Structural Cohesion In The Quran [A Series]: Surah Abasa

This is a continuation of a series on the structure and organization of the Quran. The goal is to help the reader appreciate the amazing coherence of Allah’s  word and dismantle the myth of the “random” and “unorganized” Quran.

سُورَة عَبَسَ

Sūrat ʿAbasā

Sūrat Abasa (He Frowned) is probably best known for the opening account which admonishes the Messenger ﷺ for giving his attention to the elite of Quraysh – whom he hoped to guide to Islam – and for “frowning and turning away” from a blind Muslim who came seeking religious counsel.¹Many important notes about this incident. 1) The blind man could not see the slight frown on the Messenger’s face, so he could not have been offended. 2) The blind man was actually the one interrupting the Messenger’s already ongoing conversation, and yet, Allah ﷻ still reproached the Messenger ﷺ which demonstrates the high standards he ﷺ was being held to. 3) This is one of a handful of examples of the Quran immortalizing the misjudgments of the Messenger ﷺ, which would be a strange thing to do if he was the actual author of this Book. The story surrounding its revelation indicates that this was a very early Makkan sūrah.

When the contents of this relatively short sūrah are analyzed, they appear to form a mirror structure as shown below. 

Or summarized more simply:

Connections

[A]/[A’] – The sūrah begins and ends by describing two categories of people. In [A], Allah ﷻ mentions one group looking to be “purified”, and He mentions another group who will “not be purified,” seeing as they perceive themselves to be “free of need.” The ending of the sūrah mentions presumably these same two groups, but on the Day of Judgment. Those who followed the Messenger ﷺ and purified themselves will be “rejoicing at good news.” The other group, the disbelievers, will be covered in doom and gloom as a consequence of their choices.

Another parallel is in the attention to facial expressions. The sūrah begins by mentioning the frown of the Messenger ﷺ and the blindness of the companion can be argued to be included in this as blindness is typically apparent by looking at someone’s face. The ending mentions faces that are “bright” and “laughing” and others that have “dust upon them” and “darkness covering them.”

[B]/[B’] – The sūrah then transitions to speaking of how our deeds are recorded in this life. There is consideration given to both the record of our deeds, as well as the ones who record those deeds. The corresponding section describes the chaos on the Day we will be made to stand for accounting. Everyone will be “preoccupied” with thoughts of what is to come. The pairing of these sections may suggest that we should preoccupy ourselves with our recording of deeds in this life to avoid being as preoccupied with our accounting in the next life.

[C]/[C’] – The center of the sūrah is arguably the most noteworthy as it contains within it a section which some orientalists, Montgomery Watt for example, claim has no place in the structure or cohesion of the sūrah. They would argue that Section [C’], The Journey of Our Sustenance, is an erroneous insertion by “the compilers of the Quran” (i.e., not Allah ﷻ). But, when one reflects on its placement in the sūrah, one will find an amazing parallel to the subject matter preceding it.²The parallels between [C] and [C’] are taken from the work of Nouman Ali Khan.

Connections

[C1]/[C1’] – Both sections implore the listener to reflect on what is about to come. How were we created? Where does our food come from?

[C2]/[C2’] – Mankind was made from a drop of sperm which Allah ﷻ facilitated the growth of. And when that baby was fully formed, Allah ﷻ “eased the way” out of his mother for him. In a similar fashion, our food comes from drops of water which causes the plants to grow. The seeds are able to sprout through the earth by means of Allah’s guidance.

[C3]/[C3’] – Finally, we die and are returned to the earth awaiting our eventual resurrection. In the same vein, the plants are enjoyed by animals and humans, which eventually release those seeds back into the earth where the cycle will renew again, with new plants growing from the earth.

Through this incredible parallel, Allah ﷻ is possibly indicating to us that when we see our food, we should reflect on our life and eventual resurrection. This lesson may have been lost had Section [C’] not been placed right after Section [C].

Other Mini Structures Within

Interestingly, Section [A] seems to form its own independent mirror structure.

Connections

[A1]/[A1’] – The outsides of this mirror structure address the issue of the blind man and the Messenger ﷺ turning away from him.

[A2]/[A2’] – The center juxtaposes the two groups. One group came hoping to be “purified” while the other thought himself without need and “will not be purified.”

Additionally, the contents of Section [B] seem to form their own ring structure.

Connections

[B1]/[B1’] – Both are described as karīm (honor/noble). Both our record and the recorders are held in high esteem.

[B2] – The center beautifully describes the two outer portions; the “exalted” records held in the highest level of Paradise, and the “purified” scribes who record our deeds.

An Alternative Overall Structure

There is a proposed alternative structure to Sūrat Abasa that is worth exploring.³ Archer, George. A Place Between Two Places: The Qur’ān’s Intermediate State and the Early History of the Barzakh. 2015. Georgetown University, PhD dissertation. Pg. 172. The first two sections match with my demarcations, but they diverge from Section [C] onwards. It also changes from a mirror structure to a ring structure. I have reproduced it below with slight modifications. 

Connections

[A]/[A’] – Both sections speak of people’s facial expressions and preoccupations.

[B]/[B’] – This juxtaposition compares the reminder sent down from the heavens with the nourishment of the world provided by the descent of water. 

[C]/[C’] – Both sections condemn the inactions and ingratitude of the human. 

[D]/[D’] – A contrast between creation and resurrection (i.e., the second creation). 

[E]/[E’] – Birth versus death.

[F] – The sūrah circles around the call to an easy path.

And Allah ﷻ knows best.

*If the study of the Quran’s structure interests you, please check out Heavenly Order for many more examples of the Quran’s amazing organization and coherence.

Related:

– Structural Cohesion In The Quran: Heavenly Order

– Structural Cohesion In The Quran [A Series]: Surah An-Nasr