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From Issue: 978 [Read full issue]
Miracles and Signs
It has become commonplace to use the phrase "the miracles of the prophets" in place of the more Quranic concept of "the signs of the prophets." One might say that even though both "miracles" and "signs" were originally seen as evidence of, or a witness to, the veracity of the person through whom God had brought about the event in question, the confusion between the concepts of "sign" and "miracle" has entrenched an attitude of stubbornness and defiance among those prone to resist the truth. The difference between the two is actually quite significant. The stuff of "the miraculous" tends to stir up resistance and defiance among those who witness it. As for the "sign," it includes the element of miraculousness but presents the miraculous event as a kind of evidence, the function of a "sign" being to prepare those who witness it to listen more attentively, and to be more receptive to the message and the message-bearer.
The Arabic term ajz conveys the sense of failure, weakness, or inability to do something; as such, it connotes the opposite of ability or strength. As Cain cried out, "Oh, woe is me! Am I then too weak (ajaztu) to do what this raven did...?" (Quran 5:31). Based on the usage of the word in other places of the Quran, it is clear that the triliteral root a-j-z has nothing to do with the signs, or ayah brought by the prophets in support of their messages. In fact, there is nothing to indicate that the words mujizah and ayah are synonymous.
Al-Qadi ibn al-Baqillani has mentioned four conditions that must be met in order for something to be termed miraculous (mujiz). These four conditions are: (1) that God alone would be capable of it; (2) that it is so out of the ordinary that it may be said to violate a law of nature; (3) that no one but a prophet would be able to manifest the likes of it; and (4) that it take place at the hands of an apostle who is challenging the people to whom he has been sent, and with the claim that it is a sign of the truth of his message.
Compiled From:
"Reviving The Balance: The Authority of the Qur'an and the Status of the Sunnah" - Taha Jabir Alalwani