2. Surah Al Baqarah

The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:

وَعَلَّمَ آدَمَ الأَسْمَاء كُلَّهَا ...

2: 31. And He taught Adam the names of all things;

C48. "The names of things": according to commentators means the inner nature and qualities of things, and things here would include feelings.

The particular qualities or feelings which were outside the nature of angels were put by Allah into the nature of man. Man was thus able to love and understand love, and thus plan and initiate, as becomes the office of vicegerent.

The angels acknowledged this. These things they could only know from the outside, but they had faith, or belief in the Unseen. And they knew that Allah saw all - what others see, what others do not see, what others may even wish to conceal.

Man has many qualities which are latent or which he may wish to suppress or conceal, to his own detriment. (R).

... ثُمَّ عَرَضَهُمْ عَلَى الْمَلاَئِكَةِ...

then He placed them before the angels,

... فَقَالَ أَنبِئُونِي بِأَسْمَاء هَـؤُلاء إِن كُنتُمْ صَادِقِينَ ﴿٣١﴾

and said: "Tell Me the nature of these if ye are right."

Other Versions:

2: 31

Asad And He imparted unto Adam the names of all things (note 23) ; then He brought them within the ken of the angels and said: “Declare unto Me the names of these [things], if what you say is true.”

Pickthall And He taught Adam all the names, then showed them to the angels, saying: Inform me of the names of these, if ye are truthful.

Transliteration Wa 'allama a_damal asma_'a kullaha_ summa 'aradahum alal mala_'ikati fa qa_la ambi'u_ni bi asma_'i ha_'ula_'i in kuntum sa_diqin(a).

[ Asad’s note 23: Lit., “all the names”. The term ism (“name”) implies, according to all philologists, an expression “conveying the knowledge [of a thing]……..applied to denote a substance or an accident or an attribute,

[[ Yuksel’s note - 017:110 The word ism comes from the root SMY and means "attribute, quality." Regardless of the language, all beautiful attributes may be used for God (the god). Divine attributes do not necessarily define or describe God in an objective sense, but define and describe our relationship with our Creator and the mutual expectations. The word allah (the god) is a contraction of al (the) and elah (god). The Quran uses the word elah (god) in many verses for allah (the god) in the proper context. For instance, in the last chapter of the Quran, God is referred to as "lord of the people." The famous Quranic declaration la ilaha illa allah, therefore, can be translated into English as "there is no god but the god". See 7:180, 26:198; 41:44.

The Quran is correcting the tone of the recitation and manner of the sala prayer performed by Meccan polytheists. Despite this verse reminding us of a moderate tone of voice and moderate display of prayer, the followers of hadith and sunna, like their ancestors, either pray loudly (night time) or quietly (day time). Some even use prayer as political demonstration. This verse simply reminds us not to be ashamed of our prostration before ]]