There are, in all, 38 mentions of the Arabic word الساعة (the Hour) in the Qur'aan. And 38 is a multiple of 19. So, this is another example of the numerical code of 19 that the Qur'aan is replete with. Putting such a code, on such a large scale, is indeed beyond the capacity of humans and undoubtedly points to the divinity of the Holy Book.
This is not to endorse the claims of Rashad Khalifa who first discovered the code. Rashad was, unfortunately, led astray when he claimed that 2 Verses of the Qur'aan were interpolations! He lost sight of Verse 15:9 wherein Allah Almighty has Himself guaranteed incorruptibility of the Qur'aan.
Returning to the subject matter of this paper, since Hour is prefixed by the definite article 'the' (ال in Arabic), الساعة is not that time frame we usually associate with this word, but another distinct time frame.
This paper is devoted to understanding that time frame from the Qur'aan itself which has used it so distinctively. The Qur'aan is self-explanatory, as it often says.
So, let us examine, one by one, all the Verses that contain the word الساعة:
Verse 6:31
'Those who deny that they would ever meet Allah, are certainly doomed to misconception until when suddenly they encounter the Hour and say, "Alas! We were amiss on this" while bearing their burdens on their backs. Isn't it evil what they beat?'
The burdens, obviously, is of the deeds people did under the false belief that they would never meet Allah. الساعة is the time when they will regret their disbelief, and it will come suddenly upon them!
Verse 6:40
Say, "Do you see, if Allah's punishment comes to you, or, the Hour dawns on you, will you call anyone but Allah? Answer truthfully!"
Allah Almighty is telling the Prophet here to pose this question to the people. The question implies the Hour to be dreadful as a punishment from Allah! And the people would then forget all the false gods they would be worshipping. All will become truly aware that there is no God but Allah!
Verse 7:187
They ask you about the Hour, "When is it scheduled to come?" Say, "Only my Lord knows when. No one can reveal its time, except that it will weigh heavily upon the skies and further earth. It will not come but suddenly!" They ask you as if you are well-informed. Say, "Knowledge of it is only with Allah!" And most people know this not!
This Verse further reveals that not even the Prophet knew when the Hour will come!
Verse 12:107
Do they feel secure from being overwhelmed by a punishment from Allah or being confronted suddenly by the Hour unawares?
People are generally engrossed with their mundane work or entertainment. But, sometime or the other, they all get caught unawares, by a sudden happening like a heart attack, an earthquake, or any such calamity! Allah Almighty here warns mankind of their being
caught unawares, likewise, by the Hour!
Verse 15:85
'We have not created the heavens and the earth and everything therein but in purposeful Truth! And the Hour is, indeed, sure to come! And forgive and forget gracefully.'
Allah Almighty asks the Prophet to overlook the public intransigence he faced with, gracefully, since the Hour is sure to come whereafter people's deeds will be justly dealt with at the divine level. People are not to be punished in this world by any earthly authority just because they do not believe in Allah. Allah will deal with them in the Hereafter. The earthly authorities can punish a person only if that person is creating a law & order problem here, and not for any personal belief or disbelief.
Verse 16:77
'And to Allah belong the unseen things of the heavens and the earth! And the happening of the Hour shall not be but within a twinkling of the eye or even less. Allah, indeed, can do anything!'
The emphasis in this Verse is on the suddenness with which the Hour will take place on this earth at one go stunning every living being thereon.
Verse 18:36
"And I think not the Hour will be established. And even if am returned to my Lord, I will certainly find a better return than this!"
This is what a rich man telling his poor friend, during a conversation between the two. The rich man had farms of fruits and grains. He was proud of his rich possessions and thought these would never perish! And perish these did one night! He would likewise be disillusioned about his false notions on 'the Hour'!!
Verse 19:75
'Say, "Whoever has been astray, and the Gracious One has granted such persons extensions until they see either the punishment or the Hour, they then come to know who is worse in position and weaker in resources!" '
The extensions and the punishment mentioned in the Verse are obviously in worldly lives. And to those who would be alive when the Hour suddenly strikes, that Hour would be the revealing moment of the Truth!
Verse 20:15
'The Hour indeed is coming, although I have concealed it to compensate every soul for what it strives.'
These are Allah Almighty's own words! The concealment is obviously an important part of the divine Test every soul has to go through for its eligibility to a place in Paradise. Those who do not pass the Test would have to suffer in Hell!
Verse 21:49
'Those who fear their Lord without seeing Him are the ones anxious about the Hour!'
Those who do not fear their Lord have no belief in the Hour, and hence are not anxious about it.
Verse 22:1
'O mankind! Fear your Lord. The cataclysm of the Hour is a terrible thing!'
This Verse indicates that the Hour would be an earthquake like situation universally spread!
Verse 22:7
'And that the Hour is coming. No doubt about it! And that Allah will resurrect those in the graves,'
This Verse is in continuation of the one preceding wherein it has been stated that the dead will be brought back to life.
Verse 22:55
'And those who suppress the Truth shall not cease to have doubts about it (divine Revelation), until they suddenly encounter the Hour, or the punishment of a gloomy, barren Day.'
The gloomy, barren Day obviously is the Day, in the Hereafter, when the guilty will be consigned to the Hell Fire!
Verse 25:11
'But they deny the Hour! And We have prepared a blazing Fire for those who deny the Hour!!'
The Hell, in the Hereafter, is the destination of the deniers of the Hour. It is to be noted that الساعة has occurred twice in this Verse.
Verse 30:12
'And the day the Hour appears, the guilty will be in despair!'
The guilty would be those who would not believe in Allah and in the coming of the Hour.
Verse 30:14
'And the day the Hour appears, that day will they be sorted out.'
The guilty would be sorted out from those not guilty and/or pardoned.
Verse 30:55
'And the day the Hour is established, the guilty will swear that they remained but for an hour! Thus, were they deluded.'
The Hour is also the time when the dead will be resurrected. And the guilty among those resurrected would be those who had disbelieved in Resurrection. It would appear to them that they had remained dead only for an hour or so, although they might have remained for even hundreds of years dead in their graves!
Verse 31:34
'With Allah indeed is the knowledge of the Hour! And He it is Who sends down the rain. And He it is Who knows what the wombs contain. And no soul knows what it will earn tomorrow. And no soul knows on which land it will die. Allah does indeed know, and He is aware of everything!'
This Verse reiterates that all knowledge about the Hour is with Allah alone. It mentions some other things He uniquely knows. It is interesting to note that it does not say that He alone knows what the wombs contain. Although at the time when the Qur'aan was revealed mankind did not know this, scientists have now come to know what the wombs contain. This fact alone shows that the Qur'aan is divine! Allah Almighty alone knew this, in advance, at the time when the Qur'aan was revealed!
Verse 33:63
'People ask you about the Hour. Say, "With Allah is the knowledge of it. And, you know not, the Hour may well be nigh!" '
So far, people have been dying without encountering the Hour. But they all will be brought back to life at the advent of the Hour! And it would appear to them that they had died just a while ago. In that sense, the Hour would seem to have been quite near to them all individually!
The word الساعة has occurred twice in this Verse too!
Verse 34:3
'And those who suppress the Truth say, "The Hour shall not come to us!" Say, "Nay! By my Lord, it shall certainly come to you. HE is the Knower of the unseen. Nothing - even if it be of the weight of an atom either on the earth or in the heavens - escapes His notice. And there is nothing smaller or bigger than this but mentioned in a clear record!
Allah is the Sole Creator of the entire Universe. Could one imagine that the Creator would be wrong in predicting any future event like the Hour happening?
Verse 40:46
'And they have been exposed to the Fire, day in and day out. And when the Hour is established, Pharaoh’s people will be made to enter into severe punishment!'
Pharaoh and his people were disbelievers in Allah. They were, moreover, guilty of oppressing the Children of Israel. They had thus exposed themselves to punishment in Hell, which they will be put to when the Hour is established.
Verse 40:59
'The Hour is indeed to come! No doubt therein. But most mankind believes not!!'
This divine Verse was revealed about 1500 years ago, but what it says is true even now. This is true of the so-called Muslims too. Had they really believed, they would be the nicest persons on earth and in a good position to rule justly over it.
Verse 41:47
'The knowledge of the Hour turns back to Him. And fruits come not out of their skins, and female gets not pregnant and delivers, but with His knowledge. And the Day they are asked, "Where are My partners?", they would say, "We do declare to You that none amongst us is a witness!" '
The knowledge of the Hour is the exclusive prerogative of Allah Almighty. HE has no partners in building this Universe. And the disbelievers shall fail to witness any partner when the Hour is established!
Verse 41:50
'And, certainly, if We make him taste Mercy from us after a dose of adversity, he is apt to say, "This was due to me, and I do not think the Hour is ever going to be established, and if I am ever to be returned to my Lord, I shall have the very best with Him for me!" WE shall certainly then apprise the suppressors of Truth what their deeds were, and We shall certainly make them taste severe punishment!'
This world is not a place where every person gets his/her due fully. One must not be misled by the apparent paradox that a bad person gets unpunished in this world. This world is the place of Tests. We are all going through a continual series of tests and tribulations for our eligibility for a permanent life of unmitigated peace and joy in the Hereafter. If we fail this test, then we are doomed there!!
Verse 42:17
'Allah is the One Who has downloaded the Book in Truth and in proper balance. And, for all you know, the Hour may well be nigh!'
The Book downloaded is the Qur'aan. Every word of it is true, including the one about the Hour. When a man is resurrected to life again, it would seem to him that he had died a while ago, while in fact even thousands of years might have passed since his death!
Verse 42:18
'Those who do not believe in it (the Hour), demand its early advent. And those who believe in it, dread it and are aware that it is the Truth! In fact, those indeed who have doubts about the Hour are far too deluded!'
The establishment of the Hour is the culmination of the divine Scheme for mankind! To deny or doubt it is to deny or doubt the very existence of the Creator of this Universe!!
Verse 43:66
'Are they then but waiting for the Hour to come to them suddenly, unawares?'
'They' here refers to factions of Jesus' followers who deviated from the Prophet's teachings and had thus become liable to punishment in the Hereafter. I am afraid, most of modern-day Muslims too have been deviating from Prophet Muhammad's teachings! Allah bless them with right guidance!
Verse 43:85
'And blessed is the One to Whom belongs the Sovereignty over the heavens and the earth and over whatever lies in between! And with Him is the knowledge of the Hour and to Him you shall be returned!'
There is a fundamental difference between humans and other living beings. Humans think about their future, while other living beings do not. The other living beings do not think about their past too. They live in and think about their present only! Humans, on the other hand, think both about their past and about their future too. The other living beings live only one life - the one they are now living. They do not have any future lives after their present lives end. But a human does have another life after his/her present life ends. That is why he/she does think about a peaceful and joyful future that would not ever end. But he/she never gets such a future in his/her present life. There ought to be, therefore, another life where he/she can have this life of his/her dreams. الساعة is the time when Allah Almighty will provide a human to have the life of his/her fond dreams! But he/she has to qualify for it in this worldly life!
Verse 45:27
'And to Allah belongs the Sovereignty over the heavens and the earth and the Day the Hour is established - the Day when its deniers will be doomed!'
Mankind is ever in expectation long- lasting good days, which it seldom gets in this ever uncertain worldly life! But most of mankind is ever in doubt about the Hour and the Hereafter. Such doubters are bound to be doomed when الساعة is established!
Verse 45:32
'And when it is said Allah's Promise is bound to be true, and there is no doubt about the Hour, you said, "We know not about the Hour! We think not it is anything but just a conjecture. And we are not at all sure about it!'
It is as if Allah Almighty is addressing the present generation of mankind in this Verse! And that includes most of the so-called Muslims too!!
Verse 47:18
'Are they then waiting but for the Hour to come upon them all of a sudden? Preambles about it are already in place! What would happen to them when they get confronted with what is narrated to them time and again?'
In human life there indeed are indications about the inevitability of the Hour. Every human pines for a life of peace, free of the numerous problems, big or small, that one has to face in this worldly life. But such peace is impossible to achieve here. There has to be another life for the fulfillment of the natural human wish. The Hour heralds that other life. Besides, the Qur'aan and the other divine Scriptures do all confirm that there would certainly be another life for a human after his/her death here. But, unfortunately, mankind is apt to ignore the indications and, misutilising its freedom of thought, entertains doubts about another life after death!
Verse 54:1
'The Hour has drawn near, and the moon is breached!'
Among the Muslims there is a grave misconception about this Verse. They think that it is the Qur'aanic basis for a miracle supposedly performed by Prophet Muhammad (peace on him). The miracle, as alleged, is that the Prophet caused the splitting of the moon in two, and then joining the two separated parts together again!
The Qur'aan does mention about some earthly miracles earlier Prophets like Moses and Jesus were made to perform. But none of those was akin to this extraordinary miracle supposedly performed on another heavenly body like the moon!
Neither this Verse nor any other Verse of the Qur'aan attributes any such miracle to the Prophet. Even if, for the sake of argument, we assume that the moon miracle did happen, it would raise (Allah forbid) serious doubts about the divinity of the Qur'aan! For, the Hour has not come about for 1500 years now, and the Verse (54:1) declared it to be nigh then!
The Qur'aan can never be wrong; it is our understanding of its Verses that is wrong!
This Verse 54:1 does not speak about any splitting of the moon; it speaks about the then future event of man's landing on the moon and breaching its virgin land. This landing took place, for the first time, in 1969. And, going by Qur'aanic Chapter 97, Allah Almighty issues His Programme of events to happen on the earth once in 1000 months, on the Night of Destiny.
So, if the last Night of Destiny had come about in 1969 just before the first landing on the moon, الساعة will come about anytime before 2053. So, it is physically near for the human generation living since 1969.
This Verse gives the only clear Sign in the Qur'aan of the Hour being near.
Verse 54:46
‘But the Hour is the time promised to them; and the Hour is more grievous, more bitter!’
The Verse, preceding this one in the Qur'aan, speaks of the suppressors of the Truth being defeated and made to flee in this world. But they are bound to get even harsher punishment, this Verse says, when the Hour is established!
It may please be noted that الساعة has occurred twice in this Verse too.
Verse 79:42
'They ask you, "When is the Hour going to come?" '
In the Verses succeeding this one in the Qur'aan, the questioners are put to a counter question as to how the Prophet could know the answer when all knowledge about the Hour rests with Allah, and Allah alone?
Conclusions:
الساعة (the Hour) is an essential part of Islamic belief. It is the time when all life on earth, as we know it, will come to an abrupt end, unawares! It will be a horrible sight, earthquakelike everywhere!!
And then all dead persons - right from Adam - will be brought back to life and presented before Allah. And He will show them again every bit of every deed they did in their earthly lives.
It will be a just and fair trial, unlike any on earth. Every bit of evidence, for or against, will be presented to every person before he/she is awarded an everlasting life - in Paradise, or in Hell. Most of those awarded Paradise would not deserve it, but for Allah's Mercy on them! And those awarded Hell would be the ones who had never recognized the existence of Allah and His Mercy, despite evidences galore in favour of divine Mercy manifesting throughout every human life.
Had most of mankind believed in الساعة, worldly life would itself have been a mini-Paradise!
Mohammad Shafi