A014
Surah: 055 - Ayah: 014
Click here to see the translations
55:14
You can see in the "Risalah-i Hikmati" of Hakim Pir Nasir-i Khusraw (q.s.), which was written in Persian, that the Persian translation of the Arabic word " jinn" is "pari" which means a subtle and hidden creature which can fly. In the Wise Qur’an which is the treasure of God’s secrets, with respect to creation, you sometimes find mankind mentioned before jinn (55:14-15) and sometimes jinn mentioned before mankind (15:27). The reason for this is due to the circle of creation in which they are like day and night. Or one should say they are like the silk worm and silk moth. If in the season of worms you want to mention their past, it is true to say that first they were moths and if in the season of moths, it is true to say they were worms. Each is created from the other and the only universal statement is that there is no temporal priority or posteriority between them.
[Q]: Please explain the wisdom of verses (55:14-16)
[A]: He (God) created man from sounding clay like earthen ware (i.e. the initial voice of the sur of Israfil), and created jinn from the flame of fire (i.e. the light of the love of the salik). Then (O jinn and man!) which of the bounties of your Lord will both of you belie? This means that man and jinn, according to the law of multiplicity, are separate and according to the law of unity they are united as well.
Q520 Since the surah of Rahman is the bride of the Qur’an, there are many wisdom-filled questions in it. For instance, what is the wisdom in saying: “He created man” (55:3) and then saying: “He created man from fermented clay, dried tinkling hard like earthen ware, and created jinn from the flame of fire.” (55:14-15)?
A520
- The first description of human creation is general and the second is detailed.
- Thus, “He created man and taught him bayan” means that the Compassionate Allah created the arif and his personal world step by step and perfected him and taught him the science of bayan, namely ta’wil.
- The same wisdom-filled description is mentioned in some detail as: Allah created man from tinkling clay, that is, He started to create the Perfect Man spiritually from the blow of naqur (i.e., the sur of Israfil) in which the luminous blow of the Divine Spirit continued. It is also said: “And He created jinn from the flame of fire.”
- There are three kinds of flame: a flame mixed with smoke, a pure flame and an invisible flame. Thus, Allah created jinn from the different lights of the personal world of the Perfect Man. In all such creations of Allah, the Lord of Honour, there are common bounties for both the groups of humankind and jinn.
This verse has been referred 5 times.