The Mountains’ Fear Of Allah
Selections from the Book The Story of The Beginning of Creation and The Creation of Adam, peace be upon him …
Written by Dr. Ali Muhammad al-Sallabi...
Episode (38)
Allah says: {If We had sent down this Qur’an upon a mountain, you would have seen it humbled and splitting from fear of Allah.} [Al-Hashr: 21].
Allah Almighty reminds people of fear and reverence of Him by avoiding sins and performing acts of worship. Allah provides an example by analogy: if a mountain, despite its solidity, would humble itself and split apart if the Holy Qur'an were revealed upon it, then humans, who are favored by Allah over many creatures, should be even more inclined to fear Him.
Muhammad Amin Al-Shanqiti, may Allah have mercy on him, says: “All this indicates that even though Allah did not reveal the Qur'an upon a mountain, if He had, you would have seen it as Allah said: {humbled and splitting from fear of Allah.}. Al-Shanqiti also mentioned other examples of the mountains' fear of Allah, saying: ‘The Qur'an contains indications of even less than this splitting, as in the verse: {Indeed, We offered the Trust to the heavens and the earth and the mountains, and they declined to bear it and feared it; but man [undertook to] bear it. Indeed, he was unjust and ignorant.} [Al-Ahzab: 72]. This is a clear text that the mountains were afraid to bear the trust, which is the trust of the obligation as addressed by Allah to them. If the mountains were fearful merely from being offered this trust, how would they react if it were actually imposed upon them?
The Holy Qur'an speaks about the mountains in a way that no researcher could fully comprehend or any scholar could grasp entirely. It describes the servitude of these creatures to their Lord and Creator, despite their greatness and solidity, and their submission in the presence of their Maker and Creator. Indeed, they would crumble to manifest their Lord's majesty and awe, as demonstrated in the story of Moses, peace be upon him, when he said: {And when Moses arrived at Our appointed time and his Lord spoke to him, he said, "My Lord, show me [Yourself] that I may look at You." [Allah] said, "You will not see Me, but look at the mountain; if it should remain in place, then you will see Me." But when his Lord appeared to the mountain, He rendered it level, and Moses fell unconscious. And when he awoke, he said, "Exalted are You! I have repented to You, and I am the first [among my people] of the believers."} [Al-A'raf: 143].
When the veil was lifted and the light was revealed to the mountain, it became like crushed dust. Some say that {He rendered it level,} means that it was shattered. Mujahid said regarding the verse: “But look at the mountain; if it remains firm in its place, then you will be able to see Me,” that the mountain is larger and stronger in creation than you. When Allah manifested His glory to the mountain, the mountain could not withstand it and crumbled. Seeing what happened to the mountain, Moses fell down unconscious.
- Ali Muhammad al-Sallabi, The Story of The Beginning of Creation and The Creation of Adam, peace be upon him, pp. 246-248.
- The servitude of beings to the Lord of the Worlds, Al-Tuni, p. 317.
- Lights of Explanation in Clarifying the Qur’an with the Qur’an, Al-Shanqeeti, 8/101.
- The Story of Creation, Al-Kharaan, p. 124.
For further information and review of the sources for the article, see:
The Book of The Story of The Beginning of Creation and The Creation of Adam, peace be upon him on the official website of Sheikh Dr. Ali Muhammad al-Sallabi:
