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The Qur'an
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The Qur'an is the Book of Allah (God) that was revealed in Arabic to the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) over a period of twenty three years. He dictated it to his followers as he received it from the Angel Jibril (Gabriel), and they wrote it down on whatever materials were available. The Prophet and many of his followers memorized it as it was revealed.
The Qur'an consists of 114 surahs (sometimes called chapters) of various lengths, from 3 to 286 verses. The verses were revealed a few at a time and not in their present order but were placed in their position by the Prophet in accordance to instructions from the Angel Jibril.
It is a widely acknowledged fact that the Qur'an is the most frequently read book. Muslims read passages of the Qur'an five times daily as part of their ritual prayer. Besides, they read it early in the morning, as God has recommended its reading at that time. So pious Muslims have been reading this Holy Book everyday repeatedly from the Prophet's time to the present. This is God's own plan of keeping the Qur'an safe from corruption.: "Certainly, it was We Who revealed the Reminder (the Qur'an) and certainly, We shall preserve it." (Holy Qur'an)
One of the wonderful aspects of the Qur'an is that even though it was revealed 14 centuries ago, it incorporates principles and formulations relevant for all time. This means that the Qur'an is not a book like other books. It is unique in its content, its form, its language and tone. Any outsider who has known Islam by hearsay may try to study Islam first by trying to read it, of course in translation. The first thing that he will notice is that it is no ancient book as expected. Another thing he will notice is that this book is not the book of a Desert Arab, as he might call the Prophet. It is true that there are references to desert life in it. But the book deals with life of humanity under any circumstances, anywhere, any time.
One of the miracles of the Qur'an, which was revealed 14 centuries ago is the fact that it can be read and understood by the Arabic-speaking people living today. Every language undergoes changes as time passes, and a hundred or two hundred years is long enough for a language to undergo substantial changes. The English of 600 years ago, sounds an entirely different language from the English of today; this is well-known to anyone who has tried to read Chaucer in the original. (Chaucer: an English poet who lived six centuries ago). If that is so, what about the Arabic of the Hijaz region, spoken fourteen centuries ago? |
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