (87). Although there is no conversation recorded in this Surah about Allah’s reply to Yunus, but Allah accepted his supplication. Yusuf was thrown out by the whale fish on an island where a vein plant grew on top of him to heal his acidified skin and restored his original health. Referring to this healing in the next Verse, Allah says: So, We answered his call, and delivered him from distress. And this is how We deliver the believers who abstain from disobedience and are righteous. (88).

Conversation of Prophet Sulaiman with Queen Sheba
This conversation is recorded in Surah An-Namal in Verses 42 to 44. When Sulaiman learnt from his intelligence operators that Queen Sheba had decided to visit him, he arranged to have her throne brought to his palace to impress her. When she entered Sulaiman’s palace, she was asked: ‘Is your throne like this? She replied: ‘It looks to be the same. Sulaiman said: “Knowledge was bestowed on him before her, and he submitted to Allah in Islam as a Muslim before her. Queen Sheba reached a walkway which seemed as if it was filled with water, she instantly lifted her skirt exposing her legs to be seen by those present there. Noting her embarrassment Sulaiman said to her: ‘this walkway is not wet; its surface is shiny because it is made smooth with glass’. She realised that her worshipping the sun was also as misleading as this shiny pathway. What she had taken to be her God was not the truth. She said: my Lord, indeed I have wronged myself, and I submit with Sulaiman to Allah, Lord of the worlds. (42 to 44).

Conversation of the wiseman Luqman with his son
Luqman was a wise man, but he was not a prophet. He did not have wealth or a large family which was a symbol of status and strength in those times. He was a contemporary of Prophet Dawood. He lived in Nubia, the land of black people. His advice to his son is so sound that it is mentioned by Allah in the Quran in Surah Luqman in Verses 12 to 19. This Surah is also named after him. Allah blessed Luqman with wisdom. He said to his son: ‘O my boy, be grateful to Allah, for whoever is grateful, it is only for his own good. And whoever is ungrateful, then surely Allah is self-sufficient and praiseworthy. And remember when Luqman said to his son when he was advising him: O my son, do not join others in worship of Allah. Indeed, associating partners with Allah is a major injustice (Zulm). And Allah has enjoined on men to be dutiful and good to their parents. Their mothers bore them through hardship upon hardship, and their weaning takes two years. So be grateful to Allah and to parents. To Allah is the final return. But if your parents urge you to join partners with Allah in worship then do not obey them but deal with them kindly and follow the path of him who turns to Allah in repentance and in obedience. To Allah you will return, and Allah shall tell you what you used to do. Luqman said: O my son, if it be anything as small as a grain of mustard seed, and even if it is hidden in a rock, or in the heavens or in the earth, Allah knows where it is and will bring it forth. Verily, Allah is subtle and all aware. O my son, be regular in your obligatory prayers (Salat), enjoin people for what is good, forbid people from what is forbidden by Allah, and bear with patience whatever befalls you. Verily, these are some of the important commandments ordered by Allah with no exception. And do not turn your face away from men in pride, nor walk on the earth with arrogance. Verily, Allah does not like a man who is arrogant and boastful. And be moderate or show no insolence in your walk and keep your voice low. Verily, the harshest of all voices is the braying of an ass (12 to 190.

Conversation of Prophet Ibrahim with his son Ismail
This conversation is recorded in Surah As-Saffaat in Verses 102 to 106. It is also mentioned in Surah Al-Anbia in Verses 83 to 84. When Ibrahim’s first son Ismail was old enough to walk, Ibrahim, saw a vision about his son and its repetition made him realise it was from Allah. Ibrahim said to Ismail: ‘O my son, I have seen in a dream that I am slaughtering you in sacrifice to Allah. So, tell me what you think?’ Ismail said: ‘O my father, do that which you are commanded to do by Allah. With Allah’s Will, you shall find me a patient slave.’ (102). Then, when they both submitted themselves to the Will of Allah, and Ibrahim laid Ismail with his forehead touching the earth, We called out to him: ‘O Ibrahim, you have fulfilled your vision. We reward our true believers who are grateful to Allah for their blessings. Verily, that was indeed a manifest trial of Ibrahim in which he succeeded (103 – 106).

Conversation of Prophet Ayub with Allah
In Surah As-Saad there is a short conversation of Prophet Ayub with Allah in Verses 41 to 44. When Ayub was afflicted with a debilitating illness and his patience gave away, he cried to his Lord saying: ‘Verily, Shaitan followed me and touched me with distress and affliction. I have lost both my health and wealth. (41). Allah replied to Ayub’s call and said: ‘Strike the ground with your foot. It will bring forth water to provide you a therapeutic wash, as well as provide a cool drink’. (42). Thus, his illness was cured, and Ayub became healthy again. Allah says in the next Verse: ‘We also gave him back his family like what he had before as a mercy from us. This is a reminder for those who understand Our signs’. (43). Then, when Allah saw Ayub worried about keeping his promise to admonish his wife for endorsing the advice of Shaitan for getting him cured, Allah said to Ayub: ‘Grab a bundle of grass sticks in your hand and strike your wife to keep your promise; and fulfil your oath. Truly, we found Ayub patient and an excellent slave. He was fully devoted to us.” (44).

Conversation of Prophet Nuh with Allah
In Surah Nuh there is a short conversation of Prophet Nuh with Allah in Verses 21 to 28. After working day and night to make the people of his nation accept his invitation to worship Allah and abandon their corrupt ways which they rejected and made fun of him, Nuh complained to Allah about them. He said: ‘My Lord, the unbelievers in my nation have disobeyed me and followed those whose wealth and children will give them no benefit in the hereafter but only loss. And they have plotted a mighty conspiracy. And these influential people have told the people not to abandon their gods, nor leave the worship of Wadd, Suwa, Yaghuth, Yauq and Nasr. And indeed, they have led many people astray. O Allah grant them no increase except in their sins.’ (21 – 25). Allah listened to the frustration and pain of Nuh and granted his wish. ‘Because of their sins they were drowned, then were made to enter Jahannam, and they found no one to help them other than Allah’. (25). The next Verses recall Nuh’s conversation again: ‘And Nuh said: my Lord, do not leave any of the disbelievers on the earth alive. If You leave them, they will mislead Your slaves, and they will beget none but wicked disbelievers. My Lord, forgive me, and my parents, and him who enters my home as a believer, and all the believing men and women. And do not grant the polytheists and disbelievers any increase except destruction!’ (26 – 28).

SECTION TWO: CONVERSATIONS OF ONE-TO-MANY

In the holy Quran there are clear commandments that lay down the fundamentals of Islamic belief and practice, and the principles of sharia law. A person who embraces Islam accepts to follow these commandments. Allah speaks about these commandments through the Verses of the Quran which was revealed to the Prophet through archangel Jibril. There are 89 commandments in the Quran which start with: ‘O who you believe’ and contain instructions for affirmative action, as well as instructions of abstinence or prohibition. Affirmative commandments are about following Allah and His Messenger; believing in life after death; believing in Allah’s angels, messengers, Day of Judgement, heaven and Jahannam and good or bad destiny; observing the obligatory prayers regularly and on time; keeping the obligatory fasts in Ramadan; dispensing justice; keeping the covenant; bearing witness to the truth with honesty; persevering in the way of Allah; defending life and faith; repaying loans, keeping trusts; leaving inheritance to the next of kin; feeding the hungry, helping the orphan and the poor; doing good deeds without expecting anything in return; and pronouncing due punishment for wrongful killing. Commandments that forbid are: not associating any partner or associates with Allah, not practicing usury, not appropriating the property of others illegally, not engaging in robbery, theft and immoral activities; not accusing anyone wrongly or becoming a false witness, not disobeying Allah and taking parents with Him, not engaging in same sex or illicit sex out of marriage; not exhibiting indecency or lewd behaviour, not backbiting, not following the disbelievers; not taking intoxicants or psychoactive substances; and not eating from the dead animals and the meat of swine. As a general guide: Allah says: ‘O believers, obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you. Should you disagree on anything, then refer it to Allah and His Messenger, if you believe in Allah and the last Day. This is the best and fairest resolution (Surah An-Nisa, Verse 59).

There is no compulsion in Islam. A disbeliever is not expected to follow these beliefs or commandments, but he is warned that he will be asked on the Day of Judgement that he has no reward in the hereafter because he denied the existence of Allah and the day or judgement or associated partners with Allah.

Conversation of Allah with Adam and Hawa
When Allah completed making Adam in His image and taught him names of all objects, He said: ‘O Adam, inform the angels of the names of objects’. When Adam finished naming as he was directed, Allah said to the angels: ‘Didn’t I tell you that I know the secrets of the heavens and the earth, and I know what you reveal and what you conceal’? (Surah Al-Baqarah, Verse 33). Then Allah said to Adam: ‘Live with your wife in Jannah and eat as freely as you please, but do not approach this tree, or else you will be wrongdoers’ (Surah Al-Baqarah, Verse 35). (Surah Al-Araaf, Verse 19).

When Shaitan deceived Adam and Hawa and they made the mistake of tasting the fruit of the forbidden tree, Allah asked Adam and Hawa: ‘Didn’t I forbid you from that tree and didn’t I tell you that Shaitan is your sworn enemy’? They replied: ‘Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves. If you do not forgive us, we will be certainly losers.’ Allah said: ‘You will descend on earth as enemies of each other. You will find on earth your shelter and provisions until the appointed stay. There, you will live and there you will die and from there you will be resurrected.’ (Surah Al-Araaf, Verse 25). Allah said: ‘Descend all of you. Then when the guidance will come to you from Me, whoever follows it, there will be no fear for them, nor will they grieve.; (Surah Al-Baqarah, Verse 36 and 38).


Conversations of Allah with the children of Adam
Allah converses with His creation in many ways about which we know only a little. But Allah communicates with man through inspiration, or from behind a veil or by the sending of a heavenly Messenger to reveal the divine word (Surah As-Shura, Verse 51). Allah also converses with man through his nature (Fitrah) as he did when He gathered all the human souls ever created to bear witness to them, and asked: ‘Am I not your Lord, and they all replied: ‘Yes. You are.’ (Surah Al-Araaf, Verse 172).

There are also four types of conversations of Allah with the children of Adam. The first is with the people in general, ‘ya aiyuhan nas’. The second is with those who dispute the existence of Allah or associate partners with Allah, ‘ya aiyuhal kaferoon’. The third is with hypocrites who claim to be Muslims in public, but they are the fifth columnists in the community and the worst enemies of Islam and Muslims. Allah never addresses them directly as ‘ya aiyuhal munafiqoon’. The fourth is with Muslims, ‘ya aiyuhal lazeena amanu’. They are given a divine law and asked to follow the path to Jannah, strive for peace, observe patience, and leave the final judgement about them to Allah which will be pronounced on the Day of Judgement.

Conversations of Allah about the Kaferoon
In the Quran Allah asks those who deny the existence of God by challenging them about the existence of the universe and humans. When the Pharaoh asked Prophet Musa who is your God, Musa replied: ‘Our Lord is the one who has given everything its distinctive form, then guided it. Allah has laid out the earth for you, and set in its pathways for you, and sends down rain from the sky, causing various types of plants to grow’ (Surah Ta-Ha, Verses 49 and 53). A similar reply was given by Prophet Ibrahim to Nimrud. Both the Pharaoh and Nimrud claimed in their times that they were God. They met a humiliating end for their false claim after they rejected the clear evidence from the messengers of Allah who came to them and asked them to submit to Allah.

In Surah Al-Hajj Allah asks: ‘Do you not see that Allah sends down rain from the sky, then the earth becomes green? Surely Allah is most subtle and all aware. Do you not know that Allah fully knows whatever is in the heavens and the earth? Surely it is all preserved in a record. That is certainly easy for Allah’. (Verses 63, 65 and 70).

In Surah Al-Mominoon, Allah asks the deniers: ‘To whom belong the earth and all those on it, if you really know?’ They will reply: ‘To Allah’. Say then: ‘Why are you not then mindful’? Ask them: ‘Who is the Lord of the seven heavens and the Lord of the mighty throne?’ They will reply: ‘Allah’. Say: ‘Will you not then fear Him’? Ask them also: ‘In whose hands is the authority over all things, protecting everything while none can protect against Him, if you really know’? They will reply: ‘Allah’. Say: ‘How are you then so deluded’? In fact, We have brought them the truth, and they are certainly liars. (Verses 84 to 90). In Surah Yunus, Allah asks: ‘Who provides you food and provisions from heaven and earth? Who owns your hearing and sight? Who brings forth the living from the dead and the dead from the living? And who conducts every affair’? They will surely say: ‘Allah’. Say to them: ‘Then why do you not fear Him’? (Verse 31).

In Surah Al-Kaferoon Allah says: ‘O Muhammad, proclaim to the infidels: I do not worship that which you worship, nor do you worship that which I worship. And I shall not worship that which you are worshipping. Nor will you worship that which I worship. To you is your faith, and to me is my faith. (Verses 1 to 6).

Conversations of Allah about the Mushrikoon
Allah uses the same argument as with the kafirs when addressing those who associate partners with Him. Allah says if you accept the fact that the creation of the universe is the result of someone more powerful than the forces of nature then why do you associate partners with this supreme entity. In Surah An-Namal, Allah asks Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, to place before the mushrikoon the evidence of His unity in a series of easy-to-comprehend questions which they will never be able to deny. ‘Who created the heavens and the earth, and who sends down rain for you from the sky, by which delightful gardens grow? You could never cause the trees to grow. Was it the work of another god besides Allah’? Absolutely not. But they are a people who set up equals to Allah. Who made the earth a place of settlement, caused rivers to flow through it, placed firm mountains upon it, and set a barrier of fresh and salt bodies of water? Was it another god besides Allah who did this? Absolutely not. But most of them do not know. Who responds to the distressed when they cry to Allah, relieves their affliction, and who makes you successors in the earth? Is it another god besides Allah who does this? Yet you are hardly mindful. Who guides you in the darkness of the land and sea, and sends the winds ushering in His mercy? Is there another god besides Allah? Exalted is Allah above what they associate with Him. Who originates the creation; then resurrects it; and gives you provisions from the heavens and the earth? Is it another god besides Allah? Say, O Prophet: show me your proof if what you say is true’. (Verses 60 -64).

In Surah Al-Raad, Allah asks the Prophet to question: ‘Who is the Lord of the heavens and the earth’? Say: ‘Allah’. Ask them: ‘Why then have you taken partners besides Him who cannot even benefit or protect themselves’? Say: ‘Can the blind and the fully sighted person be equal?’ Or ‘can darkness and light be equal’? Or ‘have they associated with Allah partners who supposedly produced a creation like His, leaving them confused between the two creations’? Say: ‘Allah is the creator of all things, and He is the one, the supreme.’ (Verse 16).

In Islam the greatest sin is shirk, associating partners with Allah. That’s why Quran takes a strong exception to the claim that Allah has taken Prophet Isa, son of Maryam as the son of God. Allah says: ‘Allah has never had an offspring, nor is there any god besides Him. Otherwise, each god would have taken away what he created, and they would have tried to dominate one another. Glorified is Allah and above what they claim.’ (Surah Al-Mominoon, Verse 91). There are very strong Verses Surah Maryam that admonish calling the son of Maryam as the son of God. Allah uses the imagery of earth and sky caving in under the mighty force of cosmos to destroy everything and everyone for making such a false allegation. ‘What they say about the most compassionate, that Allah has a son is most certainly an outrageous claim. It is a claim so offending that the heavens would burst forth, and the earth would split apart, and the mountains would crumble to pieces in protest of attributing an offspring to the most compassionate. It does not befit the majesty of the most compassionate to have a son’. (Verses 88 to 93).

Allah tells Muslims how to confront the polytheists on this matter. ‘Whoever disputes with you, O Prophet, after full knowledge has come to you concerning Isa, say to him: ‘Come let us gather our children and your children; our women and your women; ourselves and yourselves; then let us sincerely invoke Allah’s curse upon the liars’. ‘Certainly, this is the true narrative, and there is no god worthy of worship except Allah. And indeed, Allah is the almighty and all wise. And if they turn away and do not accept this true evidence, then surely Allah is all aware of those who do mischief. O Muhammad, say to the Jews and Christians: come to a word that is just between us and you, that we worship none but Allah, and that we associate no partners with Him, and that none of us shall take others as lords besides Allah. Then, if they turn away, say: ‘bear witness that we are Muslims’. O people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians) why do you dispute about Ibrahim. The Torah and the Gospel were not revealed until long after him? Have you then no sense? Verily, you are those who have disputed about that of which you do have knowledge. Why do you then dispute concerning that which you have no knowledge? It is Allah who knows, and you know not. Ibrahim was neither a Jew nor a Christian, but he was a true Muslim worshipping no deity but Allah, and he was not a polytheist’. (Surah Al-e-Imran, Verses 61 to 67).

There are many Verses in the Quran which challenge the polytheists and give evidence that Allah has no partners. In Surah Yunus, Allah asks: ‘Can any of your partner gods originate creation and then resurrect it? Only Allah originates creation and then resurrects it. How can you then be deluded from the truth? Can any of your partner gods guide to the truth? Only Allah guides to the truth. Who then is more worthy to be followed: the one God who guides to the truth or those associates who cannot find the way unless they are themselves guided? What is the matter with you? How do you judge?’ (Verses 34 to 35).

Conversations of Allah about the Munafiqoon
The hypocrites are described in the Quran as liars because they say one thing and do the opposite. They are also the most dangerous enemies of Islam because their identity is not known to anyone except Allah. There is a full Surah in their name in the Quran besides many references in Surah Tawba, as well as in other Surahs. ‘When the hypocrites come to you O Prophet, they say: we bear witness that you are certainly the Messenger of Allah, and surely Allah knows that you are His Messenger; but Allah bears witness that the hypocrites are truly liars. They have made their false oaths as a shield, hindering others from the way of Allah. Evil is indeed what they do. This is because they believed and then abandoned faith. Therefore, their hearts have been sealed, so they do not comprehend. When you see them, their appearance impresses you. And when they speak, you listen to their impressive speech; but they are like worthless planks of wood leaned against a wall. They think every cry is against them. They are the enemy, so beware of them. May Allah condemn them. How can they be deluded from the truth? When it is said to them; come, the Messenger of Allah will pray for you to be forgiven, they turn their heads in disgust, and you see them turn away in arrogance. It is the same whether you pray for their forgiveness or not, Allah will not forgive them. Surely Allah does not guide the rebellious people. They are the ones who say to one another: do not spend anything on those emigrants with the Messenger of Allah so that they will break away from him; but to Allah alone belong the treasures of the heavens and the earth, yet the hypocrites do not comprehend.’ (Surah Al-Munafiqoon, Verses 2 to 7).

‘The hypocrites, both men and women are alike: they encourage what is evil, forbid what is good, and withhold what they possess of wealth in their hands. They neglected Allah, so Allah neglected them. Surely the hypocrites are the rebels. Allah has promised the hypocrites, both men and women, and the disbelievers an everlasting stay in the Jahannam. Allah has condemned them, and they will suffer a never-ending punishment.’ (Surah At-Tawba, Verses 67 to 68).

Conversations of Allah about the Mominoon
In Surah Al-Fatah, Allah compares the Prophet, peace be upon him, and other Mominoon with His earlier messengers, as well as the true followers of Scriptures: ‘Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, and those who are with him are strict and severe against the disbelievers, but they are merciful and kind among themselves. You see them bowing and falling prostrate in prayer seeking Allah’s bounty and pleasure. The mark of faith is apparent on their faces. This is their description in the Torah and their description in the Gospel. It is like a sown seed which spreads forth its shoot, then it gains strength, then it becomes thick, then it stands straight on its stem delighting the farmer but filling his enemy with envy. This how Allah enrages the disbelievers with an example of His blessings on the believers. Allah has promised forgiveness and a mighty reward to those among them who believe’. (Verse 29).

In Surah Al-Asra, Allah commands the Mominoon about their duty to Allah and to their parents: ‘Your Lord has decreed that you worship none but Him and be dutiful to your parents. If one of them or both attain old age in your life, do not utter even a single word of disrespect to them, nor shout at them but address them in an honourable way. Honour the rights of the kindred, the poor and the wayfarer. If you have no money at the time when they ask you for help, and you do not expect any income coming soon, speak to them in a soft and kind manner while declining their request (Verses 23 -28).

The Mominoon are given another important commandment about respecting other fellow Muslims in Surah Al-Hujarat: ‘If two parties or groups among the believers stand up to fight against each other, make peace between them, but if one of them rebels against the other, then fight you together against the party that has rebelled until it complies with the command of Allah. Then if it complies, make reconciliation between them justly, and be equitable. Verily, Allah loves those who are equitable. Believers, let not a people among you ridicule other people; perhaps they may be better than them; nor let the women ridicule other women; perhaps they may be better than them. And do not insult one another and do not call each other by offensive nicknames. How bad it is to insult one’s brother after having accepted the faith. And whosoever does not repent, he is indeed a wrong doer. Avoid suspicion, as many a suspicion is sin. Without a valid reason, do not be inquisitive nor eavesdrop. Do not backbite against one another as it is like eating the flesh of your dead brother; would you ever do that? Indeed, you would despise it. And fear Allah; surely Allah accepts repentance; He is most merciful (Verses 9, 11 -12). In the same Surah, Mominoon are given a code of conduct to follow in matters governing their social behaviour and private lives.

Allah loves forgiveness and advises the same to his Messenger and Mominoon. In many Surahs, Allah repeats the message of charity and forgiveness. ‘Those who spend in the cause of Allah during ease, as well as during hardship, and who restrain their anger, and pardon the people and do good deeds. ‘It was due to the mercy of Allah, O Muhammad, that you were lenient with your companions at the time of the battle of Uhud. And if you had been sharp in speech and harsh in heart, they would have abandoned you. So, pardon them and ask forgiveness for them and consult them in the matter. And when you have decided, then rely upon Allah. Indeed, Allah loves those who rely upon Him.’ (Surah Al-e-Imran, Verses 134 and 159). ‘Worship Allah and join none with Him in worship, and do good to parents, next of kin, orphans, the poor and needy, the neighbours, the companion by your side, the wayfarer whom you meet, and those whom you control because your right hand feeds them. Verily, Allah does not like those who are proud and boastful’. (Surah Al-Nisa, Verse 36). ‘Show forgiveness, enjoin what is good, and turn away from the foolish and do not speak harshly about them.’ (Surah Al-Araaf, Verse 199).

The believers are commanded to leave the matter of religious belief to Allah instead of forcing any unbeliever to accept Islam. Allah says in Surah As-Shoora: ‘O Prophet, say to those who differ from you: ‘Its judgment rests with Allah. That is Allah, my Lord. In Him I put my trust, and to Him I turn.’ (Verse 10). Allah says in Surah Al-Hajj: O Muhammad, for every nation we have ordained religious ceremonies, such as slaughtering of the beast of cattle during the three days of stay at Mina during the Hajj, which they must follow; so let the pagans not dispute with you about whether to eat of the cattle which you slaughter or not to eat of cattle which Allah kills by its natural death. But you invite them to your Lord. O Muhammad, you are indeed on the straight path. If they argue with you as regards the slaughtering of the sacrifices, say: ‘Allah knows best of what you do. Allah will judge between you on the Day of Judgement about that which you used to differ.’ (Verses 67 to 69).

Conversation of Prophet Muhammad with Christians, Jews and idol worshippers
When Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, spoke to the followers of his preceding prophets, Musa and Isa, he made it clear that he was relaying the message of Allah and not adding anything from his own. That’s why whenever the Quran addresses the people of the Scriptures, or when its interlocuters are unbelievers or hypocrites, its conversational style is direct. Most Verses start with Allah saying: ‘O Prophet say…’. This also follows the way Allah addressed previous nations through the messengers He selected from among them. The contrast is stark. The stubborn and arrogant people who form the unbelievers are mostly rich. They have power and fame; whereas the believers are weak and belong to the lower strata of society. The unbelievers are tyrants and intimidating. Except for a few prophets who were kings and nobles, most prophets were shepherds, carpenters, priests and ordinary persons whom Allah chose for this noble work. Because this world is a trial for the believers, Allah assures them that their lowly position in this world will be compensated and replaced by higher rewards in Jannah. There are parables in the Quran which show the temporary nature of plenty such as the parable of the two friends in Surah Al-Kahf. There are also clear examples which show the existence of one and only God without any partners. There is an example of two groups of people of whom one group is blind and deaf while the other group can see and hear well. Can they be alike? (Surah Hud, Verse 24); or the comparison of a man who is a slave and another man who is a master. Allah puts forward an illustration of a person who has several partners as his masters who are at odds with each other and another person who is devoted only to one master. These two persons cannot be equal. All praise belongs to one God. (Surah Al-Zumar Verse 29).

In the Quran there are eight Verses in different surahs in which the Prophet Mohammad has been asked to say that he is but a bearer of good news, as well as a warner from Allah. ‘O People of the book; our Messenger has indeed come to you, making things clear to you after an interval between the messengers, so that you do not say: there has never come to us a deliverer of good news or a warner. Now there has come to you a deliverer of good news and a warner. And Allah is most capable of everything.’ (Surah Al-Maeda, Verse 19). ‘O Prophet, we have sent you only as a deliverer of good news and a warner to all of humanity, but most people do not know it.’ (Surah As-Saba, Verse 28).

Conversation of Prophet Musa with Bani Israel about slaughtering a cow
Bani Israel had acquired the habit of Egyptians to ask Musa for miracles and demanded that he pray to Allah to send food for them from heaven. On one occasion they asked Musa to identify the killer of a rich man of their community. In Surah Al-Baqara this conversation takes place as follows. And remember when Musa said to his people: ‘Verily, Allah commands you that you slaughter a cow.’ They said, ‘Do you make fun of us?’ Musa said, ‘I take Allah’s refuge from being among the ignorant people’. (67). They said, ‘Call upon your Lord for us that He may make plain to us what is it.’ Musa said: Allah says, ‘the cow that Allah wants them to slaughter should be neither too old nor too young but should be of middle age. So do what you are commanded.’ (68). They said to Musa: ‘Call upon your Lord for us to make plain what is its colour.’ Musa said: ‘Allah says: ‘It is a yellow cow, bright in its colour, and pleasing to the beholders.’ (69). They said: ‘Call upon your Lord for us to make plain to us what it is. Verily to us all cows are alike, and surely if Allah wills, we will be guided.’ (70). Musa said to them: ‘Allah says: ‘It is a cow neither trained to till the soil nor water the fields; it is sound, having no other colour except bright yellow.’ They said: ‘Now you have brought the truth. So, they slaughtered it though they were near to not doing it’. (71). Allah said: ‘And remember when you killed a man and fell into dispute among yourselves as to the crime. But Allah brought forth that which you were hiding.’ (72). So, Allah said: ‘Strike the dead man with a piece of the meat of the cow. Thus, Allah brings the dead to life and shows you His signs so that you may understand. (73).

Conversation of Prophet Yaqub with his children
Allah has narrated the stories of other prophets to Prophet Muhammad. Regarding this conversation from Surah Al-Baqara Allah says: ‘Were you witnesses when death approached Yaqub? When he said to his sons: ‘What will you worship after me?’ They said, ‘We shall worship your Ilah (Allah), who is the God of your fathers, Ibrahim, Ismail and Ishaq. He is one God, and to Him we submit.’ (133). Allah says: ‘That was a nation who has passed away. They shall receive the reward of what they earned and you of what you earn. And you will not be asked of what they used to do. (134).

Conversation of Prophet Musa with Bani Israel about entering Palestine
In Surah Al-Maeda, the conversation of Prophet Musa with Bani Israel about entering the holy land is described as follows: Musa said to his people: ‘O my people, remember the blessings of Allah upon you. He placed prophets among you and made you kings and gave you what He has not given to any other of the worlds. O my people, enter the Holy Land which God has ordained for you, and do not turn back, lest you turn away as losers. (21) They said, ‘O Musa, there are tyrannical people inside, and we will not enter it until they leave. But if they leave, then we will enter.’ (22). Two men from among those who feared Allah, whom Allah had bestowed His grace (they were Yusha bin Noon and Kaleb bin Yukna) said: ‘Assault them through the gate and when you enter, you will surely be victorious; So, put your trust in Allah if you are indeed believers.’ (23). They said: O Musa, we shall never enter if these tyrants remain inside. So, you and your Lord should go and fight them; we are sitting right here.’ (24). Musa said to Allah: ‘O my Lord. I have power only over myself and my brother, so separate us from the disobedient people.’ (25). Allah said: ‘Therefore this holy land is forbidden to them for forty years; they will wander through the land in distraction. So do not feel sorry for these rebellious people’. (26)

Conversation of Prophet Shamuel with Bani Israel
After the death of Musa and Haroon and after the extinction of an entire generation of Bani Israel, when they were divided in different tribes and nations and were dispersed in the land, Allah sent to them a prophet, Shamuel, to implement the divine command to enter the holy land. But they also questioned him and doubted his advice. Only those who were God-fearing and obedient were able to enter, while others remained obstinate and ungrateful. The latter changed Allah’s command to submit and prostrate to Allah. They also changed God’s command to recite what Allah asked them to recite but they pronounced it in a humiliating way (Surah Al-Araaf 160-162).

In Surah Al-Baqarah there is a conversation recorded between Prophet Shamuel and Bani Israel when they were waiting for a king to lead them to the holy land. Their Prophet Samuel said to them: ‘Indeed Allah will appoint Talut as a king over you.’ The Bani Israel said: ‘How can he be a king over us when we are more resourceful and better fitted than him for the kingdom, and he is not very wealthy either.’ Shamuel said: ‘Verily, Allah has chosen him above you and has increased him abundantly in knowledge and stature. And Allah grants His Kingdom to whoever He wills. And Allah is all-sufficient for His creatures, and He is the all-knower.’ (247). And their Prophet said to them: Verily, the sign of his kingdom is that there shall come to you a wooden box, wherein is tranquillity and reassurance from your Lord and a remnant of that which Musa and Haroon left behind. The box is carried by the angels. Verily, there is a sign in this for you if you are indeed believers. (248). When Talut set out with his army of Bani Israel to fight Jalut, he said to them: ‘Verily, Allah will try you by a river. So, whoever drinks thereof, he is not loyal to me, and whoever tastes it not, he is on my side, except him who drinks water in a small measure such as the hollow of his hand.’ Yet, Talut’s army comprising the people of Bani Israel drank litres of water except a few of them. So, when Talut and his army crossed the river, they said to him: ‘We have no power this day against Jalut and his soldiers.’ But those who knew with certainty that they were to meet their Lord, they said: ‘How often a small group has overcome a mighty force with Allah’s help?’ And Allah is with those who are patient.’ (249).


Conversation of Prophet Isa with his disciples
In Surah Al-Maeda Allah mentions the conversation of Isa with Bani Israel who had corrupted the Torah and disregarded the divine Commandments. Certainly, those who said: ‘Allah is the same Messiah who is son of Maryam’ became apostates because the Messiah has said: ‘O Bani Israel, worship Allah, He is my Lord and your Lord. Verily, whoever sets up partners in worship with Allah, then Allah has forbidden Jannah for him, and the fire will be his abode. And there is no helper for the polytheists. (72). The conversation ends with a repetition of Allah’s unity. ‘Certainly, those who said Allah is part of the Trinity became apostates because there is no one worthy of worship except Allah. There is painful torment for those who do not stop saying this blasphemy’ (73).

In the same Surah after a few Verses, is the conversation between Isa and his disciples who accepted his message. Allah says: ‘And when I put in the hearts of the disciples of Isa the inspiration to believe in Me and My Messenger, they said: ‘We believe. And bear witness that we are Muslims.’ (111). ‘Remember the disciples said: ‘O ‘Isa, son of Maryam, can your Lord send down to us a table spread with food from heaven?’ Isa replied: ‘Fear Allah, if you are indeed believers.’ (112). The disciples said: ‘We wish to eat thereof and to be firm in faith, and to know that you have indeed told us the truth and that we ourselves be its witnesses.’ (113). The conversation between Isa and his disciples ends here. Then another conversation starts between Isa and Allah when Isa, son of Maryam says to Allah: ‘O Allah, our Lord, send us from heaven a table spread with food that there may be a festival for the first and the last of us, and is a sign from You; and provide us sustenance, for You are the best of sustainers.’ (114). Allah accepted Isa’s prayer and said: ‘I am going to send it down unto you, but if any of you after that disbelieves, then I will punish him with a torment such as I have not inflicted on anyone among all the worlds. (115).

Conversations of warrior Dhul-Qarnayn
This conversation centres around a noble warrior named Dhul-Qarnayn and his expeditions around the globe. Allah mentions his meetings with three nations in In Surah Al-Kahf in Verses 83 to 99. From his conversations he comes out as a believer and a warrior, but we are not told whether he was a prophet or a king. ‘They ask you about Dhul-Qarnayn; say: I shall recite to you something of his story. Verily, Allah established him in the earth and gave him the means of everything. Dhul-Qarnayn pursued his travels until, when he reached the west end of the earth, he found the sun setting in a spring of muddy black water. There he found a community of people. Allah said to Dhul-Qarnayn: ‘It is up to you whether you punish them or treat them with kindness.’ Dhul-Qarnayn said: ‘I shall punish anyone who disbelieves in Allah and committs wrong; and when he will be brought back unto his Lord, He will punish him with a terrible torment. But as for him who believes in Allah’s oneness and is righteous, he shall have the best reward, and he shall be spoken to kindly’. (83 – 88).

Then Dhul-Qarnayn prepared for another expedition and travelled on a course until he came to the east end of the earth and found the sun rising on a community of people who had taken no shelter against the sun. He left them there and moved on. Allah knew all about him what he had and where he went in his travels. (89 – 90).

Then Dhul-Qarnayn prepared to head to another direction, until when he reached a pass between two mountains, he found a community of people who scarcely understood a word. He carried on further and found another nation. They said to him: ‘O Dhul-Qarnayn. Yajuj and Majuj come here from across the mountains and create great misery in the land. We are prepared to pay you if you build a barrier between us and them’? Dhul-Qarnayn said: ‘Whatever wealth and knowledge my Lord has given me is better than your tribute. But if you join me with manpower, I will erect a barrier between you and Yajuj and Majuj. Bring me pieces blocks of iron’. When they brought him the iron, he filled the gap between the two mountain cliffs. Dhul-Qarnayn said: ‘blow the bellows,’ till when the fire had become red, he said: ‘bring me molten copper to pour over it’. Thus, a barrier was created, and it sealed the passage of Yajuj and Majuj from coming to these people. Allah made them powerless to scale the metal barrier or dig through it. Dhul-Qarnayn said to them: ‘This is a mercy from my Lord, but when the promise of my Lord comes, He shall level the barrier to the ground. And the promise of my Lord is ever true.’ And on the day Yajuj and Majuj will come out, Allah shall leave them to surge like waves on one another, and after that the trumpet will be blown, and Allah shall collect them all together (92 -99).

Conversation of Prophet Musa with Goldsmith Sameree and others
In Surah Taha there is a conversation of Prophet Musa with multiple participants in Verses 86 to 97. They comprise Haroon, Sameree and Bani Israel. In Musa’s absence, a goldsmith whose name was Sameree moulded a golden calf and presented it to Bani Israel as the God of Musa. When Musa returned from the mountain and saw these people had engaged in idol worship, he was in a state of anger and sorrow. He said: ‘O my people, didn’t your Lord make you a fair promise? Did I take long to return to you, or did you desire that the wrath of your Lord should descend on you for breaking the promise you made to me that you will not revert to idol worship?’ (86). Bani Israel said: “We did not willingly break the promise, but we were made to carry the weight of the golden ornaments of the Egyptian people whom we left behind. Then Sameree told us to cast them into the fire. He moulded a golden calf from the molten ornaments and told us this calf is the God of Musa and Haroon. He told us that Musa forgot to find his God here, and instead he went to the mountain to meet Him’. (87 -88). It did not occur to them that they were the ones who had created the calf from their ornaments. It could not answer their call and had no power either to harm them or to do them any good. So, how could such a thing be their God. (89). And Haroon had indeed said to them beforehand: ‘O my people, you are being tried in this matter, and verily, your Lord is the most beneficent, so follow me and obey my order.’ (90). But the idol-minded Bani Israel said to Haroon: ‘we will not stop worshipping it until Musa returns.’ (91). Musa asked Haroon: ‘Haroon, what stopped you from stopping them when you saw them worshipping the calf? Why didn’t you follow my instructions? Have you disobeyed me?’ (92 -93). Haroon said to Musa: ‘O, son of my mother. Don’t seize me by my beard. Verily, I feared that if I had been hard on them, they would divide and, on your return, you would blame me for causing division among Bani Israel. That’s why I was soft in my advice to them. (94). Musa then asked Sameree: ‘And what is your explanation Sameree? Why did you do that?’ (95). Sameree replied to Musa: ‘I saw what they did not see. I had taken a handful of dust from the place where the Messenger Jibril’s horse stood, and I threw it into the fire in which the golden ornaments were moulded into the calf. This was my idea’ (96). Musa said: ‘Get out of here Sameree. Your punishment is that while you are alive you will not let anyone come near you. If anyone came close to you, you would shout in pain: ‘don’t touch me’. This is a torment for you which will not go away. And look at your golden calf whom you took as God. We will certainly burn it in fire and scatter its ashes in the river.’ (97). The conversation ends with the reminder to all people from Allah: ‘Your God is only Allah. There is no God except Him. Only He is worthy of worship. He has surrounded everything in his infinite knowledge.’ (98).

Conversation of Prophet Nuh with his nation
When Allah decreed the flood upon Nuh’s nation, Nuh called the believers in his nation to embark his ark so that they can and save themselves from the wrath of Allah. The believers followed Nuh’s advice, but one of his sons refused to join them. Nuh asked this son to embark the ark in the name of Allah. Nuh’s ark sailed with them amidst the waves which rose like mountains. Nuh called out to his son, who had separated himself. He said: ‘my son, embark with us and do not be with the unbelievers’. His son replied: ‘I will climb a mountain; it will save me from the water’. Nuh said: ‘today there is no saviour from the decree of Allah except him on whom Allah has bestowed His mercy.’ Then a wave came in between them, and his son drowned with the others. When the ark stopped on top of mount Judi and the flood subsided and all the polytheists had been drowned, Nuh called upon his Lord and said: ‘my Lord, my son is of my family, forgive him, and certainly, your promise is true, and you are the most just of the judges.’ Allah replied: ‘Nuh, your son is not of your family; verily, his work is unrighteous, so do not ask Me that of which you have no knowledge. I am warning you not to be among the ignorant.’ Nuh said: ‘my Lord, I seek refuge with You from asking You that of which I have no knowledge. And unless You forgive me and have mercy on me, I would indeed be one of the losers (Surah Hud Verses 41 to 47).

Conversation of Prophet Hud with his nation
Surah Hud continues to mention the conversation of other messengers of Allah with their people. ‘And to the people of Ad, Allah sent their brother Hud. He said: ‘O my people, Worship Allah, you have no other God but Him. You have gone astray. Certainly, you are doing nothing but inventing lies. O my people, I ask no reward for delivering you Allah’s message. My reward is due only from Him, who is my creator. Will you not then understand? And O my people, ask forgiveness of your Lord and repent to Him for your sins. He will send you abundant rain, and add strength to your strength, so do not turn away as criminals.’ (50 – 52). The people of Hud did not accept Hud’s advice. They said: ‘Hud, you have brought no evidence of your God to us. Do you think that we will abandon our idols just because you say so? We do not believe you. In fact, we think that some of our gods have seized you with evil thoughts.’ (53). Hud: ‘I call Allah to be my witness, and you too should remain my witness that I renounce what you ascribe as partners to Allah. Except for Allah, if you all get together and plot against me, you will not be able to harm me. I put my trust in Allah. He is my Lord and your Lord. There is not a single living creature that is not in His grasp by its forelock. Verily, my Lord’s path is the straight path. Still if you turn away it is your choice. I have conveyed to you the message with which I was sent to you. My Lord will make another people succeed you, and you will not harm Him in the least. Surely, my Lord is the guardian over all things.’ (54 – 57). After this conversation Allah sent his mercy on Hud and those who believed with him and saved them from a severe torment. And those people in his nation who rejected the message of their prophet and preferred to follow the ways of the oppressors and unjust leaders, they were pursued by a curse in this world and on the day of resurrection. No doubt, ‘Ad disbelieved in their Lord. So away with Ad, the people of Hud.’ (58 – 60). Hud’s conversations with the disbelievers are also repeated in other Surahs in the Quran.

Conversation of Prophet Saleh with his nation
Surah Hud continues with the conversation of Prophet Saleh who came after Hud, with his people. And to Thamud Allah sent their brother Saleh. He said: ‘O my people, worship Allah, you have no other God but Allah. He brought you forth from the earth and settled you therein. Ask forgiveness from Allah and turn to Him in repentance. Certainly, my Lord is very near to respond to your repentance.’ (61).

The Thamud said: ‘O Saleh, you have been among us as a credible figure and we were hoping you would become our chief, till you brought this new thing to us that we abandon our gods and worship your God. Do you now forbid us the worship of what our fathers have worshipped? But we are really in grave doubt about your invitation to worship one God’. (62). Saleh said: ‘O my people, don’t you see I have brought to you a clear proof from my Lord. He has blessed me with prophethood. Who can help me against Allah if I were to disobey Him? How ironical it is that you are my people, and you are advising me to disobey my Lord. And O my people, this she-camel of Allah is given a sign to you. Leave her unharmed to feed on Allah’s earth, and do not touch her with evil intention, lest a near torment will seize you.’ (63 -64). But they killed her. So, Saleh said: ‘enjoy yourselves in your homes for three days. This is a promise of punishment from your Lord that will not be belied.’ (65). When Allah’s Command came, Saleh and those who believed with him were saved from the disgrace of that day. It was mercy from Allah. Verily, He is your Lord, He is the all-strong, and the all-mighty. (66). And an awful sound overtook the wrong-doers and they lay dead with heads down in their homes as if they had never lived there. No doubt Thamud disbelieved in their Lord. So away with Thamud.’ (84), Saleh’s conversations with his nation are also repeated in other Surahs in the Quran.

Conversation of Prophet Lut with his nation
In Surah Hud, a conversation takes place between Prophet Lut, the evil people of his nation and the angels who had come as Allah’s messengers to meet him. But when they came, Lut was grieved on their account and got scared that the evil people of bis nation would find out about the visitors and would come to his house to commit sodomy with them. They were in the evil habit of committing the crime of sodomy with handsome men. Lut was distressed with the thought of how he would protect his guests. Lut said to himself: ‘This is a tough day’. (77). ‘And these people came rushing towards Lut’s guests. Lut said to these evil doers: ‘O my people; there are daughters of my nation who are pure, and you can marry them to fulfil your desire. So, fear Allah and do not embarrass me before my guests. Isn’t there a single straight man in this community?’ (78). His people said: ‘Lut, surely you know that we have neither any desire nor any need of your daughters, and indeed you know well what we want.’ (79). Lut said: ‘I wish I had the strength or the means to resist you.’ (80). Lut’s guests said: ‘O Lut, verily, we are the messengers from your Lord. These people shall not reach you. So, travel with your family in a part of the night, and let not any of you look back, but your wife will remain behind. Verily, divine punishment will afflict them and your wife. The time for their punishment has been set near the morning star which is about to appear.’ (81). ‘So, when our commandment came, Allah turned their town upside down, and sent on them a rain of piled up stones of baked clay. (82). Lut’s conversations with his nation’s disbelievers are also repeated in other Surahs in the Quran.

Conversation of Prophet Shoaib with his nation
In Surah Hud Allah says: ‘And to the people of Madyan, We sent their brother Shoaib. He said: ‘O my people, worship Allah. You have no other God but Him. No one has the right to be worshipped except Allah. Verily, a clear proof has come to you from your Lord. When you weigh your commodities for trade, give full measure and do not be dishonest. I see that you are doing well now but I am afraid that if you do not turn away from doing mischief on the earth after it has been set in order, you will soon face a severe punishment. O my people, be just in your measures and weights and do not sit on every road to ambush convoys who trade with you, and do not be like those who cause misery on earth. What remains with you after you have given the rights of people is better for you than what you accumulate with your crooked ways. You should take my advice if you are believers. And I am not sent as a guardian over you to monitor your activities.’ (84 – 86).

The unbelievers said: ‘O Shoaib! Is it your Salat (prayer) that has made you forbid us from following the religion of our fathers or that we stop doing what we like to do with our property? You used to be a reasonable man among us.’ (87). Shoaib said: ‘O my people, don’t you see that I have a clear proof from my Lord and He has blessed me with good sustenance. I never thought of doing what I forbid you against, by mixing the Halal earnings with unlawfully acquired money. My desire is only to reform you to the best of my power. My guidance comes from Allah. I trust in Him and unto Him I repent. O my people. Let not my opposition cause you to suffer the fate like that of the people of Nuh or Hud or Saleh before you. And the people of Lut have preceded you not too long ago. Ask forgiveness of your Lord and turn unto Him in repentance. Verily, my Lord is most merciful and most loving.’ (88 – 90). His people said: ‘O Shoaib, we do not understand much of what you say, and we see that you are a weak man. Were it not for the regard of your family, we would have stoned you. You cannot overcome us in power.’ (91). Shoaib said: ‘O my people, are family connections more honourable to you than Allah? And you have cast Allah’s commands behind your back. Verily, my Lord is surrounding all that you do. My people, you act according to your ability and ways, and I will act on my way. You will soon come to know who it is on whom torment befalls and covers him with ignominy, and you will know who is lying. And keep watching. Verily, I too am watching with you’. (92 -93). At the end of this conversation Allah says: ‘And when Our command came, We saved Shoaib and those who believed with him by a mercy from Us. And a fearful sound seized the wrong doers, and they lay dead with their heads down in their homes as if they had never lived there. So away with the people of Madyan like the Thamud.’ (94 -95), Shoaib’s conversations with the disbelievers of his nation are also recorded in other Surahs in the Quran.

Conversation of Prophet Yusuf with his prison inmates
There are many conversations in Surah Yusuf involving Yusuf and his interlocuters. This conversation took place with his inmates when he was in prison for an offence which he did not commit but it gave him a chance to save himself from the machinations of Zulaikha and teach the fundamental belief of monotheism in Islam to his fellow prisoners. The conversation starts with the following account of him in the prison. ‘And there entered with him two young men in the prison. One of them said: ‘I am sure I saw myself in a dream pressing wine’. The other said: ‘I am sure I saw myself in a dream carrying bread on my head and birds were eating thereof.’ They both said to Yusuf: ‘Inform us of the interpretation of these dreams. Verily, we think you are one of the intelligent persons.’ (36). Yusuf said: ‘I will tell you the interpretation of your dreams which my Lord has taught me before they serve the next meal to us in prison. But first I want to inform you that I have abandoned the religion of idol worshippers who do not believe in Allah and are disbelievers in the hereafter. I have followed the religion of my forefathers Ibrahim, Ishaq and Yaqub, and they never attributed any partners whatsoever to Allah. This is from the grace of Allah to us and to mankind, but most men are ungrateful and they neither believe in Allah, nor worship Him. O companions of the prison, are many different gods better than one Allah, the mighty and irresistible? As idol worshippers you do not worship anything except names which you and your fathers have coined and for which Allah has sent down no authority. The rule belongs to no one except Allah. He has commanded that you worship none but Him. That is the straight religion, but most men do not know.’ (37 – 40). ‘O companions of the prison, as for the interpretation of your dreams, one of you will be released and serve as a butler for his master to pour out wine to drink; and as for the other, he will be convicted and crucified and birds will eat from his head. This is the answer to what you both inquired.’ (41). Yusuf said to the one whom he knew would be released: ‘mention me to your master so as to get me out of the prison.’ (41). The conversation ends here but we are informed that when this companion was released from the prison, Shaitan made him forget to engage in the remembrance of Allah and he failed to mention Yusuf to his master, and Yusuf lived in the prison for a few more years. (42).

Conversation of Prophet Yusuf with his step-brothers in Egypt
This conversation takes place in two segments. The first is when the brothers took young Yusuf with them and left him in a well to be picked up by a travelling convoy. There is no conversation recorded in Surah Yusuf between Yusuf and them in this segment although in Verses 8 to 18 there are details of how the brothers plot against Yusuf and take him away and report to Yaqub of his false death. The second segment is when many years later, Yusuf becomes a minister in the cabinet of the King of Egypt and his brothers come to him to collect the ration of agricultural produce which was not openly sold in the market due to the drought. This conversation is recorded in Surah Yusuf in Verses 58 to 93. It is a long conversation which describes in detail how his stepbrothers came to Yusuf and did not charge them for the grain and encouraged them to come again when the ration was due next. They came again with Yusuf’s motherly brother Bin Yameen and Yusuf prevented his return by playing a trick on his stepbrothers which they could not foresee. Eventually they recognised Yusuf. They said: ‘Are you indeed Yusuf?’ He replied: ‘I am Yusuf, and this is my brother Bin Yameen. Allah has indeed been gracious to us. Verily, he who fears Allah with obedience to Him by abstaining from sins and performing good deeds and is patient, then surely, Allah does not deny him his reward. They said: ‘By Allah, He has preferred you above us, and we certainly have been sinners.’ Yusuf said: ‘There is no blame on you this day. May Allah forgive you. He is the Most Merciful of those who show mercy. Go back and take my shirt with you and place it over the face of my father. His eyesight will be restored. Bring him to me with all your family.’ (90 – 93).

Conversation of Prophet Ibrahim with his nation
The conversation of Ibrahim with his people is recoded in Surah Al-Anbia in Verses 52 to 67, Surah Al-Anam in Verse 74, and in Surah Az-Zukhruf in Verses 26 to 27. From his childhood Prophet Ibrahim was uneasy with the idols his father sold at the pagan temple where these were worshipped. Ibrahim also went through a solitary journey of discovering Allah. At first, he looked at the stars, then the moon and then the sun in search of the true God but he soon realised that these celestial objects were themselves limited in their functions. Finally, Allah guided him, and he found God and became a true Muslim. He asked his father: ‘How can you take idols as gods? I see you and your people have clearly gone astray’. (Surah Al-Anam, Verse 74). Ibrahim then told his father and his people: ‘I renounce what you worship. I worship only Allah who created me, He will guide me.’ (Surah Az-Zukhruf, Verses 26-27).

When Ibrahim asked his father and his people ‘what are these images which you worship’, they said: ‘we found our fathers worshipping them.’ Ibrahim said: ‘indeed you and your fathers have been in manifest error’. They said: ‘have you brought us the truth? or are you one of those who discuss such matters in jest? Ibrahim replied: ‘Do you know that your Lord is the Lord of the heavens and the earth, and I will join anyone who will bear witness that this is the truth. He created them and of that I am one of the witnesses.’ Then Ibrahim decided that when these people go to attend the festival, he will break these idols into pieces. So, when the town was empty, Ibrahim broke the Temple’s idols into pieces and left only the biggest of them intact. When they returned to the Temple, they saw their idols destroyed except one. They said: ‘whoever has done this travesty has indeed committed a severe wrong.’ The townspeople with whom Ibrahim had been talking about the idols told their priests: ‘we heard a young man talking against them. His name is Ibrahim.’ The priests said: ‘Bring Ibrahim before the public so that he may testify before us.’ When Ibrahim was brought to the priests, they asked him: Ibrahim, have you done this?’ Ibrahim said: “Nay, this one, the biggest of the idols you see, has done it. Ask him if he can speak.’ The priests realised that their gods could not defend themselves and Ibrahim was right. But they were embarrassed. They said: ‘Ibrahim you know well that these idols cannot speak’. Ibrahim said to them: “How can you worship these idols besides Allah, when you know they can neither profit you, nor harm you? You should be ashamed of yourselves for worshipping them besides Allah.’ Don’t you have common sense?’ The priests could not tolerate their public insult at the hand of a young man; they said to their leaders: ‘capture Ibrahim. We will throw Ibrahim in fire for his act so that our idols find some consolation’. And they carried out their punishment but when Ibrahim was thrown into the firepit, Allah said: ‘O fire, bring no harm to Ibrahim. Be cool and give safety to Ibrahim’. The conversation ends with Allah saying: ‘And they wanted to harm him, but We made them the worst losers.’ (52 to 70).

Conversation of Prophet Sulaiman with two men seeking a ruling on a dispute
Allah had bestowed on Dawood and Sulaiman prophethood and kingdom. Both father and son were given the ability to resolve conflicts and adjudicate between people justly. According to the Quran Dawood was with his son Sulaiman while solving the problems of his subjects. Two men came to him with their dispute. One of them was a farmer. His field of grapevines had been destroyed by the sheep of the other person in the night. When Dawood asked the shepherd if the allegation was correct, he confirmed it, Dawood ruled that the farmer whose crop had been eaten away by the sheep could keep the sheep in compensation for his loss. But Sulaiman said to his father that he had another opinion. He suggested that the owner of the sheep should take the field to cultivate it until fresh grapes grew, while the farmer whose field had been destroyed should take the sheep and make use of their wool and milk until his field is replanted. When new grapes came, and the field returned to its former state, the field owner should take his field and give back the sheep and the ewes to their owner. Dawood agreed with Sulaiman’s opinion and accordingly changed his ruling to solve their problem. It is this wisdom that Allah decided to bestow on the son rather than on the father who had been given other blessings such as the power to soften iron in his hand and have a beautiful voice such that when he sung the praise of Allah in the hymns, the birds and other creatures joined him in singing the Glory of Allah with him. Allah says: ‘And mention Dawood and Sulaiman when they judged concerning the field, when the sheep of a people overran it at night and destroyed the crop, and We were witness to their judgement. We guided young Sulaiman to a fairer settlement and granted each of them wisdom and knowledge. We subjected the mountains as well as the birds to sing our praises along with Dawood. It is We who did it all.’ (Surah Al-Anbia Verse 78 and 79).

Conversation of Queen Sheba with her nobles
When Prophet Sulaiman wrote a letter to Queen Sheba who ruled a sun-worshipping nation asking her to accept Islam, she consulted her advisers about his letter. Shaitan had made sun-worship appealing to these people, hindering them from the right path. She asked her advisers: ‘Chiefs, advise me in this matter. I decide no case till you are present with me.’ They said: ‘We have great strength and great ability to fight a war, but it is for you to command; so, think over what you will command’. She said: ‘Verily, when kings enter a country waging war, they destroy it and humiliate its elders. But I am going to send Sulaiman a present and see what answer our envoys bring.’ But Sulaiman was determined to carry out what he had written in his letter. When the Queen’s envoys came to Sulaiman with royal gifts, Sulaiman asked them: ‘Do you offer me wealth? What Allah has granted me is far greater than what He has granted you. It is you who rejoice in receiving gifts. Go back to your Queen, for we will certainly mobilise against them forces which they can never resist, and we will drive them out from there in disgrace and in a are state that they are fully humbled.’ (Surah An Namal, Verses 36 to 37). Queen Sheba decided that she will herself go to meet Sulaiman and reflect on the contents of the letter Sulaiman had written to her as the Messenger of Allah.

Conversation of Prophet Dawood with two disputing men
This conversation is reported in Surah Saad in Verses 21 to 25. Dawood used to offer his prayers in solitude after finishing his kingdom’s work with his advisers and staff. One day when he was praying in his private chamber, two people entered his sanctuary from the rear window and went straight into his chamber. Dawood was startled to see them so close to him and feared that they may attack him. But before he could do anything or call his guards, they told him not to worry because they had come not to harm him but to take his judgement on a dispute between them. One of the two intruders said to Dawood: ‘We are two adversaries, one of us has wronged the other, so judge between us with truth and guide us to the sound path. This is my brother. He has ninety-nine ewes, and I have only one ewe. He is asking me to hand over my only ewe to him because he says he can take better care of her instead of me. His argument is strong, and he has overpowered me in speech’. After listening to them Dawood ruled by saying: Your brother has wronged you in demanding to add your ewe to his sheep herd. And certainly, many partners wrong each other, except those who believe in Allah and do good, but they are few. Then suddenly Dawood realised that something similar was happening in his own life as he was trying to overpower a woodcutter in his realm by demanding that he divorce his wife so that Dawood could marry her and add her to his harem. Dawood had seen her and had taken an attraction to her. Dawood realised that this was a sign from Allah and that he was being tested; so, he asked for his Lord’s forgiveness, and fell in prostration and turned to Allah in repentance. He also abandoned his idea of marrying the lady who was already a woodcutter’s wife. (21 to 25).

Conversation of Prophet Musa with two fighting men
This conversation is recorded in Surah Al-Qasas in Verses 15 to 22. Before he was given the Scripture, Musa was living in Egypt under the patronage of the Pharaoh. But he did not follow their misguided ways and unlike the Pharaoh he believed in one supreme God. Musa was from Bani Israel who were subjugated by the Egyptians. Neither these idol worshipers accepted Musa as their own man, nor Bani Israel took him as their well-wisher. One day, Musa entered the city early morning when there were not many people around. There he found two men fighting; one was an Israeli and the other an Egyptian. The man of Musa’s race asked Musa for help against his foe, so Musa intervened, and, in the altercation, Musa struck the Egyptian with his hand. The blow was so strong that the Egyptian fell and died. Musa was shocked. He said: ‘This is an act of Satan; verily, Shaitan is an open and misleading enemy’. (15). Musa appealed to his Lord: ‘My Lord, verily, I have wronged myself, so forgive me.’ Allah forgave Musa for this unintentional act. ‘Verily, Allah is the most forgiving and most merciful.’ (16). Musa said: ‘My Lord, you have favoured me by forgiving me for my sin; I will never be a helper to oppressors.’ (17). Musa, however, remained alert in the city as he was afraid people will find out about his involvement in the death of the Egyptian. Next day when Musa was looking about in the city, he saw the same Israeli calling Musa for help in another fight he had picked up with another man. Musa said to this man: ‘You seem to be a nasty fellow who has anger management issues.’ (18). Musa tried to seize the Israeli who was an enemy to both. The Israeli shouted: ‘O Musa, do you intend to kill me as you killed the other man yesterday? Your aim is nothing but to become a tyrant in the land, and not to be one of those who do right.’ (19). Thus, Musa’s act became public. Then there came a man running from the farthest end of the city. He said: ‘O Musa, the chiefs are taking counsel together about you and they want to kill you in punishment, so you must hurry up and escape. Truly, I am to you of those who give sincere advice.’ (20). So, Musa left the city and escaped from there in a state of fear and uncertainty. He did not know where he would go and what he will do next as the authorities were after him to capture him. Musa prayed to Allah: ‘My Lord, save me from the polytheists and wrong doers’ (21).

Conversation of a believer with the Pharaoh
In Surah Al-Ghafir there is a lengthy conversation reported in Verses 26 to 45 in the court of the Pharaoh between the Pharaoh and one of his advisers who was a Muslim and had kept his faith hidden from the polytheists. It is stated in the commentaries of the Quran that he was a cousin of the Pharaoh and held a high position in the government. The commentators of the Quran also say that the name of the Pharoah of Musa at the time of this dialogue was probably Walid bin Musaib. The conversation began against the background of the news that the Pharaoh had decided to kill Musa who was openly opposing him and see if Musa’s God could stop the Pharaoh from doing so. The Pharaoh said: ‘I fear that Musa may change the people’s religion, or that he may cause mischief in the land.’

The believing man who was from the Pharaoh’s family said to the Pharaoh: ‘Would you kill a man because he says: ‘My Lord is Allah’, and he has come to you with clear evidence from your Lord? If Musa is lying, the burden of his lie will be on him; but if he is telling the truth, then some of the calamity about which he threatens you will befall on you. Surely Allah does not guide whoever is a transgressor, a total liar’. The believer continued: ‘O my people, yours is the kingdom this day, you are uppermost in the land. But who will save us from the torment of Allah, should it befall us?’ The Pharaoh said: ‘I show you only that which I see correct, and I guide you only to the path of right policy.’ The believer replied: ‘O my people, verily, I fear for you a fate like that of the day of disaster of the old confederates, like the fate of the people of Nuh, Aad, and Thamud and those who came after them. And Allah wills no injustice for His slaves. O my people, I fear for you the day when there will be mutual calling between the people of Jahannam and of Jannah. A day when you will turn your backs and flee having no protector from Allah. There is an evil companion (Shaitan) for whoever Allah sends astray. In the past Yusuf came to you with clear signs, but you doubted his message but when he died you said Allah sent no Messenger after him. Allah does not guide someone who has exceed his bounds. Those who dispute about Allah’s revelations without any authority are not pleasing to Allah and to the believers. This is how Allah seals the heart of every arrogant and tyrant person.’ (26 -34)

The Pharaoh tried to hide his embarrassment and mockingly asked his Prime Minister Haman, who was also from the race of Musa, to build a tower for Pharaoh to ascend it and search for the God of Musa in the skies. The Pharaoh said: ‘I think Musa is a liar.’ Allah made the Pharaoh feel that he was right, and Musa was wrong. And the believing man said: ‘O my people, follow me; I will guide you to the way of right conduct which Musa is talking about. O my people, truly, this life of the world is nothing but a quick passing enjoyment, and verily, the hereafter is the home that will remain forever. Whosoever does an evil deed will not be requited except the like thereof, and whosoever does a righteous deed, whether he is a male or female and is a true believer in the oneness of Allah, will enter Jannah, where he will be provided with all things in abundance without limit. O my people, how is it that I call you to salvation while you call me to the fire. You invite me to disbelieve in Allah and in His oneness, and to join partners in worship with Him; of which I have no knowledge; but I invite you to Allah Almighty and the Forgiving. No doubt you call me to worship an idol that cannot respond to my invocation in this world nor in the hereafter. And our return will be to Allah, and the transgressors shall be the dwellers of the fire. And you will remember what I am telling you, and I leave my affair to Allah. Verily, Allah sees everything about His slaves.’ So, Allah saved this believer, as well as Musa from the evil that Pharaoh and his associates plotted against him, while an evil torment encompassed the Pharoah (35 -45).


SECTION THREE: CONVERSATIONS OF MULTIPLE PARTICIPANTS

There are several conversations in the holy Quran in which many participants speak in turn to complete a discussion. They also follow a sequence, usually in pairs. A question follows an answer, an invitation is accepted or rejected, an assertion is acknowledged or ignored, etc. Sometimes the conversations flow in a time tube where a few hours or days or years lapse before the conversation is complete although in the Verses of the Quran it appears that it happened at the very time the conversation was taking place, but its occurrence is helped by explanatory Verses which are interspersed between the dialogue. A few examples of such conversations are given below.

Conversations of the two angels with Bani Israel
Quran informs us about two angels Haroot and Maroot whom Allah sent to Babylon in the human form as a test for Bani Israel who were enchanted by magic and wanted to practice it. The angels warned them that practicing magic leads to loss of faith, but the disobedient people among the Bani Israel ignored their warning. They also attributed practicing magic to Prophet Sulaiman and said this is how he controlled the Jin. The Quran clarifies that Sulaiman did not practice magic. The bad Jin who were Shayateen (plural of Shaitan) helped the evil-minded persons practice magic with a view to misguiding them further. These people chanted what the devils had recited during the reign of Sulaiman. ‘It was not Sulaiman who disbelieved but the devils who disbelieved, teaching people magic and that which was revealed to the two angels at Babylon, Haroot and Maroot.’ But the two angels did not teach anyone unless they said: ‘We are but a trial, so do not disbelieve by practicing magic’. And yet the people of Israel learnt from them that by which they caused separation between a husband and wife. But they could not harm anyone through it except with the leave of Allah. ‘And the people of Israel learnt what harms them and does not benefit them. They also knew that whoever practiced magic would not have any share in the hereafter. And wretched is who for which they sold themselves, only if they knew it.’ (Surah Al-Baqara, Verse 102).

Conversations of the peoples of the Heights and of Jannah and Jahannam
An example of conversation with multiple participants is in Surah Al-Araaf in Verses 44 to 51 concerning the people of the heights in the hereafter. This conversation has four participants: the people of Jannah, the people of Jahannam, the people of the Heights and Allah. The conversation starts with the speech of the people of Jannah and ends with the utterance of Allah. At the start of the conversation the people of Jannah say that they have found the promise of their Lord true because Allah has granted them Jannah. They question the people of Jahannam if they found the promise of their Lord true which was that He will send the evil people to Jahannam. The people of Jahannam will reply with a single word ‘yes’ because they have nothing else to say. Because their reply is so brief, an angel calls out loud and explains their condition: ‘Allah’s curse be on the oppressors and evil doers.’ (44). ‘They were the ones who stopped others from walking the way of Allah and wanted to mislead them; they also denied that there will ever be resurrection.’ (45). There will be a barrier between such people. And the people of the Heights will be able to identify the people of Jannah. The people of Heights will call out to the people of Jannah and say: ‘peace be upon you’. ‘The people of the Heights will not have entered Jannah yet and would be eager to enter it.’ (46). ‘When their eyes will see the sight of the people of Jahannam, they will be terrified, and they will say: ‘O our Lord, do not send us to the abode of the people of Jahannam.’ (47). They will then ask those among the people of Jahannam whom they would recognise from their signs and say: ‘Haven’t your hoards and your arrogant ways which you exhibited in the world helped to bail you out of this condition?’ (48). Allah will say: ‘Are they (the people of the Heights) the same people about whom you (the people of Jahannam) swore that Allah will never have mercy on them? Enter Jannah, O people of the Heights; henceforth no fear nor grievance will ever visit you.’ (49). The people of Jahannam will call on the people of Jannah and say: ‘Give us some cold water to drink or whatever Allah has given you to eat’, but they will be told by the people of Jannah: ‘Allah has forbidden it for the wrong doers.’ (50). The conversation ends with Allah saying: ‘those who took their religion as a jest and sport and were deluded by the life they spent on earth, today Allah will forget them just as they forgot meeting Him on the Day of Judgement; they were the ones who rejected and argued against His signs.’ (51).

Conversations of Prophet Musa with the Pharaoh and his advisers
Another example of a multiple conversation is found in Surah Al-Araaf in Verses 103 to 129 involving Musa, the Pharaoh, his advisers, the renowned magicians of Egypt, and Bani Israel. Musa’s brother, Haroon is present in the conversation, but he does not participate. The conversation starts with Musa going to the Pharaoh and his advisers and telling them that he is the Messenger of Allah, who is the creator of everything that exists in the universe (104). Musa said: ‘I tell nothing but the truth about Allah. I have brought to you from my Lord clear signs and ask you to allow me to take the children of Israel with me.’ (105). The Pharaoh replied: ‘If you are telling the truth, show us your signs’. (106). Musa threw his staff and it turned into a large serpent. (107). Then Musa drew out his hand and it looked like a bar radiating a bright white light (108). The Pharaoh’s advisers said to the Pharaoh: ‘Musa knows magic. (109). His intention is to win the masses on his side and exile you from Egypt. So, what is your advice?’ (110). Then they consulted with the Pharaoh and asked Musa and his brother to meet them on the day of the festival. (111). They summoned the renowned magicians of Egypt and asked them to prepare a befitting response to Musa’s signs. (112). The magicians asked the Pharaoh if they will be rewarded for defeating Musa in the public display of sorcery? (113). The Pharaoh said: ‘Yes, I will reward you for your victory and bestow my most favoured status on you.’ (114). Then the Pharaoh asked Musa to display his signs on the day of the festival in front of the people who had come to see the competition between Musa and the sorcerers. The sorcerers asked Musa: ‘Musa are you going to go first, or shall we display our work first?’ (115). Musa said: ‘you go first.’ When the sorcerers displayed their magic, they bewitched the people completely and captured their imagination and enveloped them with terror and amazement. They displayed a great magic. (116). Then Allah inspired Musa to throw his staff on the ground. ‘And behold, it turned into a great serpent that swallowed up straight away all the falsehood which the magicians had laid out’. (117). Thus, the truth was confirmed, and all that they had presented vanished. (118). Musa’s opponents were defeated in this contest and their tricks were returned to them in disgrace. (119). At this point the sorcerers fell in prostration (120). They said: ‘we believe in the Lord of the universe’ (121); ‘the Lord of Musa and Haroon. (122). The Pharaoh was furious. He said: ‘How dare you believe in him before taking my permission. Surely, this is a plot you have conjured to drive out the people of this city, but you shall come to know that I will not let it succeed’. (123). I will cut off your hands and your feet from the opposite sides, then I will crucify you all.’ (124). They replied: ‘Verily, we shall return to our Lord. (125). You are taking vengeance on us only because we have seen the signs of our Lord when they reached us. Our Lord, give us patience and when You take our souls away, make us die as Muslims’. (126). The advisers asked the Pharaoh: ‘Will you let Musa and his people go unchecked to spread mischief in the land, and to abandon you and your gods?’ The Pharaoh replied: ‘We will kill their sons and leave their daughters to live. We have irresistible power to overcome them.’ (127). Musa said to his people: ‘Be patient and seek Allah’s help. Verily, the earth belongs to Allah. He gives its possession to his slaves from among whoever He wishes. Only the God-fearing and the good people have a happy end.’ (128). The people said to Musa: ‘We were victimised before you came to us, and we have been victimised since you have come to us.’ Musa consoled them: ‘It may be that your Lord will destroy your enemy and make you successors on earth, and then He will see how you perform.’ (129).

Conversations of Bani Israel about the Prohibition on Sabbath
In Surah Al-Araaf, Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, is informed by Allah about a section of the people of Bani Israel who violated their Sabbath by bypassing the commandment and unlawfully catching fish on the forbidden day of Saturday. ‘And when a community among them said to their Rabbis who had condemned this wrongful act: ‘Why do you preach to a people whom Allah is about to destroy with a severe torment’, their reply was: ‘We do so in order to be free from guilt before our Lord, and perhaps due to our objection the transgressors may fear Allah.’ (165). So, when this group of transgressors refused to take heed and forgot the warnings given to them, Allah rescued the preachers and those who forbade evil, but He seized those who did wrong with a severe torment because they disobeyed Allah’. (165). For exceeding the limits of what they were prohibited: Allah said to them: ‘You be despised and rejected monkeys.’ (166).

Conversations of angels with Prophet Ibrahim and his wife Sarah
Another example of multiple conversation is in Surah Hud in Verses 69 to 76 when Allah’s messengers (angles) visited Ibrahim and his wife Sarah to give them the news of the birth of Ishaq after Ibrahim had got a son Ismail from Hajirah. The messengers also informed Ismail that they were on their way to meet his cousin Lout. There are four participants in this conversation: the angels, Ibrahim, his wife and Allah. The conversation begins when angels come to Ibrahim with good news and greet him with Salam. Ibrahim replied Salam and hastened to entertain them with a roasted calf (69). But when Ibrahim saw that his guests were not reaching out to eat the meal, he felt uneasy and began to fear them. They said: ‘don’t be afraid of us, we have been sent against the people of Lut’ (70). And Ibrahim’s wife was standing there, and she laughed upon hearing that she will have a son Ishaq who will in turn have a son Yaqub (71). She said in astonishment: ‘Woe unto me; shall I bear a child while I am an old woman, and here is my husband, an old man? Verily, this is a strange thing.’ (72). The angels said: ‘Do you wonder at the decree of Allah? The Mercy of Allah and His blessings be on you, O the family of Ibrahim. Surely, Allah is all praiseworthy and all glorious.’ (73). When the fear had gone away from the mind of Ibrahim and the glad tidings of getting a son recovered him, he began to plead with his guests for the safety of the people of Lut whom the angels had come to punish for their evil deeds. (74). Allah says: ‘Ibrahim was, without doubt, forbearing and kind. He used to invoke Allah with humility.’ (75). The conversation ends with Allah saying to Ibrahim through the messengers: ‘O Ibrahim, forsake the thought about Lut. Indeed, the commandment of your Lord has gone forth. Verily, there will come a torment for these people which cannot be turned back’. (76).

Conversation of Prophet Yusuf with his master and other housemates
The next example of multiple conversation in the Quran is from Surah Yusuf in Verses 23 to 29. In this conversation there are five participants: Yusuf, the lady of the house where Yusuf lived, Allah, Yusuf’s master and a member of their household. When Yusuf had attained full manhood and was given knowledge and wisdom by Allah, the lady of the house where Yusuf had been living took fancy on him and sought to seduce him for illicit sex. One day she locked the door and invited Yusuf to commit sin. She said to him: ‘come on, this is for you’. Yusuf said: ‘May Allah protect me; your husband is my master, and he is very kind to me. How can I betray his trust? The wrongdoers are never successful’. (23). ‘The lady of the house had indeed desired Yusuf and had Yusuf not seen the evidence of His Lord he would have yielded to her evil desire. ‘Thus, Allah saved Yusuf from committing sin. Surely Yusuf was one of His devoted slaves.’ (24). And they both ran toward the door. Yusuf wanted to go out of the room, and she wanted to stop him, and in the mayhem, she tore his shirt and at that very moment they both found the master of the house standing at the door. When the lady saw her husband, she said to him: ‘What is the punishment for a person who intends an evil design against your wife, except that he be put in prison or rewarded a painful torment?’ (25). Yusuf said to his master: ‘It was she who sought to seduce me and invited me to commit sin.’ The master of the house was perplexed. He could not decide who was telling the truth and who was lying. A person from her household came forward to bear witness. He said to the master: ‘If Yusuf’s shirt is torn from the front, then your wife’s accusation is true, and Yusuf is lying.’ (26). ‘However, if Yusuf’s shirt is torn from the back, then she is telling a lie, and he is speaking the truth.’ (27). So, when her husband saw Yusuf’s shirt torn from the back he said to his wife: ‘Surely, it is your scheme which is certainly cunning’. (28). At the close of the conversation the master of the house addresses both Yusuf and his wife saying: Yusuf ignore this incident, and you woman, ask forgiveness for your sin. Verily you were of the sinful. (29).

Conversation of the companions of the cave
There are multiple participants in the story of the companions of the Cave in Surah Al-Kahf. These take place between a group of young believers who had run away from their unbelieving king because they did not want to follow idol worship which he was compelling his guards to accept, and they belonged to the Royal legion. The only way to save their faith was to leave their employment in the King’s palace and go into a hiding place where the king’s agents would not be able to find them. They decided to hide inside a cave and Allah made them sleep there for three hundred years plus nine in the lunar calculation. When they woke up, they did not realise how long they had been in a state of sleep and thought that they were still being sought by the palace guards. They asked one of their mates to go out and buy provisions and be careful lest he may be caught. ‘A speaker from among them said: How long have you stayed here? They said: we have stayed perhaps a day or part of a day. They said: your Lord alone knows best how long you have stayed here. So, send one of you with this silver coin of yours to the town, and let him find out which is the good lawful food, and bring some of that to you. And let him be careful and let no man know of you. For if they come to know of you, they will stone you to death or abuse and harm you or turn you back to their religion, and in that case, you will never be successful (Surah Al-Kahf, Verses 19 -20). But the town was not the same as it was before. The pagan king had died, and his rein was long gone. The inhabitants of the city had become believers. When the people saw a man in a strange dress and speaking about the past, they became curious and soon they reached the cave and heard their story and declared them saints. After their discovery Allah gave them death.

Conversations of Prophet Musa with Khidr
In this conversation from Surah Al-Kahf in Verses 60 to 82 there are three participants: Musa; Khidr whom Allah gave special knowledge and assigned specific tasks; and Musa’s attendant, believed to be Yusha Bin Noon who accompanied Musa on this trip. Although the conversation starts with three participants, it ends with two. The first segment of the conversation is between Musa and his attendant about finding the way to reach Khidr. From Verse 66 the conversation shifts to Khidr when Musa asks him if he could follow Khidr so that he could teach him the higher truth that he had been taught by Allah. There are also some muted conversations in this story which are not reported in Surah Al-Kahf but must have taken place when Musa and Khidr hired the boat or engaged with the people of the village where Khidr repaired a dilapidated wall.

Conversation of Maryam with the people of Bethlehem
Another example of multiple conversation is in Surah Maryam in Verses 16 to 36. It narrates the birth of Isa, son of Maryam. There are five participants in the conversation, namely Allah, Maryam, Isa, the people of Bethlehem and angel Jibril. The conversation starts with the speech of Allah and ends with the speech of Isa. In Verse 16 Allah says Maryam secluded herself in a cool place. Then an angel, Jibril, came to her in the form of a perfect man (17). She said to him: ‘I take refuge from you in the care of Allah; stop there if you fear Allah and do not come close to me.’ (18). Jibril replied to Maryam: ‘I am only a Messenger from my Lord to announce to you the gift of a boy who will be pure in his prophethood.’ (19). Maryam said to Jibril: ‘How can I have a son, as no man has touched me and neither I have been unchaste.’ (20). Jibril replied: ‘This will happen because it has been already decreed. It is easy for you Lord to do so. He will make your son a sign to the people and mercy from your Lord.’ (21). Moving to the next segment of the conversation Quran says: ‘Maryam conceived Isa without a biological father and withdrew to a remote place.’ (22). After some time, the pain of child labour drove Maryam to the trunk of a palm tree. She said: ‘O I wish I had died before this and had been forgotten that I ever existed’. (23). There, a voice that comforted her in her hardship. It said: ‘Do not be sad Maryam; your Lord has provided beneath you a stream of water.’ (24). You should shake the trunk of the palm tree toward you; it will drop ripe fresh dates.’ (25). The voice continued: ‘so, eat and drink and cool your eyes. And if you come across any person, say that you have vowed to keep a fast of silence to Allah, the most gracious, and this day you will not speak to any human being.’ (26). After this conversation, Maryam came down to her people carrying her son in her hands. The people of Bethlehem said: ‘O Maryam you have certainly done something which no one did before you.’ (27). They said: ‘O, sister of Haroon, your father was not a bad person, nor was your mother unchaste.’ (28). Because Maryam had been ordered by Allah not to speak to anyone, she responded by pointing to the boy as if saying: ask this boy. The people said: ‘how can we speak to an infant who is in the cradle and has not learnt to talk?’ (29). At this point Isa, son of Maryam spoke: ‘Indeed I am the servant of Allah. He has given me the revelation and made me a prophet.’ (30). Isa continued: ‘Allah has blessed me wherever I am and enjoined upon me prayer and charity as long as I remain alive.’ (31). And He has made me obedient to Him and kind to my mother. He has not made me overbearing or miserable.’ (32). ‘Peace is on me the day I was born and the day I will die and the day I will be raised again.’ (33). At this point Allah says: That is isa, son of Maryam, the word of Truth about which the people of the Scriptures are in dispute.’ (34). It is not befitting for Allah to take a son. He is exalted. When He decrees an affair, He only says to it: ‘be’ and it is done.’ (35). Isa said: ‘indeed, Allah is my Lord and your Lord, so worship Him. That is the straight path.’ (36).

Conversation of Prophet Sulaiman with Queen Saba’s envoys
Another example of multiple conversation is from Surah Al-Namal in Verses 36 to 40. This conversation involves Sulaiman, Queen Saba’s envoys who are silent in this segment, Ifreet and another Jin who had the knowledge to bring the throne of Queen Saba faster than anyone in compliance of Sulaiman’s order. The conversation starts with the information that when Queen Saba’s envoys came to Sulaiman with the presents, Sulaiman said: ‘Will your gifts increase my wealth? What Allah has given me is better than that which He has given you. No, you keep your gifts and rejoice in them (36). Then Sulaiman said to the chief of the delegation: ‘Go back. We shall come to your people with the forces that they cannot resist, and we shall drive them out from there in disgrace, and they will be humiliated’ (37). Sulaiman then addressed his own people and said to them: ‘Which of you can bring me Saba’s throne before they come to me surrendering themselves in obedience? (38). An Ifrit (a Jin) replied to Sulaiman: ‘I will bring her throne to you before you rise from this Assembly; I am indeed strong and trustworthy for such work.’ (39). There was another chief (Jin) in the Assembly who had the knowledge of the Scripture. He said to Sulaiman: ‘I will bring it to you within the twinkling of an eye.’ When Sulaiman saw the throne before him, he said: ‘This is by the Grace of my Lord to test me whether I am grateful or ungrateful. And whoever is grateful, truly, his gratitude is for the good of his own self, and whoever is ungrateful he is ungrateful only for the loss of his own self. Certainly, My Lord is the owner of all treasures, and He is bountiful.’ (40).

Conversation of three Prophets with their townsfolks
This multiple conversation is from Surah Yaseen in Verses 13 to 29. The participants are three prophets, the people of the town, believed to be Anatolia, where they were sent to spread the message of Allah, and a man who came from the far end of the town to support the messengers but was killed by the arrogant people of the town who had rejected the message of the prophets and argued with them. The conversation starts with Allah informing us about the mission of the messengers and ends with Allah saying that He sent a calamity on the townsfolk for rejecting the divine message. At the opening of the conversation Allah says: ‘And put forward to them the story of the dwellers of the town where We sent Our messengers to guide its inhabitants.’ (13). ‘At first, We sent to them two messengers, and they belied them both, so We reinforced them with a third Messenger. The messengers said to the people: ‘Verily, we have been sent to you as divine messengers.’ (14). The people of the town said: ‘You are only human beings like ourselves, and the Most Beneficent has not revealed anything nor sent anyone; you are only telling lies.’ (15). The messengers said: ‘Our Lord knows that we have been sent as messengers to you.’ (16). ‘And our duty is only to convey plainly the divine message.’ (17). The unbelievers said: ‘For us, we see an evil omen from you and if you do not cease your activity, we will stone you and cause you a painful torment.’ (18). The messengers said: ‘Your evil omens will be with you. You start fighting when you are advised to do good. In fact, you have transgressed by disobeying Allah.’ (19). Then a man came running form the farthest part of the town and when he reached them, he said: ‘O my people, obey the messengers.’ (20). ‘Obey those who ask no compensation from you for inviting you to the way of Allah and the path of those who are rightly guided.’ (22). The man said to his people: ‘And why should I not worship Allah alone. He is my creator, and you shall be returned to Him’ (22). Shall I take besides Him smaller gods? If the Most Beneficent intends me any harm, their intercession will be of no use to me whatsoever, nor can they save me from destruction?’ (23). ‘If it were so, then, verily, I should be in plain error.’ (24). The man said to the messengers: ‘I confirm that I have believed in your Lord.’ (25). The people of the town were so enraged with this man’s speech that they killed him for accepting the divine message. Allah says at this point: ‘It was said to him: ‘Enter Jannah’. When the man saw Jannah at the time of his death, he called out: ‘Only if my people knew what joy I found with my Lord.’ (26). That my Lord (Allah) has forgiven me and made me of the honoured ones.’ (27). The conversation closes with Allah saying: ‘After this, Allah did not send any Messenger or force to them, nor was it needed.’ (28). Only a loud explosion overtook them, and they were all dead.’ (29).

Conversation of Prophet Musa with Prophet Shoaib and his daughters
This conversation is recorded in Surah Al-Qasas in Verses 22 to 28. When Musa left his city in a hurry, he called out to his Lord: ‘My Lord, guide me to the right way. I do not know where to go’ (22). Allah made him walk toward the land of Madyan. When he arrived there, he came to a pond where a group of men were washing and watering their animals. Close to them, Musa also found two young women waiting to water their cattle. Musa asked them: ‘What is your mission?’ They said: ‘We cannot take our cattle to the water hole until the shepherds finish their business. Our father is very old. He cannot come himself to water our animals.’ (23).

Musa took their sheep to drink the water and brought water for the girls. However, he was still worried about his own destination and future. He rested under the shade of a tree and there he made a prayer: ’My Lord, truly, I am in dire need of help. Send me whatever good you bestow on me.’ (24). Allah accepted Musa’s prayer. One of the two young girls whom Musa had helped water their flocks, came to him, walking in shyness. She said to Musa: ‘Verily, my father calls you that he may reward you for helping us.’ Musa went with her to meet her father and narrated his story to the old man. The old man was Prophet Shoaib. He said to Musa: ‘Don’t be afraid. It is good that you have come away from a people who are polytheists and wrong doers.’ (25). One of Shoaib’s daughters said to her father: ‘Father, hire him for his services. Verily, he is the best for the work because he is strong in physique and trustworthy in manners. (26). Prophet Shoaib said to Musa: ‘I want to wed one of my two daughters to you on the condition that you serve me here for eight years. But if you complete ten years of service, it will be a favour from you. But I do not want to place you under any difficulty. Musa accepted Shoaib’s terms and said: ‘If Allah wills, you will find me one of the righteous servants.’ (27). ‘It is settled between me and you that whichever of the two terms of stay I fulfil, there will be no problem for me, and Allah is a guarantor over what we agree.’ (28). Musa was grateful that Allah had accepted his prayer and arranged for him to stay in Madyan with dignity. Allah also gave Musa a family and gave him employment as a shepherd. He didn’t have to wander any more in fear and anguish.

Conversation of greedy harvest pickers
In Surah Al-Qalam there is a parable of a family that did not fear Allah and did not help the poor. They were rich in wealth and manpower. They had a fruit garden whose harvest gave them much wealth. According to Hadith the parable is about the family of an adopted son of Quraish who was born out of wedlock, but he had wealth and children that made him arrogant and disobedient. When the Verses of the holy Quran were recited to him, he said these were tales of the old men. Allah tried him and branded him over the nose as a mark of dishonour and disgrace. (Verse 16). Allah describes the parable of the people of an orchard when they swore to pluck its harvest when it was ready. Without taking Allah’s name or invoking His blessings by way of leaving the matter to Allah’s will, they decided to go early in the morning to pluck the dates when everyone especially the poor people were asleep. Then Allah caused that garden to be struck by a blazing fire that burnt it down in the night. When the dawn broke and these people quietly walked to the orchard, they said: ‘The poor shall not enter the garden today as we are early.’ And they went in the morning with strong intention, thinking that they had planned well to prevent the poor taking any fruits from their harvest. But when they saw the orchard in that devastated condition, they said: ‘Verily, we have lost our way, this is not our orchard.’ Then they said: ‘Indeed, we are at our orchard, but we have been deprived of the fruits.’ A God-fearing man among them said: ‘Did I not tell you? Why did you not say In Sha Allah (God willing) when you decided to come today with the intention to pluck the fruit?’ They replied: ‘Glory to our Lord; truly, we are the wrongdoers.’ Then they turned against one another in blaming for the catastrophe. They said: ‘Woe to us; verily, we were transgressors.’ They said: ‘We hope that our Lord will forgive us and compensate us with a better garden than this. Truly, we turn to our Lord, wishing for good that He may forgive our sins and reward us in the hereafter.’ Allah says: such is the punishment in this life, but truly, the punishment of the hereafter is greater, if they but knew.’ (Surah Al-Qalam, Verses 17 to 33).

SECTION FOUR: CONVERSATIONS OF ANGELS

Angels are the creation of Allah, and their conversations are with Allah alone. However, they have been assigned duties by Allah to bring divine messages to Allah’s prophets and his selected slaves who were human but not prophets such as Maryam the mother of Prophet Isa. They are also assigned to extract souls of humans at the time of their death, perform duties as guards on the gates of Jannah and Jahannam and speak to humans in the hereafter in performance of their duties. They also converse with Allah in the heaven and to each other, but we are not given any information about it in the Quran.

Allah created angels before He created Adam. They are made of Noor (pure shining light) and have two, three or four wings. Their sole purpose is to obey Allah’s commandments and glorify Him. They are Allah’s honoured servants (Surah Al-Anbia, Verse 26). Unlike the children of Adam, angels do not procreate, they do not live on earth and do not eat food. They have a permanent abode in Jannah and have been assigned specific roles. Allah chose some of them as His messengers to reveal the divine message to His Prophets. Our Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be on him, was visited by the great angel Jibril on several occasions to reveal the Verses of the holy Quran. Jibril also visited other prophets on the command of Allah bearing divine messages from Allah for them. Jibril also accompanied our Prophet on his blessed journey of Asra and Meraaj. Some angels are assigned the job of taking away souls at the time of death of a person, others are given the tasks of causing rain and cultivation of crops, blowing the Trumpet at the end of time, keeping watch on the affairs of Jannah and Jahannam, holding the Arsh (Throne of Allah), glorifying Him and carrying blessings and news from the heaven to earth. Jibril is also called Ruh Al-Amin, a trustworthy soul, in the Quran.

When Allah informed the angels that He was creating Adam from clay to make him His viceroy on earth, the angels queried Allah about His divine plan saying were they not enough to glorify Him. Allah’s reply to them was: ‘Surely, I know what you don’t know.’ (Surah Al-Baqara, Verse 50).

Allah’s Messengers
Angels have descended the earth to convey Allah’s message to the Prophets such as Ibrahim, Lut, and Zakariya. They also came to Maryam, mother of Isa, who was not a prophet, to give her news of the birth of a blessed son without a father who will be a sign to all people.’ (Surah Maryam, Verses 16 to 25).

In the night of Power, the angels and the Spirit (Jibril) descend the earth by the permission of their Lord with blessings and divine decrees (Surah Al-Qadr, Verses 1 to 5). On the Day of Judgement, the angels and Jibril will ascend to Allah’s throne the length of which will be very long (fifty thousand years) for the unbelievers, (Surah Al-Maarij, Verse 4) but it will be very short (one thousand years) for the believers (Surah As-Sajdah, Verse 5). The angels also visit the earth frequently to fulfil Allah’s commands and spread His blessings to the believers. Allah knows best.

Warrior Angels
The unbelievers of Makkah launched attacks on Muslims a few years after the migration of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, to Madinah. In these battles, Allah sent angels to help Muslims defend against the invaders. ‘When you begged your Lord for help, He answered you, saying: I will reinforce you with one thousand angels in succession.’ (Surah Al-Anfal, Verse 9).

Kiramun Katibeen
After a person is born, Allah has assigns two angels as noble scribes (Kiramun Katibeen) to record his good and bad deeds which will be revealed to him on the day of reckoning. These angels do not speak to their assigned person, but they record all his deeds. (Surah Al-Infitar, Verses 11 to 12).

Guardian Angels
The angels perform the role of guards for humans against calamities and accidents until their appointed time of death. They also act as couriers between heaven and earth. The angels glorify the praises of their Lord and ask for forgiveness for those on earth. ‘Verily, Allah is oft forgiving and the most merciful.’ (Surah Ash Shoora, Verse 5).

Angels of Death
When the designated angels of death come to take away the souls of the unbelievers, they strike them on their faces and backs, and say: ‘Taste the torment of burning.’ (Surah Al-Anfaal, Verse 50). While taking the souls of those who were engaged in wronging themselves on earth, the angels of death will ask: ‘In what circumstances were you?’ The wrong doers will reply: ‘We were too weak and helpless in the land where there was Kufr and Islam was outlawed.’ The angels will say: ‘Was not the earth of Allah vast enough for you to emigrate in it?’ If there is no satisfactory explanation from such persons, ‘their abode will be Jahannam which is an evil destination indeed.’ (Surah Al-Nisa, Verse 97).

The angels will stretch out their hands and say to the wicked and liars at the time of their death: ‘Give up your souls. Today you will be repaid with a humiliating punishment for the false things you have said about Allah.’ (Surah Al-Anaam, Verse 93). The angels will also ‘strike their faces and backs while taking their souls away and cause a painful death to the unbelievers.’ (Surah Muhammad, Verse 27).

Munkir Nakeer
According to a Hadith of Ibn Maajah, which is also narrated by others, two angels called Munkir and Nakeer will enter the grave of a dead person soon after his burial and will ask three questions: ‘Who is your Lord, what is your religion, and who is your prophet?’ According to the Shia school, there will be three additional questions, namely: ‘Who is your Imam or Vali, what is your Book and what is your Qibla? A believer will answer these questions easily whereas a non-believer will get confused and will not be able to answer these questions properly or correctly. After this interrogation, the two angels will leave the grave, as will his soul. This will be like the registration of every individual before his entry into the next world.

Conversation of Jannatis with Angels
After resurrection, when Jahannami and Jannati people would have entered their allocated abodes in their respective groups, and the divine judgement would have been pronounced, the angels would surround the Throne of Allah glorifying their Lord with His praises, and it will be proclaimed: ‘All praise and thanks be to Allah, the Lord of the whole Universe (Surah Al-Zumar, Verse 75).

‘Those who say Allah is our God and remain steadfast on their pledge, angels come down to them and say: ‘have no fear or grief but rejoice in the good news of Jannah that you have been promised.’ (Surah Fussilat, Verse 30). Those who resisted disobeying their Lord shall be driven in groups to Jannah so that when they arrive there, its gates will have already been opened and the angels guarding its entrance shall welcome them by saying: ‘Peace be upon you; you have done well. So, enter, herein you shall abide.’ The Jannatis will say: ‘All thanks and praise be to Allah who made His promise to us come true and gave us the earth to inherit. We may now dwell in Jannah wherever we please. How excellent is the reward of those who laboured.’ And you will see the angels surrounding the Throne of Allah from all sides glorifying the praises of their Lord. And all the creatures will be judged with truth, and it will be said: ‘All the praises and thanks be to Allah, the Lord of all the worlds.’ (Surah Al-Zumar, Verses 73-75).

Conversation of Jahannamis with Angels
The Quran informs us that the angels who will be assigned duties in Jahannam will be fierce and stern and will do exactly as directed by Allah without showing any mercy to the wrongdoers (Surah Al-Tahreem, Verse 6). There will be nineteen angels who will guard the gates of Jahannam (Surah Al-Mudathir, Verses 30 and 31).

On the Day of Judgement when divine justice has been dispensed fairly, the unbelievers shall be driven in groups to Jahannam. When they will arrive there, its gates shall be thrown open and its guards, who will be angels, shall ask: ‘Didn’t the messengers from among you come to you warning about the signs of your Lord and the coming of this day?’ The Jahannamis will say: ‘Yes indeed, those messengers did come to us.’ The angels will reply: ‘The sentence of chastisement is bound to be executed against the unbelievers. Now enter the doors of Jahannam where you will stay forever because you were among the arrogant ones on earth.’ (Surah Al-Zumar, Verses 71-72); (Surah Al-Mulk: 8 to 11).

The Jahannamis will blame each other for their sentencing and ask the guards posted at the doors of Jahannam to ask Allah to reduce their sentence. The angels on duty in Jahannam will ask: ‘Did your messengers not come to you with clear signs?’ They will say: ‘Yes they came.’ The angels will say: ‘Then you yourselves should call the Lord.’ But the call of the unbelievers will end in vain (Surah Al-Ghafir, Verses 49 to 50).

A glimpse of such conversations can be seen during the performance of Hajj and Umrah each year when many entrance doors in the Haram which lead to the Mataaf area in front of the Kaaba have controlled entry as result of managing the crowds. On such occasions when the Haram is full, there are pilgrims who end up walking on a path which takes them straight to the Mataaf area and the guards on duty stand by welcoming them to proceed ahead; and there are also pilgrims who end up in files where the ways are blocked, and the Haram guards ask them to turn back and deny them forward movement. This illustration, however, does not mean that the pilgrims who encounter blocked passages on their way to the Mataaf area are in anyway representative of the Jahannamis. This illustration does, on the other hand, serve to reflect on the divine arrangement on the Day of Judgement when people will be gathered and filed in such a way that they will themselves end up walking toward their allocated residences.

SECTION FIVE: CONVERSATIONS OF JIN

Conversations of Iblis with Allah and Adam
Allah created Jin from fire and gave them qualities that were distinct from angels and humans. Iblis was the head of the Jin, but he disobeyed Allah and lost his position due to his arrogance. (Surah Al-Baqarah, Verse 34 and Surah Al-Kahf, Verse 50). When Iblis was condemned by Allah for his disobedience to the Almighty, Iblis appealed to Allah to delay his punishment until the Day of Judgement. The explanation why Iblis did not bow to Adam and why he was condemned is repeated in many Verses in the Quran. Iblis said to Allah: ‘By your Glory, I will certainly mislead all humanity except your chosen servants among them.’ Allah granted Iblis permission to misguide the children of Adam and goad them to disobey Allah until the Day of Judgement. (Surah Al-Araaf, Verse 17). ‘The truth is, and I only say the truth; I will surely fill up Jahannam with you and whoever follows you among the children of Adam.’ (Surah Saad, Verses 77 to 85).

After losing the grace of Allah on the question of his status vis a vis Adam, Iblis hated Adam and his spouse, Hawa. He planted the seed of doubt (waswasa) in their minds in Jannah. He said to them: ‘Your Lord has forbidden this tree to you to prevent you from becoming immortals like angels.’ He swore to them that he was their sincere adviser and brought their fall through deception. ‘Indeed, I am your sincere adviser’. The desire for comfort and the desire for permanence are two human weaknesses which Adam had ingrained in his nature from birth. Adam bequeathed this weakness to Hawa and his progeny. Iblis knew this human weakness and exploited it by implanting the fear of poverty (loss of position and possessions) and death (loss of life and permanence) in humans. (Surah Al-Baqarah, Verse 36 and Surah Al-Araaf, Verses 19 to 37).

Conversations of Shaitan with Adam and his progeny
In this world Iblis is represented by Shaitan. He is a bad Jin. Quran informs Muslims that Shaitan is the enemy of Adam and his progeny. He tries to control man by becoming his leader and adviser, but he succeeds in winning over only evil men (Surah Al-Baqarah, Verse 257). On the Day of Judgement Shaitan will run away from his followers, saying to them: ‘I am quit of you. Verily I fear Allah, the Lord of the universe.’ (Surah Al-Hashr, Verse 16 and Surah Al-Anfaal, Verse 48). When Judgement has been pronounced on all men, Shaitan will say: ‘Verily, Allah promised you a promise of truth. And I too promised you, but I betrayed you. I had no authority over you except that I called you, so you responded to me. Don’t blame me now; blame yourself. I cannot help you, nor can you help me. I deny your former act in associating me as a partner with Allah and listening to me in the life of the world.’ Verily, there is a painful torment for the polytheists. (Surah Ibrahim, Verse 22).

Prophet Sulaiman was given a vast kingdom and the power to control Shayateen (plural of Shaitan). During his reign, the evil Jin spread the rumour that Sulaiman practiced magic to control them. Shayateen also taught magic to people to attack their faith and turn them into disbelievers (Surah Al-Baqarah, Verse 102). In the rein of Sulaiman, there were subdued Jin who obeyed royal decrees and undertook errands assigned to them by Sulaiman. Once Sulaiman asked the Jin present in his council: ‘Who can bring me the throne of Queen Sheba before she comes here in full submission?’ Oner Jin, whose name was Ifreet, responded: ‘I can bring it to you before you rise from this council. I am quite strong and trustworthy for this task’. Another Jin who had the knowledge of the Scripture said: ‘I can bring it to you in the blink of an eye’, and he brought the throne instantly. (Surah Al-Namal, Verses 38 to 39). When Sulaiman died, he leaned on his walking stick, and Shayateen continued working on the projects they were instructed to complete, until termite ate the wood of his staff and Sulaiman fell on earth. Allah tells us that Jin are stronger than humans in physical work, but they do not have the knowledge of the unseen (ghaib). ‘When we decreed Sulaiman’s death, nothing indicated to the Jin that he was dead except when the termites ate away his staff. So, when he collapsed, the Jin realised that if they had really known the unseen, they would not have continued in such humiliating servitude.’ (Surah Saba, Verse 14).

The disbelievers will be completely disowned by Shaitan whom they followed in their life on earth thinking that there will be no resurrection and no accountability for their evil deeds. On the Day of Judgement Shaitan will say to them: ‘I cannot save you, nor can you save me. Indeed, I denounce your previous association of me with Allah.’ (Surah Ibrahim, Verse 22). When the final Judgement would have been pronounced on them, their devilish associate (Shaitan) will say: ‘Our Lord, I did not make them transgress, rather, they were far astray on their own.’ (Surah Qaaf, Verse 27).

Conversations of good Jin
Not all Jin are bad and evil. The good Jin are those who believe in Allah and have accepted Islam. A small group of Jin who heard the recitation of the holy Quran during the time of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, went back and reported it to their fellow Jin. Their conversation was revealed to Prophet Muhammad in Surah Jin.

They said to their companion Jin: ‘We Jin= have heard a wonderful recitation from the holy Quran which guides to the right path. We Jin have believed in it, and we Jin shall never join in worship anything with our Lord. And exalted be the majesty of our Lord, He has taken neither a wife, nor a son as partner. And that the foolish among us used to utter falsehood against Allah which was wrong and not right. And verily, we Jin thought that humans and Jin would not utter a lie against Allah. And verily, there were men among humans who took shelter with the Jin, but the Jin increased the sin and disbelief of humans who followed them. And they thought as you thought that Allah will not send any Messenger to mankind or Jin. And we Jin have sought to reach the heaven but found it filled with stern guards and flaming fires. And verily, we Jin used to sit there in stations to eavesdrop, but any who listens now will find a flaming fire chasing him in ambush. And we Jin do not know whether evil is intended for those on earth, or whether their Lord intends for them a right path. There are among us some Jin who are righteous, and some who are on the contrary. We are divided into groups, each having a different way. And we Jin folk think that we cannot escape from the punishment of Allah in the earth, nor can we escape from His punishment by flight. And indeed, when we Jin heard the Quran, we believed in it and whosoever believes in his Lord shall have no fear, either of a decrease in the reward of his good deeds or an increase in punishment for his sins.’ (Surah Jin, Verses 1 to 13).

The Jin further said: ‘Some of us are Muslims who have submitted to Allah, after listening to this Quran, and some of us are disbelievers who have deviated from the right path. And whosoever has embraced Islam has sought the right path. And as for the disbelievers who deviated from the right path, they shall be the fuel for Jahannam.’ And the mosques are for Allah alone, so do not invoke anyone along with Allah (Surah Jin, Verses 14 to 18).

SECTION SIX: CONVERSATIONS OF JANNATIS

The Jannatis, as their name implies, are the people of Jannah. They will comprise the believers who believed in and worshipped one Allah, obeyed His messengers and performed good deeds. When they lived in this world, they established prayers, gave the alms, maintained peace and justice and made their ego subservient to the will and commandments of Allah and the teachings of His Prophet. Their sole objective in life was to obey Allah and help other human beings.

The holy Quran has several Verses that give a sample of the conversations of the people of Jannah with Allah, with the angels, with the evil people who were their friends in this world, and with each other. These conversations are pure and free from any expectations. Their conversations do not cause offence nor lead to dispute, unlike the conversations on earth which are always driven by self-interest and are sometimes wilfully twisted to deceive or harm others.

There will be no idle talk in Jannah; no fake news, no double speak; no falsehood and no deception. The people of Jannah will engage only in wholesome speech. (Surah Al-Rahman, Verses 25 and 26). Allah will remove all rancour from their hearts, and they will say: ‘All praise be to Allah who has guided us on to this. Had it not been for Allah, who granted us right guidance, we would not be on the right path. Surely, the messengers of our Lord came down with the Truth.’ Then a voice will cry out to them: ‘This is the Jannah which you are given to inherit as a reward for your deeds.’ (Surah Al-Araaf, Verse 43).

And the people of Jannah shall tell the people of Jahannam: ‘Surely we have found our Lord’s promise to us to be true; have you also found true what your Lord had promised you?’ They shall answer: ‘Yes’, and a herald shall cry out among them: ‘Allah’s curse be upon the wrong doers.’ (Surah Al-Araaf, Verse 44).

Allah’s true servants in Jannah will receive provisions that they will be familiar with from their life on earth, such as fruits and meat of birds. (Surah Al-Saaffat, Verse 40 and Surah Al-Rahman, Verse 21). They will be honoured in a garden of delight. They will be seated in their best attires on couches with their spouses and friends. They will be served exotic drinks which will cause them no intoxication nor hangover. They will turn to one another reminiscing about their life on earth and recalling their conversations they conducted with the disbelievers. A Jannati will say: ‘I had a close companion on earth who used to ask me: ‘Do you really believe that after we die and become bones and dust, we shall be brought for judgement?’ Then, this Jannati will look down and see his evil friend in Jahannam. He will shout to him: ‘By God, you almost brought me to ruin. Had it not been for the grace of my Lord, I would have been taken to Jahannam.’ This Jannati man will then turn to his companions in Jannah and say: ‘Are we sure we are never to die again after our earthly death and hardship? Indeed, this is a superb triumph.’ (Surah Al-Saaffat, Verses 50 to 60).

When the righteous will enter Jannah, they will be adorned with bracelets of gold and pearls and given garments of pure silk. They will say: ‘Praise be to Allah who has removed our grief. Verily, our Lord is oft forgiving and appreciative of good deeds. Out of His grace, Allah has settled us in everlasting homes, and here we shall not feel fatigue of the body or the weariness of the mind.’ (Surah Al-Fatir, Verses 33 to 35).

When the people of Jahannam will ask for some water or food from the provisions of the Jannatis, the latter will say to the former: ‘We cannot share these with you because Allah has forbidden it to the deniers of truth.’ (Al-Araaf: 50). On the Day of Decision, the tree of Zaqoom will be the food for the sinners and they will be taunted: ‘Taste this, you, powerful, respected man (such as Abu Jahl who was a fierce enemy of Islam). This is what you doubted.’ (Surah Al-Dukhan, Verses 43 to 50).
Those who believe and whose descendants follow them in faith, Allah will elevate their descendants to their rank, and noting will be reduced from the reward of their deeds. Every person will reap only what they sowed. They will approach one another, inquiring of each other. They will say: ‘We were previously among our people fearful of displeasing Allah. Indeed, Allah has graced us and protected us from the torment of scorching heat. We used to supplicate to Him before. Indeed, Allah is the beneficent and most merciful.’ (Surah Tur, Verses 21, 25 to 28).

On the Day the Munafiq men and Munafiq women will say to the Jannatis: ‘Wait for us; let us have some of your light.’ It will be said to them: ‘Go back and look for your light.’ A wall will be raised between them, in which there will be a door; inside it lies mercy, and outside lies agony.’ (Surah Al-Hadeed, Verse 13). This simile is perfectly understood in our time when everyone uses mobile phone to communicate. A mobile phone requires data. When you don’t have data, you cannot communicate. Often people who are out of data are seen asking their friends to share their data through a hot-spot connection. On the Day of Judgement no one will give his light or data to anyone else no matter how well he knows the person who is asking for it.

On the Day of Judgement, anyone who will be given his record of deeds in his right hand will say: ‘Here is my record; read it. I knew I would meet my reckoning.’ He will be told; ‘Enjoy your life in Jannah to your heart’s delight as a reward for what you have done in the days gone by in the world.’ (Surah Al-Haaqah, Verse 24).

In Jannah the Jannatis will ask one another about the disbelievers and they will say to them: ‘What caused you to enter Jahannam?’ They will reply: ‘We were not of those who used to offer Salat (prayers), nor did we feed the poor. We used to talk falsehood with vain talkers, and we used to belie the Day of Judgement, until we realised that death is certain.’ No intercession of intercessors will be of any use to them. (Surah Al-Mudathir, Verses 40 to 48).

SECTION SEVEN: CONVERSATIONS OF JAHANNAMIS

The Jahannamis, as their name implies are the people of Jahannam. They will comprise the disbelievers and evildoers who engaged in crimes against humanity in the world and perpetrated or facilitated misery and wars. When they were living, they resorted to evil, extortion, exploitation and rejection of any moral code sanctioned by Allah. Their sole objective in life was to pursue their desires of flesh and heart irrespective of the harm done by their actions and greed to other human beings.

The unbelievers have been warned in the divine Scriptures that their final abode will be Jahannam because they rejected the Message of Allah and persisted on following their selfish desires. They will have nothing but remorse at the time of their death. Their faces will be gloomy. Before then in the world, they were full of pride and admiration for themselves. When death comes to such people and their soul reaches to the collar bone up to the throat to exit, their condition deteriorates. Their relatives run around shouting: ‘Call a doctor to cure him and save him from death?’ And the dying person comes to realise that it is the time of his death, and his leg is joined with another leg, and he is shrouded for burial. ‘On that Day these people will be driven to your Lord alone.’ (Surah Al-Qiyamah, Verses 26 to 30).

When death comes to someone who has joined partners with Allah, he will say: ‘My Lord, send me back so that I may do good in that which I have left behind.’ Allah says: ‘No. It is not true; it is only a word that he speaks.’ And behind them is a barrier (Barzakh) until the Day when they will be resurrected.’ (Surah Al-Mominoon, Verses 99 and 100).

The Jahannamis will call to the Jannatis and will say: ‘Pour on us some water or anything that Allah has provided you with. They will be told: ‘Allah has forbidden both water and provisions to the disbelievers.’ (Surah Al-Araaf, Verse 50).

When they will appear before Allah on the Day of Judgement, the weak will say to those who were their arrogant chiefs in the world: ‘Verily, we were following you; can you save us from Allah’s torment?’ Their chiefs will reply: ‘Had Allah guided us, we would have guided you. It makes no difference to us now whether we shout or bear these torments patiently, there is no escape for us.’ (Surah Ibrahim, Verse 21).

On the Day of Judgement when the deeds of the people will be weighed in the scale and these will be light compared to their sins which will be heavy, they will be sent to Jahannam. The Jahannam will burn their faces, and therein they will grin with disfigured lips. They will be asked by the Almighty: ‘Were my Verses (this Qur’an) not recited to you and you used to deny them?’ They will say: ‘Our Lord, our wretchedness overcame us; we were indeed an erring people. Our Lord, take us out of this fire. If ever we return to evil, then indeed we shall be Zalimun (unjust).’ Allah will say to them: ‘Remain you in it with ignominy and do not speak to Me. Verily, there was a party of my slaves, who used to say: Our Lord, we believe, so forgive us, and have mercy on us, for You are the best of all who show mercy. But you took them for a laughingstock, so much so that your ridicule made you forget My remembrance while you used to laugh at them. Verily, I have rewarded the believers on this day for their patience, they are indeed the ones that are successful.’ Then Allah will ask them: ‘How many years did you stay on earth?’ They will say: ‘We stayed a day or part of a day. Ask those who keep account.’ Allah will say: ‘You stayed only for a little while if you had only known. Did you think that you were created in jest and that you would not be brought back to Allah?’ So Exalted be Allah, the true Emperor; no one is like Him, the Lord of the supreme throne. (Surah Al-Mominoon; Verses 103 to 116).

On the Day of Judgement, the wicked people will lower their heads in shame because they used to say mockingly to the Prophet: ‘When we would have disintegrated in the earth, will we be raised as a new creation?’ They will say: ‘Lord, we have now seen and heard, so send us back to the world and we will do good. We truly have faith in you.’ Allah will reply to them: ‘My word (Surah Az-Zumar, Verse 85) will prevail. I will surely fill up Jahannam. So, taste the punishment for neglecting the meeting of this Day of yours. We too will certainly neglect you. And taste the torment of eternity for what you used to do.’ (Surah Al-Sajdah, Verses 10 to 14).

When the guilty will see their record of deeds laid opened before them on the Day of Judgement, they will say with surprise and regret: ‘Woe to us. What kind of record is this? It does not leave any deed, small or large, that is unaccounted for.’ (Surah Al-Kahf, Verse 49). On the Day when their faces will be turned over in the Jahannam, they will say: ‘Would that we had obeyed Allah and obeyed the Messenger (Muhammad).’ They will say: ‘Our Lord, verily we obeyed our chiefs and our great ones, and they misled us from the right way. Our Lord, give them double torment and curse them with a mighty curse.’ (Surah Al-Ahzab, Verses 66 to 68).

When the disbelievers and evil doers will enter Jahannam, they will cry and say: ‘Our Lord, take us out of here; we shall do righteous good deeds. We will never do the evil deeds we used to do in the world.’ Allah will say to them: ‘Did I not give you long lives so that whosoever would receive admonition, could receive it? And the warner also came to you. So, taste the reward of your evil deeds. There is no helper for the Zalimun. (unjust).’ (Surah Al-Fatir, Verse 37).

On the Day of Judgement, the disbelievers will say: ‘Woe to us.’ They will be asked; ‘Why don’t not support each other now as you used to do in the world.’ They will turn on one another in accusations and say to their evil companions: ‘You impressed us from a position of power and prestige.’ The accused will reply: ‘No, it was you who did not believe in the truth. We had no power over you, and you were already exceeding all limits.’ They will also say: ‘Our Lord’s sentence on us is just and we must taste the punishment. We led you astray as we ourselves were astray.’ Indeed, they will be repaid according to their deeds (Surah Al-Saaffat, Verses 20-to 29).

The deniers of Allah’s revelations and evil doers will be so angry on their chiefs that they will ask Allah to take them to where they are so that they could trample them under their feet for misguiding them in the world. They will say: ‘Our Lord, show us those Jin and humans who led us astray: we will put them under our feet so that they will be among the lowest in Jahannam.’ (Surah Fussilat, Verse 29).

One the Day of Judgement, whoever will be given his record of deeds in his left hand will try to hide it. He will wish he had never been given his record. He would say: ‘I knew nothing of my reckoning. How I wish death had been the end of me, and I were not standing here today. My wealth has been no use to me. My power has destroyed me.’ (Surah Al-Haaqah, Verses 25 to 30). He will be told he has no friend here. The angels will put a collar on him, tie him in iron chains and take him to the blazing Jahannam.

SECTION EIGHT: CONVERSATION OF BODY PARTS

As a rule, a conversation takes place between the living mediums and not the dead. However, Allah is beyond the limitations of the laws of nature because He is the creator of nature. In the Quran, Allah has said in three places that He will make the body parts of the wrong doers speak as witness over them to testify for their evil deeds. On this Day Allah will seal their mouths. Their hands will speak to Allah, and their feet will testify to what they used to commit.’ (Surah Yaseen, Verse 65). ‘You did not hide yourselves from your ears, eyes and skin to stop them from testifying against you. Rather, you assumed that Allah did not know much of what you used to do.’ (Surah Fussilat, Verse 22). ‘On the appointed day, their tongues, hands, and feet will testify against them for what they used to do.’ (Surah Al-Noor Verse 24).

SECTION NINE: CONVERSATIONS OF ANIMALS
There are many animals mentioned in the Quran but only three conversations are reported that belong to the animal kingdom. The first is when Prophet Sulaiman inquired about the missing Hoodhood bird, and it spoke to Sulaiman. The second is when Sulaiman heard an ant speaking to its fellow ants and calling on them to take shelter. The third is the conversation of the creature of the earth with men which will take place close to the end of the world to tell them that people had no faith in Allah’s revelations.’ (Surah Al-Namal, Verses 22 to 24; 18 and 82).

SECTION TEN: OTHER CONVERSATIONS
We learn in the Quran that everything Allah has created bows down to Him in submission. ‘Don’t you see that all those in the heavens and on earth, the sun, the moon, stars, mountains, trees and all living beings, as well as many humans bow down to Allah in submission, while many are deserving of punishment.’ ‘And whoever Allah disgraces, no one has the power to undo it. Surely Allah does what He wills.’ (Surah Al-Hajj, Verse 18 and Surah Al-Nahl, Verse 49). Because human beings can only reach Allah from the limited knowledge and sensory capabilities they have been given, we are unable to imagine the zillions of conversations that must be taking place in the universes between the angels and Allah’s other creations.

CONCLUSION


The Quran narrates many parables and stories of the prophets of Bani Israel and other messengers who came before Yaqub, such as Adam, Nuh, Ibrahim, Lout, Saleh, Shoaib and Ayyub. Allah makes it clear in the Quran that belief in His singularity, His omnipresence, His omniscience and His omnipotence, the divine principles of justice, the reality of life after death and accountability for what and how man earns and expends in his life, have remained unchanged from the time of the creation of Adam until the end of Time. Allah says: ‘O Prophet. We relate to you the best of stories through our revelation of this Quran, though before this you were totally unaware of them.’ (Surah Yusuf, Verse 3). The parables of the Quran convey important lessons. Most of the parables belong to the periods of the Prophets of Bani Israel but only few are in detail such as the stories related to Musa, Yusuf, Ibrahim, Nuh, Saleh and Lut. Talmud contains unverified details of history, dates and names which are not confirmed in the Quran and in some instances even corrected by the Quran, such as the sacrifice of Ibrahim’s son Ismael as against the Jewish belief that it was Ishaq, or the Talmudic interpretation that Yaqub cheated his father to get his blessings to become a prophet. Islam does not allow unconfirmed details of corrupted texts to be added to the Quranic account of the parables mentioned in different Surahs.

In addition to the clear commandments in the Quran, Allah has also revealed Verses where there is room for multiple interpretations. ‘Allah has revealed the book to you in which some Verses are precise; these Verses are the foundation of the book, while other Verses are not entirely clear. Those people with deviant hearts follow the unclear Verses seeking to spread doubt through their false interpretations, but no one knows their full meaning except Allah. (Surah Aal-e-Imran, Verse 7).

Allah sent different messengers to different nations; some were given a Sharia law and divine scripture, and some were not given a sharia law and a divine book. There are also many Messengers of Allah whose parables are not mentioned in the Quran. Allah says: ‘We already sent Messengers before you. We have told you the stories of some of them, while of others we have not. It was not for any Messenger to bring a sign without Allah’s permission. But when Allah’s decree comes, His judgment will be passed with fairness, and the people who espouse falsehood will then be in total loss.’ (Surah Ghafir, Verse 78).

The holy Quran is meant to be read and spoken. Its stye is conversational which makes it more relevant to human nature because a large part of our life when we are not asleep is spent talking or listening to others. The conversations in the holy Quran between different participants are also meaningful because they carry the important message of the unity of Allah, the responsibility of a believer toward His creator and toward other human beings and the good news that death is not an end to life but an entry into a permanent and more enjoyable life for those who have passed the trials of living with patience and thankfulness doing their best and observing the laws of Allah and the moral codes set by righteous people in authority in this mortal world.

In many Surahs, the conversation flows from one-on-one format to one-to-many format or many-to-many format without any set pattern. In the middle of these conversations there are Verses through which Allah covers the timeline between the question that is asked, and the reply given, or through which Allah gives commands and information using the context of the conversation to guide believers.

The conversations of a Messenger of Allah with his nation are repeated in other Surahs with similar syntax but when these are narrated again, they provide more details or emphasise the lessons to be drawn from the conversations.

Some conversations are very short, especially those of the Messengers of Allah with Him. In such conversations Allah informs us that the supplication of his Messenger was approved by Allah without Allah speaking to him directly or through Jibril. Some conversations, though short, cover a long period but are put together as if these took place in one timeline. We find these conversations in the stories of Prophets Ibrahim, Uzair, Musa and Yusuf.

The conversational method of the Quran is designed to revive belief in Allah and His unity assigning no partners to Him, obeying His Messengers who are humans and convey nothing from their own except what is revealed to them. There is also emphasis in these conversations on doing good deeds and staying away from evil and harm. The conversation of a Messenger of Allah is always straight and kind.

Sometimes there are other people present in the conversations of the principal speakers but they themselves do not participate in the discussion. These are present in the Verses of the holy Quran which mention Qaroon, Hamaan, mother of Musa, wife of Lut, wife of Ayub etc who never speak.

There is always a background to a conversation. However, barring some exceptions such as details about the lives of Prophets Ibrahim, Musa, Yusuf and Isa, the full background of every conversation is not described in detail. It is therefore necessary to refer to the commentaries of the Quran which explain the conversation with help from the sayings of the Prophet and discuss the background and context (Shaan-e-Nuzool) of the Verses. Some of the conversations are the result of the queries put to the Prophet by the Jews and Christians of Arabia about certain events and dates such as the details about the companions of the cave and the immaculate birth of Isa.


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