Winds in action: Sand-dust transporting wind systems: ٱلْعَٟدِيَٟتِ

There are five main wind zones on Earth. This is the fifth and the last Sura that describes the sand-dust transporting wind systems (others in Sura 37; 51; 77; and 79).

The entire Sura is masterpiece example for foregrounding and back-grounding to sharpen the reader's focus on the text. The foregrounding technique applied is beginning the text by oath and strangeness of the choice of a definite active participle instead of some substance. Descriptive words are used to portray the phenomenon instead of names of local winds of Arabian Peninsula. The objective is to render the text universal truth. The objective is to expose the psyche and attitude of the majority of human begins towards their Sustainer Lord.

Foregrounding is a key concept in stylistics that involves use of linguistic devices to emphasize certain elements in a text, making them stand out. It creates effects such as surprise, focus, emphasis and is used to enhance meanings and render the message persuasive. It is synonym for centre, focal point, and focus.

The stylistic effects of foregrounding include ellipsis at grammatical level. The topic sentence is prepositional phrase that relates to elided verb, revealing the Speaker is about to communicate some fact which in his perspective is absolute truth, and he thought it would be persuasive to state it by oath.

The object used for oath (ٱلْعَٟدِيَٟتِ) is definite feminine plural active participle. Active Participles are formed from the Present Tense Active Voice Verb and one of its unique feature is that it has a verbal quality. It signifies that it has the same meaning as the Active Voice Verb and can even govern words in the same manner as a verb governs in a sentence. It can also signify a person or thing-object to whom-which existence of a particular state or effect is attributed. However, the attribution of a state is not understood to be permanent in an Active Participle. Due to this peculiarity, it is also referred as Verbal Adjective.

The participle is of Form-I, derived from intransitive verb: يَعْدُو, verbal noun: عَدْوٌ, stemming from Root: ع د و. Lexicographer Ibn Faris stated:" يدلُّ على تجاوُزٍ في الشيء وتقدُّمٍ لما ينبغي أن يقتصر عليه that the perception encoded in it is to move away-traverse instead of remaining confined, limited or reduced to the thing". It, therefore, denotes those who have become enemy signifying disassociation of affiliation, nearness, distancing. Element of heat, warmness, conflict, friction and agitation is inherent in the action signified by the Root in whatever semantic field it might be used. Lane's Lexicon, quoting Er-Raghib, describes its primary signification as; "transition; or the going, passing beyond, or transgressing: and incompatibility to coalescence".

Since it is intransitive, therefore, if someone takes them as "horses", then they must be wild horses in the jungle who are running away distancing themselves in fear from the predator. And not the horses of the soldiers in the battlefield since they do not run at their own will. 

There could be no better technique to sharpen the focus of the listener and reader than suspense at the very outset. The suspense is to know who are they running horizontally in a direction in rather emotionally charged manner.

It is immediately followed by a gerund/verbal noun: ضَبْحًۭا as Cognate adverb for the elided verb. This adverb is used either to explain the manner or to provide the multitude in which the action takes place, or to place emphasis on the action. Cognate adverbs need not be from the same Root as the mentioned action but must have a similar meaning. Its Root: ض ب ح signifies sound and alteration of colour by the effect of fire/heat. Lane's Lexicon states it signifies the sound that is heard from the mouths of horses when fatigued-running; and signifies alteration of colour of a thing caused by fire, and the Sun but not in a great degree.

The hot air emitted from nostrils of horses, running-velocity produces little pulses of sound. So is the hiss of air escaping with velocity [the rate of change in the position of an object as it moves in a particular direction]. These two words portray most important characteristics of winds, that are direction, velocity and turbulence, which cause the following action.

It is amazing to find that the following dependent clause: فَٱلمُورِيَٟتِ is like "striding over" which is the meaning of poetic term "Enjambment" used to carry the reader smoothly and swiftly, without interruption, to the next line of the poem. The conjunction particle is cause and effect indicative. The velocity and hotness turn those: ٱلْعَٟدِيَٟتِ as ٱلمُورِيَٟتِ which is Form-IV feminine plural definite active participle, from Root: و ر ى. It signifies to kindle fire:

How they become who might cause igniting fire at that moment is described by cognate adverb: قَدْحًۭا about which Ibn Faris said, يدلُّ على غَرْفِ شيء that it leads to the perception "scoop up, ladle". Lane's Lexicon shows its meanings as "extracting, eliciting".

During hot summers, due to hot environment, the speed of hot air is high. This causes the dry leaves and trees to collide each other. This collision results in friction, which, in turn, produces a spark. Dry leaves easily catch those sparks and start burning.

The next stride over is: فَٱلْمُغِيـرَٟتِ, which conjuncts by the particle with: ٱلْعَٟدِيَٟتِ. The participle and following cognate adverb indicate that the particle is one termed: الفصيحة "eloquent" because conjuncts to an elided element whereby it adds fluency and reveals the elided element. This participle is also Form-IV which can be considered stemming from Root: غ و ر and غ ى ر. These signify the one who takes things downwards to the bottom, and the one who changes the atmosphere, surroundings. The change is described by verbal noun: صُبْحًۭا meaning the dawn before sunrise. The dust laden winds block out the Sun that reduce the visibility and the day seems as early morning. These participles take down the day towards its bottom, render the atmosphere/surroundings to give it a look of dawn. This clarifies the elided element of cause which is that since ٱلْعَٟدِيَٟتِ are laden with dust they become: ٱلْمُغِيـرَٟتِ. The picture below shows effect:

Dust-laden winds block out the sun at a Tuareg camp near Tombouctou, Mali. These hot, dry winds, called the harmattan, blast the Sahel region of West Africa for days at a time. [credit Encarta Encyclopedia]

The next stride over is by verbal sentence (فَأَ ثَرْنَ) with Form-IV perfect, third person plural feminine verb and the subject noun is referent to: ٱلْعَٟدِيَٟتِ. The verb (Root: ث و ر) means to render its object: نَقْعًۭا  stable depository as raised above the surface. The substance used for the action of making a depository is stated by prepositional phrase: بِهِۦ where the object pronoun refers the (رَمْل) very fine fragments of rock - sand. These sand laden winds make sand dunes of considerable height.

Sand transporting wind systems later did this: فَوَسَطْنَ بِهِۦ they made a heap-accumulation (جَـمْعًا) central to sides with its input. Sand dunes are created when wind deposits sand on top of each other until a small mound starts to form. Once that first mound forms, sand piles up on the windward side more and more until the edge of the dune collapses under its own weight.

Arabic words are illustrative. They verbally mirror the image of actions and states in such manner that its complete picture and visuals become conveniently perceivable. The perception and meanings of ten words in above five Unitary Verbal Passages portray Wind action. The descriptive illustrations also correspond to Shamal (Arabic word) winds that are dust laden and reduce the visibility. Shamal, hot and dry, and dusty is the northerly to north-westerly wind that blows in Iraq, Iran, and the Arabian Peninsula.

The verbal pictography is also that of "Haboob" a strong wind that are common in parts of the Sahara desert and in the Arabian Peninsula. "Haboob" (هُبُوبٌ) is Arabic word which means the wind blew, rose and was in a state of commotion; and dust rising, or spreading, in the sky as smoke. They are very strong dust and sand storms that move through hot and dry regions. They change the day time look as if is dawn scene.

All this was stated to elicit concentrated attention on this fact and to persuade the reader not to remain in that category of general public:

It is obvious that the objective was not to merely reiterate a commonly observed fact in the society. It is meant to persuade him to analyse his own self, and mend himself accordingly.

Arabic words are illustrative. They verbally mirror the image of actions and states in such manner that its complete picture and visuals become conveniently perceivable. To verify this statement, just keep in mind the perception and meanings of ten words in above five Unitary Verbal Passages and read about Wind action; Harmattan; Sirocco; Dune formation in Encyclopedias.