# Is the Quran a miracle that proves Islam to everyone?

*Is the Quran a universal miracle? Why he ended that meetup exchange*

- URL: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/eo90sv4jvho/s/18/
- Date: 2021-01-05 · Kind: lesson · Transcript tier: machine · Recording: Monday Nights with Mufti #196 | Q&A Unscripted & Unrestricted! 😉 | Mufti Abu Layth (1:24:16–1:29:58)
- Status: general teaching
- Watch from the start of the segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eo90sV4JVHo&t=5056s
- Recording page: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/eo90sv4jvho/

**Topics:** Prophethood and miracles; Quranic Arabic

**Summary (not a quotation; machine-made, unchecked):** Mufti Abu Layth holds the Quran is subjectively miraculous in its effect but not a universal miracle that converts all who hear it, and he cut the exchange short out of discomfort.

**Checked position (checked by two independent reviews, not by the channel):** Mufti Abu Layth says the Quran is miraculous in the emotions and experiences it creates subjectively, but cannot be called a universal miracle that makes everyone who hears it Muslim.

**Evidence, his words at 1:27:28:** “I said look the Quran is miraculous in the emotions and the experiences it creates subjectively but you can't say this is a universal you can't say well look anybody who hears the Quran will become Muslim” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eo90sV4JVHo&t=5248s)

## Longer summary

Continuing, Mufti Abu Layth recounts asking the attendee what the Prophet's miracle was, being told the Quran because of its Arabic, and pointing out that the attendee did not understand Arabic, that most people do not, and that most Arabic speakers cannot explain what the miracle is. He explains his discomfort by analogy: refuting someone who says the Prophet is God forces you to stress the Prophet's human weaknesses, and likewise he did not want to downplay the Quran, which has a special place in his heart. He says the Quran is miraculous in the emotions and experiences it creates subjectively, but cannot be called a universal miracle that makes everyone who hears it Muslim, since many Makkan Arabs did not believe. He mentions grammarians such as al-Mazini who problematised aspects of its Arabic, and says he cut the conversation short because it made him uncomfortable, not out of fear of the argument.

## Sources and names cited

- mu'jizah (miracle)
- al-Mazini (the grammarian)

## Transcript (machine tier, 1:24:16–1:29:58)

[1:23:51] Why? Because he says, "Well, duh, you're a human. You can't do things like that." There you're saying in previous generations, people are saying, "We don't care." And God is giving sign upon sign, supernatural signs, which by the way, if normal people saw them, they would believe, but God only shows them to people who disbelieve.

[1:24:15] I mean, and it just does not make any sense like what is the purpose of these things? So that has been my point. Now then we got to a final point where I did ask uh the brother I said, "So what is the miracle of the prophet sallallahu alaihi wasallam?" And he said, "The Quran." Now, this put me in a very uncomfortable position.

[1:24:43] Why? Because now I have to kind of and I don't want to talk down the qualities. I don't want to show that side of the Quran, but you're putting me in that position. And this was uh so as so what we went on to say was I said well how would you say the Quran is a miracle and he said well because of its Arabic and I said well but do you understand the Arabic he said no so I said so how do you know he said well you know other people so I said well you see most people do not speak Arabic and then most of those who do speak Arabic still

[1:25:21] can't fathom the miraculousness of the Arabic like they can understand it's an amazing Arabic, but they can't explain what the miracle is. So, how could a miracle be something that most of humanity just won't be able to fathom? So, that was my kind of point. Now, I just wanted to clarify on the discomfort part.

[1:25:48] Now the reason being look imagine somebody comes to you and says that the prophet is god that the prophet Muhammad sallallahu alaihi wasallam is god now we don't believe that that the prophet is god so he says no I believe it the prophet is god now you see part of your rebuttal will naturally mean that you will start to show to argue your point you're going to show several points of the prophet's humanness, his humanity, which is his weaknesses.

[1:26:24] Like you're going to say, well, that doesn't make sense because, you know, why would a god need to eat food? The prophet would get weak. The prophet fell ill. The prophet, you know, he died. the prophet all these things like you're going to start showing you see to refute the argument you're going to mention things which in some way unfortunately are showing the prophet in a weak light but that's what the argument the position is forcing you to do to because you're trying to show well he can't be God because can a god be somebody who dies can a god be somebody who this happens to can a god but

[1:27:03] you're doing it because the person is saying well look the prophet is God. So similarly I was uncomfortable in trying to look I don't want to downplay any attributes of the Quran. I don't want to do that because I'm a Muslim. Obviously the Quran has a very special position special place in my heart and in the hearts of all Muslims.

[1:27:28] But when you're going to use an argument like say look I even agreed. I said look the Quran is miraculous in the emotions and the experiences it creates subjectively but you can't say this is a universal you can't say well look anybody who hears the Quran will become Muslim because they the truth is they won't and you know many of the the Makkan Arabs didn't become and they understood it best they they had a better understanding of Arabic than anybody on the globe today so now you see when you have to highlight these things.

[1:28:03] It's like somebody else came on and he said, "Yeah, well, what about the of the of the the kind of gram the grammatical theat you know the what they call tishk in udu but which is called the harakat or the the vowing of the thing and I mentioned that look but there were certain grammarans who problematized I mentioned mazini and there were others as well it wasn't just mazini there were many of the basin were kind of very ruthless against some of the of the Quran because they said that the people were aim they were non-Arabs and the the Arabic was weak.

[1:28:38] So the reason I am giving this clarification of discomfort is because some people ask me that oh were you being abrupt and you kind of killed that conversation with that brother was this because you were feeling you know why and this is why because I don't like to be in a position where I have to speak like that about the Quran but my point was you're making an unacceptable claim.

[1:29:10] Your claim is that this is a universal miracle. Whoever hears it becomes Muslim. That's not true. Like as much as I would wish it was true, it's not. So let's just be real. We don't need to be insecure. We don't need to lie on behalf of Islam. So that was my point. Okay? And that's why I call that I kind of quashed that conversation because I was like this is making me feel uncomfortable.

[1:29:36] Um, it was not because I uh, you know, some people said, "Oh, were you scared of his argument?" Obviously, I'm not. I'm more than happy to entertain any argument, but it was just it's making me feel not too well discussing it. Okay. So, cool. Let's move on.

## Cite

Mufti Abu Layth Archive, segment eo90sV4JVHo/s/18. https://muftiabulayth.org/r/eo90sv4jvho/s/18/

Not a fatwa: these answers were given to specific people at specific times. Ask a qualified scholar about your own situation.