Major themes and text types God Spiritual beings Satan - the symbol of evil and disobedience Creation Earlier prophetic figures Fait and other religions Historical events of the Prophet's time Life after death Human behaviour Types of texts in the Qur'an Summary Recommended reading Notes 62 64 64 65 66 69 70 72 73 14 79 79 80MAJOR THEMES AND TEXT TYPES EVERAL MAJOR THEMES APPEAR IN THE QUR’AN, all of which revolve around the central theme of God's relationship to human beings. Creation, the early prophets, and life after death are other major themes that make up the Qur’anic text. Because references to each of the major themes appear throughout the Qur’anic text, they are not always easy to separate. Each time one of these themes is mentioned the Qur'an highlights a different facet of it in the particular wording of passages. Although there are many different themes in the Qur'an, the reader will quickly notice the constant invocation of God’s names that occurs through- out the text. This repeated invocation consistently and subtly invites the reader to reflect on two of the Qur’an’s most important themes, namely the nature of God and the essential relationship between the Creator and His creation. In this chapter we will discuss: * some of the most important themes in the Qus’an, including God, spiritual beings, Satan, God’s creations, early prophets, the Qur’anic view of other religions, historical events of the Prophet’s time, life after death, and ethical and moral guidelines for human behaviour; and * the main types of text in the Quran. God During the Prophet Muhammad’s time, many of the Arabs in Mecca and Medina were polytheists; they believed in both higher and lesser gods. Like monotheists of the time, they also believed in a single higher God (al-ilab or Allah, ‘the God’). Unlike monotheists, however, they believed that Allah existed in the heavens, and lesser gods existed to serve as intermediaries between Allah and human beings. One of the primary themes of the Qur’an is its rejection of these polytheistic ideas and its affirmation of the concept of one God. There are numerous references to and descriptions of God in the Qur'an. For instance, the Qur'an states that God possesses innumerable names that refer to His attributes. Some of the names mentioned in the Qur'an include the Merciful, the Compassionate, the Creator, the Omnipotent, the Dispenser of Rewards, the Reckoner and the Wise. Ninety-nine of God’s ‘most beautiful names’ are known, although the most common one, which encompasses all His attributes, is simply ‘Allah’.MAJOR THEMES AND TEXT TYPES The names of God Muslims believe God has 99 ‘names’ or ‘beautiful names’, or attributes. These are found in the Qur’an and hadith. The most frequently used name is simply Allah, ‘the God’. Some of His other names are as follows: Lord of Mercy Creator Tremendous Giver of Mercy Forgiver Eternal True King Ever Giving Ever Living Holy One All Knowing Self-Subsistent Source of Peace Alll Seeing Truth Guardian Most Forbearing Giver of Life Almighty Most Loving Further references to God are found throughout the Qur'an, from which we are able to form an idea of who God is. For instance, God is described as the Creator of everything in the universe, including life and death. It is also said that all things belong to Him alone. He is just, and rewards handsomely those who are virtuous but punishes those who reject His guidance. We are told that He has complete knowledge of all things and cannot be restricted or limited in any way. The Qur'an also states that God has no sons or daughters: ‘He fathered no one nor was He fathered.”! We are reminded that God is ‘the Compassionate’ and that He hears the prayers of believers and watches over everyone. As we read the Qur'an, it becomes quickly apparent that God is one of its most prevalent themes, In fact, we would be unlikely to find a page of the Qur'an without a reference to God. One of the most important aspects of this theme is that, although the Qur'an at times uses anthropomorphic terms to describe God (such as references to His ‘hand’ or ‘face’), it also empha- tically denies that there are any similarities between God and human beings. It reminds us that He is like nothing that we know. Below is the famous “Verse of Light’, which uses complex imagery to convey to us some idea about who or what God is: God is the Light of the heavens and earth, His Light is like this: there is a niche, and in it a lamp, the lamp inside a glass, a glass like a glittering star, fuelled from a blessed olive tree from neither east nor west, whose oil almost gives light even when no fire touches it - light upon light — God guides whoever He wills to His light; God draws such comparisons for people; God has full knowledge of everything,? 63