Glories of Quran 1

We happily lose track of time when reading the newspaper every day, or 'riffling' through our favourite sports or fashion magazine. But when it comes to the Holy Quran most of us will concede last they read it was during Ramadan. It is also usual for the parents of a sick child in the house to endlessly pour over the ten rupee medicine's prescription to satisfy themselves that their darling has been prescribed the right medicine. Yet, they will give no heed to the moribund soul within their own selves which gasps for nourishment from an ayah of Quran.

Brothers and sisters, the above is a mere glance at the unfortunate state of affairs of our relationship with Allah Subhabhanahu wa Ta'ala and His Final Message. In the following passages, Inshaallah, through an excerpted translation of Dr. Israr Ahmad's speech, I shall reproduce selected information about the Quran Al-Hakeem. Let us pray to become regular in our reading and understanding of the Quran Al-Kareem.
In our grave, our newspapers and ours magazines will not keep away the frightening serpents and the flesh eating insects;
It is this Word of Allah Aziz ul Hakeem which shall secure protection for us, Insha'allah.

Al-Furqan:
1. Our concise belief about the Quran is that it is
a) the Word of Allah,
b) present in absolute protected form and
c) was revealed unto Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu Alaihe wa Sal'am).

2. The original Quran is with Allah Ta'ala in "Lohe-e-Mahfooz".

{('And verily, it is in the Mother of the Book, in Our Presence, high (in dignity), full of wisdom.' 43: Al-Zukhruf:4}

What we have with us is the 'Mashaf-e-Usman (RAA)', i.e., Quran scripted during the caliphate of Hazrat Usman (RAA).

3. Allah's Word has been communicated to the mankind on earth in three ways:
a) Direct Revelation: (Ilhaam=Inspiration);
b) Minwarai-e-Hijab (From behind veil): the only instance in this world, the communication with Hazrat Musa (Alaihe Salaam);
c) Through a messenger. Quran was revealed through this third form of communication.

4. While the Torah and the Injeel (Bible) were revealed in full, all at once, the Quran was revealed in stages. It was transported, in complete form, from the Loh-e-Mahfooz to the First Heaven during the Laila-tul-Qadr. Thereafter, it was revealed in stages.

5. The period of revelation of the Quran in terms of the Christian calendar was between 610 CE (Christian Era) and 632 CE. Another reckoning is by the year of birth of Hazrat Muhammad (SAW), which is also known as Aam Al-Fil (Year of the Elephant) because of the advance upon Mecca by Abraha's army. Starting in 40 Aam Al-Fil, over a period of twenty three years, its revelation was completed in Hijrah 11, or 11 Al-Hijrah (A.H.).

6. The part of Arabia in which Quran was revealed is known as Hijaz, which means a screen. Among other cities this includes Mecca, Medinah and Tabuk in the North. It is a low lying mountainous range running North to South on the western coast of Arabia. To its west is a sliver of plain lands known as Tihama, and to its East lie the area of Najd.

7. Except for the last two Ayahs of Surah Al-Baqarah, the whole of Quran was revealed in Hijaz. These two Ayahs were revealed in the Heavens on the Night of Ascension (Shab-e-Mairaj).

8. Quran's language is Arabic, of course, however, its dialect is of the rural Najd. Because Mecca was a trading hub, the language of its inhabitants had been 'corrupted' by the dialects of the visiting trade caravans. It was the practice of the nobles of Quraish to send their young ones to the suburbs to learn pure, chaste Arabic. However, even that did not remain fully insulated and there are words in the Quran which are not of Arabic origin but were Arabicised. One example is the Persian word 'Sang-e-Gil', which became 'Sijjil' in Surah Al-Fil.

9. There are various interpretations for the derivation of the word Quran. In Arabic, 'Qaran' means close. It is also one of the forms of Hajj - 'Qiraan', whence Hajj and Umrah are joined. 'Qarah' means inclination, and 'Qirya' is a village or town.

10. One thing is explicit about Quran's form of narration; it is not poetry. It is more like prose, but a special ilk of prose. Unlike most books where a topic or discussion is rounded up in one chapter, Quran will take up a subject at different places. The saga of Prophet Adam (AH) and Shaitaan is mentioned seven times. It is easier to think of its form of address as a sermon. It is a collection of Divine Oration.

Among the Arabs there were only two forms of narrative which were popular; poetry and sermon. It is mandatory for a sermon (Khutba) to have a historical background. Another quality is the shift in address. The addressee may be switched from time to time. Besides, reasoning, it relies on emotions too, and its beginning and end are extremely profound and compact.