7 Preface خَتَمَ اللَّهُ عَلىٰ قُلوبِهِم وَعَلىٰ سَمعِهِم ۖ وَعَلىٰ أَبصارِهِم غِشاوَةٌ ۖ وَلَهُم عَذابٌ عَظيمٌAli Quli QaraiAllah has set a seal on their hearts and their hearing, and there is a blindfold on their sight,1 and there is a great punishment for them. The hearing and sight, often mentioned in the Qurʾān, refer to the inner spiritual hearing and vision by the means of which someone possessing faith apprehends the reality lying beyond the physical realm. Cf. 2:17, 20; 3:13; 6:46, 50, 104, 110; 7:179, 198; 10:43; 11:20, 24; 13:16; 16:108; 19:38; 22:46; 24:44; 32:12; 35:19; 36:66; 40:58; 45:23; 46:26; 47:23; 50:22; 59:2.