The Quran, A Miracle and Guidance
By Nouman Ali Khan | 2026-01-08T22:05:56.577529+00:00 | Topic: Quran
The Quran: A Miracle and Guidance
Nouman Ali Khan - Malaysia Tour 2015
Opening and Seeking Refuge
أَعُوذُ بِاللهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّحِيمِ - I seek refuge with Allah from the accursed Satan.
Verily, those who conceal what We have sent down of clear proofs and guidance after We have made it clear to the people in the Book, it is those whom Allah curses, and those who curse are the cursed.
Except for those who repent, amend, and make things clear, it is those whom I will forgive, and I am the Forgiving, the Merciful.
The Lord of the Heavens opens my heart and makes it easy for me to do His will. He is the one who unties my tongue and understands what I say. (Quran 20:25-28)
And all praise is due to Allah and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah and upon his family and companions.
السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ - Peace be upon you.
Introduction: Our Relationship with the Quran
Insha'Allah in these series of reminders, I'll try to take bits and pieces of the Quran. And my intention that ties all of these duroos together is going to be to maybe hopefully reinforce the nature of the relationship Muslims are supposed to have with the Quran.
What are some of the core aspects of the relationship that you and I have with the Quran? Generally, I think you and I have heard many talks and reminders and lectures about how we have to have a strong relationship with the Quran. But a lot of times we actually don't dive into what that means. What does that actually practically mean to have a relationship? And what is the seriousness of this matter?
Lessons from Banu Israel's Crime with Their Book
So, the first place I wanted to talk about is actually from Surah Al-Baqarah. And Allah is talking about people who were given a book before us, Banu Israel. And they were given revelation and then they lost it and it was reinforced for them over and over again with prophet after prophet after prophet. Finally, ending with Isa (peace be upon him).
And what they did with their book, a crime that they committed with their book. And now it's important to note that when Allah talks about what they did with their book, it's actually not just a history lesson about what they did in their times. As a matter of fact, the changes they made to the Torah, they didn't make those changes at the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him).
They made those changes a long time ago, you know. But Allah speaks about them as though they just made those changes. Which is strange, you know.
(يُحَرِّفُونَ الْكَلِمَ عَن مَّوَاضِعِهِ - They move the word from its place. (Quran 4:46)
Or they edit the word from its place. But they don't edit the word from its place. It's already fossilized, it's already been used that way for centuries and centuries. Actually, their crime was that they knew that it's been changed and they were okay with that. They didn't want to go back to the original book.
So in other words, the people who edited the book, and the people who were okay with that editing, or didn't want to revisit the original text, are equally criminal. So long as they were knowledgeable, they're equally criminal. But anyway, that's not the point I wanted to make today.
The Two Dimensions of the Quran: Clear Proofs and Guidance
The point I wanted to make today is how Allah depicts the crime. He says:
No doubt about those who hide what we have sent down. Having to do with the clearest proofs.
Now the first part of this يَكْتُمُونَ مَا أَنزَلْنَا مِنَ الْبَيِّنَاتِ suggests that there are some people who clearly know that the Quran is revelation. And they're hiding it anyway from their congregation. There are rabbis in Medina, that when they heard the Quran, they could tell immediately this is the confirmation of Torah.
All the truth in the Torah is captured in perfection in the Quran. But they still would hide it. They wouldn't share it with their congregation.
Then the next part وَالْهُدَى - Not just the clearest proofs and guidance. Now this is an important, sometimes when you read these things, you don't kind of know what Allah is saying. Allah says, what Allah sent down from the clearest proofs and from the guidance.
الْبَيِّنَاتِ وَالْهُدَى - Two things. Quran is two things. Quran is proof that it is from Allah. Itself it's the miracle. And Quran is also guidance. Which means my relationship with the Quran is also two parts.
One part of it is I have to appreciate what makes it miraculous. What makes it perfect. What's so amazing about the Quran. That's part of me internalizing the fact that it's from الْبَيِّنَات Now that I've internalized that, I'm completely comfortable with the fact that this is the word of Allah. Now I'm ready to listen to its guidance. Now when it gives me instructions, it's easy for me to follow.
So مِنَ الْبَيِّنَاتِ وَالْهُدَىٰ - They would hide the miraculous truth of the Quran. And of course thus they would block people's access from the guidance.
The Importance of Understanding Why Before What
So let me tell you both of these things are equally important. Equally important. You have an entire generation of Muslims today who don't know why they're praying. If you ask them, my parents make me pray, I don't even know the point.
We recite a lot of Quran but we don't know why. What's the big deal anyway if I don't do it? I mean I just do it because, you know, otherwise my parents would have high blood pressure or something. Otherwise I don't really see a reason.
You know why? Because the parents are emphasizing الهدى but they haven't established الْبَيِّنَاتِ. You have to be clear on why you're doing this. And if you're not clear on the why, then the what becomes less important. So when you have an entire huge generation of Muslims who just don't care about the what.
Yeah, I don't care about salah. I don't care about reciting Quran. I don't care about fasting. I don't care about these things. It's not because they don't care. Actually nobody's made it clear why these things are important.
And one of the goals of the book is not just to tell you what to do. That's the key here. The goal is not to tell you what to do. The goal is to tell you why should you believe in this book to begin with. It keeps reinforcing why you should believe. It keeps doing that.
The Shahada in Every Prayer: Revisiting Faith
And then it comes back. And by the way, I mentioned this in a dars I was giving on the Fatiha. When we say:
You alone we worship, and You alone we ask for help.
It's a declaration to Allah, isn't it? And a declaration to Allah that is very fundamental. Like we're entering into slavery of you, worship of you. You know what that's called generally? It's generally called becoming a Muslim. Like (إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ - Quranic expression for the Shahada).
That's what it is. And when someone takes Shahada, they've converted, yes? When they've converted, it's like they've realized that this is the truth. Fatiha, one of its benefits is actually somebody's come to the conclusion that this is the truth.
Then the question is, why are we reciting it so many times? Because part of the fundamental of our iman is actually we have to keep going back and revisiting why we're Muslim. It's not just something you come to and then you're okay with it. Fatiha forces you to arrive at that conclusion over and over and over and over again.
It's like you're taking Shahada every time you recite Fatiha. Every time you get to (إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ) And as soon as someone takes Shahada, they want to know what to do, isn't it? Now what do I do? How do I pray?
Guide us to the straight path.
It's like you're desperate immediately for guidance, subhanAllah.
The Problem of Inherited Religion
But you know what's happened to us? We're Muslim, alhamdulillah, because we're from a Muslim family, we're from a Muslim country, we're from Muslim heritage, etc. That's why we're Muslim. We don't revisit the why we're Muslim. We don't.
And that is an abandoning of the spirit of the original Quran. As a matter of fact, the great crime of Banu Israel was they thought their religion was inherited. Isn't it? They thought they were entitled to Islam.
And that's why they hid the Bayyinat. Because when you go back to the Bayyinat, you start seeing Islam differently. It becomes something far purer for you. And the way you seek guidance becomes different. It's not just a cultural thing that you happen to be living in a Muslim land or you happen to be from a Muslim family and that's why you're Muslim. Everything changes. Everything becomes refined and pure and original. So they hide that.
The Responsibility to Share Divine Guidance
And then they say (مِن بَعْدِ مَا بَيِّنَاهُ لِلنَّاسِ - Allah says, even after what we have clarified for people. (Quran 2:159)
Look at the beauty of these words. The accusation here made is against Banu Israel. And Allah says, even though we've clarified it for who? For all people. What does that mean? That this revival of this deen and coming back to the book of Allah, it's actually one of its core functions is that we have to share this word with other people. The word of Allah has to be shared. Allah made it clear Himself for people.
He didn't make it clear for the Muslims only. (مِن بَعْدِ مَا بَيِّنَاهُ لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ - No لِلنَّاسِ - لِلنَّاسِ)
In other words, the book itself has clarity and has a message for all of humanity to be shared. That's our responsibility. But you know, like the Arab saying goes:
(فَاقِدُ الشَّيْءِ لَا يُعْطِيهِ - Someone who doesn't have something can't give it.)
The Natural Urge to Share Something Beautiful
You can't give what you don't have. You and I have to embark on a journey of internalizing what makes the Quran miraculous, to appreciate the Quran, and to internalize and continually explore the guidance of the Quran. And the more you share something awesome, human nature, when human beings internalize something awesome, they have to share it.
When you take an epic photo, you have to post it. You have to do it. You can't just keep it to yourself. I doubt that any of you take a selfie with me and keep it. You know, even though I don't know what you get out of it, Photoshop is so much easier. But still, you know, when human beings, when you read an amazing book, you talk to other people about it, isn't it? If you enjoyed class today, you're gonna tell other people, Wow, that was an awesome class. I got the best sleep of my life today. You know? You'll share with people.
When you start taking in the word of Allah, Oh my God, it's eating away at you that you wanna share with people. You wanna tell people about it. This joy that you feel, just human beings have in their nature to want it to be shared. What better thing to share than the word of Allah? Not to debate with people, not to argue with people.
You know when people talk about da'wah, they start talking about debating with people or arguing with atheists or with Christians or Jews. No, no, no. Just sharing. Just sharing. Just clarifying what Allah said. That's all. Let Allah do the rest. Our job is just to clarify. That's it.
The Impact of Widespread Sharing
But if we embark on this journey, then the world will know what Islam is and the media won't matter. When a fifth of the world starts sharing this message, then it doesn't matter what anybody else says. It's already clear. Everybody's neighbor knows. You know? Subhanallah.
So (مِن بَعْدِ مَا بَيِّنَاهُ لِلنَّاسِ فِي الْكِتَابِ - Now, this is the last part.)
People who hide that message, Allah curses them and there are creations called la'inun, the cursers curse them.
In other words, there are angels whose only job is to curse those people. That's their only job.
How Muslims Can Hide the Book of Allah
You know, Allah is talking in this Quran now about people who have the revelation of Allah and they hide it. Yes? Isn't that the crime? They hide it. Now, the way the Jews did that was they changed the book. That's Allah's accusation of them in Quran. Banu Israel did it by changing the book. Is it possible that Muslims can hide the book of Allah? Is that possible? Yeah, in fact it is possible.
But it's not possible the same way that Banu Israel did it. The way Banu Israel did it is they changed the wording. The way they did it is, but that's not the only way. They did some other things too. They said that this book, this Taurat is only for the ulama. It's not for the people.
If you want to know what Taurat says, you go to the rabbi. You should just read it just for barakah and for ajr, for thawab. But you should not read it to try to understand it because if you try to understand it, you'll make mistakes. So you need to go to who? The ulama. And the ulama, you shouldn't question them because when you question them, it's like questioning Allah himself. That's what they did.
We would never do that. Oh wait, did some of that happen to the ummah? And as a result from humanity, even from when the book is hidden, even from Muslims. When the book is hidden from Muslims, imagine how much it's hidden from non-Muslims.
The Collective Responsibility of the Ummah
And that the crime isn't the scholars. The criminals are not the scholars or some scholars or whatever. The criminal is the entire ummah that doesn't take responsibility. The entire ummah is responsible. Our ulama, their job is to teach. Our job is to learn and to create a transparency between teacher and student.
There is no such thing as flawless human beings. There's no such thing. Just like there's no such thing as flawless scholars or speakers. Everybody has mistakes. And everybody is gonna be learning. But that culture has to be created where we're constantly seeking.
And nobody feels like they're so far high above that once I speak about this ayah or once I speak about this surah, that nothing else can be said about it. Wait, what? This is the word of Allah. It is al-uliyah, not tafsir.
The word of Allah is supreme. (Quran 9:40)
Not my interpretation of the word of Allah. That's not supreme. That's a human attempt to understand the perfect word of Allah. We're constantly gonna be learning. And we have to embark on that journey.
The Path of Redemption: Three Steps
Now, these are the people who Allah curses who hide the book of Allah. Who don't seek to clarify it. Or who are complacent and they're lazy. We don't wanna be from them. So the next ayah is for us. Hope.
Three parts. To what we could do to get out of the cursed group that hides the book of Allah. May Allah not make this ummah from them and any of us. (Quran 2:160)
First Step: Tawbah - Returning to Allah's Word
He says (إِلَّا الَّذِينَ تَابُوا - illa alladheena tabu) - Except those who made tawbah. Turn back to Allah. You know, tawbah literally, tawbah is in the meaning of raja'ah. To turn back. To go back to something. Meaning going back to Allah.
But in the context of these ayat, actually, it's tawbah going back to the word of Allah. It's not just going back to Allah. It's going back to the word of Allah.
So in other words, you were so far away. What happens to so many Muslims, they think of Quran as just one thing and then, you know, you could study other things too. It's all just Islam.
You know, they hear some story from some scholar. Or they hear something about the sahaba (رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمْ جَمِيعِينَ). Or they hear something about a hadith. Or they hear something, and it's all Islam. And Quran is just one of those things.
As a matter of fact, I was talking to some Islamic study students. They're talking about how they're studying uloom al-Quran or they're studying like history or something else. And the author, while he's talking, he quotes an ayah. He quotes an ayah. And then he goes on. And guess what the only part is that the students skip? The ayah. The ayah. The chapter is important. The ayah, ayah, ayah. Okay, yeah.
Subhanallah. The word of Allah gets the least attention, but the chapter is more important. This even happens to people that are studying Islam. Can you imagine?
(إِلَّا الَّذِينَ تَابُوا) - They go back to the word of Allah as the center. Everything else is in its shade. Everything else is understood in its light. It is given its supreme position. Number one.
Second Step: Islah - Rectification and Balance
(إِلَّا الَّذِينَ تَابُوا وَأَصْلَحُوا) - And they're able to reconcile, rectify. Let me tell you something. This might sound maybe difficult to process, but I have to share it with you. You know, for some people, when they become religious, the most important thing is (حَلَالًا حَرَامًا) Ice cream is haram, and those color socks are haram, et cetera, et cetera. (حَلَالًا حَرَامًا) becomes the most important thing.
For some other people who become Muslim, the school of thought that they follow becomes the most important thing. Which one are you? Give me the label. Right? That becomes it.
For some other people, it's the group that they sit in, the sheikh that they listen to, that's the most important thing. So you know what people do when they become turned to deen? They pick something and that becomes what? The most important thing. And they see all of Islam through that. And they judge other Muslims through that.
You know the first thing you're supposed to be exposed to when you come into Islam? When you take Islam seriously? What brought the first generation to Islam? What did the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) give to Quraysh to bring them to Islam? How did he introduce them? How did he turn those people into sahaba? It was the word of Allah.
Because when you come back to the word of Allah, then yes, fiqh is still important, sharia is still important, halal and haram is still important, but everything is in its proper place. You don't get to prioritize one thing over another because Allah's book balances everything out. You know? That's why putting the book of Allah in its place actually makes correction. When you don't put the book of Allah in its place, and you emphasize one thing over the other thing, then you create imbalances in our society.
(إِلَّا الَّذِينَ تَابُوا وَأَصْلَحُوا) - They corrected. They brought things back to where they're supposed to be.
Third Step: Bayyan - Clarification to Others
And then (وَبَيِّنُوا) - And then they clarified. In other words, you guys are learning. Right now you're learning. And part of your job is to learn and refine your relationship with the book of Allah. And the more you learn, what are you supposed to do? Clarify it to others. (وَبَيَّنُوا) - It's a lifelong journey.
Those are the people I turn back to. Those are the people Allah's special blessings are on. (Quran 2:160)
The people who go back to His word. The people who go back and say, you know what? I want a pure understanding of this deen. I want to learn from the ulema and I want to be able to ask them about the word of Allah. I want its priorities to become my priorities. That's what I want. I want its word to dictate how I should think.
May Allah (عَزَّ وَجَلَّ) make us from those who truly put the word of Allah in its place. Its central, central place in the mind of the Muslim.
A Hadith About Knowledge Disappearing
You know, I'll leave you with one hadith. It's so beautiful. So, so beautiful.
Rasulullah (صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ) was describing the day of judgment. And he was worried that when the judgment day comes near, he mentioned one of its signs. He said:
This will happen when knowledge disappears.
So a time will come near judgment day where what will disappear? Knowledge. And the sahabi, he asked:
O Messenger of Allah, how can knowledge disappear?
How can knowledge disappear? We recite the Quran. And we make our kids recite it. And their kids will make their kids recite it. How can knowledge disappear?
The Prophet (صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ) did not say, Quran will disappear. What did he say? Knowledge will disappear.
But the sahabi did not say, how can knowledge disappear when we learn so many other things? He said, how can knowledge disappear when the fundamental knowledge, the thing that protects all knowledge is still there? Which is what? To him, it's Quran. He couldn't think of anything else but Quran.
The Disconnect Between Knowledge and the Quran Today
But now think about that hadith. If the sahabi are thinking that knowledge is what? Quran. And you go to Muslims today who are ready to argue with you the shafi'i opinion versus the maliki opinion. But they don't know what Surah Al-A'raf says about shaitan.
They're ready to argue with you this fatwa versus that fatwa. But they don't know what Allah tells us about Musa (عَلَيْهِ السَّلام) in Surah Al-Qasas. Is Quran disappearing? From the hearts and minds of the Muslims, is it disappearing? Is other discussions, other conversations, other subject matter taking its place? Sure.
Those things are important. But they have a place. Something is fundamental to all Muslims. And that's the word of Allah. That's the word of Allah. It has a fundamental place.
Embracing the Journey with Gratitude
This journey that you guys are taking on is a beautiful one. It's a beautiful one. And part of it, as you start learning today, you're like, you just spent four hours today, yeah? And in those four hours, some things about the way you read Quran changed.
Some things are sticking out. Some combinations are like punching you in the face when you read them. Some ending sounds are just messing with you. Hey wait, is that? Oh my God. I think I, whoa. And then you start feeling guilty.
Well, why wasn't I doing this my whole life? How come I'm doing this now? I've wasted so much time. Don't feel guilty. Feel blessed that you're breathing and Allah is letting you come closer to His word. That's how you should feel.
You should feel that Allah is letting you be from the people (إِلَّا الَّذِينَ تَابُوا) - You coming all the way driving here, you're coming back to the word of Allah.
(وَأَصْلَحُوا) - And you're making efforts to reconcile yourself. And inshallah ta'ala, all of you that are students, I pray all of you are teachers. To one, to a thousand, to a million, that doesn't matter.
But all of you are here to internalize and benefit for yourselves and to teach others. Because that's how the word of Allah is continued. And that is how Allah turns His attention back to this ummah with rahmah.
That's what we want. This is why we're here. When people say, what's the ummah is in such a crisis. We're in so much torture and humiliation and difficulty. I say, well Allah says He'll turn back to us if we just turn back to His book. So, let's do that.
Let's more and more of us do that. And you know what, let's see how Allah turns back to us. We believe in Allah's promise. We believe in it, you know.
Conclusion
So I leave you with that inshallah ta'ala. Just some things to reflect on for ourselves. These are ayat 159 and 160 of surah al-Baqarah. May Allah (عَزَّ وَجَلَّ) increase and strengthen our faith.
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(بَارَكَ اللهُ لِي وَلَكُمْ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ)
Thanks for watching guys I hope you benefited. I'd like to encourage you to actually embark on a comprehensive journey into the Quran. I've done a video translation and explanation of the entire Quran. It's called Quran cover to cover. I'd like you to check it on Al-Bayyinah TV. Just do a little bit of it everyday. And before you know it, you'll have gone through the entire Quran in translation with me. Hope you can take part.
(السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ)