Wisdom Lessons from Air and Wind
During an intellectual meditative journey into the word “Hû” — هُوَ in لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ (There is no god by He) and قُلْ هُوَ اللّٰهُ (Say: He is Allah) and its meanings for the physical aspects of creation, I was contemplating the page of “air” when an exquisitely subtle point of tawḥīd (Divine Oneness) instantly manifested itself:
Indeed, just as a handful of soil that serves as a pot for a hundred flowers in succession, if attributed to nature and causes, would necessitate either that this small pot contains, on a miniature scale, a hundred — or perhaps as many as the flowers — invisible machines and factories; or that each particle of that tiny piece of soil possesses the knowledge to form all those different flowers, with their distinct properties and life-sustaining mechanisms, possessing endless knowledge and infinite power like a deity.
Likewise, each piece of air and wind, which serves as a throne for divine command and will, would require, within each fragment of wind, within each breath, within the tiny amount of air that forms the word “Hû” (هُوَ), the presence of miniature switchboards, receivers, and transmitters of all the telephones, telegraphs, radios, televisions, and all other types of communications that take place across the world, and be able to perform these endless tasks simultaneously and instantaneously.
(This article is a translation of “Hüve Nüktesi” by Badiuzzamān Said Nursî (r.a))
During an intellectual meditative journey, I was drawn into contemplating the Divine Secrets behind the curious usage of the Arabic pronoun “Hû” (“هُوَ”) in reference to God in two of the most crucial phrases in Islam:
In the proclamation “لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ”, meaning “There is no god but He”), and
In the Quranic verse “قُلْ هُوَ اللّٰهُ”, meaning “Say: ‘He is Allah’”.
With these in mind I was reflecting on the physical creation—and specifically, on the particles of “air”— when the usage of هُوَ in these phrases revealed an exquisitely subtle point about tawḥīd—the Oneness of the Divine Creator.
I witnessed how the path of faith is of boundless ease, to the degree of necessity, while the path of associating partners with God (shirk) and misguidance (dalālah) contains infinite difficulties and thousands of impossibilities. I will explain this vast and long point with an extremely brief indication:
Indeed, just as a handful of soil that serves as a pot for a hundred flowers in succession, if attributed to nature and causes, would necessitate either that this small pot contains, on a miniature scale, a hundred — or perhaps as many as the flowers — invisible machines and factories; or that each particle of that tiny piece of soil possesses the knowledge to form all those different flowers, with their distinct properties and life-sustaining mechanisms, possessing endless knowledge and infinite power like a deity.
Likewise, each piece of air and wind, which serves as a throne for divine command and will, would require, within each fragment of wind, within each breath, within the tiny amount of air that forms the word “Hû” (هُوَ), the presence of miniature switchboards, receivers, and transmitters of all the telephones, telegraphs, radios, televisions, and all other types of communications that take place across the world, and be able to perform these endless tasks simultaneously and instantaneously.
Otherwise, every single particle of air in that “Hû”, and indeed each particle of the very element of air, would need to possess as many spiritual personalities and capabilities as all the telephone operators, radio, and TV broadcasters combined, know all their languages, to simultaneously transmit and broadcast them to nearby particles. Because, in reality, we observe precisely this phenomenon, we know that this capacity exists in every single particle of air.
Thus, in the path of those who deny faith and follow the doctrines of naturalism and materialism, there is not just one impossibility, but perhaps as many impossibilities and profound difficulties as the number of particles.
If entrusted to the Majestic Creator, the entire mass of air, with all its particles, becomes His obedient soldier. With the ease of a single particle carrying out a single orderly task, it performs endless critical duties, by His permission and power, through its affiliation with and reliance upon its Creator, by the manifestation of His power, and at once, with the speed of lightning, and as effortlessly as the pronunciation of “Hû” or the gentle wavelike motion of air.
In other words, the air becomes a page upon which the Pen of Divine Power writes countless wondrous and orderly inscriptions. Its particles become the tips of that pen, and their functions become the dots of the Pen of Divine Decree. The entire system operates with the ease of a single particle’s movement.
Thus, during my journey inspired by the movement of thought in لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ and قُلْ هُوَ اللّٰهُ, while I was observing the realm of air and studying the page of that element, I saw this concise truth with utmost clarity and detail and witnessed it with absolute certainty (ʿayn al-yaqīn).
Just as the utterance of “Hû” and its airborne transmission constitutes a brilliant proof of Divine Oneness (Wahidiyyat), there is an extremely luminous manifestation of Divine Uniqueness (Ahadiyyat) in its meaning and indication, and a very strong proof of Divine Unity (tawḥīd); and it also reveals that “Hû” contains an explicit indication of which Being the unrestricted and vague pronoun “Hû refers to (for example, in There is no god but He). It is for this reason that both the miraculous Quran and the people of remembrance (ahl al-dhikr) frequently repeat this sacred word in the station of Divine Unity. I came to know this with certainty (ʿilm al-yaqīn).
Yes, for example, while two or three points placed on a white paper begin to mix up, and a person becomes confused when trying to do many different tasks simultaneously, and a small creature is crushed under too many loads, and a tongue and an ear would become confused and lose their order when multiple words enter and exit at the same time, I witnessed with absolute certainty (ʿayn al-yaqīn) that within the realm of air — through which I traveled intellectually with the key and compass of Hû — each piece, even each particle of air, contains thousands of different points, letters, and words without getting mixed up and without disrupting their order.
Despite performing countless distinct functions, these particles never err or become bewildered. Even when burdened with immense responsibilities, they display no weakness, delay nothing, and maintain perfect order. Thousands of distinct words, in different styles and meanings, enter tiny ears and exit delicate tongues in complete harmony, without confusion or corruption.
And while carrying out these astounding tasks, each particle moves freely and effortlessly, as if chanting لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ and قُلْ هُوَاللّٰهُ أَحَدٌ. I witnessed this in the midst of storms, lightning, thunder, and turbulent air currents — even under such violent conditions, the particles of air never lost their order or function, nor did any one task hinder another. I witnessed this with absolute certainty (ʿayn al-yaqīn).
Thus, if air were not an instrument of divine command, then each particle and fragment of air would have to possess limitless wisdom, infinite knowledge, boundless will, and absolute power over all particles—an impossibility as absurd as the number of particles themselves. No devil could even entertain such an idea.
Therefore, with absolute certainty, at every level of knowledge (ḥaqq al-yaqīn, ʿayn al-yaqīn, and ʿilm al-yaqīn), this page of air is none other than the changing page of the Divine Pen of Power and Decree, continuously inscribed and erased as a dynamic register in the mutable realm, akin to the Preserved Tablet’s (Lawḥ al-Maḥfūẓ) counterpart in the realm of fluctuation (Lawḥ al-Maḥw wa’l-Ithbāt).
Thus, the element of air, through its mere function of transmitting sound, displays the manifestation of Divine Oneness and reveals the endless impossibilities of falsehood. Furthermore, beyond transmitting sound, one of its many essential tasks is the transmission of electricity, attraction, repulsion, light, and other subtle forces — carried out with absolute precision and harmony. While fulfilling its task of sound transmission, it simultaneously supplies plants and animals with the necessary components for respiration and pollination, sustaining life with perfect order.
This conclusively proves that air is a throne of divine command and will. It demonstrates with absolute certainty that blind chance, deaf nature, chaotic purposeless causes, and lifeless, powerless, ignorant matter have no role whatsoever in the writing and execution of the script upon this page of air. I became fully convinced, with the certainty of direct perception (ʿayn al-yaqīn), that every single fragment of air proclaims: لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ and قُلْ هُوَاللّٰهُ أَحَدٌ.
Moreover, just as the key of “Hû” unveiled the wonders of the physical realm within the air, I understood that “Hû” also holds a key to the Realm of Similitudes (ʿālam al-mithāl) and the Realm of Meanings (ʿālam al-maʿnā). I saw that the realm of imagery holds countless photographs, and each image simultaneously records innumerable earthly events without confusion. It functions as a vast celestial cinema machine, more expansive than thousands of worlds, for showing the inhabitants of Paradise their worldly adventures and old memories through scenes, and the permanent fruits of their temporary states, positions, and passing lives.
Both the Preserved Tablet (Lawḥ al-Maḥfūẓ) and the Realm of Similitudes have two proofs, two tiny examples, or two points in the human head: memory and imagination.
Although as tiny as a lentil, these faculties record vast amounts of information, equivalent to a large library, with flawless precision. This irrefutably proves that the much greater counterparts of these faculties — the Realm of Similitudes, the elements of air and water, especially the water of seminal fluid, and the element of soil — are written with even greater wisdom and will, and with the pen of destiny and power.
Thus, random chance, blind force, deaf nature, or lifeless, aimless causes can't interfere with or have any role in this cosmic inscription; indeed, such a notion is a hundred times impossible. With absolute certainty (ʿilm al-yaqīn), it became known that these are the pages of Divine Wisdom and Decree — the manifestation of the All-Wise Creator’s Pen of Power and Decree.
Translated by Fatih Guvenen, with able assistance by Claude.ai and ChatGPT (February 1, 2025).
Elif-Lâm-Mîm: Görsel Bir Tefsir (Turkish)
Kur’ân’da, Bakara dahil 6 surenin ilk ayeti olan Elif-Lâm-Mîm üzerine yazdığım görsel tefsirin en yeni versiyonunu şu link'ten indirebilirsiniz:
Alif-Lām-Mīm in Arabic script
(TURKISH TAFSĪR)
MUKATTAA HARFLERI
Kur’ân-ı Kerîm’in en esrarengiz özelliklerinden birisi, 114 sûrenin 29’unun ilk ayetinde bulunan mukattaa harfleridir. Bu harfleri sırlı kılan pek çok özelliklerinin arasında, kelime gibi birleştirilerek yazılmalarına rağmen ( كهيعص ,الم ,حم, gibi) kesik-kesik harfler olarak (Hâ-Mîm, Elif-Lâm-Mîm, vs. gibi) okunmaları; kelime gibi okumaya çalışsak bile manası bilinen kelimelere karşılık gelmemeleri, ve bazı kombinasyonların pek çok sûrenin başında tekrarlanması sayılabilir.
Ayrıca, bu harflerin Arap alfabesinin tam yarısından oluşup diğer yarısını kullanmaması, seçilen harflerin tesadüf olması mümkün olmayan pek çok özellikleri, mukattaa ile başlayan sûrelerin hem nüzul sıralaması hem de Kur’ân-ı Kerîm’deki dizilişleri ile ilgili pek çok düzenlilik, okuyucuların zihininde bu harflerin derin ve önemli mânâlarının olması gerektiği konusundaki inancını artırıyor.
Bunlara ek olarak, mukattaa harflerinin Kur’ân’ın 2.ci ile 68.ci sûreleri arasında nerdeyse her iki sûreden birinin başında bulunduklarını göz önüne alırsak, bu kadar dikkat çekici bir konuma sahip bu harflerin mânâlarıyla ilgili Peygamber Efendimiz (s.a.v)’den hiç bir hadisin nakledilmemiş olması bu sır perdesini kalınlaştırıyor.
Asırlar boyunca müfessirler bu harflerle alakalı pek çok görüş nakletmişlerse de, bunların büyük çoğunluğunun ya bir dayanakları olmadığı için, ya da ikna edici bulunmadıkları için pek kabul görmemişlerdir. Sonunda pek çok müfessir, sahâbe efendilerimiz ve tabiîn imamlarından bu harflerin “Kur’ân’ın sırları” oldukları görüşünü aktarıp daha fazla yorum yapmamayı tercih etmişlerdir.
BU TEFSİR’İN KISA BİR HİKAYESİ
Bir süredir Kur’ân-ı Kerîm’in başka sûreleri ve ayetleri üzerinde tefsir çalışmaları yaparken, bazı ayetlerde harflerin ve kelimelerin görsel özelliklerinde, bazen ayetlerin açık mânâlarını destekleyen, bazen de daha net şekilde gözlere gösteren mânâlar olduğunu farketmeye başladım.
Bu görsel manaların dikkat çekici bir özelliği, şekillerindeki manaların fark edilmeden önce hiç dikkat çekmeyip, fark edildikten sonra ise görmemenin nerdeyse imkansız hale gelmesi idi. Öyle ki, en gencinden en yaşlısına, Kur’ân âliminden yeni başlayana kadar herkes bu manalara işaret edilince görebilmekteydiler.
Mukattaa harflerinin tefsir literatüründeki (yukarıda bahsettiğim) konumunu bildiğim için, Allah şahit, bu harfler üzerine tefsir yazmayı hiç düşünmemiştim. Aynı zamanda da, eğer mukattaa harflerinin manaları bir gün anlaşılabilecekse, sırrı en kolay çözülecek harfin Nûn (ن) olduğuna inanıyordum. Bunun sebebi de çok açıktı:
Allahu Tealâ, sevgili Peygamber’ine (s.a.v) ilk hitabında — Hira mağarasında — Kendisini ilk önce “Rabb” olarak tanıttı. Hem de bir defa değil, arka arkaya iki defa (‘Alak sûresi, 1-5):
ٱقْرَأْ بِٱسْمِ رَبِّكَ ٱلَّذِى خَلَقَ (١)
خَلَقَ ٱلْإِنسَـٰنَ مِنْ عَلَقٍ (٢)
ٱقْرَأْ وَرَبُّكَ ٱلْأَكْرَمُ (٣)
ٱلَّذِى عَلَّمَ بِٱلْقَلَمِ (٤)
عَلَّمَ ٱلْإِنسَـٰنَ مَا لَمْ يَعْلَمْ (٥)
Yaratan Rabb’inin ismiyle oku!
O, insanı bir alaka’dan (embriyodan) yarattı
Oku! O Keremi nihayetsiz olan Rabb’indir
Ki O kalem ile öğretti,
Insana bilmediğini öğretti.
Allah isminden önce, Ben senin Rabb’inim buyurdu. Rabb ki, “terbiye eden” ve “yetiştiren” demektir. Bunu da lugatlar “bir şeyi olgunluk derecesine ulaşıncaya kadar aşama aşama inşa etmek” diye açıklarlar. Bu ne güzel bir öğretmedir! Yani: Emin ellerdesin. Korkma. Endişelenme. Sana her şeyi en mükemmel şekilde öğreteceğim, demektir.
Bu ilk beş ayete topluca baktığımızda tek konusunun bu — öğrenme ve öğretme — oldugunu görüyoruz: Daha ilk kelimeden başlayarak, iki defa “Oku” emri, iki defa “O öğretti” ifadesi, bir defa O “Keremi nihayetsiz olan” Rabb’indir ifadesi. Hepsi, Rahmet’i ve Kerem’iyle Peygamberini adeta kucaklayan, en güzel bir terbiye edici olarak o’na her şeyi aşama aşama öğreteceğini müjdeleyen bir Rabb görüyoruz. Ayrıca, “Yarattı” ve “Insan” kelimelerinin de ikişer defa tekrar edildiğine dikkat edersek, bu beş ayetteki en önemli beş kelimenin — ٱقْرَأْ ,رَبِّكَ ,خَلَقَ ,عَلَّمَ ,لْإِنسَـٰنَ —ikişer defa tekrar edilmesinin bir detay değil, aksine O Yüce Rabb’in en mükemmel öğretme metodunun ilk örneklerinden biri olduğunu anlarız. Nasıl bilge bir öğretmen, dersin en onemli noktalarını tekrar ile vurgular, böylece öğrencilerinin o püf noktaları kaçırmamalarını sağlarsa, ilk vahiye baktığımızda o öğretmenlerin Öğretmeninin kim oldugunu hemen anlıyoruz.
Peki bütün bunların mukattaa harfleri ile, ve Nûn harfiyle alakası nedir?
Nûn harfi ilk nazil olan mukattaa harfidir, ve Islamî kaynakların coğunda Alak suresinden hemen sonra, ikinci olarak nazil olduğu kabul edilir.
Ama bir gün Elif-Lâm-Mîm kapıyı çaldı. Kapıyı kapattım, pencereden geldi. Pencereyi kapatınca, bacadan girdi. Anladım ki, çare yok, dinlenmek istiyor. Daha fazla diretmek Kur’ân’a karşı saygısızlık olacaktı. Bakara ve Âl-i Imrân gibi en uzun sûreler dahil, toplam altı sûrenin başında bulunan bu mübârek lafız’ın hepimize söylemek istediği manalar
Öyle ki, belki de gençliğimizden beri her müslüman gibi ben de bu harfler konusunda korkutulduğum için, aklıma bir mana gelse bile hemen “estağfurullah” deyip başka bir işe yönelirdim.
, Bakara ve Âl-i Imrân sûreleri dahil, toplam altı sûrenin ilk ayeti olan Elif-Lâm-Mîm üzerine yazdığım görsel tefsiri aşağıdaki link'ten indirebilirsiniz:
What is the First Sentence of the Quran?
The Quran is the Divine Book of Islam, and Muslims believe that it is the Word of God, unaltered. And Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said it will remain “his greatest miracle until the end of time.”
Clearly, these are bold claims, and a non-Muslim has every right to be skeptical about their truth. I will discuss these claims and the evidence put forward in detail in future posts.
For now though, what matters is that regardless of whether you believe this or not, these statements reflect how Muslims view the Quran.So, if you want to know what Islam is — as understood by Muslims — you start with the Quran.
First: A unique feature of the Quran is its hierarchical structure: that all the (600-page!) Quran is summarized in its first Chapter (1/3-page long!), and that the first chapter is summarized in the first Sentence.
(You may notice that this is precisely the format of modern scientific articles: “Article summarized in Introduction summarized in Abstract”, which I find pretty remarkable for a book that goes back 1500 years.)
So, what does that first sentence say? Here it is:
The first page of the Quran, Islam’s holy book.
The Quran is the Divine Book of Islam, and Muslims believe that it is the Word of God, unaltered. And Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said it will remain “his greatest miracle until the end of time.”
Clearly, these are bold claims, and a non-Muslim has every right to be skeptical about their truth. I will discuss these claims and the evidence put forward in detail in future posts.
For now though, what matters is that regardless of whether you believe this or not, these statements reflect how Muslims view the Quran. So, if you want to know what Islam is — as understood by Muslims — you start with the Quran.
First: A unique feature of the Quran is its hierarchical structure: that all the (600-page!) Quran is summarized in its first Chapter (1/3-page long!), and that the first chapter is summarized in the first Sentence.
(You may notice that this is precisely the format of modern scientific articles: “Article summarized in Introduction summarized in Abstract”, which I find pretty remarkable for a book that goes back 1500 years.)
So, what does that first sentence say? Here it is:
In the Name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful.
Remember: This sentence is meant to be the summary of the Entire Quran!
And it includes two divine names of God, which mean almost the same thing!!
In fact, they are from same root, and they share 3 of their 4 letters:
Important fact: In Islam, God has 99 Divine Names:
The Creator, The Sovereign, The King, The Eternal One, The All Mighty, The Ever Living, The All Sustainer, The Truth, The All Wise, The Omniscient, the Subtle, The First, The Last, the Knower or Unseen, and many others.
Yet, in this first sentence He chose to include two names with very similar meanings — about Compassion and Mercy.
Not the King, nor the Almighty, nor the Omniscient, nor the All Wise, and so on.
Another important fact: The Quran has 114 Chapters. With one exception, every single one starts with this exact same sentence!
One more important fact: Recall that the first chapter of the Quran is a slightly more expanded summary of the entire Quran. That chapter is the topic of the next post, but for now let me mention one relevant point: that chapter is only 7 short sentences that fits in the middle of the page — see the photo at the top. Now, here is the surprise: Do you know what is the 3rd sentence of this very short chapter? Here it is:
“He is the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful.”
It repeats the same two names, verbatim, from the first sentence!
If you think that this repetition is redundant — it’s not! The Quran is an extremely carefully crafted text, which I hope will become clear as we see more examples in future posts. When it repeats something, it is always intentional — like here, in two of the seven sentences — and it is to leave absolutely no doubt that these two names were chosen over a long list of other beautiful divine names.
To Sum Up:
These simple facts tells you more than what reading entire books about Islam will. It tells us that God, or Allah, wants us to know Him first and foremost with His Compassion and Mercy and Love.
When Sufis (spiritual tradition of Islam, represented by Rumi, among others) say that “God created the Universe out of His Love”, they are not exaggerating. That statement is soundly rooted in the essence of Islam.
Compassion and Mercy are at the core of Islam. It permeates the entire Quran, as well as the teachings of Prophet Muhammad, whom Allah named “The Prophet of Mercy to the Entire Universe.”
A follow-up lesson: If anyone who purports to be a Muslim acts otherwise, they are betraying the soul and spirit of Islam.
Salam (meaning Peace)
For the curious reader: The meanings of Compassion and Mercy are so similar in English that you might rightly be wondering: what is the difference between Rahman and Rahim in Arabic that are translated as the Most Compassionate and the Most Merciful? They cannot be the same, can they? No, they are not. In fact, there are many crucial differences, some obvious and many subtle, that I plan to write about in the future.
For now, one useful way to think about the difference is that Rahman operates in macro scales, whereas Rahim operates in micro scales. Rahman is more general. Rahim is more personal. For example, Rahman blesses every single creature with life on earth, whether they are saints or murderers, whereas Rahim rewards those who are grateful to Rahman’s blessings with Heaven. You could also see Rahman in the Sun, energizing the entire solar system; Rahim in the Moon, serving as our personal night lamp. Rahman in the rain; Rahim in the soil. Rahman in the creation and expansion of the Universe, Rahim in the sustenance and bounties in our lives. Rahman in men; Rahim in women. In fact, the word for womb in Arabic is Rahim (as well as in Hebrew). Some things to ponder.