Verse 125 in Al-an'aam

 فَمَن يُرِدِ ٱللَّهُ أَن يَهۡدِيَهُ ۥ يَشۡرَحۡ صَدۡرَهُ ۥ لِلۡإِسۡلَـٰمِ‌ۖ وَمَن يُرِدۡ أَن يُضِلَّهُ ۥ يَجۡعَلۡ صَدۡرَهُ ۥ ضَيِّقًا حَرَجً۬ا ڪَأَنَّمَا يَصَّعَّدُ فِى ٱلسَّمَآء

And whomsoever Allâh wills to guide, He opens his breast to Islâm/submission, and whomsoever He wills to send astray, He makes his breast closed and constricted, as if he is climbing up to the sky. .[] (125) 

This verse is fairly powerful. It is self explanatory, yet at the same time, on point. Whoever God chooses to be guided, He will instill a sense of comfort in their chest/heart and they will be of those who submit their will to God alone. On the contrary, those who God chooses to be strayed will not have the sense of comfort instilled in them, but rather their chest/heart will feel constricted and trapped. Next in the verse, God gives us an example of how this person will be. It will be as if he is going up to the sky. Now, how does that make sense? What does going up to the sky have to do with feeling uncomfortable? Think about it. Scientifically speaking, the more you go up, the more what happens? The more you lose oxygen, thus making your breathing more and more difficult. It is fair to say that the more someone goes up, the more he/she is uncomfortable and constricted.  

Look at how on-point God is in this verse? I would never have correlated the two together on my own without thinking about it. There is a profound reason for every example of God’s words that can be proven in our day and age. Even science cannot deny the truth that lay in this analysis of the sky given by our wise and just God.

Below is a brief description of how our oxygen changes as our altitude increases by Answers.com:

“If you think about it, you can understand that the amount of oxygen in the air becomes less as your altitude increases. With each breath, you get less O₂ to keep you conscious and alive. And as you consider this, you can probably figure out that altitude affects people differently. There is what is called a thresholdfor the medical condition called altitude sickness (acute mountain sickness) that begins at about 8,000 feet, or about 2,400 meters. Blood chemistry changes in response to decreasing air pressure as we gain altitude. The process is a bit involved, it's complex, and it takes a bit of study. And it's not all about justthe oxygen. It's the law of partial pressures of gases and (more importantly) the pathophysiological response.”

Verse 56 in Surah Al-Furqan

وَعِبَادُ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلَّذِينَ يَمۡشُونَ عَلَى ٱلۡأَرۡضِ هَوۡنً۬ا وَإِذَا خَاطَبَهُمُ ٱلۡجَـٰهِلُونَ قَالُواْ سَلَـٰمً۬ا

The (faithful) slaves of the Beneficent are they who walk upon the earth with humility, and when the foolish ones address them they answer: Peace.    {Quran (25:63)}

In these final verses of Surah Al-Furqan, God describes a type of people starting from verse 63 all the way through verse 74. He first starts off by stating who these people are before talking about their characteristics. He calls them "The servants of the most Gracious/Compassionate." What is interesting about this is that in introducing these people, God relates them to Himself. There is a direct connection between these people and He Himself. Thus, He already grasped the readers' attention. The second interesting part is that rather than just saying "Servants of God", He chooses another name of His: The most Gracious/Compassionate. So these people are servants to a Lord who sheds them with His grace and compassion. Now, the reader is intrigued and wants to know who these blessed people are. Thinking about it, one would think that first thing someone has to due to achieve such a high status from a compassionate God is to worship him. Maybe pray, fast, give charity, etc. Typically, if someone tells you that you have my grace, you would think it is due to something you did for them in the first place. But look at how truly merciful God is. The first characteristic these people have is what? That they walk on earth with humility and humbleness, and bring peace to those around them. Thus, God emphasizes these people's relationship and dealings with others on earth before talking about their relationship with Him. To obtain this status of his compassion, God gives us the first criterion, and this is to be humble, kind, and show peacefulness. How often do pious people think about this? Your religiosity is based upon your dealings with and treatment of others around you, first and foremost, before anything else. How can one possibly say this religion is of hate after reading these truly profound verses that carry such depth?! If you want to obtain God's mercy, treat humans with equality, show humbleness, and bring about the peace of people.

Verse 155 in Surah Al-a'raf

And Moses chose from his people seventy men for Our appointment. And when the earthquake seized them, he said, "My Lord, if You had willed, You could have destroyed them before and me [as well]. Would You destroy us for what the foolish among us have done? This is not but Your trial by which You send astray whom You will and guide whom You will. You are our Protector, so forgive us and have mercy upon us; and You are the best of forgivers. {7:155}

Interestingly enough, Prophet Moses points out a crucial concept in this verse. He and his followers are now in a believing state, believing in one God and obeying his command. They are in good hands. Yet suddenly, an earthquake seizes them. Strange, right? Why would God put them through this punishment after they believed? Or wait, did it occur to serve as a type of punishment? No one knows for sure, but Moses made an interesting point. He says “Oh God, this is a trial from You that can lead some people astray and at the same time guide people to You”. Is that so? Think of our day and age. A calamity occurs. The person going through that calamity can see it in both ways. It could be looked at as something bad. But then looking at it in a different angle, you can see where it may have avoided harm to come. In another example, sometimes when a person is given a hardship, he/she decides to lose all faith in God, leading him to be from those whose calamity caused them to go astray. At the same time, if a person is given a hardship, it can make his faith stronger and reaffirm his beliefs, guiding him/her to God, as Moses also affirmed. 

Tests, calamities, trials, tribulations, etc do not always serve as punishments for us. Rather, they can serve as a source of our very own guidance, and peace in the long run.

Mercy and Charity

My mercy encompasses all things, So I will decree it [especially] for those who fear Me and give Charity (zakah) and those who believe in Our verses. {7:156}

Growing up, I always heard that it was good to give charity and donate for good causes. There sayings by Prophet Muhammad(PBUH) that teach us to give for the sake of God, and that God will return our sacrifice in a better way. And there are also many verses in the Quran that talk about giving and how God multiplies one's reward when he/she gives charity for His sake. Yet, this verse got to me. It is concise, brief, and to the point.

Many times in the Quran, you see "those who believe and do good" going hand in hand together. Here, in verse 156 in Surah Al-A'raf, it is a little different. Rather than saying that God's mercy is linked to those who simply believe and do good, God delves deeper into what believing and doing good means, taking it to a higher level. He says His mercy is given it to those who are pious and have that fear of God, and additionally, those who physically give charity/donate, etc, and those who believe in God's signs/verses. 

Here as clear as ever, there is direct correlation between God's mercy on you and your amount of charity and giving to others. How beautiful is that!

Verse 143 in Surah Al-A'raaf

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 of the believers."

It struck me the other day while reading this verse how many times as children, we ask our parents somethings that is not appropriate, or do things that are considered wrong to them. However, as a kid, you do not know right from wrong. So without a doubt, sometimes you will cross the line. We all went through it at one point in time. Here, in the dialogue between Prophet Musa (Moses) and God, Musa may have crossed the line in his question. He asked to see God himself. Now that is a big deal. One can imagine with God and all his glory, what it would mean to actually be able to see such amazement. Yet, what was God's response? Did he scold Moses, as many parents would do to a child who crosses the line? Not one bit matter of fact. Look at the pure wisdom in God's reply to Moses. Although he replies by stating that is not possible, he gives him a "sample" so to say. He lets him figure out how big of a question that was on his own. He gave him a sign with his own eye. When the mountain crumbled, Moses then realized what he had done, and found out for himself. How wise is our Lord? Truly this is God-thinking. The next time your child or student asks a big-deal question, let us try to reply with wisdom. Rather than saying no, never, don't even think about it, etc, Let us give our children a different avenue to learn from. Let us be wise in how we teach. This way, they can actually comprehend the message, just as our dear Prophet Moses did in this story.

Verses 12 and 13 in Chapter Al-baqara

In Surah Albaqara (Chapter #2), verses 12 and 13 are ones that I consistently make mistakes in while reviewing my memorization. In the end of verse 12, it says:
ولكن لا يشعرون
"Yet they do not feel it".

In the end of verse 13, it says:
ولكن لا يعلمون
"Yet they do not know it"

Then it hit me one day how to distinguish between them. In verse 12, the verse in the beginning refers to those who bring corruption (المفسدون ). How is corruption brought typically? Most of the time, it is by hand; something physical. Therefore, it is something we can feel. Those who corrupt, however, do not feel their own corruption, which brings us to the end of the verse, that they cannot feel their own corruption.

In verse 13, it talks about the disbelievers' lack of intellect. When someone lacks intellect, or is stupid for that matter, he does not know of it. Why? Because once again, he lacks intellect. Which is why God concludes the verse by saying "Yet they know not".

Relating the concluding lines of a verse to the actual meaning of the body of the verse as a whole, helps with memorization, and most importantly, understanding.