In surah al-Baqarah, Allah (SWT) says:
Allah is the friend and protector of those who believe; He brings them out of darknesses to Light. (2:257)
Why does Allah use darkness in plural and ‘Light’ in singular in this verse? He does it because right guidance (hidayah) is always the same at all times and in all places whereas deviations from the right path are innumerable. The best interpretation of this all-important truth has been given to us by the Prophet (SAW) himself. Nasai and Ahmad report that the Prophet brought home this truth to the holy companions by drawing a diagram on the ground. He drew a straight line and then so many crooked and curved lines deviating on either side of the straight line. The straight line, he explained to the holy companions, is the right path (sirat al-mustaqueem) that connects man with Allah whereas the crooked lines deviating from the sovereign path represent misguidance in its numerous possible forms.
In the moral spiritual sphere, which is an integral part of every aspect of human life, man is obliged to seek guidance from revelation and prophethood because his rational resources, potentially rich enough to conquer the universe, cannot, on their own, come to his rescue here. This because he has been put on probation in this earthly life. Without prophetic guidance he will only stumble and fall. Such stumbling and falling and being tossed about is the law of evolution in the material and scientific domain but in moral-spiritual sphere it can work havoc. Here one is always in need of the Light celestial.
 Light(Nur) symbolises Truth in all its possible senses. That is why even Allah is described in the Quran in terms of Nur:
Allah-u Nur al-samavat wa-al ard (24:35)
Allah is the light of heavens and the earth    
One of the most frequent prayers of our beloved Prophet (SAW) was to beseech for Light which would envelop him like a halo from all directions.   

Lastupdate on : Thu, 13 Sep 2012 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Thu, 13 Sep 2012 18:30:00 GMT
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