Surah at-Tur (The Mount) 52 : 34

Explanatory Note

Since their hearts cannot appreciate the truth of this revelation, the surah challenges them to provide irrefutable proof: "Let them, then, produce a discourse like it, if what they say is true." This challenge occurs several times in the Qur'an, yet those who deny the truth of the Qur'an could not take up the challenge. Furthermore, this challenge remains valid for the rest of time, and no one will ever be able to produce anything like the Qur'an.

The Qur'an has a special secret which is felt by everyone who begins to look at its text, before even attempting to identify its many miraculous aspects. He feels that the very words themselves speak with special authority. He senses that there is something extra, beyond the meanings the words impart to us; something that is felt by the heart as soon as one listens to the Qur'an. Some people feel this very clearly, while others sense it even though they cannot identify it. Nonetheless it is there. It cannot be traced back to anything in particular: the phraseology, the meaning, the images and connotations, the special music that is so different from the rhythm of any other speech. Or is it produced by a combination of all these elements, or by these and something else beyond them that we cannot identify? This is something that is present in every Qur'anic text, and it is felt initially by everyone who handles a Qur'anic surah. Beyond this, there are phenomena that we can recognize and understand when we study the Qur'an and contemplate its meanings and construction.

These phenomena are recognized in the clear, comprehensive and true concept the Qur'an presents to our hearts and minds of the truth of human existence, of existence as a whole, and the essential truth of God Almighty. They are seen in the Qur'anic method that seeks to implant this concept in man's mind as it addresses his nature in a way that is totally unfamiliar in human address. The Qur'an appeals to the human mind with all its many facets, reflecting profound knowledge of man's every angle. We see the superiority of the Qur'an in the comprehensiveness, balance and coherence of its directives that are all placed on the same level. This phenomenon is unknown in the works of human beings that cannot maintain the same situation or the same standard, and cannot address all aspects at the same time. Nothing that man produces can reflect absolute balance that admits neither increase nor decrease, and suffers neither shortage nor extravagance. No human work achieves absolute coherence that admits no discord or conflict either in essence or detail.

These and similar phenomena, as well as the subtle and the undeniably secret, combine to give the Qur'an its quality of an absolute miracle that remains valid for all time. No self respecting person can argue about this. He will readily admit the truth that stares him clearly in the face whenever he looks at the Qur'an with an open mind: "Let them, then, produce a discourse like it, if what they say is true."