Huruf al Muqattaat (Disjointed Letters)

بسم الله الرحمـن الرحيم

والعاقبة للمتّقين

Huruf-al-Muqattaat (Disjointed Letters)

A unique feature of the Holy Quran is the occurrence of ‘disjointed letters’ at the beginning of 29 chapters, for example:

الٓمّٓ۞

Alif. Laam. Meem.

which specifically occurs at the beginning of six separate chapters. There is considerable debate surrounding the meaning of these disjointed letters, but through my own research and inspiration I believe that they have some relation to numerology. Gematria, known as Abjad in Arabic, assigns a value to each letter of the alphabet. The Hebrew alphabet consists of twenty-two letters, and so the last letter of that alphabet has a value of 400. Arabic, however, has an additional six letters, which its last letter being assigned a value of 1000. Nevertheless, the disjoined letters which appear at the beginning of chapters of the Holy Quran all correspond to letters in the Hebrew alphabet and none of the additional six letters are used. I believe this isn’t coincidental and a strong indication that the disjointed letters have something to do with gematria. Another indication of this is a Hadith:

عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ ، عَنْ جَابِرِ بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ رِئَابٍ ، قَالَ : " مَرَّ أَبُو يَاسِرِ بْنُ أَخْطَبَ بِرَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ ، وَهُوَ يَتْلُو فَاتِحَةَ سُورَةِ الْبَقَرَةِ : الم { 1 } ذَلِكَ الْكِتَابُ لا رَيْبَ فِيهِ سورة البقرة آية 1-2 ، فَأَتَى أَخَاهُ حُيَيَّ بْنَ أَخْطَبَ فِي رِجَالٍ مِنْ يَهُودَ ، فَقَالَ : تَعْلَمُونَ وَاللَّهِ ، لَقَدْ سَمِعْتُ مُحَمَّدًا يَتْلُو فِيمَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ : الم { 1 } ذَلِكَ الْكِتَابُ سورة البقرة آية 1-2 ، فَقَالُوا : أَنْتَ سَمِعْتَهُ ؟ قَالَ : نَعَمْ ، فَمَشَى حُيَيُّ بْنُ أَخْطَبَ فِي أُولَئِكَ النَّفْرِ مِنْ يَهُودَ إِلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ ، فَقَالُوا : يَا مُحَمَّدُ ، أَلَمْ يُذْكَرْ لَنَا أَنَّكَ تَتْلُو فِيمَا أُنْزِلَ عَلَيْكَ : الم { 1 } ذَلِكَ الْكِتَابُ سورة البقرة آية 1-2 ؟ فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ : " بَلَى " ، قَالُوا : أَجَاءَكَ بِهَذَا جِبْرِيلُ مِنْ عِنْدِ اللَّهِ ؟ قَالَ : " نَعَمْ " ، قَالُوا : لَقَدْ بَعَثَ اللَّهُ قَبْلَكَ أَنْبِيَاءَ مَا نَعْلَمُهُ بَيَّنَ لِنَبِيٍّ مِنْهُمْ مَا مُدَّةُ مُلْكِهِ ، وَمَا أُكْلُ أُمَّتِهِ غَيْرَكَ ، فَقَالَ حُيَيُّ بْنُ أَخْطَبَ : وَأَقْبَلَ عَلَى مَنْ كَانَ مَعَهُ ، فَقَالَ لَهُمُ : الأَلِفُ وَاحِدَةٌ ، وَاللامُ ثَلاثُونَ ، وَالْمِيمُ أَرْبَعُونَ ، فَهَذِهِ إِحْدَى وَسَبْعُونَ سَنَةً ، أَفَتَدْخُلُونَ فِي دِينِ نَبِيٍّ إِنَّمَا مُدَّةُ مُلْكِهِ وَأُكْلُ أُمَّتِهِ إِحْدَى وَسَبْعُونَ سَنَةً ؟ قَالَ : ثُمَّ أَقْبَلَ عَلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ ، فَقَالَ : يَا مُحَمَّدُ ، هَلْ مَعَ هَذَا غَيْرُهُ ؟ قَالَ : " نَعَمْ " ، قَالَ : مَاذَا ؟ قَالَ : ( المص ) ، قَالَ : هَذِهِ أَثْقَلُ وَأَطْوَلُ ؛ الأَلِفُ وَاحِدَةٌ ، وَاللامُ ثَلاثُونَ ، وَالْمِيمُ أَرْبَعُونَ ، وَالصَّادُ تِسْعَوْنَ ، فَهَذِهِ إِحْدَى وَسِتُّونَ وَمِائَةٌ سَنَةً ، هَلْ مَعَ هَذَا يَا مُحَمَّدُ غَيْرُهُ ؟ قَالَ : " نَعَمْ " ، قَالَ : مَاذَا ؟ قَالَ : ( الر ) ، قَالَ : هَذِهِ أَثْقَلُ وَأَطْوَلُ ؛ الأَلِفُ وَاحِدَةٌ ، وَاللامُ ثَلاثُونَ ، وَالرَّاءُ مِائَتَانِ ، فَهَذِهِ إِحْدَى وَثَلاثُونَ وَمِائَتَا سَنَةٍ ، فَقَالَ : فَهَلْ مَعَ هَذَا غَيْرُهُ يَا مُحَمَّدُ ؟ قَالَ : " نَعَمْ ، ( المر ) " ، قَالَ : فَهَذِهِ أَثْقَلُ وَأَطْوَلُ ؛ الأَلِفُ وَاحِدَةٌ ، وَاللامُ ثَلاثُونَ ، وَالْمِيمُ أَرْبَعُونَ ، وَالرَّاءُ مِائَتَانِ ، فَهَذِهِ إِحْدَى وَسَبْعُونَ وَمِائَتَا سَنَةٍ ، ثُمَّ قَالَ : لَقَدْ لُبِّسَ عَلَيْنَا أَمْرُكَ يَا مُحَمَّدُ ، حَتَّى مَا نَدْرِي أَقَلِيلا أُعْطِيتَ أَمْ كَثِيرًا ، ثُمَّ قَامُوا عَنْهُ ، فَقَالَ أَبُو يَاسِرٍ لأَخِيهِ حُيَيِّ بْنِ أَخْطَبَ ، وَلِمَنْ مَعَهُ مِنَ الأَحْبَارِ : مَا يُدْرِيكُمْ ، لَعَلَّهُ قَدْ جُمِعَ هَذَا كُلُّهُ لِمُحَمَّدٍ ؛ إِحْدَى وَسَبْعُونَ ، وَإِحْدَى وَسِتُّونَ وَمِائَةٌ ، وَإِحْدَى وَثَلاثُونَ وَمِائَتَانِ ، وَإِحْدَى وَسَبْعُونَ وَمِائَتَانِ ، فَذَلِكَ سَبْعُ مِائَةٍ وَأَرْبَعٌ وَثَلاثُونَ ، فَقَالُوا : لَقَدْ تَشَابَهَ عَلَيْنَا أَمْرُهُ . فَيَزْعُمُونَ أَنَّ هَؤُلاءِ الآيَاتِ نَزَلَتْ فِيهِمْ : هُوَ الَّذِي أَنْزَلَ عَلَيْكَ الْكِتَابَ مِنْهُ آيَاتٌ مُحْكَمَاتٌ هُنَّ أُمُّ الْكِتَابِ وَأُخَرُ مُتَشَابِهَاتٌ سورة آل عمران آية 7

Ibn Abbas^RA narrates from Jabir b. Abd Allah b. Ri’ab^RA, who said: Abu Yasir b. Akhtab passed by Allah’s Apostle ﷺ who was reciting the opening of the Sura of the Cow: Alif – Lam – Mim. This is the Book wherein is no doubt. He came to his brother, Huyaiy b. Akhtab, among some Jews, and said: “By God, do you know that I heard Muhammad recite from what God has sent down to him: Alif – Lam – Mim. This is the Book, wherein is no doubt?” They said: “You heard him say that?” He said: “Yes.” Then Huyaiy b. Akhtab went to Allah’s Apostle ﷺ with that group of Jews, and they said: “O Muhammad, has it not been mentioned to us that you recite Alif – Lam – Mim. This is the Book wherein is no doubt, in what has been sent down to you?” Then Allah’s Apostle ﷺ said: “Yes, indeed,” so they said: “Did Gabriel bring you this from God?” He said: “Yes.” Then they said: “God sent prophets before you, but we are not aware that He explained to any of them the duration of his authority and how long his community would be sustained except to you.” Then Huyaiy b. Akhtab turned to those who were with him and said to them: “The Alif is ‘one’, the Lam ‘thirty’, and the Mim ‘forty’. This makes 71 years. Will you enter the religion of a prophet the duration of whose authority and the life of whose community is only 71 years?” Then he turned to Allah’s Apostle ﷺ and said: “O Muhammad, were there any more letters with these?” He said: “Yes.” He said: “What were they?” He said: “Alif – Lam – Mim – Sad.” He said: “This is more important and longer: The Alif is ‘one’, the Lam ‘thirty’, the Mim ‘forty’, and the Sad ‘ninety’. This makes 161 years. Are there more than this, O Muhammad?” He said: “Yes.” He said: “What are they?” He said: “Alif – Lam – Ra.” He said: “This is more important and longer: The Alif is ‘one’, the Lam ‘thirty’, and the Ra ‘two-hundred’. This makes 231 years. Are there any more than this, O Muhammad?” He said: “Yes. Alif – Lam -Mim – Ra.” He said: “This is more important and longer: The Alif is ‘one’, the Lam ‘thirty’, the Mim ‘forty’, and the Ra ‘two-hundred’. This makes 271 years.” Then he said: “Your affair has become obscure for us, O Muhammad, for we do not know whether you have been given a little time or a lot.” Then they left him. But Abu Yasir said to his brother, Huyaiy b. Akhtab, and to the rabbis who were with him: “What do you know? Perhaps all of these numbers are summed up in the case of Muhammad: 71, 161, 231, and 271. That makes 734.” They said: “His affair still appears ambiguous to us.” It is claimed that these verses were revealed about them: “It is He Who sent down upon you the Book, wherein are verses clear that the Essence of the Book, and others ambiguous. (Sura 3:7)” (Tafsir Ibn Jarir)

This Hadith is weak, in part due to the rejected narrator Ibn Sa’ib al-Kalbi. Nevertheless, there may be some truth to the idea that these disjointed letters are not only meant to be understood in the light of numerology or gematria, but that they also contain news of the unseen. And Allah knows best.