The Qur'aan and its Sciences
General
46088: Which is better,
reading Qur'aan together or individually?
Question:
What is the manner in which Jibreel review
the Qur'aan with the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) in Ramadaan?
Does that indicate that it is better to study
the Qur'aan together rather than individually?
Is it better to do that at night rather than
during the day? We hope you can explain.
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
Shaykh Muhammad ibn `Uthaymeen (may Allaah
have mercy on him) said:
Firstly:
With regard to how he reviewed it with him, I
do not know how that was done.
Secondly:
With regard to whether it is mustahabb for
people to gather to read Qur'aan together or for
each person to read it individually, that
depends on the person himself. If gathering with
his brothers to study Qur'aan together will make
him more focused and help him to learn better,
then gathering with others is preferable, i.e.,
if gathering with others will make him have
proper presence of mind and be more focused on
pondering the meanings of the Qur'aan, and allow
the opportunity to discuss the meanings, then
that is better. But if it is the opposite then
reading it on his own is better.
Thirdly:
With regard to Jibreel reviewing the Qur'aan
with the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him), that was for the purpose of making
sure that the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) memorized it.
With regard to the third part of your
question _ which is whether it is better to do
that at night rather than during the day _ the
answer is yes, but a person may need to do other
things which means that he cannot study Qur'aan
at night, in which case he should study it more
during the day.
So each person should look at what is best
for him, because of the general meaning of the
words of the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him): "Strive to do that which
will benefit you." So whatever is more
beneficial for you, so long as it is not
forbidden according to sharee'ah, is best.
Majmoo' al-Fataawa, 8/78.
(www.islam-qa.com) 34234: He claims that the
Qur'aan is lacking in eloquence and contains
grammatical errors
Question:
In Soorat al-Baqarah it says (interpretation
of themeaning):
"And indeed, We gave Moosa (Moses) the Book
and followed him up with a succession of
Messengers. And We gave `Eesa (Jesus), the son
of Maryam (Mary), clear signs and supported him
with Rooh-ul-Qudus [Jibreel (Gabriel)]. Is it
that whenever there came to you a Messenger with
what you yourselves desired not, you grew
arrogant? Some you disbelieved and some you
killed" [al-Baqarah 2:87]
My Christian colleague says, look at the way
the word taqtuloon (translated as "you killed" _
appears in present tense form) follows the word
kadhdhabtum ("you disbelieved" _ past tense). He
says that the wording should be [Allaah forbid
that we should alter His Holy Book] fa fareeqan
kadhdhabtum wa fareeqan qataltum (Some you
disbelieved and some you killed) [i.e., both
verbs appearing in past tense form], because the
Prophets have ceased and Muhammad was the Seal
of the Prophets. It should be noted that he does
not believe that the Prophet Muhammad was a
Prophet, rather he believes that Prophet `Eesa
(Jesus) was the last of the Messengers.
In
Soorat Aal `Imraan it says (interpretation of
the meaning):
"When He has decreed something, He says to it
only: `Be!'__and it is [kun fa yakoon]" [Aal
`Imraan 3:47]
My Christian colleague also thinks that this
is ineloquent and he says that it would be more
correct [Allaah forbid that we should alter His
Holy Book] to say Kun fa kaana (Be and it was).
Please explain so that I can refute his
comments. "So ask the people of the Reminder if
you do not know" [al-Anbiya 21:7 _
interpretation of the meaning].
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly:
The one who is not able to engage in debate
with others should fear Allaah and not get
involved in debates and arguments with others;
rather he should try to protect his religious
commitment by refraining from arguing with the
ignorant or those who promote specious
arguments.
Secondly:
With regard to the specious arguments
mentioned _ which are more flimsy than a
spider's web _ these may be answered in two
ways.
The first way is in general terms, which is
to say that the Qur'aan is the Book of Allaah
which was revealed to the pure Arabs, who were
the most advanced nation in the field of
eloquence; they paid a great deal of attention
to that and had reached a high level of eloquent
self-expression. They had established festivals
of poetry and speech-giving, they hung their
mu'allaqaat poems on the Ka'bah as a sign of the
high esteem in which they held eloquence and
literature; they competed in poetry and
beautiful speech. Poetry flowed through their
veins and they recited poems on all occasions,
for joy and sorrow, birth and death, happiness
and misery, victory and defeat. This was
something that was unknown in any other nation.
Hence by His wisdom Allaah revealed to them
this Qur'aan in this language of which they were
so proud and because of which they thought
themselves superior to other nations. The
Qur'aan dazzled them with its beautiful words
and meanings, its great purpose and structure.
So they submitted to it out of respect for its
language and dare not speak any word of
criticism against its wording, grammar or
expression.
Allaah challenged them in His Book to produce
anything like the Qur'aan, but they could not
match it, let alone find fault with its grammar.
Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
"Say: `If the mankind and the jinn were
together to produce the like of this Qur'aan,
they could not produce the like thereof, even if
they helped one another'"
[al-Isra'
17:88]
Then Allaah challenged them to produced ten
soorahs like it, as He said (interpretation of
the meaning):
"Or they say, `He (Prophet Muhammad)
forged it (the Qur'aan).' Say: `Bring you then
ten forged Soorah (chapters) like unto it, and
call whomsoever you can, other than Allaah (to
your help), if you speak the truth!'"
[Hood 11:13]
When they were unable to do that, then Allaah
challenged them to produce just one soorah like
it. Allaah said (interpretation of the meaning):
"And if you (Arab pagans, Jews, and
Christians) are in doubt concerning that which
We have sent down (i.e. the Qur'aan) to Our
slave (Muhammad), then produce a Soorah
(chapter) of the like thereof and call your
witnesses (supporters and helpers) besides
Allaah, if you are truthful" [al-Baqarah
2:23]
No one who comes afterwards, when the
language has become corrupted and mixed with
foreign languages, has any right to support such
nonsensical ideas that do no more than point to
the depth of his ignorance and the shallowness
of his thinking, and his lack of knowledge of
the Arabic language. As it was said,
"How often do you see someone criticizing
something that is sound, and his problem is that
he cannot understand it properly."
The second way is in specific, detailed
terms, discussing the aspects of eloquence in
the words that he criticized. This is as
follows:
With regard to the words of Allaah
(interpretation of the meaning):
"Some you disbelieved and some you killed
(fa fareeqan kadhdhabtum wa fareeqan
taqtuloon)"
[al-Baqarah 2:87]
The scholar al-Taahir ibn `Ashoor said in his
commentary (al-Tahreer wa'l-Tanweer,
1/598):
The word taqtuloon (translated as "you
killed") appears in the present tense form to
emphasize more vividly the terrible action that
they did, namely killing the Prophets. This is
like the verse in which Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning):
"And it is Allaah Who sends [arsala _ part
tense form] the winds, so that they raise up [fa
tutheeru _ present tense form] the clouds, and
We drive them to a dead land, and revive
therewith the earth after its death"
[Faatir 35:9]
Moreover, the form taqtuloon fits with
the rhyme of the soorah and makes it more vivid;
this provides eloquence of meaning and beauty of
form. End of quote.
Shaykh Ibn `Uthaymeen quoted in his
Tasfeer (1/283) from some of the scholars
another reason for using the present tense form
taqtuloon, which is to provide a sense of
continuity, i.e., the Jews kept on killing the
Prophets, even the last of them, Muhammad (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him). They
killed the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) with the poison that they
gave him at Khaybar, and he (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) continued to suffer the
effects of that until, in his final illness, he
said, "I still feel pain from the food I ate at
Khaybar. This is the time when it has cut off my
aorta."
Abu Dawood; also narrated by al-Bukhaari in a
mu'allaq report. Al-Albaani said in Saheeh
Abi Dawood (3784), it is hasan saheeh.
With regard to the verse in which Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning):
"When He has decreed something, He says to
it only: `Be!' __and it is [kun fa yakoon]"
[Aal `Imraan 3:47]
This is more indicative of the ignorance of
this objector, because this verse is speaking of
when Allaah wills to create something in the
future, not in the past; this is to be
understood from the use of the word idha
(meaning when, if), which refers to something in
the future. Hence the verb yaqool (says)
appears in the present tense, to indicate that
it is referring to something in the future, and
it is followed by the verb yakoon (it
is), also in the present tense, which also
refers to something in the future.
And Allaah knows best. Islam Q&A
(www.islam-qa.com) 32594: Is it better to recite
Qur'aan from memory or to read from the Mus-haf?
Question:
Is it better to read Qur'aan whilst looking
at the Mus-haf, or to recite from memory?.
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
In prayer, it is better to recite from
memory. See question no. 3465.
Outside of prayer, it is better for a person
to do that which will increase his khushoo'
(humility, focus). If his khushoo' will be
increased by reciting from memory, then that is
better; if his khushoo' will be increased by
reading from the Mus-haf, then that is better.
If it is the same in either case, then reading
from the Mus-haf is better, because it combines
reading and looking, and his eyes will be
protected from looking at things that may
distract him from reciting and pondering the
meaning.
Al-Nawawi said in al-Adhkaar (p.
90-91):
Reading Qur'aan from the Mus-haf is better
than reciting from memory; this is the view of
our companions and it is well known from the
salaf (may Allaah be pleased with them). This
does not apply in all cases however; if the
reader can focus and ponder the meanings more
when reciting from memory than when reading from
the Mus-haf, then reciting from memory is
better. If it is the same in both cases, then
reading from the Mus-haf is better. This is what
the salaf meant.
There are weak (da'eef) ahaadeeth narrated
from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) which cannot be used as proof that
it is better to look at the Mus-haf. We mention
them only to draw attention to the fact that
they are weak. These include:
"Looking at the Mus-haf is an act of worship;
for a child to look at his parents is an act of
worship; looking at `Ali ibn Abi Taalib is an
act of worship." This is a fabricated (mawdoo')
hadeeth, as al-Albaani said in al-Silsilah
al-Da'eefah, 1/531.
"Give your eyes their share of worship:
looking at the Mus-haf, thinking about it and
pondering its wonders." This is also fabricated
(mawdoo'). Al-Silsilah al-Da'eefah, 4/88.
"Five things are acts of worship: eating
little, sitting in the mosque, looking at the
Ka'bah, looking at the Mus-haf and looking at
the face of a scholar." This is a very weak
(da'eef jiddan) hadeeth. Da'eef al-Jaami'
al-Sagheer, no. 2855.
And Allaah knows best.
Islam Q&A (www.islam-qa.com) 33583: Are precious stones
mentioned in the Qur'aan?
Question:
Please let me know about this query ? how
many stones [ precious / semi precious ] are
mentioned in the holy quran ? in which surah are
they mentioned ? is there any spiritual
significance of these stones ?
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
The primary purpose of the Qur'aan is to
guide mankind to Allaah, so that they will
affirm His Oneness and worship Him alone, and
attain His Paradise and His pleasure. The
Qur'aan is not a book of science, medicine or
astronomy, even though its verses may contain a
little of such things.
Hence the Muslim should not let himself be
distracted from the greater purpose of reciting
the Qur'aan and look for the number of stones or
rivers or kinds of animals mentioned therein.
Some precious stones such as rubies, pearls
and coral are mentioned in the Qur'aan.
Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
"(In beauty) they are like rubies and
coral"
[al-Rahmaan 55:58]
"Out of them both come out pearl and coral"
[al-Rahmaan 55:22]
"Like unto preserved pearls"
[al-Waaqi'ah 56:23]
"And round about them will (serve) boys of
everlasting youth. If you see them, you would
think them scattered pearls"
[al-Insaan 76:19]
These stones do not have any spiritual
significance, rather they are mentioned in the
Qur'aan to explain the blessings that Allaah has
bestowed upon His slaves, of the seas and the
things that are brought forth from them, or as a
metaphor _ so al-hoor al-`iyn are likened
to rubies, coral and preserved pearls, combining
the purity of rubies and the whiteness of pearls
and coral.
The boys are likened to scattered pearls, to
indicate their beauty and good looks.
And Allaah knows best.
Islam Q&A
(www.islam-qa.com) 96: The Qur'aan and medicine
Question:
I heard in a lecture that medical scientists
or doctors claim that many
medicines&treatements have been
discovererd&propounded by inferring facts
frm the Holy Quran.
Now my question is, Is that all regarding
medicine is mentioned in the Holy Quran? Or is
there more left which we've to still put into
use?
I'm asking this question with regards to an
earnest request frm a friend of mine, a hindu
named Vignesh and he asked me whether there r
matters left still in the Holy Quran to control
some of these deadly diseases.
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly:
Allaah sent Muhammad (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) with a religion that covers
all aspects of life, as Abu Dharr (may Allaah be
pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) left
us and no bird flapped its wings in the sky
except that he had taught us some knowledge
about it.
(Narrated by Ahmad, 20399. See Majma'
al-Zawaa'id, 8/263. al-Haythami said: it was
narrated by al-Tabaraani and its men are the men
of saheeh apart from Muhammad ibn `Abd-Allaah
ibn Yazeed al-Muqri' who is thiqah
(trustworthy)).
Islam came to meet the needs of people in all
aspects of their lives.
Secondly:
What is narrated in the Sunnah from the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) complements what is in the Qur'aan. These
two sources are the principal sources for
Muslims. The Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) has told us that Allaah has
not sent down any disease but He has also sent
down a cure for it.
It was narrated from Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah
be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "Allaah
has not sent down any disease but He has also
sent down a cure for it."
Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 5678.
Thirdly:
What the questioner has mentioned, that some
Muslims say that many remedies were discovered
through the Holy Qur'aan, we say that this is
somewhat exaggerated.
The Qur'aan is not a book of medicine or
geography or geology as some Muslims like to say
to westerners. Rather it is a book of guidance
for mankind and one of the greatest of its
miracles is its eloquence and the ideas and
concepts that it contains. This is the main
aspect of its miraculous nature. Allaah revealed
it to His Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) at a time when eloquence had
reached great heights, so this book came to
amaze those people and challenge them in their
area of expertise, to prove to them that it was
from Allaah.
This is not strange, and it is nothing new in
religion. The signs of Moosa (peace be upon him)
_ his stick and his hand _ were of the kind that
was prevalent during his time, which was magic
(sihr). The signs of `Eesa (peace be upon him) _
raising the dead and healing the blind and
lepers _ were of the kind that his people were
skilled in and that was widespread among them,
which was medicine.
Hence we say that the greatest feature of the
Qur'aan is its eloquence. Scholars nowadays are
still discovering new aspects of its eloquence
through their study of its verses.
This does not mean that there is no other
miraculous aspects to the Qur'aan. Rather in
some verses Allaah mentions things about the
design of the human body, the stages of its
creation and development, some natural
phenomena, etc.
But with regard to cures for various
diseases, as the questioner mentions, the
Qur'aan is a healing for the believers. This
includes healing the heart (mental or spiritual
disease) and physical healing. Allaah mentions
honey in the Qur'aan and says that it is a
healing for mankind. And He mentions the
principle of preserving good health and guarding
against sickness. So whoever says that the
Qur'aan says a lot about medicine in this regard
is right, but whoever goes beyond that is
exaggerating. Rather this is a kind of
exaggeration coined by some Muslims. The Qur'aan
is not a book of medicine. There are some
diseases that did not exist previously, so how
could their cure come _ according to what the
questioner says _ before they appeared?
Fourthly:
(a) The following are some of the verses
which indicate that the Qur'aan is healing:
Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
"And We send down of the Qur'aan that
which is a healing and a mercy to those who
believe"
[al-Isra' 17:82]
Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allaah have mercy on him)
said:
Allaah says "And We send down of the
Qur'aan that which is a healing and a mercy to
those who believe". The correct view is that
the word min (translated here as "of")
serves to explain the nature of the Qur'aan as a
whole, not to refer to parts of it and not other
parts.
Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
"O mankind! There has come to you a good
advice from your Lord (i.e. the Qur'aan,
enjoining all that is good and forbidding all
that is evil), and a healing for that which is
in your hearts"
[Yoonus 10:57]
The Qur'aan is the complete healing for all
mental, spiritual and physical diseases, all
diseases of this world and the Hereafter. But
not everyone is guided to use it for the purpose
of healing. If the sick person uses the Qur'aan
for healing in the proper way, and applies it to
his disease with sincerity, faith, complete
acceptance and firm conviction, fulfilling all
its conditions, then no disease can resist it.
How can disease resist the words of the Lord
of heaven and earth which, if He had revealed it
to the mountains they would have crumbled and if
He had revealed it to the earth it would have
broken it apart? There is no sickness, spiritual
or physical, but in the Qur'aan there is that
which indicates its remedy, its cause and how to
protect against it for those who are blessed
with understanding of His Book. Zaad
al-Ma'aad, 4/352
(b) The Qur'aan contains the treatment for
hearts and souls, and as such it is a means of
expelling all sicknesses from the body. In this
regard the Qur'aan is a healing and a remedy for
many diseases.
Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allaah have mercy on him)
said:
We and others have tried this on many
occasions and we have seen that it works in ways
that physical remedies do not. Indeed we now
regard physical medicine as the doctors regard
folk medicine. This is in accordance with the
law of divine wisdom, not contrary to it, but
the causes of healing are many and varied. When
the heart is in contact with the Lord of the
Worlds, the Creator of the disease and the
remedy, the Controller of nature Who directs it
as He wills, he has other remedies apart from
the remedies that are sought by the heart that
is far away from Him and that turns away from
Him. It is known that when a person's spirits
are high and his body is in good shape, they
cooperate in warding off disease and suppressing
it, so if a person is in high spirits and
physical good shape, finds comfort in being
close to his Creator, loving Him, enjoying
remembrance of Him (dhikr), devoting all his
strength and power for His sake and focusing on
Him, seeking His help, putting his trust in Him,
how can anyone deny that this is the greatest
medicine or that this spiritual power gives him
the means to ward off pain and defeat it
completely? No one would deny this but the most
ignorant of people, those who are furthest away
from Allaah and the most hard-hearted and
unaware of human nature.
Zaad al-Ma'aad 4/12
(c) In the Qur'aan there is Soorat
al-Faatihah which is a ruqyah to be recited as a
prayer for healing.
It was narrated that Abu Sa'eed (may Allaah
be pleased with him) said: "A group of the
companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) set out on a journey and
traveled until they stopped in (the land of) one
of the Arab tribes. They asked them for
hospitality but they refused to welcome them.
The chief of that tribe was stung by a scorpion
and they tried everything but nothing helped
them. Some of them said, `Why don't you go to
those people who are camped (near us), maybe you
will find something with them.' So they went to
them and said, `O people, our chief has been
stung by a scorpion and we have tried everything
but nothing helped him. Can any of you do
anything?' One of them said, `Yes, by Allaah, I
will recite ruqyah for him, but by Allaah we
asked you for hospitality and you did not
welcome us, so I will not recite ruqyah for you
until you give us something in return.' Then
they agreed upon a flock of sheep.' Then he went
and spat drily and recited over him Al-hamdu
Lillaahi Rabb il-`Aalameen [Soorat
al-Faatihah]. (The chief) got up as if he was
released from a chain and started walking, and
there were no signs of sickness on him. They
paid them what they agreed to pay. Some of them
(i.e. the companions) then suggested to divide
their earnings among themselves, but the one who
performed the ruqyah said, `Do not divide them
until we go to the Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) and tell him what
happened, then wait and see what he tells us to
do.' So they went to the Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and
told him what had happened. The Messenger of
Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) asked, `How did you know that it
(al-Faatihah) is a ruqyah?' Then he added, `You
have done the right thing. Share out (the flock
of sheep) and give me a share too.' And the
Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) smiled."
Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 2156; Muslim, 2201
Ibn al-Qayyim said concerning Soorat
al-Faatihah:
Whoever is guided by Allaah and is given good
insight to understand the deep meaning of this
soorah and what it contains of Tawheed,
understanding of the Divine nature, the names,
attributes and actions of Allaah, the Divine
decree, the Resurrection, rejecting any
misconception that undermines the concept of the
Oneness of the Divine Lordship and Divine
nature, complete trust in Allaah and referring
all one's affairs to the One Who has full
control of all things _ to Him be all praise,
for all goodness is in His hand and to Him all
things return _ and feeling in need of Him in
seeking guidance that is the root of happiness
in this world and in the Hereafter, will realize
the connection between the contents of this
soorah and bringing good and warding off evil.
He will understand that ultimate goodness and
blessing is connected to this soorah and is
dependent upon understanding it and acting upon
it. Then this soorah will make him independent
of many other kinds of medicine and ruqyah, and
it will open the door to a great deal of
goodness and ward off a great deal of evil.
Zaad al-Ma'aad, 4/347
(d) The Qur'aan mentions the principle of
maintaining good health.
Ibn al-Qayyim said:
The basic principles of medicine are three:
prevention, maintaining good health, and
removing harmful substances from the body.
Allaah has mentioned them all together, to
His Prophet and his ummah in three places in His
Book.
He prevented the sick person from using water
lest it harm him, as He says (interpretation of
the meaning):
"And if you are ill, or on a journey, or
one of you comes after answering the call of
nature, or you have been in contact with women
(by sexual relations) and you find no water,
perform Tayammum with clean earth and rub
therewith your faces and hands (Tayammum)"
[al-Nisa' 4:42]
Allaah allowed the sick person to do tayammum
to protect him, just as He permitted it to the
one who has no water.
Allaah says concerning the maintenance of
good health:
"and whoever is ill or on a journey, the
same number [of days which one did not observe
Sawm (fasts) must be made up] from other
days"
[al-Baqarah 2:185]
The traveller is allowed to break his fast
during Ramadaan, to protect his health lest the
combination of fasting and the difficulties of
travel weakens him and affects his health.
And Allaah said concerning the removal of
harmful things by shaving the head of the person
in ihraam (for Hajj or `Umrah):
"And whosoever of you is ill or has an
ailment in his scalp (necessitating shaving), he
must pay a Fidyah (ransom) of either observing
Sawm (fasts) (three days) or giving Sadaqah
(charity — feeding six poor persons) or offering
sacrifice (one sheep)"
[al-Baqarah 2:196]
So if a person has an ailment in his scalp
when he is in ihraam, he is permitted to shave
his head and remove the harmful thing or the bad
substance that is causing lice to develop _ as
happened to Ka'b ibn `Ajrah _ or if it is
causing sickness to develop.
These three matters are the basic principles
of medicine. We have mentioned an example of
each one in order to point out the blessing of
Allaah to His slaves in preventing sickness,
protecting their health and removing harmful
substances from them, as a mercy and kindness
towards His slaves, for He is the Most Kind,
Most Merciful.
Zaad al-Ma'aad, 1/164, 165
Ibn al-Qayyim said: On one occasion I
discussed this with one of the chief doctors of
Egypt, and he said: By Allaah if I had to travel
to the west to obtain these benefits that would
not be too much _ or words to that effect.
Ighaathat al-Lahfaan, 1/25
(e) Mention of honey in the Qur'aan, and that
it is a healing for mankind.
Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
"There comes forth from their [bees']
bellies, a drink of varying colour wherein is
healing for men"
[al-Nahl 16:69]
Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allaah have mercy on him)
said:
With regard to the Prophet's guidance
concerning drinking, it is the most perfect
guidance that maintains good health. He used to
drink honey mixed with cold water. This is very
healthy and no one can understand how healthy it
is except the most prominent doctors. For
drinking honey on an empty stomach dissolves
phlegm, cleanses the stomach, reduces its
viscosity, washes away waste matter, warms it up
a little and opens its inlet and exit. It has a
similar effect on the liver, kidneys and
urethra. It is more beneficial to the stomach
than any other kind of sweet that enters it.
However it may cause side effects in people who
are suffering from jaundice because it is hot
and jaundice is hot, so it may aggravate it; in
order to avoid this effect vinegar may be added,
then honey will become beneficial and drinking
it will be more useful than many or most of the
drinks that are made from sugar, especially for
those who are not used to these drinks, for if
they drink them they will not suit them as well
as honey does, or even come close.
With regard to drinking it when it is
collected and well-prepared, this is one of the
most beneficial things for the body, and one of
the greatest means of preserving health; it is
very refreshing and energizing, and it is good
for the liver and heart. If it is well-prepared
it provides nutrition and makes food reach all
parts of the body in the most effective manner.
Zaad al-Ma'aad, 4/224, 225
And he said (may Allaah have mercy on him):
Honey contains great benefits, for it
cleanses impurities from the veins and stomach
etc, whether it is eaten or applied to the skin.
It is good for the elderly, the phlegmatic and
those whose humours are cold and wet. It is
nourishing, aids digestion, energizes, makes
unpleasant medicine palatable, is good for the
liver and chest, is a diuretic and helps to ease
coughs caused by phlegm. If it is drunk warm
mixed with rosewater it is beneficial for one
who has been bitten by a scorpion or who has
consumed opium. If it is drunk on its own mixed
with water, it is good for the one who has been
bitten by a rabid dog or eaten poisonous
mushrooms. If fresh meat is placed in honey, it
will stay fresh for three months, as will
cucumbers, pumpkins and eggplants. Many fruits
can be kept in it for six months. It will also
preserve a dead body, and it is known as the
trustworthy preserver. If the body of one who is
afflicted with lice is painted with honey, it
will kill the lice and their eggs. It makes the
hair long, beautiful and smooth. If used on the
eyes like kohl it clears the vision. If the
teeth are brushed with it, it whitens the teeth
and makes them bright, and keeps the gums
healthy. It opens the veins and induces
menstruation. If taken on an empty stomach it
takes away phlegm and cleanses the stomach,
clearing away waste matter and restoring the
correct temperature. It does likewise to the
liver, kidneys and urethra.
As well as all this, it has no side effects
and causes little harm. It may cause side
effects in one who is suffering from jaundice,
but that may be counteracted by vinegar and the
like, in which case it becomes very beneficial
for him.
It is a kind of nourishment, a kind of
medicine, a kind of drink, a kind of sweet, a
kind of cream. There is nothing that has been
created for us for a similar purpose that is
better than it, or even comes close. The ancient
peoples relied on it, and in most of the books
of the ancients there is no mention of sugar at
all and it was unknown to them, for it is
something that is very new. The Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to
drink honey mixed with water on an empty
stomach, and this is the secret of maintaining
good health that no one can understand except
one who is intelligent and blessed.
Zaad al-Ma'aad, 4/33, 34.
Islam Q&A (www.islam-qa.com) 31865: Were the heavens and
the earth created in six days or eight?
Question:
I read the verse in which Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning):
"Indeed, your Lord is Allaah, Who created the
heavens and the earth in Six Days, and then He
rose over (Istawa) the Throne (really in a
manner that suits His Majesty). He brings the
night as a cover over the day, seeking it
rapidly, and (He created) the sun, the moon, the
stars subjected to His Command. Surely, His is
the creation and commandment. Blessed is Allaah,
the Lord of the `Aalameen (mankind, jinn and all
that exists)!"
[al-A'raaf 7:54]
What I understand from this is that Allaah
created the heavens and the earth in six days.
This is clear.
But in another passage Allaah
mentions the creation of the heavens and the
earth, and He says (interpretation of the
meaning):
"Say (O Muhammad): Do you verily disbelieve
in Him Who created the earth in two Days? And
you set up rivals (in worship) with Him? That is
the Lord of the `Aalameen (mankind, jinn and all
that exists).
He placed therein (i.e. the earth) firm
mountains from above it, and He blessed it, and
measured therein its sustenance (for its
dwellers) in four Days equal (i.e. all these
four `days' were equal in the length of time)
for all those who ask (about its creation).
Then He rose over (Istawa) towards the heaven
when it was smoke, and said to it and to the
earth: `Come both of you willingly or
unwillingly.' They both said: `We come
willingly.'
Then He completed and finished from their
creation (as) seven heavens in two Days and He
made in each heaven its affair. And We adorned
the nearest (lowest) heaven with lamps (stars)
to be an adornment as well as to guard (from the
devils by using them as missiles against the
devils). Such is the Decree of Him, the
AllMighty, the AllKnower" [Fussilat 41:9-12]
Here Allaah says that He created the earth in
two days, then He placed therein firm mountains
and measured therein its sustenance in four
days, which makes six days in all. Then He
created the heavens in two days, so the total
comes to eight days.
How can we reconcile between the two verses?.
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
This is an issue which confuses some people,
and some of them think that Allaah created the
heavens and the earth in eight days as Allaah
says in Soorah Fussilat (interpretation
of the meaning):
"Say (O Muhammad): Do you verily disbelieve
in Him Who created the earth in two Days? And
you set up rivals (in worship) with Him? That is
the Lord of the `Aalameen (mankind, jinn and all
that exists).
He placed therein (i.e. the earth) firm
mountains from above it, and He blessed it, and
measured therein its sustenance (for its
dwellers) in four Days equal (i.e. all these
four `days' were equal in the length of time)
for all those who ask (about its creation).
Then He rose over (Istawa) towards the heaven
when it was smoke, and said to it and to the
earth: `Come both of you willingly or
unwillingly.' They both said: `We come
willingly.'
Then He completed and finished from their
creation (as) seven heavens in two Days and He
made in each heaven its affair. And We adorned
the nearest (lowest) heaven with lamps (stars)
to be an adornment as well as to guard (from the
devils by using them as missiles against the
devils). Such is the Decree of Him, the
AllMighty, the AllKnower"
[Fussilat 41:9-12]
because this seems to contradict the other
verse which says that He created them in six
days.
This is a misunderstanding, and the answer to
it is as follows:
There is no contradiction between the time
period mentioned in these verses and the other
verse which says that it was six days.
In these verses _ from Soorah Fussilat
_ we see that Allaah is telling us that He
"created the earth in two Days".
Then He "placed therein (i.e. the earth)
firm mountains from above it, and He blessed it,
and measured therein its sustenance (for its
dwellers)" in four days equal_ i.e., in two
days that were added to the two days in which He
created the earth, so the total is four days. It
does not say that the creation of the mountains
and the measuring of the sustenance took four
days.
Perhaps the confusion which is mentioned in
the question stems from this, i.e., from
thinking that the four days are added to the two
days in which the earth was created, equaling
six, and then adding the two days in which the
heavens were created ("Then He completed and
finished from their creation (as) seven heavens
in two Days") _ making a total of eight
days, not six days. But this confusion can be
dispelled by dealing with this mistaken notion.
So the earth was created in two days, and the
mountains were created and the sustenance
measured in two more days which makes a total of
four, i.e., this took the other two days. Then
the creation of the seven heavens took two days.
So the total is six days of the Days of Allaah,
may He be glorified and exalted.
The mufassireen commented on this fact which
deals with the mistaken notion. Al-Qurtubi said:
"in four days" _ this is like someone
saying, "I set out from Basra to Baghdad in ten
days and to Kufa in fifteen days, i.e., a total
time of fifteen days." (al-Jaami' li Ahkaam
al-Qur'aan, vol. 15, p. 343).
Al-Baghawi said: "in four days" means
the creation of what is in the earth. The
measuring of the sustenance was on Tuesday and
Wednesday, which along with Sunday and Monday
add up to four days. This is like saying "I
married a woman yesterday and today I married
two" _ one of whom is the woman whom he married
the day before.
Tafseer al-Baghawi, 7/165
Al-Zajjaaj said: "in four days" means
two days added to the previous two days.
Al-Kashshaaf, vol. 3, p. 444
These verses _ from Soorah Fussilat _
confirm the other verse, which says that the
creation of the heavens and the earth was
completed in six days. So there is no
contradiction concerning the period in which
Allaah created the heavens and the earth. There
cannot be any such contradictions in the
Qur'aan..
And Allaah knows best. Islam Q&A
(www.islam-qa.com) 10022: The meaning of the
hadeeth " `Qul Huwa Allaahu Ahad" is equivalent
to one-third of the Qur'aan"
Question:
Answer #4156 item#2
then there is no need to learn the entire
quraan or to even read it during ramadaan,etc
all you have to do is to read sura Ikhlas.I
think you made a mistake.Sura Ikhlas is the
substance of 1/3 of the quraan.it is amazing to
believe that reading the sura Iklas 3 times will
give you the blessing of reading the ENTIRE
quraan,then there is no point reading the entire
Quraan.
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly: there follow some of the ahaadeeth
narrated from the Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) which state that Soorat
al-Ikhlaas (Qul Huwa Allaahu Ahad) is
equivalent to one-third of the Qur'aan.
Al-Bukhaari (6643) narrated from Abu Sa'eed
that a man heard another man reciting Qul
Huwa Allaahu Ahad and repeating it. The next
morning he came to the Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and
told him about that. The man thought that it was
too little, but the Messenger of Allaah (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "By
the One in Whose hand is my soul, it is
equivalent to one-third of the Qur'aan."
Muslim (811) narrated from Abu'l-Dardaa' that
the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) said: "Is any one of you unable to
recite one-third of the Qur'aan in one night?"
They said, "How could anyone read one-third of
the Qur'aan?" He said, "Qul Huwa Allaahu
Ahad is equivalent to one-third of the
Qur'aan."
Muslim (812) narrated that Abu Hurayrah said:
The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) said: "Gather together, for
I will recite to you one-third of the Qur'aan."
So those who could gather together gathered
there, then the Prophet of Allaah (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) came out and
recited Qul Huwa Allaahu Ahad, then he
went in. They said to one another, Perhaps there
has been some news from heaven on account of
which he has gone inside (the house). Then the
Prophet of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) came out and said, "I told you that
I was going to recite to you one-third of the
Qur'aan. Verily it is equivalent to one-third of
the Qur'aan."
Secondly: The bounty of Allaah is immense,
and Allaah has bestowed His bounty upon this
ummah and has made up for its short life span by
giving it more reward for simple deeds. It is
strange that with some people, instead of this
motivating them to do more good, this makes them
apathetic and lazy in doing acts of worship, or
they feel that this bounty and reward is strange
and farfetched.
With regard to the meaning of the hadeeth:
There is a difference between jaza' (reward)
and ijza' (what is sufficient). What is making
the brother confused is that he does not see the
difference between them.
Jaza' means the reward which Allaah gives for
obeying Him.
Ijza' means what is sufficient and takes the
place of something else.
Reciting Qul Huwa Allaahu Ahad brings
a reward equivalent to reciting one-third of the
Qur'aan, but it does not take the place of
reading one-third of the Qur'aan.
If a person vows _ for example _ to read
one-third of the Qur'aan, it is not sufficient
for him to read Qul Huwa Allaahu Ahad,
because it is equivalent to one-third of the
Qur'aan in reward, but not in terms of being
sufficient or taking the place of reading
one-third of the Qur'aan.
The same may be said of reciting it three
times. If a person recites it three times in his
prayer, that does not mean that he does not have
to recite al-Faatihah, even though he will be
given the reward of reciting the whole Qur'aan.
A similar example is the reward given by the
Lawgiver to one who offers a single prayer in
the Sanctuary of Makkah, and that he will have
the reward of one hundred thousand prayers. Does
anyone take this divine bounty to means that he
does not have to pray for decades because he
offered a single prayer in the Haram that is
equivalent to one hundred thousand prayers?
Rather this has to do with reward; as for
what is sufficient, that is another matter
altogether.
Moreover, none of the scholars has ever said
that there is no need for us to read the Qur'aan
or that Qul Huwa Allaah Ahad is
sufficient and takes the place of that. The
correct scholarly view is that this soorah has
this great virtue because the Qur'aan deals with
three topics: one-third for rulings, one-third
for promises and warnings, and one-third for the
Divine names and attributes.
This soorah combines names and attributes.
This is the view of Abu'l-`Abbaas ibn Surayj,
and Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah stated that it
was good in Majmoo' al-Fataawa, 17/103.
The Muslim cannot do without the two other
issues, which are the rulings and the promises
and warnings. His knowledge cannot be complete
unless he looks at the Book of Allaah as a
whole. The one who stops at Soorat al-Ikhlaas
cannot know the other two matters.
Shaykh al-Islam (Ibn Taymiyah _ may Allaah
have mercy on him) said:
Rewards are of different types, just as
wealth is of different types, such as food,
drink, clothing, houses, money and so on. If a
man possesses one type of wealth, to the value
of one thousand dinars, that does not mean that
he can do without the other types. Rather if he
has wealth in the form of food, he also needs
clothing and a place to live, etc. Similarly if
it is a type other than money, he still needs
other things. If he has nothing but money, he
will need all kinds of wealth that are usually
needed. In al-Faatihah there are the benefits of
praise and du'aa' which people need, and Qul
Huwa Allaahu Ahad cannot replace it in that
sense. Although its reward is very great, he
cannot benefit from it unless he also recites
the Opening of the Book (al-Faatihah) in his
prayer. Hence if a person recites only Qul
Huwa Allaahu Ahad in his prayer, without
al-Faatihah, his prayer is not valid. Even if he
recited the whole of the Qur'aan without
al-Faatihah, his prayer would not be valid,
because the al-Faatihah refers to the basic
needs that people cannot do without.
Majmoo' al-Fataawa, 17/131.
And he said:
The people need the commands, prohibitions
and stories that are in the Qur'aan, even though
Tawheed is greater than that. Man needs to know
what he is enjoined to do and what he is
forbidden to do; he need to know what is
enjoined upon him and the stories and promises
and rewards. These cannot be replaced by
anything else, and Tawheed cannot be replaced by
these. The stories cannot take the place of the
commands and prohibitions, and the commands and
prohibitions cannot take the place of the
stories. Rather everything that was sent down by
Allaah is beneficial and people need it.
If a person recites Qul Huwa Allaahu
Ahad, he earns a reward equivalent to the
reward of one-third of the Qur'aan, but that
does not mean that the reward is of the same
kind as that earned by reading the rest of the
Qur'aan. Rather he may need the kind of reward
that comes from reading the commands and
prohibitions and stories, so Qul Huwa Allaahu
Ahad cannot take the place of all that.
And he said:
The knowledge that is to be gained by reading
the rest of the Qur'aan cannot be gained by
reciting this soorah only. So whoever reads the
whole Qur'aan is better than one who simply
recites this soorah three times in the sense
that he earns different kinds of reward, even
though the one who recites Qul Huwa Allaahu
Ahad earns a reward equivalent to that
reward, but it is of one type and does not
include all the types that a person needs. This
is like a man who has three thousand dinars and
another who has food, clothing, accommodation
and money equivalent to three thousand dinars.
The latter has that which will benefit him in
all his affairs, whereas the former needs what
the latter has, even though what he has is
equivalent in value. Similarly, if he has the
finest food, equivalent to three thousand dinars
in value, he still needs clothing and
accommodation, and weapons and tools that will
ward off harm from him, and the like, which
cannot be done with food alone.
Majmoo' al-Fataawa, 17/137-139
And Allaah knows best.
Islam Q&A (www.islam-qa.com) 10012: Who wrote the Qur'aan
and how was it put together?
Question:
Who wrote the Qur'aan and how was it put
together?.
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly:
Allaah has guaranteed to preserve this
Qur'aan Himself. Allaah says (interpretation of
the meaning):
"Verily, We, it is We Who have sent down
the Dhikr (i.e. the Qur'aan) and surely, We will
guard it (from corruption)"
[al-Hijr 15:9]
Ibn Jareer al-Tabari said in his
Tafseer, 14/8:
Allaah is saying, it is We Who have sent down
the Dhikr (Reminder), i.e. the Qur'aan, and We
will guard the Qur'aan against anything false
being added to it that is not part of it, or
anything that is part of it being taken away,
whether that has to do with rulings, hudood
punishments or matters having to do with
inheritance.
Al-Sa'di said in his Tafseer (p. 696):
It is We Who have sent down the Qur'aan in
which there is mention of all issues and clear
evidence, and in which We remind those who want
to be reminded.
"and surely, We will guard it" means,
when it is being revealed and after it has been
revealed. When it is revealed, We protect it
from the tampering of every accursed devil, and
after it has been revealed Allaah instilled it
in the heart of His Messenger. Allaah protected
the words from being changed and from anything
being added or taken away, or from its meanings
being distorted. So no one can attempt to
distort its meanings but Allaah will guide
someone to explain the truth of the Qur'aan.
This is one of the greatest signs of Allaah and
His blessing to His believing slaves. Another
aspect of this protection is that Allaah
protects the people of the Qur'aan against their
enemies, and no enemy can overpower them and
eliminate them.
The Qur'aan was revealed to the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) in
stages over a period of twenty-three years.
Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
"And (it is) a Qur'aan which We have divided
(into parts), in order that you might recite it
to men at intervals. And We have revealed it by
stages"
[al-Isra' 17:106]
al-Sa'di (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
This means, We have revealed this Qur'aan in
stages, to differentiate between guidance and
misguidance, between truth and falsehood.
"in order that you might recite it to men
at intervals" means, slowly, so that they
may ponder and think about its meanings, and
understand the different branches of knowledge
contained therein.
"And We have revealed it by stages"
means, gradually, over a period of twenty-three
years.
Tafseer al-Sa'di, p. 760.
Secondly:
Literacy was not widespread among the Arabs.
Allaah described them in such terms when He said
(interpretation of the meaning):
"He it is Who sent among the unlettered
ones a Messenger (Muhammad) from among
themselves" [al-Jumu'ah 63:2]
They used to memorize the Qur'aan by heart,
and a few of them used to write down some verses
or soorahs on animal skins, thin white stones
and the like.
Thirdly:
At first the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) forbade the writing of
anything other than the Qur'aan, and he forbade
them to write down his words for a while, so
that the Sahaabah would focus on memorizing the
Qur'aan and writing it down, and so that the
words of the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) would not be confused with
the words of Allaah, and so the Qur'aan was
protected from anything being added or taken
away.
Fourthly:
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) appointed a group of his companions
who were trustworthy and knowledgeable to write
down the revelation. They are known in their
biographies as those who wrote down the
Revelation, such as the four Caliphs,
`Abd-Allaah ibn `Amr ibn al-`Aas, Mu'aawiyah ibn
Abi Sufyaan, Zayd ibn Thaabit and others _ may
Allaah be pleased with them all.
Fifthly:
The Qur'aan was revealed in seven dialects as
was narrated in the saheeh hadeeth of `Umar ibn
al-Khattaab (may Allaah be pleased with him)
from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him). This was narrated by al-Bukhaari
(2287) and Muslim (818); these were the dialects
of the Arabs which were known for their
eloquence.
Sixthly:
The Qur'aan continued to be preserved in the
hearts of the Sahaabah who had memorized it, and
on the skins and other materials until the time
of the caliph Abu Bakr al-Siddeeq (may Allaah be
pleased with him). During the Riddah wars many
of the Sahaabah who had memorized the Qur'aan
were killed, and Abu Bakr (may Allaah be pleased
with him) was afraid that the Qur'aan would be
lost. So he consulted the senior Sahaabah about
compiling the Qur'aan in a single book so that
it would remain preserved and would not be lost.
He entrusted this mission to the chief of
memorizers Zayd ibn Thaabit (may Allaah be
pleased with him). Al-Bukhaari narrated in his
Saheeh (4986) that Zayd ibn Thaabit (may
Allaah be pleased with him) said:
Abu Bakr al-Siddeeq sent for me when the
people of al-Yamaamah had been killed [i.e., a
number of the Prophet's Companions who fought
against the false prophet Musaylimah]. (I went
to him) and found `Umar ibn al-Khattaab sitting
with him. Abu Bakr then said (to me), " `Umar
has come to me and said: `Casualties were heavy
among the Qurra' of the Qur'aan (i.e. those who
knew the Qur'aan by heart) on the day of the
battle of al-Yamaamah, and I am afraid that more
heavy casualties may take place among the Qurra'
on other battlefields, whereby a large part of
the Qur'aan may be lost. Therefore I suggest
that you (Abu Bakr) order that the Qur'aan be
collected." I said to `Umar, "How can you do
something that the Messenger of Allaah (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did not
do?" `Umar said, "By Allah, this is something
good." `Umar kept on urging me to accept his
proposal till Allaah opened my heart to it and I
began to realize the good in the idea which
`Umar had realized." Then Abu Bakr said (to me).
"You are a wise young man and we do not have any
suspicion about you, and you used to write the
Divine Inspiration for the Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). So
search for (the fragmentary scripts of) the
Qur'aan and compile it in one book." By Allah If
they had ordered me to move one of the
mountains, it would not have been heavier for me
than this ordering me to compile the Qur'aan.
Then I said (to Abu Bakr), "How can you do
something that the Messenger of Allaah (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did not
do?" Abu Bakr replied, "By Allaah, it is a good
thing." Abu Bakr kept on urging me to accept his
idea until Allaah opened my heart to that to
which He had opened the hearts of Abu Bakr and
`Umar. So I started looking for the Qur'aan and
collecting it from (what it was written on) palm
stalks, thin white stones and also from the men
who knew it by heart, until I found the last
Verse of Soorat al-Tawbah with Abu Khuzaymah
al-Ansaari, and I did not find it with anybody
other than him. The verse is (interpretation of
the meaning):
"Verily, there has come unto you a
Messenger (Muhammad) from amongst yourselves. It
grieves him that you should receive any injury
or difficulty..." [al-Tawbah 9:128] until
the end of Soorat Baraa'ah (i.e., al-Tawbah).
Then the complete manuscript (copy) of the
Qur'aan remained with Abu Bakr until he died,
then with `Umar until the end of his life, and
then with Hafsah, the daughter of `Umar (may
Allaah be pleased with him).
The Sahaabi Zayd ibn Thaabit (may Allaah be
pleased with him) knew the Qur'aan by heart but
he was methodical in his confirmation; he would
not agree to write down any verse until two of
the Sahaabah testified that they had heard it
from the Messenger of Allaah (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him).
This Mus-haf (written copy of the Qur'aan)
remained in the hands of the caliphs until the
time of the Rightly-Guided Caliph `Uthmaan ibn
`Affaan (may Allaah be pleased with him). The
Sahaabah (may Allaah be pleased with them) had
dispersed to different lands, and they used to
recite the Qur'aan according to what they had
heard of the seven recitations from the
Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him), and each of their students
used to recite according to what he had heard
from his shaykh. If a student heard someone
reciting in a manner different from what he
knew, he would denounce him and accuse him of
making a mistake, and this went on until the
Sahaabah feared that there would be fitnah
(trouble) between the Taabi'een and successive
generations. So they thought that they should
unite the people in following one recitation,
which was in the dialect of Quraysh in which the
Qur'aan had first been revealed, so as to dispel
any disputes and resolve the matter. `Uthmaan
(may Allaah be pleased with him) was consulted,
and he agreed with this opinion.
Al-Bukhaari narrated in his Saheeh
(4988) from Anas ibn Maalik that Hudhayfah ibn
al-Yamaan came to `Uthmaan at the time when the
people of Shaam (Syria) and the people of Iraq
were waging war to conquer Armenia and
Azerbaijan. Hudhayfah was alarmed by their (the
people of Sham and Iraq) differences in the
recitation of the Qur'aan, so he said to
`Uthmaan, "O Ameer al-Mu'mineen! Save this
nation before they dispute about the Book
(Qur'aan) as the Jews and the Christians did
before." So `Uthmaan sent a message to Hafsah
saying, "Send us the manuscript of the Qur'aan
so that we may make copies of the Mus-haf and we
will return the manuscript to you."
Hafsah sent it to `Uthmaan. Then `Uthmaan
ordered Zayd ibn Thaabit, `Abdullah ibn
al-Zubayr, Sa'eed ibn al-`Aas and `Abd
al-Rahmaan ibn Haarith ibn Hishaam to copy out
the manuscripts. `Uthmaan said to the three men
who were from Quraysh (the tribe of which the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) was a member), "In case you disagree with
Zayd ibn Thaabit on any point in the Qur'aan,
then write it in the dialect of Quraysh, for the
Qur'aan was revealed in their tongue." They did
so, and when they had written many copies,
`Uthmaan returned the original manuscripts to
Hafsah.
`Uthmaan sent to every Muslim province one
copy of what they had copied, and ordered that
all the other Qur'aanic materials, whether
written in fragmentary manuscripts or whole
copies, be burnt.
Ibn Shihaab said: Khaarijah ibn Zayd ibn
Thaabit told me that he heard Zayd ibn Thaabit
say: "When we made copies of the Mus-haf I
missed a verse of al-Ahzaab that I used to hear
the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) recite. So we searched for
it and we found it with Khuzaymah ibn Thaabit
al-Ansaari. (The verse was) `Among the
believers are men who have been true to their
covenant with Allaah' [al-Ahzaab 33:23 _
interpretation of the meaning]. So we put it
in its place in its soorah in the Mus-haf."
Thus an end was put to dispute and the
Muslims were united. The Qur'aan has remained
and will remain narrated from generation to
generation and preserved in men's hearts until
the Day of Resurrection. This is how Allaah has
preserved His Book, in confirmation of the verse
in which He says (interpretation of the
meaning):
"Verily, We, it is We Who have sent down
the Dhikr (i.e. the Qur'aan) and surely, We will
guard it (from corruption)"
[al-Hijr 15:9]
And Allaah knows best.
Islam Q&A (www.islam-qa.com) 6577: The Qur'aan is a
healing and a mercy to the believers
Question:
Tell me more about quran.
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
The Qur'aan is the word of Allaah that was
revealed to His Prophet Muhammad (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) and is recited
as an act of worship.
This definition of the Qur'aan is
comprehensive.
Our saying "the word of Allaah" excludes the
words of human beings or others.
Our saying "revealed to His Prophet Muhammad
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)"
excludes anything that was revealed to anyone
else, such as the Injeel (Gospel), Tawraat
(Torah) and Zaboor (Psalms).
Our saying "it is recited as an act of
worship" excludes the hadeeth qudsi (ahaadeeth
in which the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) narrated words from Allaah
which are not part of the Qur'aan).
It brings light and gives certainty, it is
the strong rope, it is the path of the
righteous. It tells us of those who came before
us, Prophets and righteous people, and how those
who disobeyed them tasted the punishment of
Allaah and were humiliated. It contains verses
which speak of the miracles of Allaah and His
power in this great universe. It tells us of the
origins of human beings who are created from
"despised water" (semen). It contains the basic
principles of faith which must be embraced by
every humble heart. It contains the rules of
sharee'ah which tells us what is permissible and
what is forbidden; what is true and what is
false. It tells us of the Resurrection and the
fate of human beings, either in the Fire in
which they will burn and be among those who are
humiliated, or in Paradise with its gardens,
springs, plants and places of security.
In it there is healing for men's hearts,
light and illumination for the blind. Allaah
says (interpretation of the meaning):
"And We send down of the Qur'aan that
which is a healing and a mercy to those who
believe (in Islamic Monotheism and act on it),
and it increases the Zaalimoon (polytheists and
wrongdoers) nothing but loss"
[al-Isra' 17:82]
Al-Haafiz Ibn Katheer said in his commentary
on this verse:
Here Allaah tells us about His Book, which He
revealed to His Messenger Muhammad (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) and which is
the Qur'aan which "Falsehood cannot come to
it from before it or behind it, (it is) sent
down by the AllWise, Worthy of all praise"
[Fussilat 42:41- interpretation of the
meaning], that it is "a healing and a
mercy to those who believe" _ i.e., it takes
away the diseases in the heart such as doubt,
hypocrisy, shirk, deviation and misguidance; the
Qur'aan heals all of that. And it is also a
mercy which brings about faith, wisdom and the
pursuit of and desire for goodness. This is only
for those who believe in it and follow it; for
such it will be a healing and a mercy. But as
for the kaafir and those who wrong themselves
thereby, their hearing the Qur'aan only makes
them further away (from truth) and increases
them in kufr. The problem comes from the kaafir,
not from the Qur'aan. Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning):
"Say: It is for those who believe, a guide
and a healing. And as for those who disbelieve,
there is heaviness (deafness) in their ears, and
it (the Qur'aan) is blindness for them. They are
those who are called from a place far away (so
they neither listen nor understand)"
[Fussilat 41:44]
"And whenever there comes down a Soorah,
some of them (hypocrites) say: `Which of you has
had his Faith increased by it?' As for those who
believe, it has increased their Faith, and they
rejoice.
But as for those in whose hearts is a disease
(of doubt, disbelief and hypocrisy), it will add
suspicion and doubt to their suspicion,
disbelief and doubt; and they die while they are
disbelievers"
[al-Tawbah 9:124-125]
Qutaadah said, concerning the phrase "And
We send down of the Qur'aan that which is a
healing and a mercy to those who believe":
when the believer hears it he benefits from it,
memorizes it and understands it. "and it
increases the Zaalimoon (polytheists and
wrongdoers) nothing but loss" means, they do
not benefit from it, memorize it or understand
it. Allaah has made this Qur'aan a healing and a
mercy for the believers. Tafseer Ibn
Katheer, 3/60.
Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
"O mankind! There has come to you a good
advice from your Lord (i.e. the Qur'aan,
enjoining all that is good and forbidding all
that is evil), and a healing for that which is
in your breasts, — a guidance and a mercy
(explaining lawful and unlawful things) for the
believers" [Yoonus 10:57]
"And if We had sent this as a Qur'aan in a
foreign language (other than Arabic), they would
have said: `Why are not its verses explained in
detail (in our language)? What! (A Book) not in
Arabic and (the Messenger) an Arab?' Say: `It is
for those who believe, a guide and a healing.
And as for those who disbelieve, there is
heaviness (deafness) in their ears, and it (the
Qur'aan) is blindness for them. They are those
who are called from a place far away (so they
neither listen nor understand)'"[Fussilat
41:44]
In it is guidance for mankind, away from
misguidance and to the truth. Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning):
"This is the Book (the Qur'aan), whereof
there is no doubt, a guidance to those who are
Al-Muttaqoon [the pious" [al-Baqarah 2:2]
"And thus We have revealed to you (O
Muhammad) a Qur'aan in Arabic that you may warn
the Mother of the Towns (Makkah) and all around
it, and warn (them) of the Day of Assembling of
which there is no doubt, when a party will be in
Paradise (those who believed in Allaah and
followed what Allaah's Messenger brought them)
and a party in the blazing Fire (Hell) (those
who disbelieved in Allaah and followed not what
Allaah's Messenger brought them)"
[al-Shoora 42:9]
"And thus We have sent to you (O Muhammad)
Rooh (a revelation, and a mercy) of Our Command.
You knew not what is the Book, nor what is
Faith? But We have made it (this Qur'aan) a
light wherewith We guide whosoever of Our slaves
We will. And verily, you (O Muhammad) are indeed
guiding (mankind) to the Straight Path (i.e.
Allaah's religion of Islamic Monotheism).
The path of Allaah to Whom belongs all that
is in the heavens and all that is in the earth.
Verily, all matters at the end go to Allaah (for
decision)"
[al-Shoora 42:52-53]
It contains innumerable benefits, so everyone
who seeks happiness in this world and in the
Hereafter must refer to it for judgement and
follow its commands.
Imam Ibn Hazm said:
Because the proof and the miracles indicate
that the Qur'aan is the covenant of Allaah with
us, we must believe in it and act in accordance
with it. It has come down to us through
generations of Muslims narrating it to those who
came after them, which leaves no room for doubt
that the Qur'aan is the one which is written in
the Mus-hafs which we find everywhere. We have
to follow its teachings, for it is our
reference-point, because we read in it the words
(interpretation of the meaning):
"There is not a moving (living) creature
on earth, nor a bird that flies with its two
wings, but are communities like you. We have
neglected nothing in the Book, then unto their
Lord they (all) shall be gathered"
[al-An'aam 6:38]
Whatever commands and prohibitions are in the
Qur'aan, we must adhere to them.
Al-Ihkaam, 1/92 . And Allaah knows
best. Islam Q&A (www.islam-qa.com) 21500: Distortion of the
Qur'aan by the Raafidis
Question:
I have also heard by a shia collegue that
their is a surat in their book which is not in
the QURAN. can u confirm this? the surat in qs
is called SURAT AL-WILAYAT.
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
With regard to Soorat al-Wilaayah, some of
the Shi'ah scholars and imams have stated that
it exists. Any of them who denies that does so
by way of taqiyah (dissimulation). One of those
who clearly stated that it exists is Mirza
Hussein Muhammad Taqiy al-Noori al-Tubrusi (d.
1320 AH). He wrote a book in which he claimed
that the Qur'aan had been distorted and that the
Sahaabah has concealed some parts of it,
including Soorat al-Wilaayah. The Raafidis
honoured him after his death by burying him in
al-Najaf. This book by al-Tubrusi was published
in Iran in 1298 AH, and when it was published
there was a great deal of controversy because
they wanted the doubts about the validity of the
Qur'aan, which were known only to their leaders,
to remain scattered throughout hundreds of their
major books, and they did not want that to be
compiled in one book. At the beginning of his
book he said:
"This is a good and noble book entitled
Fasl al-khitaab fi ithbaat tahreef Kitaab
Rabb il-Arbaab (Decisive comment on the
distortion of the Book of the Lord of Lords)… He
mentioned aayahs and soorahs which he claims
that the Sahaabah concealed, including `Soorat
al-Wilaayah,'" the text of which, according to
them, and as quoted in this book, is:
"O you who believe, believe in the Prophet
and the Wali [i.e., `Ali] whom We have sent to
guide you to the straight path, a Prophet and a
Wali who are part of one another, and I am the
All-Knowing, All-Aware…"
And they have another soorah which they call
Soorat al-Noorayn: "O you who believe, believe
in the two lights (al-noorayn) which We have
sent down to you to recite to you My Verses and
to warn you of the punishment of a great Day.
They are part of one another and I am the
All-Hearing, All-Knowing. Those who fulfil the
covenant with Allaah and His Messenger mentioned
in the verses (of the Qur'aan), the Gardens of
delight will be theirs, but those who disbelieve
after they believed by breaking their covenant
and disobeying the command of the Prophet, they
will be thrown into Hell. They have wronged
themselves and gone against the wasiyyah of the
Prophet (i.e., the appointment of `Ali as
khaleefah), and they will be given to drink of
boiling water…" and other such nonsense.
You can see the entire soorah, along with a
telegraphic picture of the Persian mus-haf at
the following site:
http://arabic.islamicweb.com/shia/nurain.htm
Prof. Muhammad `Ali Sa'oodi _ who was one of
the greatest experts of the Ministry of Justice
in Egypt _ examined an Iranian mus-haf kept by
the Orientalist Bryan and he obtained a copy of
this soorah; above the lines of Arabic script
there is written the translation in the Iranian
language.
As it was mentioned by al-Tubrusi in his
book, Fasl al-khitaab fi ithbaat tahreef
Kitaab Rabb il-Arbaab, it is also mentioned
in their book Dabastan Madhaahib, which
is in Farsi, written by Muhsin Faani
al-Kashmiri. This book has been printed numerous
times in Iran, and this false soorah was quoted
from it by the Orientalist Noeldeke in his book
The History of Qur'anic Manuscripts,
2/120, and was published by the French Asian
newspaper in 1842
(p. 431-439).
It was also mentioned by Mirza Habibullaah
al-Haashimi al-Kho'i in his book Manhaaj
al-Baraa'ah fi Sharh Nahj al-Balaaghah
(2/217); and by Muhammad Baaqir al-Majlisi in
his book Tadhkirat al-A'immah (p. 19, 20)
in Farsi, (published by) Manshoorat Mawlana,
Iran.
See also al-Khutoot al-`Areedah li'l-Asas
allati qaama `alayha deen al-Shi'ah by
Muhibb al-Deen al-Khateeb.
This claim of theirs is a denial of the words
of Allaah (interpretation of the meaning):
"Verily, We, it is We Who have sent down
the Dhikr (i.e. the Qur'aan) and surely, We will
guard it (from corruption)"
[al-Hijr 15:9]
Hence the Muslims are unanimously agreed that
anyone who claims that anything in the Qur'aan
has been altered or changed is a kaafir.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah said:
The same applies to those among them who
claim that some verses of the Qur'aan have been
taken away or concealed, or who claim to have
some esoteric interpretations that exempt him
from having to do the actions prescribed in
sharee'ah etc., who are called al-Qaraamitah and
al-Baatiniyyah, and who include
al-Tanaasukhiyyah [names of esoteric sects].
There is no dispute that they are kaafirs.
Al-Saarim al-Maslool, 3/1108-1110.
Ibn Hazm said:
The view that the Qur'aan has been altered is
blatant kufr and is a rejection of what the
Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) said.
Al-Fasl fi'l-Ahwa' wa'-Milal
wa'l-Nihal, 4/139.
And Allaah knows best. Islam Q&A
(www.islam-qa.com) 5105: Refutation of those
who try to prove that the Qur'aan is not true
Question:
Recently I became aware of some scholarly
research done by German scholars into the
inerrancy of the Quran. Some of their findings
are discussed in an Atlantic Monthly article
entitled "What Is the Koran?" written by Toby
Lester, published in the January 1999 issue of
that magazine. The gist of their research is
that some very old fragments of the Quran found
in a mosque in Yemen show small but significant
aberrations from the standard Quranic texts. In
some cases, the writing on the fragments found
had been washed off and different writing
substituted overtop. The article tries to cast
doubt on the Muslim view of the Quran as being
absolutely reliable, and tries to show instead
that it is a literary text that has been subject
to change just like any other.
I am not a
Muslim, but I know that the Quran holds a
position in Islam that is similar to that of
Christ in Christianity. In view of this, sir,
how would you respond to these attempts to
dispute the absolute inerrancy of the Quran? In
your view, do these scholars have false motives
that render their findings untrustworthy? Or do
you have another response to these attacks on
the verity of the Quran?.
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
1 _ The proof that the copies of the Holy
Qur'aan that we have before us is not just one
or two pieces of evidence, rather it is proven
by a vast amount of evidence that no fair-minded
person can study without becoming convinced that
it is exactly as Allaah revealed it to Muhammad
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him).
2 _ There have been generations coming one
after another, reciting the Book of Allaah and
studying it, memorizing it and writing it down.
They have not omitted a single letter, and no
one can change even the vowel point of a single
letter. Writing is just one means of preserving
it; basically it is preserved in their hearts.
3 _ The Qur'aan has not come down to us on
its own, such that the so-called alterations
could be made. Rather the interpretation of its
verses, the meanings of its words, the reasons
for its revelation, the grammar of its words and
the commentary on its rulings have all been
transmitted. When such care has been given to
this Book, how could sinful hands find a way to
distort even one letter of it, or add a word, or
take away a verse?
4 _ The Qur'aan speaks of matters of the
unseen, in the future, which Allaah revealed to
His Messenger Muhammad (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) to show him that they came
from Allaah. If a human being wants to write a
book, he can describe an event or express a
point of view, but if any human being were to
speak about matters of the unseen, in this field
he can only base that on speculation and lies.
But the Qur'aan told of the defeat of the Romans
by the Persians, at the time when there was no
means of communication to inform the Arabs of
this event. The same verses also foretold that
they (the Persians) would be defeated after a
certain number of years. If what the Qur'aan
said was not accurate, then the kaafirs would
have had a great opportunity to criticize the
Qur'aan.
5 _ If you read any verse of the Qur'aan,
then you go to America or Asia or the jungles of
Africa, or to the deserts of Arabia or any place
where there are Muslims, you will find that all
of them have the exact same verse, memorized by
heart or in their books; not a single letter of
it will have been altered.
So what is the importance of this unknown
manuscript in Yemen which we have not seen, and
in which some ignorant may have altered, in
recent times, one verse or one word?
Does this argument carry any weight when
properly researched and discussed? Especially
when the people claim to be fair-minded and
objective in their research.
What would be their response if we went to
one of their most trusted books by a well-known
author, a book of which there are many copies in
the world, all of them exactly the same, and we
claimed that there was a copy of this book in
some country or other in which there was extra
material and alterations, and it was different
from what is in their copies? Would they pay any
attention?
Their answer would be the same as ours.
6 _ The manuscript copies which are in the
Muslims' possession cannot be proven to be
authentic in this simplistic manner, for we have
experts who know the history of calligraphy and
we have principles and guidelines through which
we may determine whether a manuscript is
genuine, such as the names and signatures of the
people who heard it and read it.
We do not think that these features are
present in this so-called copy of the Qur'aan in
Yemen or in others.
7 _ We are happy to conclude our answer with
this true story that happened in Baghdad during
the `Abbasid era, when a Jew wanted to find out
how true are the books attributed by their
followers to God, namely the Torah among the
Jews, the Gospel among the Christians and the
Qur'aan among the Muslims.
He went to the Torah and added and took away
a few minor things that were not very obvious,
then he gave it to a scribe from among the Jews
and asked him to make copies of it. It did not
take long before these copies were placed in the
synagogues of the Jews and were in circulation
among their major scholars.
Then he went to the Gospel and added and took
away a few things as he had done with the Torah,
and he gave it to their scribes and asked them
to make copies of it. It was not long before it
was being read in their churches and was in
circulation among their scholars.
Then he went to the Qur'aan and added and
took away a few things as he had done with the
Torah and the Gospel. Then he gave it to a
Muslim scribe to make copies of it.
When he went back to get his copy, the scribe
threw it in his face and told him that this was
not the Qur'aan of the Muslims!
From this experiment the man came to know
that the Qur'aan is the true Book of Allaah and
that all other books were the works of human
beings.
If the scribes of the Muslims could tell that
this copy had been tampered with, then how could
it go into circulation among the Muslim scholars
undetected?
If the questioner wants to repeat this
ancient experiment nowadays, all she has to do
is to do the same as that Jewish man did, who
later became Muslim; she can add and take away
things from these three books and see what
happens as a result.
But we do not tell her to show her copy of
the Qur'aan to a scribe, rather we tell her to
show it to Muslim children, and they will tell
her where the mistakes are in her copy!
Some Muslim states have printed Mus-hafs in
which there were mistakes, and young children
found them before the grown-ups did!
And Allaah is the Guide to the Straight Path.
Islam Q&A
(www.islam-qa.com) 5142: The revelation of the
Qur'aan in seven styles (ahruf, sing. harf)
Question:
I have read that during the third Khalief,
Oethmaan, a committee under supervision of Zaid
ibn Thabit has been ordered to make an official
editorship of the whole Koran. But this
"Oethmanian" text didn't give yet a uniform
reading.
Because early arabic language didn't have
vowels and also some consonants had the same or
almost the same form. New signs were introduced
to seperate the different letters. But this
still did not stop the different ways of
reading.
In the first half of the fourth/tenth century
the `imaam of the Koran readers' in Baghdad, Ibn
Moedjahid, gave a solution to this problem. He
said that the word harf should be put equivalent
to kira'a. He declared seven ways of reading
correct. Because according to him the saying of
the Prophet (PBUH) that the Koran was send in
seven ahroef means that seven ways of reading
are inspired.
Nowadays only to ways of
reading are in use, Warsj of Nafi' and Hafs of
`Asim.
Could you tell me more about these different
ways of reading? Are there ahadieth about this?.
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly :
you should note, may Allaah bless you, that
the Qur'aan was revealed in one style at the
beginning, but the Messenger of Allaah (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him) kept asking
Jibreel until he taught him seven styles, all of
which were complete. The evidence for that is
the hadeeth of Ibn `Abbaas who narrated that the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) said: "Jibreel taught me one style and I
reviewed it until he taught me more, and I kept
asking him for more and he gave me more until
finally there were seven styles."
(narrated by al-Bukhaari, 3047; Muslim, 819)
Secondly, what is meant by styles
(ahruf, sing. harf)?
The best of the scholarly opinions concerning
what is meant is that there are seven ways of
reciting the Qur'aan, where the wording may
differ but the meaning is the same; if there is
a different meaning then it is by way of
variations on a theme, not opposing and
contradiction.
Thirdly:
Some of the scholars said that what was meant
by ahruf was the dialects of the Arabs,
but this is far-fetched, because of the hadeeth
of `Umar ibn al-Khattaab who said: "I heard
Hishaam ibn Hakeem reciting Soorat al-Furqaan in
a manner different from that in which I used to
recite it and the way in which the Messenger of
Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) taught me to recite it. I was about to
argue with him whilst he was praying, but I
waited until he finished his prayer, and then I
tied his garment around his neck and seized him
by it and brought him to the Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and
said, `O Messenger of Allaah, I heard this man
reciting Soorat-al-Furqaan in a way different to
the way you taught it to me.' The Messenger of
Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) said to him, `Recite it,' and he recited it
as I had heard him recite it. The Messenger of
Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) said, `It was revealed like this.' Then he
said to me, `Recite it,' so I recited it and he
said, `It was revealed like this.' This Qur'aan
has been revealed in seven different ways, so
recite it in the way that is easiest for you.'"
(Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 2287; Muslim, 818)
It is known that Hishaam was Asadi Qurashi
(i.e., from the clan of Bani Asad in Quraysh)
and `Umar was `Adawi Qurashi (i.e., from the
clan of Bani `Adiyy in Quraysh). Both of them
were from Quraysh and Quraysh had only one
dialect. If the difference in ahruf (styles) had
been a difference in dialects, why would two men
of Quraysh have been different?
The scholars mentioned nearly forty different
opinions concerning this matter! Perhaps the
most correct is that which we have mentioned
above. And Allaah knows best.
Fourthly:
It seems that the seven styles were revealed
with different wordings, as indicated by the
hadeeth of `Umar, because `Umar's objection was
to the style, not the meaning. The differences
between these styles are not the matter of
contradiction and opposition, rather they are
synonymous, as Ibn Mas'ood said: "It is like one
of you saying halumma, aqbil or
ta'aal (all different ways of saying
`Come here')."
Fifthly:
With regard to the seven recitations
(al-qiraa'aat al-saba'), this number is
not based on the Qur'aan and Sunnah, rather it
is the ijtihaad of Ibn Mujaahid (may Allaah have
mercy on him). People thought that al-ahruf
al-saba' (the seven styles) were
al-qiraa'aat al-saba' (the seven
recitations) because they happened to be the
same number. But this number may have come about
coincidentally, or it may have been done
deliberately by Ibn Mujaahid to match what was
narrated about the number of styles
(ahruf) being seven. Some people thought
that the styles (ahruf) were the
recitations, but this is a mistake. No such
comment is known among the scholars. The seven
recitations are one of the seven styles, and
this is the style that `Uthmaan chose for all
the Muslims.
Sixthly:
When `Uthmaan made copies of the Qur'aan, he
did so according to one style (harf), but
he omitted the dots and vowel points so that
some other styles could also be accommodated. So
the Mus-haf that was copied in his time could be
read according to other styles, and whatever
styles were accommodated by the Mus-haf of
`Uthmaan remained in use, and the styles that
could not be accommodated fell into disuse. The
people had started to criticize one another for
reciting differently, so `Uthmaan united them by
giving them one style of the Qur'aan.
Seventhly:
Your saying that Mujaahid's different
recitations meant the seven styles
(ahruf) is not correct, as was said by
Shaykh al-Islam ibn Taymiyyah. (Majmoo'ah
al-Fatawa, vol. 13, p. 210)
Eighthly:
The seven readers or reciters were:
1- Naafi' al-Madani
2- Ibn Katheer al-Makki
3- `Aasim al-Kufi
4- Hamzah al-Zayaat al-Kufi
5- Al-Kisaa'i al-Kufi
6- Abu `Amr ibn al-`Ala' al-Basri
7- `Abd-Allaah ibn `Aamir al-Shaami
The ones who have the strongest isnaad in
recitation are Naafi' and `Aasim.
The most eloquent are Abu `Amr and
al-Kisaa'i.
Warsh and Qaaloon narrated from Naafi'.
Hafs and Shu'bah narrated from `Aasim.
And Allaah knows best.
Islam Q&A (www.islam-qa.com) 23487: Claims that the
Qur'aan has been distorted
Question:
Dear Sir, please try to answer my question as
it is very important to me. I have read in an
antiislamic website run by a christian
theologist from England that the scholar
"Al-Sagistany" wrote in his book called
"Almasahif" that the Muslim leader "Al-Hajjajj "
changed letters in the Quran in about at least
ten words . He claims that "Alsagistany"
reported this and that he wrote it under the
title: "Ma Ghayarraho Alhajjajj Fe Moshaf
Othman". this christian also narrates in Arabic
what he claims to be a copy of this page with
the ten words which he claims had letters
changed in them.
I have tried to find a copy of that book to
search the matter but I failed. Please try your
best efforts to make this matter clear . Also it
is unimaginable to me that the whole Muslim
scholars and memorizers of Quran could have just
accepted someone to change in the Quran without
stopping this or not knowing about it. Even if
Alsagistany really reported this, it still
really doesnot make sense at all; first of all
because we are not like christians and jews who
dont memorize their books totally and it is
mainly left to religious scholars. Instead very
large numbers of muslims memorize the Quran and
almost all read it . So changes could not have
just passed unnoticed except by Alsagistany
especially that at this era there were already
several total copies of the Quran in all muslim
countries. Secondly, if it is very difficult to
believe that these changes were not noticed by
scholars or people at the time, then it is far
more difficult to imagine that any muslim
scholar or even lay man would know of the
changes to the book of Allah and keep quiet and
not fight this thing and just accept it. Sir, it
just could not happen.
So please try to find this book and clarify
the matter for me in great detail with definite
evidence and proofs as much as Allah will help
you. I appreciate your cooperation and again
forgive me for my long letter but I cannot tell
you how important this matter is to me. I put
all my trust and hope in Allah that I will find
a really clear and clearcut answer.
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly:
It is not possible for a Muslim to entertain
doubts concerning the immutability of the
Qur'aan, because Allaah has guaranteed to
preserve the Qur'aan. Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning):
"Verily, We, it is We Who have sent down
the Dhikr (i.e. the Qur'aan) and surely, We will
guard it (from corruption)"
[al-Hijr 15:9]
The Qur'aan was preserved in the hearts of
the Sahaabah who had memorized it, and on the
trunks of trees and thin white stones until the
time of the caliph Abu Bakr al-Siddeeq (may
Allaah be pleased with him). During the Riddah
wars many of the Sahaabah who had memorized the
Qur'aan were killed, so Abu Bakr (may Allaah be
pleased with him) was afraid that the Qur'aan
may be lost. He consulted the senior Sahaabah
concerning the idea of compiling the entire
Qur'aan in one book so that it would be
preserved and would not be lost, and this task
was entrusted to the great hafiz Zayd ibn
Thaabit and others who had written down the
Revelation. Al-Bukhaari narrated in his
Saheeh that Zayd ibn Thaabit (may Allaah
be pleased with him) said:
"Abu Bakr As-Siddeeq sent for me when the
people of Yamamah had been killed (i.e., a
number of the Prophet's Companions who fought
against Musaylimah). (I went to him) and found
`Umar bin al-Khattaab sitting with him. Abu Bakr
(may Allaah be pleased with him) said (to me), `
`Umar has come to me and said: "Casualties were
heavy among the Qurra' of the Qur'aan (i.e.
those who knew the Qur'aan by heart) at the
Battle of Yamaamah, and I am afraid that more
heavy casualties may take place among the Qurra'
on other battlefields, whereby a large part of
the Qur'an may be lost. Therefore I suggest that
you [Abu Bakr] should issue orders that the
Qur'aan be collected." I said to `Umar, "How can
you do something that the Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did
not do?" `Umar said, "By Allah, this is
something good." `Umar kept on urging me (to
accept his proposal) until Allah opened my heart
to it and I began to realize the good in the
idea which `Umar had realized.' Then Abu Bakr
said (to me): `You are a wise young man and we
have a great deal of confidence in you. You used
to write down the Revelation for the Messenger
of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him). So you should seek out the Qur'aan [i.e.,
the fragments on which it is written] and
collect it (in one book).' By Allaah, if they
had ordered me to move one of the mountains, it
would not have been harder for me than this
command to collect the Qur'aan. I said (to Abu
Bakr), `How can you do something which the
Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) did not do?' Abu Bakr said,
`By Allaah, it is a good thing.' Abu Bakr kept
on urging me (to accept his proposal) until
Allah opened my heart to it as He had opened the
hearts of Abu Bakr and `Umar. So I started to
look for the Qur'aan and collected it from (the
fragments on which it was written of)
palm-stalks, thin white stones and the hearts of
men (i.e., from men who knew it by heart), until
I found the last verse of Soorat al-Tawbah with
Abu Khuzaymah al-Ansaari, and I did not find it
with anybody other than him. The verse is :
`Verily, there has come unto you a
Messenger from amongst yourselves. It grieves
him that you should receive any injury or
difficulty…'
[al-Tawbah 9:128 _ interpretation of the
meaning]
… until the end of Soorat Baraa'ah (Soorat
al-Tawbah).
These fragments remained with Abu Bakr until
he died, then with `Umar for the rest of his
life, then with Hafsah bint `Umar (may Allaah be
pleased with them both)."
Secondly:
With regard to al-Hajjaaj, it was not his
idea to write out the Mus-haf, rather he was
commanded by an intelligent man to do that.
There follows the complete story:
Al-Zarqaani said:
It is known that the Mus-haf of `Uthmaan was
unpointed (i.e., it had no diacritical marks).
Whatever the case the addition of diacritical
marks to the Mus-haf did not happen, according
to the well-established view, until the era of
`Abd al-Malik ibn Marwaan, when he realized that
Islam had spread widely and the Arabs were
mixing with the non-Arabs, which was having an
effect on the Arabic language, so that there was
much confusion about the correct reading of the
Mus-hafs and it was becoming very difficult for
people to tell the letters apart. By his deep
insight, he realized that he should do something
to solve the problem. So he commanded al-Hajjaaj
to take care of this important matter. In
obedience to the caliph, Al-Hajjaaj appointed
two men to deal with this matter, namely Nasr
ibn `Aasim al-Laythi and Yahya ibn Ya'mar
al-`Adwaani, both of whom were qualified and
able to do the task required of them, because
they were knowledgeable, righteous, pious and
experts in Arabic language and the various
readings of the Qur'aan. They had also both
studied under Abu'l-Aswad al-Du'li. May Allaah
have mercy on these two shaykhs, for they
succeeded in their work and gave the Mus-haf
diacritical points for the first time. They
added dots to all the letters that look similar,
not adding more than three dots to any one
letter. That became widespread among the people
and was very effective in dispelling confusion
concerning reading of the Mus-haf.
It was said that the first person to add
diacritical marks to the Mus-haf was Abu'l-Aswad
al-Du'li, and that Ibn Seereen had a Mus-haf to
which diacritical marks had been added by Yahya
ibn Ya'mar. These opinions may be reconciled by
noting that Abu'l-Aswad was the first one who
added diacritical marks to the Mus-haf, but he
did that for his own individual use, then Ibn
Seereen followed him in that, and that `Abd
al-Malik was the first one to add diacritical
marks to the Mus-haf in an official and public
manner that was spread widely among the people
in order to dispel any confusion with regard to
reading Qur'aan." Manaahil al-`Irfaan,
1/280, 281
Thirdly:
With regard to what is mentioned in the
question, quoting from al-Masaahif by Ibn
Abi Dawood, there follows the report concerning
that and the ruling thereon:
It was narrated from `Abbaad ibn Suhayb from
`Awf ibn Abi Jameelah that al-Hajjaaj ibn Yoosuf
changed eleven letters in the Mus-haf. He said
that in Soorat al-Baqarah 2:259 it said lam
yatasanna wa'nzur, with no ha', and
he changed it to lam yatasannah wa'nzur
(they show no change, and look…)
In al-Maa'idah 5:48 it said sharee'atan wa
minhaajan, and he changed it to shir'atan
wa minhaajan (a law and a clear way)
In Yoonus 10:22 it said, Huwa alladhi
yunshirukum and he changed it to Huwa
alladhi yusayyirukum (He it is Who enables
you to travel…)
In Yoosuf 12:45 it said Ana aateekum bi
ta'weelihi and he changed it to Ana
unabbi'ukum bi ta'weelihi (I will tell you
its interpretation)
In al-Zukhruf 43:32 it said, Nahnu
qasamnaa baynahum ma'aayishahum and he
changed it to Nahnu qasamnaa baynahum
ma'eeshatahum (It is We Who portion out
between them their livelihood)
In al-Takweer 81:24 it said Wa ma huwa
`ala'l-ghaybi bi zaneen and he changed it to
Wa ma huwa `ala'l-ghaybi bi daneen (and
he withholds not a knowledge of the unseen)
Kitaab al-Masaahif by al-Sajistaani,
p. 49.
This report is da'eef jiddan (very weak) or
mawdoo' (fabricated), because its isnaad
includes `Abbaad ibn Suhayb, whose hadeeth is to
be rejected.
`Ali ibn al-Madeeni said: his hadeeth is no
good. Al-Bukhaari, al-Nasaa'i and others said:
he is matrook (to be rejected). Ibn Hibbaan
said: he was a Qadari who promoted his innovated
ideas, and he narrated things which a beginner
in this field would realize were fabricated if
he heard them. Al-Dhahabi said: he is one of
those who are to be rejected.
See Meezaan al-I'tidaal, by
al-Dhahabi, 4/28.
The text of the report is also false, because
it dos not make sense that these changes could
be made in the Qur'aan and then spread
throughout the world. Even some of the
non-Muslims, such as the Raafidis (Shi'ah) who
think that the Qur'aan is incomplete, rejected
this and criticized its text.
Al-Kho'i, who is one of the Raafidis, said:
"This claim is like the hallucination of one who
is suffering a fever, or like the fairy tales of
the insane or of children. Al-Hajjaaj was one of
the governors of the Umayyads, and he is too
incapable to do anything to the Qur'aan. He is
even incapable of changing any of the minor
issues of Islam, so how could he change the
thing which is the foundation of the religion
and the basis of sharee'ah? Where would he get
the power to introduce this change throughout
the realm of Islam and beyond at the time when
the Qur'aan was well known throughout the Muslim
world? How come no historian has ever mentioned
this disastrous event even though it is so
serious and they would have a lot of motives to
mention it? How come no one among the Muslims of
his time narrated it? How could the Muslims have
turned a blind eye to such an action after the
reign of al-Hajjaaj came to an end? Even if we
assume that he could have gathered all the
copies of the Qur'aan and that not one single
copy escaped his grasp anywhere in the far-flung
regions of the Islamic world, how could he have
removed it from the hearts of the Muslims and
those who had memorized it, the number of whom
at that time is known only to Allaah."
(al-Bayaan fi Tafseer al-Qur'aan, p.
219)
What the questioner mentions about Imam
al-Sajistaani, and that he wrote a book called
Ma Ghayyarahu al-Hajjaaj fi Mus-haf `Uthmaan
(What al-Hajjaaj altered in the Mus-haf of
`Uthmaan) is not true, rather it is a
blatant lie. All there is, is the commentary
that al-Sajistaani wrote concerning the words
quoted above from al-Hajjaaj, entitled Baab
Ma Kataba al-Hajjaaj ibn Yoosuf fi'l-Mus-haf
(Chapter on what al-Hajjaaj wrote in the
Mus-haf).
On this basis, we cannot rely upon this
report under any circumstances whatsoever. The
fact that until now it has not been proven that
anyone has succeeded in his attempt to change
even one letter (of the Qur'aan) is sufficient
to prove that it is a lie. If what has been
narrated is true, then it would be possible to
repeat it, especially at the times when the
Muslims were weak and their enemies plotted
against them. It is such specious arguments that
prove that these claims are false, and that our
enemies are incapable of refuting the evidence
of the Qur'aan or its clarity, so they resorted
to attacking it.
And Allaah knows best.
Islam Q&A (www.islam-qa.com) 695: Can one celebrate
completing the Qur'aan?
Question:
A young girl has finished reading the Qur'aan
for the first time, and wants to invite her
friends for a celebration on this occasion. What
should she write on the invitation cards?
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
This is a wonderful thing for such a young
person (11 years old) living in a non-Muslim
country and deviant society to accomplish. The
fact that she has not given her name is a sign
of sincerity, in sha Allaah. I think that this
should only be announced for the purposes of
encouraging others to do the same. The affair
should be limited to a small gathering where
some relatives or friends invite a few of the
girl's friends, tell them of her achievement in
completing the Qur'aan in order to encourage
them - not to show off or boast - and some of
the mothers say a few words about the greatness
of the Qur'aan, the importance of reading it and
how the Muslim should treat the Qur'aan. Or this
girl could invite her friends to a meal to mark
the occasion and give thanks for this blessing.
There is nothing wrong with such activities, as
long as one is careful not to let it turn into a
celebration.
It is clear from the above that celebrating a
person's completion of reciting or memorizing
the Qur'aan, inviting people and offering food,
is an action in which there is a risk of two
fitnahs (temptations):
(1) that it might be
an occasion for showing off and boasting, and
(2) that it may constitute bid'ah, if people
believe that such celebrations are part of the
religion and must be held every time a person
completes the reading of the Qur'aan. The first
danger may be avoided by striving within oneself
to be sincere towards Allaah, and the second by
restricting the invitees to a small number of
family and friends.
We should not hold
such gatherings regularly, lest people think it
is a part of the Sunnah I ask Allaah to increase
His blessings upon you and to give you the
strength to memorize Qur'aan and Sincerity in
speech and deeds.
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid
(www.islam-qa.com) 2255: Entering the bathroom
with a necklace with Qur'aanic aayaat
Question:
Can my wife enter the bathroom with a
neckless that has words of the Qur'an on it?
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
It is not permitted to enter the bathroom
with anything that has aayat from the Qur'aan on
it, because this could lead to disrespect of the
Word of Allaah, may He be glorified and exalted.
Therefore, your wife should remove this necklace
before entering the bathroom. Our advice is that
women should not wear any jewellery with aayaat
or du'aa's on it, because there are a number of
reservations about this practice, of which
wearing it when entering the bathroom is just
one.
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid
(www.islam-qa.com) 3214: The order of Soorahs
and Aayahs in the Qur'aan
Question:
Why are the sourates in Quran ordered are
they are ? (since the first sourate is the one
which begins with "Iqraa")
Baraka Allah
fikoum
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
The fact there is scholarly consensus, and
many texts stating the order of aayahs in one
soorah, that is very well known. The consensus
was reported by many scholars, including
Al-Zarkashi in al-Burhaan and Abu Ja'far,
who said: "The order of the aayahs in their
soorahs came about because this is how it was
instituted by the Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) and there is no dispute
among the Muslims with regard to this matter."
The texts regarding this matter include the
following:
The report narrated by Ahmad, Abu
Dawood, al-Tirmidhi, al-Nisaa'i, Ibn Hibbaan and
al-Haakim from Ibn `Abbaas, who said: "I said to
`Uthmaan, `What made you put al-Anfaal
which is one of the Mathaani, next to
Baraa'ah [al-Tawbah], which is one
of the Mi'een? Why did you not put the
line Bismillaah ir-Rahmaan ir-Raheem in
between them when you put it at the beginning of
the rest of al-Sab' al-Tiwaal [the long
seven soorahs]?" `Uthmaan said: "The Messenger
of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) used to receive revelation of soorahs with
many aayahs. When they were revealed, he would
call his scribes and tell them, `Put these
aayahs in the soorah where such-and-such is
mentioned.' Al-Anfaal was one of the
first soorahs to be revealed in Madeenah, and
Baraa'ah (al-Tawbah) was one of
the last parts of the Qur'aan to be revealed.
Its stories were similar to the stories
mentioned in al-Anfaal, so it was thought
that it was part of it. The Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was
taken [i.e., died] without explaining whether it
was indeed part of it, so they were put next to
one another, and the line Bismillaahi
ir'Rahmaan ir'Raheem was not written between
them, and it [al-Tawbah] was put among
the Sab' al-Tiwaal [seven long soorahs]."
(Al-Haakim said: its isnaad is saheeh, and
al-Dhahabi agreed with him. Al-Mustadrak,
2/330)
Ahmad narrated in al-Musnad (4/218)
with a hasan isnaad from `Uthmaan ibn Abi'l-`Aas
that he said: "I was sitting with the Messenger
of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) when he fixed his gaze on something, then
lowered his gaze until he was almost looking at
the ground, then he gazed at something. He said,
`Jibreel (peace be upon him) came to me and told
me to put this aayah in this place in this
soorah:
"Verily, Allâh enjoins Al-`Adl (i.e.
justice and worshipping none but Allâh Alone —
Islâmic Monotheism) and Al-Ihsân [i.e. to be
patient in performing your duties to Allâh,
totally for Allâh's sake and in accordance with
the Sunnah (legal ways) of the Prophet in a
perfect manner], and giving (help) to kith and
kin (i.e. all that Allâh has ordered you to give
them, e.g., wealth, visiting, looking after
them, or any other kind of help), and forbids
Al-Fahshâ' (i.e. all evil deeds, e.g. illegal
sexual acts, disobedience of parents,
polytheism, to tell lies, to give false witness,
to kill a life without right), and Al-Munkar
(i.e. all that is prohibited by Islâmic law:
polytheism of every kind, disbelief and every
kind of evil deeds), and Al-Baghy (i.e. all
kinds of oppression). He admonishes you, that
you may take heed." [al-Nahl 16:90 _
interpretation of the meaning].'"
Al-Bukhaari narrated in al-Saheeh (no.
4536) that Ibn Abi Maleekah said: "Ibn al-Zubayr
said: `I said to `Uthmaan, "This aayah that is
in al-Baqarah (interpretation of the
meaning), `And those of you who die and leave
wives behind them … And those of you who die and
leave behind wives should bequeath for their
wives a year's maintenance and residence without
turning them out' [al-Baqarah 2:234-240] has
been abrogated by the other, so why are you
writing it down it down?" He said, "Leave it as
it is, my nephew, I will not change anything
from its place."'"
Muslim narrated (no. 1617) that `Umar said:
"I did not ask the Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) about anything more than
I asked him about al-Kalaalah [those who
die leaving neither ascendants nor descendents
as heirs], until he poked me in the chest with
his finger and said, "Is not aayat al-sayf [?]
at the end of Soorat al-Nisa' enough for you?"
There are also the ahaadeeth about the aayahs
at the end of Soorat al-Baqarah.
Muslim narrated (no. 809) from Abu al-Darda'
that whoever memorizes the first ten aayahs of
Soorat al-Kahf will be protected from the
Dajjaal; according to another version, whoever
recites the last ten verses will be protected.
The Prophet's recitation of various soorahs
in the presence of his companions indicates that
the order of their aayahs is something that was
instituted and commanded by him, and that the
Sahaabah did not put the aayahs in a different
order from that in which the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to recite
them. The reports to that effect reach the level
of Mutawaatir.
Al-Qaadi Abu Bakr said in al-Intisaar:
"The order of the aayahs is something that is
obligatory and binding. Jibreel used to say (to
the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him)), `Put such and such an aayah in such
and such a place.'"
He also said: "What we think is that all of
the Qur'aan which Allaah revealed and commanded
that it should be written down, and which was
not abrogated after being revealed, is that
which is contained between the covers of the
Mus-haf of `Uthmaan, and that there is
nothing lacking or added to it. Its order is the
same as that commanded by Allaah, may He be
exalted, and instituted by the Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him). Nobody has
moved any aayah backwards or forwards. The Ummah
learned from the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) the order of the aayahs of
each soorah properly, just as they learned from
him the correct pronunciation and recitation."
Al-Baghawi said in Sharh al-Sunnah:
"The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) used to instruct his
companions and teach them what was revealed to
him of the Qur'aan in the order in which it
appears in our Mus-hafs now, the order
which Jibreel taught him. When each aayah was
revealed, Jibreel would tell him, this aayah is
to be written after such and such an aayah in
Soorah such and such. Thus it is clear that the
efforts of the Sahaabah were limited solely to
gathering the Qur'aan in one place, not to
arranging its order. The Qur'aan is written on
al-Lawh al-Mahfooz in this order, then
Allaah sent it down in its entirety to the first
heaven, whence it was revealed in stages as it
was needed, and the order in which it was
revealed is not the order in which it is
recited."
With regard to the order of Soorahs, was this
also instituted by the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him), or was this
the ijtihaad of the Sahaabah? With regard to
this question, there were differences among the
scholars. The majority of scholars, including
Maalik and al-Qaadi Abu Bakr, according to one
of his two opinions, favoured the second
opinion.
Ibn Faaris said: "There were two aspects to
the compilation of the Qur'aan. One was putting
the soorahs in a certain order, such as putting
al-Sab' al-Tiwaal (the seven long
soorahs) first, and following them with the
Mi'een, which is what the Sahaabah did.
The second aspect is the compilation of the
aayahs within the soorahs. This was instituted
by the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him), who recited them as he was told to by
Jibreel, on the command of his Lord. On this
basis the salaf differed as to the order in
which the soorahs should appear. Some of them
put them in order of revelation, which was the
mus-haf of `Ali, which started with
Iqra' (al-`Alaq), then
al-Muddaththir, then Noon
(al-Qalam), then al-Muzzammil, and
so on. The Mus-haf of Ibn Mas'ood started
with al-Baqarah, then al-Nisa',
then Aal `Imraan, with other major
differences. The Mus-haf of Ubayy was
similar."
Al-Karmaani said in al-Burhaan: the
order of the soorahs as it is now is the same as
that in al-Lawh al-Mahfooz which is with
Allaah. This is the order in which the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used
to review the soorahs of the Qur'aan he had
received so far with Jibreel each year. In the
year in which he died, he reviewed it with him
twice, and the last aayahs to be revealed were
(interpretation of the meaning): `And be
afraid of the Day when you shall be brought back
to Allaah…' [al-Baqarah 2:281]. Jibreel
commanded the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) to put this between the
aayahs dealing with riba and those dealing with
loans."
Al-Zarkashi said in al-Burhaan: "The
difference between the two views is one of
wording. Those who support the second view say
that it was taught to them so that they could
learn the reasons of Revelation and the sequence
of the words. Hence Maalik said that they
compiled the Qur'aan according to what they had
heard from the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him), as well as saying that the
order of the soorahs was the product of their
ijtihaad. He said that the dispute boils down to
one question which is: was this a verbal
instruction of the Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him), or were they merely
referring to what he used to do, which would
give them room for ijtihaad."
Al-Bayhaqi said in al-Madkhil: "At the
time of the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him), the soorahs and aayahs of
the Qur'aan were in this order, except for
al-Anfaal and Baraa'ah
(al-Tawbah), as we see from the hadeeth
of `Uthmaan referred to above."
Ibn `Atiyah said: "The order of many of the
soorahs was known during the lifetime of the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him), such as the seven long soorahs, those that
begin with Ha'-Meem, and
al-Mufassal. With regard to the others,
it may be the case that it was left for the
Ummah to determine their order after he died."
Abu Ja'far said: "The reports support most of
what Ibn `Atiyah said, and a little is left
which is open to debate, such as the hadeeth,
`Recite the two shining ones, al-Baqarah
and Aal `Imraan.'" (Reported by Muslim,
no. 804).
Al-Bukhaari narrated (no. 4739) that
`Abd-Allaah ibn Mas'ood (may Allaah be pleased
with him) said: "Bani Israa'eel
(al-Israa'), al-Kahf,
Maryam, Ta-Ha and
al-Anbiya', these are among the earliest
and most beautiful soorahs and they are my
treasures," (meaning, these are among the
earliest I recited).
Abu Ja'far al-Nahhaas al-Mukhtaar said that
the soorahs were compiled in this order from the
Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) because of the hadeeth of
Waathilah, "In place of the Tawraat I was given
the seven long soorahs." He said: "This hadeeth
indicates that the order of the Qur'aan was
taken from the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him).
Ibn Hajar said, "the fact that the soorahs ,
or most of them, are in a given order does not
contradict the idea that this was instituted by
the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him). What proves that this was instituted
by the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) is the report narrated by Ahmad and
Abu Dawood from Aws ibn Hudhayfah, who said: `We
asked the companions of the Messenger of Allaah
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) in
the morning, "How did you write down the Qur'aan
in chapters?" They said, "We wrote it down in
chapters of six soorahs, five soorahs, seven
soorahs, nine soorahs, eleven soorahs and
thirteen soorahs, and the chapter of
al-Mufassal, from Qaaf until the end.
This indicates that the order of the soorahs _
as it appears in the Mus-haf now _
existed at the time of the Messenger of Allaah,
or it is possible that what was known in order
at that time was Hizb al-Mufassal
specifically, which is not the case with the
rest."
See al-Itqaan fi `Uloom
al-Qur'aan by al-Suyooti, 1/62-65).
And Allaah knows best.
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid
(www.islam-qa.com) 8177: If a person looks at
the Mus-haf without moving his lips, will he be
rewarded for that?
Question:
Some people pick up the Mus-haf and look at
it without moving their lips. Can this be called
reading Qur'aan? Or is it essential to pronounce
the words audibly in order to earn the reward
for reading Qur'aan? Will a person be rewarded
for looking at the Mus-haf? Please advise us,
may Allaah reward you with good.
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah. There is nothing to
prevent a person looking at the Qur'aan without
reciting it, in order to ponder its meanings and
understand it. But he is not considered to be
"reading" Qur'aan when he does that, and he does
not earn the reward for reading it unless he
pronounces (the words of) the Qur'aan, even if
those around him do not hear him. The Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
said:
"Read the Qur'aan, for it will come on the
Day of Resurrection to intercede for its
companions." (Narrated by Muslim).
What he (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) meant by its companions is those who
act upon it, as stated in other ahaadeeth. The
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) said: "Whoever reads one letter of the
Qur'aan will have one hasanah, and the hasanah
will be rewarded tenfold." (Narrated by
al-Tirmidhi and al-Daarimi with a saheeh
isnaad). And one cannot be counted as reading
Qur'aan unless once actually pronounces it.
And Allaah is the source of strength.
Majmoo' Fataawa wa Maqaalaat Mutanawwi'ah li
Samaahat al-Shaykh al-`Allaamah `Abd al-`Azeez
ibn `Abd-Allaah ibn Baaz (may Allaah have mercy
on him), vol. 8, p. 363 (www.islam-qa.com) 10984: The times when it is
permissible to recite Qur'aan
Question:
Can Suratul-Fatihah be recited at any time? I
heard that it can only be recited at certain
times only, like salaat or as prescribed by the
Prophet (May Allaah's peace and blessings be
upon him) for specific needs. If it is the
latter, could you list the proper times to
recite it?
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
It is permissible for you to recite Qur'aan,
or any soorah from it, at any time and in any
situation, except when you are in a state of
janaabah (impurity following sexual activity),
in which case it is haraam to recite Qur'aan,
because of the hadeeth of `Ali who said: "The
Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) used to recite Qur'aan to us
in all situations so long as he was not in a
state of janaabah." (Narrated by al-Tirmidhi,
al-Tahaarah, 136. al-Tirmidhi said: this
hadeeth of `Ali is hasan saheeh). This was also
the view of the scholars among the companions of
the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) and the Taabi'een. They said
a man may recite Qur'aan without wudoo' but he
should not read from the Mus-haf unless he is
taahir (pure, i.e., has wudoo'). This was the
view of Sufyaan al-Thawri, al-Shaafa'i, Ahmad
and Ishaaq.
See Da'eef Sunan al-Tirmidhi by
al-Albaani, hadeeth no. 22
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah said: The imams
are agreed that it is haraam to recite Qur'aan
when in a state of janaabah.
It is not proper etiquette to recite Qur'aan
when one is in a state of janaabah because it is
the words of Allaah which must be respected and
venerated, and kept away from all unclean places
and places where haraam things take place, which
could dishonour it and show disrespect towards
its sanctity. Moreover the person who is in a
state of janaabah can remove the impurity
whenever he wants, so he is not allowed to
recite Qur'aan. But if you are impure in the
sense of minor impurity then it is permissible
for you to recite only, without touching the
Mus-haf. See question no. 10672. With regard to
women when they are menstruating or bleeding
following childbirth, see question no. 2564. And
Allaah knows best.
See Tawdeeh Ahkaam al-Nisa', 1/309.
Islam Q&A. Sheikh Muhammed Salih
Al-Munajjid (www.islam-qa.com) 21182: A soorah in which the
name of Allaah is mentioned in every aayah.
Question:
Is there a soorah in which the name of Allaah
is mentioned in every aayah?
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
This soorah is Soorat al-Mujaadilah (no. 58).
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid
(www.islam-qa.com) 20100: It is permissible to
accept payment for teaching Qur'aan
Question:
Is it right to take/accept money for teaching
Quran?
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
The Standing Committee was asked about
whether it is permissible to accept payment for
teaching Qur'aan. They replied:
Yes, it is permissible to accept payment for
teaching Qur'aan according to the more correct
of the two scholarly views, because of the
general meaning of the hadeeth:
"The thing for which you most deserve to take
payment is the Book of Allaah," (narrated by
al-Bukhaari), and because there is a real need
for that. And Allaah is the Source of strength.
May Allah bless our Prophet Muhammad.
Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa'imah, vol. 4, p. 91
(www.islam-qa.com) 8029: Ruling on reading
Qur'aan in a house where there is a dog
Question:
What is the ruling on reading Qur'aan in a
house where there is a dog?
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
There is nothing wrong with that, but you
have to get the dog out of the house and not
keep it inside, unless it is for one of three
reasons, namely hunting, farming or herding
livestock. The Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) said: "Whoever keeps a dog,
unless it is a dog for hunting, herding or
farming, his reward will decrease by two qiraats
(i.e., a large amount) every day." (Agreed
upon).
And Allaah is the Source of strength.
Majmoo' Fataawa wa Maqaalaat Mutanawwi'ah li
Samaahat al-Shaykh al-`Allaamah `Abd al-`Azeez
ibn `Abd-Allaah ibn Baaz (may Allaah have mercy
on him), vol. 8, p. 362 (www.islam-qa.com) 4607: Is it true that there
is no evidence of a Qur'aan being written in the
7th century?
Question:
I was womndering if it is true that there is
no evidence that there is no trace of a Qu'ran
being written in the 7 th century
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
This is a false and incorrect statement made
by those who try to find faults with Islam so as
to put people off this religion. It is
sufficient to know that Allaah has guaranteed to
preserve the Qur'aan, as He says (interpretation
of the meaning):
"Verily, We, it is We Who have sent down
the Dhikr (i.e. the Qur'aan) and surely, We will
guard it (from corruption)." [al-Hijr 15:9]
Moreover, the fact that the transmission of
the Qur'aan by memory and in writing was
mutawaatir _ narrated by groups to groups [to
such an extent that so many people could not
conceivably have agreed upon a lie] _ is well
known to anyone who has the slightest
acquaintance with Islamic knowledge, especially
knowledge of recitations and reciters.
There are still many people nowadays who have
learned the Qur'aan orally, with isnaads
directly going back to the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him).
One of the miracles of Allaah's protection of
the Qur'aan is the fact that those who try to
tamper with it are always found out.
The point is, everything that was revealed to
the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) was written down in front of him
straight away, and some of the Sahaabah had
masaahif (written copies of the Qur'aan).
After the death of the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him), the first
khaleefah, Abu Bakr al-Siddeeq (may Allaah be
pleased with him) gathered the Qur'aan in
written and kept it. Then the third khaleefah,
`Uthmaan ibn `Affaan (may Allaah be pleased with
him) compiled it in mus-hafs that were based on
the mus-haf compiled by Abu Bakr, in addition to
what had been memorized.
When we realize that the Qur'aan was written
down and compiled by the Sahaabah, and `Uthmaan
sent copies of the Mus-haf during his reign to
all the main centres of Islam, so that it would
be a reference for them, and there were no
disputes concerning them, then how can we say
that there is no written trace of the Qur'aan in
the seventh century? Moreover, there are several
ancient manuscripts of the Qur'aan in libraries
and museums which bear visible testimony to the
fact that nothing has been changed in the Book
of Allaah. Allaah says (interpretation of the
meaning):
"And verily, it is an honourable
wellfortified respected Book (because it is
Allaah's Speech, and He has protected it from
corruption). Falsehood cannot come to it from
before it or behind it, (it is) sent down by the
AllWise, Worthy of all praise (Allaah)."
[Fussilat 41:41-42]
And Allaah knows best.
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid
(www.islam-qa.com) 7198: Reciting Surahs and
Aayahs in a different order
Question:
My question is regarding the order in which
the quran should be recited in a prayer, either
outloud or quietely.
Should the wroshipper recite the surahs or
ayahs in the order that they are presented in
the quran. For example, is it permissible to
recite surah Al-Nas in the first rakah followed
by surah Al-Kawthar in the second rakah, or ayah
50-60 in surah al Baqara (for example), followed
by ayah 10-20 in the second rakah.
please
clarify this and explain why so.
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
Reading later parts of the Qur'aan before
earlier parts is called Tankees
(inversion). There are different types of
Tankees:
Tankees al-Huroof (inversion of
letters)
Tankees al-Kalimaat (inversion of
words)
Tankees al-Aayat (inversion of verses)
Tankees al-Suwar (inversion of
Soorahs)
Tankees al-Huroof (inversion of
letters) means putting a later letter before a
previous letter in one word, for example,
instead of "Rabb" one reads "Barr"
Undoubtedly this is haraam, and invalidates a
person's prayer, because it changes the Qur'aan
from the way in which it was spoken by Allaah,
and usually alters the meaning in a drastic
manner.
(Al-Sharh al-Mumti' by Ibn `Uthaymeen,
3/110)
Tankees al-Kalimaat (inversion of
words) means putting a later word before a
previous word, for example, instead of "Qul
huwa Allaahu ahad", one reads "Ahad
Allaah huwa qul"!
This also is undoubtedly haraam, because it
changes the Qur'aan from the way in which it was
spoken by Allaah.
(Al-Sharh al-Mumti', 3/110)
Tankees al-Aayat (inversion of verses)
means reciting a later aayah before a previous
aayah, for example, reciting "min sharr
il-waswaas il-khannaas" before "ilaah
il-naas"!
Concerning this, al-Qaadi `Ayyaad (may Allaah
have mercy on him) said:
There is no dispute concerning the order of
the aayahs in each soorah. This is something
which is Tawqeefi, i.e., based on
revelation [and is not open to ijtihaad], and
the order is that which now appears in the
Mus-haf, and this is how the ummah transmitted
it from the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him).
(Sharh al-Nawawi, 6/62. This was also
the view of Ibn al-`Arabi, as stated in
al-Fath, 2/257).
Shaykh Ibn `Uthaymeen said:
Tankees al-aayaat (inverting verses)
is also haraam according to the most correct
view, because the order of the aayahs is
tawqeefi (something which is based on
revelation [and not open to ijtihaad]). The
meaning of "tawqeefi" is that it was
dictated by the order of the Messenger (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him).
(al-Sharh al-Mumti', 3/110).
Tankees al-Suwar (inversion of
Soorahs) means, reciting later soorahs before
earlier ones, for example, reciting Aal
`Imraan before al-Baqarah.
The ruling on this:
Those scholars who say that the order of
soorahs is not tawqeefi do not see
anything wrong with this.
Those who think that it is tawqeefi or
that the consensus of the Sahaabah on the order
of soorahs is evidence, do not think that it is
permissible.
The correct view:
Is that the order of soorahs is not
tawqeefi; it is the result of ijtihaad on
the part of some of the Sahaabah.
There was no ijmaa' (consensus) among
the Sahaabah on the order of soorahs; the order
in the Mus-haf of `Abd-Allaah ibn Mas'ood _ for
example _ is different from that in the Mushafs
of others.
In the Sunnah there is evidence that supports
the view that it is permissible:
(A) Hudhayfah said: I prayed with the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) one
night, and he started to recite
al-Baqarah. I thought, he will do rukoo'
when he reaches one hundred aayaat, but he kept
going. I thought, he will complete it in one
rak'ah, but he kept going. I thought, he will do
rukoo' now, but he started to recite
al-Nisaa', and he recited all of it, then
he started to recite Aal `Imraan and
recited all of it… (Narrated by Muslim, 772).
The evidence in this hadeeth is that he
recited al-Nisaa' then Aal
`Imraan.
Al-Nawawi said:
Al-Qaadi `Ayyaad said: this contains evidence
for those who say that the order of soorahs is
the result of ijtihaad on the part of the
Muslims when they wrote down the Mus-haf. The
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) did not dictate the order of soorahs; he
entrusted this task to his ummah after his
death. This is the view of Maalik and the
majority of the scholars, and was the view
favoured by al-Qaadi Abu Bakr al-Baaqillaani.
Ibn al-Baaqillaani said: it is the more correct
of the two views, although both are possible.
He said: what we say is that the order of
soorahs is not binding when writing, praying,
studying, teaching or learning. There is no
report from the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) concerning that which would
make it forbidden to differ from it. Hence the
order of soorahs in the various Mus-hafs
differed, before the Mus-haf of `Uthmaan.
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) and the ummah after him in all ages
regarded it as permissible to differ from the
order of soorahs in prayer, and when studying
and teaching.
He said: with regard to the view of those
scholars who say that (the order of soorahs) was
set by the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) and that he put them in the
same order as appears in the Mus-haf of `Uthmaan
_ and that the different orders came about
before they heard of his ruling and his final
review of the Qur'aan with Jibreel _ they
interpret the fact that he (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) recited al-Nisaa'
first and then Aal `Imraan as meaning
that this happened before the final ruling was
dictated, and these two soorahs appear in this
order in the Mus-haf of Ubayy.
He said: there is no dispute concerning the
fact that a person who is praying may recite in
the second rak'ah a soorah which comes before
the soorah which he recited in the first rak'ah;
but it is makrooh to do this in one rak'ah, or
when reciting Qur'aan outside of salaah.
He said: but some of them permitted this.
The prohibition of the Salaf against reading
the Qur'aan backwards is interpreted as
referring to those who read from the end of a
soorah to the beginning.
He said: there is no dispute concerning the
fact that the order of aayaat in each soorah is
based on revelation from Allaah and is as it now
appears in the Mus-haf and as it was transmitted
by the ummah from the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him).
(End of the comments of al-Qaadi `Ayyaad).
And Allaah knows best.
(Sharh Muslim, 6/61, 62).
Al-Sindi said:
The phrase [in the hadeeth of Hudhayfah]
"then he started to recite Aal
`Imraan" means that it is not obligatory
to follow the order of soorahs when reciting.
(Sharh al-Nisaa'i, 3/226).
(B) It was reported from Anas ibn Maalik (may
Allaah be pleased with him) that a man from
among the Ansaar used to lead them in prayer in
the mosque of Qubaa'. Every time he led them in
prayer, he would start his recitation with
"Qul huwa Allaahu ahad", then when he
finished it, he would recite another soorah. He
did that in every rak'ah. His companions spoke
with him and said, "You always start with this
soorah, then you do not think it is enough and
you recite another. Either you should recite
this soorah alone, or you should leave it and
recite another." He said, "I am not going to
stop reciting it. If you like, I will lead you
in prayer as I have been doing, and if you do
not like it, I will leave you." They felt that
he was one of the best of them, and they did not
want anyone else to lead them in prayer. When
the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) came to them, they told him about
this. He said, "O So and so, what is stopping
you from doing what your companions tell you?
What makes you keep on reciting this soorah in
every rak'ah?" He said, "I love it." He said,
"Your love for it will grant you admittance to
Paradise." (Narrated by al-Bukhaari
mu'allaqan, and by al-Tirmidhi with an
isnaad similar to that of al-Bukhaari, 2901).
The evidence in this report is the fact that
the man recited Soorat al-Ikhlaas in his prayer
before any other soorah that comes before it (in
the Mus-haf), and the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) approved of
that.
(C) This is the action of `Umar (may Allaah
be pleased with him).
Al-Imaam al-Bukhaari said:
Al-Ahnaf recited al-Kahf in the first
rak'ah and Yoosuf or Yoonus in the
second, and he said that he had prayed Fajr with
`Umar and he had done the same.
(Baab al-Jam' bayna Sooratayn
fi'l-Rak'ah, in Kitaab al-Adhaan).
With regard to the latter part of your
question, we say:
It is permissible to recite aayahs 50-60 of
al-Baqarah in the first rak'ah, then to
recite aayahs 1-20 of al-Baqarah in the
second rak'ah, because then the meaning of the
passage will be complete.
But reciting aayahs 10-20 means that one is
cutting off the meaning, so it is better not to
do this. Perhaps you mentioned the numbers only
by way of example and you did not mean these
particular aayaat. And Allaah knows best.
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid
(www.islam-qa.com) 1505: They get together and
each person reads one juz'; will this be
considered as a khutmah (complete reading of the
Qur'aan) for all of them?
Question:
There are people who sit together to read the
Qur'aan quietly. Each individual reads one juz'
(part) of the Qur'aan, claiming that the entire
Qur'aan will have been read in this gathering.
Is this permissible or is it counted as being
bid'ah (innovation)?
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
In my opinion the action mentioned is not
permissible, and I do not recall anything of
this kind being reported from the Salaf. A
person will only be rewarded for what he himself
reads or listens to in order to benefit from it.
But if another person reads and he does not
listen, the reward for that will go to the
person who read it. These people are not
considered to have completed the whole Qur'aan;
but if each person has read a juz' he will be
rewarded for that. But they should not do this;
either one person should read and the others
listen, or each person should read by himself
without making a connection between his reading
and that of the others.
Al-Lu'lu' al-Makeen min Fataawa al-Shaykh Ibn
Jibreen, p. 50
(www.islam-qa.com) 254: Ruling on hanging
verses of the Qur'aan on walls
Question:
When visiting muslims, I noticed that many of
them put verses of the Qur'an on the walls or
pictures with the names Allah and Mohammed. I
know a lot of muslims think that it is good to
do so because it will protect them and their
house. Personally, I consider it a form of shirk
or superstition. Is there any ruling on that
subject?
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
Hanging plaques and cloths containing aayaat
of the Qur'aan in homes, schools, social clubs
and places of business, involves a number of
reservations and prohibitions according to
Islam, such as the following:
(1) In most cases, hanging such things on the
wall is done for purposes of decoration and
adornment, as the aayaat etc. are written in
calligraphy and colourful brocade. This is an
inappropriate use of the Qur'aan, as it was
revealed to guide people and to be read
regularly. The Qur'aan was not revealed to
decorate walls, but to guide mankind.
(2) Some people hang up such things for
"blessing" - which is a form of bid`ah. The
blessing as described in Islam comes from
reading or reciting the Qur'aan, not from
hanging it up or placing it on shelves or
turning it into artwork and three-dimensional
images.
(3) This is contrary to the practice of the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) and the Rightly-Guided Khaleefahs
(al-Khulafaa' al-Raashidoon), may Allaah
be pleased with them, who never did such a
thing. The best way is to follow them, not to
introduce bid`ah. History tells us that in
places such as Andalusia, Turkey, etc., the
adornment of houses and mosques with ornate
carvings of aayaat only happened at times when
the Muslims were weak and humiliated.
(4) Hanging up such pictures or plaques could
lead to shirk, because some people think
that these things are amulets that will protect
the house and its people from evil and disease.
This is shirk and is haraam, because the
One Who really offers protection is Allaah, may
He be glorified, and one of the means of gaining
His protection is sincere recitation of the
Qur'an and du`aa's taught in the Qur'aan
and Sunnah.
(5) There is the risk that the Qur'aan may be
used, in such cases, as a means of promoting
one's business or increasing one's earnings. The
Qur'aan should be protected from being used for
such purposes. It is well-known that the
production and sale of these pictures and
plaques involves a great deal of extravagance
and wasting money.
(6) Many of these plaques are painted with
real gold, which makes using them and hanging
them up even more haraam.
(7) Many of these plaques involve a kind of
carelessness, because the letters are twisted
into complex designs that are of no benefit to
anyone because they are barely legible.
Sometimes words are fashioned into the shape of
a bird or a man prostrating, and similarly
forbidden pictures of animate beings.
(8) Ayaat and soorahs of the Qur'aan are
exposed to misuse and abuse by this practice.
For example, when moving house, they are piled
up with the rest of the furniture and
belongings, and other objects may be placed on
top of them. This also happens when they are
taken down so that the wall may be painted or
cleaned.
(9) Some Muslims whose observance of Islam is
lacking put these plaques and pictures up so
that they can feel that they are doing something
religious, in order to reduce their feelings of
guilt _ in spite of the fact that this practice
does not help them in any way.
All in all, we must close the doors of evil
and follow the leaders of guidance of the early
centuries of Islam, whose people the Prophet
(peace be upon him) testified were the best of
the Muslims in faith and practice. If someone
were to say, "We are not going to abuse it or
make it a decoration or exaggerate about it, we
only want to remind people (about their
religion) in our gatherings", our response would
be: if we look at real life, will we find that
this is what actually happens? Do people really
remember Allah? Do they even read these aayaat
when they raise their heads?
What really happens is the opposite: people
go against the words hanging over their heads,
they still tell lies, engage in gossip, make fun
of others and do and say evil things. Even if we
assume that there are some who do benefit from
these plaques etc., the fact is that they are
very few, and this does not change the
hukm (Islamic ruling) on the matter.
The Muslims must turn to the Book of Allaah,
read it and recite it, and act in accordance
with it. We ask Allaah to make the Qur'aan a
light of guidance for us, and a means of
removing our grief and anxiety. May Allaah bless
our Prophet Muhammad.
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid
(www.islam-qa.com) 3465: Which is better, to
recite Qur'aan from the Mushaf or from memory?
Question:
Is it better to recite from the Mushaf than
from memory? Please explain.
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
If one is reciting Qur'aan in situations
other than in prayer, then reading from the
Mushaf is better, because it is more accurate
and helps one to remember better. But if
reciting from memory is easier and helps one to
concentrate more and have better presence of
mind (khushoo'), then one should recite from
memory.
In prayer, however, it is better to recite
from memory, because if a person recites from
the Mushaf, he will be doing repeated actions
such as holding the Mushaf, putting it down,
turning its pages and looking at the letters. By
doing so he will miss out on putting his right
hand over his left hand on his chest when
standing during the prayer, or spreading out his
arms during rukoo' and sujood, if he puts the
Mushaf under his arm. Hence we think that it is
preferable for a person who is praying to recite
from memory rather than from the Mushaf.
We see some people when they pray behind the
imaam, carrying the Mushaf and following the
imaam's recitation. This is something which
should not be done, for the reasons we have
referred to above, and because they do not need
to do anything except follow the imaam.
However, if the imaam does not have such a
good memory, and he says to one of the members
of the congregation, "Pray behind me, and follow
me (my recitation) in the Mushaf, and if I make
a mistake, correct me," then there is nothing
wrong with this.
From the fataawa of Shaykh ibn `Uthaymeen,
al-Fataawa al-Islamiyyah, 8/4).
(www.islam-qa.com) 5368: Rulings of al-Madd in
Qur'aan recitation
Question:
Would please tell me what the symbol "~" has
effect on the meaning of word or phrase of the
holy Quran
If some one does not Prolong the
sound of the letter under "~" would that change
the meanings ?
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
This symbol "~" is used to indicate places
where a Madd (elongation) that is longer than
the regular elongation is required. It is used
in places where the Madd is compulsory (Madd
laazim), as in the word "At-Taammah", where the
elongation is six harakaat or counts. One
harakah is equal to the time taken to curl or
stretch one finger. This symbol is also used for
al-Madd al-Muttasal (where a long vowel is
followed by a hamzah in one word), such as
"sawaa'un `alaynaa ", where the Madd is between
four and six harakaat. And it is used for
al-Madd al-Munfassal, (where one word ends with
a long vowel and is immediately followed by a
word that starts with a hamzah), as in the
phrase "fee aadhaaninaa waqar", where the Madd
is four or five harakaat.
This symbol does
not have any effect on the meanings of the
words; it is only used to indicate some kinds of
Madds or elongations, as explained above. The
Madd which is longer than the regular elongation
(two harakaat) does not change the meaning when
you do it. But we have to follow the Sunnah of
recitation, and the Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) used to elongate some
vowels in his recitation. And Allaah knows best.
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid
(www.islam-qa.com) 5126: Verses in the Qur'aan
where we should perform Sujood al-Tilaawah
Question:
I would like to know the specific ayats in
the Qu'Ran where we should prostrate.
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
There are fifteen places in the Qur'aan where
we should perform sajdat al-tilaawah
(prostration of recitation) when reciting them.
It was reported from `Amr ibn al-`Aas that the
Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) recited to him fifteen
verses in the Qur'aan where one should
prostrate, three of which are in al-Mufassal and
two in Soorat al-Hajj. It was reported by Abu
Dawood, Ibn Maajah, al-Haakim and al-Daaraqutni,
and classed as hasan by al-Mundhiri and
al-Nawawi. The fifteen aayat are (interpretation
of the meanings):
1 - "Surely those who are with your Lord
(angels) are never too proud to perform acts of
worship to Him, but they glorify His Praise and
prostrate before Him." [al-A'raaf 7:206]
2 - "And unto Allaah (Alone) falls in
prostration whoever is in the heavens and the
earth, willingly or unwillingly, and so do their
shadows in the mornings and in the afternoons."
[al-Ra'd 13:15]
3 _ "And to Allaah prostrate all that is in
the heavens and all that is in the earth, of the
live moving creatures and the angels, and they
are not proud [i.e., they worship their Lord
(Allaah) with humility]." [al-Nahl 16:49]
4 _ "Say (O Muhammad): `Believe in it (the
Qur'aan) or do not believe (in it). Verily!
Those who were given knowledge before it, when
it is recited to them, fall down on their faces
in humble prostration." [al-Isra' 17:107]
5 _ "… When the Verses of the Most Beneficent
(Allaah) were recited unto them, they fell down
prostrating and weeping." [Maryam 19:58]
6 _ "See you not that to Allaah prostrates
whoever is in the heavens and whoever is one the
earth, and the sun, and the moon, and the stars,
and the mountains, and the trees, and al-dawaab
(moving living creatures, beasts, etc.), and
many of mankind? But there are many (men) on
whom the punishment is justified. And whomsoever
Allaah disgraces, none can honour him. Verily!
Allaah does what He wills." [al-Hajj 22:18]
7 _ "O you who believe! Bow down, and
prostrate yourselves, and worship your Lord and
do good that you may be successful."
[al-Hajj 22:77]
8 _ "And when it is said to them: `Prostrate
to the Most Beneficent (Allaah)!' They say, `And
what is the Most Beneficent? Shall we fall down
in prostration to that which you (O Muhammad)
command us?' And it increases in them only
aversion."
[al-Furqaan 25:60]
9 _ "[As Shaytaan has barred them from
Allaah's Way] so that they do not worship
(prostrate before) Allaah, Who brings to light
what is hidden in the heavens and the earth, and
knows what you conceal and what you reveal."
[al-Naml 27:25]
10 _ "Only those believe in Our aayaat
(verses, signs, etc.) who, when they are
reminded of them fall down prostrate, and
glorify the Praises of their Lord, and they are
not proud."
[al-Sajdah 32:15]
11 _ "… And Dawood guessed that We had tried
him and he sought forgiveness of his Lord, and
he fell down prostrate and turned (to Allaah) in
repentance."
[Saad 38:24]
12 _ "And from among His Signs are the night
and the day, and the sun and the moon. Prostrate
not to the sun nor to the moon, but prostrate to
Him Who created them, if you (really) worship
Him."
[Fussilat 41:37]
13 _ "So fall down in prostration to Allaah,
and worship Him (Alone)."
[al-Najm 53:62]
14 _ "And when the Qur'aan is recited to
them, they fall not prostrate."
[al-Inshiqaaq 84:21]
15 _ "… Fall prostrate and draw near to
Allaah!"
[al-`Alaq 96:19]
Al-Albaani said, in Tamaam al-Minnah
(296):
"On the contrary, the hadeeth is not hasan,
because it includes two majhool [unknown]
narrators. Al-Haafiz said in al-Talkhees,
after quoting the opinion of al-Mundhiri and
al-Nawawi that it is hasan: `'Abd al-Haqq and
Ibn Qattaan classed it as da'eef [weak].
It includes `Abd-Allaah ibn Munayn, who is
majhool, and the one who narrated from
him is al-Haarith ibn Sa'eed al-`Atqi, who is
also unknown.' Ibn Maakoolaa said: ` He did not
narrate any hadeeth apart from this one."
Hence al-Tahhaawi was of the opinion that
there is no second sajdah in Soorat al-Hajj,
towards the end of the soorah. This is also the
opinion of Ibn Hazm who said in
al-Muhalla:
"Because it is not narrated in any saheeh
report that this was the Sunnah of the Messenger
of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him), and there is no scholarly consensus to
this effect. But it was reported with a saheeh
isnaad that `Umar ibn al-Khattaab, the daughter
of `Abd-Allaah and Abu Darda' performed sajdah
in (the second verse quoted from Soorat
al-Hajj)."
Then Ibn Hazm discussed whether the sajdahs
for the other aayaat quoted are prescribed in
Islam. He mentioned that the scholars are agreed
upon the first ten, that performing sujood when
reciting these aayaat is prescribed. Al-Tahhaawi
also reported this consensus in Sharh
al-Ma'aani (1/211), but he said that the
sajdah in Soorat Fussilat was prescribed,
instead of the sajdah in Soorat Saad. Both
scholars narrated ahaadeeth with saheeh isnaads
from the Messenger of Allaah (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) concerning the
sajdahs in Saad, al-Najm, al-Inshiqaaq and
al-`Alaq. These last three are from the
Mufassal, which is referred to in the hadeeth of
`Amr mentioned above.
In conclusion, even though the isnaad of the
hadeeth is weak, it is supported by the
consensus of the ummah which supports most of
it, and by saheeh ahaadeeth which support the
rest of it, except for the second sajdah in
Soorat al-Hajj, for which there is no evidence
in the Sunnah or in the consensus of the
scholars. But some of the Sahaabah used to
prostrate when reciting it, which could be taken
as evidence, especially since no one is known to
have disputed with them in this regard.
To sum up, the prostration of recitation
should be performed when reciting the fifteen
verses quoted above. And Allaah knows best.
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid
(www.islam-qa.com) 2915: What is the ruling on
hanging up aayaat for protection?
Question:
IS it proper to hang Quranic verses from the
wall to
1. protect one from evil things
2. beautify the room with divine words
3. with the intention that it will gain me
rewards
May allah rewad u.
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
The ruling on placing the Mus-haf (copy of
the Qur'aan) in cars to ward off the evil eye
and for protection from danger is a bid'ah. The
Sahaabah (may Allaah be pleased with them) never
carried the Mus-haf to ward off danger or the
evil eye. If it is bid'ah, then we should
remember that the Prophet (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) said: "Every bid'ah is a
going-astray and every going-astray will lead to
Hell." (Telephone conversation with Shaykh
Muhammad ibn Saalih al-`Uthaymeen) (al-Bida'
wa'l-Muhdathaat wa maa laa aslun lahu, p.
259).
Shaykh `Abd al-`Azeez ibn Baaz (may Allaah
have mercy on him) was also asked the following
question: "Some people hang up aayaat of the
Qur'aan and ahaadeeth of the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) in the rooms of
their homes or in restaurants or offices. In
some hospitals and doctors' offices they hang
the aayah (interpretation of the meaning):
"And when I am ill, it is He Who cures me"
[al-Shu'ara' 26:80], and so on. Is this
considered to be the use of amulets which is
forbidden in sharee'ah, knowing that the
intention behind it is to seek blessings and
ward off the shayaateen, or to remind the
forgetful and warn the negligent? Is it like
using amulets to put the Mus-haf in one's car in
order to seek blessings?"
His Eminence replied as follows:
"If the intention is as described, to remind
people and teach them something beneficial, then
there is no harm in that. But if they believe
that it is a protection against the shayaateen
or jinn, then I know of no basis for this. By
the same token, there is no basis for putting
the Mus-haf in one's car to protect it, and
doing so is not allowed, but if a person puts it
in his car so that he can read it sometimes or
so that some of his passengers can read it, then
this is good and there is nothing wrong with it.
And Allaah is the Source of strength.
(Fatawa Islamiyyah, 4/29). (Shaykh Ibn Baaz
may Allah have mercy on him) .
(www.islam-qa.com) 4039: Ruling on reciting the
Qur'aan collectively
Question:
What is the ruling on reciting the Qur'aan
collectively in the mosque?
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
The question is somewhat vague. If what is
meant is that they recite it all together, in
unison, pausing and stopping at the same time,
then this is not prescribed in Islam and at the
very least it is makrooh (disliked), because it
is not reported that the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) or his
Companions (may Allaah be pleased with them) did
any such thing. But if this is done for the
purpose of teaching, we hope that there is
nothing wrong with it. If what is meant is that
the people gather to recite Qur'aan in order to
memorize and learn it, and each one recites
whilst the others listen, or each one reads to
himself _ not in unison with the others _ then
this is permissible because it was reported that
the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) said: "No group of people
gathers in one of the houses of Allaah to recite
the Book of Allaah and study it together, but
tranquillity descends upon them, the angels
surround them, mercy comes down upon them, and
Allaah mentions them to those who are with Him."
(Reported by Muslim).
Fataawaa al-Lajnah al-Daa'imah (from the
Fatwas of the Standing Committee).
(www.islam-qa.com) 4040: Will a person be
rewarded for reading Qur'aan even if he does not
know the meaning of what he reads?
Question:
I always read Qur'aan but I do not understand
the meanings… will I be rewarded by Allaah for
that?
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
The Holy Qur'aan is blessed, as Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning):
"(This is) a Book (the Qur'aan) which We have
sent down to you, full of blessings that they
may ponder over its Verses, and that men of
understanding may remember."[Saad 38:29]
A man will be rewarded for reading it whether
he understands its meanings or not… But the
believer should not read the Qur'aan without
understanding at the time when he is responsible
for his actions. If a person wants to learn
medicine, for example, and studies medical
books, he cannot learn anything from them unless
he understands what they mean and it is
explained to him. Indeed, he would very keen to
understand what they say so that he can put it
into practice. So how about the Book of Allaah
which is healing for what is in people's hearts
and exhortation for all people? What about a
person who reads it and does not understand or
ponder its meanings? The Sahaabah (may Allaah be
pleased with them) would not go beyond ten
aayaat until they had learnt them and understood
the knowledge therein and how to act upon it. A
person will be rewarded for reading Qur'aan
whether or not he understands it, but he should
try his best to find out what it means and to
seek this knowledge from scholars who can be
trusted. If he cannot easily find a scholar from
whom he can learn, he should refer to reliable
books of Tafseer such as Tafseer Ibn Jareer,
Tafseer Ibn Katheer, and others. And Allaah
knows best.
From the Fataawaa of Shaykh Ibn `Uthaymeen.
(www.islam-qa.com) 2297: Listening to Qur'aan
on car stereo speakers that are by the feet of
the passengers
Question:
In some cars the speakers of the car's tape
deck are at the level of passengers' feet, and
they can put their feet and shoes on the
speakers. If a person plays a tape of Qur'aan
recitation in such a case, would it be
considered as disrespect towards the Book of
Allaah?
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
If the speakers are as you describe, under
the feet and shoes of passengers, then tapes of
Qur'aan should not be played, because the fact
that Qur'aan is being heard from beneath
people's feet or shoes is undoubtedly a kind of
disrespect towards the Qur'aan. If a person
really must listen to Qur'aan, let him lift the
speakers up so that they are not at the same
level as people's feet.
Liqa' al-Baab al-Maftooh by Ibn `Uthaymeen,
165. (www.islam-qa.com) 2273: The Ten Commandments
Question:
i'm trying to determine if there is anything
in the Quran similar to the Ten Commandents in
the Old Testament, particularly the line "thou
shalt not kill." i have been using search
functions on several Quran translation sites to
no avail. thank you very much
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
Thank you for your question, which shows an
interest in the Qu'ran. We are happy to answer
your question here.
There are in the Qur'an certain aayaat
(verses) which some scholars call the verses of
the Ten Commandments, because they include ten
important commandments given by Allaah to
mankind. These aayaat are to be found in two
passages of the Qur'an.
The first is in Soorat al-An'aam, where
Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
"Say: `Come, I will recite what your Lord has
prohibited you from: Join not anything in
worship with him; be good and dutiful to your
parents; kill not your children because of
poverty _ We provide sustenance for you and for
them; come not near to al-fawaahish (shameful
sins, illegal sexual intercourse, etc.), whether
committed openly or secretly; and kill not
anyone whom Allaah has forbidden, except for a
just cause (according to Islamic law). This He
has commanded you that you may understand.
And come not near to the orphan's property,
except to improve it, until he (or she) attains
the age of full strength; and give full measure
and full weight with justice. We burden not any
person, but that which he can bear. And whenever
you give your word (i.e., judge between men or
give evidence, etc.), say the truth even if a
near relative is concerned, and fulfil the
Covenant of Allaah. This He commands you, that
you may remember.
And, verily, this (i.e., Allaah's
commandments mentioned in the above two verses)
is my Straight Path, so follow it, and follow
not (other) paths, for they will separate you
away from His Path. This He has ordained for you
that you may become al-muttaqoon (the pious)."
[al-An'aam 6:151-153]
The second passage occurs in Soorat
al-Israa', and may be considered as a commentary
on the passage quoted above. Allaah says
(interpretation of the meaning):
"And your Lord has decreed that you worship
none but Him. And that you be dutiful to your
parents. If one or them or both of them attain
old age in your life, say not to them a word of
disrespect, nor shout at them, but address them
in terms of honour.
And lower unto them the wing of submission
and humility through mercy, and say: `My Lord!
Bestow on them Your Mercy as they did bring me
up when I was small.'
Your Lord knows best what is in your
inner-selves. If you are righteous, then,
verily, He is ever Most-Forgiving to those who
turn unto Him again and again in obedience, and
in repentance.
And give to the kindred his due and to the
poor and to the wayfarer. But spend not
wastefully (your wealth) in the manner of a
spendthrift.
Verily, spendthrifts are brothers of the
shayaateen (devils), and the Shaytaan (Satan) is
ever ungrateful to his Lord.
And if you turn away from them (kindred,
poor, wayfarers, etc. whom We have ordered you
to give their rights, but if you have no money
at the time they ask you for it) and you are
awaiting a mercy from your Lord for which you
hope, then, speak unto them a soft kind word
(i.e., Allaah will give to me and I will give to
you).
And let not your hand be tied (like a miser)
to your neck, not stretch it forth to its utmost
reach (like a spendthrift), so that you become
blameworthy and in severe poverty.
Truly, your Lord enlarges the provision for
whom He wills and straitens (for whom He wills).
Verily, He is Ever All-Knower, All-Seer of His
slaves.
And kill not your children for fear of
poverty. We provide for them and for you. Surely
the killing of them is a great sin.
And come not near to unlawful sexual
intercourse. Verily, it is a faahishah [i.e.,
anything that transgresses its limits (a great
sin)], and an evil way (that leads one to Hell
unless Allaah forgives him).
And do not kill anyone which Allaah has
forbidden, except for a just cause. And whoever
is killed (intentionally with hostility and
aggression and not by mistake), We have given
his heir the authority [to demand qisaas _ Law
of Equality in punishment _ or to forgive, or to
take Diya (blood money)]. But let him not exceed
limits in the matter of taking life (i.e., he
should not kill except the killer only). Verily,
he is helped (by the Islamic law).
And come not near to the orphan's property
except to improve it, until he attains the age
of full strength. And fulfil (every) covenant.
Verily! The covenant will be questioned about.
And give full measure when you measure, and
weigh with a balance that is straight. That is
good (advantageous) and better in the end.
And follow not (O man, i.e., say not, or do
not or witness not, etc.) that of which you have
no knowledge. Verily! The hearing, and the
sight, and the heart, of each of those you will
be questioned by Allaah.
And walk not on the earth with conceit and
arrogance. Verily, you can neither rend nor
penetrate the earth, nor can you attain a
stature like that of the mountains in height.
All the bad aspects of these (the above
mentioned things) are hateful to your Lord.
This is part of al-hikmah (wisdom, good
manners and high character, etc.) which your
Lord has inspired to you (O Muhammad). And set
not up with Allaah any other ilaah (god) lest
you should be thrown into Hell, blameworthy and
rejected (from Allaah's mercy)." [al-Israa'
17:23-39]
Perhaps after enjoying reading these verses,
you will have a better idea of the Qur'aan than
before, and this will be the beginning of a
fundamental change in your life, the start of
your way to Islam. May Allaah guide and help you
always. Peace be upon those who follow true
guidance.. Islam Q&A. Sheikh Muhammed Salih
Al-Munajjid (www.islam-qa.com) 2428: Warning about Internet
sites that distort the Qur'aan
Question:
Salam o Aleikum,
A friend of mine brought to my attention this
Web site where the guy changed the verses of the
Qoran and says it is the Qoran.
This is the site: XXXXXXX
What can we do to stop this?
I have a question if anybody can answer. I
have a christain friend who wants me to go to
her wedding where I know they will say "the
three" and "son of god" during the ceremony.
What does a muslim do in that situation, does he
go to the ceremony or just the party afterwards.
Also what if somebody converts to Islam and her
sister is getting married (who is still
christain) does that person attend the ceremony?
Thank you very much and please cite your
sources.
Answer:
Praise be to Allah.
Before answering this question, we should
advise you of the importance of wisdom in
denouncing evil, and of being careful not to
inadvertantly promote anti-Islamic websites so
that everyone will go and read them, because
this will indirectly contribute to the promotion
of these worthless people who claim to imitate
the Qur'aan.
Producing anything like the Qur'aan is
impossible, because Allaah challenged anyone to
do this. This challenge was issued to the most
brilliant and eloquent Arab poets at the time
when the Qur'aan was revealed, which was also
the time when Arabic eloquence was at its peak.
Allaah said (interpretation of the meaning):
"Let them then produce a recital like unto it
(the Qur'aan) if they are truthful." [al-Tur
52:34]
When they could not do this, Allaah
challenged them to produce ten soorahs like its
soorahs: "Or they say: `He (Muhammad) forged
it (the Qur'aan).' Say: `Bring you then ten
forged soorahs (chapters) like unto it, and call
whomsoever you can, other than Allah (to your
help), if you speak the truth!'" [Hud 11:13
_ interpretation of the meaning].
When they could not do this, Allah challenged
them to produce just one soorah that contained
the same eloquence and wisdom as the Qur'aan. He
said (interpretation of the meaning): "Or do
they say: `He (Muhammad) has forged it'? Say:
`Bring then a soorah (chapter) like unto it, and
call upon whomsoever you like, besides Allah, if
you are truthful!" [Yoonus 10:38]
Allah called on them to seek help from
whoever they wanted, and to accept the
challenge. He said (interpretation of the
meaning): "And if you (Arab pagans, Jews,
Christians) are in doubt concerning that which
We have sent down to Our slave (Muhammad), then
produce a soorah of the like thereof and call
your witnesses (supporters and helpers) besides
Allah, if you are truthful." [al-Baqarah
2:23]
When they were unable to do this, Allah
informed them that they would never be able to
do it, no matter who they called upon to help
them. He said (interpretation of the meaning):
"Say: `If mankind and jinn were together
to produce the like of this Qur'aan, they
could not produce the like thereof, even if they
helped one another.'" [al-Isra' 17:88]
There is no one except Allah who can produce
the like of the Qur'aan, because the Qur'aan, as
He says, is "a Book, the Verses whereof are
perfected and then explained in detail from One
Who is All-Wise and Well-Acquainted (with all
things)." [Hud 11:1 _ interpretation of the
meaning].
When some liars did try to imitate the
Qur'aan they came up with ridicualous nonsense
that would make children laugh, let alone mature
and intelligent adults. For example, the liar
Musaylimah said: "O frog, daughter of two frogs,
croak as much as you want, your upper part is in
the water and your lower part is in the mud."
This is an example of the kind of thing said by
him and other pretenders to Prophethood. (See
Sayd al-Khaatir by Ibn al-Jawzi, p. 404).
Some forms of falsehood may deceive some of
the people because of their ignorance and lack
of understanding of the rules of grammar and
accepted styles of eloquence in Arabic. But
anyone who has intelligence and common sense
should at least be able to see the difference
and realize that these made-up words cannot
possibly be Qur'aan. If we look at the Website
referred to in the question, we see that kufr is
quite clearly mentioned in these fabricated
soorahs, such as the statement that the Messiah
is the son of God or is God, and the promotion
of the evil madhhab of Raafidah (a kind of
Shi'ah), and other such nonsense. There are also
some weird contradictions, for example, these
liars say in the so-called sixth aayah of the
so-called "soorah al-tajassud": "Exalted be He
above taking any of His creation as a son," but
then we find in the so-called ninth aayah of the
so-called "soorah al-eemaan" the words: "You are
he, the son of God, truly; in you we believe."
But verily Allah has spoken the truth when He
said (interpretation of the meaning): "Do
they not then consider the Qur'aan carefully?
Had it been from other than Allah, they would
surely have found therein much contradictions."
[al-Nisaa' 4:82]
You also find other silly comments in these
made-up soorahs, such as the claim that Allah
permitted His Prophet to change whatever he
wanted in the Qur'aan, as in the so-called sixth
aayah of the so-called "soorah al-wasaaya":
"Abrogate whatever you want to abrogate of the
commands that We have given you, for We permit
you to make changes to Our decisions"!
Every Muslim will realize the extent of the
lies contained in these words that come from
this mind that is driven by ulterior motives.
Have you ever seen anything more foolish than
these words? Allah has told us to adhere to His
Book and put it into practice, as He says
(interpretation of the meaning): "And this is
a blessed Book which We have sent down, so
follow it and fear Allah, that you may receive
mercy." [al-An'aam 6:155]
He commanded His Messenger to adhere to the
Qur'aan, saying (interpretation of the meaning):
"So hold you (Muhammad) to that which is
inspired in you. Verily, you are on a Straight
Path." [al-Zukhruf 43:43].
Allah warned His Messenger not to fail in
conveying the message complete and unaltered, as
He said (interpretation of the meaning):
"Verily, they were about to tempt you away
from that which We have revealed unto you (O
Muhammad), to fabricate something other than it
against Us, and then they would certainly have
taken you for a friend! And had We not made you
stand firm, you would nearly have inclined to
them a little. In that case, We would have made
you taste a double portion (of punishment) in
this life and a double portion (of punishment)
after death. And then you would have found none
to help you against Us" [al-Isra' 17:73-75]
and "… if he (Muhammad) had forged a false
saying concerning Us (Allah), We surely should
have seized him by his right hand (or with power
and might), and then certainly should have cut
off his life artery (aorta)" [al-Haaqqah
69:44-46]. Having said all this, how can there
be any so-called soorah that says the messenger
has the right to abrogate whatever he wants in
the Qur'aan and that he has the authority to
change or omit whatever rules he wants??
The only One Who can abrogate whatever He
wants of the Qur'aan is the One Who revealed it,
may He be glorified, as He says (interpretation
of the meaning): "Allah blots out what He
wills and confirms (what He wills). And with Him
is the Mother of the Book" [al-Ra'd
13:39];
"Whatever a Verse (revelation) We abrogate
or cause to be forgotten, We bring a better one
or similar to it. Know you not that Allah is
able to do all things?" [al-Baqarah
2:106].
We, like our Messenger, are obliged to
understand and implement the Qur'aan without
distorting, omitting or changing anything. Allah
said (interpretation of the meaning): "(This
is) a Book which We have sent down to you, full
of blessings that they may ponder over its
Verses, and that men of understanding may
remember." [Saad 38:29].
We have seen in the false soorahs quoted on
that Internet website a real example of what is
referred to in the aayah (interpretation of the
meaning): "And verily, among them is a party
who distort the Book with their tongues (as they
read), so that you may think it is from the
Book, but it is not from the Book, and they say:
`This is from Allah,' but it is not from Allah;
and they speak a lie against Allah while they
know it." [Aal `Imraan 3:78].
We ask Allah to make His Religion and His
Book prevail and to make His friends victorious,
as We ask Him to defeat and humiliate His
enemies and cause them to fail. May Allah bless
our Prophet Muhammad.
Islam Q&A. Sheikh Muhammed Salih
Al-Munajjid (www.islam-qa.com) 839: Abrogation of the verse
ordering the confinement of an adulteress in a
house
Question:
I would like to know more about the meaning
of this part of Surah al-Nisa':
"If any of your women are guilty of lewdness
. . . confine them to houses until death do
claim them, or Allah ordain for them some
(other) way." [al-Nisaa' 4:15]
Does this mean to punish a woman who has
committed adultery by death, or does it mean to
imprison her for the remainder of her life? Also
what does "or Allah make some way for them"
mean?
Thank you for you time, I look forward to
your response so that I may better understand
Islam through the explanation of Muslims as
opposed to those of non-Muslims.
Answer:
Praise be to Allah.
Allah says: "If any of your women are guilty
of lewdness, take the evidence of four
(reliable) witnesses from amongst you against
them; and if they testify, confine them to
houses until death do claim them, or Allah
ordain for them some (other) way." [al-Nisa'
4:15]
Ibn Katheer, may Allah have mercy on him,
said in his Tafseer (explanation) of this aayah:
"At the beginning of Islam, the ruling
concerning a woman who was proven guilty of
adultery was that she was to be detained in a
house and not allowed to come out until she
died. So the phrase `If any of your women are
guilty of lewdness' refers to adultery. `Take
the evidence of four (reliable) witnesses from
amongst you against them; and if they testify,
confine them to houses until death do claim
them, or Allah ordain for them some (other) way'
- the `other way' that Allah made for them was
the abrogation of this. Ibn `Abbas, may Allah be
pleased with him, said: `This was the ruling
until Allah revealed Surat al-Nur, then this
punishment was abrogated and replaced with
whipping or stoning.' Something similar was
reported from `Ikrimah, Sa`id ibn Jubayr,
al-Hasan, `Ataa' al-Khurasani, Abu Saalih,
Qutaadah, Zayd ibn Aslam and al-Dahhak, stating
that this is abrogated, and this is agreed upon.
Imam Ahmad said: `Muhammad ibn Ja`far told us
that Sa`id told us from Qutaadah from al-Hasan
from Hattaan ibn `Abdullah al-Raqaashi from
`Ubaadah ibn al-Saamit who said: Whenever the
wahy (revelation) descended upon the Messenger
of Allah (Peace & Blessings of Allaah be
upon Him), it affected him, the stress showed on
him and his face would change. Allah sent a
revelation to him one day, and when it was over,
he said: " Listen to me, Allah has made another
way for them. (When) a married man (commits
adultery) with a married woman, and an unmarried
man with an unmarried woman, then in the case of
married (persons) there is (a punishment) of one
hundred lashes and then stoning (to death), and
in the case of unmarried persons, (the
punishment) is one hundred lashes and exile for
one year."' It was reported by Muslim and other
narrators of Sunan via Qutaadah from al-Hasan
from al-Hattan from `Ubaadah ibn al-Saamit from
the Prophet (Peace & Blessings of Allaah be
upon Him) with the wording: `Receive (teaching)
from me, receive (teaching) from me. Allah has
made another way for those (women). When an
unmarried man commits adultery with an unmarried
woman, (they should receive) one hundred lashes,
and banishment for one year. In the case of a
married male committing adultery with a married
female, they should receive one hundred lashes
and be stoned to death.' Al-Tirmidhi said: This
is a saheeh hasan hadeeth."
Al-Qurtubi,
may Allah have mercy on him, said in his tafseer
of this aayah:
"This [confinement] was the first punishment
for adultery, at the beginning of Islam. Ibn
`Abbas and al-Hasan said: Ibn Zayd added: They
would not be allowed to marry, until they died,
as a punishment for them when they asked to
marry someone else. This ruling applied for a
while, then the Prophet (Peace & Blessings
of Allaah be upon Him) said, according to the
hadeeth narrated by `Ubaadah ibn al-Saamit:
"Receive (teaching) from me, receive (teaching)
from me. Allah has made another way for those
(women). When an unmarried man commits adultery
with an unmarried woman, (they should receive)
one hundred lashes, and banishment for one year.
In the case of a married male committing
adultery with a married female, they should
receive one hundred lashes and be stoned to
death." Some of the scholars said: the idea of
punishment and shame was still there with the
lashing, because there is no contradiction, and
they are applied to one person. As for
confinement, this is abrogated, by the consensus
of the scholars. And Allah knows best.
To complete the benefit of what has been
said, it is appropriate to learn the tafseer of
the next aayah in Surat al-Nisaa':
"If two men among you are guilty of lewdness,
punish them both. If they repent and amend,
leave them alone; for Allah is Oft Returning,
Most Merciful." [al-Nisaa' 4:16]
Ibn Katheer, may Allah have mercy on him,
said in his Tafseer of this aayah:
"`If two men among you are guilty of
lewdness' means two who commit an immoral act,
so they should be punished. Ibn `Abbas, may
Allah be pleased with him, Sa`eed ibn Jubayr and
others said: i.e., by putting them to public
shame and hitting them with shoes. This was the
ruling until Allah abrogated it and replaced it
with lashing and stoning. `Ikrimah, `Ataa',
al-Hasan and `Abdullah ibn Katheer said: `This
was revealed concerning a man and a woman who
commit adultery. The phrase `if they repent and
amend' means if they give up what they were
doing and mend their ways. `Leave them alone'
means not to keep rebuking them with ugly words
after that, because the one who has repented
from his sin is like one who never sinned at
all. `Allah is Oft Returning, Most Merciful' -
it was proven in the two Saheehs: `If the slave
woman of one of you commits adultery, apply the
punishment of lashing, and do not blame her
(after that)' - i.e., do not blame her for what
she did after the punishment has been given,
because the punishment is an expiation for her
deed.'"
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid
(www.islam-qa.com) 768: Arguing against the
Qur'aan using archaeology
Question:
would you please answer the following
question, asked by my none-Muslim coworker.
On top of this, the Egyptians had a fairly
standardized code of punishment, which was
generally followed. The punishment for treachery
was to have the tongue cut off, blasphemy was
one hundred beatings. If a crime was committed,
it was formally charged and punished, it was not
a heat of the moment thing.
To me this is a problem of logical
inconsistency in the Qur'an. Could someone
please rationally explain this for me.
David "
I really need the answer to his question ASAP
please,
Answer:
al-hamdu lillaah.
The problem lies in that your friend is a
kafir (non-believer) who believes in what the
archeologists say more than in what Allaah the
Most Exalted says. The only solution is that
this friend of yours realizes and believes that
the One who created Moses, the magicians, the
Pharaohs, and the Persians, knows them better,
and knows every minute detail in their lives and
all the events that occurred to them, than
anyone else. And tell this friend of yours, who
claims that he has read the story of Moses and
the Pharaoh: Doesn't Allah the Most Exalted say
in the Qur'aan, with regards to the dialogue
that took place between Moses and the Pharaoh
(interpretation of the meaning): Fir'aun
(Pharaoh) said: " What about the generations of
old (previous generations)? Musa (Moses) said :
" The knowledge thereof is with my Lord, in a
Record. My Lord is neither unaware nor does He
forget" Verses # 51-52, surat Ta-ha.
We ask Allah to guide your friend to the
truth and to reward you for trying to call him
to Islam.
Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid
(www.islam-qa.com)
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Introduction