Appendix 4: Total Twafi And Rafa’a Means Total Ascension
توفي، رفع
Note: This is the fourth of a series of articles written by the Author on various occasions that have bearing on the topics of the book, and hence they have been included in it as appendices.
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فَبِمَا نَقْضِهِمْ مِيثَاقَهُمْ وَكُفْرِهِمْ بِآيَاتِ اللَّهِ وَقَتْلِهِمُ الْأَنْبِيَاءَ بِغَيْرِ حَقٍّ وَقَوْلِهِمْ قُلُوبُنَا غُلْفٌ بَلْ طَبَعَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهَا بِكُفْرِهِمْ فَلَا يُؤْمِنُونَ إِلَّا قَلِيلًا
“Then because of their breaking of their covenant, and their disbelieving in the revelations of Allah, and their slaying of the prophets wrongfully, and their saying: Our hearts are hardened - Nay, but Allah set a seal upon them for their disbelief, so that they believe not save a few.” (4:155)
وَبِكُفْرِهِمْ وَقَوْلِهِمْ عَلَىٰ مَرْيَمَ بُهْتَانًا عَظِيمًا
“And for their disbelief and for their utterance against Mary a grievous calumny.” (4:156)
وَقَوْلِهِمْ إِنَّا قَتَلْنَا الْمَسِيحَ عِيسَى ابْنَ مَرْيَمَ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ وَمَا قَتَلُوهُ وَمَا صَلَبُوهُ وَلَٰكِنْ شُبِّهَ لَهُمْ وَإِنَّ الَّذِينَ اخْتَلَفُوا فِيهِ لَفِي شَكٍّ مِنْهُ مَا لَهُمْ بِهِ مِنْ عِلْمٍ إِلَّا اتِّبَاعَ الظَّنِّ وَمَا قَتَلُوهُ يَقِينًا
“And for their saying (in boast): Verily we have slain the 'Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the Apostle of God, and they slew him not, and they crucified him not, but (it) became dubious unto them; and indeed those who differ therein are only in doubt about (it) they have no knowledge about the (real) matter, pursuing (only) a conjecture; and certainly, they slew him not.” (4:157)
بَلْ رَفَعَهُ اللَّهُ إِلَيْهِ وَكَانَ اللَّهُ عَزِيزًا حَكِيمًا
“But God raised (lifted) him up unto Himself; And God is Mighty, Wise!” (4:158)
After negating emphatically Jesus being killed, the Qur’an has affirmed by using the particle ‘bal’ (بل) that God has raised him (Jesus) towards Him. This particle was used to negate all the suggestions that contradicted what really happened. According to the Qur'an what really took place was the raising (lifting) of Jesus (in body and soul) by God towards Him.
In this conflicting issue there remains one undisputed fact, that Jesus disappeared from the visible world. The disappearance of Jesus could have occurred in the following ways. First, separation of soul from the body by Jesus being killed. Second, by way of natural death and third, disappearance of Jesus from the visible world by raising him in soul and body from this world towards Himself.
In the first two cases, the term 'Twafi’ (توفي) can be used, but it implies the raising of soul from the visible world towards Almighty God and the burial of the body in the terrestrial world, which is partial 'Twafi’. In the last case it is ‘Twafi' but in the highest sense of a total hold by the Almighty over the person of Jesus.
If the separation of body from soul by way of killing was emphatically negated, it meant that the other manner of separation i.e., natural death: then the death should have been affirmed after the use of the particle ‘bal’ in the following manner, “Certainly they did not kill him, on the contrary God made him die and then raised him.
But the Qur'anic verse as it is after negation of killing and the use or “bal” affirms the raising (of Jesus) which means total twafi in its fullest sense i.e. the ‘raising’ or body and soul together from this visible world. This total twafi or complete ‘raising’ is another exceptional manifestation of Divine Will in the case of Jesus.
He was not raised in body and soul from this visible world towards Him by the process of ‘separation’1. However, according to the Qur'an the process of separation of body from the soul in some stages of existence or others is inevitable for every finite living being such as Jesus is not exempted from undergoing this process.
وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَيَّ يَوْمَ وُلِدْتُ وَيَوْمَ أَمُوتُ وَيَوْمَ أُبْعَثُ حَيًّا
“And peace be on me the day I was born, and the day I die, and the day I am raised alive.” (19:33)
Therefore, he should come down to the visible sphere and undergo the inevitable before the final resurrection.
God raised Jesus (with soul and body) towards Himself in a manner that the non-physical beings assume bodies and these bodies were transformed into spirit. This kind of total departure, ‘twafi’ (توفي) which means special hold of God on Jesus in lifting him from the visible world into the invisible sphere in the same manner that God has a hold over the soul and body of every person at night (in sleep) and 'He' releases both soul and body in the day, (state of awakening) for certain period.
In this special case of Jesus, He exercises His hold by raising his soul and body into the invisible sphere for a period that may appear to us as long one. Again, 'He' will send him (Jesus) in soul and body back to the terrestrial realm. This return or descent will take place at the time when a witness will be brought from every nation, and when a group of people (not all of them) from every community of disbelievers will be brought again into the visible life.
It should be realized here that whatever appears in any sphere of existence, from the highest spiritual and angelical beings down to the material beings of four-dimensional sphere, and up again to the various stages of ascension, and development into various material species - inanimate and animate, such as plants, animals and man - all are manifestations and outcome of His creative and administrative will which is termed in the Qur'an as ‘kun’ (كُن) meaning ‘Be!’. All manifestations are termed as ‘fayakun’ (فَيَكُونُ) meaning ‘then it is’ as result of the imperative 'be!’.
In this sense, every creature is the word of God and an outcome of His creative and administrative command. The exercise by the Almighty's conscious creatures their limited will, as directed by Him as submission to His will, is termed as His Legislative Will. The highest form of this Legislative Will is communicated directly or through the angels or prophets to 'man' who is the highest and most complex creature in the hierarchy of material beings. This legislative Will is termed as 'kitab' (كتاب) or 'word of God' which His vicegerents on earth were commissioned to preach.
Having this picture in mind, one should know that the clause ‘kun fayakun’ (كُن فَيَكُونُ) - meaning ‘be! And then it is’ - though applies to every entity of every sphere, yet the Qur'an has emphatically used this clause in the following eight places:
بَدِيعُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَإِذَا قَضَىٰ أَمْرًا فَإِنَّمَا يَقُولُ لَهُ كُنْ فَيَكُونُ
“He is the (wonderful) Originator of the heavens and the earth, and when He decreeth an affair He only sayeth to it ‘Be!’ and then it is’.” (2:117)
قَالَتْ رَبِّ أَنَّىٰ يَكُونُ لِي وَلَدٌ وَلَمْ يَمْسَسْنِي بَشَرٌ قَالَ كَذَٰلِكِ اللَّهُ يَخْلُقُ مَا يَشَاءُ إِذَا قَضَىٰ أَمْرًا فَإِنَّمَا يَقُولُ لَهُ كُنْ فَيَكُونُ
“Said she: O' my Lord! How can I have a son when hath not touched me (any) man? He said: Even so doth God create whatsoever He willeth; When He decreeth a thing, then He only said unto it ‘Be! And then it is’.” (3:47)
إِنَّ مَثَلَ عِيسَىٰ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ كَمَثَلِ آدَمَ خَلَقَهُ مِنْ تُرَابٍ ثُمَّ قَالَ لَهُ كُنْ فَيَكُونُ
“Verily, with God the similitude of Jesus is as the similitude of Adam; He created him out of dust then said He unto him ‘Be! And it was’.” (3:59).
وَهُوَ الَّذِي خَلَقَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ بِالْحَقِّ وَيَوْمَ يَقُولُ كُنْ فَيَكُونُ
“And He it is Who created the heavens and the earth with truth: and the day He sayeth ‘Be!’ And then it is….” (6:73)
إِنَّمَا قَوْلُنَا لِشَيْءٍ إِذَا أَرَدْنَاهُ أَنْ نَقُولَ لَهُ كُنْ فَيَكُونُ
“Verily only Our word for a thing when We will it is that We say unto it, ‘Be!’ and then it is.” (16:40)
مَا كَانَ لِلَّهِ أَنْ يَتَّخِذَ مِنْ وَلَدٍ سُبْحَانَهُ إِذَا قَضَىٰ أَمْرًا فَإِنَّمَا يَقُولُ لَهُ كُنْ فَيَكُونُ
“It beseemeth not God that He should take unto Himself a son, glory be to Him; when a matter is decreed, He only sayeth unto it ‘Be!’ and then it is.” (19:35)
إِنَّمَا أَمْرُهُ إِذَا أَرَادَ شَيْئًا أَنْ يَقُولَ لَهُ كُنْ فَيَكُونُ
“But His command, when intendeth He anything, is only that He sayeth unto it ‘Be!’ then (and there) it is.” (36:82)
هُوَ الَّذِي يُحْيِي وَيُمِيتُ فَإِذَا قَضَىٰ أَمْرًا فَإِنَّمَا يَقُولُ لَهُ كُنْ فَيَكُونُ
“He it is Who giveth life and causeth death, and when He decreeth an affair, He only sayeth unto it, ‘Be!’ And then it is.” (40:68)
Where the course of creation takes a new turn, or an extraordinary phenomenon appears in certain sphere of creation, it may be termed as miracle or exceptional manifestation of the divine creative and administrative will. The creation of Adam from inanimate matter or the appearance of life in lifeless matter, pregnancy of an extremely aged or barren woman through an aged man are other examples.
Changing a wooden rod into a living dragon, shifting of heavy throne over a remote distance within the twinkling of an eye, transformation of clay into a real bird, bringing a dead person to life, instant curing of a blind and deaf person without applying any medicine and making some persons sleep for three hundred years or more in a cave are a few extraordinary manifestations of the creative command of God.
The pregnancy of Virgin Mary through the spirit sent by God i.e. Jesus coming into existence in her womb as the word of God is one of the outstanding examples of ‘Kun Fa Yakun’. Similar to the extraordinary way of Jesus coming into the terrestrial realm, as the manifestation of the imperative Will of God, his departure was another extraordinary and exceptional manifestation of divine creative command. He was not killed as stated in the beginning and nor was he crucified.
It should be remembered that the Qur'an declares the birth and departure of Jesus as an extraordinary manifestation of the creative command of God and blames those idolaters who compared Jesus with their idols (deities) for the sake of mere dispute.
وَلَمَّا ضُرِبَ ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ مَثَلًا إِذَا قَوْمُكَ مِنْهُ يَصِدُّونَ
“And when was set forth (Jesus) son of Mary as an instance (of Our power), lo thy people laughed out (in ridicule).” (43:57)
وَقَالُوا أَآلِهَتُنَا خَيْرٌ أَمْ هُوَ مَا ضَرَبُوهُ لَكَ إِلَّا جَدَلًا بَلْ هُمْ قَوْمٌ خَصِمُونَ
“And they say: ‘Are our gods better or is HE’. They do not set it forth unto thee but by way of disputation; nay! They are a contentious people.” (43:58)
إِنْ هُوَ إِلَّا عَبْدٌ أَنْعَمْنَا عَلَيْهِ وَجَعَلْنَاهُ مَثَلًا لِبَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ
“He was nothing but a servant of ours on whom We bestowed favour (giving him the miracles) and made him an example (of our power) unto the children of Israel.” (43:59)
وَلَوْ نَشَاءُ لَجَعَلْنَا مِنْكُمْ مَلَائِكَةً فِي الْأَرْضِ يَخْلُفُونَ
“And had We willed, certainly We could have made from among you angels to be in the earth successors.” (43:60)
Notwithstanding the Qur'anic emphasis on the fact that Jesus's case is an exceptional manifestation of the divine will, it is surprising how a believer in the truth of the Qur'an dares to interpret the verses of the Qur'an concerning Jesus to prove his birth or departure as absolutely one of the numerous ordinary manifestations of the divine creative command.
The belief of Jews about Jesus as compared to the belief of Christians is diametrically opposed. The Jews believed that he was an illegitimate child and was an impostor who was killed and crucified and that his body was buried from where his disciples had stolen and concealed it. The Christians believe that he was a legitimate child of Virgin Mary, who was married to Joseph the carpenter, and she became pregnant in a spiritual way before marriage. Thus, Jesus was the adopted son of Joseph, not his real son.
However, despite the confusing and contradictory statements of four gospels about the birth and genealogy of Jesus, they agree that she was pregnant without meeting any human male. There are also confusing statements regarding his ministry and his departure from this terrestrial world. But the common belief among them is that he was condemned by the Jews as an imposter, was arrested, and was crucified along with the two sinners on the gibbet and his body was brought down from the gibbet and buried in the graveyard.
After three days or less he was bodily raised to the heaven and appeared after a day or two to his disciples and told them that he would come down again to the terrestrial world for the establishment of divine kingdom on earth. Later he disappeared again. Further, they assert that he was the son of God, or the uncreated word of God identified with Him, and thus he was His incarnation.
It is obvious that both the Jewish and Christian beliefs about Jesus are in utter contrast to each other. One considers him as a cursed one and as an impostor who was crucified and killed, while the other considers him as the most blessed and beloved incarnation of God who was crucified, killed and suffered to save his believers from final destruction (as the saviour of his believers).
Refuting both extreme views, the Qur'an confirms the virginity of Mary and the extraordinary way of her pregnancy as a special manifestation of the creative will of God. It confirms also his being the true prophet who was commissioned with divine book or guidance and was bestowed with miracles of bringing a dead person back to life, creating a live bird from clay and performing other miracles, with the permission of God.
The Qur'an emphasizes the fact that Jesus was one of the ‘created’ and chosen servants and prophets of God and that his mother was a virgin, purified, chosen and virtuous. Both the mother and son lived in this terrestrial sphere. They eat and walk like other human beings. So, there is no question of Jesus's ‘self-existence’ or of his being an incarnation of the Absolute One.
He was one of the created, chosen servants of God. The Qur'an asserts that even the angels -whose creation is quite different from that of man - are servants of God. Nevertheless, the Qur'an lays stress on the fact that among the messengers of God, the birth, life and departure of Jesus are extraordinary and exemplary manifestations of the creative will of God. The Qur'an emphatically refutes both the Jewish and Christian beliefs that Jesus was crucified, killed or suffered natural death.
It asserts that God held Jesus' soul and body in His Custody which means total twafi and raised him towards Himself. During this period of total ordinary twafi, the Qur'an asserts that the soul and body of the man in the state of twafi is in the custody of angels.
وَعِنْدَهُ مَفَاتِحُ الْغَيْبِ لَا يَعْلَمُهَا إِلَّا هُوَ وَيَعْلَمُ مَا فِي الْبَرِّ وَالْبَحْرِ وَمَا تَسْقُطُ مِنْ وَرَقَةٍ إِلَّا يَعْلَمُهَا وَلَا حَبَّةٍ فِي ظُلُمَاتِ الْأَرْضِ وَلَا رَطْبٍ وَلَا يَابِسٍ إِلَّا فِي كِتَابٍ مُبِينٍ
“And with Him are the keys of the unseen. None but He knoweth them. And He knoweth what is in the land and the sea. Not a leaf falleth but He knoweth it, not a grain amid the darkness of the earth, naught of wet or dry but (it is noted) in a clear record.” (6:59)
وَهُوَ الَّذِي يَتَوَفَّاكُمْ بِاللَّيْلِ وَيَعْلَمُ مَا جَرَحْتُمْ بِالنَّهَارِ ثُمَّ يَبْعَثُكُمْ فِيهِ لِيُقْضَىٰ أَجَلٌ مُسَمًّى ثُمَّ إِلَيْهِ مَرْجِعُكُمْ ثُمَّ يُنَبِّئُكُمْ بِمَا كُنْتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ
“And He it is who taketh you away at night (in sleep), and He knoweth what ye acquire in the day, then He raiseth you up therein so that a prefixed term (of life) be fulfilled; then unto Him is your (ultimate) return, then He will declare unto you what ye were doing.” (6:60).
Twafi, in the sense of total hold, was applied to Jesus as an act of extraordinary manifestation of divine command concerning his disappearance from this terrestrial world. This twafi which has been used about Jesus is associated with his being raised towards Him and cannot mean natural death. But Jesus is not exempted from undergoing the process of death when the time of death would come.
Death is a universal law of divine will from which no creature - even the angels and spirits - are exempted. So, Jesus shall also die one day and shall be brought to life again. The question is that at the time when the Qur'an asserts his being raised, this inevitable process of death did not take place.
In some places, the Qur'an uses of the term ‘twafi’ to mean death, which is not applicable to this exceptional, extraordinary occasion. His raising was sort of total ascension to the invisible sphere. The Holy Prophet also had the honour of experiencing this for a short period. The Qur'an also refutes the pagans’ idea of comparing Jesus with their idols by stating that this comparison means nothing but an unreasonable argument to which the disbelievers are accustomed.
Here the Qur'an refutes the comparisons and observes ‘Jesus is nothing but a servant of Us on whom We bestowed our special favour and made him an example of extraordinary manifestation of the divine creative command for the Children of Bani Israel’.
Therefore, it is illogical to compare the birth, departure and reappearance of Jesus with the birth, life and departure of other creatures who are the outcome of the usual process of manifestations and creative command of God. In confirming the extraordinary and exemplary case of Christ’s birth, life and departure, the Qur'an removes the peculiarity of the case by asserting that even if God wills, he will make angels from men on earth as successors.
- 1. Separation of body and soul in death. [Note of Al-Islam.org]