Qur’ān is rendered facilitative for comprehension
By marvellous use of literary device - figure of speech:
Imagery
The objective of a book is accomplished when its text creates an impression in the reader's mind. A powerful tool to achieve this objective is imagery, a figure of speech, which employs such words that create mental images in the mind of the reader. It makes the reader feel as if he is present in the very moment, right between the lines. Words that do not stimulate imagination are just symbols sprinkled on a blank piece of paper. Images and emotions are recreated by using vivid descriptions and comparisons with the help of sound words.
Grand Qur’ān illustrates by the choice of such words that produce images; and describes events as though it were happening in front of the reader. Its vivid descriptions portray image in such manner as if it were being displayed in a live telecast. The reader feels watching the past and future events visually. It renders the text more effective, persuasive, and impressive.
Let us listen the elevated Messenger of Allah the Exalted:
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:
It is an epithet for Grand Qur’ān; grammatically singular, but morphologically broken plural of singular:
which signifies:
"Mental perception; the perceptive faculty of the mind"
[Lane
Lexicon]. Its Root is "ب
ص ر"; basic perception infolded in
it is that of such seeing as
yields knowledge-mental perception.
Man is equipped with three faculties for acquiring "Knowledge"
which he lacks at birth:
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Like the purpose of authoring a book, the objective of critical reading is accomplished when semantic information is filmed in the explicit memory; reader has formed a mental picture particularly of that information that may occur or be possible in the future. This enables him to remain on guard since retrieval of pictured information from memory is most easy and spontaneous. It is elaborated:
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It is our everyday experience that some visuals instantly affect us, pleasingly or disturbingly. Many people start weeping feeling melancholic on watching a tragedy scene in a movie. Horror movies terrify. A critical and careful reading of marvelously worded passages of grand Qur’ān creates similar imagery and effect on the reader:
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The verbs:
stem from Root:
خ ش ى
that signifies emotion of Awe which is a mixture of wonder and dread -
feeling of amazement and respect mixed with fear that is coupled with a
feeling of personal insignificance or powerlessness. Only such people
experience awe, a fundamental emotional response, who mindfully observes
the environment and the universe they live in. They quickly respond to
admonition while people of opposite psyche/character-the stubborn:
,
who see not beyond their own self, purposely avoid listening it.
The phenomenon of ghoosebumps experienced by non-human mammals is quite well known. It is physiological reaction in which the muscles surrounding hair follicles contract — occur when individuals, along with other members of their species, face a threat and hairs become erect.
The narratives of the annihilation of past nations and events of the Last Day of the Universe, described by Future-perfect tenses depicting them as if they have since happened that can be watched/recalled, are portrayed with choice of such words and metaphors that one can feel them as real-life experience. Similarly, the scenes of life in the Paradise and Hell-Prison are so vividly depicted that can see as if they are visuals, rather one can find himself present with her inmates.
The verbal passages of Grand Qur’ān cause the knowledgeable and attentive listener and reader take a reflexive surrender posture on having imaged the imminent danger in wait and horrible end of many:
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Developing the Discourse by extensively using the literary device of imagery renders it facilitative because it aids the reader’s imagination to envision the characters and scenes clearly. The major part of Qur’ān comprises of Narratives, real-life events, biographies of nations. These are relayed by choice of such words that it makes the reader feel as if he is present in the very moment of real happenings.
Let us see one example in Frame 41 of Chapter 2 comprising of Ayah 124-129 which has used literary device of Alliteration and Visual Imagery:
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The verbal sentence:
shows to
reader's imagination an on going
activity; gradually raising something from a base reference point. The
mood of verb is indicative. The imperfect indicative mood verb does not restrict itself to any idea
of time; it indicates enduring existence, begun and incomplete, either
in past, present or future time. In English grammar, we call it "the
indefinite present".
What were they raising? It were:
a
plural noun; it means the foundations which are boundaries that demarcate the sitting
- covered area.
This is the sub-part of a building. It is perceived as a whole but it
has its own sub-parts - its four sides and layers rising from the first
layer laid some distance beneath the surface of the Earth.
The commencement of structuring the building - the House is the First
layer of foundation. The starting point of:
is the First layer
of foundation stones.
: Prepositional phrase relates to the circumstantial
clause. The preposition signifies the local and temporal point of
departure, the point at which act or state has commenced. The sentence
remains complete, meaningful and void of ambiguity even if this Phrase
was not there. But the imagery will be lost.
The sentence is so beautifully structured that the reader can even
visualize the exact moment they prayed; they did so when they had already laid the first
layer of Foundation which needs full concentration of mind and great
care because the stability of the building depends upon it.
This scene becomes more vivid and brightly observed by the reader when he finds its mention later:
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The possessive phrase:
is the subject noun of verb-like particle: إِنَّ.
The verbal sentence:
is [ألجملة صفة لبيت] adjectival description for:
.
The passive verb signifies that it was
laid on ground and the
prepositional phrase means "for the peoples".
The Relative pronoun:
prefixed with emphatic particle is the predicate of verb-like particle: إِنَّ.
The prepositional phrase:
relates to the elided Linkage
clause of preceding Relative Pronoun. The explicit mentioning of the linkage clause was not needed
since information has already been given about
the raising of the foundation commencing building of the House in Ayah
2:127.
The choice of verbs and object:
:
raising the foundations and
laid for the House picturesquely depict the activity and the coming into
existence of a building for the first time in human history, which,
Allah the Exalted declared as "My House". Our Honorific father and the
Elevated Messenger Iebra'heim
alahisalam
was the par excellent civil engineer and mason who
along with his illustrious son, (at that time Nabi who would be on
maturity) elevated Messenger
Iesma'eile alahisalam constructed the House of Allah
the Exalted.
There are yet other features that render a Discourse easy for the reader to comprehend. For this purpose another literary device is simile - analogy.