New Study Decodes Qur'anic Letter 'Nun' Through Ancient Cosmologies and Textual Coherence

Researcher Mahmoud A. Wahab has released a new study, The Disconnected Letter 'Nun' at Surah Al-Qalam: In Relation to Ancient Egyptian Religion, Hebrew Bible & Qur'anic Coherence, which presents a methodologically significant interpretation of one of the Qur'an's muqaṭṭaʿāt, or disconnected letters. The book argues the letter 'Nun' (ن) opening Surah Al-Qalam (68:1) is not an undecipherable cipher but a meaningful sign encoding the concept of primordial waters, drawing on Qur'anic coherence, ancient Egyptian cosmology, and Hebrew Bible parallels while maintaining the Qur'an's interpretive primacy.

Wahab's approach is grounded in four pillars: the letter Nun itself, ancient Egyptian religion, the Hebrew Bible, and Qur'anic coherence (nazm). He adopts a coherence-first methodology, treating each sūrah as a thematic unit within the Qur'an's purposeful arrangement. External materials like hadith reports or earlier scriptures are considered only insofar as they corroborate the Qur'an's own language and structure. This method is central to why the announcement matters, as it demonstrates how the Qur'an's internal architecture can be used to interpret its enigmatic elements.

The core argument examines Surah Al-Qalam's position between Al-Mulk (67) and Al-Haqqah (69) in the Muṣḥaf. Al-Mulk proclaims divine sovereignty and creation, while Al-Haqqah portrays final judgment. Al-Qalam, introduced by 'Nun' and an oath by the Pen, forms a thematic bridge. Drawing on the nazm tradition of scholars like Farāhī and Iṣlāhī, Wahab argues the linear and thematic ties among these three sūrahs help decode 'Nun' as a hinge symbol connecting creation to judgment through the axis of knowledge and decree, represented by the Pen.

The study then turns to comparative materials for supportive illumination. In ancient Egyptian religion, Nun represents the limitless, dark primordial ocean from which creation emerges, a concept reinforced through ritual life like libations and the Nile inundation. The book canvases scholarship on parallels in the Hebrew Bible, particularly Genesis 1:2's tĕhôm (the Deep), noting structured similarities with Egypt's pre-creation schema that many specialists deem too close to be accidental. These cross-cultural water-cosmologies help clarify the symbolic reach of the Qur'anic 'Nun' without granting external sources authority over Qur'anic meaning.

The integrative reading concludes that within its immediate nazm context and supported by these parallels, 'Nun' most plausibly signals the primordial waters. This symbol coherently links origin (creation) to decree (Pen/inscription) to destiny (judgment) across the Al-Mulk/Al-Qalam/Al-Haqqah triad. The implication is a compact interpretation that ties together creation, knowledge, and judgment inside the Qur'an's own architecture, offering a model for engaging other muqaṭṭaʿāt. The book is available on platforms like Amazon, foregrounding Qur'anic coherence and using earlier revelations and adjacent chapters to illuminate the disconnected letters.