What is ruku and sujud?per Quran

What is ruku and sujud?

In our study Why SUJUD is NOT physical prostration, we noted what sujud is not. Now we will see what sujud is.

We get a precise meaning of sujud (root sjd, S-J-D) from Quranic references, e.g.:

See they not all the things that God has created, how their shadows incline to the right and to the left, doing SUJUD (complying) to God and they remain obedient?/ And to God do SUJUD (comply) whatsoever that is in the Heavens and that is in the Earth, of living beings as well as of the controllers, and they are not arrogant./ They reverence their Sustainer high above them, and do whatever they are ordered to do. 16:48-50

Above the Quran draws our attention to the way how everything in the Universe is in sujud, while describing the essence of their sujud: They remain obedient (wa hum dakhirun) as they possess no ego (wa hum la yastakbarun), while doing as they are ordered to do (wa yaf’aluna ma yumarun).

So sujud is obediently complying with (acting in accordance with) the wishes, rules, commands, orders or instructions of one in authority.

We can see everything in the Universe is doing sujud to God 

It is traditionally thought that only God knows the sujud of the living and the non-living worlds. However, this doesn’t seem to be the case, since 16:48 calls on us to easily observe (“See they not …”) the sujud throughout the Universe. We can easily observe that all creation – from the flowers blooming in their seasons to the fruits falling on the ground, from the animal moms taking care of their offspring to the birds flying in the sky … and from the celestial bodies whirling in their orbits to the electrons spinning inside an atom – all are strictly abiding by divine rules, or laws of nature:

Whoever is in the Heavens and the Earth does SUJUD (comply) to God, willingly or unwillingly, as do their shadows at morning and evening. 13:15

The Sun and the Moon are with a calculation./ And the Stars and the trees do SUJUD (comply). 55:5-6

Now look into the verse below, which further confirms that the universal act of sujud is not anything unobservable, but is well observed by us (“Do you not see that …”). Yes, we do witness that everything in the Universe is in constant sujud/compliance to God as they obediently act in accordance with His commandments, without ever refusing to do so:

Do you not see that to God do SUJUD (comply) all things that are in the Heavens and on Earth and the Sun and the Moon and the Stars and the mountains and the trees and the moving creatures, as well as many among humans, and many (or, but there are many) unto whom the penalty is justly due. 22:18

It is important to note that ‘many among humans’ as well as ‘many unto whom the penalty is justly due’ are also described here as being in sujud. On one hand, all humans are constantly in sujud to God in the sense that, unconsciously or subconsciously, they all are incessantly subjected to divine laws throughout their lives. On the other hand, due to the free will gifted to humans, ‘many among humans’ are in conscious sujud/compliance with divine laws, while ‘many unto whom the penalty is justly due’ are consciously non-compliant with these laws. As evident, sujud doesn’t mean physical prostration in any of these connotations.

Exceptionally, sujud is also used to mean ‘compliance with a human authority’

The meaning of sujud as compliance in a broader sense may apply to other entities, including humans. Exceptionally, when used for humans, the word sujud implies compliance with a human authority:

And when We said to the controllers: Comply (SUJUD) with Adam/humankind, they all complied (SUJUD) except Iblis, he refused and became arrogant, and became one of the rejecters. 2:34

And when they were told: “Reside in this town and eat from it as you please, speak modestly and enter the gate in compliance (SUJUD; complying with the town authority) …” 7:161

And he raised his parents upon the throne, and they fell to Him in compliance (SUJUD; they fell in compliance into his leadership). And he said: “My father, this is the interpretation of my vision from before. My Sustainer has made it true … .” 12:100

Final thoughts

SUJUD is obediently complying with, or acting in accordance with, the rules or laws of one in authority.

Sujud to God means complying with, or acting in accordance with, the divine rules/laws, whether they are scribed in a revealed Book or in the Book of nature (13:15, 16:48-50, 22:18, 55:5-6).

Exceptionally, when used for humans, the word sujud implies compliance with a human authority (2:34, 7:161, 12:100).

siraj 

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