This is one of the literarly aspect of Quran, but not be confused with al-Bihar that were talked about in another thread. I'm putting it here because many question of Quran are posted in this section, but it can be moved to another section if this is not the place. A brother posted a nice example, so I'm posting it here.
The Quran throughout often plays off the imagery of this life as being similar to a commercial journey that an Arab sets out on to earn profit. Even in the concept of the guidance given by the Holy Book, God Almighty refers to it as the straight path. The shortest point to the goal is obviously a staright line without any crookedness.
Taqwa, or wariness, also plays off the imagery of a journey. The only one who is successul in reaching the destination is one who is wary of all the impediments that may lay await for him on the path. Satan is likened to a beduoin plunderer who awaits any passer-by, ready to pounce on the caravan.
Then I will certainly come to them from before them and from behind them, and from their right-hand side and from their left-hand side; and Thou shalt not find most of them thankful.
The beduoin plunder could came from any direction, and the caravan had to be wary of this danger. Satan is often described as one who cannot be seen, like the beduoin who hides in the hills besides the well-traveled path to mislead men off the path so that they can be vulnerable to his attack.
O children of Adam! let not the Shaitan cause you to fall into affliction as he expelled your parents from the garden, pulling off from them both their clothing that he might show them their evil inclinations, he surely sees you, he as well as his host, from whence you cannot see them; surely We have made the Shaitans to be the guardians of those who do not believe.
In this verse, Allah speaks about how Satan, like the beduoin, used his deceptiveness, to put Adam and Eve in a position where their defenses were down. He got them out of the safe environment of the garden, stripping them of their armor, putting them in a vulnerable position to be attacked. The armor, in this case, was their clothing If one pays attention, the Quran is actually playing off the metaphor of plundering again, where Satan steals their clothing leaving them bare and naked, like a caravan that just got robbed. The psychological impact is quite profound for one can only imagine the state of dejection and humiliation one would face in that type of situation.
Whenever the Quran refers to taqwa, it describes it in the context of a journey to hit at the psychology of the ARabs of the Prophet's (S) time. The Quran is essentially reminding the travellers that while the staright path is now clear, this doesn't mean that the journey is going to be easy. One has to be conscious of any and everything that can divert them from the path. Taqwa is also manifested in surah Fatihah, when Allah refers to the believer seeking refuge with Allah from the path of those that have earned God's anger and those who have gone astray. Surah Fatiha describes essentially the two ways a person can fall away from the straight path in very beautiful imagery. One can be openly defiant despite knowing the correct path to adopt and go whichever way one chooses. This first state is likened to earning the anger of God in an extraordinary sense. This obviously plays off the metaphor of the journey in that anger can only lead to an all-out offensive attack, like a marauder who plunders a caravan, not leaving any surviver. God's form of attack is diverse, but the primary method in which Allah attacks a defiant creature is through the sealing of their hearts. Allah doesn't simply attack at first, he lets them wander in their pride and defiance, while slowly removing for them any chance of returning. They have become ungrateful for Allah showing them the way, so Allah, in return, takes away their awareness to see the path, the more defiant they become.
A person who has diverted from the path still has a chance to return, provided he still has some sense of awareness of where he is after diverting from the path. But when a person loses his faculties of awareness, he has no chance of returning to the straight path and will wander until he falls into an abyss or be eating by a wild animal. He may get so hungry and thirsty that he will turn to eat even the least edible of 'foods', such as a thornless Zaqqoom tree in a state of haste to appease his hunger. His state will be like:
Deaf, dumb (and) blind, so they will not turn back.
Allah also likens this type of defiance to the following:
These are they who buy error for the right direction, so their bargain shall bring no gain, nor are they the followers of the right direction.
Allah states that this type of attitude is akin to a commercial transaction, which can only be entered into willingly. It isn't a situation where one has been duped. This is really a type of madness, for such an attitude will expose one to danger rather quickly. This verse in surah Baqqarh also plays off the comcmercial journey imagery. Imagine travelling long and hard to Syria, facing all types of dangers, and when you reach and engage in business transactions, you end up losing money?
The second way a person can wander off the path is to be mis-led, or to fall into DALAALAH, translated as mis-guidance. A person may fall in love with the scenery along the way, becoming diverted from the path in order to catch a better glimpse. The more and more he pursues what he sees far off, the more and more his chance of being mis-guided is greater. In the desert, the longer one journeys, the greater the chance the footsteps that mark the path he has tread may vanish because of the changes in the environment. He may get so far off that Allah describes his state in the following parable:
“Those who disbelieved - their deeds are like a mirage on a plain, in which a thirsty person thinks there is water; when he approaches it he finds nothing but he finds Allah before him and He repays him his account in full, as Allah is swift in taking account. ” (24:39)
So infatuated with the mirage along the journey, he ended up in a place where there is a vast plain of nothingness to point to where he is. There are no markings or surroundings anymore that can allow him to get back to where he once was. When he reaches that mirage, totally oblivious to where he was going, he then realizes that all his effort has gone to waste. And not only that, he has to now face the consequences of his deeds. He may just sit and grope, but Allah will nto allow that too happen, for payment has to be made as well.
Another impediment on the journey can be the lack of courage. A person may simply halt his journey because he fears the obstacles along the way. But such an attitude will also be harmful to the traveler, for he will make no progess and leave himself once again to be exposed to attack. One has to keep moving on the path to be safe.
Or like abundant rain from the cloud in which is utter darkness and thunder and lightning; they put their fingers into their ears because of the thunder peal, for fear of death, and Allah encompasses the unbelievers.
The lightning almost takes away their sight; whenever it shines on them they walk in it, and when it becomes dark to them they stand still; and if Allah had pleased He would certainly have taken away their hearing and their sight; surely Allah has power over all things.
The parable is that of the Quran now being revealed to men, making them aware of the path to get to the end-goal. While the Quran has revealed the path, at the same time, it also means that men have to make sacrifices to reach their destination. The path to success isn't always easy, despite it being straight. If one does not keep moving, no matter the obstacles, one will fall behind the caravan and may never reach the destination, for they have lost a steady-support along the way. This is actually an allusion to those people in Medina who were playing a wish-washy attitude with respect to the Prophetic movement. When the mission of Islam gained some success through the efforts of the Prophet and his rightly-guided Companions, these Muslims were the first to profess their faith in it. As soon as Islam had a 'set-back', they were the first to run and hide. Their boasting all of the sudden stopped.
In light of this, it would be worthy to mention the concept of taubah, which literally means to 'return'. Any and everybody may wander off the path in their life, and it is essential that they return as soon as they realize that they have fallen, they need to return through repentance. Further, Allah states that when people wander and become oblivious, he doesn't let them wander out of his, he sends them signs are ayahs thorugh his mercy that are meant to awaken them from their ghaflah, or obliviousness to their straying. One of these signs are the fates of the people in the past who wandered from the path and were destroyed. Again, the Quran plays off the allusion of the concept of the commercial journey by saying that the Arabs pass by these towns night and day. Thses signs are meant so that the people do taubah, or return to the straight path. Further, when they do this Allah states that not only are they put back on track, Allah gives them greater will to not swerve. It is likened to additional guidance for man.
Finally, the Quran refers to Muhammad (S) in many ways, among them, a caller. He (S) and all Prophets are likened to the man calling out to a lost caravan in the darkness so that they can follow the sounds and get back to the right path. A person needs to pay attention
very closely to where this voice is coming from, otherwise he/she may not find the path despite them being able to hear a voice. Further, not only are Prophets described as callers, but they also have the torch or light that provides the caravan vision on the journey.
Their parable is like the parable of one who kindled a fire but when it had illumined all around him, Allah took away their light, and left them in utter darkness-- they do not see.
The fire is referred to as the light of revelation. Allah, in Surah Saff, says that his guidance is the fire of Allah that cannot be blown out by the elements and obstacles on the journey. In fact, ALlah states that tehse obstancles are in fact very weak, describing it like a breath of a human. It has no power at all in respect to truth.
The Prophet (S) also is described as a bearer of glad tidings and a warner. The caller not only provides the light to guide, he (AS) is also a source of moral and psychological support to those that follow him along the way. He constantly places the destination before the eyes of the believers through his wisdom and wise-council. He is also the uswah-tul-hasanah for men, for his followers see he is the foremost in zeal to reach the end-destination. Also, when he sees his caravan start to get diverted, he also warns them of the dangers of falling prey to indulging too much at the rest-stops along the way. Not only that, the Prophet has supporters to that are at the front of the caravan, ready to assist him in any way possible. Allah describes them as the Sabiqeen, the one's who are the foremost. They travelled much faster and much harder then others, so they reached first. These are the highly-regarded Companions in Islam and pious saints of past. They all form the shining examples for the people who follow them afterwards. The latter people hold them with respect, because the foremost chartered out the path from them and made it easier for them to reach, providing them with many benefits along the way. This is why ALlah states that the latter followers of faith pray for those that preceded them in faith.
In light of this, it is very easy to understand the Prophetic (S) consciousness, when he (S) stated about his (S) condition in this world that he was like a traveller who simply stopped under a tree to take a rest.
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