The questioner says: Through my reading of the Noble Qur'an and its repetition, it became clear to me that the mention of the self (nafs) is frequent in several chapters of the Qur'an, whereas the mention of the spirit (ruh) was not to that extent, and the spirit intended to mean the human spirit was not mentioned except once in the saying of Allah the Exalted:
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The questioner : The questioner says: Through my reading of the Noble Qur'an and its repetition, it became clear to me that the mention of the self (nafs) is frequent in several chapters of the Qur'an, whereas the mention of the spirit (ruh) was not to that extent, and the spirit intended to mean the human spirit was not mentioned except once in the saying of Allah the Exalted: [Al-Isra 17:85] Is there a difference between the spirit and the self, and what is it?
The Shaykh : The spirit is generally applied to that by which life exists, whether that is a sense or a meaning. The Qur'an is called a spirit because of the saying of Allah the Exalted:[Ash-Shuraa 42:52] because it gives life to the hearts through knowledge and faith. The spirit by which the body lives is called a spirit, as in the verse mentioned by the questioner: [Al-Isra 17:85] As for the self (nafs), it is often applied to what the spirit is applied to, as in the saying of Allah the Exalted: [Az-Zumar 39:42] And the self (nafs) may be applied to the person himself; for example, it is said, "So-and-so himself came," or "So-and-so himself spoke to me," and the like.
The questioner : For emphasis, yes.
The Shaykh : So it means the essence. They differ sometimes and agree sometimes according to the context. It should be known on this occasion that words are defined by their context. A single word may have one meaning in one context and another meaning in another context. For example, the word "town" (qaryah) is sometimes applied to the dwellings themselves and sometimes to the inhabitants. In the saying of Allah the Exalted regarding the angels who came to Ibrahim:[Al-'Ankabut 29:31] the meaning of "town" here is the dwellings.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And in the saying of Allah the Exalted:[Al-Isra 17:58] the meaning is the inhabitants. And in the saying of Allah the Exalted: [Al-Baqarah 2:259] the meaning is the dwellings. And in His saying: [Yusuf 12:82] the meaning is the inhabitants. So the important point is that words are defined by their context and by what they are added to.
With this important and beneficial rule, it becomes clear the strength of the position held by many scholars that there is no metaphor (majaz) in the Noble Qur'an, and that all the words in the Qur'an are literal (haqiqah), because the literal meaning is what the context of the speech indicates, in whatever form it is. If that is the case, it becomes clear the invalidity of the claim that there is metaphor in the Qur'an. Scholars have written on this and clarified it. One of the clearest things that makes this claim correct is that one of the signs of the validity of a metaphor, or one of the signs of a metaphor, is the validity of its negation, meaning that you can negate it and say, "This is not this."
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And this cannot be the case in the Qur'an; no one can negate anything that Allah the Exalted mentioned in the Qur'an. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah bless you.
And they ask you, [O Muhammad], about the soul. Say, "The soul is of the affair of my Lord. And mankind have not been given of knowledge except a little."
ويسألونك عن الروح قل الروح من أمر ربي وما أوتيتم من العلم إلا قليلاThe Shaykh : The spirit is generally applied to that by which life exists, whether that is a sense or a meaning. The Qur'an is called a spirit because of the saying of Allah the Exalted:
And thus We have revealed to you an inspiration of Our command.
وَكَذَلِكَ أَوْحَيْنَا إِلَيْكَ رُوحًا مِنْ أَمْرِنَاAnd they ask you, [O Muhammad], about the soul. Say, "The soul is of the affair of my Lord
وَيَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنِ الرُّوحِ قُلِ الرُّوحُ مِنْ أَمْرِ رَبِّيAllah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those that do not die [He takes] during their sleep. Then He keeps those for which He has decreed death and releases the others for a specified term
اللَّهُ يَتَوَفَّى الأَنْفُسَ حِينَ مَوْتِهَا وَالَّتِي لَمْ تَمُتْ فِي مَنَامِهَا فَيُمْسِكُ الَّتِي قَضَى عَلَيْهَا الْمَوْتَ وَيُرْسِلُ الأُخْرَى إِلَى أَجَلٍ مُسَمًّىThe questioner : For emphasis, yes.
The Shaykh : So it means the essence. They differ sometimes and agree sometimes according to the context. It should be known on this occasion that words are defined by their context. A single word may have one meaning in one context and another meaning in another context. For example, the word "town" (qaryah) is sometimes applied to the dwellings themselves and sometimes to the inhabitants. In the saying of Allah the Exalted regarding the angels who came to Ibrahim:
Indeed, we will destroy the people of that Lot's city
إِنَّا مُهْلِكُوا أَهْلِ هَذِهِ الْقَرْيَةِThe questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And in the saying of Allah the Exalted:
And there is no city but that We will destroy it before the Day of Resurrection or punish it with a severe punishment
وَإِنْ مِنْ قَرْيَةٍ إِلَّا نَحْنُ مُهْلِكُوهَا قَبْلَ يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ أَوْ مُعَذِّبُوهَا عَذَابًا شَدِيدًاOr [consider such an example] as the one who passed by a township which had fallen into ruin
أَوْ كَالَّذِي مَرَّ عَلَى قَرْيَةٍ وَهِيَ خَاوِيَةٌ عَلَى عُرُوشِهَاAnd ask the city in which we were
وَاسْأَلِ الْقَرْيَةَ الَّتِي كُنَّا فِيهَاWith this important and beneficial rule, it becomes clear the strength of the position held by many scholars that there is no metaphor (majaz) in the Noble Qur'an, and that all the words in the Qur'an are literal (haqiqah), because the literal meaning is what the context of the speech indicates, in whatever form it is. If that is the case, it becomes clear the invalidity of the claim that there is metaphor in the Qur'an. Scholars have written on this and clarified it. One of the clearest things that makes this claim correct is that one of the signs of the validity of a metaphor, or one of the signs of a metaphor, is the validity of its negation, meaning that you can negate it and say, "This is not this."
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And this cannot be the case in the Qur'an; no one can negate anything that Allah the Exalted mentioned in the Qur'an. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah bless you.