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Pharaoh
is often referred to in the Qur’an as one of those who grew
arrogant towards Allah. However, regarding Pharaoh as merely a
unique example is to fail to recognize the broader significance of
the subject. It is important to recognize that the story of
Pharaoh in the Qur’an, aside from merely providing information
about his life, defines the "Pharaonic" character that
has become prevalent in our time.
Whether
recognized or not, history has seen many people possessed of the
Pharaonic character. As a matter of fact, most are familiar with
this character. Those who are known for their arrogance are often
likened to Pharaoh. The Qur’an refers to Pharaoh and his people
as follows:
[Such
was the case with Pharaoh’s people and those before them. They
denied their Lord’s Signs so We destroyed them for their wrong
actions. We drowned Pharaoh’s people. All of them were
wrongdoers.]
(Al-Anfal
8:54)
The
character trait common to Pharaoh and other nations that perished
before him, is arrogance. The arrogance they harbored in their
hearts prevented them from accepting Allah’s messenger and
obeying him. Their rejection only led them to torment — both in
this world and beyond. Furthermore, exploring the nature of the
arrogance of Pharaoh, and considering the nations referred to in
the Qur’an as those that have gone down in history for their
arrogance, and their relevance to our day, will help us better
understand the importance of the subject.
The
attitude of Pharaoh and his people towards Allah’s messenger was
common to all corrupt nations. Their arrogance reached to such an
extent that they even dared to make a mockery of Allah’ s
messengers and the book he was sent with. This is related in the
following verses:
[We
sent Musa with Our Signs to Pharaoh and his nobles. He said,
"I am the Messenger of the Lord of the worlds." But
when he came to them with Our Signs, they merely laughed at
them.]
(Az-Zukhruf
43:46-47)
One
of Pharaoh’s distinguishing traits was — as is the case with
his leader, Satan — his immoderate attachment to worldly
things. Due to this distorted mindset, he failed to make a
rational assessment of the events that confronted him, and thus,
could not grasp Musa’s superiority. According to him, worldly
values such as wealth, power, and money were the criteria that
established one’s superiority. This poor reasoning of Pharaoh
is described in the Qur’an as follows:
[Pharaoh
called to his people, saying, "My people, does the
kingdom of Egypt not belong to me? Do not all these rivers
flow under my control? Do you not then see? Am I not better
than this man who is contemptible and can scarcely make
anything clear? Why have gold bracelets not been put upon his
arms and why is there not a train of angels accompanying
him?"]
(Az-Zukhruf
43:51-53)
The
issues Allah draws our attention to in the verses above are as
follows:
1.
According to Pharaoh, the measure of one’s superiority was
not fear of Allah, but possessions and wealth. Nobility was
also considered important.
2.
Pharaoh failed to grasp that the decision rested with Allah
alone; thus Musa’s stature as Allah’s messenger was
hurtful to his pride.
3.
He despised Musa (peace and blessings be upon him), found
him contemptible, and mentioned his manner of speaking as a
mark of inferiority. Focusing on people’ s imperfections
is evidently the behavior of an arrogant person.
4.
Pharaoh thought the messenger should have been accompanied
by angels or should have possessed wealth and power since,
in his opinion, these were the symbols of authority.
Read
Also:
*
Excerpted, with some modifications from the author’s book The Arrogance of
Satan. Courtesy to
www.harunyahya.com
** Harun Yahya was born
in Ankara in 1956. He studied arts at Istanbul's Mimar Sinan University, and
philosophy at Istanbul University. Since the 1980s, he has published many books
on political, faith-related, and scientific issues.
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