Quranic Reflections - Islamic School of Stanford

the earth against earthquakes.
• The blessing of the creation of the stars; Allah (SWT) says what can be
translated as, “And way marks; and by the star they are guided” (TMQ,
16:16). These stars point us in all directions when traveling, in addition to the
qibla (the direction of Makkah).
• The blessing of cattle’s milk; Allah (SWT) says what can be translated as,
“And surely in (the) cattle (there) is indeed a lesson for you. We give you
to drink of what is in their bellies, even between filth and blood,
exclusively (pure) milk, palatable to the drinkers”, (TMQ, 16:66).
Can you imagine the area from which pure milk comes in pleasant taste and
odor, from among blood and stool Nevertheless, it comes clean and pure
without a drop of blood or dung! “exclusively (pure) milk, palatable to the
drinkers”.
• The blessing of knowledge, hearing, and sight; Allah (SWT) says what can be
translated as, “And Allah brought you out of your mothers bellies not
knowing anything …” (TMQ, 16:78); then he gave us the tools to acquire
science, “… and He has made for you hearing and be holdings (i.e. eye
sights) and heart-sights, (i.e., perception “s”) that possibly you would
thank (Him)” (TMQ, 16:78).
• The blessing of birds; Allah (SWT) says what can be translated as, “Have they
not regarded the birds subjected in the firmament of the heaven In no
way does anyone hold them except Allah. Surely in that are, indeed, signs
for a people who believe” (TMQ, 16:79).
The question here is, which one of us would take that into consideration and
be thankful Who would employ his bestowed blessings and use them in what
pleases Allah (SWT) to gain His contentment
“And in case you number the favor (s) of Allah, you will not numerate them”
(TMQ, 16:18)
After mentioning all those blessings comes a core ayah; Allah (SWT) says what can be
translated as, “And in case you number the favor (s) of Allah, you will not
enumerate them; surely Allah is indeed Ever-Forgiving, Ever-Merciful” (TMQ,
16:18). But what is to be counted Do we count the known and tangible blessings or
the intangible ones If we assume that we could count up the concrete blessings,
could we then calculate the benefits that each blessing encompasses In the Qur’an,
Allah (SWT) says what can be translated as, “And in case you number the favor (s)
of Allah, you will not enumerate them …” He did not say the “favors” altogether!
(In Arabic the translation of “favor”, as mentioned in this ayah, means only one).
However, the ayah ends with, “…surely Allah is indeed Ever-Forgiving, Ever-
Merciful”, to illustrate that man does not usually thank Allah (SWT) for the blessings