INTRODUCTION TO THE GLORIOUS QUR’AN II BY BABA ALI MUSTAPHA
This
research was almost the same, but more elaborate to the one posted on June 2017
under the
INTRODUCTION TO THE GLORIOUS
QUR’AN I
The Compilation of the Qur’an
The
Holy Qur’an is to the Muslim the Book of Allah the very word of God revealed to
the Prophet Muhammad through archangel Gabriel (Jibrail) like the earlier holy
books sent for example to David (Da’ud) Moses (Musa) and Jesus (Isa), it is
sent for the admonition of mankind as the Qur’an itself testifies. “And assuredly we have made the Qur’an easy
for admonition, is there then anyone who would be admonished” (Q54:17). The
Qur’an is replete with historical discourse and allusion without being a book
of history. The Qur’an is easy for admonition, but no easy in the absolute
sense: not easy in the sense that it contains profundities of thought of
subtleties of meaning, but it is only easy in so far to lessons of meekness,
humility and willing surrender to God and can be deduced from it.
The
first revelation of the Qur’an began on the 15th night of the Month
of Ramadan in the 41st year after the birth of the Prophet. Its
first surah was revealed in the cave Hira when the verse “Recite in the name of thy Lord who created…” was revealed. The
last verse of the Qur’an, “This day we
have perfected for you your religion…” was revealed on the 9th
Dhul Hajja in the 10th year of Hijrah (63rd year of the
Prophet’s life). Taking this into consideration we came to know that the period
in which the Qur’an was revealed in its entity was twenty two years, two month
and twenty-two days.
It
is widely accepted as true that at the death of Muhammad, there was not in
existence any written collection of revelation of the Qur’an in final form. For
one thing, so long as the Prophet was alive, new revelation were continually
being added to the earlier ones. In other words, the body of Divine revelation
continued to grow throughout the lifetime of the Prophet. This fact does not
however, nullify the other well authenticated one, that even at that time, much
of the later Qur’an must have already been written down.
As
soon as the need was realized for securing Allah’s revelations through His
Prophet , Muhammad, it become necessary not to rely solely on memory work, as a
good deal of the “words” could get lost-human memory being what it is. The
people soon felt obliged to secure the revelations from Allah by writing them
down, and it is easy to understand that to begin with, materials reaches to
hand, like shoulder-blades, palm leaves, stones, etc were used for writing
purposes.
Among
the earliest recorders of those revelation were Zaid bin Thabit, Mu’awiyah bin
Abu Sufiyan, Khalid bin al-Walid and Zubair bin al-Awam all of whom were the
companions of the Prophets.
Besides
in an internationally important commercial city such as Mecca was, one would
expect to find and there certainly were people who wrote down revelations from
Allah. The question therefore, as to whether the Prophet himself could read or
write is of minor importance, in fact, the Prophet was Ummi (unlettered) and as Qur’an therefore, was the greatest miracle
revealed to him from Allah.
The
significant role played by the art of writing to the compilation of the Qur’an
is more clearly revealed after the death of the Prophet. With his death, the
source of revelations ceased to flow, and the believes in case of doubt, has no
one whom they might consult as no one had inherited Muhammad’s prophetic gift.
This discourse left by him thus acquired increased importance, for in them
spoke the Prophet, or rather God through him to his community, if they were
able to interpret his words correctly. The task therefore naturally presented
itself of collecting this valuable legacy in as complete and accurate a form as
possible and preserving it from destruction. This obvious development is also
confirmed by the Tradition. At this juncture, we might stop to trace the course
of events that eventually resulted in the first compilation of the Qur’an.
The
most popular view holds that as stated with the realization of the unfortunate
fact that many of the people who know the Qur’an by heart (Huffaz) has perished in the battle with the false Prophet
Musailima. This aroused in Umar the fear that some knowledge of revelation
might be lost. Umar then induced Caliph, Abu Bakr, to begin the collection of
the scattered discourses. The work was entrusted to the companion and the
secretary of Muhammad, Zaid bin Thabit. The latter collected everything that
was written on different, often primitive materials and compared it with what
people had retained in their memory, and wrote them on separate leaves which he
gave Abu Bakr.
On
the death of Abu Bakr the book passed into the hands of his successor, who in
turn bequeathed it to his daughter, Hafsa, the widow of the Prophet. It was
this same copy (Zaid bin Thabit’s version) that later formed the basis of the
work of compilation done by third Caliph, Uthman bin Aflan.
In
compiling his own version of the Qur’an Uthman drew upon materials from Zaid’s
compilation which was deposited with Abu Bakr and which has passed to Umar
after Abu Bakr’s death. When Umar succeeded Abu Bakr, it was passed on him.
After Umar’s murder, Hafsa, his daughter, had carefully preserved this copy of
the Qur’an.
However,
there is another theory that it was Umar himself who ordered and supervised the
collection, indeed, we are even told (Ibn Sid, 111/1.2124) that Umar died
before the task was completed. Let us now see briefly how the authorized Uthman
edition come into existence.
With
the reign of Uthman the third Caliph we enter upon more solid ground. Already
there were in existence four editions of the Qur’an. These were compiled by
four men (i) Ubaiy b.Ka’b (ii) Abdullah bin Mas’ud (iii)Abu Musa Abdullah
al-Ashari and (iv) Miqdad bin Amur (those editions gradually disappeared after
the authorization of final edition in Uthman’s period).
According
to a statement of Ibn al-Athir, the aforementioned four editions found
acceptance each in a particular region (i) Ubaiy’s in Damascus (ii) Miqdad’s in
Hums (iii) Ibn Mas’ud’s in Kufas and (iv) al Ash’ari in Basra. This statement
is further substantiated by the fact that the two last named compilers held
offices in the provinces mentioned. That the existence of several divergent
version in the matter of arrangement would produce uncertainty among the
believers is easily understood, it is only two obvious and inevitable. To avoid
this unfortunate situation, something had to be done, and that urgently too.
Tradition
holds that Hudhaifa thought that the quarrels among his followers about the
correct form of arrangements of revelation in the sacred book, while on a
campaign in Armenia and Adhar-Baijan, were capable of causing division among
his followers. He therefore asked Caliph Uthman to try to abolish this
unfortunate state of affairs, so that believers might not quarrel like Jews and
Christians over the scriptures. Uthman recognized the justice of the request
and asked Hafsa to let him have the “Suhuf”
(the copy of the Qur’an in her possession) so that copies might be made of
them. Hafsa agreed and the Caliph entrusted the task to commission constituting
of Zaid bin Thabit, Abdullah bin Zubair, Said bin As and Abdul-Rahman bin
al-Harith.
It
is not easy to see clearly what their work really was. If they had only to make
copies of standard text, reliable scribes would have sufficed so that the men
named would at most have some sort of supervision over the work. But they had
an important assignment of arranging after some deliberated the chapters of the
Qur’an as they exist today. It is however proved beyond doubt that the version
of Uthman was based in Zaid’s version.
The
tradition further reveals that of the copies then made, one was kept in Mecca,
while three were sent as standard text to Kufa, Basra, and Damascus, that is
practically to the regions in which the
four differing versions aforementioned were current. The authorized edition was
readily accepted everywhere.
The
new version might have gradually driven out the variants because of its
official authority and the general desire for uniformity.
It
was in this way that there come into the authorized version of the Qur’an which
he generally remained authoritative to the present day, and in spite of all
vicssituades, formed with the Sunnah the solid foundation for Muslims life and
thought. It is true to say that there has not been any change even of a word in
the Holy Qur’an from the time to the Prophet till today.
The Importance of the Qur’an
The
Muslims regard the Qur’an as a “Wonder” that is God’s word from beginning to
end, Muhammad was the bearer of God’s message. In addition to the Qur’an there
also exist the Hadith (the
traditions) in which Prophet Muhammad’s own words and pronouncements addressed
to his friends, supporters and co-religionists were noted down. They are
recorded in many voluminous works.
The
Qur’an plays an important role in education in Muslim countries. Only the
Arabic text is considered authoritative and imnumerable school children have
learnt it by heart. As the Qur’an is written in rhythmic prose, this is
comparatively easy to do. Here is an example illustrative of this style.
“So Glory be to Allah when you
enter the night and when ye enter the mornings, Unto him be praise in heaven
and in the earth, and at the sun’s decline and in the noon day, he bringth
forth the living from the dead and he bringeth, forth the dead from the living.
And He revived the earth after death. And even so will ye be brought forth.
It
will be noted that Muhammad was preceded by several Prophets who brought to
mankind series of revelations which are designed to provide guidance to man.
Those revelations have been recorded in various books one of which is the
Christian bible. Bearing this in mind, we might here consider what the position
of the Qur’an is with respect to those
revelation whose truth it affirms,
Previous
revelation were limited in their scope. Each was designated to meet the needs
of the people to whom it was sent during the stage of development. Each
contained fundamental truths, valid through the ages in respect of the whole
mankind, but it also contained guidance, directions commandment and prohibition
which were of local or temporary charter, moreover in course of time, portions
of those revelations were lost or forgotten. That which was of universal and
permanent application in those previous revelations and other scripture has
been affirmed in the Qur’an. Such portions as had been lost or were overlooked
or forgotten but were still needed, have been revived. That which was of purely
local or temporary application and was no longer needed to been omitted. That
which was not contained in previous revelation, which would henceforth be
needed by mankind, was added.
This
does not mean that the Qur’an makes obligatory upon the Muslims all the
commandments and ordinance contained in today’s version of the previous
revelations and scriptures, indeed at emphasizes repeatedly that those versions
have suffered grievously at the hands of some of those who prefers to be their
supporters. What the Qur’an affirms is the actual revelation vouchsafed to the
previous Prophets thus:
“surely, we sent down the Torah,
wherein is guidance and light….(Q5:45) and again, “And we caused Jesus son of
Mary, to follow in their footsteps, fulfilling that which was revealed before
him in the Torah………and we gave him the Gospel which contained guidance and
light, fulfilling that which was revealed before that in the Torah as an
admonition for the God fearing (5:147) (The Gospel here means
the revelation vouchsafed to Jesus, and not the books which are today commonly
so described).
As
already stated, the Qur’an reaffirms all that was fundamental in previous
revelations and which is still needed by mankind. That is part of the guidance which
the Prophet and through him the Muslims, and indeed, all mankind are exhorted
to follow. The guidance revealed by God through the Prophets (Q6:91). Thus the
Qur’an, while reaffirming the truth of all previous revelations, itself
comprises all truth for the whole of mankind for all time. It has been
described as “pure scripture, comprising
lasting commandments” (Q78:3-4).
The Qur’an is thus a universal possession and inheritance, its message is
directed to the whole of mankind (Q7:159).
It
expounds and explain all that is, or may be needed by mankind for the complete
fulfillment of life (Q16:90). It seeks to create faith in God through
revelation of God’s signs, it makes provision for mankind’s welfare-material,
moral and spiritual, it teaches all that is needed for the beneficent
regulation of human life through various legislations. it draws attention to
the various Divine Attributes, their operation and the manner in which mankind
may derive benefit from the knowledge thereof. In short, all that is basic for
the promotion of human welfare in all spheres, whether pertaining to principles
or conduct, is set forth and expounded.
It
is this comprehensiveness of the Qur’an, the need to make provision for
guidance in every respect, for all peoples for all time, that made it necessary
that the guidance should conveyed in verbal revelation. The Qur’an is literally
the Word of God and possesses the quality of being alive, as the universe is
alive. It yields a new truths and fresh guidance in every age and at every
level. It is a standing and perpetual miracle (Q18:110). The Qur’an has
proclaimed that falsehood will never overtake it. The Qur’an speaks at every
level, it seeks to reach every type of understanding through parables,
phenomena of nature, and the natural, moral and spiritual level (Q18:55, 39;
28; 22).
The
Qur’an reason from the physical and tangible to the spiritual and intangible.
For instance, “Among His signs is this:
that thou seest the earth lying withered, but when we send down water on it, it
stirs and swells with verdure. Surely He who quickens the earth can quicken the
dead. Verily, He has power over all things (Q41:40).
Whenever
attention is drawn in the Qur’an to God’s signs, the object is to urge
reflection upon the event or phenomenon cited, that we may proceed to draw
lessens thereform which would help us grasp the truth, to understand the
operation by Divine Attributes and Divine Laws, to appreciate spiritual values
and to adjust and order all lives accordingly, so that all our activities in
every sphere should become wholly beneficent.
One
of many characteristic of the Qur’an which marks it the word of God is that to
arrive at the comprehension of its deeper meaning and significance, the seeker
must, in addition to a certain degree of knowledge of the language and
principles of interpretation cultivate purity of thought and action (Q56:79).
The
last half century has however, witnessed the onset of a tremendous of
revolution in human values in all spheres of life. The very dimensions of human
life are being reshaped so that scholars and thinkers are beginning to stress
the need of new revelation.
What
provision, it may be asked, is there in the Qur’an to meet the contingency with
which mankind is faced today and which is likely to grow ever more insistent
during all the tomorrows that lie ahead? To meet this contingency the Qur’an
announced that the Prophet not only had been raised for the generation among
whom he lived but would also be followed by others “Who have not yet joined them (Q63:3-4). , that is those either as
yet unborn or as yet outside the pale of Islam. This means that the Qur’an is
perpetual message to the Prophet for the purpose of setting forth the guidance
that may be needed in the new age, and for illustrating the value demanded by
the exigencies with which man may then be faced.
The Contents of the Qur’an
The
Qur’an in its finished form is a book of medium size. Early religious books are
usually very short, like the Buddhist books or very long like the bible. The
Qur’an falls in between and its composition was a very remarkable feat in the
desert land of Arabia, where very little writing had taken place between its
revelation.
The
book is divided into 114 chapters called Surahs and arranged roughly according
to length, with the exception of the first surah, from chapters containing 200
verses to chapters of 3 to 5 verses at the end.
The
first chapter is called “The Opening”
(Al-Fatihah) is a brief invocation, widely used by Muslims in diverse circumstance
and held by many Muslim divines to comprehend all the essential of Muslims of belief.
“In the name of Allah the
Beneficent, the Merciful, Allah praise is due to Allah, the Lord of all Worlds,
(He is) the Beneficent, the Merciful, (He is), the Sovereign of the Day of
Judgement, Thee alone we do worship, and from Thee alone we seek help, Guide us
Thou on the Right Path-The Path of those whom Thou had favoured Not of those on
whom wrath (of Allah) is brought down not of those who go astray.
This
sum up the Muslim faith. Allah is supreme the only Supreme God. He is
compassionate and Merciful, but there is a day of judgement.
Most
of the other 113 Surahs are a mosaic of passages of revelations uttered by
Muhammad at different times and at different place over a period of
approximately 22 year (610-632AD)
The
arrangement of the verses in the Qur’an dos not follow any chronological order.
Whenever a verse or group of verses were revealed the Prophet indicated its
place in the order and sequence of the Qur’an.
One
reason why the present arrangement does not adhere to the chronological order
in that the revelation come as it was needed in the contemporaneous state of
the people to who it was immediately addressed, the purpose being, first to
create faith in the existence and unity of God, then to lay the foundation of a
beneficent society in accordance with the principles of Islam, then to
reconstruct society on those principles on to train in their exercise so that
the people could become the bearers of the Divine message and illustrate it in
practice in daily living.
In
view of the lack of mass printing facilities to which mankind has since become
accustomed, the method adopted for safeguarding the revelation was to commit to
memory rather to preserve it in the form of book, though the text of each
revelation comprising one or more verses was also written down as it was
received.
The
Prophet himself was not literate, but as we have seen, others who were
competent in their respect were engaged for the purpose. The contents of the
Qur’an were early divided into the obvious and the ambiguous-some of its signs
are of themselves perspicuous those are the basis of the book and other
figurative. But they whose hearts are given to err, follow its figures, craving
discord, craving a selfish interpretation. Yet name knoweth its interpretation
but God”.
It
was recognized that some passages were capable of more than one interpretation,
those were to be explained in the light of those whose meaning was beyond doubt.
Also some verses had been cancelled by later revelations. “Whatever verses we cancel, or cause thee to forget, we bring a better
or its like”. To give one example, the verse “verily, those who believe (Muslims) and they, who follow the jew
believeth in God and the last day, and doeth than which is right, shall have
their reward with their Lord; fear shall not come upon them, neither shall they
be grieved”. Is concelled by “who so
desireth any other religion than Islam, that religion shall never be accepted
from him, and in the next world he shall be among the lost”. Opinions among
Modern Muslim scholars tend to suggest that this cancellation is not a
contradiction but only a limitation.
For
liturgical purpose, the Qur’an is
divided into thirty equal parts. Merit is to be got by reading the Qur’an and
the thirty parts are usually recited during the thirty night of Ramadan during
Tarawth prayers.
One
may see that the arrangement of the surahs is not so easy to understand. The
revelations from Allah come according to the need for the establishment of
religion. In fact, revelation of various dates and on different subjects and to
be found together in on surah, verses of Medina revelation are found in Mecca
surahs. Some of the Medinan surahs, though of late revelation, are place first
and the very early Meccan surahs at the end. Whatever may be the case, “the
arrangement”, as Muhammad Marmaduke Pickhall put it, “is not haphazard as some
have hastily supposed. Closer study will reveal a sequence and significance-as,
for instance, with regard to the placing of the very early Meccan surahs at the
end. The inspiration of the Prophet progressed from the in most things to
outward thing whereas most people find their way through outward things to
things, within (the meaning of the Glorious Koran, mentor religious class, New
York, P. XXVIII).
The
Holy Qur’an is a mine of information of Islamic teaching. It discusses the
principles of religious beliefs. There are the faith in the unity of Allah
without any association with Him, the eschatological beliefs like rewards for
good actions in the next world, the punishment for evil doers, the heaven and
the hell and the Angelic world. In the matter of devotion, it explain the five
pillar of Islam viz prayer (Salat)
fasting (Saum) Alms giving (Zakat) and the pilgrimage (Hajj), etc on sociological matters, it
deal with the institution like marriage, divorce, care of the orphans and
widows prohibited degree of relation and inheritance after the death of a
Muslim. At individual level the Holy Qur’an teaches good conduct discusses
Islamic ethic and lay down rules guiding the exchange of visit to another,
treatment of guests, neighbours, orphans, welfares, poor and needy member of
society.
The
Holy Qur’an teaches that justice should be done in every matter by a true
believer. He should not give less weight while selling his commodities or cheat
his customer in any way. He is always reminded that life in this world is short
and one day he will have to account for whatever he had done in this world. In order
to give lessons as to what happened to the earlier people, many stories are
told at the communities like Ad, Thamud and the individuals like Korah, Pharaoh
and Shaddad. As against those evil characters, the good examples from the lives
of the Prophets and the messengers of Allah are cited as to guide people of all
time to come.
The Meccan Surah
In
analyzing the contents of the Qur’an, Muslims as well as non-Muslims students
have always distinguished between Mecca and Medina passages. There are marked differences
in both subject and the style of the earlier and later revelations.
The
first surah –Al-Fatihah (the opening)
belongs to the Meccan period. This surah is known by several other names such
as Fatihah al-Kitab (the opening of
the Divine writing) Ummal-Kitab (the
essence or the mother of divine writing)
According
to Buhari, the designation Ummi al-Kitab has been given to it by the Prophet
himself, and this is view of the fact that it contains in a condensed form, all
the fundamental principles laid down in the Qur’an e.g the principle of God’s
Oneness and uniqueness of His being the originator and fosterer of the
universe, the fount of all life giving grace, the One to whom man is ultimately
responsible, the only power that can really guide and help, the need for
righteous action in one’s life (“guide us
unto the straight way”), the principle of life after death and of the
organic consequences of man’s actions and behavior (expressed in the term of
“day of judgement”) the principle of prophetic guidance (evident in the
reference to “those upon whom God has bestowed His blessing) and flowing from
it, the principle of the continuity of all true religions (implied in the
necessity of reflecting on people who have lived in the past), and finally the
need for voluntary self-surrender to the will of the supreme being and
reserving all worship to Him alone. It is for this reason that this surah has
been formulated as a prayer, to be constantly repeated by a believer and
reflected upon.
The
themes which are stressed in the Meccan passage are:
i.
God’s mercies to man
ii.
Man’s ingratitude for, and misuse of God’s gift.
iii.
God’s power in nature
iv.
Hell
v.
Paradise
On
paradise sura III verse 30 read “on the
day when every soul will find it itself with all that it hath done of good and all
that is hath done of evil (every soul) will long that there might be a mighty
space of distance between it and that (evil). Allah biddeth you beware of Him.
And Allah is full of pity for (His) bodmen”.
There
is in the Mecca passage a discussion of former and earlier Prophets who
appeared before Muhammad in the Jewish and in the Christian religion. Short
accounts of the rejection of the Prophet at Mecca and the punishment that will
descend upon the pagans who rejected him, are also contained in the Meccan
Surahs.
List of Meccan Surahs Name
of the Surah
1. Surah al-Fatihah The
Opening
6. Surah al-An’am Cattle
7. Surah al-A’raf The
Height
10. Surah Yunus
Jonah
11. Surah Hud Hud
12. Surah Yusuf Joseph
13. Surah Rad Thunder
14. Surah Ibrahim Abraham
15. Surah Hijir Al-Hijr
(Name of a Place)
16. Surah Nahl The
Bee
17. Surah Bani Israil The
Children of Israel
18. Surah al-Kafh The
Cave
19. Surah Maryam Mary
20. Surah Ta-Ha Ta-Ha
(Arabic Letter)
21. Surah al-Anbiya The
Prophets
23. Surah al-Mu’minun The
Believers
25. Surah al-Furqan The
Criterion
26. Surah al-Shu’ara The
Poets
27. Surah al-Namal The
ant
28. Surah al-Qasas The
Story
29. Surah al-Ankabat The
Spider
30. Surah al-Rum The
Romans
31. Surah al-Luqman Luqman
32. Surah al-Sajdah The
Prostration
34. Surah al-Saba Saba
(a region in Yemen)
35. Surah al-Malaikah The
Angels
36. Surah Yasin Yasin
(two letters of the alphabet)
37. Surah al-Saffal Those
who set the ranks
38. Surah Sad Sad
(a letter of the alphabet)
39. Surah al Zumar The
Troops
40. Surah al Mumin The
Believer
41. Surah Fusilai They
are expounded
42. Surah al-Shura Counsel
43. Surah al Zukhruf Ornament
of gold
44. Surah al Dukhan Smoke
45. Surah al Jathiyah Crouching
(Kneeling)
46. Surah al Ahqaf The
wind caused sandhills
50. Surah al Qaf Oaf
(a letter from Arabic alphabet
51. Surah al-Dhariyat The
winnowing winds
52. Surah al Tur The
Mount
53. Surah al Najm The
Star
54. Surah al Qamar The
Moon
55. Surah al Rahman The
Beneficent
56. Surah al Waqiah The
event
67. Surah al Mulk The
Sovereignty
68. Surah Qalam The
Pen
69. Surah Haqiqah The
reality
70. Surah al-Ma’arij The
ascending stairways
71. Surah Nuh Noah
72. Surah al Jinn The
Jinn
73. Surah al Muzzammil The
enshrouded one
74. Surah al
Muddaththir The
cloaked one
75. Surah al Qiyama The
rising of the dead
76. Surah al Dahr Time
or man
77. Surah al Mursalat The
emissaries
78. Surah al-Naba The
tidings
79. Surah al-Naziat Those
who drag things forth
80. Surah Abasa The
frowning one
81. Surah al Takwir The
overthrowing
82. Surah al-Infitar The
clearing
83. Surah al-Talfif Defrauding
84. Surah al-Inshiqaq The
Sundering
85. Surah al Buruj The
mansion of the sar
86. Surah al Tariq The
Morning Star
87. Surah al A’la The
Most High
88. Surah al Ghashiyah The
Overwhelming
89. Surah al Fajr The
dawn
90. Surah al Balad The
City
91. Surah al Shams The
Sun
92. Surah al Layl The
night
93. Surah al Duha The
Morning hours
94. Surah al Inshirah The
opening forth (solace)
95. Surah al Tin The
Fig
96. Surah al Alaq The
Clot
97. Surah al Qadr Power
99. Surah al Zilzal The
earthquake
100. Surah al Adiyat The
Coursers
101. Surah al Qari’ah The
Calamity
102. Surah al Takathur Rivalry
in the World Increase
103. Surah al Asr The
Time
104. Surah al Humazah The
Traducer
105. Surah al Fil The
elephant
106. Surah al Quraish Quraish
107. Surah al Ma’un Small
Kindness
108. Surah al Kauther Abundance
of good
109. Surah al Kafirun The
disbelievers
111. Surah al-Lahaf Flame
112. Surah al-Ikhlas The
Unity of the Purity
113. Surah al Falaq The
Daybreak
114. Surah al Nas Mankind
One
significant fact about those Meccan Surahs is that they begin with short
passages in a rhyming prose like the one during Muhammad’s first call to the
Prophethood; it reads
“Recite, in the name of
thy Lord, who created, created man from a clot!
Recite for thy Lord is
the most beautiful, the most bountiful who taught by mean of a pen, taught man
what he knew not” Surah 96:1-5
Of
the entire number of the Surah Sura, 93 was revealed at Mecca. It is extremely
difficult to work out the exact dates of their revelation. The scholar of the
Qur’an have at least succeeded in making a broad division of the Meccan Suras
into three groupings those revealed in the early Meccan period, i.e. during the
first five years of the Prophetic mission; those revealed in the middle Meccan
period i.e. from the eleventh year of the Prophetic mission to the year of the
Hijirah -622 A.D. and those of the late Meccan period as shown in the following
table.
|
Period
|
Total
Surahs
|
Number
of the Surah
|
|
Early
Meccan Period
|
59
Surahs
|
Surah
1, 17-21, 50-56, 67-97, 99, 109, 111-114
|
|
Middle
Meccan Period
|
17
Surahs
|
Surah
29-32, 34-39, 40-46
|
|
Late
Meccan Period
|
14
Surahs
|
Surah
6,7, 10-16, 23, 35-28
|
The Medinan Surahs
As
we have noted before there is marked difference between the subject matter of
the Meccan Surahs and the Medinan Surahs. The subject matter, broadly speaking
of the Medinan surahs consist of laws, comment on public events, statements of
policy and warnings to those who were always busy in harassing the Prophet and
his followers, especially the Jews and the
Munafiqun (hypocrites). There are also some references to the Prophet’s
domestic affairs thus providing a guidance to the Muslims in general.
Of
the entire number of chapter of the Qur’an (114), 93 as already mentioned where
revealed at Mecca while only 21 were revealed at Medina. Those Medinan surahs are
generally longer and contain about a third of the entire volume of the Qur’an.
A
number of example of legislation are provided by different Medinan surahs of
the Qur’an. Surah 4, verse 15, for example discusses adultery and its
punishment, surah 2 verse 262 as well as surah 4 verse 114 are about almsgiving
and support for the poor and the unfortunate as well as relation, sura 4 verse
37 and sura 9, verse 34 discuss avarice, surah 49 verse 12, mentions of the
evil of back-bitting, surah 2, verse 188 discuss bribery.
Similarly,
sura 2, verse 226 discuss divorce and the Qur’anic legislation concerning it,
surah 2 verse 219 as well as surah 4 verse 34 discusses the Qur’anic
legislation on stoing drink and its vices. In respect of marriage, Surah 2
verse 221 and 235 as well surah 4, verse
3 give guidance to believers. Surah 4, verse 22, 23 and 24 discuss
forbidden relationships in which marriage is prohibited. On criminal
legislation, surah 4 verse 29 and 93 and surah 5, verse 32 throw considerable
light.
Starting
with a declaration of the purpose underlying the revelation of the Qur’an as a
whole-namely, man’s guidance in all his spiritual and worldly affairs the
second surah (the cow) contains side
by side with its constant stress on the necessity of God’s consciousness.
Frequent allusion to the errors committed by people who followed the earlier
revelations in particular the children of Israel. The reference in verse 106 to
the abrogation of all earlier message by that which has been granted to Prophet
Muhammad “such of our revelations as we
abrogate or cause to be forgotten, we bring (in place) are better or the like
thereof”, is of the greatest importance for a correct understanding of this
surah, and indeed of the entire Qur’an. Most of the legal ordinances provided
here (especially in the latter part of the surah) touching upon questions of
ethics, social relation, warfare, etc are a direct consequence of this pivotal
statement.
Particular
attention is drawn to Abraham the Prophet patriarch whose intense preoccupation
with the idea of God’s Oneness has its root the three great monotheistic
religions and the establishment of Abraham’s temple, the Ka’bah as the
direction of prayer for “those who
surrender themselves to God” set a seal, as it were, on the conscious self
identification of all true believes with the faith of Abraham.
It
must never be forgotten that Muhammad was a preacher. In Medina, Islam became a
state and a state brings in politics. Consequently the phrase “God and His apostle” become frequent,
obedience to the head of state is obedience to God. The state must be defended
by force if need be. The vocabulary of politics is applied to God and the
result jars on our sense of what is fitting, however, the words may be
translated, “Men plot against God but He
is the best of plotters”, or “play
tricks on God but He is the best tricksters”. Of course, it is wrong to be
led away by words, this is only the preacher’s way of saying that God is the
absolute ruler and all the craft and force of politician will fail before His
Ordinance. Believers must do their best to extend the sway of Islam to become a
world religion.
As
far as the Meccan surah are concerned, it is extremely difficult to point out
the exact dates of the revelation of the 93 Meccan surahs or even a particular
year to a particular chapter, except in very rare cases. But, the dates of the
Medinan surahs, on the other hand are almost certain. The scholar of the Qur’an
have approximately assigned the following period to the following groups of the
Medinan surah:
|
Period
|
Total
Surahs
|
Number
of Surahs
|
|
1-
2 years
After
Hijrah
|
6
Surahs
|
Surah
2, 8, 47, 61, 62, 64
|
|
3-4
years
After
Hijrah
|
3
Surahs
|
3,
58, 59
|
|
5-8
years
After
Hijrah
|
9
Surahs
|
4,
5, 24, 33, 48, 57, 60, 63, 65
|
|
9-10
years
After
Hijrah
|
6
Surahs
|
Surah
9, 22, 49, 66, 98, 110
|
The Medinan Surahs
Surah al-Baqarah 2 The Cow
Surah al-Imran 3 The Family of Imran
Surah al-Nisa 4 Women
Surah al-Ma’idah 5 The table spread
Surah al-Anfal 8 Spoil of War
Surah al-Taubah 9 Repentance
Surah al-Hajj 22 The Pilgrimage
Surah al-Nur 24 Light
Surah al-Ahzab 33 The Clans
Surah al-Muhammad 47 Muhammad
Surah al-Fath 48 Victory
Surah al-Hadid 57 Iron
Surah al-Mujadalah 58 She that disputeth
Surah al-Hashr 59 The Gathering
Surah al-Mumtahimah 60 She that is to examine
Surah al-Saff 61 The ranks
Surah al-Jum’ma 62 The Friday Congregation
Surah al-Munafiqun 63 The hypocrites
Surah al-Taghbun 64 Mutual disillusion
Surah al-Talaq 65 Divorce
Surah al-Tahrim 66 Banning
Surah al-Bayyinah 98 The Clear Proof
Surah al-Nasr 110 Succour
The Comparison of Meccan
and Medinan Surahs
In
editing the Qur’an, no attention at all, as we have seen earlier on, was paid
to chronological order. This resulted from the composite character of many
surahs, a factor which also made an arrangement according to their contents
impossible. Instead the surahs were arranged, although only approximately,
according to their length, that however led to the result that the very
earliest surahs being the shortest, we put at the end. But as chronological
arrangement is of fundamental importance for the understanding of the text, the
commentators were faced with the task of establishing whether the surahs arose
in the Meccan or Medinan Period, or whether they were composed of pieces from
later periods. This problem has on the whole been solved, the criteria adopted
in determining what belongs to when have revealed certain marked differences
between the subject matter and style of the Meccan surahs on the one hand and
the Medinan ones on the other”
a. Subject Matter
When
the Prophet disputes with his countrymen about the resurrection of the dead or
the Oneness of God, when he refutes the assertion that he is a magician, a poet
or one possessed, when he fights against the custom of burying newly born girls
alive, we know that we are in Mecca.
When
we came to Medina period, on the hand, we find the question relatively much
easier to settle. Whenever we find warnings to the Jews on account of their
evil deeds, summoning people to the Holy way (on the path of Allah) or when the
criminal or civil legislation were laid down, we are in Medina.
References
to contemporary events also help in determining what belongs to when, for
instance, the references to events known to us from the Medinan period, the
battle fought during Muhammad’s wars, his discourses, etc afford us a
particularly safe means of arranging the surahs chronologically. In the Meccan
surahs, on the other hand, allusion to current events are few as little is
known about Muhammad’s life at Mecca. Above all, there are no external means of
dating the various piece, the only grounds for deciding their order are
stylistic.
b. Style
The
Meccan surah show vigorous thought and considerable mastery of language and
sound, while the moral and religious enthusiasm cannot be mistaken. The surahs
are written in short stack to sentences and phrase. On the other hand, the
surahs of the Medinan period are written in long and often unwieldy sentences
with the result that the hearer has to listen carefully, or he will miss the
meaning altogether. The language has become prose with rhyming words at
intervals.
The Evolution of Islam
A
close study of the subject matter of both Meccan and Medinan surahs will show
quite clearly the trend in the evolution of Islam in Muhammad’s lifetime.
At
Mecca, Islam was a personal religion not tied to any specific social structure
and organization and the surahs of this period reflect this highly personal religion.
Prior to the time of Muhammad, the Arabs in Mecca had not had the opportunity
which the jews and other tribe had, of being guided by any Prophet, whereas in
the cause of the Jews many Prophets had been sent to them, who delivered
revelations such as the Torah and New Testament, the Arabs on the other hand,
had long been left in darkness, in a period of their history referred to as a “Jahiliyya” period. Hence the great
emphasis is laid on the need for prophethood in the Meccan surahs. Much is said
on man and his creation by God, as well as on the materials used for the
creation of man, “recite in the name of
thy Lord, who created man from clot”.
Moreover,
the Meccan surahs include verses showing the goodness, power and wisdom of God.
Those Surahs were meant to urge the Meccan community to become believers. The Medinan
surahs on the other hand, reflect a different social and religious background
from that of the Meccan period. With the establishment of Islamic community (Umma) and the state of Medina. Islam
asserts itself as religious system and a way of life, quite distinct from
Judaism and Christianity both of which in its own view completes, purifies and
supersedes. It is at this point that it builds around itself a complex of
divinely ordained social institutions.
All
this will explain why the Prophet laid emphasis on the teachings of the law
guiding the new politico-religious community (Surah 5 verse 38). There was now
a fuller and further explanation of the original Meccan surah and there was now
a shift from the original Meccan surahs on the doctrine of death and judgement
to the doctrine of the need for regulations and organization of the new
community. Meccan surahs of the creation gave place to surahs wherein the
people are summoned to the Holy war against the unbelievers. Emphasizing the
fact that Prophets had been sent to all peoples before Muhammad, the Medinean
surahs especially admonished the Jew who were probably great opponents of
Muhammad and the new revelations. It might be stated that it is only logical
that whilst the first revelation received by Muhammad should be sought among
the Meccan surahs, the last one would certainly be found among the Medinan
surahs.
Out
of the entire period of the revelation of the Holy Book (twenty-two years, two
months and twenty-two days), thirteen years were passed by the Prophet at
Meccan and only ten years were passed at Medina after his famous Hijrah. Out of
the 114 chapters, as we have already seen, 93 were revealed at Mecca and 21 was
revealed at Medina. It should be noted, however, that the Surah 110 (Surah Al-Nasr) was revealed at Mecca
although it belongs to the Medina period of the Prophet’s Career. It is
reported by Ibn Umar that Chapter 110 was revealed during the farewell
pilgrimage of the Prophet and that he lived only eighty day after its
revelation.
The
following are the marked differences between the Meccan and Medinan surahs.
i.
A large number of verses of Meccan surahs are shorter as exemplified in the 30th
part of the (Juz:Amm) while the
Medinan verses are long just as in the Tabarak (Qur’an, Juz Amm)
2.
In the Meccan verse, there are not found detail concerning theological matters
like the principles of guidance, the prayer (salat) and other modes of
worships. The detail are found mainly in the Medinan verses. In the Meccan
verses, the teaching, concerning the unity of Allah (Tauhid), the faith (Iman),
the Prophets, the Angels and the Last Day and the Rewards and Punishment are
taught to the faithful.
Commentaries on the
Qur’an
The
entire life of the Prophet, his wise words and counsels to his companions and
followers, were in accordance with the teachings of the Holy Qur’an. The
treasure of the Prophetic traditions (Alhadith)
offer a valuable help in the explanation of some of the verses of the Qur’an.
Besides of the verse, as there exist cross-references of some verses in
different surahs. The Qur’an for example, mentions a thing as general principle
in one place and it is explained further in another chapter elsewhere. In spite
of this, it was felt necessary to regularize the Qur’anic exegesis as and when
the new circumstances arose by the spread of Islam far and wide in the Arab as
well as the non-Arab world.
As
long as the people are alive, the Muslims did not need any other guide. During
the period of the ‘Rashidun’ (rightly
guided) Caliphs the early Muslims still lived in the memory of their master,
the Holy Prophet. This was the reason why the earliest generation after the
Prophet was shy of, and even opposed any interpretation of Qur’an. But very
soon this attitude gave way to all books of interpretations which were made
more less colured by the faiths and old idea of the new converts of Islam who
still clung to their past. Such wild interpretation, which sometimes diverged
very much from the obvious meaning of the text had all arbitrary character were
attacked as “interpretation of the opinion (Tafsir
bira’y). This is the reason why a need was felt at developing a scientific
instrument whereby to guide the progress of Qur’anic Tafsir (commentary). The principles were laid down for the
development of the science of commentary writing (Ilm al-Tafsir), since the word Tafsir is derived from its verbal
form “fassar” meaning to explain.
While
the followers of other religions were busy carving idols and embellishing them.
Muslims scholars turned their attention towards the development of the science
of commentary, the writing of the Qur’an, the science of the Prophetic
traditions (ilm-al-Hadith), the
development of Islamic theology (figh),
etc but without neglecting secular science.
As
the need was felt, a number of commentators began to compile their works of continuous
commentaries in which the text of the Holy Qur’an was explained in regular
order, phrase by phrase and sometime even word by word. Those commentaries are
numerous. The most famous among them are the following:
1. The commentary of
Tabari:
Tabari
(d. 310)-who also a great historian, wrote a very extensive work containing a
large number of tradition handed down by authoritative chains of transmitters (Isnad). This work is famous and is
referred to frequently by modern commentators of the Qur’an.
2. The commentary of
Zamarkshari:
Zamakhshari
(d. 538) wrote a voluminous commentary of the Qur’an which is called the
Kashshaf of Zamakhshari, Zamakhshari was a great scholar well versed in
philosophy and was also a renowned as a moralist of delicate sensibility. His
commentary is much value and has in turn be commented upon by important Muslim
theologians like Taffazani (d. 792) and others.
3. The commentary of
Al-Razi
Iman
Fakhr al-Din al-Razi (d.606) was a great philosopher and theologian of Islam
and wrote a voluminous commentary of the Qur’an which is known as the great Tafsir.
4.The Commentary of
Al-Baidawi
Al-Baidawi
(d.68) commentary of the Qur’an is the most popular of all the commentaries in
the Muslim world and is the one taught in the schools in most parts of the
Muslim world. The commentary has annotated several time by great scholars.
Apart
from those well known commentaries of the Holy Qur’an, there exist a large
number of commentaries by the later scholars in almost every conceivable
language of the Muslim World. The work was started very early in the history of
Islam by eminent companions of the Prophet like Ibn Abbas who was famous with
the title of the Tarjaman al- Qur’an, the translator of broadly speaking the
commentator of the Qur’an. This work of commentary writing which was began by
about 68AD, will continue for all time to come since the miraculous nature of
the Qur’an is not based solely on its linguistic or rhetonic excellence alone.
It has a tremendous capacity as its words impart their meaning as much to the
simple and uneducated Bedouin in the Arabian desert, as to the learned and
sophisticated philosophers, and the redifed Sufis and mystics alike. It is this
quality of being understandable and comprehensible to all classes of people
that give birth to new translations and commentaries. This is, in fact, the
miracle of the Qur’an.
In
conclusion, for knowledge on the text in Arabic, transliteration, translation
and commentary of some selected surahs of the Holy Qur’an. I refer you to these
books: Introduction to the Qur’an by A Rahman I. Doi and Qur’an and Tafsir by
M. Sambo and Muhammad Hiqab. While for the knowledge of text, translation and
commentary of the whole Qur’an I refer you to Holy Qur’an Vol.I and Vol. II by
Yusuf Ali.
Baba
Ali Mustapha is with the Department of Planning/Research/Statistics, Ministry
of Environment, Maiduguri, Borno State, Nigeria.
Tel:
07039115907
Reference:
1.
Qur’an and Tafsir by M. Bashir Sambo and Muhammad A. Hiqab, published by
Islamic publication Bureau, 136A Isolo road, Mushin, Lagos, Nigeria
2.
Introduction to the Qur’an by A. Rahman I. Doi, published by Hudahuda Publication
Company, Zaria, Kaduna State
3.
Robert R: The Social law of Qur’an, London 1923
4.
Stanton H.V.W: The teaching of Qur’an, London and New York 1919
5.
Maududi, Abul Ala: The meaning of the Qur’an Islamic Publication Ltd Lohore
1967
6.
Bell, Richard: The Qur’an Vol. I and Vol. II Edinburgh 1937-39
7.
Ali, Abdullah Yusuf (Allama) The Qur’an Vol. I and Vol. II Lahore 1934
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