Video: https://youtu.be/G-SQmuHaz_A
When teaching, the most effective lessons aren’t spoken, they’re shown. The other day during our Quran Reflection class, I wanted to demonstrate this principle to my students.
“Today’s verse for reflection is verse 67, Surah Al-Baqarah. Allah says:”
وَإِذْ قَالَ مُوسَىٰ لِقَوْمِهِۦٓ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يَأْمُرُكُمْ أَن تَذْبَحُوا۟ بَقَرَةً ۖ قَالُوٓا۟ أَتَتَّخِذُنَا هُزُوًا ۖ قَالَ أَعُوذُ بِٱللَّهِ أَنْ أَكُونَ مِنَ ٱلْجَـٰهِلِينَ
“And [recall] when Moses said to his people, "Indeed, Allah commands you to slaughter a cow."”
Just as I started teaching, I stopped “…but before I begin, can everyone please take a pen and paper out please.”
Without exception, every one of the students reached for their bags and took out a pen and paper as requested – except for the usual suspects who “forgot their pen”
I continued: “Now, let me ask you a question: why did no one ask what colour pen to take out, or what size book I wanted?”
Confused, they all look at me with a blank stare. Had they done something wrong?
“The answer is because my request was clear. You all understood what I meant by pen and paper, and asking any clarification questions would seem silly and even rude.
“So now, when Musa (as) requests his people to slaughter a cow, do any of you have any ambiguity on what that means? Would you think to ask what colour it is? Or what type of cow it should be? No. If you did, how would that seem?”
Now the students joined the dots. The lesson we are about to teach becomes clear. They all answered: “Rude. Questioning of authority, Mocking.”
“Perfect” I said. “Now, let’s begin reading this story, but this time, keep in mind the context we just painted.”
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When we teach the Quran, it’s easy to pass over a passage without appreciating the subtleties of its meaning and context. Many of us will have heard or read this story before, but how often do we stop to appreciate the tone and context of the conversation? How often do we recreate the situation to really understand how the conversation took place?
Surah Al-Baqarah (the cow) is a lengthy surah full of stories, laws and analogies, yet its name is taken from this incident – why? Allah ﷻ wishes to illustrate to us how to approach His commands through an analogy, just like how I taught it to the students.
There’s more to say, but this time, I want to hear your thoughts. Share with me an example you’ve come across in the Quran which is better taught through demonstration. We would love to hear your thoughts!
Talha Ghannam
www.quranclub.org
