Koran

The Quran (from Arabic القرآن al-qur^ʕān, 'the recitation', [qurˈʔaːn], Persian: [ɢoɾˈʔɒːn]), also transliterated as Alquran, Quran or Koran, It is the holy book of Islam, in which it represents the word of God (in Arabic Allāh, الله), revealed to Muhammad (محمد Muham mad), who is considered to have received these revelations through the archangel Gabriel (جبريل Ŷibrīl).

During the life of the Prophet Muhammad, revelations were transmitted orally or written on palm fronds, pieces of leather or bones, etc. Upon the prophet's death in 632, his followers began to gather these revelations, which during the Caliphate of Uthman ibn Affan (عثمان بن عفان ) took the form we know today, 114 chapters (suras, سورة), each divided into ayatas.(آية)

The Qur'an mentions many characters that appear in the holy books of Judaism and Christianity (Tanakh and Bible) and in devout literature (for example, the Apocrypha), with many differences in detail. Well-known characters from the Hebrew and Christian world such as Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Mary of Nazareth, Jesus of Nazareth and John the Baptist are mentioned as Islamic prophets.

Muslims claim that the Qur'an is the "eternal and uncreated" word of God. Therefore, its transmission should be carried out without the slightest change in the original language, classical Arabic. The Qur'an has been translated into many languages, mainly for those believers whose languages are not Arabic. Even so, in the liturgy Arabic is used exclusively, since the translation only has didactic value, as a gloss or instrument to help understand the original text. In fact, a translation of the Qur'an is not even considered an authentic Qur'an, but an interpretation of it.

"Joseph and his brothers in the presence of Pharaoh." According to the ancient Egyptian historian "Ahmed Osman", Yuya's story is mentioned as Yusuf in the Torah and the Quran.

The "swamp zone" (Yam suph) (registered in the Hebrew Torah as a temporary stop place) in the stories of the Exodus of the Israelites, becomes the legendary crossing of the Red Sea (Quran 26:52-68) (Aivazovsky)

History

The first revelation of Mohammed, Surah Al-Alaq, was then placed in the 96th place in the regulations of the Quran, in the current writing style.

The origin of the Qur'an has generated much controversy because Islamic specialists assume that the Qur'an is an incorrupt and divine text, while scholars view it as a human text like any other.

The text of the Qur'an challenges readers to find any contradictions or divergences in it and emphasizes that they will not find it, since supposedly of divine origin there should not be any.

Quran as "eternal doctrine"

The most widespread varieties of Islamic theology consider the Qur'an to be eternal and not created. Since Muslims believe that Biblical figures such as Moses and Jesus preached Islam, the Qur'an's doctrine of immutable and uncreated revelation implies that the oldest texts – such as the Tanakh or the Bible – were due to "degeneracy". human”.

However, some particular Islamists, particularly the Mutazili and Ismaili schools, implicitly or explicitly question the doctrine of an uncreated Qur'an when they ask certain questions related to the application of Sharia or Islamic law. Some contemporary thinkers, such as Reza Aslan or Nasr Hamid Abu Zayd, have argued that such laws were created by Allah to solve the particular needs of Muhammad's community. Others dispute that such laws do not differ in any way from the Mosaic Law.

Among the reasons offered for criticism of the "Eternal Quran" its implication is found in "the oneness of God." The thought that the Quran is the eternal and uncreated word of Allah and that it has always existed alongside Him could lead to a pluralistic concept of the nature of said deity. Concerned that this interpretation appears to echo the Christian concept of the "eternal word of Yahweh" (Logos), some Muslims, and particularly the Mutazilli, rejected the notion of the Qur'an's eternity. However, a large part of current Muslims believe that this vision of the Mutazilies is the product of a lack of deep understanding of the very nature of the Qur'an and its relationship with tawhid.

According to Islamic specialists

According to tradition, Muhammad could not read or write, but simply recited what was revealed to him for his two or three companions to write and memorize, at first no one believed it, after 12 years of rejection and persecution he did his ideals, "miraculously" he began to gain followers. Some exegetes believe that this tradition that Muhammad could not read or write is in contradiction with the Qur'anic text itself: first, the Qur'an announces that the prophet was not used to reading or writing, that is, he was not given to reading or writing, this, according to them, it does not mean that he did not know how to do it, but there is another ayah that can be interpreted as an indication that he knew how to read, number two of the sura "The Congregation": "It was God who raised up from among the ignorant an Apostle from among the ignorant." themselves, reciting His Signs, purifying them and teaching them the Book and wisdom..." The sympathizers of Islam believe that the wording of the Koranic text existing today corresponds exactly to what was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad, that is, the words texts of God delivered to Muhammad through the archangel Gabriel.

Manuscripts found in Sana'a. The "subtexts" revealed using ultraviolet light are very different from today's Quran. Gerd R. Puin believed this meant an evolving text. Lawrence Conrad uses a similar phrase for Mohammed's biography. Because, according to his studies, the Islamic scientific vision of the date of birth of the Prophet until the second century of the Hegira had exhibited a diversity of 85 years.

Muhammad's companions, according to Muslim traditions, began recording suras in writing before their leader died in 632. This practice of writing down "revelations" as they came to the prophet was a freedom that all the witnesses of the moments in which the revelations occurred could be taken. According to the Islamic tradition, among all the Qur'ans that exist today and have existed there is no difference; there is only one version of the Qur'an, the written suras of which are frequently cited in the traditions. For example, in the story of the conversion of Úmar ibn al-Khattab (when Muhammad was still in Mecca), his sister is said to have been reading a Ta-Ha sura text. In Medina, around sixty-five companions are said to have acted as scribes for him at one time or another. The prophet called them to write the "revelations" right after having them.

A tradition documents that the first complete compilation of the Qur'an was made during the rule of the first caliph, Abu Bakr as-Siddiq. Zayd ibn Tábit, who had been one of Muhammad's secretaries, "gathering the Qur'an from various pieces of bone and from the breasts (i.e. 'memories') of men." This collection was kept by Hafsa bint Úmar, daughter of the second caliph Úmar and one of Muhammad's widows.

During the caliphate of Uthman ibn Affan, there were disputes regarding the recitation of the Qur'an. In response, Utmán decided to codify, standardize, and transcribe the text. Uthman is said to have commissioned a committee (which included Zayd and several prominent Quraysh members) to produce a standard copy of the text.

According to some sources, this compilation was based on the text preserved by Hafsa. Other versions indicate that Uthman made this compilation independently and that the Hafsa text would have been carried forward and that, in the end, the two texts were found to match perfectly. However, other documents omit references to Hafsa entirely.

Muslim scholars claim that if the caliph had ordered the compilation of the Qur'an, it would never have been relegated to the care of one of the prophet's widows.

When the compilation process was finished, between the years 650 and 656, Uthman sent copies of the final text to all corners of the Islamic empire and ordered the destruction of all copies that differed from the new version.

Several of the manuscripts, including the Samarkand manuscript, are claimed to be original copies of those sent by Uthman; however, many scholars, Western and Islamic, doubt that any original Utmanic manuscripts survive.

Regarding the copies that were destroyed, Islamic traditions assert that Abdallah Ibn Masud, Ubay Ibn Ka'b, and Ali, Muhammad's cousin and son-in-law, had preserved some versions that differed in some respects from the Utmanic text. which is now considered by all Muslims. Muslim scholars record certain differences between the versions, which consist almost entirely of lexical and spelling variants or different verse counts. It has been recorded that all three (Ibn Masud, Ubay ibn Ka'b and Ali) accepted the Utmanic text as the final authority.

Utman's version was composed in an old style of Arabic writing, which did not include vowels, which is why it can be interpreted and read in a number of ways, not counting the supposedly 'deep' meanings. This basic utmanic script has been called rasma and, with some minor differences, is the basis for several oral recitation traditions. To fix these recitations and prevent any errors, scribes and scholars began to annotate the utmanic rasmas with various diacritical marks—periods and so on—to indicate the way the words were to be pronounced. This process of notation is believed to have begun around 700, shortly after the compilation of Utman, and to have ended around 900. The most widely used text of the Qur'an today is based on the Hafsa tradition of recitation., as approved by the Al-Azhar University in Cairo, in 1922, (for more information related to recitation traditions, refer to Quranic Recitation, later in this article).

According to research

One of the dozen caves believed to have been inhabited by the Friends of the cave (Selçuk / İzmir). According to the epic, the oldest one in Mahaprasthanika Parva, seven people and a dog leave the kingdom and the world for asceticism. The legend was converted to Christianity by the Syrian priest James of Sarug.

Although some scholars agree with several of the aspects indicated by the Islamic traditions regarding the Qur'an and its origins, the academic consensus considers that Muhammad composed the verses that make up the text, which were memorized by his followers and put in writing. These studies question the Islamic belief that the entire Qur'an was sent by God to mankind; since they note that in numerous passages God is alluded to in the third person or the narrative voice swears by various supernatural entities, including God. It is also accepted that numerous versions of these texts circulated after his death in 632; until Uthman ordered the collection and arrangement of this mass of material between 650 and 656, as described by Islamic scholars. Other scholars tend to attribute the entire Qur'an to Muhammad, arguing that there is real proof that the text was compiled under Uthman, since the oldest surviving copies of the complete Qur'an date back 1,300 years (the oldest extant copy of full text was found in UK, University of Birmingham, based on radiocarbon analysis). Others argue that Islam formed slowly, over the centuries after the Muslim conquests and as the Islamic conquerors crafted their own beliefs in response to Jewish and Christian challenges. However, this idea contradicts the Qur'an itself, as it should be noted that the Qur'an affirms that good Jewish or Christian believers will also have the paradise promised by "Allah"; (God).

Researchers of Islamic history examined the birthplace of Islam and the change of Qibla over time. Patricia Crone, Michael Cook and many other researchers have assumed, based on texts and archaeological research, that the "Masjid al-Haram" it was not located in Mecca but in the northwest of the Arabian Peninsula.

Lower Petra; According to Islamic history researcher Dan Gibson, this was the place where Mohammed received the first revelations and the first Qibla was Petra.

Other literary research explains the many similarities between the Qur'an and the Hebrew scriptures by arguing that Muhammad was teaching his followers what he thought was world history, as he had heard it from the mouths of Jews and Christians he had encountered in Arabia and during his travels.

An influential proposal in this view was that of Dr. John Wansbrough, an English academic. Wansbrough's writings, however, were written in a dense, complex and almost hermetic style and have had a great influence on Islamic studies through his students, Michael Cook and Patricia Crone, and not so much by themselves. In 1977, Crone and Cook published a book called Hagarism, in which they argued that:

Basically, the Koran lacks a central structure, is often dark and inconsequent in both language and content; it is superficial in its concatenation of dispersed materials and given to the repetition of entire passages in versions that present variants. Based on all this, it can be argued plausibly that the book is the product of the imperfect and morous edition of materials from a plurality of traditions

Crone and Cook (1977, p. 18)

This book was extremely controversial at the time, challenging not only Muslim orthodoxy, but prevailing attitudes among secular Islamists themselves. Wansbrough was criticized for his interpretation of the Qur'an and for misinterpreting the original Arabic words. Crone and Cook have rebutted some of their arguments that the Qur'an evolved over several centuries, but they still argue that the Sunni reading tradition is highly unreliable, projecting its contemporary orthodoxy into the past, from the past. Just as if New Testament exegetes wanted to prove that Jesus was a Catholic or a Methodist.

Fred Donner has argued against Crone and Cook, regarding the early date of the Qur'an's compilation, based on his readings of the text itself. He argues that if the Qur'an had been compiled throughout Islam's tumultuous early centuries (with its vast conquests, expansion, and bloody incidents between rival caliphates), there would have been evidence of this history in the text. However, according to him, there is nothing in the Qur'an that does not reflect what was known to the early Muslim community.

Some say that archaeological finds from 1972 may shed light on the origins of the Qur'an. In that year, during the restoration of Yemen, the workers found a "paper graveyard" containing tens of thousands of papers on which fragments of the Qur'an were read (copies of the Qur'an are still disposed of in this way, as it is considered impiety to treat the "sacred text" as if it were ordinary garbage). Some of these fragments were believed to be the oldest Qur'anic texts ever found. The European specialist Gerd R. Puin has studied these fragments and has published not only a corpus of texts, but also some preliminary discoveries. The variant texts discovered seem to match certain minor variants reported by some Islamic scholars in their descriptions of the variants of the Qur'an, which were once in the possession of Abdallah ibn Masud, Ubay ibn Ka'b and Ali, and which were suppressed. by orders of Utman.

Content

Noah's ship, Zubdetü't-Tevarih. According to the liberal scholars, Gilgamesh's flood myth is taken from the Babylonians and reinterpreted in the Torah and the Quran.

Universe centered on Earth or on the ground. C. Flammarion, Holzschnitt, Paris 1888, It is believed that the Universe is defined as a universe model focused on the Earth (on the ground) in the Quran.

The contents of the Qur'an deal with basic Islamic beliefs including the existence of God and resurrection. Stories of the ancient prophets, ethical and legal issues, historical events from the time of Muhammad, charity, and prayer also appear in the Qur'an. Verses from the Qur'an contain general exhortations regarding doing right or wrong and connect with historical events to point to broader moral lessons. Verses relating to natural phenomena have been interpreted by Muslims as a sign of the authenticity of the Qur'anic message. The style of the Qur'an has been called "allusive," and comments are required to explain what is meant. There is reference to the events, but these are not narrated; disagreements are debated without being explained; people and places are mentioned, but rarely named.

Monotheism

̩The central theme of the Quran is monotheism. God is described as living, eternal, omniscient, and omnipotent (see eg, Qur'an 2ː20, 2ː29, 2ː255). God's omnipotence appears above all in his power to create. He is the creator of everything, of the heavens and the earth and what is between them (see, e.g., Qur'an 13ː15, 2ː253. 50ː38, etc.). All human beings are equal in their total dependence on God, and their well-being depends on their recognizing that fact and living up to it.

The Qur'an employs cosmological and contingency arguments in several verses without referring to the terms to prove the existence of God. Therefore, the universe is originated and needs an originator, and whatever exists must have a sufficient cause for its existence. Furthermore, the design of the universe is often referred to as a point of view. 'It was he who created the seven heavens in harmony. No fault can be seen in God's creation. Look againː can you see any mistakes?"

Eschatology

Iranian miniature art, sixteenth century: Dhul-Qarnayn is building a wall against Gog and Magog with the help of djinns. The Wall will collapse before the Day of Judg and Gog-Magog will invade the Earth.

The doctrine of the end of days and eschatology (the final destiny of the universe) can be considered the second great doctrine of the Qur'an. It is estimated that approximately one third of the Qur'an is eschatological, having to do with the afterlife in the other world and with the day of judgment at the end of time. There is a reference to the afterlife on most pages of the Qur'an and belief in it is often mentioned alongside belief in God, as in the common expression "Believe in God and in the last of the days." A number of surahs such as 44, 56, 75, 78, 81, and 101 are directly related to the afterlife and its preparations. Some surahs indicate the nearness of the event and warn people to be prepared for the imminent date. For example, the first verses of Sura 22, which deal with the powerful earthquake and the situations of the people on that day, represent this kind of divine admonitionː Oh people! Have fear of your Lord. The earthquake that will occur when the Hour (of Judgment) arrives will be something terrible."

The Qur'an usually vividly describes what will happen at the end of time. Watt describes the Qur'anic view of the End Timeː

"The climax of the story, when the present world comes to an end, is called by various names. It is 'Judgment Day,' 'the Last Day,' 'the Day of Resurrection,' or simply 'the Time.' Less frequently it is called 'the Day of Distinction' (when the good will be separated from the bad), 'the Day of Assembly' (of men in the presence of God) or 'the Day of Meeting' (of men with God). The Hour happens suddenly. It is preceded by a shout, by thunder, or by the sound of a trumpet. A cosmic upheaval then takes place. The mountains dissolve into dust, the seas boil, the sun darkens, the stars fall, and the sky rolls up. God appears as Judge, but his presence is only suggested and not described [...] The central interest is found, of course, in the gathering of all humanity before the Judge. Human beings from all ages, resurrected, join the crowd. To the mocking objection of unbelievers that previous generations have long been dead and are now only dust and decrepit bones, the answer is that God is able to bring them back to life in any case."

The Qur'an does not affirm a natural immortality of the human soul, since the existence of the human being depends on the will of Godː when he wishes, he causes man to die, and when he wishes, he restores life in a bodily resurrection.

The Prophets

Jonah and the miniature fish. As described in the Book of Jonah, he was thrown from the boat in the Mediterranean Sea, swallowed by fish and thrown to the shore in Nineveh, Legend of Jonah is repeated in the Qur'an.

Queen Bilqis 'Queen of King Solomon'. Edward Poynter, 1890. According to the Torah, Solomon was a king, whose seventy wives and three hundred concubines were strayed in his old age and worshiped idols, he entered the Quran, as a king, prophet, ruling people, geniuses and nature.

According to the Quran, God communicated with man and made his will known through signs and revelations. The prophets, or "Messengers of God," they received revelations and taught them to mankind. The message has been identical and for all humanity. "Nothing has been said to you that has not been told to the messengers before you, that your lord has in charge of pardon as well as the most severe punishment." Revelation does not come directly from God to the prophets. Angels acting as God's messengers deliver divine revelation to them. This appears in the Qur'an 42ː51, in which it is statedː "God does not speak to people except by inspiration or behind a veil or by sending a Messenger (the angel Gabriel) to transmit to them by His will what He wants from the revelation.&#3. 4;

According to an Urfa legend, Abraham breaks idols and argues with Nimrod. Nimrod has a large catapult built and orders a fire to be built. With this catapult they throw Abraham into the fire, but with an order at that moment, Abraham's god turns fire into water and burning wood into fish. The statement on the subject in the Qur'an: "¡ O fire! 'Be cool and safe for Abraham!' we said."(21: 66-70)

Ethical-religious concepts

Belief is a fundamental aspect of morality in the Qur'an and scholars have attempted to determine the semantic contents of "belief" and "believer" in the Qur'an. Ethical-legal concepts and exhortations that have to do with good conduct are related to a deep awareness of God, and therefore emphasize the importance of faith, responsibility, and belief in each person's ultimate encounter with God. People are invited to commit acts of charity, especially towards those most in need. To believers who "spend their fortune night and day, in secret and in public" they are promised that "they will have their reward with their Lord, they will not be afraid, nor will they mourn." It also affirms family life by legislating on issues of marriage, divorce, and inheritance. A number of practices, such as usury and gambling, are prohibited. The Quran is one of the fundamental sources of Islamic law (sharia). Some formal religious practices receive significant attention in the Qur'an, including formal prayers (salat) and fasting in the month of Ramadan. As for the way in which the prayer should be conducted, the Qur'an refers to prostration. The term used for charity, zakat, literally means purification. Charity, according to the Qur'an, is a form of self-purification.

The situation of women captured in wars is a critical issue in terms of religion. According to the traditional interpretations of the Qur'an, these women are property like the others. It does not take into account whether these women are married to other people or not, and like other possessed women, the holders of rights (warriors or buyers of them) can perform sexual practices on their bodies without their consent. (Sura 23; 5-6)

Qisas (or qesās) (in Arabic, قصاص‎) is a term in Arabic meaning "same answer," and responds to the principle of an eye for an eye, or law of retaliation, initially established by Hammurabi.

Qisas (for crimes of killing and wounding): is a practice understood as retaliation in the "tribal social order" and carried out on the basis of "equivalence social". Depending on whether the person killed was (male, female, slave, free, elite, or common), someone from the killer's tribe (who is socially equivalent to the person killed) was killed. For example, only a slave can be killed for a slave and a woman for a woman. The condition of "social equality" in qisas means that; "if a socially inferior person kills someone from the upper class, qisas will be applied" while "if someone from the upper class kills someone from the lower class, it cannot be applied".

In this case, compensation (Diyjah in Islam) can be paid to the family of the person killed. The condition of social equivalence is also included in the Qur'an;

"Oh, believers! You have been established the law of hesitation in case of murder: free by the free, slave by the slave, whether men or women. Anyone who is pardoned for the death penalty by decision of the victim ' s direct family members, who appreciates appropriately and pays the corresponding compensation within the prescribed time limit. This is a relief from your Lord and a mercy. But who after accepting compensation transgress [trying to avenge the murderer] will have a painful punishment".

Interpretation of the Quran

The coin that represents Alexander the Great as the conqueror of Egypt with the horns of Amon. Alexander is the son of the god Amon and is a god in Egypt. According to most of the Koran, interpretation, the person Zu-al-Karnayn means Alejandro.

The Qur'an has produced a large body of commentary and explanation. Late Muslims did not always understand the language of the Qur'an, did not understand certain allusions that seemed clear to early Muslims, and were extremely concerned with reconciling contradictions and conflicts in the Qur'an. The commentators glossed the Arabic, explained the allusions and, perhaps most important, decided which Qur'anic verses had been revealed first in Muhammad's prophetic career (which was appropriate for the nascent Muslim community) and which had been revealed later, canceling or abrogating the original text, but repeatedly, the Qur'an affirmed that there were no contradictions, and that even if humans tried, they would not "adjust" the 'puzzle', an example is the statement that every living thing in the universe, including humans, has been created from water, but then the Qur'an states that humans have been created from clay, to Adam and Eve the first humans. Memories of the "occasions of revelation", that is, the circumstances in which Muhammad had made the revelations public, were also collected, as it was thought that they might explain some obscurities.

For all these reasons, it was extremely important for the commentators to explain how the Qur'an was revealed, when, and under what circumstances. Many comments, or tafsir, concerned history. The early tafsir are some of the best sources of Islamic history. Some famous commentators are at-Tabari, az-Zamakhshari, at-Tirmidhi and Ibn Kathir. Generally these classical commentaries included all the common and accepted interpretations, whereas modern fundamentalist commentaries, such as the one written by Sayyed Qutb, tend to give only one of the possible interpretations.

Commentators feel very sure of the exact circumstances that motivated some verses, such as the Iqra sura or verses 190-194, of the al-Baqara sura. But in some cases (such as the sura al-Asr), the most that can be said is what city Muhammad was living in at the time. In other cases, such as with the al-Kawthar sura, the details of the circumstances are disputed, as different traditions give different versions.

The most important "outside aids" that have been used to interpret the meanings of the Qur'an are the hadith, the collection of traditions on which some Muslim scholars (the ulama) based the story, and the islamic laws. Specialists have inspected the thousands of pages of hadith, trying to discover which were true and which were fabrications. A widely used method was the study of the chain of narrators, the isnad, through which the tradition was transmitted.

Note that although certain hadith—the qudsi hadith—are said to record the non-canonical words traditionally spoken by God to Muhammad, or a summary thereof, Muslims do not consider these texts to be part of the Qur'an.

Similarities between the Qur'an, the Tanakh and the Bible

Eyob , Léon Bonnat (1880); The story of Job was an adaptation of the Torah of a legend of Sumer according to Muazzez İlmiye Çığ

One of the verses subject to controversy is that in which, believing that the consumption of fresh dates facilitates labor, Mary shakes the palm tree. The Gospel of the pseudo-Matthew collects the same story.

Muslims believe that the Torah (Al Tawra - التوراة) of the prophet Moses (Musa - ٰمُوسیٰ) and the psalms (Al Zabur) - زَبُورُ) of Prophet David (Dawud - دَاوُوْد‎) and the Gospel (Injil - إنجيل) of Prophet Jesus (Isa Ibn Mariam - عِيسَى ٱبْنُ مَرْيَمَ), are books revealed by God, but have been corrupted by Jews and Christians. Therefore, the Qur'an takes up the stories of many of the characters and events that appear in the holy books of Jews and Christians (The Tanach, The Bible) and devotional literature (The Apocrypha and the Midrash), although it differs from these in many details. Certain well-known biblical characters, such as Adam, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, John the Baptist, and Jesus are mentioned in the Qur'an as prophets of Islam. Without forgetting Mary (Maryam in Arabic), mother of Jesus, who is mentioned numerous times and always in a praiseworthy manner.

The episodes are the same with differences in detail, some less important than others, and the fragments are scattered among the verses of the suras. It narrates details of the episodes about the creation of the man who is given the name of Adam in the Garden, the disobedience of the angel Iblis before the command of God Allah to prostrate himself before Adam, and how God calls Iblis Demon (Shaytan); the expulsion from the Garden; an indirect mention of Cain and Abel; Noah (Nuh), the ark (ship) and the flood with the destruction of Noah's people and the death of one of his sons, as well as the condemnation of his wife for treason; the ark rests in the Chudi (the mountains of Ararat according to the Genesis of the Tanaj); the fertility of Abraham's wife, the birth of Ishmael and Isaac and God's test to Abraham (Ibrahim) asking him to sacrifice Ishmael; the destruction of the town of Lot (Sodom) and the condemnation of his wife for treason; the stay of the Israelites in Egypt, the birth of Moses, his competition with Pharaoh's magicians, the nine signs (the ten plagues according to the Tanach), the passage of the sea, Moses' encounter with God when he saw a fire (in angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in the middle of a bush, according to the Tanakh), the tables of the law, the calf (the golden calf); David, who kills Goliath, etc.

Parallel stories; The ransom of Moses, whose name is used 136 times in the Quran Alma-Tadema.(Quran 28;7-9 / Exodus 1; 15-22) A similar story was told about King Acadio, Sargon the Great.

Unlike the New Testament, the Koran narrates the birth of Mary (Maryam) as the daughter of "Imran's wife" and her guardianship by the priest Zacharias, Elizabeth's husband; reiterates the evangelical narratives of the announcement to Zacharias of the birth of his son John (the Baptist); the announcement to Mary of the birth of her son Jesus (Isa) and her pregnancy by the Spirit of God. Later, it takes elements from the apocryphal gospels when mentioning the retirement of Mary, the labor pains and the birth of Isa/Jesus, who speaks in the cradle declaring himself mortal, servant, prophet and sent by God to the children of Israel, and even announces the upcoming arrival of Ahmad (Mohammed) whom the Qur'an calls the "Seal of the Prophets". The main discrepancy with the Christian texts is the ancestry of Maryam, since in the Koran it is mentioned that she is the daughter of Amram (Imran), son of Levi and also sister of Aaron, who lived at the time of the Exodus, while in the New Testament it is said that she is from the lineage of David, although Lucas relates her to the priestly family of Elizabeth and Zacharias, a priest of Abijah's group (Lk 1:5), a descendant of Aaron, Aaron being the son of Amran (Imran). It is evident that the author of the Qur'an confuses the mother of Jesus with Miriam the sister of Moses, a difficulty already noted during the early days of Islam and which Muslim scholars explain by saying that it is another Aaron, different from Moses' brother.

Sexuality according to Qur'an

Homosexuality

Islamic views on homosexuality are varied. The Hadith contain express condemnations of same-sex sexual acts. The Qur'an mentions in two suras the story of "Lot's people" (also known as sodomites), who were destroyed for engaging in evil acts, corruptions, rapes (travellers), and among that, practicing homosexuality, were a People who "exceeded limits", according to the Qur'an.

Quran recitation

The word "Quran" is generally translated as 'recitation', indicating that it cannot exist as a simple text. It has always been transmitted orally as well as graphically. In order to at least be able to perform one salat (prayer), an indispensable obligation in Islam, a Muslim has to learn at least a few suras from the Qur'an (generally, starting with the first sura, al-Fatiha, known as "The Seven Repeated Verses", and then moving on to the shorter ones at the end of the book).

A person who can recite the entire Qur'an is called a qāri' (قَارٍئ) or hāfiz (terms that translate as 'reciter' or 'memorizer', respectively). Muhammad is remembered as the first hāfiz. The chanting (tilāwa تلاوة) of the Qur'an is one of the fine arts of the Muslim world.

Quran recitation schools

There are various schools of Qur'anic recitation, all of which are permitted pronunciations of the utmanic rasm. Today there are ten canonical and four non-canonical recitations of the Qur'an. For a recitation to be canonical, it must meet three conditions:

1. Must match the collection, the rasmUtman, letter by letter.
2. It must respect the syntactic laws of the Arabic language.
3. He must have a isnad continued the Prophet Muhammad through a tawatur, which means it must be related by a large group of people to another along a chain of isnad.

Ibn Mujahid documented seven such recitations and Ibn Al-Jazri added three. Is about:

1. Nafi' de Medina (169/785), transmitted by Warsh and Qalun
2. Ibn Kathir de La Meca (120/737), transmitted by Al-Bazzi and Qonbul
3. Ibn 'Amer de Damascus (118/736), transmitted by Hisham and Ibn Zakwan
4. Abu 'Amr de Basra (148/770), transmitted by Al-Duri and Al-Susi
5. 'Asim de Kufa (127/744), transmitted by Sho'bah and Hafs
6. Hamza de Kufa (156/772), transmitted by Khalaf and Khallad
7. Al-Kisa'i de Kufa (189/804), transmitted by Abul-Harith and Al-Duri
8. Abu-Ja'far de Medina, transmitted by Ibn Wardan and Ibn Jammaz
9. Ya'qub de Yemen, transmitted by Ruways and Rawh
10. Khalaf de Kufa, transmitted by Ishaaq and Idrís

These recitations differ in the vocalization (tashkil تشكيل) of a few words, which in turn give the word a different meaning, according to the rules of Arabic grammar. For example, the vocalization of a verb can change its active and passive voice. You can also change your training, which involves intensity, for example. Vowels can be changed in quantity (ie they can be lengthened or shortened) and glottal pauses (hamzas) can be added or dropped, depending on the respective rules of the particular recitation. For example, the name of the Archangel Gabriel can be pronounced differently in different recitations: Ŷibrīl, Ŷabrīl, Ŷibra'īl, and Ŷibra'il. The name Qur'ān is pronounced without the glottal pause (as in Qurān) in one recitation and the name of the prophet Ibrāhīm may be pronounced Ibrāhām in another.

The most used narrations are those of Hafs (حفص عن عاصم), Warsh (ورش عن نافع), Qalun (قالون عن نافع ) and Al-Duri via Abu `Amr (الدوري عن أبي عمرو). Muslims firmly believe that all canonical recitations were made by the Prophet himself, citing the respective canonical isnad chain of narration and accept them as valid for worship as a reference for Sharia laws. Non-canonical recitations are called "explanatory" for their role in giving different perspectives to a given verse or ayah. Today several people hold the title of "Memorizer of Ten Recitations," which is considered the highest honor in the Qur'anic sciences.

Style Considerations

Quran Format

Image of the Koran.

The Qur'an consists of 114 suras (chapters) made up of a total of 6,236 ayahs (verses) leaving out 112 of the 113 bizmillas or basmalas with which the suras begin because they are identical ("In the name of God, the Compassionate and Merciful") and are generally left unnumbered. Alternatively, the bizmillas can be included in the verse count, which yields a number of 6,348 ayahs. The exact number of verses has been disputed, not because of a dispute regarding the content of the Qur'an but because of counting methods. Several "Original Qur'an Muslims" have rejected two verses of the Qur'an as spurious and work with the sum of 6,346. Muslims generally do not refer to suras by their numbers but by a name derived from the text of each sura.. The suras are not arranged in chronological order (in the order in which Islamic scholars assume they were revealed) but are arranged by size, though not exactly; this method is also believed to be divinely inspired. After a brief introduction, the longer suras appear in the Qur'an and the text concludes with the shorter ones. It is said that there are approximately 77,639 letters in it.

According to some non-Muslim linguists, the descending order of the suras in the Qur'an is probably inspired by the type of arrangement of the poetic divans. The final result responds, more or less, to an inverted chronological order: the longest, from the Medina period, at the beginning of the book; the shortest (corresponding to the beginning of the Revelation), from the Meccan period, at the end.

Quran divided for reading and recitation

In addition to the division into suras —and quite independent of it—, there are several ways to divide the Qur'an into sections of similar size that facilitate reading, recitation, and memory. The seven manzil (stations) and the thirty juz' (parts) can be used to work with the entire Qur'an for a week or a month (an apron or a juz' per day). A juz' can be divided into two ahzab (groups), and each ahzab can be subdivided into four rooms. A different structure is offered by the ruku'at, in which there are semantic units that resemble paragraphs and are made up of approximately ten verses.

A hafiz is a man who has memorized the entire text of the Quran. It is believed that there are millions of them, from children to the elderly; Many children and adults, including many who cannot read Arabic, memorize the Qur'an in whole or in part. To perform the salat (prayer) it is not necessary to memorize the complete text, just two suras.

Start of the suras

All but one chapter begins with the words Bismillah ir-Rahman ir-Rahim, "In the name of God, the Most Merciful, the Compassionate." Twenty-nine suras begin with letters taken from a restricted subset of the Arabic alphabet; thus, for example, the sura Maryam begins "Kaf. Is. 'Ain. Sad. (This is) a mention of the Mercy of your Lord to His servant Zacharias."

Although there has been some speculation about the meaning of these letters, the consensus of Muslim scholars is that their ultimate meaning is beyond the capacity of human understanding. However, it has been observed that, in four of the 29 cases, these letters appear almost immediately followed by the actual mention of the Qur'anic revelation. The efforts of Western scholars have been tentative; one proposal, for example, was that these were the initials or monograms of the scribes who originally wrote the suras.

Temporal order of Qur'anic verses

Belief in the direct and uncorrupted divine origin of the Qur'an is considered fundamental by most Muslims. This brings as a direct consequence the belief that the text has no errors or inconsistencies.

This is the book, of a sure guide and that which gives no place to any doubt, for those who fear Allah.

Azora al-Baqarah, verse 2

Despite this, it sometimes happens that some verses forbid a certain practice while others allow it. This is interpreted by Muslims in light of the relative chronology of the verses: because the Qur'an was revealed over the course of 23 years, many of the verses were clarified or related (mansūkh) to other verses. Muslim commentators explain this by stating that Muhammad was directed in such a way that he could lead a small group of believers on the right path, rather than reveal to them in one fell swoop the full rigor of the law. For example, the prohibition of alcohol was carried out gradually, not immediately. The oldest verse tells believers "Do not approach the prayers with a clouded mind, unless you can understand all that they say" (4:43), then this is a prohibition on drunkenness, but not on the alcohol consumption: "If they ask advice about wine and gambling, tell them: 'There is some profit in them for men, but the sin is greater than the profit'" (2:219).

Finally, in some cases most Muslim scholars accept the doctrine of “abrogation” (naskh), according to which verses revealed later sometimes take precedence over verses delivered previously. Which verses abrogate others is a controversial issue.

Language of the Quran

The language used in the Qur'an is classical Arabic.

Mohammed pointing to the Moon. 16th century falname

The Qur'an was one of the first texts written in Arabic. It is written in an early form of classical Arabic, which is known in Spanish as "quranic" Arabic. There are not many other examples of the Arabic language from that time (some specialists consider the Mu'allaqat or Suspended Odes to be examples of pre-Islamic Arabic; others consider them to have been written before Muhammad; however, only five inscriptions survive in pre-Islamic Arabic.) Shortly after Muhammad's death in 632, Islam spread beyond Arabia and conquered much of what was then the "civilized" world. There were millions of Muslims abroad with whom the Arab rulers had to communicate. Consequently, the language changed rapidly in response to the new situation, losing cases and obscure vocabulary. A few generations after the prophet's death, many words used in the Qur'an had already become archaic. Because the Bedouin language had changed at a much slower rate, early Arabic lexicographers turned to Bedouin to explain words or elucidate grammatical issues. Largely due to religious needs to explain the Qur'an to the people, Arabic grammar and lexicography became important sciences, and the model for literary language remains to this day the Arabic used in Qur'anic times, and not the currently spoken variants.

Muslims claim that the Qur'an stands out for its poetry and beauty, and that its literary perfection is evidence of its divine origin. Due to the fact that this perfection is only perceptible to Arabic speakers, the original Arabic text is considered to be the "true Qur'an". In general, the translations into other languages, although always carried out by eminent Arabists, are considered as simple glosses, as interpretations, of the direct words of God. Reading in another language, without the cadence of recitation in Arabic, can be confusing, tedious and repetitive:

By limiting ourselves here to a purely literary judgment, we cannot deny the impression of chaos and at the same time of monotony and fatigue that its continued reading arouses.

Francesco Gabrieli

The prevailing traditions in the translation and publication of the Qur'an hold that when the book is published it should simply be titled The Qur'an and, likewise, it should always include a qualifying adjective (to avoid any confusion with other "recitations"), this is which is why most of the available editions of the Qur'an are called "The Glorious Qur'an", "The Noble Qur'an" and other similar titles.

There are numerous translations of the Qur'an into Western languages, carried out by well-known Islamic scholars. Each translation is slightly different from the others and shows the translator's ability to render the text in a way that is both easy to understand and maintains the original meaning.

Virtually all Islamic scholars are able to read and understand the Qur'an in its original form, and in fact most know it in its entirety by heart.

Literary Genre of the Qur'an

The Quran mixes narrative, exhortation and legal prescription. In general, suras combine these three types of text sequences, and not always in ways that are obvious to the reader, but sometimes in inexplicable ways. Muslims point to the Qur'an's unique style as further indication of its divine origin.

There are many recurring elements in the Qur'an: epithets ("Lord of heaven and earth"), prayers ("And when We said to the angels, 'Bow down to Adam,' they all bowed down »), and even stories, such as the story of Adam. Muslim specialists explain these repetitions as a way of emphasizing and explaining different aspects of important topics. Furthermore, scholars point out that translations into Western languages require large changes in wording and order in order to maintain the specific explanation and meaning.

The Qur'an oscillates between rhyme and prose. Traditionally, Arabic grammarians consider the Qur'an to be a unique genre unto itself. It is neither poetry (defined as words with meter and rhyme) nor prose (defined as normal conversation, but without meter or rhyme, saj').

The Quran sometimes uses assonance rhyme between successive verses; for example, at the beginning of the sura Al-Faǧr:

Wa-l-fağr(i),

Wa layâlin fondašr(in),
Wa-š-šaf absenti wa-l-watr(i)
Wal-layli 'i pastorâ yasr(î),

Hal fî fortressâlika qasamun li-murai ḥiğr(in).

or, to give a less striking example, the “al-Fîl” sura:

'A-lam tara kayfa fa randomala rabbuka bi-'archḥâbi l-fîl(i),

'A-lam yağnal kaydahum fî tatestlîl(in)
Wa-'arsala ⋅alayhim ṭayran 'abâbîl(a)
Tarmîhim bi- ḥiğâratin min siğīl(in)

Fa-ğa recollectionalahum ka- closearchfin ma'kûl(in).

Note that verse-final vowels are left unpronounced when they are pronounced in isolation, this is the regular phenomenon of pauses in Classical Arabic. In these cases, «î» and «û» often rhyme and there is a certain search for variation in the consonants in syllable-final position).

Some suras also include a saying that is repeated several times, for example "ar-Rahman" ("Then which of the favors of your Lord will you deny?") and "al -Mursalat» («Rebuke that day to those who repudiate!»).

Medican and Meccan suras

Islamic scholars of the Qur'an divide the verses of the book into two parts: those revealed in Mecca and those revealed in Medina after the Hijri. In general, the older suras, from Mecca, tend to have shorter verses, while those from Medina, dealing with legal issues, are longer. Contrast the suras of Mecca transcribed above and some verses like those of Al-Baqara, 229:

Divorces can be done twice, after which marriage must be resumed in an honorable manner, or dissolve in good ways. It is not correct for men to take away their wives the gifts they have given them, except when both sides fear not to be able to stay within the limits imposed by God. If the judges really fear that they will not be able to stay within the limits imposed by God, there is no fault in any of them if she gives anything in return for their freedom. These are the limits ordained by God, in such a way that you violence against us, since if someone violates the limits of God, that person will harm himself and others.

Similarly, the suras of Medina tend to be longer; among these is the longest in the Qur'an: Al-Baqara.

The Koran and Islamic culture

Image of the coran.

Koran at the Buenos Aires Book Fair, 2013.

Before a Muslim can touch a copy of the Qur'an or mushaf, he must perform a wudu (ablution, or cleansing ritual with water). This is based on a literal interpretation of the surah "For this is indeed the Honorable Qur'an, the well-preserved Book, which no one can touch except those who are clean."

Execration of the Qur'an means insulting the Qur'an by taking it out of context or dismembering it. Muslims always treat the book with reverence, and therefore it is forbidden to recycle, reprint, or simply discard old copies of the text (in the latter case, the volumes should be respectfully burned or buried).

Respect for the written text of the Qur'an is an important element of the religious faith of many Muslims. They believe that intentionally insulting the Qur'an is a form of blasphemy. Under the laws of some Muslim countries, blasphemy is punishable by imprisonment for many years or even the death penalty.

Write and print the Quran

Most Muslims today use printed versions of the Qur'an. There are Koranic editions for all tastes, pocket books, many of them in bilingual editions, with the Arabic text on one side and a vernacular gloss on the other. The first printed Quran was published in 1801 in Kazan.

Before printing was common, the Qur'an was passed down through copyists and calligraphers. Due to the fact that Muslim tradition felt that directly portraying holy characters could lead to idolatry, decorating the Qur'an with images (as is often done in Christian texts, for example) was prohibited. Instead, Muslims developed a special love and affection for the text itself. One of the consequences of this is that Arabic Calligraphy is an art that holds a very high honor in the Muslim world. Muslims also decorated their copies of the Qur'an with abstract figures known as arabesques, using colored inks and gold. Some pages from some of these ancient Qur'ans have been used throughout this article for illustrative purposes.

Compilation of the Quran by Discover Islam

Quran translations

The Qur'an has been translated into many languages, but the translations are not considered by Muslims to be authentic copies of the Qur'an, but simply "interpretive glosses" on the book; therefore they are not given much weight in debates regarding the meaning of the Qur'an. In addition to this, as mere interpretations of the text, they are treated as ordinary books, instead of being given all the special care that Arabic-language books are generally given. Despite this, as it is a Message addressed to all humanity, the general meaning of its phrases, studied century after century by a multitude of wise men, must be translated.

Robert de Ketton was the first to translate the Koran and he did so into Latin, in 1143 and, possibly, the most recent one with its corresponding Tafsir or exegesis is that of Ali Ünal.