Respect For The Qur’an This article covers respect for the Qur’an. Reciting the Qur’an to your children and teaching them how to read it is of great importance, but there is something that is even more important. That is giving your children the sense that what is being recited is...
Quran And Miracles This article covers the Quran And Miracles. Islam considers the Quran to be a holy book, the word of Allah, and a miracle. The text itself is believed to be a miracle on the grounds that the Arabic text would not conform to the standard poetry and prose categories commonly expressed by...
What Are Satanic Verses? Satanic Verses refer to words of “satanic suggestion” which the Islamic Prophet Muhammad is said to have mistaken for divine revelation. The alleged verses can be read in biographies of Muhammad by al-Wāqidī, Ibn Sa’d and Ibn Ishaq, and the tafsir of al-Tabarī. Most Muslim scholars reject the historicity of the incident on the basis of the theological doctrine...
What Is Dhul-Qarnayn? Dhul-Qarnayn or Dhu al-Qarnayn, ذُو ٱلْقَرْنَيْن, Ḏū l-Qarnayn, lit. “He of the Two Horns”) appears in the Quran, Surah Al-Kahf (18), Ayahs 83–101 as one who travels to the east and west and sets up a barrier between a certain people and Gog and Magog (called Ya’juj and Ma’juj). Elsewhere the Quran tells...
Alexander The Great In The Quran The story of Dhul-Qarnayn (ذو القرنين, literally “The Two-Horned One”, also transliterated as Zul-Qarnain or Zulqarnain), mentioned in the Quran, maybe a reference to Alexander III of Macedon (356–323 BC), popularly known as Alexander the Great. Western and traditional Muslim scholars generally identify Alexander the Great...
What The Qur’an Says About Jihad In light of recent events, the media is constantly talking about jihad. However, sometimes they do not define this term. Can you please tell us what the Qur’an says about jihad, and how the Prophet and the Companions implemented it in their daily lives?...
Divine Authorship Of The Qur’an This article covers the Arguments For The Divine Authorship Of The Qur’an. When we study the Qur’an’s words, styles, and meanings even superficially, we notice immediately that it is unique. So, in rank and worth it is either below—even Satan cannot claim this, nor does he...
The Qur’an In accordance with humanity’s worth and value, and considering the human heart, spirit, mind, and physical being, the Qur’an descended from the Highest of the High. Containing the most perfect messages, it is a collection of Divine Laws. Followed today by more than one billion people, the Qur’an...
Is The Holy Book (The Quran) Word Of God? This article covers the answer to the question: “Is The Holy Book Word Of God?“ The Holy Book is completely different from all the other books in the world 1. When we study the Holy Book even superficially from the viewpoint...
What Is Sunnah Prayer? Sunnah prayer (صلاة السنة) is an optional or supererogatory salah that can be performed by Muslims at almost any time of the day. These prayers are performed in addition to the five daily prayers, which are compulsory for all Muslims. There are a range of prayers available:...
What Is The Criticism Of Hadith? The criticism of Hadith refers to the critique directed towards collections of ahadith, i.e. the collections of reports of the words, actions, and the silent approval of the Islamic prophet Muhammad on any matter. The criticism revolves primarily around the authenticity of hadith reports and whether they are attributable to Muhammad, as well...
What Is Surah? A Surah (سورة sūrah, سور suwar) is the term for a chapter of the Quran. There are 114 surahs in the Quran, 86 are classified as Makki, while 28 are Madini. each divided into verses (āyāt). The chapters or surahs are of unequal length; the shortest chapter (Al-Kawthar) has only...
What Is Ayah? In the Islamic Quran, an Ayah (آية; آيات āyāt) is a “verse,” one of the statements of varying length that make up the chapters (surah) of the Quran and are marked by a number. The word means “evidence,” “sign” or “miracle,” and in Islam may refer to things other than...
What Is I’jaz? In Islam, I’jaz, or inimitability of the Qur’an is the doctrine which holds that the Qur’an has a miraculous quality, both in content and in form, that no human speech can match. According to this doctrine, the Qur’an is a miracle and its inimitability is the proof granted to Muhammad in the...
Birmingham Quran Manuscript The Birmingham Quran manuscript is a parchment on which two leaves of an early Quranic manuscript are written. In 2015 the manuscript, which is held by the University of Birmingham, was radiocarbon dated to between 568 and 645 CE (in the Islamic calendar, between 56 BH and 25 AH). It is part...
What Is Sanaa Manuscript? The Sanaa Manuscript or Sanaa palimpsest (also Ṣanʿā’ 1 or DAM 01-27.1) is one of the oldest Quranic manuscripts in existence. Part of a sizable cache of Quranic and non-Quranic fragments discovered in Yemen during a 1972 restoration of the Great Mosque of Sana’a, the manuscript was identified as a palimpsest Quran in 1981; as...
Chronological Order Of The Quran The Qur’an is not in chronological order but arranged roughly the longest surah (chapter) to the shortest. The following lists the chronological (or revelational) order of the Qur’an. Chronological Order Surah Name Number of Verses Location of Revelation Traditional Order 1 Al-Alaq 19 Mecca 96 2 Al-Qalam 52...
What Does The Bible Say About God? This article covers the answer to the question: “What Does The Bible Say About God?” There is nothing that anyone can know about God’s nature unless He reveals it to humankind. Without divine revelation humanity will be in darkness. Fortunately, the Bible has...
The Holy Quran’s Invitation To Christians This article covers the answer to the question: “What is the Holy Quran‘s Invitation to Christians?“ “Say: “People of the Book! Come now to a word common between us and you, that we serve none but Allah, and that we associate not aught with...
Biblical And Quranic Narratives This article covers Biblical And Quranic Narratives. The Quran, the central religious text of Islam, contains references to more than fifty people and events also found in the Bible. While the stories told in each book are generally comparable, important differences sometimes emerge. The versions written in the Hebrew Bible and the Christian New Testament predate...