Muslim in the Middle
For me, Al-Baqarah has a special significance. About fifteen years ago, I first saw coherence in the Quran’s structure and the first chapter in which I first saw that coherence was Al-Baqarah, Chapter 2. It is the longest chapter and neatly broken down into eighteen parts if we consider the calls (o mankind, o children of Israel, o believers) as delineation of those parts. I find, when we do, we can see a complete theory on how to build utopia on earth which is the the state of adam, mentioned very early in this chapter (2/30).
Al-Baqarah is also divided into 2 levels, both starting with calls to mankind (2/21 and 2/168). These levels give us two angles to the human utopia. 2/21-167 are instructions on how to form this utopia and 2/168-283 tells us how to run it smoothly. Both aspects use revelation as a means of taking us along the right path to evolution.
Chapter 2 closes with 3 important verses, 284-286. These 3 verses deal with the soul, belief and revelation. The interaction of these three elements are vital to what makes a utopia happen.
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