What is an ayat? This word, often translated as verse, Quranic verse, can it be reduced to this simple idea of a unit of measure of the Book of Allah? This is the question we will try to address in this text in order to better grasp what makes the particularity of this word throughout the Quran, which, let us always remember, is not just any text but the Word of Allah.
An Ayat: a verse, a sentence? Neither of the two
An Ayat is the unit of measure, if one may say so, of the Quran, which, grouped together with several other Ayat, constitutes another unit of measure that is the Surah. Yet one cannot clearly translate this term into another language.
Indeed, given that the Quran is the Word of Allah and that it resembles no other text of literature, for Allah, to Him the Glory and the Majesty, has His own standard when He expresses Himself.
A text of literature is generally organized into sentences, then into paragraphs, into chapters, to form a whole whose designation will change according to the intended genre. A poem, for its part, will follow a particular organization into lines, then stanzas, but the Quran has its own codes that resemble no other text.
Thus the word Ayat too cannot be translated correctly without risking reducing its comprehension, for its essence is not well grasped.
Here are a few examples to illustrate the error of translating an ayat as a verse or a sentence:
In Surah Ar-Rahman, Ayats 1 and 2, Allah, to Him the Glory and the Majesty, says:
- The Most Merciful
- (He) has taught the Quran
In a typical sentence we find the subject followed by the verb and possibly the object. Here, Allah has presented the subject (Himself) in one ayat. Then the fact that He taught the Quran, in the second Ayat. We therefore have 2 ayat for what is one sentence.
He separated them because He establishes His discourse with a style and a knowledge that eludes us. We can clearly see that a single name or word can be an Ayat. Just as 9 complete sentences one after another can constitute a single, unique Ayat, as illustrated by the example of Ayat Al-Kursi, Ayat 255 of Surah Al-Baqarah:
To call an Ayat a sentence is therefore an error.
In Ayat 41 of Surah 69 Al-Haqqah, Allah reveals to us that His Word which the prophet recites to us is not the word of a poet... how can one assign to it terms proper to poetry when God teaches us that it is not so?
"and it is not the word of a poet; but little do you believe"
To translate Ayat as verse is therefore "unjust," disrespectful towards our Lord. WaLaho a'lem
But then what does Allah call an Ayat?
The word Ayat in the Holy Quran
Creation is an Ayat:
An Ayat can be a clear proof:
The Ayat also represents the events of the end of times, may Allah preserve us from them:
Allah, to Him the Glory, teaches us in the Quran that the meaning of an Ayat goes far beyond a unit of measure. Understanding an ayat through the Quran sometimes does not need Tafsir. It is enough to experience what Allah asks us to live.
Thus our Lord informs us that the prophet Yusuf, peace be upon him, and his brothers are ayat for those who question (S. 12 V. 7), just as the creation of the Universe, of the heavens, of the Earth and of all that our life contains, such as the love and kindness between spouses, are Signs coming from Him.
For example, when He tells us in Surah Al-Mulk (The Sovereignty) "do they not see the birds above...?" (S. 67 V. 19), it is a call to meditate by looking at the sky and the birds, to proclaim the greatness of Allah, the Creator of these birds and of this sky, and of all things.
A Sign. Is it not an indication meant to point somewhere to tell us to look in that direction? To seek to understand in that direction?
Understanding the origin and the various meanings of the word Ayat
The word ayat in Arabic comes from the root ء ي ي and 8 meanings derive from this root.
- preciousness
In ancient Arabic, when people struck camp after a more or less long stay in the desert, in tents, they left behind them certain traces of their passage. They took with them only their personal belongings, the most important ones: Ayatihim (اياتم). Likewise, when they were attacked by thieves, only the most precious belongings were quickly carried away. Thus Allah uses a term understood by the people of our prophet Muhammad, may peace and blessings be upon him.
In life, some things are more important than others. Everything He has created is precious; life itself is precious.
- a question
In Arabic, this short formulation is used to ask a question. It is the particle of the interrogative form to say, for example, "which book?"
In this sense, an ayat in the Quran is meant to be a word or a sequence of words that must call out to us, lead us to ask ourselves questions about the meaning of life, about ourselves, about the creation of Allah, our behaviours, and so on.
Allah often repeats questions such as "do you not remember?", "why do you not reflect?". His Signs are there to make us become aware of many things.
- a direction
An ayat is something that points somewhere. Everything cited by Allah under the term of Ayat, all of Creation, is a Sign that points towards Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, so that we remember Him.
- the exclamatory form
In Arabic, it is the formulation to express one's astonishment, one's surprise.
For example: What a beautiful house!
An Ayat is something grandiose that drives one to wonder.
- attention
The word Ayat therefore comes from the Arabic root used to call out to someone.
For example: O you!
Thus an Ayat is there to draw our attention and keep us alert, awake.
- affirmation with certainty
An Ayat is also a root that gave the affirmative form used to say that one is certain. This time, an Ayat is there to bring us proofs, to convince us.
- that has meaning
This root is used to give the explanation of a word, of a sentence. It is used to signify what has not been well grasped. "that which means...", "implied...".
- a sign
An Ayat can be a sign, just as in Surah Al-Imran, Allah made the prophet Zachariah mute as a proof of what had just been announced to him: the imminent birth of a son.
Conclusion
In view of all these details explained in the light of the different meanings in Arabic of the root of the word Ayat, the latter could not be reduced to the translation of verse even if it is the term most commonly used in all languages.
The Quran is the Holy Word of Allah, our Lord, the All-Knowing, the One who encompasses all things by His Knowledge. The terms He, to Him the Majesty and the Glory, uses in addressing us should be preserved to the highest degree to avoid an alteration of the meaning, and He is the Most Knowing. WaLaho A'lem!
May He take us into His mercy and accept from us all our efforts in the pursuit of His Pleasure. Amin
To write this text, we used the explanations of our brother Nouman Ali Khan, founder of the Bayyinah Institute (Texas).