God Arises
The Challenge of The Qur’an
~ 283 ~
Stranger still is the case of Ibn-al Muqaffa (died 727
A.D.), a great scholar and celebrated writer of
Persian origin, who was called upon by the
unbelievers to counteract the widespread influence
the Quran was having on great throngs of people. A
man of extraordinary genius, he felt quite confident
that he could produce such a work in one year’s
time, provided that all his practical requirements
were taken care of, so that he could give his
undivided attention to the composition. Six months
passed and, naturally, certain people were eager to
know how much work had been accomplished.
When they went to see him, they found him sitting,
pen in hand, staring at a blank sheet of paper.
Around him were scattered innumerable pieces of
paper. This great, learned and eloquent writer had
done his best to write a book comparable to the
Quran, but had failed pathetically. Highly
embarrassed, he admitted that even after working
for all these six months, he had not been able to
produce even a single sentence which could match
up to the excellence of the Quran. Ashamed and
hopeless, he gave up the task he had been entrusted
with. This incident was recounted by the Orientalist
Wollaston, in his book,
Muhammad, His Life and
