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By : Dr. M.I.H. Farooqi (Dr. Mohammed Iqtedar Husain Farooqi)
Quranic Name:
Az-Zaqqum; Botanical
Name Euphorbia resinifera
Berg. ( Euphorbiaceae)
Quranic References :
1.
SURAH XVII (Bani-Israel-Children
of Israel).V:60
Behold ! We told thee that thy Lord doth encompass mankind round about; We
granted the vision which We showed
thee, but as a trial for men,-as also the Cursed Tree (mentioned) in the Qur’an:
We put terror (and warning) into them, but it only increases their inordinate
transgression !
2.
SURAH XXXVII (As-Saffat-Those
Ranged in Ranks) V : 62-68
Is that the better entertainment or the Tree of Zaqqum? (62) For We have truly
made it (as) a trial for the wrong-doers. (63) For it is a tree that springs out
of the bottom of Hell-fire: (64) The shoots of its fruitstalks are like the
heads of devils: (65) Truly they will eat thereof and fill their bellies
therewith. (66) Then on top of that they will be given a mixture made of boiling
water. (67) Then shall their return be to the (Blazing) Fire. (68)
3.
SURAH XLIV (Ad-Dukhan-Smoke)
V : 43-48
Verily the tree of Zaqqum (43) will be the food of the Sinful,-(44) like molten
brass! it will boil in their insides, (45) like the boiling of scalding water.
(46) (A voice will cry): ‘‘Seize ye him and drag him into the midst of the
Blazing Fire ! (47) Then pour over his head the Penalty of Boiling Water. (48)
4.
SURAH LVI (Al-Waqi’a-The
inevitable event). V:52-55
‘‘Ye will surely taste of the Tree of Zaqqum. (52) ‘‘Then will ye fill your
insides therewith, (53) ‘‘And drink Boiling Water on top of it : (54)‘‘Indeed ye
shall drink like diseased camels raging with thirst’’! (55) Such will be their
entertainment on the Day of Requital! (56)
According to Almunjid (Arabic Dictionary), Zaqqum is the Tree of
Hell and a poisonous food for the sinners. In some other Dictionaries it has
been described as a thorny plant with a bitter taste. In the Holy Qur’an, this
plant has been mentioned thrice under the name of Zaqqum and at one place
it has been referred to as Shajr al-Maluna i.e. the ‘Cursed Tree’.
Maulana Abdul Kalam Azad , while explaining the meaning of Surah Bani Israil
in his Tarjuman al-Qur’an, has identified Zaqqum as Thohar,
a plant widely occurring in India. . Maulana Maudoodi in his Tafhim-ul-Qur’an
has stated ‘‘The plant of Zaqqum occurs in Tehama. It is bitter in
taste with bad smell and the latex from it’s stem causes blisters on human body.
Probably it is the same plant which is called Thohar in our country.’’
Mr. Abdullah Yusuf Ali in
his ‘Meaning of Glorious Qur’an’, has not given any English, Vernacular or
Botanical name of Zaqqum but has reported (Note No. 2250) that the plant
occurring at Jericho (near Jerusalem) in the name of Zaqqum is a plant of
Myrohalan type and does not qualify to be the true Zaqqum. Yusuf Ali
thinks that the name of Zaqqum was given to this plant much after the
Quranic revelations. Quranic
description of Zaqqum is so clear that with the present botanical and
chemical knowledge, it may not be difficult to locate the true Zaqqum.
Before identifying the plant, one must bear in mind the three characteristics
attributed to it in the Qur’an. Firstly, when eaten, the Zaqqum would
cause burning in the stomach or inside the body. Secondly, its stems (clusters)
looked like the head of a Satan i.e. a big round thing. Thirdly, the food for
the sinful has been referred to in all the four Verses as the Shajar of
Zaqqum i.e. ‘tree of Zaqqum or Shajarat al-Maluna (Cursed
Tree). Thus, the whole plant was meant as the food for sinners and not the fruit
of the plant alone. Most of
the Urdu authors of the commentaries on the Qur’an have described Indian
Thohar plant as a possible Zaqqum which ofcourse seems to be nearest
to the Quranic description. Thohars or Sehnds are the plants
belonging to the genus Euphorbia which has more than a thousand species
distributed in warmer parts of Africa and Asia, as well as in America and
Australia. All of them are highly bitter in taste and produce a poisonous latex.
In India, more than sixty species of Euphorbia occur in varying abundance and
several of them are thorny dendroids and cactus like. Similar cactus like
Euphorbias are also found in Arabia where these are called Lebbein,
Rummid and by various other names. More than a hundred species of Euphorbia
occur in Africa and some of them have medicinal properties. Before identifying
the Euphorbia species likely to be the Zaqqum of the Quranic Sayings and
description, it is worthwhile to trace the historical development of the genus
Euphorbia first.
King Juba II (25) B.C.-18 A.D.) was the famous Ruler of Mauritiana and was a
great lover of nature. He was very interested in the flora and fauna of his
domain. He found a plant in the rocky and hilly areas of his country, which
produced a highly poisonous latex from the stem. He named the plant as Euphorbia
after the name of his learned personal physician Euphorbus. He wrote a book on
this plant giving all possible details. For instance, he wrote that to get the
latex, a long iron stick was used to make a cut on the stems of the plant. It
was done to avoid any possible contact of the poisonous latex with the human
body because this would cause blisters or boils on the skin. This latex was
collected on the skins of goats which hardened after sometime and took the shape
of gum. After the discovery of the plant by Juba II, this latex (gum) gained
importance in Greek Medicine and Galen (130-200 A.D.) described its medicinal
value for several ailments. It was named as Euphorbium. When the Arabs acquired
the knowledge of Greek medicine and developed the system to great heights, they
called Euphorbium with several Arabic names such as Afarbiyun,
Farfiyun or Farfiyum. Avicenna (980-1037 A.D.) gave a detailed
description on this drug and ailments for which it was effective and advised
caution before using it as medicine.
The plant of Juba II was botanically named as Euphorbia resinifera Berg.
(Family: Euphorbiaceae) during early nineteenth century and later on its
chemistry was investigated by several scientists. The latex Euphorbium (Arabic-Farfiyum)
was found to contain an oily resinous substance called Euphorbon, besides
starch, mucilage, rubber, mineral salts and maleates of sodium and calcium.
Euphorbon was found to be the poisonous part of the latex, the main constituents
of which were diterpenes and their esters, such as Ingenol, 12-dioxyphorbol and
resiniferatoxin. The last named is the most irritant compound of the plant. On
account of the presence of large amount of carbohydrate, Euphorbia resinifera
may be considered a food plant but
the presence of toxic resin makes
it a dangerous food and of course one which would cause burning sensation in the
body.
Euphorbium from E. resinifera became an important medicine right from the
time of Galen. In Africa and Asia, particularly in India it was used for
different diseases. It was found to be useful in sciatica, and as a skin
irritant, especially in injuries to tendon. It was found useful for the diseases
of head, stomach and bladder. Mixed
with rose oil, gum-arabic and Tragacanth gum it was given as a purgative for
bile and phelgm. If given without care it caused ulceration. It was found to
cause abortion in pregnant women. The importance of Euphorbium was at its peak
during 16th and 17th century but after the advent of allopathic medicines , its
use became restricted to external application but in veterinary practice it
continued to be important as a counter irritant and vesicant. All these years
the main source of the supply of Euphorbium was Morocco where the plant still
occurs in hilly areas.
Euphorbium is highly toxic. It causes the eyes to weep and grow red, the nose to
run with watery and even bloody mucus and saliva to flow abundantly from the
mouth. Persons who are exposed to this medicine for sometime suffer from severe
headache, giddiness and ultimately delirious. Some become even insane. Exposure
to Euphorbian latex, its contact with eyes, causes serious inflammation of
cornea, resulting in the loss of sight.
Although E. resinifera of Morocco gained importance from early times, yet
several other species of Euphorbia in India, Arabia and some African countries
gained importance in local medicine. However, all of these were considered
dangerous. In India, there are several cactus-like species occurring in hotter
parts of the country which are
generally called Thohar or Sehnd. Some of them are E.
caducifolia Haines, E. antiquorum Linn., E. nivulia Buch. Ham.,
E. nerifolia Linn., E. royleana Boiss., E. tirucalli Linn.
and E. trigona Linn. Mohideen
Shariff (96) in his book on Indian Medicinal Plants (1869) has described E.
antiquorum as Zaqqum-Hindi or Zaqqunia-e-Hindi whereas George
Watt, in his famous book ‘Economic Products of India’ Vol. III described both
E. antiquorum and E. tirucalli as Zaqqum-Hindi (Indian
Zaqqum). Thus, these scientists considered the Indian species of Euphorbia
as very similar to Zaqqum but not the actual Zaqqum.
In Arabia there are many species of Euphorbia occurring not only in Tehama area
of Hijaz but in the whole Peninsula. Most of them are cactus like, resembling
Indian species. None of them is known as Zaqqum. The common names,
however, are Lebbein, Rummid or Rijlat lblis (Meaning the
vegetable for Satan). Some of the Arabian Euphorbias are the following:-
E. arabica
Hoscht. & Steud. ex Boiss., E. cactus Ehrenb. ex Boiss., E. cornuta
Pers. and E. articulata Forsk., E. aegyptiaca Linn.
All these Euphorbias of India and Arabia as well as those occurring in Africa
and America are poisonous and full of thorns.
Their fruits are small and of no use. All of them contain resin,
mucilage, starch, rubber (polyisoprene) and mineral salts. It taken as food, all
of them would cause great inconvenience and burning inside the body which may be
relieved by taking excess of water. Thus all the Euphorbias in general, and
cactus type (dendroids) in particular, have characteristics similar to those of
the description of Zaqqum in the Qur’an but the main question is that
which one of the several hundred Euphorbias is the true Zaqqum. In 1986,
during the month of June, I had the occasion of visiting the Exotic Garden of
Monaco (Monte Carlo) and was surprised to see the plant and photograph of the
Moroccan Euphorbia resinifera. Its stems, clubbed together in a round
shape, looked like the head of a devil. I was told that this head like round
appearance is about four to six feet in diameter in the natural habitat. A
photograph given in this book would prove the statement. Now if one compares
this Moroccan Euphorbia with that of India and Arabia then the natural
conclusion would be that although all these dendroid Euphorbias are ugly and
sinister looking plants, the Moroccan plant has the closest resemblance to a
devil’s head. It is very likely that the Arab physicians during the period of
the Quranic revelation, must have been familiar with Moroccan or Mauritanian
Euphorbia and the drug Euphorbium. It is a well known fact that Arab physicians
and intellectuals had acquired very good knowledge of plants and Greek medicine
based on plants even before the advent of Islam. When the Quranic sayings about
Zaqqum were revealed, most of the people of Arabia, particularly the
learned ones, must have realized the dangers of the dreaded plant Euphorbia
resinifera. However, Abu Jehal on hearing about Zaqqum said ‘‘It is the Date
and we will eat it in Hell and enjoy’’. This clearly shows that Zaqqum
was not a common plant of the area of the Quranic revelation and heretics like
Abu Jehal did not know much of it. Thus, taking all these factors into account,
E. resinifera seems to be the real Zaqqum of Qur’an.
(The above Article is one of the Chapters of
Plants of the Quran by Dr. M.I.H.
Farooqi, 9th edition, 2011, Sidrah Publisher, Lucknow, India. email :
mihfarooqi@yahoo.com)
Valued Comments
1. Muscat Daily (April 19,
2011): Ruler of Oman, Sultan
Qaboos bin Said has honoured Dr. M.I.H.Farooqi (Alig), retired Senior Scientist
( Deputy Director), NBRI, with an Award of 25 Thousand US Dollars (Rs 12 lakhs)
in appreciation of his work
on PLANTS OF THE QURAN and
MEDICINAL PLANTS IN THE TRADITIONS OF PROPHET MOHAMMAD.
2. Mohammed VI, King of Morocco (Letter, 3rd June, 2010)
I want you to know how impressed I am
by your work on Plants in the Qur’an and Medicinal Plants in the Traditions of
Prophet Mohammad.
3.
Dr. Mohammad Abdo Yamani, Chairman, IQRA International Educational Foundation,
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
‘‘-Most impressive and interesting book. The book has really filled a
gap that has been yawning for centuries-and in the most perfect way-useful and
comprehensive informations-book shall remain and forever a unique attempt and a
useful accomplishment.’’
4.
Maulana Abul Hasan Ali Nadvi,
Founder-Member, Rabitah Al-Alami Al-Islami. and
Rector, Darul-Uloom Nadwat-ul-Ulema, Lucknow. ‘‘-observations and
identification of certain plants particularly with respect to Sidrah and Kafur
unrael severl knots and are of immense help in removing many confusions....this
work is not only useful and valuable but also an important addition to Quranic
literature.’’ |
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