76: 1 Do you come onto (discover/discern) the Human at some point in Time (during an Age) it is not something Mentioned (Thought of/Remembered)?
The classical interpretation of 76:1 is something along the lines: 'Has there come upon man any period of time in which he was a thing not mentioned/unremembered?'
And it generally is an acceptable interpretation if 'هَلْ ' is given a range of poetic license to mean 'has there' or 'was there ever,' but it seems the primary meaning of 'hal?' is 'do you?' But if 'هَلْ ' is used literally as 'Do you..' then the rest of 76:1 only makes sense if it is understood to be a direct inquiry regarding a direct observation by 'you' about ' الْإِنسَانِ ' or 'the Human', 'Man' (mankind in general). The predicate pronoun is a gender neutral ' لَمْ يَكُن ' or 'it was/is' when referring to 'it' as something not yet mentioned; a way to initially call something that has yet to be identified animate or named (as he, she, or they, etc.).
103 Al'Asr (The Epoch/Age/Era/Times/Period/Eon)وَالْعَصْرِ 103:1
إِنَّ الْإِنسَانَ لَفِي خُسْر 103:2
103:1 And (Consider) The Times
103:2 Indeed, the Human (Humanity, Mankind, Man) because in (it) is lost (at a loss;absorbed).
Chapter 103 is a terse verse of 3 Signs and these first 2 Signs condense in a few simple words exactly what is Mankind's Predicament; that Mankind is distracted by the Times/Epoch they are in; they are 'Lost' to it because they are actively participating in it; literally, 'for in is lost.' The balance of the Signs offers a way to dispel the situation; the 'out,' if you will, for this quandary.
إِلَّا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ وَتَوَاصَوْا بِالْحَقِّ وَتَوَاصَوْا بِالصَّبْرِ 103:3
103:3 Except for those who Believe and Do Good (the Beautiful things) and Counsel (each other)in Truth (to do Right) and Counsel (each other) Patience.
This post is meant to be a serious discourse about Time and our perception of it; but since it is True that I have a tendency to get 'lost in The Times' (The Los Angeles Times, that is) and Tim Rickard went ahead and 'killed' Brewster Rockit: Space Guy! in yesterday's funny, I turned my attention to The New York Times science section, Science Times, today. Above the fold, on the front page of that section was a drawing by Daniel Tammet, a young man who is a math and linguistic savant afflicted with Asperger's syndrome. Daniel's illustration depicts how he sees numbers, and I have reprinted it here after having added my captions to what each numeric icon means in terms of what is going on at A Page In The Life and UFOs (consider the number 4 'chevron' and the number 12 'Triangle UFO').
It is interesting that Daniel chose to illustrate up to 12 counts, i.e., duodecimal (Base-12). While computers process internally using binary (Base-2), and we predominately count using Base-10 (decimal), the duodecimal system is much easier to reckon the count of Time. It is also easy to multiply and divide, add and subtract in Base-12 as in Base-10. The fact that 12 has 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6 as factors makes it very useful.
As for Time, there are 24 hours in a day and each day is divided into 12-hour cycles, which may be further subdivided into four 6-hour segments of morning, afternoon, evening and night. Traditionally, 12 is also the basis for printing such as points, pica, and the combination of Base-10 and Base-12 resolutions for dpi.
When first examining 'Is There Life After Death' the idea of Time Perception was mentioned. There are 2 aspects of Time, the Actual Time that exists due to the Universal Clock Mechanism (The Sun, The Planets, The Moon, The Stars, Orbiting, Revolving, Rising (Ascension), Setting, etc.) and the Perceived Time that exists because of a Human's perception (either directly by watching a clock, observing natural phenomenon, or indirectly flowing through us when we are engaged in activity or inactivity or dreams).
The Physical count of Time (Actual Time) is indeed dozenal, the Quran mentions our dividing and calculating it based on a duodecimal system (Base-12) and some of its factors (2, 4, 6).
إِنَّ رَبَّكُمُ اللّهُ الَّذِي خَلَقَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرْضَ فِي سِتَّةِ أَيَّامٍ ثُمَّ اسْتَوَى عَلَى الْعَرْشِ
يُغْشِي اللَّيْلَ النَّهَارَ يَطْلُبُهُ حَثِيثًا وَالشَّمْسَ وَالْقَمَرَ وَالنُّجُومَ مُسَخَّرَاتٍ بِأَمْرِهِ
أَلاَ لَهُ الْخَلْقُ وَالأَمْرُ تَبَارَكَ اللّهُ رَبُّ الْعَالَمِينَ 7:54
7:54 It is Your Lord God that Created the Heavens and the Earth in 6 Days (Eons) and then Established Himself Dominion (the Throne over them); He obscures the Day with the Night; they vigorously pursue (request) His (Command); and the Sun and the Moon and the Stars are subject to His Command (Order, Arrangement, Will); His is the Creation and the Commandment, Blessed Be God, The Lord (Sustainer/Keeper) of the Worlds.
إِنَّ عِدَّةَ الشُّهُورِ عِندَ اللّهِ اثْنَا عَشَرَ شَهْرًا فِي كِتَابِ اللّهِ يَوْمَ خَلَقَ السَّمَاوَات وَالأَرْضَ
مِنْهَا أَرْبَعَةٌ حُرُمٌ ذَلِكَ الدِّينُ الْقَيِّمُ فَلاَ تَظْلِمُواْ فِيهِنَّ أَنفُسَكُمْ
وَقَاتِلُواْ الْمُشْرِكِينَ كَآفَّةً كَمَا يُقَاتِلُونَكُمْ كَآفَّةً وَاعْلَمُواْ أَنَّ اللّهَ مَعَ الْمُتَّقِينَ 9:36
9:36 The count of Months according to God is 12 Months; in God's Book (Record) the Day He Created the Heavens and the Earth of them 4 are Sacred; that is the Way (Law) so do not Wrong yourselves in them and fight the faithless (idolators) as they fight you; and know that God is with the Pious.
وَجَعَلْنَا اللَّيْلَ وَالنَّهَارَ آيَتَيْنِ فَمَحَوْنَا آيَةَ اللَّيْلِ وَجَعَلْنَا آيَةَ النَّهَارِ مُبْصِرَةً لِتَبْتَغُواْ
فَضْلاً مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ وَلِتَعْلَمُواْ عَدَدَ السِّنِينَ وَالْحِسَابَ وَكُلَّ شَيْءٍ فَصَّلْنَاهُ تَفْصِيلاً 17:12
17:12 And We Made the Night and the Day 2 Signs; And We Efface the Sign of Night and Made the Sign of Daylight for you to See by it so that you may seek God’s Bounty and to learn (know)the count/reckoning of the Years and to calculate and everything We have Explained (Separated) Clearly.
هُوَ الَّذِي جَعَلَ الشَّمْسَ ضِيَاء وَالْقَمَرَ نُورًا وَقَدَّرَهُ مَنَازِلَ لِتَعْلَمُواْ عَدَدَ السِّنِينَ
وَالْحِسَابَ مَا خَلَقَ اللّهُ ذَلِكَ إِلاَّ بِالْحَقِّ يُفَصِّلُ الآيَاتِ لِقَوْمٍ يَعْلَمُونَ 10:5
10:5 It is He Who Made the Sun a Light (source) and the Moon a Light (reflector) and Appointed for it Phases that you may know the count of the years and the calculating (of time); God did not Create this except in Truth; He Clarifies (Separates/Distinguishes) the Signs for People who Think (Consider). (Note: There are 8 phases to the Moon 2*4)
By contrast our Perceived Time is mentioned throughout the Quran as being based on a decimal system; 1,000 years or 50,000 years or 10 days, etc.
وَيَسْتَعْجِلُونَكَ بِالْعَذَابِ وَلَن يُخْلِفَ اللَّهُ وَعْدَهُ وَإِنَّ يَوْمًا عِندَ رَبِّكَ كَأَلْفِ سَنَةٍ مِّمَّا تَعُدُّونَ 22:47
22:47...and a Day to God is like 1,000 years by your reckoning
يُدَبِّرُ الْأَمْرَ مِنَ السَّمَاء إِلَى الْأَرْضِ ثُمَّ يَعْرُجُ إِلَيْهِ فِي يَوْمٍ كَانَ مِقْدَارُهُ أَلْفَ سَنَةٍ مِّمَّا تَعُدُّونَ 32:5
32:5 The Commandment is Procured from Heaven to Earth then it Ascends to Him in a Day like an Amount of 1,000 years (periods/ages) by your accounting
يَتَخَافَتُونَ بَيْنَهُمْ إِن لَّبِثْتُمْ إِلَّا عَشْرًا 20:103
نَحْنُ أَعْلَمُ بِمَا يَقُولُونَ إِذْ يَقُولُ أَمْثَلُهُمْ طَرِيقَةً إِن لَّبِثْتُمْ إِلَّا يَوْمًا 20:104
20:103 they estimate among themselves that they were broadcast (went about)
for only 10 (days)
20:104 We Know what they say when those who know the Way tell them that
'You were broadcast (had gone about) merely a day.'
تَعْرُجُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ وَالرُّوحُ إِلَيْهِ فِي يَوْمٍ كَانَ مِقْدَارُهُ خَمْسِينَ أَلْفَ سَنَةٍ 70:4
70:4 The Angels and The Spirit Ascend to Him in a Day like the Amount of 50,000 Years (Ages, Periods)
What Inner Truth governs why objective time has as its basis the number 12 and subjective time is based on the number 10 escapes me for now. But taking a second look at Daniel's drawing above and its serendipidous happenstance that I found it in the paper shortly after having started this post, begs for searching it for more clues. 'Daniel tends to see numbers each integer up to 10,000 has its own unique shape, colour, texture and feel.'
No.___Symbol______________________Relevance To APage... 1_____radiance_____________________Light/Source/Radiance
2_____wave_______________________Information/Signal
3_____perforated arc________________ Boundary___
4_____chevron__________________ __Piercing the Boundary5_____surface_____________________Space deformation/Warp
6_____point_______________________Condensation
7_____slit_________________________Initial formation/Expansion
8_____rings/orbiting bodies____________System formation
9_____keyhole/monolith______________Solid structure/Leaded Column/DNA
10____aperture_____________________Portal/Kernel/Threshold
11____small/large body_______________Birth/Separation/Earth_Moon
12____triangle flying object_____________UFO/Borne/Rebirth/Resurrection
It seems like Daniel's first 12 numbers illustrate Origination to Resurrection, and if we can get Daniel to illustrate all 10,000 integers that he 'sees' we just might be able to decipher his experience of what the future holds.
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