Sura al-Baqara

(The first of the two Radiant Suras)¹

if you were to ask: if you were to ask: The Qur'an is both miraculous and concise, yet in it some things are apparently frequently repeated, such as the Bismillâh (In the Name of Allâh, the Merciful, the Compassionate), and the verses " Then which of the favours of your Lord and Sustainer will you deny?"(55:13, 16, 18 etc.) and "Ah woe that Day to the rejecters of truth! (77:15, 19, 24 etc.) and the story of Moses. Aren't such repetitions tedious and contrary to eloquence?²

You would be told: Everything that shines does not scorch. Yes, repetitions are sometimes tedious, but not always. Sometimes they are boring, and sometimes appreciated and admired. The food man eats includes both basic sustenance and fruit. The more the former is repeated, the greater the pleasure it affords; it gives strength and the body becomes accustomed to it. But the latter gives rise to boredom when repeated and provides pleasure when replaced with something new.

In just the same way, some words and speech are reality (haqîqa) and basic sustenance; they strengthen the mind and feed the spirit. The more they are repeated, the better they seem and the more familiar they become, like sunlight. Then others are like fruits and embellishments; they give pleasure on being varied in respect of sort and appearance (lit. apparel).


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¹  In is narrated from Abû Umâma al-Bâhilî: "I heard Allâh's Messenger (UWBP) say: 'Read the Qur'an for on the Last Day (the resurrection of the dead) it will be an intercessor for its adherents. Read the two Radiant Suras (al-Zahrawayn), al-Baqara and Sura Âl-i 'Imrân...'" al-Hâkim, al-Mustadrak (Beirut, n.d.), i, 553, 554; ii, 287. For other sources see, Abdûlkadir Badıllı, Risale-i Nur'un Kudsî Kaynakları (Istanbul: Envar Nesriyat, 1994), 810.

²  For a discussion on repetition in the Qur'an, see the Tenth Topic of the Eleventh Ray (written 1944). Nursi, The Rays Collection [Eng. trans.] (Istanbul: Sözler Publications, 1998), 262-72.