“The Night Journey” is the seventeenth surah (chapter) of The Koran, which records prophet Muhammad’s journey from the “Sacred Temple” at Mecca to the “Farther Temple” in Jerusalem during the year 620 CE. Considering that the journey took place such a long time ago, it is apparent that the language has evolved therefore making some parts difficult to apprehend. Corresponding to this, The Koran is also not directly translated to English, but paraphrased; which may possibly change the way we interpret various parts of it. Another factor of transparency for the reader is that The Koran was not written in chronological order, but in traditional. This may possibly change the way we produce our thoughts and feelings towards the events presented through the piece of writing. At times, The Koran may seem harsh to us due to the specific choice of language made by the person who wrote it. It is said that “If you do good, it shall be to your own advantage; but if you do evil, you shall sin against your own souls” (page 687). What the God is trying to say to his believers at this point is that if you are a good person and believe in him you will be rewarded later on, but if you do not, you will be sent to “Hell [;] a prison-house for the unbelievers” (page 687). If indeed one does get sent to Hell, they “will burn despised and helpless” (page 688). It is quite noticeable that God has certain ways that he wants things done and that if they are not done correctly, the person will be deemed an appropriate punishment. On the contrary, God makes an effort to promote respect towards not only himself, but also ones parents. In paragraph 18 of “The Night Journey” it is mentioned that you must “Serve no other god besides God” (page 688). Joined with this is the fact that one must treat their parents with great respect and kindness. By associating parents in the same paragraph with God, we see that parents symbolize a lower level type of God. Furthermore, God shows his gratitude to the true believers by promising them a good afterlife, forgiveness, and to be taken care of and looked after at all times. It is undoubtedly evident that God, if listened to and respected, will treat his true believers with dignity and reward them when the time comes. Throughout “The Night Journey” there are many statements made that are much alike the Ten Commandments by Moses. First off, both the Ten Commandments and The Koran tell their believers to serve no other god but God. In other words, be loyal to the one particular God that you believe in and don’t turn your back on him. Another related topic from the Ten Commandments is to respect your parents and honour them. Along with the rule that one shall not commit murder, this is most likely the most simplistic of them all. Finally there is the rule to never commit adultery. In the comfort of familiarity, adultery is when one “cheats” on another’s spouse. In The Koran this is said to be foul and indecent. The final similarity of The Koran and the Ten Commandments is one that many people today might disagree with: “[d]o not walk proudly on the earth” (page 689). Although it is true that one should not boast about his or her accomplishments, but it is always accepted when somebody is striving to better themselves for their own good. For the most part, this was just another piece of information for me to read, however, parts of this piece confused me because I was not
