A Comparative Study of the Meccan and Medinan al-Jannah Verses in Terms of Structure and Theme

In religious thought, “the paradise” is the eternal place of the virtuous and the center of divine blessings, so the analysis of the Quranic propositions in describing the paradise as well as the trans-spatial and trans-temporal dimensions of the holy Quran in this area is an undeniable necessity. Using the descriptive-analytical method, this study examines the al-jannah verses in the Meccan and Medinan chapters of the Quran. The results of this research in structural and thematic dimensions indicate that, in the structural dimension, the phonetic level of the al-Jannah Meccan verses have a better rhythmic order. “Warnings and glad tidings” and the description of the resurrection is the main focus of the Meccan chapters, so the tones and rhythms of the verses stimulate the addressee to better understand the scenes of the resurrection. In the thematic dimension, the description of material blessings has more frequency and repetition in the al-jannah Meccan verses. In the al-jannah Medinan verses, however, spiritual dimensions have a better manifestation, and the common words in the al-jannah Medinan verses, which have established a link between different chapters, are a reason for discovering the common meanings of the chapters and indicate the conditions and requisites of entering the paradise. The Quran has outlined the many features of the paradise and the various matters related to different times and places in a system and framework, which, after reflecting on various subjects, leads us to the thematic unity of the al-jannah verses. The sound and music of the al-jannah verses are changed according to the context of the meaning, themes of the speech and the conditions and requirements related to the speech, and hence a precise relationship governs the themes and structure of the al-jannah verses. The harmony between the al-jannah verses and the conditions of the addressees is a facet of the rhetorical miracle of the Quran, which, by using the words and interpretations of the people of the age of revelation and without being influenced by their culture, has found a trans-temporal dimension and has not gone beyond telling the truth.