Az-Zukhruf · Makki · ayah 4 of 89

Az-Zukhruf 43:4

وَإِنَّهُۥ فِىٓ أُمِّ ٱلْكِتَـٰبِ لَدَيْنَا لَعَلِىٌّ حَكِيمٌ

“And indeed it is, in the Mother of the Book[1430] with Us, exalted and full of wisdom.[1431]”

Saheeh International

Essence

Before anyone accepted or rejected it, the Quran stood high with Allah in the Mother of the Book, and no vote of ours moves it.

A reflection

Exalted with Us, whatever you decide

The word ladaynā, with Us, can attach to two places in this sentence, and one classical scholar sets out both. It may describe the Mother of the Book: the Quran is in the record that is with Us. Or it may attach to the description that follows: with Us, it is exalted and wise. That is, it is not with Us as it is with those who deny it. Even if you reject it, it stands with Us at the height of rank, honour and firmness.

One early Successor summed it up as a message to Makkah. If you deny the Quran, it is still exalted, noble and firm with Us.

That sentence quietly takes away a power we like to think we have. We are used to deciding the worth of things. We rate restaurants, review books, upvote and dismiss. Somewhere in us is the assumption that a thing's value is settled by our response to it.

Picture a teenager on a school walking trip who reaches the summit in the rain. On a hiking app he types: overrated, just rocks and fog, two stars. The mountain stands exactly where it stood. The cloud lifts an hour later on a view he did not wait for.

The ego bristles at that. It wants its verdict to count. The ayah answers the ego without anger. The Quran's rank was fixed before any of us formed an opinion of it.

Someone may ask why Allah tells us how highly He regards His own Book. Is that not self-promotion? One commentary answers that He declared its honour in the highest assembly for a reason. It was so that the people of earth would honour it, obey it and be guided. He loses nothing if we refuse. The announcement is for us. It tells us where the height is, so that we know which way is up.

The full entry has 5 more reflections, questions to sit with, and "Live it today" - with the words, the roots and the tafsir alongside. Free, no account, works offline.