inimitability of the Qur'an

The Qur’an is miraculously inimitable because it has come forth with the most eloquent words compounded in the most beautiful composition containing the most valid ideas such as
	believing in the unity of God,
	declaring Him to be Transcendent in His qualities,
	calling (humanity) to His obedience,
	elucidating the way of worshipping Him,
	as well as prescribing what is permitted and what is prohibited,
	what is forbidden and what is allowed,
	in addition to admonishing and correcting,
	commanding what is good and forbidding what is evil,
	and guiding to good qualities and restraining from bad ones.
In all this, it has put every one of these things in its place which cannot be substituted by a more appropriate one, and nothing can be imagined that is more suitable than it.

Among the facets of the miraculous nature of the Qur'an are the following:
	The inimitability of the Qur’an
	The literary miracle of the Qur’an
	The preservation of the Qur’an
	Predictions about the future
	Lost knowledge of the past
	Knowledge about the natural world
	Elucidations about the origins of life
	The existence of God, His Names, and His Attributes
	Universal laws, objective morals, and guidance
	The ease by which the Qur’an is memorized
	The lack of errors and contradictions within it
	Personal experiences related to the Qur’an

The basis for the agreed-upon doctrine of the miraculous nature of the Qur'an is found in the Qur’an itself on six different occasions, such as when the adversaries of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ denied his prophethood and declared the Qur’an to be fabricated; the Qur’an itself challenged those who denied it to “produce something like it … if you are truthful [in your claim].”
These verses pose what is known as the eternal taḥaddī (challenge), or collectively as the Verses of the Challenge (āyāt at-taḥaddī);
thus, anyone who denies the Qur’an’s divine origins is challenged to produce something like it if they believe it to be man-made (i.e., not originating from God).

Although this challenge was presented to the greatest Arab poets who were known for their eloquence and mastery of the Arabic language, the challenge remains open and active until the end of time.

The famous scholar as-Suyūtī (d. 911/1505) summarizes the history of the challenge as follows:
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	… when the Prophet brought [the challenge] to them, they were the most eloquent rhetoricians so he challenged them to produce the [entire] likes [of the Qur’an] and many years passed and they were unable to do so, as God says, “Let them then produce a recitation similar to it if indeed they are truthful.”
	Then, [the Prophet] challenged them to produce ten chapters like it where God says, “Say, bring then ten chapters like it and call upon whomever you can besides God if you are truthful.”
	Then, he challenged them to produce a single [chapter] where God says, “Or do they say he [i.e., the Prophet] has forged it? Say, bring a chapter like it and call upon whomever you can besides God, if you are truthful…”
	When the [Arabs] were unable to produce a single chapter like [the Qur’an] despite there being the most eloquent rhetoricians amongst them, [the Prophet] openly announced the failure and inability [to meet the challenge] and declared the inimitability of the Qur’an.
	Then God said,
		“Say: if all of humankind and the jinn gathered together to produce the like of the Qur’an, they could not produce it—even if they helped one another...”
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The Qur'an in many places challenges the people to produce a surah/chapter like it.
What is meant by surah like it with respect to the Arabic prose and poetry?

The verses of the Qur'an dealing with the challenge are given below (Hilali & Muhsin Khan's translation):
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	[Qur'an 17:88] Say: "If the mankind and the jinns were together to produce the like of this Qur'an, they could not produce the like thereof, even if they helped one another."

	[Qur'an 2:23] And if you (Arab pagans, Jews, and Christians) are in doubt concerning that which We have sent down (i.e. the Qur'an) to Our slave (Muhammad Peace be upon him ), then produce a surah (chapter) of the like thereof and call your witnesses (supporters and helpers) besides Allah, if you are truthful.

	[Qur'an 10:37-38] And this Qur'an is not such as could ever be produced by other than Allah (Lord of the heavens and the earth), but it is a confirmation of (the revelation) which was before it [i.e. the Taurat (Torah), and the Injeel (Gospel), etc.], and a full explanation of the Book (i.e. laws and orders, etc, decreed for mankind) - wherein there is no doubt from the the Lord of the 'Alamin (mankind, jinns,and all that exists).
		Or do they say: "He (Muhammadﷺ) has forged it?" Say: "Bring then a surah (chapter) like unto it, and call upon whomsoever you can, besides Allah, if you are truthful!"

	[Qur'an 11:13] Or they say, "He (Prophet Muhammadﷺ) forged it (the Qur'an)." Say: "Bring you then ten forged surah (chapters) like unto it, and call whomsoever you can, other than Allah (to your help), if you speak the truth!"

	[Qur'an 52:33-34] Or do they say: "He (Muhammadﷺ) has forged it (this Qur'an)?" Nay! They believe not! Let them then produce a recital like unto it (the Qur'an) if they are truthful.
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To begin with; the Arabic language and Arab speech are divided into two branches.
One of them is rhymed poetry.
It is a speech with metre and rhyme, which means every line of it ends upon a definite letter, which is called the 'rhyme'.
This rhymed poetry is again divided into metres or what is called as al-Bihar, literally meaning 'The Seas'.
This is so called because of the way the poetry moves according to the rhythmic patterns.
There are sixteen al-Bihar:
at-Tawil, al-Bassit, al-Wafir, al-Kamil, ar-Rajs, al-Khafif, al-Hazaj, al-Muttakarib, al-Munsarih, al-Muktatab, al-Muktadarak, al-Madid, al-Mujtath, al-Ramel, al-Khabab and as-Saria'.
Each one rhymes differently.
The other branch of Arabic speech is prose, which is non-metrical speech. The prose may be a rhymed prose. Rhymed prose consists of cola ending on the same rhyme throughout, or of sentences rhymed in pairs.
This is called "rhymed prose" or saj.
Prose may also be straight prose (mursal). In straight prose, the speech goes on and is not divided in cola, but is continued straight through without any divisions, either of rhyme or of anything else. Prose is employed in sermons and prayers and in speeches intended to encourage or frighten the masses.

So the challenge is to produce in Arabic, three lines, that do not fall into one of these sixteen Bihar, that is not rhyming prose, nor like the speech of soothsayers, and not normal speech, that it should contain at least a comprehensible meaning and rhetoric, i.e. not gobbledygook.
Now I think at least the Christian's "Holy Spirit" that makes you talk in tongues, part of your "Tri-Unity" of God should be able to inspire one of you with that!

The Qur'an is not verse, but it is rhythmic. The rhythm of some verses resemble the regularity of saj, and both are rhymed, while some verses have a similarity to Rajaz in its vigour and rapidity. But it was recognized by Quraysh critics to belong to neither one nor the other category.

It is interesting to know that all the pre-Islam and post-Islamic poetry collected by Louis Cheikho falls in the above sixteen metres or al-Bihar. Indeed the pagans of Mecca repeated accuse Prophet Muhammadﷺ for being a forger, a soothsayer etc. The Arabs who were at the pinnacle of their poetry and prose during the time of revelation of the Qur'an could not even produce the smallest surah of its like. The Qur'an's form did not fit into any of the above mentioned categories. It was this that made the Qur'an inimitable, and left the pagan Arabs at a loss as to how they might combat it as Alqama bin Abd al-Manaf confirmed when he addressed their leaders, the Quraysh:
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	Oh Quraysh, a new calamity has befallen you. Mohammed was a young man the most liked among you, most truthful in speech, and most trustworthy, until, when you saw gray hairs on his temple, and he brought you his message,
you said that he was a sorcerer, but he is not, for we seen such people and their spitting and their knots;
you said a diviner, but we have seen such people and their behavior, and we have heard their rhymes;
you said a soothsayer, but he is not a soothsayer, for we have heard their rhymes;
and you said a poet, but he is not a poet, for we have heard all kinds of poetry;
you said he was possessed, but he is not for we have seen the possessed, and he shows no signs of their gasping and whispering and delirium.
Oh those of Quraysh, look to your affairs, for by Allah a serious thing has befallen you.
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