Humanity has received divine guidance through two channels: the word of
Allah and the prophets who were chosen by Him to communicate His will to
humanity These channels have always functioned together, and if one is
ignored or neglected, the will of Allah cannot be known with any degree
of accuracy. The Hindus neglected their prophets and focused all of
their attention on their books, which proved to be only word puzzles
that eventually were no longer understood by the people. Similarly the
Christians, disregarding the Bible, attached importance only to the
person of Jesus Christ and eventually deified him,. This resulted in the
loss of t he very essence of tawhid (monotheism) contained in the
Bible.
As a matter of fact, the main scriptures revealed before the Qur'an
i.e., the Old Testament and the New Testament, acquired book form long
after the days of the prophets. Moreover, the New Testament was not
recorded in the language spoken by Jesus Christ, believed to be Aramaic,
but in Greek. This was because the early Christians made no serious
effort to preserve their revelation during the lifetime of their
prophet. The Old and New Testaments, which together form the Christian
Bible, now consist of translations of various individuals' accounts of
the original revelations as well as the additions and deletions made by
the faithful.
The Qur'an, as the last revealed book of God, is extant in its original
form. Allah Himself guaranteed its preservation. The entire Qur'an was
recorded in written form during the lifetime of the Prophet Muhammad
(PBUH) on pieces of palm leaves, parchments, bones, and other suitable
surfaces. Moreover, there were tens of thousands of his followers who
memorized the whole Qur'an, and the Prophet himself used to recite it to
the angel Gabriel once a year and twice when he was about to die.
After the Prophet's death, Abu Bakr, the first caliph, oversaw the
collection of the Qur'an into one volume by the Prophet's scribe, Zaid
Ibn Thabit. This volume remained with Abu Bakr who, when he was about to
die, entrusted it to his successor, Umar Ibn al Khattab who, in turn,
passed it on to Hafsa, the Prophet's wife. It was from this original
copy that Uthman, the third caliph, prepared several other copies and
sent them to different Muslim territories.
The Qur'an was preserved so meticulously because it was to be the book
of guidance for all humanity forever. Thus it does not address only the
Arabs, even though it was revealed in their language. It speaks to man
as a human being: "O Man! What has seduced you from your Lord?" The
practical nature of the Qur'anic teachings is established by the
examples of the Prophet and of pious Muslims throughout history.
The Qur'an instructions are aimed at the general welfare of man and are
based on possibilities within his reach. Its wisdom is conclusive in all
of its venous dimensions. It does not condemn or torture the flesh, nor
does it neglect the soul. It does not humanize God nor does it deify
man. Everything is carefully placed where it belongs in the total scheme
of creation.
Those scholars who allege that Muhammad wrote the Qur'an claim something
that is not humanly possible. Could anyone living in the sixth century
CE. utter such scientific truths as the Qur'an contains? Could he
describe the evolution of the embryo inside the uterus so accurately
that it matches the description given by modern science?
Secondly, is it logical to believe that the Prophet, who, until the age
of forty, was known far and wide for his honesty and integrity, began
all of a sudden to write a book that is without equal in literary merit
and that could not be surpassed by the whole legion of the Arab poets
and orators of the highest caliber?
And lastly, is it justified to say that Muhammad (PBUH), who was known
to his people as al-Amin (The trustworthy) and who is still admired by
non-Muslim scholars for his honesty and integrity, came forth with a
false claim and on that falsehood trained thousands of individuals of
character, integrity, and honesty who were able to establish the best
human society that the world has ever known? Surely, any sincere and
unbiased searcher of truth will come to believe that the Qur'an is the
revealed book of Allah.
Without necessarily agreeing completely with their statements, we would
like to quote some of the opinions of important non-Muslim scholars who
have studied the Qur'an. Such comments show that the non Muslim world is
taking a more serious view of the Qur'an and that it is beginning to
appreciate its truth. We appeal to all people who are seeking spiritual
truth to study the Qur'an in light of the aforementioned points. Cast
your preconceived notions aside and listen to what these people have to
say.
However often we turn to it [the Qur'an], at first disgusting us each
time afresh, it soon attracts, astounds, and in the end enforces our
reverence... Its style, in accordance with its contents and aim, is
stern, grand, terrible - ever and anon truly sublime. Thus this book
will go on exercising through all ages a most potent influence.
- Gethe
quoted in T P Hughes' Dictionary of Islam, p 526.
The Koran admittedly occupies an important position among the great
religious books of the world. Though the youngest of the epoch-making
works belonging to this class of literature, it yields to hardly any in
the wonderful effect which it has produced on large masses of men. It
has created an all but new phase of human thought and a fresh type of
character. It first transformed a number of heterogeneous desert tribes
of the Arabian peninsula into a nation of heroes, and then proceeded to
create the vast politico-religious organizations of the Muhammadan world
which are one of the great forces with which Europe and the East have
to reckon today.
- G. Margoliouth
Introduction toe. M. Rodwell's
The Koran, New York Every man's Library, 1977, p. Vll.
A work, then, which calls forth so powerful and seemingly incompatible
emotions even in the distant reader distant as to time, and still more
so as to mental development - a work which not only conquers the
repugnance with which he may begin its perusal, but changes this adverse
feeling into astonishment and admiration, such a work must be a
wonderful production of the human mind indeed and a problem of the
highest interest to every thoughtful observer of the destinies of
mankind.
- Dr. Steingass
quoted in T. P. Hughes' Dictionary of Islam, pp. 526-7.
The above observation makes the hypothesis advanced by those who see
Muhammad as the author of the Qur'an untenable. How could a man, from
being illiterate, become the most important author, in terms of literary
merits, in the whole of Arabic literature? How could he then pronounce
truths of a scientific nature that no other human being could possibly
have developed at that time, and all this without once making the
slightest error in his pronouncement on the subject?
- Maunce Bucaille
The Bible, the Qur'an and Science, 1978, p 125.
Here, therefore, its meets as a literary production should perhaps not
be measured by some preconceived maxims of subjective and aesthetic
taste, but by the effects which it produced in Muhammad's contemporaries
and fellow countrymen. If it spoke so powerfully and convincingly to
the hearts of his hearers as to weld hitherto centrifugal and
antagonistic elements into one compact and well organized body. animated
by ideas far beyond those which had until now ruled the Arabian mind,
then its eloquence was perfect, simply because it created a civilized
nation out of savage tribes, and shot a fresh woof into the old warp of
history.
- Dr: Steingass
quoted in Hughes' Dictionary of Islam, p. 528.
In making the present attempt to improve on the performance of my
predecessors, and to produce something which might be accepted as
echoing however faintly the sublime rhetoric of the Arabic Koran, I have
been at pain to study the intricate and richly varied rhythms
which-apart from the message itself-constitute the Koran's undeniable
claim to rank amongst the greatest literary masterpieces of mankind ...
This very characteristic feature-"that inimitable symphony" as the
believing Pickthall described his Holy Book, "the very sounds of which
move men to tears and ecstasy"-has been almost totally ignored by
previous translators; it is therefore not surprising that what they have
wrought sounds dull and net indeed in comparison with the splendidly
decorated original.
- Arthur J Arberry
The Koran Interpreted London: Oxford University Press, 1964,p.X
A totally objective examination [of the Qur'an] in the light of modern
knowledge leads us to recognize the agreement between the two, as has
been already noted on repeated occasions. It makes us deem it quite
unthinkable for a man of Muhammad's time to have been the author of such
statements, on account of the state of knowledge in his day Such
considerations are part of what gives the Qur'anic revelation its unique
place, and forces the impartial scientist to admit his inability to
provide an explanation which calls solely upon materialistic reasoning.
Source: WAMY
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