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 Many people misunderstand the Quran’s literary challenge
to produce something like it. Many people assume it simply means writing something
as “good” as the Quran.
Because of this, many skeptics point out – and rightly
so – that literary value judgments are highly subjective. If someone says that
he thinks a certain selection of prose or poetry is better than the Quran, who
can argue with him? Isn’t it really a matter of personal judgment and taste? Who
is to be the arbiter?
The Quran’s challenge, however, is not simply to write
something of equal literary merit, but rather to produce something like the
Quran.
We can see this in all the verses of challenge. God
says:
“Say (O Muhammad) if mankind and jinn were to come together to
produce something like this Quran, they would not be able to do so, even if
they were to help one another.” (Quran 17:88)
God says:
“Or they say: ‘He has forged it.’ Say: ‘Then bring ten forged
chapters like it and If then they do not answer you, know that it is sent down
with the Knowledge of God, besides Whom there is no other God. Will you then
be Muslims?” (Quran 11:13)
God says:
“Or do they say ‘He has forged it.’ Say: ‘Then bring a
chapter like it and call and call whoever you can besides God if you are
truthful’.” (Quran 10:38)
God says:
“And if you are in doubt concerning that which We have sent
down to Our servant, then produce a chapter like it and call your witnesses
besides God if you be truthful. If you do not do so – and you will never do so
– then fear a fire whose fuel is men and stones prepared for the disbelievers.”
(Quran 2:23-24)
Therefore, it is not simply a matter of quality – it does
not even have to be of equal merit! Similarity is all that matters. What is
required by the challenge is to achieve at least a comparable degree of the
literary beauty, nobility, and sublimity of the Quran while at the same time
emulating the Quran’s particular style.
It is possible to superficially mimic the style of the
Quran, and many people have been successful in doing so – but all such attempts
from the days of Musailimah to the present have proven to be silly and absurd,
and have often invoked laughter and derision. This is the unanimous consensus
of everyone who has ever heard or read those attempts.
It is, likewise, possible for a person writing in Arabic
to reach a great level of literary excellence and, in the most moving of poetry
and prose, convey the noblest thoughts and sentiments – but nobody has ever
done so using the Quran’s particular style.
And what an elusive style it has proven to be! The Quran
is neither in Arabic prose nor in what is acknowledged as Arabic verse. It is
not written in a combination of both prose and poetry, but in neither of those
modes. It is unique. At the same time, the Quran is internally consistent in
maintaining its unique style.
Only the Quran achieves the highest level of literary
excellence – so much so that it brings people to ecstasy and tears – while
maintaining this style.
This, then, is the acid test: Write something in the
exact same style as the Quran and in doing so produce something of arguably
similar quality and sublimity.
Still, one could argue that the evaluation of the
results is still grounded in subjective literary tastes. This is agreed. However,
the second part of the challenge is to bring witnesses to attest to the quality
of that evaluation, not just to stand there and make the claim.
Throughout history, people have attempted to write in
the style of the Quran. The results have always been so laughable that no one
would venture to say that he believes the effort equals the Quran in literary
merit. The reason why no one would dare do so is not the fear of reprisal – as
some skeptics have suggested – but rather the fear of looking like a complete
idiot. One early example was:
Al-Feel
Mal-Feel
Wa maa adraaka mal-feel
Lahu dhanabun radheel, wa khurtoomun taweel
…which translates as:
The Elephant –
What is the elephant?
And what would have you know what the elephant is?
It has a scraggly tail and a very long trunk.
We can grant that this is a successful attempt at
imitating the superficial style of the Quran. It is clearly modeled after the
opening verses of Surah al-Qaari`ah or Surah al-Haaqqah. However, with such
fare on offer, it is no surprise that people are unwilling to stake their
reputation on attesting to its literary excellence.
We should pause to consider: What other literary style
can we think of which has produced an indisputably great work of literature but
is at the same time guaranteed to bring the most wretched failure to anyone
else who tries his hand at it?
Generally, it is not a bad idea for a writer to emulate a
successful style. However, a challenge to produce a single chapter like the
Quran – the shortest chapter being merely three verses of modest length – has
proven impossible to meet.
We should remember that not all Arabic speakers are
Muslim. Many are Christians and Jews. Some are atheists. They live all over
the world. Among all of these non-Muslim Arabs, there are leading poets and
prose writers and important literary critics. None of them claim that they or
anyone else has produced a literary work that resembles the Quran in both style
and quality.
For an Arabic speaker, this is an obvious thing. Any
Arab who looks at people’s attempts to write in the Quran’s style usually
breaks out in laughter at its awkwardness or banality.
For non-Arabic speakers, though they cannot experience
this directly, they can ascertain that no serious literary claim has been made.
Granted, there is subjectivity in any literary
evaluation. This would pose a problem in a challenge with a single judge or a
panel of judges, or if there is a biased criterion like “only Muslims scholars
can be judges”.
However, there is no such restriction in the challenge.
The general consensus of the international Arabic
literary community – and the Arab masses – is that nothing exists to meet the
challenge. This is an objective yardstick.
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