On verses and signs congregated around the origin (Part 6)

In the previous post I’ve shown that language itself is a sign that is based on military aspects. In fact, language itself is so dependent on the gathering of distinct elements to give birth to words, sentences, and meaning, as an army is of the gathering of distinct individuals – and if soldiers congregate around a fixed standard, where do the elements of language congregate themselves?

I would like to start by telling you about the Greek word phalaggos, that means line of battle as well as the joints between the fingers and toes, nowadays known as phalanges. From this word, another derived: phalanx, that was used In ancient Greece in relation to a division composed by the total members of the infantry. This word was inherited by English language, meaning a tactical formation consisting of a block of heavily armed infantry standing shoulder to shoulder in fixed lines several ranks deep – a meaning that got its inspiration from the close position of the elements of the Greek phalanx infantry, whose first rows were formed by soldiers having their spears projecting out over the first rank of shields, making it impossible for the enemy to reach one of its members without being pierced first.

In the Qur’an, we find this row in 61:4, “Indeed, Allah loves those who fight in His cause in a row as though they are a structure joined firmly.”  - the word row being conveyed by صف (Sf), to set, placed, or stationed, a company of men, military force, in a rank, row, or line.
The word structure is a translation of بنى (bnia), a root that also denotes the act of constructing and bringing up, educate. In Latin, structura means a fitting together, adjustment; having had its origin in struo, to make by joining together; to build, fabricate, make, form, construct, and, with the idea of order predominating, to set in order, arrange. In other words, the stationing of troops in a row is equivalent to constructing.

I’m certain that you’re familiar with the need of arranging bricks in a row so as to build a wall. In Arabic, we find such a wall in root سور, that also means a sign or token as well as being used to denote the chapters of the Qur’an. The idea is that every single sign is arranged in such a manner as to render possible the construction of whole. To the building as a whole, as a group composed by orderly arranged elements in rows, be it bricks or soldiers, we’ll give the name book, كتب, (ktb), a root that also means the disposing the troops in order.

So, basically, the Qur’an is a building. Being a building, it’s composed of elements closely joined in rows. But, remember that in order to assure that these rows are made even, masons use a wooden instrument similar to a rule? This instrument is found amongst the meanings of ام, the root we’ve found in the second part of this article, also signifying origin and mother.

Before concluding this article, there’s just one last detail to which I have to call your attention: the fact that the Qur’an is conveyed by Arabic root قرا, which means to collect together – and which, in turn, means that even the title itself is a sign… because in Arabic, the title of a book is one of the meanings of عنو (‘nu), a root that also refers to everything that serves as an indication of other thing.

God willing, in my next article I’ll tell you the story of what happened when I noticed that ayat is a word composed by the first and last letters of Arabic alphabet, and decided to look at the word in my native language that’s as well formed through the addition of the first and last letters of Portuguese alphabet.

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