Introduction
Qur’an is the word of God, directly revealed in Arabic, to the last Messenger Muhammad (peace be upon him) during 23 years of his Apostolic mission about fourteen centuries ago. It was instantly preserved by putting in to writing and memorization by his companions. God says: “Surely this is a Glorious Qur’an, inscribed on an Imperishable Tablet.”(Qur’an;85:21-22). God has taken responsibility to guard it against corruption: “Surely We have revealed the reminder (Qur’an) and We will most certainly guard it (from corruption).”(Qur’an;15:9). During all ages, millions of Muslim of all age groups memorize Qur’an comprising over 6000 verses; a unique distinction which makes Qur’an, THE ONLY BOOK IN HUMAN HISTORY to have been continuously PRESERVED through this method along with the written form. No other scripture or book can rival this claim. Hence, since its revelation the Qur’an is being transferred in its ORIGINAL REVEALED FORM, continuously (twatar) from generation to generation.
The Qur’an was revealed in Arabic, the language of Prophet, peace be upon him (and his clan Quraish of Makka). The translation (Tarjama) of the Qur’an means the expression of the meaning of its text in a language different from the language of the Qur’an, for understanding by those not familiar with Qur’anic Arabic. It is customary to quote the original Arabic Qur’anic text (ayah, verses) along with the translation, however this require special handling due to reverence of the sacred text, hence in this book for the convenience of handling by all categories of the readers, only the translation is given, which should also be handled with due respect. It is more appropriate for the reader to also consult the original Arabic Qur’an. There is agreement among Muslim scholars that it is humanly impossible to transfer the meanings of original Qur’an word by word in an identical mode into another language. This is due to several reasons: firstly the Qur’an itself is a miracle and cannot be imitated by man. As a consequence of this, THE TRANS-LATION OF QUR’AN IS NOT CONSID-ERED AS QUR’AN. The translations of the Qur’an; e.g. into English, French & German, etc, in principle are regarded as paraphrases. These translations can-not be used in place of original Arabic Qur’an for ritual purposes. Secondly the words of different languages do not express all the shades of meanings of their original Arabic word, though they may express specific concepts. Hence narrowing down the meaning of the Qur’an to specific concepts in a foreign language would mean missing out other important dimensions. While reading the translations of Qur’an these aspects must always be kept in view. The example of verse: “wahuwa alladhe khalaqa as- samaawaat wa- al-ard. fe sittah AYYAAM..” (Qur’an;11:7) is considered here. The word AYYAAM in Arabic means; days or ‘long periods’ or ‘eons’ or ‘epoch’. The four translations being given here differ in their understanding: “And it is He who has created the heavens and the earth in SIX EONS” (M.Asad); “He is the One Who created the heavens and the earth in SIX PERIODS” (F.Malik); “And He it is Who created the heavens and the earth in six DAYS” (Pickthall); “He it is Who created the heavens and the earth in sIx DAYS” (Yousaf Ali). The translation of AYYAAM as ‘EONS’ appears more scientific and accurate. Hence if some contradictions appear, it is due to the limitations of translation, not of Qur’an.
The Qur’an comprises 114 chapters, called Surahs, of very unequal length and each Surah comprises number of verses. In most of literature the translation of references from Qur’an are mostly given within brackets “xyz” followed by reference of Surah and Ayah in bracket i.e: “Praise be to Allah the Cherisher and Sustainer of the Worlds.”(Qura’n;1:2). It implies that the translation is from Surah (chapter) Number 1 and verse number 2 of the same Surah. The name of Chapter (Surahs) can be found from the index . In this case the name of Surah Number 1 as given in Surah Index is Al-Fatiha meaning ‘The Opening’. The names of Chapters (Surahs) in Qur’an, in most of the cases have no special relation to the subject of the Surah but has been used merely as a symbol to distinguish it from other Surahs. The name comprise of a word used some where in the Surah. Taking example of 2nd Surah AL-BAQARAH (the Cow), which has been so named from the story of the Cow occurring in this Surah (verse number 67-73). Although this Surah is an invitation to the Divine Guidance and all the stories, incidents etc. revolve round this central theme. As this Surah has particularly been addressed to the Jews, many historical events have been cited from their own traditions to admonish and advise them that their own good lies in accepting the Guidance revealed to the Holy Prophet. It has not, however, been used as a title to indicate the subject of the Surah. It will, therefore, be as wrong to translate the name Al-Baqarah into “The Cow” or “The Heifer” as to translate any English name, say Baker, Rice, Wolf etc., into their equivalents in other languages or vice versa, because this would imply that the Surah dealt with the subject of “The Cow”. Many more chapters (Surahs) of the Qur’an have been named in the same way because no comprehensive words exist in Arabic (in spite of its richness) to denote the wide scope of the subject discussed in them. As a matter of fact all human languages suffer from the same limitation. However in some cases the name of Chapters (Surahs) indicate the subject matter i.e. the first Surah AI-Fatihah, which means ‘that which opens a subject or a book or any other thing’ or in other words, Al-Fatihah is a sort of ‘Preface’. Similarly Surah ‘Al Yousaf’ (Joseph) Surah number 12, is related with the story of Prophet Joseph (peace be upon him).
This “Guide to the Study of the Qur’an” is based upon “Introduction to ‘The Meanings of Qur’an’ (Tafheem-ul-Qur’an)” by Syed Abul A’ala Maududi, English translation by Ch.Muhammad Akbar. It aims to achieve following objectives:-
To acquaint the reader of Qur’an, with those things which will help to understand the meaning and the message of the Qur’an. If one is not well conversant with them in the very beginning, they keep coming back into the mind over and over again, thus often becoming a hindrance to the in-depth meanings and spirit of Qur’an.
To make an endeavor to address some of the questions in advance, which usually arise during the study of the Qur’an.
The Unique Book
Before the reader begins the study of the Qur’an, he /she must bear in mind the fact that it is a unique Book, quite different from the books one usually reads. Unlike conventional books, the Qur’an does not contain informa-tion, ideas and arguments about specific themes arranged in a approach to it, one is baffled when he does not find the enunciation of its theme or its division into chapters and sections or separate treat-ment of different topics and sepa-rate instructions for different aspects of life arranged in a serial order. On the contrary there is something with which the reader has not been familiar before and which does not conform to the nor-mal conception of a book. He finds that it deals with creeds, gives moral instructions, lays down laws, invite; people to surrender their will to God [Islam], admonishes the disbeliveers, draws lessons from historical event, administers warnings, give good tidings, all blended together in a beautiful manner. The same subject is repeated in different ways and one topic follows the other without any apparent connection. Sometimes a new topic crops up in the middle of another without any apparent reason. The speaker and the addressees, and the direction of the address change with but any notice. There is no sign of chapters and divisions anywhere. Historical events are presented but not as in history books. The problems of Philosophy and Metaphysics are treated in manner different form the textbooks on the subjects. Man and the Universe are mentioned in a language different from the natural sciences. Likewise it follows its own method of solving cultural, political, social and economic problems and deals with the principles and injunctions of law in a manner quite different from that of the sociologists, lawyers and jurists. Morality is taught in a way that has no parallel in the whole literature on the subject.
That is why the unwary reader is baffled and puzzled when he finds all these things contrary to his pre-conceived conception of a book. He begins to feel that the Qur’an is a book without any order or interconnection between its verses or continuity of its subject, or that it deals with miscellaneous topics in an incoherent manner, or that it had been given the form of a continuous book though it was not a book in the commonly accepted sense of the word. As a result of this, its opponents raise strange objections against the Qur’an and its modern followers adopt strange devices to ward off doubts and objections. They either resort to escapism or put forward strange interpretations to ease their minds. Sometimes they try to create artificial connections between the verses to explain away the apparent incoherencies and as a last resort, they even accept the theory that the Qur’an deals with miscellaneous topics without any order or coherence. Consequently verses are isolated form their context and confusion is produced in the meanings.
This happens when the reader does not take into consideration the fact that the Qur’an is a unique book. It does not, like other books, enunciate at the very beginning the subject it deals with and the object it intends to achieve. Its style and method of explaining things are also quite different from those of other books one commonly reads and it does not follow any bookish order. Above all it is not a book on religion in the sense this word is generally understood. That is why when a reader approaches the Qur’an with the common notions of a book, he is rather puzzled by its style and presentation. He finds that at many places the background has not been mentioned and the circumstances under which a particular passage was revealed have not been stat-ed. As a result of these things, the ordinary reader is unable to benefit fully from the most precious treasures contained in the Qur’an, though occasionally he may succeed in discovering a few gems here and there. Only those people become victims of such doubts who are not acquainted with these distinctive features of lie Qur’an. They seem to find miscellaneous topics scattered all over its pages and feel difficulties about its meanings. Nay, even those verses, which are absolutely clear, appear to them to be quite irrelevant in the contexts they occur.
The reader may be saved from all these difficulties, if he is warned beforehand that;
The Book he is going w study is the only book of its kind in the whole world: that its literary style is quite different form that of all other books: that its theme is unique and that his preconceived notions of a book cannot help him understand the Qur’an.
Nay these may even become a hindrance. He should, therefore, firs! of all free his mind from preconceived notions and get acquainted with the distinctive features of this Book. Then and then alone can he understand it.
In order to understand the Qur’an thoroughly it is essential to know the nature of this Book, its central idea and its aim and object. The reader should also be well acquainted with its style, the terms it uses and the method it adopts to explain things. He should also keep in view the background and circumstances under ‘Which a certain pas-sage was revealed.
Divine Guidance
First of all the reader should understand the real nature of the Qur’an. Whether one believes it to be a revealed book or not, one will have to consider, as a starting point, the claim that is put forward by itself and its bearer, Muhammad (Allah’s peace be upon him), that this is the Divine Guidance.
The Lord of the Universe, its Creator, Master and Sovereign created the human being and bestowed the faculties of learning, speaking, understanding and discerning right from wrong and good from evil. He granted him [i.e. both sexes] freedom of choice, freedom of will freedom of action and gave him authority to acquire and make use of the things around him. In short. He granted him a kind of autonomy and appointed him as His Vicegerent on the Earth and instructed him to live in accordance with His Guidance.
At the time, when the Lord of the Universe appointed Man as His Vicegerent, He warned him very clearly and precisely, leaving no doubt in his mind as to the kind of relations he should have with Him, as if to say:
I am your Master and Sovereign and that of the whole universe; therefore you should worship Me and none else. You are neither independent in My Kingdom nor the subject of anyone else to whom you might owe obedience or worship. You are being sent to the Earth with certain powers for a fixed term of time for your test. After that you will have to return to Me. Then I will judge the deeds you did in the world and decide whether you have come out successful or failed in the test. Therefore the right course for you is to accept Me voluntarily as Sovereign and worship Me alone and act in the world according to the Guidance I shall send you, and live on the Earth with the conviction and understanding that it is merely the place of your Trial. Your real object in earthly life should be to come out successful in the final judgment Therefore any other course different from and opposed to the Divine Guidance, will be wrong. If you adopt the first course, (and you have full liberty and freedom toadopt it), you will achieve peace and tranquillity in this world and win the home of eternal bliss and joy (Paradise) in the next world, to which you shall have to return. And if you so choose, you shall incur (My disfavour in this) world and eternal sorrow and affliction in the Hereafter, where you shall be thrown into the abyss of Hell.
After such a warning, the Owner of the Universe sent Adam and Eve (peace be upon them) the first human beings, to the Earth and gave them the guidance according to which they and their descendants were to live in this world. Thus the first two human beings neither were created in ignorance nor in dark-ness but were given very clear and bright Light and the Law they were to follow. This was Islam (submission to Allah). Before they left this world, they themselves practiced and taught the same way to their children and exhorted them to live as Muslims (obedient servants of Allah). But in the succeeding centuries, by and by, people swerved from this straight way of life (Islam) and adopted different crooked ways. They not only lost the Guidance owing to their negligence but also tampered with it because of their wickedness. They attributed to others, the qualities and powers of Allah and associated others to rank with Him as gods and ascribed His rights to others. They invented different kinds of religions (ways of life) by mixing up all sorts of superstitions, wrong theories and false philosophies with the Guidance that was given by Allah. They dis-carded the right, just and moral principles taught by Allah and corrupted them, they made such laws of life as suited their prejudices and lusts, thus they filled Allah’s earth with chaos and iniquity.
Though this was a sad state of affairs, Allah did not will to force these corrupt people to follow the Right way because this would have been against the limited freedom of action which had been granted to man by Him; nor did He will to destroy them forth-with as soon as rebellion broke out against Him, because this would not have been in keeping with the rules of life laid down for trial in this world. Instead of this, Allah took upon Himself, from the very beginning of man’s life on the Earth, to send His Guidance during the term of life, leaving them free to follow or not to follow it. Accordingly He made arrangements for the Guidance of mankind and appointed His Messengers from among the people themselves and bestowed upon them the knowledge of the Truth and the Right Way of life. They were charged with the mission to invite people to the Right Way from which they had strayed, The Messengers them-selves believed in Allah and acted in accordance with the Guidance they received from him. They were raised from different nations in different countries and thousands of them were sent during thousands of years, They all had one and the same religion which was based on the Unity of God and accountability in the Hereafter. They all taught the same way of life that was taught to the first Man at the very start of his life in this world. They all followed the same Guidance that is those fundamental and eternal principles of morality and culture which were prescribed for the first Man from the very first day of his life. They all had the one and the same mission, that is, to invite all human beings to the same Guidance, and to organize them into one community. All those people who accepted their invitation became one com-munity, which was duty bound to follow the Divine Guidance and to do its best and utmost to establish it and to guard against any transgressions.
During their respective terms, these Messengers [some mentioned by name in Bible and Qur’an like; Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Ishmael, Jacob, Moses and Jesus] fulfilled their mission admirably well. But it is a pity that the majority of the people were not inclined to accept their invitation and even those who joined their community gradually became corrupt. So much so that some of these communities totally lost that Guidance and others tampered with the Commandments of Allah and mixed them up with false things.
Then the Lord of the Universe sent Muhammad (Allah’s peace be upon him) as His last Messenger to fulfill the same mission for which Messengers had been sent before him. He extended his invitation to all the human beings, including the corrupt followers of the previous Messengers and asked them lo follow the Right Way. He organized all those who accepted the Divine Guidance in to one community which in turn , was required to re-establish its collective way of life based on the Guidance and to exert its utmost to reform the world which had gone astray. The Qur’an which was revealed to Muhammad (Allah’s peace be upon him) is the Book which contains that Invitation and that Divine Guidance.
Central Theme
Once we know the nature of the Qur’an, it becomes easier to determine the subject it deals with, its central theme and its object. The Subject of Qur’an is; Man: it discusses those aspects of his life that lead either to his real success or failure.
The Central Theme that runs throughout the Qur’an is the exposition of the Reality and the invitation to the Right Way based on it. It declares that Reality is the same that was revealed by Allah Himself to Adam at the time of his appointment as vicegerent, and to all the Messengers after him, and the Right Way is the same that was taught by all the Messengers. It also points out that all theories contradictory to this Reality invented by people about God, the Universe, Man and his relations with God and the rest of His creation, are all wrong and that all the ways of life based on them are erroneous and lead to ruinous end.
The Aim and Object of the revelations is to invite Man to that Right Way and to present clearly the Guidance which he has lost because of his negligence or has perverted by his wickedness.
If the reader keeps these three basic things in mind, he will find that in this Book [Qur’an] there is no incongruity in the style, no gap in the continuity of the subject and no lack of interconnection between its various topics. As a matter of fact, this Book is not irrelevant anywhere with regard to its Subject, its Central Theme and its aim. From its very beginning to its end, the different topics it deals with are so intimately connected with its Central Theme that they may be likened to the beautiful gems of the same necklace, despite their different colors and sizes. The Qur’an keeps the same object in view, whether it is relating the story of the creation of the Earth or of the Heavens or of Man [implies both sexes] or is refer-ring to the manifestations in the Universe or stating events from human history. As the aim of the Qur’an is to guide Man and not to teach Nature Study or History or Philosophy or any other science or art, it does not concern itself with these latter subjects. The only thing with which it is concerned is to expound the reality, to remove misunderstandings and misconceptions about it, to impress the Truth upon the minds, to warn them of consequences of wrong attitudes and to invite humanity to the Right Way. The same is true of the criticism of the creeds of the moral systems, of the deeds of men and . communities and of its discussions of the problems of Metaphysics etc. That is why it states or discusses or cites a thing only to the extent relevant to its aims and object and leaves out unnecessary and irrelevant details and turns over and over again to its Central Theme and to its invitation round which every other topic revolves. When the Qur’an is studied in this light, no doubt is left that the whole of it is a closely reasoned argument and there is continuity of subject throughout the Book.
Background
One cannot fully understand many of the topics discussed in the Qur’an unless one is-acquainted with the background of their revelation. One should know the social, historical or other antecedents or conditions which help to explain any particular topic. For, the Qur’an was not revealed as a complete book at one and the same time; nor did Allah handed over a written copy of it to Muhammad (Allah’s peace be upon him) at the very beginning of his mission and command him to publish it and invite people to adopt a particular way of life. More over, it is not a literary work of the common conventional type that develops its central theme in a logical order; nor does it conform to the style of such a work. The Qur’an adopts its own style to suit the guidance of the Islamic Movement that was started by Allah’s Messenger under His direct command. Accordingly, Allah revealed the Qur’an gradually [step by step] to meet the requirements of the Movement in its different stages.
Makki Surahs [610-622 C.E]
Chapters Revealed during first 13 years of Apostolic Mission at Makkah
When the Holy Prophet was commanded to start his mission at Makkah [610 C.E], Allah sent down such instructions as the Messenger needed for his own training for the great work that was entrusted to him. The Qur’an imparted also the basic knowledge of the Reality and gave brief answer to the common misunderstandings that misled people to adopt wrong ways of life. It invited them to accept the basic principles of morality and adopt the right attitude that alone leads to the success and welfare of humanity.
These early messages consisted of short and concise sentences and were couched in a very fluent and effective language to suit the taste of the people to whom they were first addressed. Their excel-lent literary style was so appealing that it touched the core of their hearts. They were so charming that they attracted the attention of the hearers who began to repeat them because of their beauty and elegance. Though universal truths were enunciated in these messages, they were given a local color and were supported by arguments, examples and illustrations from the environments with which its first addresses were quite familiar. In order to impress the addressees effectively, these early addresses were confined to their own history, their traditions, their monuments beliefs, their morality and their evil ways.
This early stage of the Movement lasted for four years or so with the result that a few good people accepted its message and formed the nucleus of the future Muslim community. But the large majority of the Quraish began to oppose it because, in their ignorance, they thought that it hit hard at their vested interests and lusts and the old traditions of their forefathers. The message of the Qur’an, however, went on spreading beyond the boundaries of Makkah and reached other clans.
Then the Movement entered its second stage which continued for nine years or so and a fierce struggle began with the old order. Not only the Quraish but also the majority of its upholders also rose up to kill this Movement employing all sorts of weapons or at least to suppress it. They made false propaganda and leveled accusations’ and raised frivolous objections against it. They spread suspicions and doubts in order to alienate the com-mon people from it. They hindered strangers from listening to the Holy Prophet and inflicted all sorts of cruelties on those who accepted Islam. They boycotted the Muslims socially and economically in order to intimidate and coerce them. Their oersecution became so unbearable nat some of them had to leave their -omes twice for Abyssinia, and Tally all of them had to migrate to Al-Medina [Yathrib]. But in spire of persecution and hindrances, the Movement went on spreading. There was hardly a family or a household left in Makkah from which one person or the other had not accepted Islam. Naturally this produced bitterness in the hearts of the opponents of Islam. The persecution became all the more bitter when they saw that their own brothers, nephews, sons, daughters, sisters etc., had accepted Islam, become faithful, strong supporters and were ready to defend it even at the peril of their lives.
The Movement also got impetus from the fact that it was drawing into its fold the best from among their people who became the embodiments of virtue after accepting Islam. The world, therefore, could not help feeling the moral superiority of the Movement that was so thoroughly transforming the characters of its followers.
All through this long and bitter struggle, Allah continued to reveal, according to the requirements of the occasion, inspiring discourses, which highly influenced the thoughts and conduct of the hearers. On the one hand, these discourses instructed the Muslims in their primary duties, infused into them the spirit of loyalty, devotion to bind them together as members of the Muslim community. Through these Discourses faithful were taught the ways of piety, high morality and purity of character and trained them to be true missionaries of Islam. On the other hand, these messages consoled, comforted and encouraged the Muslims with promises of success in this world and of eternal bliss in there after. They urged them also to exert their utmost in the way of Allah with fortitude, endurance and courage. The Muslims were so imbued with the spirit of sacrifice for this noble cause they were ready to bear every kind of infliction and fight against the bitterest opposition. At the same time, these discourses administered warnings to those people who were opposing the Movement and those who were indifferent to it. Examples were cited from the history of the [destruction of] neighboring peoples as proofs, which they used to see while passing by, during their journeys: these were held out as they saw day and night on the earth and in the heavens as a proof of the Unity of God and of the inevitable Hereafter.
The early addresses exposed the blasphemy of the idolaters and traditions so vividly as to convince all fair-minded persons of their error. They refuted their misconception that they were independent of God and not accountable to Him in the Hereafter with such clear reasoning as to leave no doubt in their hearts and minds. Every doubt was dispelled and every objection answered and every intricacy and complication, in which they were entangled and in which they were involving others, was unfolded and unraveled. In short, these discourses proved clearly and conclusively that the old ways were based on ignorance and were utterly void of sense. Side by side this, the disbelievers were admonished for their immorality, wrong ways of life, customs of ignorance, their opposition to the Truth and their persecution of the Believers. These early dis-courses also put forward those basic principles of culture and morality which have always been universally accepted and which have always formed the basis of the enlightened Divine civilization. Several changes look place during the Makki stage of the Movement [610-622 C.E]. It spread wider and wider, day by day, and the opposition to it became stronger and stronger in the same proportion.
Gradually it came into contact with the people of different creeds and different ways of life and this gave rise to new problems The discourses, therefore, began to deal with various new topics as well. This explains the difference of their style from those revealed earlier. Hence one has to keep in view the background of the Surahs [Chapters] which were revealed during the thirteen years of Makki life [610-622 C.E].
Madani Surahs [622-632 C.E]
Chapters Revealed during Last 10 years
After facing opposition for thirteen years; in Makkah [610-622] the Islamic Movement found a new centre in Al-Medina [then known as Yathrib] where it became possible to collect all its followers from The various parts of Arabia and to unify and strengthen them. Accordingly, the Holy Prophet and the majority of the Muslims migrated to Al-Medina.
Then the Movement entered its third stage under totally changed conditions. Now that the Muslim community had succeeded in founding a regular state, an armed encounter ensued with the exponents of the old order of ignorance. Besides this, the Jews and the Christians came into conflict with it, even though they also pro-fessed to be followers of Prophets. It had also to deal with different kinds of hypocrite ‘Muslims’ who had somehow or other entered its folds, but in spite of all those obstacles, the Movement succeeded in subduing the whole of Arabia after a hard struggle of ten years [632 C.E] and was in a position to extend its universal message of reform to the outer world.
As, gradually several changes took place in this stage also, and every changed condition had its own special problems, so Allah revealed to the Holy Prophet the kind of ‘Discourses’ required to for the particular occasions. That is why some of these were couched in the fiery rhetoric of a Warner and the others in the form of the Royal Edicts of the Law Giver.
Some adopted the methods of a teacher, trainer and reformer and taught the principles and the methods of organizing a community, of building up a state and of formulating the great civilization for the conduct of different affairs of life. Others gave instructions for dealing with the hypocrites or the unbelievers, who had come under the protection of this Islamic State. Then in some of these discourses, the Muslims were taught the kind of relations, they should have with the People of the Book [Jews and Christians], the belligerent powers and with their own allies. In others they were taught, trained and organized to carry out their obligations as vicegerents of the Lord of the Universe. In some Discourses, God gave instruction for their guidance, and warned them of their weaknesses and exhorted them to sacrifice their lives and properties in the way of Allah; others taught the moral lessons they needed in defeat and victory, adversity and prosperity, war and peace. In short, through these Discourses they were trained to carry on the missionary work for the propagation of rslam as the successors of Holy Prophet. Then some discourses invited the ‘People of The Book’ [Jews, Christians], the hypocrites, the unbelievers and blasphemers to Islam, rebuked them for their hard-heartedness, warned them of the doom in store for them or admonished them for neglecting lessons from he stores and events of the past, so as to leave no excuse for their sticking to the wrong ways of life. This is the background of the Surahs that were revealed during the ten years at Al-Medina. It is obvious that their style had to be different from that of the Makki Surahs.
Style
It must have become clear from the above that the revelation of the Qur’an began simultaneously with the beginning of the Islamic Movement [610 C.E] and continued for twenty-three years [632 C.E]:-
The different portions of the Qur’an were revealed according to the requirements of the various phases of the Movement; it is thus obvious that a book like this can-not have the kind of uniformity of style which is followed in formal books on religion and the like.
It should also be kept in mind that the various portions of the Qur’an, both long and short, were not meant to be published in the form of pamphlets at the time of their revelation but were to be delivered as Discourses and promulgated as such. Hence they could not be in the style of a written work.
Moreover, these Discourses were necessarily of a different nature from that of the lectures of a professor; therefore their style would naturally be different from them also.
The Holy Prophet was entrusted with a special mission and had to appeal both to the emotions and to the intellect; he had to deal with people of different mentalities and cope with different situations and various kinds of experiences during the course of his mission. Such a person has to do all that is required for extending a message and for leading a movement.
The Prophet had to impress the different aspects of his message on people’s minds in order to change the established world of ideas, and to appeal to the feelings and emotions in order to counteract the forces of his opponents.
The Prophet also had to train and reform his followers and to imbue them with spirit and courage, and to refute the arguments of opponents and to expose their moral weaknesses and so on. That is why the style of the Discourses that Allah sent down to His Messenger had to be what suited the requirements of a Movement. It is, therefore, wrong to seek the style of a formal book or that of college lectures in the discourses of the Qur’an.
This also explains why the same things are repeated over and over again in the Qur’an. A Mission and a Movement naturally demand that only those things should be presented which are required at a particular stage and that nothing should be said about the requirements of the next stage. That is why the same things are repeated over and over again as long s the movement remains in the same stage, no matter whether it remains there for months or for years. Of course, these things have been differently worded and styled to avoid monotony and couched in a beautiful and dignified language to make them effective and impressive. Moreover, it repeats at suitable places its basic good aspects and principles in order to keep the Movement strong at every stage. That is why those Chapters [Surahs] which were revealed at a particular stage of the Movement generally deal with the same topics, though, of course, in different words and in various forms. Moreover, all the Surahs of the Qur’an contain references to the basic creed i.e. the unit of Allah, His attributes, the Hereafter and accountability, punishment and reward, Prophethood, belief in the Book etc…. They all teach piety, fortitude, endurance, faith and trust in Allah and like, just because these virtues could not be neglected at any stage of the Movement. If any of these bates had been weakened at any stage even in the least, the Islamic Movement could not have made any progress in its true spirit
Order
A little thinking in the light of the difference between the Makki and the Madani Surahs will also answer the question why the Chapters [Surahs] of the Qur’an were not arranged in the sequence in which they were revealed. This has been exploited by the opponents to create misunderstandings about the Qur’an and make ridiculous conjectures about the present arrangement of the Chapters. They are of the opinion that “Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) followers published it, without any discernible order as to chronology or otherwise; merely trying; as would seem, to put the longest chapters first.
Such conjectures are based on ignorance of the wisdom underlying the order of the Qur’an. Though it was to be the Book for all times, it had to be revealed gradually, step by step in twenty-three years according to needs and requirements of the different stages through which the Islamic Movement was passing. It is obvious that the sequence of the revelations that suited the gradual evolution of the Movement could not in any way be suitable after the completion of the Qur’an. Another order, suitable to the changed conditions, was needed. In the early stages of the Movement the Qur’an addressed those people who were totally ignorant of Islam and, there-fore, naturally it had first of all to teach them the basic articles of Faith. But after its completion the Qur’an was primarily concerned with those who had accepted Islam and formed a community for carrying on the work entrusted to them by the Holy Prophet. Obviously, the order of the complete Book had to be different from its chronological order to suit the requirements of the Muslim Community for all times.
Moreover the Qur’an first of all had to acquaint the Muslims thoroughly with their duties concerning the regulation of their lives. It had also to prepare them for carrying its message to the world which was ignorant of Islam. It had also to warn them of the mischief and evils that appeared among the followers of the former Prophets so that they should be on their guard. Hence Al-Baqarah and similar Madani Surahs, and not Al-‘Alaq and similar Makki Surahs, had to be placed in the beginning of the Qur’an.
In this connection, an other aspect should also be kept in view, that it does not suit the purpose of the Qur’an that all the Surahs dealing with similar topics should be grouped together. In order to avoid one-sidedness at any stage of its study, it is essential that the Makki Surahs [the part of Qur’an, revealed during initial 10 years] should intervene between the Madani Surahs and that the Madani Surahs should follow the Makki Surahs, and that the Surahs revealed at the later stages so that the entire picture of the complete Islam should always remain before the reader. That is the wisdom of the present order [sequence].
It should also be noted that the Surahs of the Qur’an’ were not arranged in the present order by his successors but by the Holy Prophet himself under the guidance of Allah. Whenever a Surahs was revealed, he would send for one of his amanuenses and dictate it word by word and direct him to place it after such and such and before such and such a Chapter. Likewise in this case of a discourse or passage or verse that was not meant to be an independent Sarah by itself, he would issue directions about the exact place where it was to be put in the Sarah of which it was to form a part. Moreover he used to recite the Qur’an during the Salah (pre-scribed prayer) and on other occasions in the same order and direct his companions to remember and recite it in the same order. This is the established fact the that the Surahs of the Qur’an were arranged in the present order on the same day the Qur’an was completed by the one whom it was revealed under the guidance of the One who revealed it.
Compilation
Allah Who revealed the Qur’an Himself made arrangements for its safely and security for ever. No sooner was a passage of the Qur’an revealed than it was record-ed on leaves of date-palm, barks of trees, bones etc., at the dictation of the Holy Prophet and all these pieces were put in a bag. Besides this, some of his Companions themselves wrote these pieces for their own use. At the same time, the Muslims committed these pas-sages to memory as they had to recite them during, Salah [Prayer] which was obligatory from the very beginning of Islam.
Though many Companions had committed the whole of the Qur’an to memory during the life time of the Holy Prophet, they also had their own written copies, it had not been put in a binder. But immediately after his death, an event occurred that necessitated this work. A furious storm of apostasy broke out and many of the Companions, who went to war to suppress it, were killed. Among these martyrs were some of those who had committed the whole of Qur’an to memory. Then it occurred to Omar, [Close companion, later elected to be the 2nd Caliph] that necessary steps should be taken to preserve the Qur’an intact in its original form against any and every kind of danger and that it was not wise to depend exclusively upon those who had learnt it by heart. He therefore urged that it was essential to put the whole of it in black and white in the form of an authenticated binder as a book. He tried to impress the necessity of this step on Abu Bakar, who at first showed hesitation to do what the Holy Prophet had not done. But after some discussion, he agreed to it. Accordingly he entrusted this work to Zaid bin Thabit who also showed hesitation at first like Abu Bakr [1st Caliph] for the same rea-son. But finally he was convinced to undertake this historic work. He was best qualified for this work. He had frequently acted as amanuensis to the Holy Prophet and was one of those companions who had learnt the Qur’an directly from him. Moreover he was also present on the occasion when the Holy Prophet recited the whole of the completed Qur’an to angel Gabriel.
Arrangements were, therefore, made to collect and gather all the written pieces of the Qur’an left by the Holy Prophet, and those in the possession of his Companions. Then with the co-operation of those Companions who had com-mitted the whole or any part of the Qur’an to memory word by word, all the written pieces were com-pared with each other for verification. Zaid would not take down anything in his manuscript unless all the three sources tallied with copy. This authenticated copy of the whole Qur’an was kept in the house of Hafsa, Omar’s daughter, and one of the wives of the Holy prophet and it was proclaimed that anyone, who desired, might make a copy of it or compare with it with the copy already possessed.
As regards the sequence of the Chapters [Surahs], Zaid followed the same order that was followed by the Holy Prophet himself because he could not and would not have followed any other. He was so particular about following the Holy Prophet in everything he did, that at first, he hesitated to undertake the work of the compilation, just because this had not been done during the life-time of the Holy Prophet. It is, there-fore wrong to suppose that the Surahs were arranged in the existing order after the death of the Holy Prophet. The very fact, that the Holy Prophet recited the whole of the Qur’an twice before Gabriel during the last Ramadan prior to his death, is a clear proof of the fact that he must have followed same sequence/order. And we have already cited a Tradition to the effect that Zaid attended the second of these two last recitals.
Imam Malik says: The Qur’an was compiled in the way, the Companions heard it from the Holy Prophet. Moreover at several places, the Qur’an speaks of itself as a Book. For example, in Surah Muzzammil, an early Maki revelation, Allah says to the Holy Prophet: “…recite the Qur’an in order “[Qur’an;73:4].
The Qur’an is different to the writings of the New Testament, where as per Christian traditions, God inspired a scribe to write down the scripture; the idea and words were those of the scribe while God only supervised the scribe. In other cases, the Christians would like to say that the scribe was inspired by God and revealed a certain idea to him. The scribe then wrote it down in his own words. In case of the Qur’an, the words and ideas are both Divine. The words and verses of the Qur’an were preserved, through the oral as well as the writ-ten traditions, in the lifetime of Prophet (peace be upon him), as also evident from the internal evidence from Qur’an, which repeatedly mentions itself as ‘al- kitaab’ (The Book) from the very beginning:
“This (Qur’an) is the Book; in it is guidance sure without doubt to those who fear Allah.”(Qur’an;2:2);”Recite from this Book (Qur’an) which has been revealed to you”(Qur’an;29:45)
“And recite (and teach) what has been revealed to thee of the Book of thy Lord: none can change His Words and none wilt thou find as a refuge other than Him.”(Quran,18:27)
“By no means (should it be so)! For it (Qur’an) is indeed a Message of instruction: Therefore let who will keep it in remembrance. It is written in scrolls, which are honored, exalt-ed, purified, and which remain in the hands of scribes, who are noble and virtuous.”(Quran;80:11-16).
This proves that the Qur’an was meant to be a book from the begin-ning of the revelation.
Difference of Dialects
Though Arabic was the com-mon language of Arabia, there existed some variations in the dialects of different parts and tribes, a common feature in all the languages. For obvious reasons the Qur’an was revealed in the dialect of the Quraish of Makkah. However, the Arabs living in different parts of the country were, at first allowed, for the sake of facility, to recite it according to the dialect of their own clan or district but this did not produce any difference in its meanings. But when Islam spread beyond the boundaries of Arabia and the Arabs came into contact with the non-Arab Muslims, the Arabic language gradually began to be influenced by the new environments. Then it was feared that the different dialects of the Qur’an might give rise to various kinds of mischief and might cause disputes among persons having different dialects. They might even begin to accuse one another of tampering with the Qur’an. Moreover, there was the danger that the pure and beautiful Arabic of the Qur’an might be altered or changed by those Arabs who came in contact with non-Arabs. Therefore, Caliph Uthman [3rd Caliph;644 to 656 C.E], in consultation with other Companions of the Holy Prophet, decided that the authenticated copies of the Qur’an previously compiled on the orders of Abu Bakr [1stCaliph; 632-634 C.E], should alone be used in the whole of the Muslim world, and the use of all other copies in any other dialect or idiom should be prohibit-ed. As a precautionary measure, he had all the other existing copies burnt to ward off any possibility of future confusion and misunderstanding. For instance, some of the companions had noted down explanatory words and comments on the margins of their copies and it was feared, that these might get mixed up with the original text of the Qur’an. Though such a possibility did not exist at that lime, it was an act of most prudent foresight to make the Qur’an safe and secure against any possible alteration in the future by burning all other copies.
The Qur’an, which is now in use all over the world, is the exact copy of the Qur’an which was compiled by the order of Abu Bakr and copies of which were officially sent by Uthman to different places. Even today many very old copies are found in big libraries in different parts of the world and if anyone has any doubt as to whether the Qur’an has remained absolutely safe and secure against every kind of change and alteration, he can compare any copy of the Qur’an with any of these copies and reassure himself. Moreover, if one gets a copy of the Qur’an from a bookseller, say, of Algeria in Africa in the West and compares it with a copy obtained from a bookseller, say, in Java [Indonesia] in the East, one will find both the copies to be identical with each other and also with the copies of the Qur’an made during die time of Uthman. If even then anyone has any doubt left in his mind, he is advised to take any copy of the Qur’an from anywhere in the world and ask anyone, out of the millions of Huffaz [who have memorized the Qur’an by heart] to recite it word by word from the beginning to the end. He will find that the recitation con-forms verbatim to the written text. This is a clear and irrefutable proof of the fact that the Qur’an which is in use today is the same Qur’an which was presented to the world by Muhammad (peace be upon him).
A septic might entertain a doubt about its revelation from Allah, but none can have any doubt whatsoever regarding its authenticity and immunity and purity from any and every kind of addition or omission or alteration, for there is nothing so authentic in the whole human history as this fact about the Qur’an that it is the same Qur’an that was presented by the Holy Prophet to the world. Now let us consider the case of the variant readings of the Qur’an, for their existence has created the misunderstanding that it has not remained intact. The following facts will help us to understand their nature and extent:
1. The Arabic script adopted by the amanuenses of the Holy Prophet during his life-time had neither dots nor vowel points. The same was the case with the copy of the Qur’an com-piled by Zaid bin Thabit, during the time of Abu Bakr and also with its copies circulated by 3rd Caliph Uthman.
2. Though the correctness of the Qura’nic text was ensured in the written forms, the work of its propagation was done orally because of the general illiteracy and scarcity of paper. Little difficulty was, however, felt by the literate Arabs in deciphering this script. There were thou-sands of such persons who had learnt the whole of the Qur’an by heart from the Holy Prophet himself and his Companions. They followed and taught the same reading that they had learnt from the Holy Prophet and his Companions.
3. The Companion and 3rd Caliph Uthman, not only sent an authentic written copy of the Qur’an to the different centers of Islamic Caliphate, but also sent a Qari [teacher to recite,] each along with it, so that e the correct reading which was taught by the Holy Prophet himself is followed and preserved.
4. With the passage of time it was felt that there should be vowel points, to preserve the correct reading of the Qur’an. Accordingly, at the instance of Zaid, the Governor of Basrah (45 to 53 A.H.) dots were assigned for vowel points. Then during the reign of Abdul-Malik (65-85 A.H.) Hajjaj-bin-Yusuf appointed scholars to assign symbols for vowel points and dots to distinguish between the similar letters. The same practice continues to the present time. Amazingly this has helped even the non Arabs, not fully familiar with Arabic, to recite the Qur’an in its original revealed dialect.
From the above historical facts, it must have become clear that the reading of the Qur’an (with a few minor variations) is the same as practiced and taught by the Holy Prophet. All the scholars and Qurr’a [plural of Qari, an expert in recita-tion] of the Qur’an have been unan-imous in asserting that only that reading will be authentic which;
(a) Conforms to the script of the copy circulated by Uthman.
(b) Complies with the lexicon of Arabic, its usages idioms and grammar, and above all; is trace-able by genuine and continuous links to the Holy Prophet himself.
That is why there are only a few variations in its reading and those are not contradictory in their meanings but enlarge their scope and make them more comprehensive. Thus there is absolutely no doubt that the Holy Prophet him-self practiced those various readings in the instance which exit today, and they make the meanings more comprehensive.
For example, let us take the authentic readings of verse 3 of: Al-Fatihah. One reading of 1:3, that is; “maleke you mud din”, means the Master of the Day of Judgment and the other reading, “maleke you mud din”, means; The Sovereign of the Day of Judgment. It is obvious that these two readings make the meaning of the verse all the more clear. It is obvious that in the vari-ant readings, there is absolutely no contradiction in essence. On the other hand, they make the meanings all the more comprehensive. And the same is true of all other variant readings.
Universality
Everyone knows that the Qur’an claims to provide guidance for the whole of mankind, but when one reads Qur’an; it is found that it is mainly addressed to the Arabs, who lived at the time of its revelation. Though at times it also addresses other people and mankind in general, it mainly discusses those things which appealed to the taste of the Arabs and were linked with their environment, history and customs. This naturally gives rise to the question:
Why does the Qur’an contain so many local and national sentiments of the period in which was revealed, when it was meant of the guidance of the whole mankind?
Those who don’t understand the wisdom of this, begin to argue that: The Qur’an was really meant for the reform of the Arabs of that period but later on somehow or other, the claim was made that it was guidance for the whole of mankind and for all ages. If one does not raise this objection merely for the sake of objection but really wants to understand the matter, he is advised to:
1. Read the Qur’an and mark the parts which give rise to this doubt. He should then point out any tenet, idea or principle therein that might have been meant particularly for the Arabs of that period only.
2. He should lay his finger on any moral principle, practical rule or regulation that is not of universal application and was meant only for the Arabs of that period, time and place. The mere fact, that the Qur’an refutes the blasphemous creeds and condemns the evil customs of a particular people, living at a particular time and place and bases arguments for the unity of God on the material gathered from their environment, is not a sufficient proof to establish the allegation that its invitation and appeal was local and temporary.
3. One should examine the question closely and decide whether what it says regarding the blasphemous people of Arabia is or is not equally true of every period and every place, and whether we can or can not use every where, with minor changes, the same arguments that the Qur’an puts forward for the Unit of God. If the answer to these questions is in the affirmative, then there is no reason why such a universal revelation should be dubbed as local or temporary, simply because it was addressed to a particular community and during a particular period. There is no philosophy, no way of life and no religion in the world which expounds, from the beginning to the end, everything in the abstract without making any reference to particular cases or concrete examples, for it is simply impossible to build a pattern of life merely in the abstract. Even if we suppose, for the sake of argument, that it were possible to do so, most surely such a system will always remain merely a theory on paper and will never take a practical shape.
Moreover, it is neither necessary nor useful to start any ideo-logical movement form the very outset on international lines that is meant to be ultimately international. The only right method of beginning this will be to start the movement in the country of its origin, present and practice its theories and fundamental principles which are to form the basis of the required system of life, with full force. Then its exponents should impress these things on the mind of their own country and prove their worth by evolving a happy and successful system of life. This will naturally attract other nations, and their intelligent people will themselves come for-ward to understand the movement and start it in their own countries. Thus a certain ideological system does not become national simply because it was at first presented to a particular nation and its arguments were a national from an international and a temporary from a permanent system is this:
1. A national system aims either to establish its own superiority over other nations or presents principles and theories which, by their very nature cannot be applied to other nations.
2. On the other hand, an international system grants equal status and equal rights to all human beings and puts forward principles of universal application.
3. Moreover, the principles of a temporary system become impracticable with the passage of time while the principle of a permanent system is applicable to all times.
If one studies the Qur’an in the light of the above, one will come to the conclusion that its teachings are of universal application.
Complete Code
Another aspect that causes mental confusion is the often repeated assertion that the Qur’an is a complete code of life. But when one reads it, one does not find detailed rules and regulations regarding social, cultural, political and economic problems etc… One is therefore, baffled to see that it does not contain any detailed regulations even about Salah [Prayer] and Zakat [Alms] which are such important obligatory duties that the Qur’an itself lays great emphasis on them over and over again. That is why a casual reader cannot under-stand how this Book can be called a complete code. This confusion is caused because the objector loses sight of the fact that Allah did not only send down the Book but also appointed His Messenger to demonstrate its teachings by putting them into actual practice.
To illustrate this aspect, take the case of the construction of a building. If only a plan of the proposed building is laid down and no engineer is appointed to supervise and direct its construction, then every detail must be supplied. But if an engineer is also appointed along with the plan to construct the building on the spot, obviously there is no need for a detailed plan. In that case only a sketch with its essential features will be quite enough. It would, therefore, be wrong to find fault with such a plan as being incomplete. As Allah sent His Messenger along with the Qur’an, only general principles and absolutely essential instructions were needed and not their details.
Hence the main function of the Qur’an is to present clearly the intellectual and moral bases of the ‘Islamic Way’ and reinforce them with arguments and appeals to the heart. As far as the practical side of the building of the Islamic Way of life is concerned, it only defines the limits and bounds of every aspect of life without giving detailed rules and regulation. Moreover it fixes sign-posts for guidance at certain important places to show how those parts are to be constructed in accordance with Allah’s will. The actual work of building the ‘Islamic Way of life’ in accordance with the instructions contained in the Book was entrusted to he Holy Prophet. He was specially sent to set up the pattern of life for the individuals, the society and for the Islamic State according to the principles of the Qur’an. Thus the Qur’an is a complete code in the sense that it is to be taken along with the Sunnah [Traditions] of the Holy Prophet.
Divergence in the Interpretations
Another question which troubles the minds is that of divergence in the interpretation of the Qur’an. People say that on the one hand, Qur’an condemns very severely those who create differences in the Book of Allah and cause division in their religion; on the other hand, so many different interpretations of the injunctions of the Qur’an have been made that there is hardly to be found any command with an agreed interpretation. And it is not that the people of the later periods alone who differ with one another but even the great scholars of the early period, including the companions of the Holy Prophet and their followers, all did not agree in every detail in regard to Commands and Prohibitions.
1. Do all these people then deserve the condemnation pro-nounced in the Qur’an for making different interpretations?
2. If this is not so, then what kind of differences of opinion have been condemned in the Qur’an?
The issue is too big, requiring in-depth exclusive deliberations. Suffice it to say here that the Qur’an is not against healthy difference of opinion in the interpretation of its injunctions provided that:-
1. There is agreement on the basic principles of Islam among those who differ and that they remain united within the ambit of the Muslim Community.
2. The Qur’an condemns that kind of divergence which is against the unity of God, involving glorification of individuals leading to worship, polytheism, crookedness resulting in to disputes and sectarianism.
As the two kinds of divergence are neither alike in their nature nor in their results, they should not be placed in one and the same category. The first kind of divergence is essential for the progress and is the very soul of life and every community of intelligent and thinking people must encourage it, Its existence is a sign of life and only that community can afford to repress it which desires to have only blockheads in it. The second kind of divergence as everyone knows, disintegrates the community which nourishes it: therefore its appearance in a cornmunity is not a sign of health but a symptom of disease and it can never produce good results.
These kinds of ‘Divergence of Opinion’ may further be illustrated by the following:
Supposing there are two scholars or two judges, who agree, on principle, that Allah and His Messenger alone are entitled to obedience and that the Qur’an and the Sunnah are the final authority to determine all laws and regulations. They may then differ in the details or in the decision of a case, provided that neither of them makes his opinion as the criterion of Islam or un-Islam nor declares the other to be outside its fold on account of such a difference of opinion. They may put forward to the public or to the highest court, if it is some judicial matter, or to the legislative body of the community, if it concerns them. Then either one of the two different opinions will prevail or both will be accepted.
But it should be noted particularly that no difference can be allowed in the basic principles of Islam nor in such matters as may lead to the scholar or a jurist or a saint or a leader should form an opinion about some matter (which Allah and His Messenger do not consider to be basic) and declare it to be the basic principle of Islam and then denounce all those who differ from him to be outside its fold, and then on this basis, proceed to form a community of his own followers saying;
“This is the real Muslim Community and all outside it are doomed to Hell. Therefore, if you are a Muslim, come and join it, otherwise you are not one.”
It is this kind of difference of opinion which the Qur’an condemns. As regards the first kind of difference, several instances of it occurred during the time of the Holy Prophet him-self. He not only permitted it but also spoke well of it, for it was a healthy sign, which showed that intelligent people of the Community were busy thinking and making research. This also showed that the intelligent people of the Community were taking interest in Islam and its teachings and were trying to find solution; for the problems of life within Islam and not outside it. It also provided a proof of the golden rule that while the Community should remain united on principles, it should at the same time, grant freedom of research to its thinkers within due limits so that the doors of progress should remain open.
Recommendations for Study
Finally, here are a few recommendations for the study of the Qur’an with understanding. As different people turn to the Qur’an with different aims and objectives, it s not possible of offer any general advice about the method of its study so as to fulfil the requirements of all. Here focus is only on those people who want to under-stand it and seek guidance from it for the solution of human problems. Therefore, some suggestions are offered which may help satisfy their needs and remove their difficulties:-
1. The one pre-requisite for understanding the Qur’an is to study it with an open mind. Whether one believes it to be a revealed book or not, one should, as far as possible, free one’s mind of bias in favor of an or against it and get rid of all pre-conceived opinions and then approach it with the sole desire of understanding it. Those people, who study it with preconceived notions of their own, read only their own ideas between its lines and cannot, therefore, grasp what the Qur’an wants to convey. It is obvious that this method of study can never be fruitful even with other books but it is utterly fruitless when applied to the study of the Qur’an.
2. If one wants to have merely a cursory acquaintance with the contents of the Qur’an, then per-haps it might suffice for him to read it once. But, if one wishes to have a deep knowledge of it, one will have to go through it several times and each time from a different point of view.
3. Those who desire to make a through study of the Qur’an should read it at least twice with the sole purpose of understanding, as a whole, the system of life it presents. One should also try to find out its fundamentals and the way of life it aims to build on them. During this preliminary study, if some questions occur in his mind, the reader should note them down and somewhere in the Qur’an itself. If he finds answers to his questions, he should note them down along with the questions. But if he does not find an answer to any question in his first reading, he should patiently make the second reading. In the light of experience it is found that in the second reading hardly any question remains un-answered.
4. After getting a general insight into the Qur’an in this way, one should begin its detailed study and take down notes of the different aspects of its teachings. For instance:-
(a) One should note down what pattern of life it approves and what it disapproves.
(b) One should note down the qualities of a good man and those of a bad man, side by side, in order to bring both the patterns clearly before his mind simultaneously.
(c) Similarly, one should note down, side by side, those things which lead to the success and salvation of man and those which lead to his failure and ruin.
(d) In the same way, the reader of Qur’an should put down, under different headings, the teachings and instruction of the Qur’an about creed, morality, duties, obligations, civilization, culture, economics, politics, law, social system, peace, war and other human problems. These notes should be consolidated to form a complete sketch of each aspect of the teachings and then fitted together to form a complete system of life.
(e) Then, if one desires to know the Qura’nic solution of a certain human problem he should first make a study of the relevant literature, both ancient and modern, and then note down the basic issues. He should also make use of the research so far made into the problem and note down the points at issue. He should then study the Qur’an with a view to finding out the answers to those issues.
(f) One will find an answer to it even in those verses which one had skipped over without ever imagining that it lay hidden therein.
(g) It is suggested that each paragraph of Commentary of Qur’an, may be made the unit of study. At first it should be studied from the original Arabic Text with the help of some literal translation and then with the help of the commentary of Qur’an. It is expected that the meanings of the Qur’an will surely become clear by the grace of God.
But in spite of all these methods, one cannot grasp the inspiring spirit of the Qur’an unless one begins to put its message into practice, for the Qur’an is neither a book of abstract ideas and theories which may be studied in an easy chair nor is it a book of religious enigmas which may be unravelled in monasteries and universities.
Conclusion
Qur’an is a Book that has been sent down to invite people to start a movement and to lead its followers and direct their activities towards the achievement of its mission. One has, therefore, to go to the battlefield of life to under-stand its real meaning. That was why a quiet and amiable person like Muhammad (peace be upon him) had to come out of his seclusion and start the Islamic Movement and fight against the rebellious world. It was the Qur’an that urged him to declare war against every kind of falsehood and engage in conflict with the leaders of disbelief without any consideration of the consequences. Then it attracted good souls from every home and gathered them under the banner of its leader in order to strive against the upholders of the old order who organized themselves into a gang to oppose them. During this long and bitter struggle between right and wrong, truth and falsehood, which continued for twenty three years or so, the Qur’an went on guiding the Movement in every phase and at every stage, until it succeeded in establishing the Islamic Way of life par excellence.
It is thus obvious that one can-not possibly grasp the truths contained in the Qur’an by the mere recitation of its words. For this purpose one must take active part in the conflict between belief and unbelief. Islam and un-Islam, truth and falsehood. One can under-stand it only if he takes up its Message, invites the world to accept it and moves on and on in accordance with its Guidance. Thus by yourself will you experience and understand all that which happened during the revelation of the Qur’an. You will meet with the same conditions that were experienced at Makkah, Ta’if and Habash and pass through the same kind of fire that had to be passed through at Badar, Uhd, Hunain, Tabuk [expeditions of war] etc. You will meet many people like Abu Jahl and Abu Lahab [bitter opponents of Islam] and come across hypocrites and the double-faced. In short, one will come across all types of people men-tioned in the Qur’an. Incidentally, this is a wonderful experience of its own kind and worth the trial.
While passing through any one of these stages of this experience, one will find some verses and some Surahs of the Qur’an, which will them-selves tell that they were revealed at such and such a stage and brought such and such instructions for the guidance of the Movement. In this way the Qur’an will lay bare its spirit even though one might not be able to understand all the lexical meanings of its words and solve all the intricacies of grammar and rhetoric. The same formula applies to its Commandments, its moral teachings, its instructions about economics and culture and its laws regarding different aspects of human life. These things can never be understood unless they are put into practice. It is thus obvious that those individuals and communities, who dis-card it from practical life, cannot understand its meaning and imbibe its spirit by mere lip-service to it.
The true knowledge is with Allah; we should have full trust in Him and turn to Him for true guidance. As it is not intended to dis-cuss in this short guide, all the problems which might arise during the study of the Our’ an, many have been purposely left untouched those questions that might arise during the study of some verses or Surahs, are dealt in commentaries on the Qur’an at their proper places. Only those questions and problems which pertain to the general study of the Qur’an as a whole have been mentioned here. The reader is, therefore, requested to defer giving his final judgment on such questions till he has read the whole of Qur’an with commentary by renowned scholars like; Syed Abul A’ala Maududi, Muhammad Asad, Muhammad Shafi, Abdullah Yousaf Ali, F.M.Malik, Pickthal and alike.♦
References
http://aftabkhan.blog.com [The main source of this article is; “Introduction to The Meanings of Qur’an’ (Tafheem-ul-Qur’an)” by Syed Abul A’ala Maududi, English transla-tion by Ch.Muhammad Akbar, edited by A.A.Kamal]
