Page:Cyclopaedia, Chambers - Supplement, Volume 1.djvu/93

 A L C

A L C

Twenty-nine of the chapters of the Alcoran have this fur- ther peculiarity, that there are certain letters of the alphabet ■ prefixed to them. In fome a fingle letter ; in others, two or more. Thefe letters are fuppofed, by the true believers, to conceal divers profound myfteries, the undemanding whereof has been communicated to no man, their prophet excepted. Yet fome have pretended to find their meaning, by fuppofing the letters to ftand for fo many words, exprefling the names, attributes, and works of God. Others explain thefe letters from the organ made ufe of in their pronunciation ; others from their value in numbers. Thus there are five chapters, whereof one is the fecond, which begins with thefe letters, A, L, M. which fome imagine to ftand for Allah, Latif, Afagid; God is gracious," and to be glorified. Others for Ana, Li, Minni ; To me, and from me, viz. belongs all perfection, and proceeds all. Others for Ana, Allah, A/am; I am the moft wife God. Taking the firft letter to denote the beginning of the firft word, the fecond the middle of the fecond, and the third the laft of the third word. Others for Allah, Gabriel, Mahomet ; the firft, the author; the fecond, the revealer ; the third, the preacher of the Alcoran. Others pretend, that as the letter A belongs to the lower part of the throat, the firfl; of the organs of fpeech ; L to the palate, the middle organ, and M to the lips, the laft organ j fo thefe letters denote, that God is the beginning, middle, and end. Others, that as the numerical value of thefe three letters is feventy-one, they denote, that in the fpace of (o many years, the religion preached in the Koran fhall be fully eftablifhed. Golius conjectures, that thefe letters were put there by the copieft, for Amar li Mahomede, i. e. at the command of Ma- homet. GoL Append, ad Gram. Erpen. p. 182. Sale, Pre- lim. Difc. to Koran, feci:. 3. p. 60.

The Alcoran is allowed to be written with the utmoft ele- gance and purity of language, in the dialect of the Koreifhites, the moft noble and polite of all the Arabians, but with fome mixture of other dialects. It is the ftandard of the Arabic tongue, and, as the orthodox believe, and are taught by the book itfelf, inimitable by any human pen ; and therefore in- fifted on as a permanent miracle, greater than that of railing the dead, and alone fufficient to convince the world of its divine original} and to this miracle did Mahomet himfelf chiefly appeal, for the confirmation of his miffion, publicly challenging the moft eloquent fchoolmcn in Arabia, to pro- duce a iingle chapter comparable to it. A late ingenious and candid writer, who is a very good judge, allows the ftyle of the Alcoran to be generally beautiful and fluent, efpecia'lly where it imitates the prophetic manner, and fcripture phrafe ; concife, and often obfeure ; adorned with bold figures, after the eaftern tafte ; enlivened with florid and fententious ex- prefHons ; and, in many places, efpecially where the majefty and attributes of God are defcribed, fublime and magnificent. Sale, lib. cit. p. 61.

To the pomp and harmony of expreffion fome afcribe all the force and effect of the Alcoraji ; which they confider as a fort of mufic, equally fitted to ravifti and amaze, with other fpecies of that art *. In this Mahomet fucceeded fo well, and fo ftrangely captivated the minds of his audience, that feveral of his opponents thought it the effect of witchcraft and enchant- ment, as he himfelf complains e. — [ d Cafaub. of Enthuf. c.4. c Alcor. c. 15, 21, &c.

Others have attributed the effect of the Alcoran to the fre- quent mention of rewards and punifhments; heaven and hell occur almoft in every page f. Some fuppofe, that the fenfual pleafures of paradife, fo frequently fet before the ima- ginations of the readers of the Alcoran, was what chiefly be- witched them e. Though, with regard to thefe, there is great difpute whether they are to be underftood Htterally, or fpiritually h. Several have even allegorized the whole book. The fame has happened among Jews and Chriftians. In every feci: there are, from time to time, perfons of an ima- gination too fine, to be contented with the common fyftem, which is only accommodated to the multitude. Hence the tribe of allegorifts, myftics, cabalifts, &c- — [ f Mem. de Trev. 1725. p. 648. Bibl. Franc. T. 9. p. 198. s New Mem. of Liter. T. 5. p. n. * Bibl. Univ. T. 10. p. 94. feq.]

The moft elegant paffage in the whole Alcoran, in the judgment of all the commentators, is that in the chapter of Hud, wherein God, to put a ftop to the deluge, fays ; " O " earth, fwallow up thefe waters ! and thou, O heaven, « withdraw thy rain ! And immediately the water abated ; " the decree was fulfilled ; the ark refted on the mountain, " and a voice was heard, Woe to the ungodly," Al Kor, c. 11. p. 180. Herbel. Bibl. Orient, p. 87. feq. The Alcoran, befides the inconveniencies to which all books of revelation are fubject, viz. to be differently underftood and interpreted, has fome peculiar ones. Mahomet placed the ftrefs and merit of his Alcoran on the excellency of the ftyle. This is fubjeel: to inconveniencies : the compofition and ar- rangement of words admits of infinite varieties, and it can never be abfolutely fliid, that any one is the beft poftible. Accordingly Hamzah Benahmed wrote a book againft the Alcoran, with at leaft equal elegancy ', and Mofelema another, which even furpafied it \ and occasioned a defection of a Suppi,. Vol. I.

great part of the muflelmen. — [> V. Jour, des Scav. T. 13. p. 280. k Ouvr. des Scav. Nov. 1708. p. 494.] The Alcoran is held not only of divine original, but eternal and uncreated, remaining, as fome exprefs it, in the very effence of God. The firft tranfeript has been from everlaft- ing by God's throne, written on a table of vaft bignefs, in which are alfo recorded the divine decrees, paft and future. A copy from this table, in one volume, on paper, was fent down to the loweft heaven, in the month of Ramadan, on the night of power. From whence it was delivered out to Mahomet by parcels, fome at Mecca, and fome at Medina. Though he had the confolation of feeing the whole once a year, and in the laft part of his life twice. Ten new chapters were delivered entire, the greater part only in feparate pe- riods, which were written down from time to time by the prophet's amanuenfis, in this or that part, of this or the other chapter, as he directed. The firft parcel that was revealed, was the five firft verfes of the ninety-fixth chapter, which the prophet received in a cave of Mount Hurah, near Mecca. D' 'Herbel. lib. cit. p. 85.

This method was formed on that of the Jews, who hold that the law was alfo given to Mofes by parcels. Milt, de Mahom. Antimahom. p, 365. Sale, lib. cit. p. 65. There are great difputes as to the time and manner of the defcent of the Alcoran. Some will have it to have only be- gun to defcend on the night above-mentioned. Others affert, that it arrived that night at the end of its journey : while other maintain, that it was only taken down that night from the table of the divine decree, which the muflelmen call Lonh-al Mahfoudh, or the well kept table, i. e. the fecret book, or regifter. This night, according to the Mahome- tans, returns yearly ; but they are not agreed as to the pre- cife time of its return. Some place it in one month, fome in another ; the generality in the month Ramadan. This opinion, however probable, not being certain, they obferve nine feveral nights, for greater fecurity, in memory of it. This eternity and increation of the Alcoran, has occafioned vehement difputes, having been oppofed by many, particu- larly by the feci: of the Motazalites, and the followers of Almozdar, who ftuck not to accufe thofe who held the Al- coran to be increated, as infidels, and aflertcrs of two" eternal beings, o The difpute occafioned great calamities. Some of the kaliphs of the family of Abas, published an edict, declaring the Alcoran to be created ; and feveral were whipt, impri- foned, and put to death, for holding the contrary. But the edict was afterwards revoked, and men left at liberty to think on the point as they pleafed. D'Herbelot, lib. cit. p. 85. feq.

The Alcoran has not wanted for cenfors and detractors, even among the Arabs, fome of whom have denied any thing mi- raculous in the book, except the prophecies j adding, that as to the point of eloquence, the Arabians were able, without infpiration, to have done fomething equal, or even fuperior to it. This was the opinion of the Motazalites, and parti- cularly of Almozdar and Alnudham. Sale, lib. cit. p. 67. feq.

The general aim of the Akoran was, to unite the profeflbrs of the three different religions, then followed in Arabia, idolaters, Jews, and Chriftians, in the knowledge and wor- fliip of one God, under the fanction of certain laws, and the outward figns of ceremonies, partly of antient, and partly of novel inftitution, enforced by the confideration of rewards and punifhments, both temporal and eternal, and to bring all to the obedience of Mahomet, as the prophet and embaf- fador of God, who was to eftablifh the true religion on earth, and be acknowledged chief pontiff in fpiritual matters. The chief point therefore inculcated in the Alcoran, is the unity of God, to reftore which, the prophet confeffed was the chief end of his miffion. The reft is taken up in prescribing ne- ceffary laws and directions, frequent admonitions to moral and. divine virtues, the worftiip and reverence of the fupreme being, and refignation to his will. One of their moft learned commentators diftinguifhes the contents of the Alcoran into allegorical and literal ; under the former are comprehended all the obfeure, parabolical, and ^enigmatical paflages, with fuch ' • as are repealed, or abrogated ; the latter, fuch as are clear, and in full force. Vid. Golit, Append, ad Gram. Erpen. p. 176. Sale, lib. cit. p. 62. feq.

The moft excellent moral in the whole Alcoran is alfo al- lowed, by interpreters, to be that in the chapter Al Araf ! , i. e. fhew mercy, do good to all, and difpute not with the ignorant ; or, as Mr. Sale renders it, Ufe indulgence, com- mand that which is juft, and withdraw far from the igno- rant ni. Mahomet, according to the authors of the Kefcbaf, having begged of the angel Gabriel a more ample explica- tion of this pafla-ge, he received it in the following terms: " Seek him who turns thee out, give to him who takes from '* thee, pardon him who injures thee; for God will have " you plant in your fouls the roots of his chief perfections." — [' DHerbel. p. 58. .B Al Koran, c. 7. p. 138.] 'Tis eafy to fee, that this commentary is copied from the Gof- jpeM< — In reality, the neceflity of forgiving enemies, though fre- quently inculcated in the Jlcoran, is of a later date among the Ma- hometans, -than among the Chriftians.;. and among thofe. latter, 1 Z than