The Language of Quran: Easier than English

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Muslims believe that the present wording of the Quran corresponds to that revealed to Muhammad, and according to their interpretation of Quran 15:9, it is protected from corruption ("Indeed, it is We who sent down the Quran and indeed, We will be its guardian."). [87] Muslims consider the Quran to be a guide, a sign of the prophethood of Muhammad and the truth of the religion. While details of al-Suyūṭī’s biography and bibliography can be found elsewhere, [i] of particular significance to note here are his contributions to the study of the Qur’an. In addition to his works on Arabic grammar, he is the author of several extant works on Quranic exegesis. The most famous of these is Tafsīr al-Jalālayn (‘Commentary of the Two Jalāls’), [ii] of which he wrote the commentary from al-Baqara to al-Isrā’ (Q. 2–17), completing the work of Jalāl al-Dīn al-Maḥallī (d. 864/1459). Another major exegetical work is al-Durr al-Manthūr fī l-Tafsīr bi-l-Ma’thūr (‘Scattered Pearls of Exegesis by Narration’). [iii] Like his smaller compilation on revelatory contexts, [iv] the Durr is best understood as a thematic collection which aids the mufassir (exegete), rather than a full commitment to the narration-based approach. [v] xii] For example, Arthur Jeffery wrote in his 1937 introduction to The Foreign Vocabulary of the Qur’ān (p. xiv) that its original appendix “consisted of the Arabic text, edited from two [manuscripts] in the Royal Library at Cairo, of as-Suyūtī’s al-Muhadhdhab, which is the original treatise at the basis of his chapter on the foreign words in the Itqān and of his tractate entitled al-Mutawakkilī.” The Library's buildings remain fully open but some services are limited, including access to collection items. We're According to this view, it has also become evident that the inner meaning of the Quran does not eradicate or invalidate its outward meaning. Rather, it is like the soul, which gives life to the body. [140] Corbin considers the Quran to play a part in Islamic philosophy, because gnosiology itself goes hand in hand with prophetology. [90] :13

Chapter 36 also throws up the problem of synonymy. While it is a point of debate, there is a common view that there are no true synonyms in the Arabic language, particularly in the vocabulary of the Qur’an. [xxi] This is the basis for one of the sections in Chapter 42 in this volume. In contrast, Ibn ‘Abbās is seen here to explain one word through another, as though they are equivalent. These could be understood simply as approximations to the meanings, which in turn implies that other explanatory glosses could be as good, or better. [xxii] We should also compare the contents of this chapter to alternative explanations for the same words and verses, in other chapters. Is hayta/ hi’tu lak (12:23) to be understood as an Arabic root as we would understand in Chapter 36, or as a loanword as claimed in Chapter 38? Consolidation and further research are required. The Quran is also broken into 30 equal sections, or juz'. These sections are organized so that the reader can study the Quran over the course of a month. During the month of Ramadan, Muslims are recommended to complete at least one full reading of the Quran from cover to cover. The ajiza (plural of juz') serve as a guide to accomplish that task. Please remember if you are dedicated, serious and hardworking, you will achieve something most beautiful and rewarding in your life (i.e. the understanding of the Qur’an directly when you recite it or when the recitation is heard). Although early variants of the Qur'an are known to have existed, Muslims believe that the text we have today was established shortly after the death of the Prophet by the Caliph Uthman. ContentsThe Quran possesses an external appearance and a hidden depth, an exoteric meaning and an esoteric meaning. This esoteric meaning in turn conceals an esoteric meaning (this depth possesses a depth, after the image of the celestial Spheres, which are enclosed within each other). So it goes on for seven esoteric meanings (seven depths of hidden depth). [90] :7 The oldest Gurmukhi translation of the Quran Sharif has been found in village Lande of Moga district of Punjab which was printed in 1911. [150] More generally, it is possible to observe these technical grammar debates and move past them to ponder on a deeper meaning intended by the word choice. I share a beautiful example from Muḥammad ‘Abd-Allāh Drāz (d. 1958) under the discussion on ka-mithli in 42:11. The method here is to notice the issue at hand, and consider whether there is an alternative to waving it away as ziyāda, ta‘āqub or majāz; or a good explanation for those features to be employed. For example, it may simply be stated – as here in Chapter 40 – that yurīdu in 18:77 means yakādu, in that the wall was “about to collapse”, as it cannot be said to “want to collapse”; but this should not prevent us considering the imagery in portraying this wall as though it were an old man on his last legs! [xxx] Following Muhammad's death in 632, a number of his companions who knew the Quran by heart were killed in the Battle of Yamama by Musaylimah. The first caliph, Abu Bakr (d. 634), subsequently decided to collect the book in one volume so that it could be preserved. Zayd ibn Thabit (d. 655) was the person to collect the Quran since "he used to write the Divine Inspiration for Allah's Apostle". Thus, a group of scribes, most importantly Zayd, collected the verses and produced a hand-written manuscript of the complete book. The manuscript according to Zayd remained with Abu Bakr until he died. Zayd's reaction to the task and the difficulties in collecting the Quranic material from parchments, palm-leaf stalks, thin stones (collectively known as suhuf, any written work containing divine teachings) [49] and from men who knew it by heart is recorded in earlier narratives. In 644, Muhammad's widow Hafsa bint Umar was entrusted with the manuscript until the third caliph, Uthman ibn Affan, requested the standard copy from her. [50] (According to historian Michael Cook, early Muslim narratives about the collection and compilation of the Quran sometimes contradict themselves. "Most ... make Uthman little more than an editor, but there are some in which he appears very much a collector, appealing to people to bring him any bit of the Quran they happen to possess." Some accounts also "suggest that in fact the material" Abu Bakr worked with "had already been assembled", which since he was the first Caliph, would mean they were collected when Muhammad was still alive.) [51] ix] For a detailed comparison between the two works, see Ḥaydar, ‘Ulūm al-Qur’ān bayna l-Burhān wa-l-Itqān. The author states (p. 605) that al-Suyūṭī has cited the Burhān explicitly 43 times in the entirety of the work, but has reproduced its material without clarifying its source at least 61 times. More generally, he credits al-Zarkashī with more scrupulous ethics of citation (p. 597).

xvii] For discussion of these genres and more types of textual relations within the Qur’an, see Saeed, ‘Intraquranic Hermeneutics,’ Chapter 4 (Juristic, Thematic, Comparative and Contextual Methods). Respect for the written text of the Quran is an important element of religious faith by many Muslims, and the Quran is treated with reverence. Based on tradition and a literal interpretation of Quran 56:79 ("none shall touch but those who are clean"), some Muslims believe that they must perform a ritual cleansing with water ( wudu or ghusl) before touching a copy of the Quran, although this view is not universal. [11] Worn-out copies of the Quran are wrapped in a cloth and stored indefinitely in a safe place, buried in a mosque or a Muslim cemetery, or burned and the ashes buried or scattered over water. [94] According to Tabatabaei, there are acceptable and unacceptable esoteric interpretations. Acceptable ta'wil refers to the meaning of a verse beyond its literal meaning; rather the implicit meaning, which ultimately is known only to God and can not be comprehended directly through human thought alone. The verses in question here refer to the human qualities of coming, going, sitting, satisfaction, anger and sorrow, which are apparently attributed to God. Unacceptable ta'wil is where one "transfers" the apparent meaning of a verse to a different meaning by means of a proof; this method is not without obvious inconsistencies. Although this unacceptable ta'wil has gained considerable acceptance, it is incorrect and cannot be applied to the Quranic verses. The correct interpretation is that reality a verse refers to. It is found in all verses, the decisive and the ambiguous alike; it is not a sort of a meaning of the word; it is a fact that is too sublime for words. God has dressed them with words to bring them a bit nearer to our minds; in this respect they are like proverbs that are used to create a picture in the mind, and thus help the hearer to clearly grasp the intended idea. [135] [137] History of Sufi commentaries Chapter 40 is the most technical, and perhaps the most valuable chapter for interpreters and translators of the Qur’an. It concerns particles and other grammatical agents, outlining the variety of their usages; like the wujūh in the previous chapter, the distinctions between these categories are sometimes debated and may be overstated. The Quranic verses cited under each type of bā’, or lām, or min, etc., are worth memorising as exemplars, just as the exegetes have the habit of citing the same verse to exemplify a usage or rule. In this discussion, linguistics are intertwined with tafsīr and sometimes fiqh (substantive law), and the reader will be rewarded by making frequent reference to the sources and diving into the debates. The chapter is a fine summary of the Mughnī of Ibn Hishām, who gives much greater space to exceptional cases. [xxviii]An important issue underlying this chapter is the relationship between grammar and meaning. The maxim has it that i‘rāb is a function ( far‘) of meaning, i.e. it follows from it and is secondary to it. This may be understood by charting the communicative process as one in which the speaker conceives of a meaning and constructs a grammatical utterance; then the hearer processes this grammatically to derive meaning. Therefore, while meaning at the last stage depends on grammar, the grammatical analysis seeks to describe the meaning intended by the Divine Speaker. This is why, at times, the imperatives of meaning (especially when theological stakes are high) overrule the dictates of formal grammar. Guessoum cites Ghaleb Hasan on the definition of "proof" according to the Quran being "clear and strong... convincing evidence or argument." Also, such a proof cannot rely on an argument from authority, citing verse 5:104. Lastly, both assertions and rejections require a proof, according to verse 4:174. [115] :56 Ismail al-Faruqi and Taha Jabir Alalwani are of the view that any reawakening of the Muslim civilization must start with the Quran; however, the biggest obstacle on this route is the "centuries old heritage of tafseer (exegesis) and other classical disciplines" which inhibit a "universal, epidemiological and systematic conception" of the Quran's message. [115] :117–8 The philosopher Muhammad Iqbal, considered the Quran's methodology and epistemology to be empirical and rational. [115] :58–9 xxviii] ‘Uḍayma, Dirāsāt li-Uslūb al-Qur’ān (11 vols.) provides a more systematic layout of examples. In Islam, most intellectual disciplines, including Islamic theology, philosophy, mysticism and jurisprudence, have been concerned with the Quran or have their foundation in its teachings. [11] Muslims believe that the preaching or reading of the Quran is rewarded with divine rewards variously called ajr, thawab, or hasanat. [95] In Islamic art