Imām Muḥammad ibn ʿAlī ash-Shawkānī ؒ (b. 1173 AH/1760 CE; d. 1250 AH/1834 CE) stated:
An-Naqqāsh mentioned that the companions of the philosopher al-Kindī said to him:
أيها الحكيم اعمل لنا مثل هذا القرآن
“O wise one, produce for us something similar to the Qurʾān.” [Ash-Shawkānī, Fatḥ al-Qadīr, vol. 2, pp. 6–7.]
He replied:
نعم أعمل مثل بعضه
“Very well, I shall attempt to produce something similar to a part of it.” [Ash-Shawkānī, Fatḥ al-Qadīr, vol. 2, pp. 6–7.]
He then secluded himself for many days. When he emerged, he said:
والله ما أقدر ولا يطيق هذا أحد، إني فتحت المصحف فخرجت سورة المائدة، فنظرت فإذا هو قد نطق بالوفاء ونهى عن النكث، وحلل تحليلا عاما، ثم استثنى بعد استثناء، ثم أخبر عن قدرته وحكمته في سطرين، ولا يقدر أحد أن يأتي بهذا.
“By Allah, I am unable to do so, and no one is able to do so. I opened the muṣḥaf at Sūrat al-Māʾidah and read it. I found that it commands the fulfilment of covenants and prohibits their violation. It then makes a general declaration of lawfulness, followed by an exception, then an exception to that exception. Thereafter, it mentions Allah” [Ash-Shawkānī, Fatḥ al-Qadīr, vol. 2, pp. 6–7.]
s vast power and wisdom in two lines. No one is capable of producing anything like this.’
This report is cited by Imām ash-Shawkānī as an illustration of the Qurʾān’s rhetorical precision, structural coherence, and inimitable eloquence, even when examined by those renowned for philosophical and intellectual ability.
References
Ash-Shawkānī, Muḥammad ibn ʿAlī (d. 1250 AH/1834 CE), Fatḥ al-Qadīr al-Jāmiʿ bayna Fannay ar-Riwāyah wa-d-Dirāyah min ʿIlm at-Tafsīr, Dār al-Wafāʾ, Cairo, n.d., vol. 2, pp. 6–7.
