Most Read in the Category of The Quran

In the Islamic sense an oath is taken by the name of Allah. It is carried out by saying words like "Wallahi, Billahi" (By Allah). However, the oaths on holy things like the Qur'an, the Kaaba are regarded as oaths and oaths on them are valid.

Oaths and swearing are generally formed in accordance with the customs and traditions; and oaths are taken accordingly. Especially in our country, there are various kinds of oaths that change from region to region. Oath on the Qur'an is a kind of oath that has become a custom. For instance people say "I swear on the Qur'an that…, By the Qur'an I will definitely do or will definitely not do this… etc. As a matter of fact this kind of oath is regarded as greater and imposing more responsibility than other kinds of oaths. Two people or parties that cannot settle a problem or agree on something invite each other to put hands on the Qur'an. In fact a person will not dare to swear on the Qur'an unless it is a very serious problem and unless he is completely sure.

As for the Islamic jurisprudence; it is permissible to swear on the Qur'an and it is valid; because swearing on the Qur'an is like swearing by the excellence and glory of Allah.

Ibn Kudama wrote the following in Al-Mugni

"It is valid to swear by the Qur'an, by a verse from the Qur'an and by the word Allah. Ibn Mas'ud, Katada, Imam Malik and Shafi'i and all other ulama agreed on it." (Al-Mugni, 9:407 (Question 7981)

As I have tried to state above, people understand it as putting one's hand on the Qur'an and taking an oath when the phrase swearing on the Qur'an is used. This is a kind of swearing on the Kalam (Speaking) sifat (attribute) of Allah, and it is a valid swearing. .

Imam Badruddin Ayni, who explained Sahih Bukhari in his 32-volume work, wrote the following:

"In my opinion, if a person swears by the Qur'an or puts his hand on the Qur'an or says "By the right of this", it is regarded an oath. Especially in an age when making false statements and perjury have increased and swearing on the Qur'an has become popular…"

By the way, let me state that Imam Ayni died in 1440.

Allama Kemal, one of the ulama (knowers, scientists in religion) of the current age says the following regarding it:

"No doubt, it has become a custom to swear by the Qur'an now. Therefore it is regarded a valid oath; because oaths are evaluated in terms of customs and traditions."

All of these explanations show clearly that swearing on the Qur'an is a binding oath and to break it requires kaffarah (expiation or compensation).

Reference: Mehmed Paksu Çağın Getirdiği Sorular

There are some different views as to whether some chapters were sent down in Makkah or Madinah. The most important reason for the different views is the fact that no definite information was reported from Hazrat Prophet regarding the issue. That is, Hazrat Prophet did not give information saying this verse and this chapter is Madani or that verse and that chapter is Makki. There is only some information from the Companions that witnessed the revelation; but that information is insufficient.

Despite those different views, it is agreed that 20 verses of the Quran were revealed in Madinah and that 82 chapters were revealed in Makkah. There are different views as to whether the remaining 12 chapters were revealed in Makkah or Madinah. The definitions of Makki and Madani also affected the different views. As Suyuti points out in al-Itqan there are three views about the issuee:

1. The chapters or verses that were sent down before the Hijra are Makki and that were sent down after the Hijra are Madani. The criterion for that classification is the time. The place of revelation is not taken into consideration. For instance, the chapters and verses that were sent down in the Farewell Hajj after hijrah or the chapters and verses that were sent down in Makkah or during traveling are regarded as Makki.    

2. Those that were revealed in and around Makkah (like Arafat, Mina, Muzdalifa, Taif) are Makki and those sent down in and around Madinah are Madani (like Badr, Uhud ).

3. Those that address the people of Makkah are Makki and those that address the people of Madinah are Madani. However, the third view is not favored much.

We should also state that since the chapters that were sent down in separate pieces are more than the chapters that were sent down as a whole, there are Madani verses in a Makki chapter and there are Makki chapters in a Madani chapter. In a Mushaf (Quran) that was printed in Egypt in 1342 H, that issue is mentioned at the beginning of each chapter and if a chapter is Madani and if there are Makki verses in it, or vice versa, it is stated and those verses are shown.

There are some properties that distinguish between Makki and Madani verses; they are as follows:

Makki chapters

a) The chapters that contain the word, "kalla" (The word kalla is used 33 times in 15 chapters).

b) The chapters that contain prostration (sajdah at-tilawah) verses.

c) The chapters that have huruf al-muqatta’a (single letters or groups of single letters) except the chapters of al-Baqara and Aal-i Imran.

d) The chapters in which the stories of the prophets, previous nations, the stories of Hazrat Adam and Iblis (the devil) are narrated except the chapter al-Baqara.

e) The chapters with some exceptions that contain the phrase (ya ayyuhannasu).

Madani chapters usually;

a) contain the issues like Sharia punishments, civil code.

b) Jihad and decrees about jihad are explained in those chapters.  

c) The chapters that give information about munafiqs (hypocrites) except the chapter al-Ankabut  were sent down in Madinah because munafiqs emerged in Madinah.

Apart from the properties mentioned above, in Makki chapters, there are definite attitudes against polytheism, unbelief and idolatry; and the issues regarding creed and the principles of belief regarding the hereafter like the existence and oneness of Allah are explained in Makki chapters. Those chapters are usually short and the verses of those chapters are also short and easy to memorize.   

It is very useful to know about Makki-Madani chapters. First of all, it will help those who want to interpret the Quran a lot. Although the meaning of the verses are explained in general and the place of asbab an-nuzul (occasions/circumstances of revelation) does not limit the meaning, it will help a lot to know where, about whom and about what the verse(s) were revealed.

On the other hand, the fact that the style of addressing of the Quran and the style of proclaiming it are different in Makkah and Madinah will help and lead those who will teach the Quran to the new generations. It will be understood better what kind of a style conveying the message of Islam should have in which phases, how to address polytheists, unbelievers, People of the Book and believers through knowing Makki and Madani verses. 

Knowing Makki and Madani verses will also be very helpful in determining the nasikh (abrogating) and mansukh (abrogated) verses in the Quran. When two verses that seem to be opposite of each other are seen, it can easily be understood that the one that was revealed before (for instance Makki verse) is nasikh and the other one is mansukh. (see Manna' al-Kattan, Mabahith Fi Ulumil-Qur'an, p 51-55)

O mankind! there hath come to you an admonition from your Lord and a healing for the (diseases) in your hearts, and for those who believe, a Guidance and a Mercy. (Surah/Chapter Yunus, verse 57)

Virtue of Reading the Quran

The most virtuous worship of my community (ummah) is reading the Quran. (Suyuti, Al-Jami' al-Saghir, I, 51)

Brighten up your homes by salah (prayers) and reading the Quran. (Suyuti, Al-Jami' al-Saghir, II, 188)

It is one good deed for someone to read a letter from Allahs book. And one good deed is replied with ten times of reward. Probably Alif is one letter; Lam is one letter and Mim is one letter. (Tirmidhi, Fadail al-Quran/The Virtue of the Qur'an, 16)

Read the Quran, on the Doomsday, the Quran comes as an intercessor for the ones who read it. (Muslim, Musafirun, 252)

Khatm (Complete Reading) of the Quran

Khatm is a concept related to the science (ilm) of hadith. Khatm means to cover, to seal or to complete something and rech the end. To read the Quran by looking at the pages of the Quran or reciting it by heart without looking at the book is called khatm. Besides, complete reading of the hadith books is also called khatm.


Convention of Khatm

Though a complete reading ends with the surah of an-Nas (The People), reading the surah of al-Fatiha (The Opening) and the first five verses of surah of al-Baqara (The Cow) following the surah of Nas is considered as a beginning for a new khatm.
After the khatm, a prayer is read.
It is a custom in some ıslamic communities to read the Quran partially or completely after the washing and putting the shroud on the dead person or on the day or night after the burial of the dead person.

Prayer after Khatm

Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) says, Whoever reads the Quran completely has an accepted prayer (Suyuti, Al-Jami' al-Saghir, II, 175). He is also known to have prayed after a khatm and some of his prayers have been reported. He informs that the prayer of a person who reads the Quran completely by looking or by heart is accepted in Allahs presence; and in another hadith, he says that Allah will bestow him a tree in the heaven (Suyuti, Al-Jami' al-Saghir, I, 96).

According to a hadith of Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) reported by Anas Ibn Malik, the prophet used to pray gathering his family after a khatim of the Quran (Ali ibn Abd-al-Malik al-Hindi, Kanz al-Ummal, I, 392). According to a hadith transmitted by Ibn Masud the prophet used to gather his family and pray, and his family used to say ameen after his prayers (Sahawi, Jamal al Kurra, etc. 34).

Ibn al Jazari says it is a nice deed for someone to pray after reading the Quran completely (Ibn al Jazari, Taqribun -Nashr, 194) pointing out the hadith which was reported by Jabir Ibn Abdullah: Whoever reads the Quran completely has an accepted prayer. If Allah wishes He gives his reward to him right in this world or He leaves it to the afterworld.

Some companions of Hazrat Muhammad like Abdullah Ibn Masud, Abdullah Ibn Abbas and Anas Ibn Malik are reported to have joined prayers after khatms and to have prayed after khatms with their families (Darimi, Fazail al Quran, 33). Mujahid, to indicate the importance given to prayer after khatm by the companions of the prophet, says Companions used to be present while the Quran is being read hoping that divine mercy will descend (Suyuti, Itqan, I, 311).

It is sunnah (the way of prophet Muhammad) to read the surah of al-Fatiha and the first five verses of surah of al-Baqara following the surah of an-Nas before the prayer. It is reported by Ubay Ibn Kab (Suyûtî, ltqan, I, 313). It is said that Hazrat Muhammad used to do this in order not to leave the Quran in an abandoned state (Qurtubi, Tafsir, I, 30).

Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) and Khatm

Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) used to present the Quran to Gabriel on the nights of Ramadan (Bukhari, Badul Vahy).

Gabriel and Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) used to present the Quran to each other every year, and in the last year it happened twice (Muslim, Fadail al Sahaba, 99).

Because Hazrat Muhammad and Gabriel used to read the Quran completely to each other in Ramadan, it is considered to be a good deed to read the Quran frequently in that month.

Since then Muslims have made it a common practice to read the Quran completely and to listen to it in mosques and homes in Ramadan. Especially in mosques, imams read the Quran and attendees listen to or follow it in Ramadan as a nice memory of Hazrat Muhammad and Gabriels reading and listening.

Anas Ibn Malik reported: Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) said: The best of the deeds is to start reading the Quran and to complete it (Qurtubi, Tazkar, 127).

Companions of Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) and Khatm

Abdullah Ibn Amr narrates:
The Prophet said to me:
- Read the Quran completely in one month. I said,
- I find power in myself for more.
- Then read it in ten days, said the Prophet.
- I find power in myself for more, I replied.
Upon that, he said:
- Read it in seven days, dont read in a lesser time. (Muslim, Sawm, 35)

Tarawih (An extra salah performed at Ramadan nights) and Khatim

To read the Quran completely at least once in the Tarawih is sunnah, to complete it more than once is a virtue (Sarahsi, Mabsud, 2/146; Kasani, Badai' as-Sana'i Fi Tartib al-Sharai', 2/276)

In Ramadan, one night, Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) saw some people performing salah near the mosque and asked about it, somebody nearby replied Because they could not memorize the complete Quran, Ubay Ibn Kab is helping them perform the tarawih salah as an imam. Hazrat Muhammad said They are doing right, what a nice thing they are doing (Abu Dawud, Ramadan, 1). Companions of Hazrat Muhammad used to give importance to performing tarawih with khatm.

Hazrat Omar called three people who could read the Quran by heart, listened to their reading, and according to their pace of reading he wanted each of them to read 30, 25 and 20 verses of the Quran in each rakat (one unit of salah) and make people perform the tarawih salah with khatm (Abdurrazzak, Musannaf, 4/261).


In the latter times after the sahaba, performing tarawih with khatm continued to be given importance.

Omer Ibn Abd al Aziz wanted imams who could read the Quran by heart to read ten verses in each rakat to perform a khatm in tarawih (Said Ibn Sahnun, al Mudawwanat al kubra, 1/194; Ibrahim Halabi, Multak al Abhur, (Commentary: Wahbi Sulayman al Gawji) 1/120).

Al Imam Al Azam is said to have done a complete reading of the Quran 61 times in Ramadan; once during the day and once in tarawih (Tahtavi, Hashiya ala marak el falah sharh al nur al izah, p.337).

Muhammad Ibn Ismael al Bukhari used to perform the tarawih with the people around him as twenty verses in each rakat on the first day of Ramadan. Then they used to do a complete reading in every three nights. He used to do a complete reading during the day and say there is an accepted prayer after every complete reading of the Quran (Bayhaqi, Shuab ul iman, 2/416).

The interpretation of the verse above :    “It is because of this that We ordained for (all humankind, but particularly for) the Children of Israel: He who kills a soul unless it be (in legal punishment) for murder or for causing disorder and corruption on the earth will be as if he had killed all humankind; and he who saves a life will be as if he had saved the lives of all humankind. Assuredly, there came to them Our Messengers (one after the other) with clear proofs of the truth (so that they might be revived both individually and as a people). Then (in spite of all this), many of them go on committing excesses on the earth.(The Qur’an, Al-Ma’idah, 5:32)

According to rumors, some Jewish people from Madinah were planning to ambush and kill the Prophet Muhammad  peace be upon him) and some of the believers. For this reason, Allah, The Almighty informed them that killing a person unjustifiably is like killing all humankind and saving a person is like saving all humankind in order to show them what a serious crime it is to kill a person.

This information is not included in the Bible; however, in Mishna ( Sanhedrin, IV/5), there is a statement : “if any causes an Israelite’s life to be lost, it is on him as if he has lost a whole world, and if anyone saves an Israelite, it is on him as if he saved a whole world”.

A murderer who kills a person unjustifiably is the one who does not let a person live and who violates the prohibition of blood to be shed and attacks the innocence of souls. Besides, he encourages other people to murder. In that case, a person who has killed a person is considered as if he has killed all humankind and deserves Allah’s punishment. Thus, he loses his right to live and must be killed. Killing a person unjustifiably is a common damage as it is explained above.

Likewise, disorder in community, disruption of public peace, banditry and revolutions that lead people to commit murders and which cause all people damage are of no difference. For this reason, one who kills such a murderer or a disrupting person is not considered to have killed all the humankind but to have done what is right or to have saved.
And whoever saves a soul, in other words, forgives or saves a person from being killed or causes one to survive against any life-threatening situation, is deemed as if he had saved all the people and as if he had done a favor to all the people including himself.

It is known that a simile does not require that the resembling and the resembled must display a complete resemblance in every aspect. In this case, it should not be understood as there is no difference between killing and saving everyone and killing and saving a single person. The purpose of both anecdotes is to show the damage of killing a person obviously and to show the benefit of saving a person; and consequently to deter people from killing others by executing them as a reprisal and as a punishment of causing disorder and anarchy in the community, and to encouraging people to avoid murders and to maintain life.  

Yet, here remain two questions: Why are these commands first sent to the Israelites as incumbent “because of this reason”? How come can the incident in which Cain killed Abel be a reason and an example to make these commands be incumbent for the Israelites?

What is the reason for attributing it to the Israelites? Instead of the statement, ”Children of Israel”, would it not be more suitable stating “ it is because of this that We ordained for the all humankind” or “We ordained for the Children of Adam”?

For this reason, Hasan and Dahhak were convinced that the murder in the mentioned parable did not occur between the two sons of Adam ( peace be upon him) but between two people from the Israelites and the purpose of saying two sons was to mean two Israelites and moreover, such commitment of murder among the Israelites rendered particular reasons for these commands to be sent down to them. However, according to most of people, the parable is not like that.

So if this is the case, we should interpret it like this: The statement “Min ajli dhalik” ( it is because of this) in the original text refers not to the parable but to the effective meaning out of this parable. That is to say, killing a person is but a serious crime, indeed the result of a big cruelty, a loss and remorse. The ones who call themselves humans must definitely avoid it.

Nevertheless, this kind of cruelty is an ordinary thing among humans. Even, one of the sons of Adam did this cruelty to a good brother of his in a tragic way and this catastrophe has become widely known and notorious.

This catastrophe came into existence not as a result of self-seeking in the first place but solely of a desire to injure, of jealousy and bodily wills; and not in a mood of excitement of this powerful desire but of an envy arising out of whether the prayers performed for Allah is accepted or not and of not being consent to God’s will; an envy that good wishes with the highest sense of piety, the best goodwill, and the most reasonable advice and spiritual dissuasion that alone are enough to trigger human’s sense of peace-loving and the purest feelings. On the contrary, he regards them as motives for murder. He attacks his good brother, who never lifts his hand against him, who actually never wants to do it and who wish to be to be nothing but a good brother for him, by saying “what a nice and sweet thing it is to kill you”.

Then it slips him into harm and remorse and makes his situation become such a catastrophe that his mind, which refused to listen to his exalted brother’s understandable and clear advice and showing the right way, becomes eventually, with Allah’s command, obliged to take a lesson from the behaviors of a crow that wanders in dirt and remorse what he has done.

Because murders happen ordinarily among humans, it is a legitimate right to resist it; an d because especially the mood which leads a person to murder and makes it easier in this incident or parable, jealousy, bodily wills and the trait to encourage murder when there is no resistance are very obvious and suitable to the meaning of the parable, these people were sent especially severe commands; death penalty was ordered to be a duty as retaliation and as a punishment for disorder in the community and it was explained that a person’s right to live was considered to be equal to the community’s life and saving a person was deemed as saving the community.

In that case, as long as there are such people on the earth, it is always a right law to  apply these severe commands if oral proofs and proofs about the hereafter are insufficient in order to preserve the right to live of all humanity and to stand against people who cause disorder on the earth. ( see Hamdi Yazir, Hak Dini : Divine Religion, the interpretation of the relevant verse)

Allah, The Almighty, informed people either via Islam or via other divine religions that human life is sacred and for this reason He deems saving a life a virtue as supreme as saving all humanity and considers ending a life a crime as serious as killing all humans because a single human represents their species and humans are equal to each other. An unjustifiable murder of a person causes such actions to spread in the community, leads people and the community into disorder and chaos.

A person who ends another person’s life without a legal justification not only violates this person’s right but also displays his disbelief in sacredness of human life and his lack of mercy for anybody. ( see Al-Baqarah 2:178; Al-Ma’idah 5:33). However, people must respect each other in order to protect and maintain human life, must believe in the sacredness of human life and help it to be preserved and must not defend the murderers.

All religions, law and morality systems are in an agreement that an unjustifiable murder, ending a life is a serious crime. Yet the dissuasive precautions taken to prevent this crime to happen are different. Islam prescribes a reprisal punishment against the ones who commit this crime in order to prevent unjustifiable murders, provide the community with life security and to let them live in comfort and peace, and reports that the murderers are to be punished in the hereafter with Allah’s rage and curse and with the fire of Hell. (see An-Nisa 4:93).  

People continue to cause disorder in the community and to shed blood although Allah sent His commands on the importance of human life and the punishment to be given to those who are to end a life by means of His prophets and had them preach these commands.

Since there are always such kind of murderers and disruptors in the world, Islam does not only suggest punishments of conscience and of spiritually but also deterrent worldly sanctions in order to preserve humans’ right to live and provide them with peace and comfort. (Kur’an Yolu : The Qur’an’s Path, Committee, the interpretation of the relevant verse).

Furthermore, in the related verse from the Qur’an, the outlines of human character are defined with the examples of behaviors and thoughts of the first humans. In order to discipline a human that, because of their creation, has been equipped both with the sense of God and religion and with traits like selfishness, jealousy and excessive desire for material things, there are two different ways in accordance with these two different features of a human : ideas on “Allah” in education and tendency to religion and good morals is achieved with a serious education and sanctions of severe penalty. With the help of sanctions of severe penalty, other bad attributions are prevented to trespass the limits of the dangerous zone.     

If in a social structure of a nation, materialism and personal benefits stand forth and the lights of virtue which enlightens spirits remain turned off, the value of human decreases in that community; love, respect, working together and mutual support become a fairy tale with the narrow meanings of the words. In a community that has come down to this level, murders, violation of rights, profiteering, desire for abrupt richness and highest rates of interest, and  exploitation gets out of control.

For this reason, in every period of time and in every community national education which supports the sense of religion and sense of virtue and laws preserving rights has been required.

All the divine religions, especially Islam, advise people to appreciate and take supreme care for the concept of human and they also gather people’s attention to the point that saving a person is as much meaningful as saving all humans’ lives. (see Celal Yildirim, İlmin Işığında Asrın Kur’an Tefsiri : The Interpretation of The Qur’an in the Light of Knowledge, interpretation of the related verse)

In conclusion:

1. Killing a person, in fact, is nothing but a serious crime, which originates from great injustice, disappointment and remorse. People who call themselves humans must completely avoid it.

2. Whoever ends a life unjustifiably or for any reason except punishment for causing disorder and anarchy on the earth is regarded as if he had killed all humanity. That is, ending a life unjustifiably is as serious as killing all the people and causes a serious crime like that to be committed. This explanation which deems a life as equal to all humanity makes a person as valuable as all humanity and sees all humanity through this person.

3. Whoever saves a life is considered as if he had saved all the people. For example, a doctor who tries to bring a person that is about to die to life with medical treatment and divine approval or a person who tries to stop a war that continues at its all speed and severity and ends it, or another person who tries to supply food for the people who are about to die of  starvation  or tries to help people survive a natural disaster; those people are regarded to do the same good task. 

4. In the surah Al-Ma’idah, there is another definition of going to extremes in community : “do not help one another in sinful, iniquitous acts and hostility” ( The Qur’an, Al- Ma’idah, 5:2) Those who  help each other and become organized aiming to spread the sense of enmity to community which Allah forbids destroy the peace, the order and the unity of the community.

5. Injustice and destruction happen on the earth. The rights of the innocent and the oppressed are lost and vanish. Supposedly, many people are sacrificed for the sake of the community and personal rights are lost for the safety of the nation. In the verse from The Qur’an, it is stated that a person’s right cannot be sacrificed even if it is for the sake of the community, that every right is sacred in the eye of Allah and that all the rights must be preserved without regarding them as more or less important.

As known, words become means to meanings and literary devices. What substantial is meaning. Although all of us know our own languages, why cannot we offer a better work than a literary masterpiece written in our own language? That is to say that, capacity is not in words but in the art and knowledge of men of letters who use them properly. In Arabic expression of the truths of Quran, there is an exceptional feature. It is especially rich in words that belong to the field of heart and emotion.


However, no Arabian man of literature has been able to write a work as good as the Quran. Because there is sanctity in Quran, which is far beyond Arabic language. What cannot be imitated is that sanctity. And that lies in the Qurans being the words of Allah (SWT). The geniuses of eloquence grasped this aspect and even tasted and took pleasure in it. We are able to grasp the same aspect to some extent by bringing examples from another book of Allah (SWT), which is the book of the universe.


If elements were considered letters, men can make some works from them. As for Allah (SWT), He makes humans, animals, trees etc. from the same elements. Now there is a divine art, a divine power and will, which goes beyond the elements. What cannot be imitated is this.

One of the animals mentioned in the Quran is the “mosquito.” When idolaters of Makkah heard verses telling about enormous animals such as elephant and camel, they accepted the Prophet and his invitation and did not object to the companions. Nevertheless, they had been hopelessly looking for ways to object to mock at the verses.

However, Allah the Glorious states in His book:

“O men! Here is a parable set forth! Listen to it! Those on whom, besides God, ye call, cannot create (even) a fly, if they all met together for the purpose! And if the fly should snatch away anything from them, they would have no power to release it from the fly. Feeble are those who petition and those whom they petition!” (al-Hajj, 73)

“The parable of those who take protectors other than God is that of the spider, who builds (to itself) a house; but truly the flimsiest of houses is the spider's house; - if they but knew.” (al-Ankabut, 41)

Like in these verses, when He mentioned the names of small animals such as fly and spider, and narrated parables about them, idolaters started to object. They thought they caught the opportunity they had been looking for in order to humiliate the Quran. How could Allah tell about such small and insignificant things? How on earth could it be? Allah the Glorious replied their objections with the 26th verse of surah al-Baqara:

“God disdains not to use the similitude of things, lowest as well as highest. Those who believe know that it is truth from their Lord; but those who reject faith say: "What means God by this similitude?" By it He causes many to stray, and many He leads into the right path; but He causes not to stray, except those who forsake (the path).”

The Arabic name of the mosquito mentioned in this verse is “BAUD.” It is written as “BAUDAT” in the verse. The letter “t” at the end of the word gives feminine meaning to it. That is to say, the mosquito mentioned in the verse is female. Moreover, the pronoun “ha”, which is added to the end of the word “FAWQAHA” (above her) in the verse, refers to female gender. That means that female spider was specially chosen for this similitude!

Of course, there is a significant wisdom in why the Quran mentions female mosquito specially. However, this wisdom came into light hundreds of years after the verse was sent down, as a result of some scientific researches. As you read in the article “MOSQUITO” in details, mosquitoes which suck people’s blood and use it for their eggs are female mosquitoes. This is why the Quran chose the female mosquito for the similitude in order to point out to this reality.

After the death of Hazrat Prophet, it became necessary to collect the sheets of the Quran, the divine guide, in such a way that not one word of it would be doubted, no one would object to it until the Doomsday by the unanimous agreement of the umma (Islam community). Zayd bin Thabit narrates: Hazrat Abu Bakr sent for me after the heavy casualties among the warriors of the Battle of Yamama.  Hazrat Umar was present with Abu Bakr who said, 'Umar has come to me and said, The (huffaz: plural of hafiz) (one who knows the whole Qur'an by heart) suffered heavy casualties on the day of Yamama, and I am afraid that there will be more casualties among the huffaz at other battle-fields, whereby a large part of the Qur'an may be lost.  And I am of the opinion that you should collect the Qur'an." Abu Bakr added, "I said to 'Umar, 'How can I do something which Allah's Messenger has not done?' 'Umar said (to me), 'By Allah, it is (really) a good thing.' So 'Umar kept on pressing, trying to persuade me to accept his proposal, till Allah opened my bosom for it and I had the same opinion as 'Umar." Zayd added: Abu Bakr turned to me and said: "You are a wise young man and we do not suspect you of telling lies or of forgetfulness: and you used to write the Divine Inspiration for Allah's Messenger. Therefore, look for the Qur'an and collect it (in one manuscript). "By Allah, if he (Abu Bakr) had ordered me to shift one of the mountains from its place, it would not have been harder for me than what he had ordered me concerning the collection of the Qur'an. So I started locating Quranic material and collecting it from parchments, scapula, leaf-stalks of date palms and from the memories of men who knew it by heart.” (Bukhari)

As the sources report unanimously, Hazrat Abu Bakr told Zayd not rely on his memory and to look for 2 evidences for each verse, 2 written copies from two people. Zayd laid it as a condition that Hazrat Umar should help him for that task, and Umar helped him quite a lot. Although Zayd himself was a good hafiz, he did not consider it enough even with other huffaz and he followed a very careful and scientific method like looking for two written witnesses that listened to that verse in Ramadan.  However, he could not find 2 written witnesses regarding the last two verses of Chapter at-Tawba although he searched for it, and then he based it on the written copy of Abu Huzayma. The sheets that were collected together in a book during the period of Hazrat Abu Bakr is called “al-Mushaf”.  

NUMBER OF HUFFAZ (PEOPLE WHO KNEW THE WHOLE QURAN BY HEART):

By the way, here, we need to answer the claim that there were 4-7 huffaz in that period. It is impossible by reason that in 23 years, only 4 or 7 of the companions who were educated by Hazrat Prophet memorized the whole Quran. According to what Bukhari narrates in as-Sahih, the number of the huffaz who were martyred in the incident of Bir Mauna, which took place while Hazrat Prophet (pbuh) was alive, was 70.  In the battles that occurred due to the conversion incidents from Islam and that took place in the year after the death of Hazrat Prophet, in ‘Yamama’, the number of huffaz that were martyred was 450-500 according to some scholars; according to others it was 700. Another important point is that when Hazrat Prophet was alive, the revelation had not ended. The last few chapters and verses that were sent down in the last days could not have been known by some people. According to Hamidullah, when Hazrat Prophet (pbuh) died, 300 people knew the Quran by heart. There is no difference between the Quran Zayd bin Thabit wrote and the Quran that was revealed to Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh). Everybody memorized the Quran and they confirmed what they memorized by writing them. How could something that is recited during the prayers and that is acted accordingly be forgotten? The Quranic verses were revealed in a harmony; they were revealed gradually so that everybody could memorize.

Consequently, the following verse tells us that no one intervened in the revelation of the Quran including the Prophet: " And if the messenger were to invent any sayings in Our name, We should certainly seize him by his right hand, And We should certainly then cut off the artery of his heart: Nor could any of you withhold him (from Our wrath). " (*)

How was the Quran collected in to Mushaf? A comprehensive study about the history of the last revelation.

The History of the Last Revelation- Relevant Verses:

al-A’la 6: ‘By degrees shall We teach thee to declare (the Message), so thou shalt not forget.’

Abasa 11-14: " By no means (should it be so)! For it is indeed a Message of instruction: Therefore let who will, keep it in remembrance. (It is) in Books held (greatly) in honor. Exalted (in dignity), kept pure and holy,"

al-Qiyama 16-19: " Move not thy tongue concerning the (Qur'an) to make haste therewith. It is for Us to collect it and to promulgate it: But when We have promulgated it, follow thou its recital (as promulgated): Nay more, it is for Us to explain it (and make it clear)."

al-Furqan 32: " Those who reject Faith say: "Why is not the Qur'an revealed to him all at once?" Thus (is it revealed) that We may strengthen thy heart thereby, and We have rehearsed it to thee in slow, well-arranged stages gradually."

ash-Shuara 192-195: " Verily this is a Revelation from the Lord of the Worlds: With it came down the Spirit of Faith and Truth― To thy heart and mind, that thou mayest admonish In the perspicuous Arabic tongue."

al-Isra 106: " (It is) a Qur'an which We have divided (into parts from time to time), in order that thou mightest recite it to men at intervals: We have revealed it by stages."

at-Tur 1-3: " By the Mount (of Revelation); By a Decree Inscribed In a Scroll unfolded;..."

al-Baqara 185: " Ramadan is the (month) in which was sent down the Qur'an as a guide to mankind also clear (Signs) for guidance and judgment (between right and wrong)."

Let us deal with the process of early revelation period compilation.

a)The Period of the Prophet: (Collecting during the life of the Prophet)

Makkah Period:

The Prophet paid great attention to preserving the revelation [1> He hurried repeating Jibril (Gabriel).
The verses of al-Qiyama 16-17 mention it. It was for Allah to collect it and to promulgate it. The Messenger of Allah recited the revealed verse during the prayers first and strengthened the verses in his memory. [2> Then he recited them slowly and enabled the illiterate Arab believers who had good memory to memorize them. [3> [4> [5> .

The following is stated in the Quran: " By degrees shall We teach thee to declare (the Message), so thou shalt not forget "[6>. Along with the Prophet, the companions tried to memorize the revelation too. The parts constantly recited at night and during the prayers served the preservation of the revelation.

The Prophet not only recited the Quran that was sent down to his heart, he also dictated it. The first verses of Chapter at-Tur prove it. Abasa 11-14 can be thought to be also about it.

The following is stated in the Quran: " By degrees shall We teach thee to declare (the Message), so thou shalt not forget

Along with the Prophet, the companions tried to memorize them too. The parts constantly recited at night and during the prayers served the preservation of the revelation. Then, they used to perform prayers twice a day: morning and afternoon prayers.[8>

We see that Hazrat Prophet took two additional measures apart from dictation for the preservation of the correctness and completeness of the Quran:

1-He immediately memorized the verses that were revealed and constantly recited them during prayers, whether he was resident or traveling, whether he was sad or joyful. [9> He ordered that the verses of the Quran be recited loudly during the daily prayers and thus Muslims had to memorize the Quran. Another outcome of that application is that the Quran was freed of being in the monopoly of a kind of clergymen. 

He recited it to his companions slowly and distinctly. The companions gave great importance to it too. The Prophet checked what they recited. [10>

2- He ordered that those who wanted to learn the Quran learn it under the supervision of a well-educated teacher. The first teacher of the Quran was the Prophet himself and then came other poet teachers that were appointed by him because they knew the Quran well."[11>

"Since the ability of remembering and memorizing changed from person to person, naturally some companions wanted to write them down in order to repeat and memorize the verses in their free time. We do not know exactly when writing down the verses like that started. "[12>

The narrations state that the Prophet hurried to dictate the verses that were revealed.[13>

There is not exact information about when the verses started to be written down. The Messenger of Allah was not a literate person. [14> In Siyar (life of the Prophet) books, it is seen that even during the period of Makkah, there were written parts of the Quran.  For instance, Ibn Hisham, who narrates the story of how Umar became a Muslim, says that Umar’s sister Fatima and her husband Said recited the verses of the Quran from Chapters al-Hadid (or ar-Rahman) and TaHa (7/81, 45/20)  in their house from a page.[15> Umar became a Muslim in the 5th year of the prophethood; it is the second year of general tabligh (conveying the message) of Islam. That is, 8 years before the Hegira. Hamidullah says, “There is no reason to doubt the truthfulness and the reality of the narrated incident because most of the first chapters revealed before the Hegira mention ‘written Quran copies’. Al-Furqan verse 5 and al-An'am verse 79 are examples of it. In the Quran itself, the word book is constantly used for the Quran; it definitely includes the meaning “a written document”."[16> It is approved by the hadith narrations which express that writing hadiths was forbidden that the Quranic verses were being written.

It is approved by the hadith narrations which express that writing hadiths was forbidden that the Quranic verses were being written.

Hazrat Prophet tried to dictate the verses to scribes from believers.  Abu Bakr, Uthman, Ali, Zubayr ibn Awwam and Amir ibn Fuhayra were among the scribes in Makkah period.

Apart from the verses that were with the Prophets, the companions wrote the verses in special pages for themselves. Those who knew the whole Quran by heart were called Qurra. Ibn Mas'ud, Muaz, Salim, Ubay ibn Ka'b, Aisha, Hafsa, Umm Salama, Abu Zayd were among them.

Placing Verses into Chapters:

The instructions of the Prophet clarified in which chapters the reveled verses were to be written. [17> "According to the information given by the historians, sometimes verses belonging to different chapters were revealed together. When new verses were revealed, Hazrat Prophet showed the companions where to place the new verses in the whole."[18>

Writing Material:

The Prophet did not find his own memory, the memory of the companions and the checks enough; he dictated the verses on leather, bones, wood and flat stones after the revelation. [19>

Date branches, thin white stones, shoulder bones, processed pieces of leather, wood, pieces of pots and paper called qirtas, leather [20>, cloth, date fibers and stones were used as writing material. The art of paper was not present among Arabs unlike Persians and Romans.

Madinah Period:

Hazrat Prophet had new revelation scribes like Ubay ibn Ka'b, Zayd ibn Thabit and Abdullah ibn Rawaha in Madinah. Al-Asqalani (852/1448) mentions about 40 companions that worked as scribes.[21>

The following narration is present in the Siyar book of Ibn Ishaq found in Rabat: "Whenever a part from the Quran was revealed, the Messenger of Allah recited it in the presence of men and conveyed them the verses, then he conveyed them to a separate group consisting of women."[22>

There are narrations that Hazrat Prophet recited and compared the verses that were sent down until that time with Gabriel in every Ramadan. "Hazrat Prophet had the custom of reciting the whole Quran in the presence of people. His companions brought their copies of the Quran and sat around him listened to what the Prophet read and made corrections if necessary.  During the last Ramadan of his life, [23> he repeated it twice as a precaution. Those kinds of muqabala (reciting and listening) and reciting in the presence of people are called arda (presentation) and the last one of the called the last arda (presentation) is unforgettable in the history of the Quran."[24>

Several Quran teachers were sent to the neighborhoods of Madinah.[25>

The Messenger died 9 or 81 days after the last revelation. The reason why it was not compiled in the form a book is that the verses were not sent down in order.

Hazrat  Muawiya’s Work as a Revelation Scribe:

The rate of literacy was very low in Makkah. There were 33 people that were known to be literate in Makkah and Madinah in that period. A person who could write, shoot arrows and swim was given the title of perfect man. Writing came to Makkah with Harb ibn Umayya. Abu Sufyan and his two sons, Muawiya and Yazid ibn Abi Sufyan could read and write.

The Messenger of Allah had scribes for his correspondence with Arab tribes. Muawiya joined the scribes upon the request of Abu Sufyan.[26> Ash-Shahriyari says the Prophet chose Uthman and Ali as revelation scribes and when they were absent, Ubayy and Zayd ibn Thabit wrote down the revelation. [27> Many sources say that Muawiya was a scribe but not a revelation scribe.[28>

İrfan Aycan mentions the sources that say Muawiya worked as a revelation scribe in his biography of Muawiya.[29> Although he is said  to have written the Kursi verse, it is known that that verse was sent down in the first years of the Hegira. 

Al-Masudi sees the issue from a different point of view and says Muawiya was a scribe a few times before the death of the Messenger of Allah and that he cannot be regarded equal to those who worked as scribes near the Messenger of Allah for a long time and cannot be considered as one of the revelation scribes. [30> It is stated that as a result of the search of the contemporary researchers, no evidence proving that he was a revelation scribe was found.[31>

b) After the Death of the Messenger of Allah:

1.The Period of Abu Bakr 1st Compilation: [32>

Ali ibn Abi Talib compiled a book arranging the verses of the Quran, which was completed shortly before the death of the Prophet, in the order that they were revealed. [33> He did not go out until he finished writing that book except for prayer. That narration is present in the answer when Abu Bakr summoned Ali to ask why he had not given allegiance to him: ‘I thought something might be added to the book of Allah and I decided not to put on my clothes except prayer until I finished writing it. Abu Bakr said, ‘You thought very nice.’[34>

Official Compilation:

When at least 70, some people increase the number to 700, huffaz among the companions were martyred in the Battle of Yamama (633) (M. Hamidullah says 3000 huffaz joined that battle) [35> , the act of compilation was accelerated. Umar insisted for the compilation and persuaded Abu Bakr. He called Zayd ibn Thabit [36>, the revelation scribe who had a powerful memory, and appointed him to carry out the compilation by eliminating his hesitation. [37>

Zayd bin Thabit narrates: Hazrat Abu Bakr sent for me after the martyrdom of 70 huffaz in the Battle of Yamama.  Hazrat Umar was present with Abu Bakr who said, 'Umar has come to me and said, The (huffaz: plural of hafiz) (one who knows the whole Qur'an by heart) suffered heavy casualties on the day of Yamama, and I am afraid that there will be more casualties among the huffaz at other battle-fields, whereby a large part of the Qur'an may be lost.  And I am of the opinion that you should collect the Qur'an." Abu Bakr added, "I said to 'Umar, 'How can I do something which Allah's Messenger has not done?' 'Umar said (to me), 'By Allah, it is (really) a good thing.' So 'Umar kept on pressing, trying to persuade me to accept his proposal, till Allah opened my bosom for it and I had the same opinion as 'Umar." Zayd added: Abu Bakr turned to me and said: "You are a wise young man and we do not suspect you of telling lies or of forgetfulness: and you used to write the Divine Inspiration for Allah's Messenger. Therefore, look for the Qur'an and collect it (in one manuscript). "By Allah, if he (Abu Bakr) had ordered me to shift one of the mountains from its place, it would not have been harder for me than what he had ordered me concerning the collection of the Qur'an. So I started locating Quranic material and collecting it from parchments, scapula, leaf-stalks of date palms and from the memories of men who knew it by heart.”

Abu Bakr gave Umar Umar and Zaid the following instruction: ‘Sit at the door of the mosque. Whoever brings you something written from the book of Allah with two witnesses [40>, write it at once.’[41> Thereupon, Umar went to the door of the mosque and said, ‘Whoever took something from the Messenger of Allah should bring it here.’ [42> The committee wrote the verses that were brought on tablets and date branches.

Zayd wrote the texts in his memory by strengthening them with the witnessing of others. He did not write them without any proof. [43> One completed copy was agreed unanimously. [44>

Hamidullah relates the event as follows: "Zayd actually knew the Quran by heart. However, as a precaution, the Caliph Abu Bakr ordered him to seek two different documents recited in the presence of Hazrat Prophet for each verse or word. He told people to bring the copies of the verses that they preserved to the Mosque of the Prophet to show them to Zayd and his friends. After the compilation work ended, Zayd ibn Thabit recited the copy that was prepared twice and all of the mistakes and defects, if any, were eliminated. "[45>

Thus, the Mushaf – it was named like that - [46> - was compiled officially by Hazrat Abu Bakr in 11/632.

We know that the order of the verses and to which chapters they belonged was determined by Hazrat Prophet. The verses were placed in the chapters as they are in the Mushaf today. However, there exists a view that the chapters are based on the ijtihad of the companions. [47> There is a disagreement about the order of the chapters. [48>

The copy that was compiled was given to the Caliph. That single copy was with Abu Bakr. Then it was transferred to Umar. After the death of Umar, it was transferred to Hafsa, one of the wives of the Prophet, who was a hafiz. [49>

II. The Period of Uthman: 2nd Compilation:

On Muharram 1 24/646, Uthman was chosen as the caliph. The land that was under the sovereignty of Muslims extended beyond Arabia.  Many Muslims with mother tongues other than Arabic had difficulty in reading the Quran. The differences of dialect and accent among Arabs should also be added to it. Those different pronunciations could turn to accusations. [50> The people of Damascus recited the Quran with the style of Ubayy, and the people of Kufa with the style of Ibn Mas’ud, and the people of Basra with the style of Abu Musa.

The land that was under the sovereignty of Muslims extended beyond Arabia.  Many Muslims with mother tongues other than Arabic had difficulty in reading the Quran. The differences of dialect and accent among Arabs should also be added to it. Some different pronunciations were attributed to the Prophet with sound documents. Huzayfatu’l-Yaman went to Armenia and Azarbaijan with the armies of Damascus. (25/646) During the expedition, he saw that the soldiers of Damascus recited the Quran differently from the soldiers of Iraq and he felt anxious because of the disagreement.[51> The incidence led to takfir (declaring that someone was unbeliever). He informed the Caliph about the situation.

"O Leader of the Believers! Stand! Find a solution before Muslims disagree about reciting the Quran like Christians and Jews." [52>

The third Caliph wanted the “Hafsa Mushaf” when the differences of reciting became a subject of disagreement among Muslims.  Uthman appointed 4 people to bring the Quran (Mushaf) of Hafsa and to duplicate it.: Zayd, Abdullah ibn Zubayr, Said ibn As and Abdurrahman ibn Harith. The three of four except Zayd were Quraishis. He ordered them to write in Quraishi dialect if they disagreed. [54> [55> According to the other narration of al-Bukhari the other three members were from Ansar (Madinah Muslims): Muaz, Ubay ibn Ka'b and Zayd ibn Thabit.

The work of the committee lasted 5 years. “The seven copies that were prepared were recited in the presence of people in Madinah Mosque so that people would feel satisfied. Then, each copy was sent to the centers of the states of the vast Islamic land that extended out of Madinah to the south of Spain in the west and beyond the river Jayhun near China in the east. It was ordered that all of the copies of the Quran be in compliance with those official copies and the different ones be burned from then on."[56>

The points that 2nd Committee disagreed are unimportant. For instance whether to write the word Tabut with a round T or open T. Uthman wanted them to write it with an open T, Quraishi style.

Duplicated Copies Sent to Important Centers:

The duplicated 5 or 7 copies (mushafs) [57> were sent to important centers (Kufa, Basra, Damascus, Yaman, Makkah and Bahrayn). One copy was left in Madinah. It is mentioned in the records that the private individual copies were burned.

There were some people who did not obey the instruction that all of the copies except the official one be burned. The private mushafs of Ali, Ibn Mas'ud, Aisha, Ubay ibn Ka'b are mentioned. Abu Bakr ibn Dawud wrote a book about the differences in those mushafs called "Kitabu'l-Masahif

Are there any verses that were not included in the official mushaf?

The disagreement in the number of verses mentioned in the books originates from the fact that some verses are divided into two and regarded as two verses or whether the basmalas are regarded as a separate verse or not.

Ubay ibn Ka'b was a member of the committee established during the period of Uthman to duplicate the Quran. Therefore, it is not possible that he regarded the qunut prayers as part of the Quran. 

III. The Period of Ali ibn Abi Talib:

If the Quran that Uthman duplicated had been different from that of Hazrat Prophet, the successor of Uthman, the Caliph Ali, would have made his private Quran the official Quran. [58>

The difference of the Mushaf of Ali is that it is arranged in the order of revelation. There is no difference except the use of a few synonyms, which does not cause any change in the meaning.

What happened to the first manuscripts of the Quran?:

We would like to say that there is no reliable information that the first manuscripts of the Quran were burned. The narrations about it are weak. The information reported in the book of S. as-Salih is not reliable. Besides, S.as-Salih does not agree with that view but only says that Ibn Abu Dawud reports that view. The attackers try to conceal that truth deftly and present that wrong information as if everybody accepts it.

Abu Bakr’s Mushaf:

What happened to the Quran collected and preserved between two binders during the period of Abu Bakr? It should not be forgotten that hundreds of that version were copied by Muslims. The fact that it disappeared or was burned does not mean that the Quran disappeared. 

The Quran collected between two binders by Abu Bakr was transferred to Umar after he died. After Umar died, it was transferred to his daughter Hafsa. During the period of Uthman, he wanted it from Hafsa, duplicated it and sent the copies to the centers of Islam. Then, he returned it to Hafsa. Then, what happened? According to what at-Tabarani reports from Salim through a reliable way, Marwan, the governor of Madinah, sent someone to Hafsa and wanted that Quran from her, maybe with the permission of Uthman. Hafsa did not give it to him. After Hafsa died (h.41), Marwan sent someone to Ibn Umar and said “Send that Quran to me.” He sent it to Marwan. Thus, we know that during the period of Marwan, that Quran was transferred to Umayyads. There is no record or information about what happened to that Quran. Probably, it remained with the Umayyads for a long time and when the Umayyads declined, someone probably retained it due to its value.
It is said that after the death of Umar, the Quran of Hafsa, after her death and after the second compilation was burned by Marwan, the governor of Madinah. Even if it is correct, it is wrong to use that narration in a way to give material to orientalists.  

Ali says the following: "O people, do not say extreme things about Uthman. Avoid saying the burner of mushafs for him. I swear by Allah, he burned them in front of us, the companions of Muhammad. If I had been an administrator during the period of Uthman, I would have done the same thing."

A scholar who did not use his disagreement to destroy the truth could have spoken only like that.

What happened to the mushafs that were duplicated?:

As Schwally states "the Quran was preserved with a great caution and perfection that man would not expect."[59>

Casanova, based on his own research and the research of Quatremere, another researcher, says that one of the copies of the mushafs that were duplicated by Hazrat Uthman was known and seen at the beginning of 4th century H. [60>

1- The Mushaf of Madinah:

That historical work was preserved in the Mosque of the Prophet in Madinah. We know that it was preserved there through travelers and inquisitive people who saw it there on various dates. Mawlana Shibli wrote in the magazine, Tahzibu'l-Akhlaq  (H.1329/M.1911) it was seen there in 735.

It was preserved in Madinah until World War I. During the war, it was transferred from there like all of the other valuable works by the government in order to keep them in safe places as a measure of precaution. After the war ended, it was returned to the same place.

Musa Jarullah Bigiyev, a Russian Muslim, made a lot of researches about the Quran and Mushaf after he escaped from Bolshevik Russia in 1930 and traveled in Near East and Far East; he published them in India. He says that the Mushaf was preserved in the Mosque of the Prophet in Madinah and that he saw it when he stayed in Madinah. 

2-The Mushaf of Makkah:

Mawlana Shibli says that the Mushaf of Makkah was there and it was seen in 735 H. 

3-The Mushaf of Kufa:

The Mushaf that was sent to Kufa by Hazrat Uthman, was transferred to Tarsus on an unknown date and was preserved there. Tarsus, one of the most beautiful cities of Cilicia, was an important border city during the Abbasid Period.  Ma'mun, Sayfu'd-Dawla and Poet Mutanabbi are there. The Mushaf of Kufa probably arrived in Tarsus during the Period of Abbasids. Abbasid Caliphs lived there. The Mushaf was preserved there and then it was transferred to the castle of Hums in Syria.  The famous an-Nablusi, who lived between H.1050-1143/ M.1640-1730 describes that mushaf in detail when he went there in (H.1100/M.1689). That mushaf was preserved in Hums until World War I and it was kept in a safe place like the other valuable and historical works during the war.

4-The Mushaf of Damascus:

The mushaf that was sent to Damascus was preserved in Tabariya, located between al-Quds (Jerusalem) and Damascus first and then it was transferred to Damascus. The following is recorded in "Asmaru't-Tawarih with Additions" Transfer of the Mushaf Uthmani to the Mosque of Damascus at-Tabariya, year 492"

Ibn Kathir (H 8th century) saw the Mushaf of Damascus in person. He says: “As for the mushafs duplicated by Hazrat Uthman, the most famous of them is the one that I personally saw in the Mosque of Damascus in Syria, which is a big mushaf written with a clear calligraphy in high quality ink on camel hide."[61>

According to what M. Shibli [62> wrote, Abu'l-Qasim as-Sabti saw the mushaf sent by Hazrat Uthman in the separated part of the Mosque in Damascus in H. 657. Abdulmalik says he saw that mushaf there in h.725. The mushaf which was preserved in the Mosque of Tawba in Damascus during the period of Ibnu'l-Jazari (h.751-833/ m.1350-1429) was transferred to the Mosque of Umayyad later. Ibnul Jazari says he saw the mushaf in Damascus and he also saw one of the mushafs of the companions in Egypt. 
In the foundation certificate of Lala Mustafa Pasha dated 982, there is a record mentioning “the Foundation of Our Master Uthman” in the Hums land mentioning the foundations in Damascus, we understand that there was a foundation of Uthman’s Mushaf at that time there. It means the Mushaf of Uthman was there. Mawlana Shibli says when he came to Istanbul during his travel around the Islamic world that he learned that that copy was preserved.

Sheikh AbdulHakim Afghani of Damascus, one of the contemporary scholars, wanted to duplicate a copy from the Mushaf of Damascus. He started it before World War I and copied the writing and the form as they were and copied the lines as if he was drawing a picture and obtained a full book. The copy that AbdulHakim Afghani made is present in Damascus.

5-6.Bahrayn-Yaman Mushafs:

There is not much information about what happened to them.

The Pages of Sahaba (Companions):

Apart from the verses that were with the Prophet, the companions wrote the verses for themselves. Those who knew the whole Quran by heart were called Qurra. Ibn Mas'ud, Muaz, Salim, Ubay ibn Ka'b, Aisha, Hafsa, Umm Salama, Abu Zayd were among them

There were some people who did not obey the order of burning the mushafs other than the official ones. The private mushafs of Ali, Ibn Mas'ud and Ubay ibn Ka'b are mentioned. Aisha had a mushaf too. Abu Bakr ibn Dawud wrote a book about the differences in those mushafs called "Kitabu'l-Masahif

Today, all of the mushafs in the world are the same. The mushaf preserved in Topkapı Palace Museum is said to be the Mushaf of Uthman. There is a mushaf, which is one of the first mushafs, in Tashkent, capital city of Uzbekistan. [63>

Historical Mushafs in Turkey:

The following historical mushafs are in the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Works in İstanbul.

No:457. The Mushaf that has the signature of Hazrat Uthman dated 30 Hegira

No:557. The Mushaf that has the signature of Hazrat Ali

No:458. A Mushaf that is thought to be written by Hazrat Ali.

Other Offical Mushafs of Ali:

In Cairo, Egypt, there is a Mushaf written in ancient Kufi style of calligraphy  by Ali ibn Abi Talib in “Sayyidina  Husayn” Mosque.

Egyptian Abdulwahhab Azzam, a friend of Turks, writes in his book Shahadatnama that he saw a part of a Mushaf written in Kufi style in Mashhad and that he saw the following words: “Ali ibn Abi Talib wrote it."

There is another mushaf there, which is complete. The following words are written in it: “Hasan ibn Ali ibn Abi Talib wrote it."

Abdullah Zijani, a Shiite scholar, writes in the History of the Quran that there is a mushaf written by Hazrat Ali’s calligraphy in Najaful-Ashraf.
Various ancient copies, mushafs from the period of Sahaba are present today. There are no differences among them.[64>

”The  ‘İnstitut für Koran Forschung’ established in Munich University, brought together and classified about 42.000 complete and incomplete copies of the Quran from all over the world and determined at the end of a research and comparison that lasted 50 years that, apart from one or two mistakes of the calligraphers, there were no differences among the copies of the Quran, and the institute showed it to the whole world through a report. That institute was blown up together with the documents in it during World War II by the bombardment of American planes."[65>

c) The Period of Adding Harakas and Dots:

When the 3rd verse of Chapter at-Tawba is pronounced as "Wa Rasuluhu” instead of "Wa Rasulihi", the meaning changes from "Allah and his Messenger are free from the polytheists” to "Allah is free from the polytheists and his Messenger." It is impossible fro non-Arabs to notice pronunciation mistakes like that. Adding harakas originated from that obligation.  

In 69/688, Abu’l-Aswad ad-Duali put dots over, under and in front of the letters with colored ink. The one over gave the sound a, under i, and front u. Two dots were used for tanwin (adding n to a vowel).

Nasr ibn Asim, a student of Aswad, (89/708) added harakas to the letters. Some historians say it was Yahya ibn Ma'mar of Basra (129/746) who did it. The last correction in the writing of the Quran was carried out by Halil ibn Ahmad (175/791). Hamza, shadda, sila, rawm and ishmam were determined. That action faced a lot of opposition first but it received general acceptance in the end.

Contemporary Literature on the History of the Quran:
al-AKK, Halid Abdurrahman, Tarikhu Tawthiqi Nassi’l-Qur’ani’l-Karim, Damascus, 1986
ABYARİ,İbrahim, Tarikhu’l-Qur’an, Cairo
HAMIDULLAH, Muhammad, History of the Qur'an, trns. Salih Tuğ, İst, 1993 [66>
HANAFİ, Muhammed Bahit al-Mutii, al-Kelimatu’l-Hisan fi’l-Hurufi’s-Sab’ati wa Jami’l-Qur’an, Beirut,1986
HUJJATİ, Muhammed Baqir, Mukhtasar Tarihi’l-Qur’ani’l-Karim, Damascus, 1975
IBNU’L-KHATIB, Muhibbuddin, al-Furqan, Beirut, 1990
MARZUQ, Muhammad Abdulaziz, al-Mushafu’sh-Sharif Dirasatun Tarikhiyyatun wa Fanniyyatun, Cairo, 1985
MUHAYSIN, Muhammad Salim, Tarikhu’l-Qur’ani’l-Karim, Alexandria, 1990
SALİM, Sahar as-Sayyid Abdulaziz, Adwaun ala Mushafi Uthman ibn Affan, Alexandria, 1991
SHAHIN, Abdussabur, Tarikhu’l-Qur’an, 1994 [67>

FOOTNOTES
(*) References:
KUR’AN-I KERİM VE KUR’AN İLİMLERİNE GİRİŞ
MİTOLOJİ KİTAB-I MUKADDES VE KUR'AN-I KERİM
DÜŞÜNCE KAYMALARI
KUR’AN'I KERİM BİLGİLERİ Yazar : Osman KESKİNOĞLU Yayınevi: Türkiye Diyanet Vakfı
[1> (Abu Shahba p.236), Shahhata ( p.27), as-Sabuni, at-Tibyan fi Ulumi’l-Qur’an, Beirut,1408, s.68)
[2> al-Muzzammil 1-4
[3> as-Sabuni/Kur’an İlimleri, trns.Zeynelabidin Tatlıoğlu, 1996,ist,İnsan yay. p.62-63 :’ The nation of Arabs had strong memories, memorized quickly; their brains had fluent, pure and perfect characteristics of Arabs at that time. An Arab could recite hundreds of thousands of poems by heart, knew the family trees of the tribes and could list their names by heart, and knew their wars and history. There was almost nobody who could not list the names in their family trees, who did not memorize the ten Hanging Poems although it was very difficult to memorize them. When the Quran was sent down, Arabs were astonished by its strong statement, bright judgments and great sovereignty, and the Quran caught hold of their five senses and dominated their minds and thoughts. The Quran directed their efforts to the glorious book. They gave up memorizing poems and recited its chapters and verses because they found the spirit of the life in the Quran.... The companions competed with each other in reading and studying the Quran and tried really hard. They taught their wives and children to read the Quran in their houses. When someone passed by the houses of the companions at night, he would hear the voices of those who read the Quran like sounds of the bees. Sometimes, the Messenger of Allah passed by the houses of Ansar and stood there to listen to the Quran.
[4> al-Jumu’a 2
[5> The importance given to memorization went on in the period of Madinah too. The Messenger of Allah constantly encouraged memorization. Abu Musa’s narration in Bukhari: The Messenger of Allah said to Abu Musa: ‘You should have seen me while I was listening to you last night; you were indeed given a voice like Al-i Davud’
In Muslim, the following addition is present: Abu Musa said: ‘o Messenger of Allah! I swear by Allah that if I had known you were listening, I would have made it more beautiful.’
al-Bukhari and Muslim: The Messenger of Allah says ‘I know the houses of Ash’ari tribe at night from their soft voice reading the Quran.’
[6> al-A'la 6
[7> al-A'la 6
[8> Hamidullah, M / Rasulullah Muhammad p. 195
[9> (Abu Shahba,p.236),(as-Sabuni, p.68), (Shahhata,p.21)
[10> (Abu Shahba,p.236),(ar-Rumi, Ulumu’l-Qur’an p.89), (Shahhata,p.21)
[11> Hamidullah, M / Rasulullah Muhammad p. 197
[12> Hamidullah, M/ Rasulullah Muhammad p. 195
[13> The following is reported from Bara Ibn Azib: When the 95th verse of Chapter an-Nisa was sent down, the Messenger of Allah summoned Zayd. He told Zayd, who came there with writing instruments, to write that verse." In a long narration reported from Zayd Ibn Thabit, he says, “When he was near the Messenger of Allah, the state of revelation appeared and when that state ended, the Prophet said to him " Zayd! Write!". Thereupon, he took a shoulder bone and wrote the verse an-Nisa 95 up to “ajran azima”. Then, the state of revelation appeared again; when that state ended, the Prophet said to him, "read". When Zayd reached the word “wal Mujahidun", the Prophet said " ghayra ulid darar". (al-Bukhari/Fadail)
Zayd Ibn Thabit: We wrote the Quran in the style of Riqa in the presence of the Messenger of Allah." (Ibn Hanbal/ Musnad)
[14> al-Ankabut 48, al-A’raf 157
[15> Ibn Ishaq /as-Sira
[16> Hamidullah, M/ Rasulullah Muhammad p. 196
[17> Osman Ibn Abi'l-As: When I was near the Messenger of Allah, his eyes shone and looking at a fixed point, he said: Gabriel came to me and ordered me to put the verse an-Nahl 90 in its place." (Ibn Hanbal/ Musnad)
Ibn Abbas: Whenever a chapter was revealed, the Messenger of Allah would summon one or more of the revelation scribes and said to them: "Write these verses in the chapter that have those verses."(at-Tirmidhi)
[18> Hamidullah; M / Rasulullah Muhammad p. 196
[19> ( Tahir al-Jazairi, at-Tibyan, Beirut, 1412, p.101) (Abu Shama al-Maqdisi, Kitabu’l-Murshidi’l-Wajiz, Ank,1986, p.44).
[20> Zayd Ibn Thabit: ‘We wrote the Quran on leather near the Messenger of Allah.’
[21> Ibn Hajar/Fathu'l-Bari
[22> Hamidullah,M/ Rasulullah Muhammad p. 195
[23> There is a narration that in each Ramadan, Hazrat Prophet recited and compared the verses that were sent down until then. ( az-Zarqani, I,234, Abu Shahba, p.236). Çiçek,M.Halil, 20.Asırda Ku’ran İlimleri Çalışmaları,1996,İst,p.179-189
[24> Hamidullah, M./ Rasulullah Muhammad p.197
[25> We know that Mus’ab Ibn Umayr was sent to Yathrib with Ibn Umm Maktum as teachers before the Hegira. After the Hegira, Muadh went to Makkah as a teacher. According to the narration of Muadh, he appointed someone to teach the Quran to those who migrated to Madinah. Those who recited the Quran in the mosque, could cause the ones performing prayers to make mistakes. While he was alive, 70 huffaz were martyred in the incidence of Bir Mauna.
[26> Ibn Hanbal /Fadalilus-Sahaba; Ibn Kathir/ Tafsiru'l-Qur'an'il Azim
[27> al-Jahshitari/ Kitabu'l-Wuzara wa'l-Kuttab
[28> Ibn Qutayba/ al-Maarif al-Balazuri/Ansab; at-Tabari/ Ibn Abdibarr/ al-Baghdadi/ Ibn Abdirabbih/ Ibnu'l-Athir/ Usdu'l-Ghaba Ibn Taymiyya/Ibn Hajar
[29> al-Balazuri/ Ansab al-Yaqubi/ Ibn Abdirabbih/ en-Nawawi/ as-Siratu'n-Nebewiyya adh-Dhahabi/Nubala: records that he wrote Ayatal-Kursi. Ibn Tiqtaqa/ Ibn Kathir/ el-Fusul fi Ikhtisari'r-Rasul Fasi/ Ibn Hajar/ Taqribu't-Tahzib al-A'zami,Muhammad Mustafa/ Kuttabu n- Nabi
[30> al-Mas'udi/at-Tanbih
[31> al-Kattani,Abdulhay/Nizamu'l-Hukumati'n-Nabawiyya Aqqad, Abbas Mahmud/
[32> Çiçek, M. Halil, 20. Asırda Ku’ran İlimleri Çalışmaları, 1996, İst, p.179-189
[33> The differences of the mushaf of Ali originate from the fact that it was arranged in the order of revelation. There is no difference except the use of a few synonyms, which does not cause any change in the meaning. It is reported that he compiled a mushaf within the six months after the death of Hazrat Prophet (pbuh) upon the instruction of the Prophet. In that mushaf, the chapters were arranged in the order of revelation.
Abubakr Abdullah Ibn Abi Dawud, Suleyman al-Esh'as as-Sijistani /Kitabu'l-Masahif
(Arthur Jeffery Egypt 1936)
[34> as-Suyuti/ Ibn Shirin reported from İkrima. The narration is disputable. According to the narration of Ibn Shirin, there were abrogated verses in it. 
[35> It is wrong to say that a limited number of people memorized the Quran by looking at the apparent meaning of the hadith reported from Anas in al-Bukhari and Muslim: ‘Four people had memorized the Quran when the Messenger of Allah was alive. All of them were from Ansar: Ubayy Ibn Ka’b, Muadh Ibn Jabal, Zayd Ibn Thabit, Abu Zayd.’ (Abu Zeyd is the uncle of Anas)
[36> Why Zayd? Because he was from the Qurra, he was a revelation scribe. He was present in the last arda (presentation).
[37> (Abu Shama, p.48-49) (al-Jazairi, p.99-100) ( az-Zarqani, I,235), ( Abu Shahba, al-Maakkal, 243-244) ( al-Kattan, p.124), (Zurzur, p.87)
[38> Among those who look for other reasons than the reason  he mentioned are some scholars who think that the tendency toward memorization decreased.
[39> al-Bukhari/Fadaili'l-Qur’an
[40> Ibn Hajar: What is meant by two witnesses is that the verse should be memorized and written.’
as-Sakawi: What is meant by two witnesses is that two people should witness that the verse was written in the presence of the Messenger of Allah.
[41> Abu Dawud/ (ar-Rumi, Ulumu’l-Qur’an, p.901) (al-Jazairi, p.100), (as-Sabuni,I,77)
[42> Abu Dawud/
[43> Abu Dawud/ (Itr, p.49), ( al-Kattan, p.126).
[44> (al-Asqalani, Fathu’l-Bari, Beirut, ) ( ar-Rumi, p.92).
[45> Hamidullah, M/ Rasulullah Muhammad p. 198
[46> ( Abu Shama, p.64) ( Abu Shahba, p.251-252).
[47> He is reported to have said: ‘The person to have the greatest reward about mushafs among men is Abu Bakr. May Allah have mercy on him, because he is the first person to compile the book of Allah.’
[48> (Shahhata, p.32).
[49> (al-Bukhari, III, 196).
[50> It is reported from bu Qilaba: When Uthman became the Caliph, he appointed teachers to teach the Quran. Each teacher taught his own pronunciation. When the students came together, they disagreed. The teachers almost accused each other of unbelief. When Uthman heard the incidence, he said the following in his sermon: You disagree with each other although you are near me. The disagreements of those who are in distant cities are probably more severe.
[51> (al-Bukhari, II,196-197)
[52> al-Bukhari/ jam’ul Quran, Narration of Anas Ibn Malik.
[53> Abu'sh-Shusa: We were sitting in the mosque. Ibn Masud was reciting the Quran. Just then, Huzayfa arrived and said." The reading style of Ibn Ummi Abd! The reading style of Abu Musa'l-Ash'ari, eh?! I swear by Allah, if I reach Uthman, I will ask him to combine them and determine one style.(Ibn Abi Dawud (316/928)
[54> al-Bukhari/Manaqib
[55> al-Bukhari/Manaqib
[56> Hamidullah, M/ Rasulullah Muhammad p. 198
[57> It is a weak possibility that the Mushaf in İstanbul Topkapı Palace is one of those copies. It attracts attention with the perfection of its writing and letters with sharp, right-angled corners. Hamidullah thinks it is, along with the one in Tashkent, one of those copies. (Rasullullah Muhammad p. 198).
[58> See :1st Compilation Period
[59> Schwally/ Die Sammlung des Qurans 2/93
[60> Muhammad et-Lafin du Monde p.125
[61> Ibn Kathir/ Fazailu'l-Qur'an
[62> Shibli,M/ Tahzibu'l-Akhlaq Magazine. 1913
[63> Hamidullah, M/ Rasulullah Muhammad p. 198
[64> Keskioğlu,Osman/Kur'an'ı Kerim Bilgileri
[65> Hamidullah, M/Rasulullah Muhammad p.198
[66> Its original is in French. It has 222 pages. Its scientific dimension is very vast and the scientific level of its content is quite high, it is a treasure of knowledge. The issues are dealt with objectively, in scientific seriousness, based completely on the truths of history and the Quran. It is written with a content that can answer the criticism of the enemies of the Quran. However, he does not mention their names or their criticism since he does not need to quote them.
[67> He searches the state of the text of the Quran after the death of the Prophet, in the period of Abu Bakr and Uthman.  He records the objections of the orientalists and the answers to them, as it is the case in other chapters.
He deals with the problem of the multitude of the mushafs and he mentions the mushafs of Ibn Mas’ud, Ubay Ibn Kab, Ali Ibn Abi Talib, Ibn Abbas, Umar, Hafza, Aisha, Umm Salama, Abdullah Ibn Amr, Abdullah Ibn Zubayr, Abu Musa al-Ash’ari, Zayd Ibn Thabit, Anas Ibn Malik and Salim, the freed slave ofAbu Huzayfa. He examines the differences between the official Quran and them. He especially examines the mushafs of Ibn Abbas, Ubayy Ibn Kab, Ibn Masud and Ali in detail and compares the differences between them and the official Quran and writes that the differences are not so big at all as the orientalists exaggerate. At the end of the chapter, he refutes the claims of R. Blachere and others that the official Mushaf is a result of an aristocratic tendency. (p.262-266.)

Learning the Quran at least to be able to perform our daily ritual prayers (salah)  is obligatory, but learning more than this is sunnah.

Seven Letters (qiraat) is a permission given to Muslims in order to read and understand the Quran well. As a matter of fact, the issue is explicitly explained in the relevant hadiths. The aim of the permission should be to enable the Quran to spread fast and the Muslims to understand and adopt the religion easily.

The Quran has orthographic rules peculiar to it. They are present in the versions of the Quran duplicated by Hazrat Uthman. Those differences are the basic references for the mutawatir (reaching us in an unbroken chain) forms of qiraat (reading). However, the difference is not in the same manuscript but in different manuscripts. For instance, the word “wassa” in the 132nd verse of Chapter al-Baqara, is also pronounced as “awsa”. They wrote one form of it in one manuscript and the other from in another manuscript. If those different forms had been written in the same manuscripts, it would have raised doubt that the word had been revealed twice.

Some words were pronounced differently because the dots were not used. For instance; it became possible to pronounce the word “fa tabayyanu” in the sixth verse of Chapter al-Hujurat as “fa tasabbatu” as a different qiraat when the dots were not used.  Similarly, thanks to that orthography rule, the word “nunshizuha” in the 259th verse of Chapter al-Baqara is also pronounced as “Nunshiruha”. (See Zurqani, Manahilu’l-Irfan, I/257-258).

In addition, the word “Maalik” in Chapter al-Fatiha was written as “malik” (without an alif); thus, it became possible for the word to mean both owner and king. As you will appreciate, it is very difficult to show that difference using the Latin alphabet. However, we hope that it will be understood.

Since scholars did not agree on a certain seven qiraat, there naturally appeared more than seven types. Now, let us examine them separately:

1) The type that the haraka (sign written above or below a letter) changes but the spelling does not change
2) The type that the haraka changes but the meaning does not change:
3) The type that the letters and the meaning change but the appearance does not change:
4) The type that the letters and the appearance change but the meaning does not change:
5) The type that occurs when a word is replaced by another word without any change in meaning:
6) The type that occurs with a change in meaning and appearance:
7) The type that occurs when a letter is transformed to another letter of the same or close articulation point:
8) The type that occurs when two words are transposed:
9) The type that occurs due to an addition or lacking:
10) The different types of nouns in terms of being singular, dual or plural and masculine-feminine:
11) The type that occurs due to the different pronunciation by dialects:

In addition, more types can be mentioned apart from those types mentioned above. As it is seen, those who put forward the seven letters (qiraat) as seven types could not agree on a certain seven types. Moreover, they forced themselves to restrict the types as seven.

The words that are permitted to be pronounced in different forms in accordance with the permission of Seven Qiraat are very few. There are not any different kinds of pronunciation in most parts of the Quran.

The types of seven Qiraat cannot be expressed as contradiction and contrast. They should be evaluated as ease and mercy.
The Seven Letters expresses variety in reciting the Quran. It does not express controversy and contrast.

The word seven in the phrase “seven letters” does not mean seven. It shows multitude because in Sami languages, the numbers like seven, seventy, seven hundred are used to express multitude as in the other languages.

The fact that the Quran was sent down in the form of Seven Letters is ease for pronunciation not for spelling. It originated from the differences of dialects, styles, etc of people who recited the Quran differently in a period and place that the writing styles were not developed, writing materials were not abundant, people depended on oral culture rather than written culture and memorized and recited the Quran as much as they could. It was very difficult for some Arabs who could not read and write to recite the Quran orally. The issue of Seven Letters is a permission regarding the issue. And although that permission contained the differences in pronunciation not in spelling and writing, it is understood that some different words having the same meaning are also used. It was because the Glorious Quran was written by Quraishi scribes during the period of Makkah, and a group of Ansar (residents of Madinah) wrote the verses of the Quran in the period of Madinah. It was completed while Hazrat Prophet was alive. It was collected in one book during the period of Hazrat Abu Bakr; the correction of the manuscripted copies were completed during the period of Hazrat Uthman and they were sent to the cities that were under the sovereignty of Muslims.
In today’s conditions, it is not possible to read a text (the Quran), whose writing, harakas and spelling were completed, in different forms and with different words. It is because there exists a book (the Quran), which underwent all necessary acts to be read by people.

Quran is a book sent as an address through Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). It is useful to know that the Quran was sent in the style of speech and that it was transferred from language of speaking into written form. For this reason, the style of Quran is full of such addresses as say, "o humankind", "o believers", "o disbelievers", "o people of the book", "o prophet", they ask you, say It is because the Quran addresses the Prophet that the addresses in the verses are in the masculine. In Arabic, the female and the male are addressed with different expressions. And it is the requisite of this language that the addresses to the Prophet are in the masculine.

In the Quran and Hadiths, Islamic commandments and prohibitions, promises about the world and the hereafter are inclusive of both men and women, if no exception is made. It is not important that these are expressed in masculine predicates, adjectives, and pronouns. This is thus in terms of both Arabic and Islamic Jurisprudence methodology.

It is not necessary for a command or a prohibition that addresses men to be repeated for women, too. This is because, as we mentioned, this is the requisite of Arabic and of the mentality of law, as well as a requisite of Qurans peculiar style and of its mentality of expression. For Quran, before else, declares believer men and believer women as friends and helpers of each other:

"The believers, both men and women, they are guardians, confidants, and helpers of one another. They enjoin and promote what is right and good and forbid and try to prevent the evil, and they establish the Prescribed Prayer in conformity with its conditions, and pay the Prescribed Purifying Alms. They obey God and His Messenger. They are the ones whom God will treat with mercy. Surely God is All-Glorious with irresistible might, All-Wise." (At-Taubah Surah, 9:71)

Similarly, in this verse, the expression They enjoin and promote what is right and good, and forbid and try to prevent the evil and other subjects and pronouns until the end of the verse are all expressions addressed to men. By looking at this, is it possible to say that the verse excludes women? No.

Quran openly promises the beauties and favors of the paradise to believers, both men and women. Likewise, in At-Taubah Surah, 72nd verse, it is said:

"God has promised the believers, both men and women, Gardens through which rivers flow, therein to abide, and blessed dwellings in Gardens of perpetual bliss; and greater (than those) is Gods being pleased with them. That indeed is the supreme triumph."

Islam is not the religion of only men. The Quran does not address solely men. In the Glorious Quran, there is a long surah special to women (An-Nisa Surah). In Quran, it is said that God also sent revelation (inspiration) to some women (Al-Qasas, 28). "Women are the other half of men" which means one equal part of a whole. "And whoever does deeds of righteousness, whether male or female, such will enter Paradise." (An-Nisa, 4:124). "The believers, both men and women; they are guardians, confidants, and helpers of one another" (At-Taubah, 9:71). "Men shall have a share according to what they have earned, and women shall have a share according to what they have earned." (An-Nisa, 4:32)

In Quran, the words that denote women nisa, nisve, imrae, unsa pass together with their derivatives for 85 times, and the words racul, zakar, mar that denote men pass again together with their derivatives for 86 times.

There is no Islamic scholar, and no human being who says that the word human does not include women.

When the majority is addressed, as a requisite of the Arabian language, it will be done either in a masculine or in a feminine structure. In a community in which the social life is on mens shoulders with its entire burden, what can be more normal than choosing the masculine structure? Moreover, this language is the same language Arabs used before Islam. They talked this way in those times, too. Can it be imagined that the Quran, which came in their own language, mars that language? The same characteristic is present in French and partially in English, as well. Can you give utterance to the same claim for them, too?

Allah gave special importance to the middle prayer by commanding,

"Guard strictly your (habit of) prayers especially the middle prayer, and stand before Allah in a devout (frame of mind)." (al-Baqara, 2/238).

Although there is not definite proof as to which one of the five daily prayers is the middle prayer, there are narrations that it can be the noon or afternoon prayer. Most of the Companions and tabi’in hold the view that it is the afternoon prayer.

 God Almighty did not state definitely which prayer was the middle prayer because He wants each prayer to be regarded as the middle prayer and to be performed carefully. Since the afternoon prayer is in the middle of day (morning and noon prayers) and night (evening and night prayers), it should be performed very carefully. (Muhammed Hamdi Yazır, Hak Dini Kur'ân Dili, İstanbul 1935, I, 810; Muhammed Ali as-Sabuni, Mukhtasaru Tafsir-i Ibn Kathir, Beirut 1401, I, 218; Mehmed Vehbî, Hulâsatü'l Beyân Fî Tefsîri'l-Kur'ân, İstanbul 1339-1341,I, 204).

Our Prophet said the following in a hadith:

"Anyone who misses the afternoon prayer is like someone who has missed his family and property." (Sahih Muslim Trns. Mehmet Sofuoğlu, İstanbul 1968,II, 256).

In another hadith, the Prophet said:

"Anyone who performs salat al-bardayn (morning and afternoon prayers) enters Paradise" (Ahmed Naim, Sahih Bukhari Mukhtasar Tajrid Sarih Translation, Ankara 1985,III 521); In another hadith, he said:

"On the day of Ahzab, the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said, "They prevented us from performing the middle prayer, afternoon prayer. May Allah fill their houses and graves with fire." Then, he performed that prayer between the two night prayers (evening and night prayers) In another hadith, he said, "The deeds of a person who deliberately misses the afternoon prayer become invalidated " (Ahmed Naim, ibid, I 493).

Please click on the link given below and then read the article on this page;

Is abrogation present in the Quran?

In order to answer this question, first of all we should take the Quran and, following it, the words of the Prophet, which are indeed the Quran’s explanations, into consideration to see what the Companions and Islamic scholars said on this issue and whether Islamic scholars agreed upon any abrogated verses or not. Now, we are going to try to find an answer to this question according this way. 

Verses about Abrogation (Naskh)

One of the most important resources that those who support the presence of abrogation in the Quran base their views on is that some verses mention abrogation. These verses are al-Baqarah, 106; an-Nahl, 101; ar-Ra’d, 39 and Aal-i-Imran, 7. [1] 

What is meant by these verses has been an issue of discussion and different views have been put forward according to those who accept the presence of abrogation in the Quran and to those who deny it. In this article, we are going to try to evaluate the topic by taking these different views into consideration. 

1. None of Our revelations do We abrogate or cause to be forgotten, but We substitute something better or similar: Knowest thou not that God Hath power over all things? (al-Baqarah, 106). 

We can summarize the evaluation of the abrogated verses mentioned in this verse as follows: 

a. It is the abrogation of previous rules. That is to say, what is meant by abrogated verses in the verse is some decrees of the previous rules. The verse previous to this one and the following verse support this view. Abu Muslim Isfahani, Hijazi, Jabri and Dogrul adopt this point of view. 

b. It is the change of qiblah. 

c. It is the change of miracles. The word “ayah” is also used for miracles in the Quran. Miracle mentioned in this verse can have this meaning, too. This view belongs to Abduh. 

d. They are the decrees pertaining to the Universe and living beings. The word “ayah” is also used to mean some beings such as the Moon and the Sun in the Quran. It is possible that the verse is about some extinct beings. Ali Mustafa supports this view about abrogation. The notion of “ayah” is usually used for the Quranic decrees in its plural meaning, and in its singular meaning, it is generally used for miracles, beings in the universe and exemplary lessons. 

e. They are the Quranic verses. Those who adopt this point of view state that it is the evaluation of notion of decree in the verse. That is to say, it means “When we abrogated the decree of a verse…” The majority of the Quran Interpreters have agreed upon this view. 

f. They are the decrees which were made forgotten. Suleyman Ates supports this view. 

g. It is the sending of a verse in Lawh al-Mahfuz (Preserved Tablet) down to the Prophet (naskh) and leaving it there (nasi). 

h. It is the reordering of verses within the surah. 

i. It states that abrogation and making something forgotten do not exist. Jabri considers this view possible. 

As it is seen, deduction that abrogation is present in the Quran is only one of the many other possible deductions. Moreover, the verse does not talk of abrogation of the decree of the verse, but the abrogation of the verse itself. 

2. When We substitute one revelation for another, - and God knows best what He reveals (in stages), - they say, "Thou art but a forger": but most of them understand not. (al-Nahl, 101) 

We can summarize the evaluation of this verse as follows: 

a. It is the reordering of the verses. 

b. It is the change of the prophethood and the rules of religion. 

c. It is the change of miracles; the replacement of Cosmic miracles by the Quranic ones. 

d. It is the change of decrees in the Quranic verses. 

e. It is emphasizing the unchangeableness of verses. 

As it is seen, the same thing is valid with this verse, too. It is difficult to conclude that abrogation is present in the Quran from this verse as well. The same thing is valid with the following verses, too. 

3. Allah doth blot out or confirm what He pleaseth: with Him is the Mother of the Book. (al-Ra’d, 39) 

The view that this verse is about the abrogation of the Quranic decrees is only one of the many views about the verse and it is not the one that one can think of right away in the first place. We can summarize these views together with their supporters as listed by Mawardi as follows: 

a. Allah changes whichever one of the acts of His servants as He wishes, except for happiness and wretchedness. (Ibn Abbas) 

b. Allah erases whatever He wishes and maintains whatever He wishes except for the Mother of the Book(s). (Ikrima) 

c. He abrogates whichever of the Book’s decrees He wishes and leaves whichever ones He wishes as they are. (Qatadah and Ibn Zaid). 

d. He erases the ones whose due time arrived and leaves the others as they are. (Hasan Basri) 

e. He forgives whichever sin of His servants’ He wishes and leaves the others as they are. (Said bin Jubair) 

f. The verse is about one who sins after worshipping and thus cancels his worship, and one who worships after sinning and thus cancels his sin. This view, which is attributed to Ibn Abbas again, is similar to the previous one. 

g. Allah erases physical and verbal deeds of people - which do not require any punishment or reward - which are delivered to Him by recording angels and leaves the ones which require punishment or reward as they are. (Dahhak) [2] 

These explanations make up of only one part of the scope of the verse in question. In our opinion, it is possible to add some others to them. For instance; changes occurring in the universe, destructions and reconstructions can also be thought to be included in the scope of the verse. Abrogation can also be thought of about that verse. However, we cannot claim that this abrogation is within the Quran itself. As a matter of fact, Jabri states that this verse was not evaluated like that by many scholars but it was interpreted as the change of religious rules compared to previous religious communities. Previous verses to this one point out to it, too. Therefore, what is meant by this verse is that a new book is sent down in every age in accordance with that age, and that the previous book is abrogated. The Bible (Gospel) abrogated the Torah, and the Quran abrogated the Bible. [3] 

Moreover, it is highly possible that this verse was sent before canonic verses about abrogation. The verses before and after that verse is not appropriate to deduce such meaning, either, because this surah often talks of idolaters’ objections to the Prophet and the previous verse to this one says: ““We did send messengers before thee, and appointed for them wives and children: and it was never the part of an apostle to bring a sign except as Allah permitted (or commanded). For each period is a Book (revealed).” This verse states that there is a due time for each duty of prophethood and that the Quran abrogates previous duties of prophethood. [4]

4. “He it is Who has sent down to thee the Book: In it are verses basic or fundamental (of established meaning); they are the foundation of the Book: others are allegorical.” (Aal-i-Imran, 7) 

The word “muhkamat” has been interpreted as “non-abrogated” verses and the word “mutashabihat” as abrogated verses, in the original Arabic text of the verse. However, this view, which is only one of the views on the verse, does not comply with the rest of the verse. We can summarize other important views on the issue as follows:

a. Muhkam are the things which are clearly stated to be forbidden or permissible by Allah and about which there are no doubts. And Mutashabih are things that are otherwise.

b. Muhkam are things so clear and obvious that it cannot bear any other meaning than its obvious meaning. And mutashabih are verses from which it is possible to deduce several meanings. This view belongs to Shafi’i and Muhammad bin Jafar az-Zubair and it is also preferred by Ibn Atiyya. We think that this view is the most appropriate one in terms of the verse’s meaning, coherence and unity.

c. Muhkam are verses which are not repeated and mutashabih are repeated verses.

d. Muhkam verses are fards (obligations) and promises. Mutashabih verses are anecdotes and examples.

e. Muhkam are the things the meaning of which scholars comprehend and know how to explain, and mutashabih are things which nobody else but Allah knows, such as the date and time of the Doomsday.

f. Muhkam are statements which do not need any evidence.

g. Mukhkam are the things the meanings, judgments, reasons and wisdom of which can be known with mind and reasoning, and mutashabih are the otherwise. [5]

As it is seen, there is not a clear indication of abrogation in this verse, either, like in other verses.

Especially, the reasons of revelation about the first two verses are not trustful enough to take into consideration for the explanation of the verse, for they are weak.

WHAT DOES SUNNAH SAY ABOUT ABROGATION?

Secondly, we must research whether there is any explanation from the Prophet on this issue or not; because he has got knowledge of the issue and authorized to talk about it, for he is the Messenger of Allah. Therefore, it is natural that we expect him to have stated abrogated decrees – if there is any – saying the decree of such and such verse has been abrogated or such and such verse abrogated the decree of this or that verse.

The most significant evidence that there is not a hadith on this issue is that such hadith is not mentioned in many books about abrogation. If there was such a hadith, these books would have definitely mentioned it. Actually, Dogrul states that he searched 16 works including Kutub-i Sitta, basic hadith resources and maghazi (a discipline about wars of the Prophet) books and yet did not see such hadith. [6]

According to a narration in Ibn Shahin’s work on abrogation, Hazrat Ali heard the Prophet saying, “Allah abrogated sacrifice of animals, Ramadan fasting and all other fasts, taking full ablution because of impureness, zakat and all kinds of alms.” However, Ibn Shahin found this narration weird and investigators of the hadith explained that resources of disproof and modification determined Musayyab bin Shariq, to whom this hadith is attributed to, is someone whose hadiths are not acceptable. The hadith in question is denied in other resources, too. According to another narration by Ibn Shahin, Abdullah al-Mahzumi narrates it from Sufyan as follows: “Sacrifice of animals abrogated all other sacrifices. Zakat abrogates all other alms. And Ramadan abrogated all other fasts.” [7] This view is attributed to Dahhak and Abu Jafar in some resources and to Ibn Abbas in one. [8] Ibnu’l Arabi adds to this statement “Prayer (Salah) abrogated all other prayers.” [9] Some other narrations state it as “Zakat abrogated all kinds of alms; sacrifice of animals abrogated all other sacrificed animals and Ramadan fasting abrogated all other fasts.” [10] And Ibnu’l Jawzi narrates that Yazid bin Ga’ga said: “Decree of Zakat abrogated all previous alms and Ramadan fasting abrogated all previous fasts.” [11]

In short, it is impossible to consider this narration a hadith.

Şimşek states that it is possible to deduce from some narrations related from the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) that there is no abrogation within the Quran, and narrates a hadith which the Prophet addressed to some people who were debating on a verse [12]: “What is happening to you? People who lived before you were destroyed because they did the same as you are doing; they opposed to prophets and agreed with some parts of the Quran while disagreeing with the others. Verily, the Quran was sent down not with falsehoods in some parts and with truth in some parts, but all parts supporting and justifying each other. Do in accordance with the parts you understand, and leave the parts you do not understand to the ones who understand them.” [13] In our opinion, claims of abrogation in many verses are nothing but making verses conflict with and oppose to each other, just like told in this hadith. Therefore, unfortunately, what is told in this hadith has been practically recorded in some books.

WHAT DO THE COMPANIONS SAY?

While trying to find an answer to this question, one must thirdly take narrations by companions into consideration to see whether they said anything on the issue because they must have information about abrogated verses – if there is any - , for they lived in the same age when the Quran was sent down. Moreover, if they had said, “such and such verse was abrogated”, we can think that they heard it from the Prophet.

Companions and early scholars defined the specialization of a general meaning in a Quranic verse, determining the infinite meanings in a Quranic verse, explanation of hidden and concise meanings and even the exceptions as abrogation. [14]

When we look at the narrations by companions on the issue, we see that there are many narrations especially by Ibn Abbas. Let us try to understand it through some examples:

A- Narrations that are weakly, incorrectly or unsurely attributed to Ibn Abbas:

Some Israiliyyah beliefs and some views about abrogation were attributed to Ibn Abbas for he is a well-known hadith narrator. For instance, the view that the verse “Follow thou the inspiration sent unto thee, and be patient and constant, till God do decide: for He is the best to decide.” (Yunus 10:109) was abrogated is attributed to Ibn Abbas. However, Ibnu’l Jawzi states that the attribution of this narration to him is unsure. (Ibnu’l-Jawzi, Nawasikh, p. 181). Moreover, Makki says that attribution of the claim that the verse “Not mine is the responsibility for arranging your affairs” (al-An’am 66, Yunus 108) was abrogated to Ibn Abbas is weak and Ibnu’l-Jawzi says it is incorrect. [15]

B- Consideration of Exceptions as Abrogation

Ibn Abbas’ views related to exceptions to decrees have usually been understood as abrogation because he used not the notion of abrogation but exception while explaining such verses – as it will be pointed out when necessary - ; however, those explanations were evaluated as abrogation later. As a matter of fact, Makki says: “Many places in the Quran where the word “exception” is cited are narrated from Ibn Abbas as “abrogation…” [16]

“God give thee grace! Why didst thou grant them …?” (at-Tawbah, 43)  “Those who believe in God and the Last Day ask thee for no exemption.” (at-Tawbah, 44) “Only those who believe not in God and the Last Day ask thee for exemption.” (at-Tawbah, 45)

It is claimed that these three verses were abrogated by the verse “Only those are believers, who believe in God and His Apostle: when they are with him on a matter requiring collective action, they do not depart until they have asked for his leave; those who ask for thy leave are those who believe in God and His Apostle; so when they ask for thy leave, for some business of theirs, give leave to those of them whom thou wilt, and ask God for their forgiveness: for God is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.” (an-Nur, 62) Two opposing views were narrated from Ibn Abbas, one being related to the abrogation of these verses and the other being related to the trustworthiness of it. [17]

 “…and say: "My Lord! Bestow on them thy Mercy even as they cherished me in childhood."” (al-Isra, 24).

It was said that the very supplication in this verse included supplications made for idolater (pagan) parents too and thus it had been abrogated by the verse “It is not fitting, for the Prophet and those who believe, that they should pray for forgiveness for Pagans.” (at-Tawbah, 113).

Ibn Abbas, after having read this verse, is claimed to have said: “then He made an exception and said ‘It is not fitting, for the Prophet and those who believe, that they should pray for forgiveness for Pagans.’” [18] While the word “exception” was used here – as stated before – it is obvious that it was understood as “abrogation”. In fact, the verse which was said to have invalidated the other limited that verse. [19]

Probably, it would be appropriate to evaluate views on many other similar verses attributed to Ibn Abbas this way because, there are many narrations like that. However, as stated above, as mentioned before and as it is going to be mentioned in examples later, views which were narrated from him about that kind of verses are originally exceptions and not abrogation.

C- Attributing Opposing Views to Ibn Abbas

Many views opposing to each other are often attributed to Ibn Abbas. For instance:

“If a man kills a believer intentionally, his recompense is Hell, to abide therein (Forever): And the wrath and the curse of God are upon him, and a dreadful penalty is prepared for him.” (an-Nisa, 93). It is narrated from Ibn Abbas that this verse is one of the latest ones and thus it was not abrogated and a murderer’s repentance would not be accepted. However, at the same, it is narrated from him that – contrarily – this verse invalidated the verse about the acceptance of repentance in surah al-Fatiha because that verse was sent down in Makkah and this one was sent down in Madinah. Nahhas, who reported this view, stated that some scholars considered Ibn Abbas saying “invalidated” to mean “it was sent down with the same meaning.” [20]

“If the guardian is well-off, Let him claim no remuneration, but if he is poor, let him have for himself what is just and reasonable.” (al-Nisa, 6). [21]

As for this verse, four different views have been put forward about the guardian (of an orphan child) using the orphan child’s property justly and reasonably:

a. He uses it by borrowing from şt and then pays it back.

b. He uses it without wasting it and does not pay it back later.

c. In case of obligation, he uses it in the same way as he is allowed to eat a dead animal’s meat and then pays it back if he can, if he cannot, he does not.

d. The guardian can use orphan’s property in proportion to his working for the orphan.

According to all those views, the verse is trustful and there is no abrogation. However, some have stated that this was valid before and later it was invalidated with the verse “O ye who believe! Eat not up your property among yourselves in vanities.” (an-Nisa, 29). Besides, some have been too attentive to say, “in case of obligation, one is allowed to eat the meat of a dead animal, but not the property of orphans.” [22]

There are narrations reported from Ibn Abbas about all of the views on the decisiveness of the verse above. In addition to this, the narration that the verse was invalidated by the verse: “O ye who believe! Eat not up your property among yourselves in vanities” is also attributed to him. This is often witnessed in narrations related to abrogation. Sometimes, narrations which are in conflict with each other are narrated from Ibn Abbas, like in this example. Thus, it is necessary to approach this kind of narrations carefully.

News about Abrogation

The most well-known news about abrogation is the narration of Hazrat Ali reproving a story-teller, who does not know of abrogating and abrogated, “You destroyed both yourself and others!” , which is seen in almost all works written on abrogation. [23] Şimşek evaluates this narration as follows: This news cannot be evidence to the presence of abrogation in the Quran. We know that the knowledge of story-tellers of the time, who told people religious stories, came from Israiliyyah… Probably, this story-teller, too, mixed the Quranic narrations and narrations from the Torah and based his stories on the works of the People of the Book. So, Hazrat Ali stated with his words that the previous books were invalidated by the Quran. If not, what kind of a relation could there be between a story-teller and abrogation in the Quran? [24] And Dumlu, who approaches the abrogation in this narration doubtfully, says: “What was the topic? What was it that bothered Hazrat Ali; and does this event, which was understood as abrogation, have anything to do with the notion of abrogation which was created much later really?” [25] That the name of the story-teller in question was agreed upon to be Ka’bu’l-Akhbar, in the narration reported by Ibn Huzayma, justifies the doubts; because Ka’b, being a former Jewish scholar, was the leading one of those who told Israelite stories. This narration is as follows: Hazrat Ali comes across Kab’u’l-Akhbar, who was telling stories, and says to him: O father of Ishaq! This position (of sermonizing) belongs to amirs or appointed ones only. A few days after that, he came across him again and he was still telling stories. Some of the listeners had fainted and fallen down and some were crying. Upon seeing this, Hazrat Ali said: O father of Ishaq! Have I not prohibited you from this? Do you not know abrogation? And when he replied saying ‘Allahu a’lam (Allah knows the best)’, Hazrat Ali said: You destroyed both yourself and others! [26]

According to Jabri, this narration is a weak one from two aspects. First: It is reported by Dahhak from Ibn Abbas. However, Dahhak who died in the hijri year of 105 – according to Said bin Jubair – did not ever meet Ibn Abbas. And Ibn Hibban says one should always approach narrations reported by Dahhak doubtfully. Second: Story-tellers, telling religious stories in masjids had not appeared during the time of Hazrat Ali yet. They appeared only during the time of Umayyads. [27]

One of the news is the narration that Hazrat Umar said: “…Ubayy claims that he would not forget anything he heard from the Messenger of Allah. However, Allah the Great stated “If We abrogate a verse or make it forgotten…” [28] Şimşek evaluates this narration as follows: If this news reported by Bukhari is carefully investigated, it is evidence that there is no abrogation in the Quran, and not to the presence of abrogation in the Quran. According to this news, Hazrat Umar takes “abrogation” as making something forgotten and stresses that it is impossible for Ubayy to remember verses which Allah made forgotten.” [29]

DO SCHOLARS AGREE ON THE ISSUE?

What do scholars say about it? If they say that there are abrogated verses, what are they? Is there an agreement amongst them on the number of abrogated verses and on which ones they are? If there is, to what degree is that claim reasonable?

Abu Ubayd, Nahhas, Makki and Ibnu’l-Jawzi, widely investigated the issue of abrogation, evaluated the verses they included in their books one by one and denied the claim of abrogation in most of them. According to Sulaiman bin Ibrahim al-Lahim, who explained Nahhas’ book in detail, Nahhas and Ibnu’l-Jawzi concluded 17 verses were abrogated and Makki concluded that 28 verses were abrogated. [30]

However, the verses which these people said to be abrogated are different. That is to say, a verse which is accepted to be abrogated by one of them is said to be in effect by the other. Moreover, for they preferred to keep silent about some verses instead of telling their opinions; we cannot say the number of those verses is certain. Actually, we have noticed during our research that Ibnu’l-Jawzi’s determination of some verses as abrogated is not very appropriate. (al-Anfal, 65; al-Mumtahina, 10-11 and etc.) Moreover, we have also noticed that eight verses, which he considered to be abrogated quite probably, are not included in this categorization. Also, the number of the verses which were determined to be abrogated with the consensus of these three scholars seemed to be nine. (Amongst them are the 15th and 16th verses of surah an-Nisa, which follow and complete each other). However, we have noticed that it is not appropriate either at the end of our research. Let alone considering them abrogated, Makki did not include the verse Al-Baqarah 217 and Nassah did not include the verse al-Baqarah 240 in their books out of these nine verses. Therefore, the number of verses on which these three scholars agreed to be abrogated is only seven: al-Baqara 183, an-Nisa 15-16, 43, 90, al-Mujadilah 12, al-Muzzammil 2. (If the third and fourth verses of surah al-Mujadilah, following the second one, are added to this number, it is nine.) These seven verses are also included in the verses which some other scholars, who wrote books on abrogation in the past, considered to be abrogated.

Suyuti, a scholar who lived after them, stated that 21 verses which were said to be abrogated by the scholars before him are abrogated and then stated truth about the verses about asking for permission and the last day is that they were not abrogated and the 115th verse of surah al-Baqarah about the qiblah could be included among the abrogated ones. Thus, he increased the number to 20 eventually. [32] According to him, claims of abrogation about other verses except for these ones are incorrect.

The verses which Suyuti considered to be abrogated were repeated in the same way by other scholars or their number was decreased or the view of former scholars who increased the number of abrogated verses was adopted. For instance, Karmi followed the way of former scholars on the issue and Fahraddin Abdullah bin Muhammad repeated the verses, which were considered to be abrogated by Suyuti, in the same way in his book. [33] And Zarqani, who narrated from Suyuti added the verse about qiblah to the verses Suyuti considered to be abrogated, investigated 22 verses in total and stated that only ten of them were abrogated. Moreover, he said that the 16th verse of surah an-Nisa was also abrogated together with the 15th one, which Suyuti did not include among the abrogated verses. [34] These verses are: al-Baqarah 180,184, 240; an-Nisa 15-16, 33; al-Anfal 65; an-Nur 3; al-Ahzab 53; al-Mujadilah 12; al-Muzzammil, 2. [35] Subhi Salih stated that the number of verses which Suyuti considered to be abrogated would not be more than 10. [36] Dahlawi evaluated 21 verses which were also evaluated by Ibnu’l-Arabi and Suyuti, (except for the verse related to qiblah) and stated that only 5 of them were abrogated. These verses are: al-Baqarah 180, 240; al-Anfal 65; al-Ahzab 52; al-Mujadilah 12. [37] And Muhammad Salih Ali Mustafa accepted the presence of abrogation only in three of the verses (al-Anfal 65; al-Mujadilah 12; al-Muzzammil 2) and then put them in order according to the soundness of the abrogation possibility in them and stated their aspects both related to abrogation and firmness, including the three verses which he considered to be abrogated. [38]

Therefore, we see that when we expand the frame of scholars who accepted the presence of abrogation in the Quran, the number of the abrogated verses decreases in inverse proportion.

A remarkable point here is that the verse “Approach not prayers with a mind befogged (drunken/drugged)” (an-Nisa, 43) which is accepted as abrogated in books related to abrogation is not amongst the verses accepted to be abrogated by Suyuti and which he said “the claim of abrogation in any verses except for these is not true.” [39] Ibnu’l-Arabi says that the abrogation of this verse is not permissible at all and explains it as follows: Suggestion depends on the health of mind. Performing prayer is a requirement of being mukallaf (obliged to perform religious duties) and it is possible only if one’s mind is healthy. This verse was sent down in a time when drinking alcoholic beverages was mubah. When it was made haram, the prohibition in this verse still persevered, yet the scope of the prohibition was expanded to everywhere and all times. [40]

At the end of his research, Lahim stated that the number of verses which were likely to have been abrogated could be no more than nine; and yet he stated that he was sure of only five verses were abrogated in a chart he prepared, and that the others were firm. He stated that what could be abrogated in the verse about approaching prayers when befogged (an-Nisa, 43) was only the view that one could drink alcoholic beverages when they do not pray, and that the general meaning of the verse was steadfast. The other four verses which he considered to be abrogated are as follows: al-Baqarah, 184; al-Anfal, 65; al-Mujadilah, 12; al-Muzzammil, 2-4. [41]

At the end of his detailed research, Mustafa Zaid concluded that there were abrogations in 6 verses related to 6 incidents. These verses are as follows:

Related to fornication: an-Nisa, 15-16.

Related to alcohol: an-Nisa, 43.

Related to the number of Muslims related to victory in wars: al-Anfal, 65.

Related to najwa: al-Mujadilah, 12.

Related to Tahajjud prayer: al-Muzzammil, 2.

Ali Hasan al-Arid lists the verses which he considered to be abrogated in his book named Fathu’l Mannan fi Naskhi’l-Quran as follows:

Decrees related to fasting which were abrogated (invalidated) by the verse starting with, “Uhillat lakum…” (some things forbidden for fasting people).

Al-Anfal, 65th verse, which is related to the number of Muslims related to victories in which they will gain.

Related to fornication: an-Nisa, 15-16

Related to Nejwa, al-Mujadilah, 12.

Related to Tahajjud prayer, al-Muzzammil 2.

At the end of his research named “Kur'ân'da Nesih“ (Abrogation in the Quran), Kaya concluded that there was abrogation in verses al-Baqarah 240 and 280, an-Nisa 15, al-Mujadilah 12, and that al-Muzzammil 1-3 verses were in effect. [43]

After all of these views, when we expand the scope of our research and have a look at the verses which were stated to be abrogated by scholars, who accepted the presence of abrogated decrees in the Quran, we see that there is not a single verse upon which all of them agree to be abrogated!

Actually, Jabri states that he could not find a single verse upon which was agreed at the end of his research and eventually he published his research confidently, and that this issue was not one of the essentials of the religion and not related to creed, and that it was open to discussion. [44]

And some scholars state that most of the verses which were considered to be abrogated are indeed “delayed (munsa)” ones and they are going to be valid in due time. According to those who adopt this view, there is a reason why the abrogated verses are still in the text of the Quran and the decrees of these verses have not been totally abrogated. They are valid in a sense and have got fields of application. [45]

It is said that it was only Abu Muslim al-Isfahani who thought that there were not any abrogated verses in the Quran, in the past. However, Abu Ali Muhammad bin Ahmad bin Junaid states that he denies the presence of abrogation, in his work named al-Fash ala man Ajaza’n-Naskh. [46] The fact that Razi reported Isfahani’s views without any comments in his book “Tafsir al-i Kabir” is thought to mean that he supports Isfahani. [47]

In our time, as a result of efforts to decrease the number of verses which are considered to be abrogated, the view that there are not any abrogated verses in the Quran has started to be adopted generally and eventually the number of scholars who adopt this view has increased.

CONCLUSION

It is an accepted view by all Islamic scholars that decrees of the Quran invalidated some religious rules in the time of early prophets. Also, there has been abrogation in Islam about some issues such as changing of qiblah from Masjid al-Aqsa to Masjid al-Haram.

Although it is a disputable issue whether there is abrogation in the Quran, whether there are any abrogated decrees in the Quran or not, our reasearch shows that there is neither a certain verse and sunnah which states the presence of abrogation, nor an agreement upon it by scholars. 

Assist. Prof. Veysel GÜLLÜCE 

References

[1]. see. Zukhri, p. 15; Abu Ubayd, p. 5-6; Shatibi, III, 79. The verse “For the iniquity of the Jews We made unlawful for them certain (foods) good and wholesome which had been lawful for them" (an-Nisa, 160) was put forward as an evidence to the presence of abrogation. (see. Zarqani, II, 89; Ali Mustafa, p. 18).

[2] . Abu'l-Hasan Ali b. Muhammad al-Mawardi, an-Nukatu wa'l-Uyun (Tafiîru'l-Mawardi), Daru'l-Kutubi'l-Ilmiyya, Beirut, 1992, III, 118.

[3]. Jabri, La Naskha fi'l-Qur'ân, p. 24; an-Naskh, p. 194-195.

[4]. see. Şimşek, İki Mesele, p. 93 ff.; Günümüz Tefsîr Problemleri, p. 170-171

[5] . Mawardi, I, 370; Jabri, an-Naskh, p. 133.

[6] . Doğrul, s. L (from footnotes).

[7] . Abu Hafs Omar b. Ahmad b. Shahin, an-Nasikhu wa'l-Mansukh mina'l-Hadith, thq. Ali Muhammad Muawwid, Adil Ahmad Abdulmawjud, Daru'l-Kutubi'l-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1992, p. 65.

[8] . see. Abu Ubayd, p.34; Nahhas, II, 323; III, 25; Makki, p. 182

[9] . see. Abu Bakr Ibnu'l-Arabi, Ahkamu'l-Qur'ân, Daru'l-Ma'rifa, Beirut, n.d., I, 11

[10] . see. Abu Ubayd, p.34.

[11] . Ibnu'l-Jawzi, Nawasikh, p. 42.

[12]. Şimşek, İki Mesele, p. 97; Günümüz Tefsîr Problemleri, p. 175.

[13]. Ibn Hanbal, Musnad, II, 181; for a similar narration, see: Ibn Majah, Muqaddima, 10.

[14] . Ali Hussain Muhammad Sulaiman, Fathu'r-Rahman fi Beyani'n-Naskh fi'l-Qur'an, p. 172

[15]. see. Makki, p. 181; Ibnu'l-Jawzi, Nawasikh, p. 154, 180.

[16] . Makki, p. 235.

[17] . see. Makki, p. 202.

[18] . Abu Ubayd, p. 403.

[19] . see. Tabari, VIII, 63; Makki, p. 214; Buzuri, v. 2b; Ibnu'l-Jawzi, Nawasikh, p. 191.

[20] . Nahhas, II, 225.

[21]. Zukhri, s. 18; Abu Ubayd, p.340; Nahhas, II, 146; Makki, p. 132; Buzuri, v. 2a; Ibnu'l-Jawzî, Nawasikh, s. 111; al-Musaffa, p. 21.

[22] . Ibnu'l-Jawzi, Nawasikh, p. 114.

[23]. See: Abu Ubayd, p. 3; Nahhas, I, 410; Hibatullah b. Salama b. Nasr al-Muqri. an-Nasikh wa'l-Mansukh min Kitabillahi Azzah wa Jallah. thq., Zuhair ash-Shawish-Muhammad Kan'an, al-Maktabu'l-Islami, Beirut, 1986, p. 18; Hamazani, p. 6 ; Ibnu'l-Jawzi, Nawasikh, p. 29.

[24]. Şimşek, İki Mesele, p. 94 ff.; Günümüz Tefsîr Problemleri, p. 174-175.

[25]. Dumlu, p. 81.

[26]. Ibn Huzayma, p. 261.

[27]. Jabri, an-Naskh, p. 118.

[28] . Bukhari, Tafsir, Surah 2, 7.

[29] . Simsek, Iki Mesele, p. 95.

[30] . see., Nahhas, I, 343-347.

[31] . al-Baqarah, 219; an-Nisa, 33; al-An'am, 106; al-Anfal, 72; al-Hijr, 94; an-Nur, 2; Saffat, 173; Qaf, 45.

[32] . Suyuti, al-Itqan, II, 712. We wrote the parts which Suyuti considered to be abrogated in these verses in bold.

[33] . Fahraddin Abdullah b. Muhammad, al-Beyan fi'n-Nasikh a'l-Mansukh fi'l-Qur'ân, yazma (Süleymaniye Kütüphanesi), v. 3-5.

[34] . That Suyuti did not consider the verse related to the punishment of those committed homosexuality as abrogated has been explained in the related verses.

 [35] . see. Zarqani, II, 153-165.

[36] . see: Subhi Salih, p. 274.

[37].Dahlawî, p. 54-59. When we examine Dahlawi’s explanations about these verses, we see that he stated that three of them (al-Baqarah 180; al-Anfal, 65; al-Mujadilah, 12) were definitely abrogated. His statement about other two verses is unclear (al-Baqarah, 240; al-Ahzâb, 52) However, as he later stated that five verses were abrogated, it is figured out that his view about these two verses was that they were abrogated. The following statements of Dahlawi were interpreted as his efforts to decrease this number: Almost there are not any verses the decrees of which have been abrogated (invalidated) in the Quran that we read. What is more, it is doubtless that its decree is valid for any situation or time.” (Ali Mustafa reported these statements from Yusuf Bannuri’s book named Yatimatu'l-Bayan fi Shay'in min Ulumi'l-Qur'an, yet, it is not stated from which of his books these statements of Dahlawi were quoted. see an-Naskh fi'l-Qur'ani'l-Karim, p. 40). Dahlawi’s statements about this issue in his book named  at-Tafhimu'l-Ilahiyya shows that he does not have a positive opinion about the presence of abrogation in the Quran. (see. Ahmad Hasan, ibid., p. 103 -nu: 4-).

[38] . Ali Mustafa, an-Naskh fi'l-Qur'ani'l-Karim, p. 41 ff.

[39] . ibid., Suyuti mentioned this verse in his work named al-Iklil; yet, he did not say anything about abrogation. (see p. 92-93).

[40] . Ibnu'l-Arabi, an-Nasikhu wa'l-Mansukh fi'l-Qur'ani'l-Karim, II, 173.

[41] . see. Nahhas, III, 395-398.

[42] . Ali Hasan al-Arid, Fathu'l-Mannan fi Naskhi'l-Qur'an, Maktabatu Hanci, Egypt, 1973, p. 340-341

[43] . see. Kaya, Kur'an'da Nesih, p. 164.

[44] . Jabri, an-Naskh, p. 117, 199.

[45] . see: Zarkashi, II, 49; also see. Suyuti, al-Itqan, II, 703; Jabri, an-Naskh, p. 24; Kashmiri, III, 147; Ömer Özsoy. "Nasr Hamid Ebu Zeyd'in Nass-Olgu Bağlamında Ulumu'l-Kur'ân'ı Eleştirisi", İslâmi Araştırmalar, v. VII, issue, 3-4, 1994, p. 244; Yıldırım, p. 104; Albayrak, Kur'ân'ın Bütünlüğü Üzerine, p. 36-37; Özdeş, ibid., p. 45; Dumlu, p. 85.

[46] . see. Şimşek, İki Mesele, p. 80.

[47]. see. Hudari, Tarikhu't-Tashri', p. 24; Ali Mustafa, an-Naskh fi'l-Qur'ani'l-Karim, p. 17.

“As for the beggar who asks for help out of need and poverty, do not reprimand and rebuke him. On the contrary, offer him (what he asks) or refuse him kindly.”

Qatada says: “Decline the destitute kindly…”

The warning here is not made because Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings upon him, despised the poor. Those verses address all the community of believers in the person of the Prophet. In other words, the Prophet is informed that it is not permitted to scorn and scold the destitute who ask for help. There are lessons that the community of believers should take from that verse.

It is narrated that in spite of his straitened circumstances, the Prophet (PBUH) did not turn down any destitute and even took on their debts.

The Religion of Islam does not approve of begging, nor does it sanction turning down the destitute who are left no choice but beg out of need, empty-handed. In this respect, it is fitting that a Muslim community should find and help the poor and the needy who do not reconcile begging with their human and religious honor and morals. It is also fitting that they should welcome with warmth and kindness the destitute who, out of need, are bound to ask for help, and not turn them down empty-handed; they should give them something as much as their circumstances allow.

As a matter of fact, the Prophet said:

“Do not turn down the destitute empty-handed, even if it is by giving half a date (of a palm tree).” (1)

“Return a beggar (by giving something) even if with a burnt animal nail.” (2)

Of course, those commands and recommendations are not approval of nor encouragement for begging, but a reminder of the reward and benefit in helping and taking care of those who are left no choice but beg.

Ibrahim b. Adham, a renowned spiritual figure, says:

“Beggars are good friends of us who take our livelihood and carry it to the Hereafter.”

Ibrahim an-Nahai says:

“The beggar is a postman for the Hereafter. He comes to the door of one of us and asks ‘Do you have anything to send to your relatives and friends?’”

As for a beggar’s imploring insistently; in the Qur’an and Hadith (sayings of the Prophet) such behavior is criticized and never approved. This is because in beseeching and imploring, there is a meaning and sign of making oneself excessively pitiful, taking begging as an occupation, and making Muslims uneasy.

While mentioning the needy, God Almighty says:

“That (which you spend) is for the poor who, having dedicated themselves to God’s cause, are in distressed circumstances. They are unable to move about the earth (to render service in God’s cause and earn their livelihood). Those who are unaware (of their circumstances) suppose them wealthy because of their abstinence and dignified bearing, but you will know them by their countenance – they do not beg of people importunately…” (3)

Thus, Islam advises one to please the needy who are left no choice but beg by giving them more or less, and if one does not have anything to give, Islam advises one to refuse them kindly; thus, the bridge and balance between the poor and the wealthy is maintained.

In addition, there are those who come and ask in order to learn knowledge, morals, education and manners, and profession and craft; it is wajib (obligatory) to show interest and care toward them. As is said by Imam Abu Hanifa; “It is much better to deck the threshold beneath their feet with gold.”

It is forbidden to look down on someone who comes with that motive and asks something; nor is it appropriate to meet him with a sullen face and speak harshly towards him. If the knowledgeable person who is addressed the question does not possess the information to answer the question at that time, he should not abstain from explaining the situation kindly, and should refer him to a person who knows more about the topic. If he knows about what is asked, he should, without delay, give the appropriate answer to the person who asked the question. The Prophet (PBUH) shed light on that topic and addressed his community as follows:

“Whoever is asked about a topic, a science, and he (though knowing about it) hides his knowledge and does not reveal it, (in the Hereafter) he is bitted with a bridle made of fire.” (4)

Footnotes:

1. Tirmidhi, Zuhd: 37.

2. Nasai, Zakat: 70-76; Abu Davud, Zakat: 3; Tirmidhi, Zakat: 29; Ahmad: 4/70, 5/381, 6/381, 6/382, 383, 424, 438.

3. The Qur’an, Bakarah, 2/273.

4. Abu Davud, ‘Ilm: 9; Tirmidhi, ‘Ilm: 3; Ibn Maja, Muqaddima: 24; Ahmad: 2/263, 305, 344, 353, 495.

It is controversial whether the Great Wall of China is seen from outer space or not. There are some astronauts who say it is visible, but there are others who say it is invisible. Although there are detailed and different narrations in the interpretation and Islamic history books about Dhul-Qarnayn and the Great Wall of China, we see, in Badiuzzaman’s Risale-i Nur Collection, the most suitable information which is convenient for the understanding of our century.

There is no certain information about him whether he is a saint or prophet, but Hazrat Badiuzzaman says “he was one of the padishahs (sultan, ruler, sovereign) of Yemen who lived during the time of Hazrat Abraham (peace be upon him) and took lessons from Hazrat Khidr (peace be upon him)”. So with that statement, Badiuzzaman points that he was a saint; but in another statement which is “With the guidance which was fit for a prophet, Dhul-Qarnayn who was Alexander the Great…” (1), it is understood that he points to his prophethood. And in many interpretations, the opinion that he was a prophet prevails.

The Great Wall of China was constructed by Dhul-Qarnayn. According to the expression of the Qur’an, Manchur, Mongolian and Kirghiz tribes that were named as Gog and Magog (Yajuj and Majuj), attacked repeatedly the defenseless and innocent people who were living in India and China and killed them ferociously. Those trouble-making and plundering tribes lived behind Himalaya Mountains. They destroyed almost anything and killed almost anyone in the places where they invaded.

So, Hazrat Dhul-Qarnayn erected the Great Wall of China in order to save the tribes who were living around, from the cruelty and assault of those cruel and barbarian people. In this way, a curtain wall in front of the cruel people and a stone building against their cruelty had been constructed. According to the information in encyclopedias, later, the rulers of China extended this wall and ensured it to exist up to this day by restoring it several times.

“The Great Wall of China which was one of the barriers that Hz. Dhul-Qarnayn constructed and which is accepted as one of the Seven Wonders of the World, still exists in spite of living for thousand of years. It can be read as a long line from the history in an incarnate, petrified and significant way which had been spread to the surface of the earth by human hand.” (2)

There is clear and significant information in Chapter of Al-Kahf (The Surah Al-Kahf) in which the story of Hz. Dhul-Qarnayn is told about how that barrier was constructed. Some of those verses are as follows:

“Then he followed (another) way. Until, when he reached (a tract) between two mountains, he found, beneath them, a people who scarcely understood a word. They said: "O Zulqarnain! the Gog and Magog (People) do great mischief on earth: shall we then render thee tribute in order that thou mightest erect a barrier between us and them? He said: "(The power) in which my Lord has established me is better (than tribute). Help me therefore with strength (and labor): I will erect a strong barrier between you and them: "Bring me blocks of iron." At length, when he had filled up the space between the two steep mountain-sides, He said, "Blow (with your bellows)" Then, when he had made it (red) as fire, he said: "Bring me, that I may pour over it, molten lead." Thus were they made powerless to scale it or to dig through it.” (3)

Badiuzzaman explains how the Qur’an points the case “with destruction of this barrier the Doomsday will occur, too” in two points:

“As that barrier will be destroyed, so too, will this world will be destroyed. That barrier is as strong as a mountain. However, with destruction of the earth, it may be destroyed. Although time damages it, most of it remains strong.”

There had been constructed many barriers other than the Great Wall of China, which is famous. Among those, some conquerors and strong rulers such as Alexander the Great materially and some prophets and saints morally had followed Dhul-Qarnayn and they had erected barriers in the middle of the mountains and set castles on the mountains which would save the oppressed from the oppressors. They built walls either with their material power or by guiding people and taking measures. In addition, one of the kings of Romans built a wall in England, and one of the rulers of Persia on the Caucasus Mountains by the Darbant had constructed barriers like Dhul-Qarnayn in order to stop the plunderer Tatarian people’s attacks,

(1). Lem’alar (The Flashes), p. 100-101.
(2). ?ualar (The Rays), p. 58-61.
(3). The Surah of Al-Kahf, 92-97.

Mehmed Paksu

4/3. If ye fear that ye shall not be able to deal justly with the orphans, marry women of your choice, two, or three, or four; but if ye fear that ye shall not be able to deal justly (with them), then only one, or that which your right hands possess. That will be more suitable, to prevent you from doing injustice.
4/20. But if ye decide to take one wife in place of another, even if ye had given the latter a whole treasure for dower take not the least bit of it back: would ye take it by slander and a manifest wrong?
4/21.  And how could ye take it when ye have gone in unto each other, and they have taken from you a solemn covenant?
4/22.  And marry not women whom your fathers married, ― except what is past: it was shameful and odious, ― an abominable custom indeed.
4/23.  Prohibited to you (for marriage) are:― your mothers, daughters, sisters, father's sisters, mother's sisters; brother's daughters, sister's daughters, foster-mothers (who gave you suck) foster-sisters; your wives' mothers; your step-daughters under your guardianship, born of your wives to whom ye have gone in,―no prohibition if ye have not gone in,― (those who have been) wives of your sons proceeding from your loins; and two sisters in wedlock at one and the same time, except for what is past; for Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.
4/24.  Also (prohibited are) women already married, except those whom your right hands possess. Thus hath Allah ordained (prohibitions) against you: except for these, all others are lawful, provided ye seek (them in marriage) with gifts from your property,― desiring chastity, not lust. Seeing that ye derive benefit from them give them their dowers (at least) as prescribed; but if, after a dower is prescribed, ye agree mutually (to vary it) there is no blame on you, and Allah is All-Knowing All-Wise.
4/25.  If any of you have not the means wherewith to wed free believing women, they may wed believing girls from among those whom your right hands possess: and Allah hath full knowledge about your Faith. Ye are one from another: wed them with the leave of their owners, and give them their dowers, according to what is reasonable: they should be chaste not lustful nor taking paramours: when they are taken in wedlock, if they fall into shame, their punishment is half that for free women. This (permission) is for those among you who fear sin; but it is better for you that ye practise self-restraint: And Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.
4/34. Men are the protectors and maintainers of women, because Allah has given the one more (strength) than the other, and because they support them from their means. Therefore the righteous women are devoutly obedient, and guard in (the husband's) absence what Allah would have them guard. As to those women on whose part ye fear disloyalty and ill-conduct, admonish them (first), (next), refuse to share their, beds (and last) beat them (lightly); but if they return to obedience, seek not against them means (of annoyance): for Allah is Most High, Great (above you all).
4/35.  If ye fear a breach between them twain, appoint (two) arbiters, one from his family, and the other from hers; if they wish for peace, Allah will cause their reconciliation: for Allah hath full knowledge, and is acquainted with all things.
5.5 This day are (all) things good and pure made lawful unto you. The food of the People of the Book is lawful unto you and yours is lawful unto them. (Lawful unto you in marriage) are (not only) chaste women who are believers, but chaste women among the People of the Book, revealed before your time― when ye give them their due dowers, and desire chastity, not lewdness, nor secret intrigues. If anyone rejects faith, fruitless is his work, and in the Hereafter he will be in the ranks of those who have lost (all spiritual good).
24/32. Marry those among you who are single, or the virtuous ones among your slaves, male or female: if they are in poverty, Allah will give them means out of His grace: for Allah encompasseth all, and He knoweth all things.
24/33.  Let those who find not the wherewithal for marriage keep themselves chaste, until Allah gives them means out of His grace. And if any of your slaves ask for a deed in writing (to enable them to earn their freedom for a certain sum) give them such a deed if ye know any good in them; yea, give them something yourselves out of the means which Allah has given to you. But force not your maids to prostitution when they desire chastity, in order that ye may make a gain in the goods of this life. But if anyone compels them, yet after such compulsion, is Allah Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful (to them).
33/37. Behold! Thou didst say to one who had received the grace of Allah and thy favour: "Retain thou (in wedlock) thy wife, and fear Allah." But thou didst hide in thy heart that which Allah was about to make manifest: thou didst fear the people but it is more fitting that thou shouldst fear Allah. Then when Zaid had dissolved (his marriage) with her, with the necessary (formality), We joined her in marriage to thee: in order that (in future) there may be no difficulty to the Believers in (the matter of) marriage with the wives of their adopted sons, when the latter have dissolved with the necessary (formality) (their marriage) with them: and Allah's command must be fulfilled.
33/50. O prophet! We have made lawful to thee thy wives to whom thou hast paid their dowers; and those whom thy right hand possesses out of the prisoners of war whom Allah has assigned to thee; and daughters of thy paternal uncles and aunts and daughters of thy maternal uncles and aunts, who migrated (from Makkah) with thee; and any believing woman who dedicates her soul to the Prophet if the Prophet wishes to wed her― this only for thee, and not for the Believers (at large); We know what We have appointed for them as to their wives and the captives whom their right hands possess in order that there should be no difficulty for Thee. And Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.
33/51. Thou mayest defer (the turn of) any of them that thou pleasest, and thou mayest receive any thou pleasest: and there is no blame on thee if thou invite one whose (turn) thou hadst set aside. This were nigher to the cooling of the eyes, the prevention of their grief, and their satisfaction--that of all of them--with that which thou hast to give them: and Allah knows (all) that is in your hearts: and Allah is All-Knowing Most Forbearing.
33/52. It is not lawful for thee (to marry more) women after this, nor to change them for (other) wives, even though their beauty attract thee, except any thy right hand should possess (as handmaidens): and Allah doth watch over all things.
60/10. O ye who believe! when there come to you believing women refugees, examine (and test) them: Allah knows best as to their Faith: if ye ascertain that they are Believers, then send them not back to the Unbelievers. They are not lawful (wives) for the Unbelievers, nor are the (Unbelievers) lawful (husbands) for them. But pay the Unbelievers what they have spent (on their dower). And there will be no blame on you if ye marry them on payment of their dower to them. But hold not to the guardianship of unbelieving women: ask for what ye have spent on their dowers and let the (Unbelievers) ask for what they have spent (on the dowers of women who come over to you). Such is the command of Allah: He judges (with justice) between you: and Allah is Full of Knowledge and Wisdom.

a) This verse can be interpreted both by taking into considerations the cardinal sins mentioned until the 30th verse and by taking into considerations the all major sins mentioned in Quran. With this view, let’s have a look at the forbidden acts mentioned until the 30th verse of chapter an-Nisa:
“Extorting orphans’ rights and properties, rebelling against Allah and His Prophet, fornication, slandering innocent women, marrying women who are not permissible to marry, extorting/devouring others’ properties for an unfair purpose and murder.”
These acts are characterized as major sins in the content in which the 31st verse of chapter an-Nisa takes place. However, we must analyze the concept of “major sin” taking into consideration the whole Quran; because, it is necessary to include attributing partners to Allah, rebelling against parents, denying the truth, perjury, breaking one’s oath/promise, not using one’s mind/logic, drinking alcoholic beverages, suicide, charging or paying interest and escaping from battle field. We can add these to the major sins mentioned until the 30th verse of chapter an-Nisa.
The prophet (pbuh) clarified what the major sins are in different situations: He indicated that attributing partners to Allah, rebelling against parents and lying are amongst major sins. In another hadith, he pointed out to that attributing partners to Allah, performing sorcery, killing someone for an unfair purpose, charging or paying interest, extorting orphans’ property, escaping from battle field and slandering innocent women with fornication are acts that destroy whoever does them.
As indicated above, major sins do not consist of these only. The Prophet (pbuh) considered acts, which happen in the community and destroy the community, amongst major sins under different circumstances. What is important is not the number of major sins but how much is the community affected and injured by which act, and how much an act decreases one’s dearness in front of Allah. In our point of view, major sins are those which are crime against both earthly laws and belief, and results of which are postponed to the Hereafter. That’s to say; major sins destroys one’s both earthly life and Hereafter and turns them into hell.
b) The concept of major sin brings out the concept of minor sin. Allah states in the 32nd verse of chapter an-Najm:
“Those who avoid great sins and shameful deeds, only (falling into) small faults, - verily thy Lord is ample in forgiveness.”
The word “lemem” in this verse means “minor sin, fault”. There are also ones who interpret it as an evil act that one was inclined to do but did not and as a bad behavior with an insignificant effect, which a believer committed and right after committing it, he/she regretted.
c) It is promised in the 31st verse of chapter Nisa that minor sins of those who avoid major sins will be hidden. For this reason the word “seyyiat” in the verse means minor verse. The meaning of this is as follows: The reward of avoiding major sins is given right away in the earthly life in the form of hiding minor sins. Avoiding major sins is a kind of prayer because it means to do something which Allah orders us to do. As prayers hide faults, i.e. minor sins (Hud, 11/114), Allah tells He will hide minor sins here.
The word “nukeffir” in the 31st verse of chapter Nisa, means “hiding, covering up”. Hiding does not mean that the punishment of minor sins is totally erased. The crime is covered up in a sense, but the punishment still exists. As long as one keeps away from major sins, the punishment of the minor sins will not be revealed, yet it will be revealed when one commits a major sin. In the modern law of our day, punishment is postponed if the criminal committed that minor crime for the first time. If he/she commits the same crime again, the postponed punishment is added to the new punishment. Quran proposed the postponement of punishment centuries ago for the agenda and earned an important principle for law.
Another issue must be added to the avoidance of major sins. It is fulfilling the fards. Muslim narrated from Abu Huraira that the Messenger of Allah stated that:
“Performing daily prayers, Friday prayers and fasting Ramadan causes to redeem one’s minor sins on condition that he/she avoids major sins” (Muslim, Tahara, 16)
Scholars of Practices of Religion, Belief of Allah’s Oneness, Main Rules of Religion and Islamic theology said: the forgiveness of minor sins because of avoidance of major sins is not always necessarily so. It is strongly hoped to be so. It is certain that Divine Will as He wishes. The evidence of this is as follows:
If we say someone, who avoids major sins and performs fards, that his/her minor sins will be redeemed, will be forgiven; this will mean for sure that the person will not be responsible at all. However, this means to destroy the main issues of Islamic law. According to this, there is nothing called minor sin. Al Kushairi Abdarrahim says: The reality is that major sins are major. However, some of them are greater than the others. The aim for distinguishing between this is to enable one to avoid all kinds of sins.
The reason for calling some sins minor sins is that their relation to the greater sins. For instance, calling fornication a minor sin compared to infidelity and calling kissing a person who is forbidden to kiss a minor sin compared to fornication. In our point of view, there is not sin which can be forgiven because of avoiding another sin. Contrarily, all of these are major sins and forgiveness of whoever commits these major sins-except for infidelity- is up to Allah’s will. This is because Allah the Glorious says:
“God forgives not that partners should be set up with Him; but He forgives anything else, to whom He pleases” (Nisa, 4/48).

How many people can huffaz (plural of fafiz) intercede if they live in accordance with the Quran? Do those people need to be their relatives?
Our Prophet displayed his sensitivity towards both preserving and of the Qur’an and conveying its message; he also directed his companions to that matter and encouraged them to learn it by hearth and teach it. He informed us that those reading the Quran and acting accordingly are the ones to be emulated(1), that they will get ten rewards (2) for its each letter, that the verses they recite will be light for them on the Day of Judgment (3), that it is going to augment their ranks (4), that the Quran will intercede for them,(5) that it will be a source of peace for them in the world (6), and that listening to the Quran is a very good habit that gains people rewards (7).

The messenger of Allah said that “the best among you are those who learn the Qur'an and teach it” (8) and prized very much those who learned and acted accordingly, and indicated that they were the selected slaves of Allah (9) and were in the rank to the Angels(10). He also said that Allah , the Exalted, will enter him to Paradise and accept his intercession on behalf of ten such persons of his family upon whom entry into Hell has become incumbent (i.e. Allah will forgive them because of his intercession)."(11).

That our prophet preferred the people who knew the Quran the best to assign for the positions of guidance, prayer-leader and management demonstrates the importance that our Prophet gave to the matter. For instance, he gave the banner of sons of Malik B. Najjar to Zayd b. Thabit and said Zayd knew the Quran very well and the Quran was antecedent. (something having priority over all things) (12).

The main purpose of reciting the Quran is to understand it, contemplate about it, trying to find out the subtleties of it, and acting in accordance with it. A person who memorizes the Quran but does not practice what it teaches is not amongst the people of the Quran even if he recites its letters clearly and correctly. It is because faith is the virtuous of all deeds. And what gains us the fruit of trust is to recite the Quran by fathoming and contemplating it.

Learning the Quran by hearth means not only preserving it but also obtaining pleasure of this world and the hereafter and getting the honor to intercede our parents and relatives.

Hazrat Ali relates that our holy Prophet said “Whoever recites the Qur'an, memorizes it, accepts its halal (lawful things) as halal and haram (forbidden things) as haram (i.e. his beliefs in these matters are correct), Allah, the Exalted, will enter him to Paradise and accept his intercession on behalf of ten such persons of his family upon whom entry into Hell has become incumbent (i.e. Allah will forgive them because of his intercession). (Tirmidhi, Fadailu'l-Quran, 13; Ibn Majah, Muqaddima, 17.)

In another hadith it is said that “whoever recites two hundred verses with deep thought in a day obtains the right to intercede seven dead people around his grave”. (al-Burhan (Zarkashi), v.1, p.462; Kanz-ul Ummal, v.1, p.477.).

Thus, if Allah ordains, he can give the people the right to intercede not only their relatives but also other believers. What is important is to recite the Quran, listen to it, memorize it and lead a life compatible to it.

1. Bukhari, Fadailu'l-Quran, 17,20; Muslim, Salatu'l-Musafirin, 243, 266-268.
2. Tirmidhi, Fadailu'l-Quran, 16; Darimi, Fadailu'l-Quran, 1.
3. Ahmad b. Hanbal, al-Musnad, II, 341.
4. Abu Dawud, Witr, 20; Tirmidhi, Fadailu'l-Quran, 18; Ibn Majah, Adab, 52; Ahmad b. Hanbal, ibid, II, 192, 471 ve III, 40.
5. Muslim, Salatu'l-Musafirin, 252.
6. Abu Dawud, Witr, 20; Tirmidhi, Qiraat, 12; Ibn Majah, Muqaddima, 17.
7. Bukhari, Fadailu'l-Quran, 31; Muslim, Salatu'l-Musafirin, 247-248.
8. Bukhari, Fadailu'l-Quran, 21; Abu Dawud, Vitr, 14; Tirmidhi, Fadailu'l-Quran, 15; Ibn Majah, Muqaddima, 16.
9. Ibn Majah, Muqaddima, 16; Ahmad b. Hanbal, ibid, III, 127.
10. Muslim, Salatu'l-Musafirin, 244; Abu Dawud, Witr, 14; Tirmidhi, Fadailu'l-Quran, 13.
11. Tirmidhi, Fadailu'l-Quran, 13; Ibn Majah, Muqaddima, 17.
12. Bukhari, Adhan, 54; Muslim, Masajid, 289-291.

The meaning of the verse in question:

“Had We sent down this Qur'an on a mountain, verily, thou wouldst have seen it humble itself and cleave asunder for fear of God. Such are the similitudes which We propound to men, that they may reflect.” (al-Hashr, 59:21).

There are of course many hidden wisdoms in the example given in this verse. It is possible to explain one of them as follows:

The Quran, which is so miraculous and has got a style which cannot be excelled by human beings by any means, points out to the psychological situations of those who insist on denying the truth in spite of those miraculous aspects of the Quran and says:

“If we had given the mind and consciousness, which We had given to you, to the mountains which are so firm and hard and if we had sent the Quran down to them, you would have seen them humbling themselves, trembling and bowing down before Allah and breaking into pieces due to this honorable and awesome expression of the Quran and its gorgeous and supreme style. However, although you have got perfect consciousness and a perfect mind yet so a weak and powerless structure, you neither tremble, nor bow down. This paradox can be explained only by your lower-self and blind heart.”

The concept of mountain, which has always influenced people’s imaginations to a great extent, was used in this example because it is considered the unique geographical element which touches the skies and symbolizes awe, firmness and height in literatures of almost all nations. As it is stated in the end of the verse, a concrete example was utilized here so that everybody could comprehend the intended meaning easily. The true aim is to emphasize the importance of the message of the Quran and the great responsibility of human beings, to whom it was addressed.

That is to say, if consciousness which had been given to human beings had been given to a mountain, that mountain, the symbol of awe and greatness, would have bowed down in infinite respect before Allah’s greatness, might and His unrestricted sovereignty all over the universe, due to being aware of Allah’s attributions and a feeling of responsibility, and moreover it would have tired itself out to serve Him.

However, human beings resist in order not to feel the burden on their shoulders and waste their lives in heedlessness. Another point to pay attention here is that making a conclusion from this example still depends on human beings, more precisely, on their skill of reasoning, as it is stated in the end of the verse.

This example given in the surah (chapter) which was sent down in Madinah was addressed to those who deny the truth; yet it seems that it was addressed to the Jews firstly. As a matter of fact, their features comply with the following verse:

“Thenceforth were your hearts hardened: They became like a rock and even worse in hardness. For among rocks there are some from which rivers gush forth; others there are which when split asunder send forth water; and others which sink for fear of God. And God is not unmindful of what ye do.” (al-Baqarah, 2:74).

The late Elmalili Hamdi Yazir explains these verses as follows:

O the sons of Israel! Your hearts hardened after all of these things that happened. The prophets, clear messages and miracles which were sent to you through them all went in vain. From now on, those hearts are as hard as stones or even harder than them.

Indeed, there are some stones out of which rivers (can) spring naturally or due to human-hand. However, your hearts are never influenced by anything and therefore, they cannot have any good aspects.

There are some of them which crack with an influence and water springs out of them; or at least, it leaks.

And also there are some of them that are influenced by events such as rain, hurricane and earthquake, which are the works of Allah’s divine might, and fall down with fear of Allah and roll down. 
Nevertheless, your hearts are not slightly influenced at all by these so clear and obvious verses of revelation and such certain explanations; and they are not influenced by encouragements and prohibitions, either. Yet Allah is never unaware of what you do. (Hak Dini, interpretation of the related verses)

There are lessons to be drawn by every Muslim and every human being from those verses.

Yes, Allah the Glorious gives us such examples in order to facilitate comprehension for us and realize our thoughts; and He sheds light upon our minds and keeps the door of mercy open for us.

There are “feminine” and “masculine” suffixes in Arabic words like in many other languages. With the help of these suffixes, we understand, for instance, if a verb in a statement belongs to a female or a male. This meaning is given only by adding a single letter of “t” to the end of a word in Arabic.

There is a surah (chapter) titled “al-Ankabut”, which means “spider” in Arabic, in the Quran. Allah states: “The parable of those who take protectors other than God is that of the spider, who builds (to itself) a house; but truly the flimsiest of houses is the spider's house; - if they but knew.” in the 41st verse of this surah. The word “ittakhadha” which means one who does something or has something is written as “ittakhadhat” in the original Arabic text of this verse. That is to say, the letter “t” at the end of the word gives it female meaning. As it is clearly understood from this, it is concluded that the spider that builds a house is female.

In the year of 1984, a worldwide known German magazine of science named Kosmos published an exclusive issue about spiders. We are sure that you will be very surprised and will be happy to witness another Quranic miracle when you read the following lines from that interesting issue of the magazine:

“The capability of building nets and catching food is valid only for female spiders. That is to say; the net covering the entrance of the cave where the Prophet of Islam hid was built by a female spider. And we do not have much information on the lives of male spiders. All we know is that they are incapable of building nets (building houses)…”

Though it does not carry as much reward as reading the whole Qur'an from the Arabic original, reading the whole Qur'an from its English translation brings reward and merit.

It is the best to try to read both from the Arabic and the English scripts.

Even if one reads slowly in Arabic, one is not bound to finish the Qur'an in Ramadan at all costs. The more one reads, the better. For, while at other times for each letter of the Qur'an one is given ten rewards, in Ramadan one may obtain for each letter up to 30 thousand rewards.

The Quran announces:

Verily this Quran doth guide to that which is most right (Al-Israa Surah, 17:9)


Just as it is a necessity to follow any branch of science in order to make progress in it, so too it is a necessity to accept the methods of the Quran and Sunna (The sayings and deeds of the Prophet Muhammad) as guidance in order to discover the true and truth.

Yes, man can know the nature and attributes of Allah Almighty only through the guidance of the Quran and Sunna. It is only these two through which man can understand where he is coming from, where he is going to, what his duty in the world is, the nature, and truth of the Hereafter. It will be the Holy Book of Allah (SWT) and His Beloved Prophet (PBUH) through which he can understand which actions and behaviors, which manners and situations necessitate; His consent and which necessitate His wrath, which is divine and which is superstitious, which is mistake and which is correct.

A person will understand through the Quran and Sunna how and what to believe in to enter the area of faith and again what deeds to make and what to avoid from in order to remain in the area of Islam.


Since the Quran and Sunna are the criteria for Muslims, then a Muslim is to assess every human belief and faith according to Quran and Hadiths, which are the immediate commentary of Quran.

The only way to find out the truth and to reach the obvious truism is to have faith in the Quran and to act in accordance with it. For the Quran is a Holy Book which has been sent by Allahs Himself to take humanity to absolute goodness and truth.

The Quran encourages man for contemplation because of that has given the necessary materials to the use of mind. Man has been able to read the book of the universe only with the materials it has taught and to discover the concealed truths in it. Just as the sun enlightens the material world, the Quran has been sent to enlighten the spiritual world.

Just as the Quran teaches us to have faith in Allah, which is the first pillar of faith, so too it teaches, to have faith in angels, in divine books, in prophets, in the Hereafter, in fate. A person can be Muslim only having faith in the truths that the Quran announces.

Besides, the Quran has taught Islam, which is composed of all of the orders and prohibitions of Allah Almighty, to Muslims. A believer becomes a perfect Muslim by following these orders and prohibitions perfectly.

The meaning of the verses: (86. At-Tariq, 5-7)

Now let man but think from what he is created! He is created from a water gushing forth― Proceeding from between the backbone and the ribs. (at-Tariq, 5-7)

A liquid coming out of a region between the backbone and the ribs is mentioned in the verse. Normally sulb is backbone and taraib is ribs. Those words were used because the germ cells of the male and female are located there. It does not state where exactly it emerges from.

Read the related article given below;

Is it mentioned in the Quran that man is created out of the sperm of the male and the ovum of the female? What do the words sulb and taraib mentioned in Chapter at-Tariq mean?

Scholarsstated the following views whileinterpreting this verse: “Verily We created Man from a drop of mingled sperm” (al-Insan, 76/2). The word mingled expresses that man is created through the fertilization of the ovum of the female by the sperm of the male out of a cell in which male and female elements are mingled.(See Tabari, Razi, Alusi, Shawkani,  the interpretation of the above-mentioned verse).
What is meant by the words “sulb and taraib” mentioned in the following verse is the part of the body between the backbone and ribs, where the germ cells of the male and female are located:“He is created from a water gushing forth ― Proceeding from between the backbone and the ribs”(at-Tariq, 86/6-7. We can understand from that expression that man is created through the fertilization of the ovum of the female by the sperm of the male (Cf. Ibn Ashur, the interpretation of the relevant verse).
What is the meaning of the drop emitted mentioned in the 6th verse of Chapter at-Tariq?
The meaning of the verses:
Now let man but think from what he is created! He is created from a water gushing forth― Proceeding from between the backbone and the ribs. (at-Tariq, 5-7)
A liquid coming out of a region between the backbone and the ribs is mentioned in the verse. Normally sulb is backbone and taraib is ribs. Those words were used because the germ cells of the male and female are located there. It does not state where exactly it emerges from.  
The explanation of those verses and the words are as follows:
"Even when it was in the form of male liquid at the beginning of its creation, its characteristic ‘difq’ which means a kind of effort to enter the womb, that is, “throwing, jerking” is stated in the answer: He is created from a water gushing forth.
The verb difq is a transitive verb like gush and throw and it is necessary for the characteristic of water to be “thrown” or “poured” but it is interesting that “gushing” is used. It has been explained in three ways.
Firstly, As Zajjaj reports from Sibawayh, it means “having difq” (thrown) in the form of the words like having dates or having milk.
Secondly, As it is the case in the verse "a pleasant (pleased) life"(al-Qaria, 101/7), the active form is used instead of the passive form. Farra says, “the people of Hejaz use that form as adjective more than other people as it is the case in the following expressions: ‘concealed secret’, ‘exhausted care’ ‘awakening night’.
Thirdly, it is reported from Imam Khalil and Qutrub that the words difq and dufuq mean pouring. Whichever the meaning is, there must be a wit in expressing it like that. It is the expressing that the water does the work of gushing by imagining that the water is making an effort.
The word min before "Ma" expresses beginning. If it is used in the sense of some, it will be in compliance with the following sound hadith: "A baby is not created out of all of the water." (Musnad, III, 49, 59, 93) and it will mean he was created out of some part of the gushing water. The tanwin (the n sound) at the end of the word "Ma" expresses despising, insignificance and meanness.
However, it is not from ordinary thrown water but from the gushing water emerging from the backbone of the male and ribs of the female.  
Sulb, sulub, salab salib are used to describe the bone coming from the back end of the head and reaching to the coccyx, it is also called the backbone. The main line of the nervous system called “spinal cord” coming down from the brain passes through it. It is an essential pillar of the formation of the body, which is the rigidity and solidity axis.
Taraib is the plural of "tariba". It is the sternum. The gap between the two chests and the neck ring is also called tariba. The four ribs on the right or on the left of the chest are also called taraib. Two hands, feet and eyes are also called taraib. It is especially the name of the place on the chest where a necklace is worn. Thus, as the corresponding part of the vertebrae, each ring of the breastbone reaching towards the right and left ribs is called a tariba, and all together they are called taraib. Then, the real taraib are the bones that form the sternum and that go down from the neck to the chest, and the place where a necklace is worn. As a matter of fact, the taraib that Imrul Qays defines as glazed as a mirror in the following couplet are not the bones but the chest:
"Her waist is thin, snow-white and without any fat; her chest is as bright as a mirror." 
Sulb and taraib express the two walls of the body at the front and at the back as the two pillars, between which the reproductive organs are located. Then, between “sulb (backbone) and taraib (ribs)” is related to the whole form of the body and they are used to refer to the reproductive organs. In addition, the backbone indicates the male and the ribs indicate the female, also indicating the male and the female coming together; it is known by everybody that the backbone represents the male and the chest is usually more famous for the female. As a matter of fact, the word ‘proceeding’ seems more probable to define the phrase “main dafiq” (gushing water) and to cover the hidden subject “it”, thus the word dafiq (gushing) representing the sperm; although what the phrase “between the backbone and the ribs” suggests is between the backbone and the ribs of the male, it is more appropriate to think it as either the backbones and the ribs of both the male and the female or as the backbone of the male and the ribs of the female. Thus, such an attribute will be more comprehensive.
Tafsir scholars have two views regarding it:
Firstly, as we have first mentioned, the water gushing forth is the sperm of the male and between the backbone and the ribs also belong to the male. That explanation does not eliminate the role of the female but does not express it clearly, indicating the more important part of it as it is expressed in the following verse: “From what stuff Hath He created him? From a sperm-drop: He hath created him, and then mouldeth him in due proportions."(Abasa, 80/18-19).
Secondly, it indicates the backbone of the male and the ribs of the female or the combination of the two liquids proceeding from between the backbone and the ribs of the both the male and the female. As the following hadiths is reported from Hazrat Prophet (pbuh), a child is born as a result of the combination the liquids of the male and the female: “Both the male and the female have liquids” (Muslim Hayd, 33).
The reason why it is mentioned as one “water gushing forth” proceeding from between the backbone and the ribs although there are two liquids is explained as follows.
Firstly: Since the male and the female become like one entity during the intercourse, that expression is suitable.
Secondly: When there are two reasons for something, it is appropriate to say, “it took place between this and that”. Then, the usage of the word “dafiq” (gushing) is like defining the whole of something using the characteristic of some part of it. Since some part of it has the characteristic of “gushing”, the whole of it is attributed that characteristic. Or, since the liquid of the female pours into the womb too, that characteristic may be thought for the female too.   
Depending on those two views, there have been discussions as to whether the female has a liquid, and if she has, which one is essential for the formation of the child. Since the woman has a liquid and religiously it is called the sperm of the woman and both parties are necessary for fertilization, there is no need to discuss them. However, the following questions are searched: “Does the liquid of the woman include an essential matter like the sperm of the man or does it have an auxiliary role?”, “Are both of them effective elements in the formation of the child?”, “Is one of them active and the other passive?”   
Some scholars have the opinion that the essential element in the formation of the child is the sperm of the man depending on the Quranic verses that always mention the sperm of man as despised fluid, sperm, water gushing forth and do not mention the liquid of the woman after mentioning the creation out of earth, clay, dry clay, mud molded into shape and extract of clay and have preferred the first view thinking that the liquid of the woman was not an essential element but it was auxiliary.
On the other hand, since some matter from the woman takes part in the fertilization and the child resembles the mother and it is mentioned in a hadith that the sperm of the woman takes part and it becomes superior, it becomes necessary that the element whether it is effective or passive has to be taken into consideration; that element is the fertilized egg or the ovum of the woman. The reason why the liquid of the woman is regarded as sperm is due to that tiny eggs that come out of the ovarium. Depending on the following hadith "The child is not created out of all of the liquid." (Musnad, III, 49, 59, 93), the child is not created out of all of the sperm of the man and out of all of the liquid of the woman but out of that tiny egg." (Elmalılı, the interpretation of the relevant verses)

In the dictionary taghanni means to sing in a melodious voice. There is a form of taghanni which is permissible and another form which is not permissible when reciting Qoran.

The form which is not permissible is reciting by violating the sources of sounds and the rules of tajweed (proper recitation). Beautifying one's voice by observing source and tajweed rules is regarded permissible in hadiths, it is even recommended to recite the Qoran by beautifying one's voice. Sa'd (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (PBUH) said the following in this regard:
"No doubt this Qoran was revealed in moving way. Weep when you recite it. If you cannot weep, try to weep. Try to beautify your voice when reciting it. He who does not try to recite it with taghanni is not from us."(1)

In the hadith the word taghanni is used. As a matter of fact taghanni is reciting with a melodious voice. Ulama (knowers, scientists in religion) made different explanations about the meaning of the word taghanni mentioned in the hadith. Some of them said what was meant by taghanni was tarteel (reciting with no haste). Thus taghanni is reciting the Qoran slowly, with no haste. Others said what was meant by taghanni was reciting the Qoran slowly, with no haste, by observing the tajweed rules and by beautifying one's voice. They explained the phrase "is not from us" as "is not one of the followers of our perfect way". Yet others stated that taghanni meant being contented. They understood it as not using the recital of Qoran to obtain worldly benefits.

What all ulama agree unanimously is that it is something regarded as pleasant to recite the Qoran with a beautiful voice. If a person's voice is not beautiful, he should try to beautify his voice while reciting the Qoran in a natural way. According to Imam Malik and some ulama it is necessary to recite the Qoran with awe, thinking about its meaning and in a way to move one's heart and to make one weep. Our Prophet called attention to the significance of reciting the Qoran with awe and in a way to affect hearts by saying the following: "If you have the conviction that a person is afraid of Allah when you hear a him reciting the Qoran, he is no doubt one of the best reciters of the Qoran." (2)

According to Imam Abu Hanifa and some ulama it is permissible to recite the Qoran with a melodious voice. They think that reciting it with a melodious voice makes the hearts more tender and gives them more awe.

Imam Nawawi said the following in this regard: "Ulama agreed unanimously that it is something pleasant to beautify one's voice while reciting unless the boundaries of reciting are exceeded by lengthening. However, if these boundaries are exceeded or even one letter is added or decreased, then this reciting becomes haram (forbidden)." Our Prophet (PBUH) ordered the adornment of the Qoran with a beautiful voice stating the following: "Adorn your recital of the Qoran by beautifying your voice." In another hadith our Prophet (PBUH) stated that Allah was satisfied with a person who recited the Qoran with a beautiful voice. (3)

As a result we can say that it is mandoob (recommended) to recite the Qoran with a beautiful voice and in a beautiful way. There is no drawback to recite it with a melodious voice unless the rules of tajweed are exceeded. However, it is not permissible to lengthen the reciting with a melodious voice without observing the sources of the sounds and to skip or add letters by exceeding the boundaries of tajweed. This is a unanimous decision. People reciting like this should beware the curse of the Qoran and observe the reciting rules.

References
1. Ibn Majah, Ikama: 176.
2. ibid
3. ibid

The Qur’an, was sent in parts in a twenty-three year period, either at night or day, in winter or summer, during settlement or travel, at hard times or in comfort, in scarcity or abundance and either at war or in peace. Its content is miraculously rich and various. It touches on every matter about human and humanity and other subjects as the beginning and the end of beings, creation and destruction, moral virtues, rules and regulations about human as an individual or a social being, and historical events and parables; and it contains pictures of advice and warning in order to teach humans. However, neither in its style ( its unique way of statement, literary value), nor among the subjects that it touches on and the regulations that it has brought and the information it gives, is there incoherence or contradiction or a difference – which can lead to a thought of its being collaborated from different sources. This consequence which anyone who can think with plain logic no matter if they believe or not, can come to by examining the Qur’an, stands as an unrefutable proof that it has been sent by Allah. 

Here are some reasons why contradictions occur :

1. No creature can describe the facts as the Qur’an does. Once they attempt to describe the facts, contradictions and changes surely appear in their speech.
2. The Qur’an recounts events of the past which Muhammad (pbuh) did not witness. And it informs about the events that happened and will happen hundreds or thousands of years later than the death of the Messenger of Allah. It tells about the events that happened in the –Era of happiness (the period during which Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) preached). It lets us know about what a soul contains and what is covered in the hearts as if they were visible. It also reveals the intentions of this group which they decide on in the darkness of the night.
3. None of the people can set forth a point of view without a contradiction and conflict of opinion as the point of view of the Qur’an on the basis and principles of belief and its systems or on nations and communities.
4. No one was able to and never will be able to introduce a similar one to what the Qur’an has introduced by providing proof and examples on social matters, systems of prosperity or natures of nations and communities and by presenting one parable with various expressions.
5. No one was able to and never will be able to introduce a similar one to what the Qur’an has introduced about the various beings like the sky or earth or the matters of science and various examples ( that people can take lessons from) because under the expression of creating or form, the Qur’an categorizes all the classes of universe such as stars and their orders, winds, seas, animals, plants or wisdom and signs from the heavens and the earth. In all of these, the verses of the Qur’an support each other. They have no contradiction among them, they do not have any conflict in their meaning, either.
6. The Qur’an has informed us of the unknown and of the hereafter. It has also informed us of accounting for our deeds, fair reward or punishment as a result of accounting. In all of these, along with the harmony of the verses among each other, it became current because of sunnatullah, in ther words Allah’s customs in the impact of discretional deeds on spirits. Comprehension of its wisdom and addressing is deemed as the most exalted goal of all by those who could be able to analyse and acquaint its truth. In addition, the Qur’an had been sent part after part concerning the events and situations. When one or some verses were sent, the Prophet (pbuh) would say “ write them in this part in that surah”. And He himself used to memorize them. 

The custom became current this way: When a person makes a speech spontaneously, he cannot remember all of his former speeches. He cannot remember and thus he cannot make their ending appropriate for their beginning. In addition, some verses were sent during a war or at a moment of an unpleasant event. And some were sent at the moment of conflict between tribes and during a controversy between nations. Lapse of time over the Qur’an did not make it lose its quality but in contrast, it resulted in showing its pellucidity clearer to people. As the circle of knowledge and comprehension were expanding, people’s belief in he Qur’an were increasing because the Qur’an was strengthening the connection between religion and knowledge. The decrees in the Qur’an were becoming more apparent along with the development of social systems. To sum up, we can say that to think on the Qur’an and on the features of it is the path for guidance and the path toward the truth. Also this leads human to the fact that the Qur’an was sent by Allah and this gives them the message that entering the right path with His guidance is obligatory. The Qur’an leads people to the opinion that it is essentially suitable for “The perfect nature of innateness” and compatible with humans’ deeds; people can find happiness both in the world and in the hereafter in the Quran.

If Muslims had contemplated the Qur’an thoroughly and had always followed the right path with its guidance, their morals and good manner would not have become spoiled. And their administrators would not have tended to act unjustly and their rule would not have been eliminated. ( Ali Arslan, Büyük Kur’an Tefsiri)

There are various purposes in the revelation of Quran in twenty-three years. The age in which Quran was revealed is an age when humankind progressed in the course of development. Therefore, the last and the perfect Prophet came. The duty of his community was to come to the furthest point of their time, to climb the ladder of perfection to the last step and to teach civilized nations. However, evil habits and bad behaviors they continued to perform till that day penetrated into their souls and veins to such an extent that it was each a different labor to eradicate each one of them and to replace them with high virtues and good behaviors. If Quran came all of a sudden with all its commandments before them, they could not have carried it out.

Let us give an example from our time; imagine people addicted to cigarette and alcohol and people with an obsession of wandering about or of sitting in coffee houses. Even if you cut their heads off or say, You will die if you go to the coffee houses, they will still go devising certain pretexts. If he fails to go to the coffee house one day and stays home, he will be on the point of exploding with boredom and with the first chance will make for the café; because the style of life he is accustomed to has changed. However, he has only abandoned a simple and useless habit of his own.

Let us now deal with the one addicted to cigarette; you say to an addicted, Give up smoking which is dangerous for your body; because it is like slowly committing suicide. It is as if you are slowly stabbing yourself with a dagger and completing the suicide bit by bit rather than all at once. Moreover; if you make a doctor explain it, i.e. the doctor says: Cigarette not only has no benefits, but it has also these dangers this man will still experience much hesitation. Let him alone, even the doctor does not give it up though he well knows its dangers.

Now, let us deal with the alcoholic; the man is intoxicated and his spiritual world is changed. It is to such an extent that if he takes one more step, he will resemble the creatures under his rank. Now if we say to this man Give alcohol up it will be as if saying Change your nature.

Now increase the habits that people are accustomed to and that have penetrated into their veins from evil morals to thousands and then think about broadness of time in the revelation of Quran.

It first cuts the thorns and clears away bad things. It then starts embellishing. In other words, by removing bad habits from their souls, it establishes noble behaviors and performs thousands of deeds in a very short time. For this reason, we find it very quick that Quran was revealed in 23 years. As Bediüzzaman puts it; Come on, let them take hundreds of philosophers as helpers, go there and work for a hundred years! Might they perform a hundredth of what this person-Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) did in just one year? Let them come and try!

It is evident that because of alcohol thousands of families have split up. The Organization of Green Light delivers conferences every year. It widens its services from elementary schools to universities. After all these efforts, I wonder how many people give alcohol up. Let universities put all its professors into action and let them work for a year; I wonder if they can make twenty people abandon alcohol. If they can succeed, we will take it as a great success for them and will hang it beside the achievements of the Prophet in golden letters. Alas, it happened just for once! Friend or foe, everybody sees it as impossible.

23 years is indeed a very short time; for this reason, the achievements of Quran are each a miracle. In thousands of years, mankind has not been able to cover the distance Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) covered in 23 years and will not be able to do so.

Quran aimed on the one hand at removing thousands of such evil habits and on the other at decorating and embellishing the place of these removed habits with high principles of morals issued by it and Quran made people accept them without using force and without frightening and offending their souls. It has put many matters it issued through such various phases that today even for a few of them to be realized in practical life how many 23 years are needed!

This period of 23 years was the required time for certain commandments and prohibitions to be accepted by the people of that time and this time was needed in order to abandon certain things and to put some others in their place. For example, in the course of this time, alcohol was forbidden within three to four phases, within two phases cruelties against girls abolished; shattered tribal life was handled with two to three initiatives and unity between tribes was provided and thus they were given the understanding of community life; therefore, they acquired the capacity to form a community, which became possible through such hard works as removing all evil habits, and establishing high morals in their place. For this reason, a longer time was needed.

Besides, as we see in our lives, by saying That year the circumstances were those; therefore, such a social balance and order are needed. we reckon that next year the circumstances will be different; and in accordance with these reckonings elasticity of our plans is determined, and changes in details are designed according to the conditions of the years to come. Just then we try to maintain the continuity of what we have done searching for the adaptability to the fluidity of time and to the nature of the commodity. Likewise, in the Period of Bliss-the time of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH), Muslims were growing like a tree, were slowly adapting to the new conditions and were developing in characteristics. Every day, new participations and warming ups were happening; new ideas and understandings were acquired; adaptations to them were undergone; and finally individuals became social individuals. These were taking place slowly; however, all of them were following one another in harmony. So these phases in the course of completion, were acting as mirrors reflecting all the features of the truth of Islam in the micro plan belonging to the dimension of time.

If these were wanted to be achieved all of a sudden rather than in a period of 23 years, in some way or another this ignorant community could not have stood for this and would have died. We can liken it to this: for example, when a human being is exposed to the sun, there take place some changes on his complexion. When he is brought to cold lands, this time some other small changes take place in accordance, but absolutely a crucial change with the weight of 20 mutations does not happen all of a sudden. If it happened, the being would die, as living beings die in such sudden physical changes. This is like the example of a person who is under the pressure of 1 atmosphere and who then is lifted to an altitude of 20 thousand feet, which directly kills the man. Even when planes rise to that point, they lift you with oxygen masks, etc. and with care.

So just like ascending to an altitude of 20 thousand feet kills man, so would it have had a similar effect and no one among that community would have submitted, if the Quran had been revealed all of a sudden and had addressed them instantly: Here are the judgments and rules; apply them. Live all the judgments in this book without leaving anyone of them aside. Because this would mean ascending the community up to 20 thousand feet, which this community would not have endured. Therefore, it is the pre-requisite of the suitability of the human nature and the most fitting method to the human constitution that Quran brought about its judgments in 23 years.

As we cannot separate human being from the universe, we are to accept that we should understand him according to the course of phenomena going on in the universe and that we cannot evaluate him in isolation from developments taking place in the universe. Just like some phenomena in the universe happen slowly and step by step and rules flow in that direction, the maturity and development of the human being will take place in the same way. Quran, which is the mainspring, essence and set of principles of this development, was revealed in 23 years based on this fact.

The wisdom of God made this period 23 years. This could have been 24 or 25. The sacred life of the Sultan of Prophets, Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) was 63 years. His life was put to an end after 23 years of prophethood; and revelation was thus finished. But it might have been 64 years; and revelation would have risen to 24 years. And we would accept this within the same circle of wisdom.

God alone knows the truth.
 

Sorry but we haven't found any site that teaches Qur'an with tajweed. They are all in Turkish rather than in English. You should go to an Imam or Hodja in order to learn it with tajweed. There may be people around you who can teach it.

Qur'an is the word of Allah. It is not permissible to touch the Qur'an without ablution since in the 79th verse of the surah Al-waqıa (56th surah) it is said; “(the Quran) Which none shall touch but those who are clean.” Although some commentators comment on this verse in another way, Islamic scholars have reached a consensus that touching the Qur’an without ablution is not permissible.

However, one without ablution can read Qur’an without touching it and one can recite the surahs those one knows by heart. 

If one needs to perform full ablution (ghusl), one cannot read or recite the Qur’an or cannot touch it as well. One can recite some verses and surahs like Ayatal- Kursi, Fatiha and Ikhlas with the intention of praying.

For more information, please click on the link given below

Ghusl (Major Ablution)

Woman at the state of menses and childbed cannot touch or read the Quran but she can listen to the Qur’an. In addition, she could recite Surahs such as Fatiha (The Opening Chapter), Nas (Humankind), and Falaq (The Daybreak) with the intention of supplication.

The word “sama” which means “sky" is mentioned hundreds of times in the Quran in its singular and plural forms; In seven verses, the number of the skies is mentioned as “seven”; in two of those verses it s stated that the seven skies are in the form of “layers”. (al-Mulk, 67/3; Nuh, 71/15) Interpreters of the Quran generally think that the seven skies is meant by the sentence, “We have made, above you seven tracts " (al-Mu'minun 23/17). (see al- Baqara 2/29; al-A'raf 7/54; Fussilat 41/11-12; adh-Dhzariyat 51/7, 47; ar-Rahman 55/7)

It is possible to understand from the verse that all of the visible skies are the sky of the earth and that there are six other skies. 

Yes, the breadth of the Qur'anic address and the comprehensiveness of its meanings and indications and its conforming to and flattering all the degrees of understanding from the most uneducated common people to the highest of the elite shows that all its verses have an aspect which looks to each class. Thus, as a consequence of this mystery, as an example, seven classes of men understand as follows the meaning of seven various levels from the universal meaning "seven heavens":   

a. A short-sighted and narrow-minded class of men understands the atmosphere from the verse and .fashioned them into “seven heavens”.

b. While another class of men befogged by astronomy understands the famous stars known popularly as the”seven planets”, and their orbits.

c. Yet another group understands seven celestial globes resembling our globe, which are inhabited by living creatures.

d. A further group of men understands the solar system being separated into seven levels, and seven solar systems together with our system.

e. And yet another group understands the ether being separated into seven levels.

f. Another class of men with broader ideas counts all the visible skies gilded with stars as a heaven, and saying that it is this world's heaven, understands that there are six levels of heavens besides it.

g. And mankind's seventh and highest class do not consider the seven heavens to be restricted to the Manifest World, and understands that the Worlds of the Hereafter and the Unseen, and this World, and the World of Similitudes all have seven heavens, each of which is an encompassing container and roof.

Similarly, there are many further particular meanings in the universal of the verse, like the above-mentioned seven levels of meaning of the seven levels. Everyone receives his share according to his understanding and everyone finds his sustenance at that heavenly table.(see Nursi, Lem'alar, On İkinci Lem'a, İkinci Sual, İki Mesle-i muhimme).

The verse “But, for thy Lord's (Cause), be patient and constant!” (al-Muddathir, 74:7) means “be patient for your Lord’s cause, that is, no matter how much hardship you can experience, no matter how much torment you can see because you want to fulfill your religious duties, just be patient for your Lord’s decision.” (see Elmalili Hamdi, Hak Dini).

Mujahid and Ibn-i Zaid explained this verse as follows: “O Muhammad, be patient about hardships you are going to encounter during your call, for the sake of your Lord.”

Ibrahim an-Nahai explained it as follows: “Do not expect remuneration for what you give. Be patient about them for the sake of Lord and do sacrifice.” (Tabari, the interpretation of the related verse)
 

Firstly, out of love of religion, someone who is religious may say, 'The truth is like this, the reality of the matter is this. Almighty God commands it.', but he would not make deceive people by saying Allah said this, etc. He would not go beyond limits and imitate Allah, and speak on behalf of Him. Moreover, a religious person will not tell lies, which is regarded as the greatest sin in all true and superstitious religions; and the greatest lie is the one is uttered concerning Allah.

Who, then does more wrong than one who utters a lie concerning God( The Groups (Az-Zumar), 32)

A lie is a lie, whether it is uttered in good intentions or in bad intentions. If a man comes forward with a book written by himself and utters this is revealed by Allah, that is a lie too.. Furthermore, it is a lie that was uttered concerning Allah. Seeing that, there is nobody who is greater than Allah, so a lie greater than the one uttered concerning Allah cannot be imagined. Therefore, attempting to concoct a book concerning Allah is not an innocent act as the devil tries to show it and it is not expected from a Muslim. It means uttering the greatest lie and committing the most dreadful tyranny in the universe. No one with the slightest fear of Allah can dare to commit such a grievous crime; how would a Prophet (PBUH) who fears Allah the most, put himself in Allahs place –Allah forbid- and would dare to write a book by imitating Him?

Secondly, an imitation, necessarily, requires three things to exist: a person who is imitating, the one who is imitated and the imitation needs to be made for others. Therefore, relating to the devils claim, answers must be found for these questions:

1. Who is the one imitating?
2. Who is the one imitated?
3. Who was this imitation done for and who believed it?
According to the claim that the Prophet imitated:

(1) The imitator is a human.
(2)The imitated is The Sustainer of the Worlds
(3)All of the Muslims living in the era of bliss, including the companions of the prophet (PBUH) like Hazrat Abu Bakr and Hadrath Omar, and all of the Muslims who passed between that time and today, and todays Muslims who are more than one billion believed all together in this imitation.

As a matter of fact, when Hazrat Muhammad (Peace and Blessings be upon Him) arose with the Holy Quran in his hand, people who accepted his invitation did not risk their lives and properties on account of believing in an imitation. As for the ones who were inclined to imitate, they remained in the pagan religion and in other unreasoning religions by saying what we learned from our ancestors and grandfathers is enough for us. Speaking in response to them, Hazrat Ali said Since Allah had not asked my father when He created me, why should I ask my father for my choice of religion? decided his own choice by himself contrary to his whole tribe. One of the scholars of the Children of Israel, Abdullah Ibn Salam, who dissected the Holy Scriptures thoroughly and found the features of the prophet of the end of time, saw the Prophet (PBUH) and immediately believed in him and said I know Him (PBUH) as I know my son, even better than my son. It is possible that my sons mother might have cheated me about my son; but, no lie can exist in this face. As for Hazrat Omar, he embraced Islam through listening to the Quran when he had decided to kill the Prophet (PBUH).
Did they believe in a man who –Allah forbid- tried to imitate the Sustainer of the Worlds although he was weak and transitory?

Throughout their lives, did they not realize that they had been deceived through an imitation, when that prophet was reading the revealed verses from the Quran?

In the later centuries, how come none of the thousands of the scholars, who wrote enough books to fill libraries through discovering various meanings in each letter of the Quran and who scrutinized in detail all his words and statements, did not notice any primness from any of the words of the one who –Allah forbid- put himself in Gods place and talked concerning Him?

How come billions of Muslims –Allah forbid- regarded such an imitation as truth and did not find any evidence of primness in it throughout fourteen centuries?

There are some historical truths accepted by everyone whether believing in Hazrat Muhammad (Peace and Blessings be upon him) or not and whether being his friend or his enemy.

Firstly, He arose alone and declared his assertion although He (PBUH) neither possessed power in his hands, nor had authority and prestige; he saw hostility instead of assistance from his relatives.

Secondly, He was always the example of truthfulness, honesty, auspiciousness, goodness, reliability and elevated moral ethics, in his whole life.

Thirdly, He always advised those moral ethics to people around Him, and He was not content with advising; he established those principles in Muslims spirits entirely, in such a way that nobody could eradicate. He established from a primitive tribe a community that possessed the most elevated moral ethics.

The seal affixed by Hazrat Muhammad (PBUH) on the human world is conspicuous. Both his friends and enemies are the witnesses of a revolution which he realized and which had never been implemented by anybody throughout history. It was such a manner that, his statements, words and behaviors were observed in detail by his friends in order to learn the religion and by his enemies in order to uncover his frauds. Would it have remained concealed if He (PBUH) had had any contradictions?

Slandering such a person by saying He himself wrote the book which he declares as the word of Allah is not possible unless one denies those historical truths, which will mean –Allah forbid- he emerged with a lie concerning Allah and deceived the entire mankind. In this case, it becomes obligatory to seek an answer to the question how did he manage to live and make one fifth of the mankind live the goodness and truthfulness by means of an assertion the true nature of which is based on the greatest and the most grievous lie?

Since Hazrat Muhammads (PBUH) life and achievements are conspicuous, there are two decrees possible to be judged about him:

Either he would be regarded as a prophet sent with a Holy Scripture by the Sustainer of all Worlds and as the most virtuous person of the mankind, or it would be obligatory to assert that –Allah forbid- He is the most evil and the most liar person of the mankind. Otherwise, one can neither say He lied concerning Allah in spite of being a prophet nor He induced people to the most exalted levels of goodness by means of the most grievous deceitfulness.


On the other hand, after mentioning what Hazrat Muhammad (PBUH) brought to the humanity, we shall look at what the Holy Quran has brought. The most obstinate irreligious person, even the Satan himself cannot do anything but give testimony in favor of the Quran. Moreover, the Quran was not only content with bringing goodness and benevolence, but it also realized those in such a manner that the whole books written by mankind did not manage to affect men in the same manner as only one verse of the Quran did.

While the governments of the twentieth century turned out to be helpless against smoking only, people tipped barrels of wines, poured down the wine and gave up using alcohol permanently by means of only one verse of the Quran.

By means of only one verse of the Quran, people competed with each other to donate best of their properties to the poor.

By only one command of the Quran, interest was abolished; by another command, women were paid respect and by only one command, idols were demolished.


Only one command of it makes the earth a mosque,makes one billion men turn their faces to the Kaaba and makes them practice five times a day in the presence of their Sustainer.

By means of only one command of it, mankind quit eating and drinking for one month.

By only one command of the Quran, millions of people gather in Arafat by leaving their countries and places.

By means of only one command of it, people discard their belongings and sacrifice their lives. Armies spread to the world through its glad tidings about victory and Paradise. A community which became weak and poor rose at the most helpless time by means of only one command of it and made Çanakkale, a city in Turkey, a grave for the giant armies of the giant countries and gained their independence by challenging the whole world armies alone.

After fourteen centuries of its revelation, without losing anything from its freshness, the Quran guides one billion men to the felicity of the world and Hereafter. The ones who embrace it reach the salvation, and the ones who diverge from it find themselves in misery and calamities.

The book whose effects on the mankind are so conspicuous describes itself as follows:

That this is indeed a Quran most honorable,
In Book well-guarded,
Which none shall touch but those who are clean:

A Revelation from the Lord of the Worlds.
Is it such a Message that ye would hold in light esteem?
And have ye made it your livelihood that ye should declare it false? (The Inevitable Event (Al-Wáqiá), 77-82)

Wouldnt the ones, who assert the Quran is the word of a man, be labeling those verses as obvious lies? Wouldnt they be denying all of the commands and prohibitions, truths, information, promises and threats which the Quran declares on behalf of Allah by calling Him as a witness?

Wouldnt denying all of those mean regarding this book, which has guided people in every field for fourteen centuries, as a baseless forgery, a fabricated thing?

By regarding that book baseless, wouldnt they regard the prophet who manifested that book be asserted as the one who reiterated to utter the most grievous lie concerning Allah in his whole life and who did not fear Allah even at the slightest degree?

Consequently:

1. The one who behaves on behalf of religion conveys the commands of Allah only; otherwise, it means he speaks on behalf of Allah.

2. Fabricating a book on behalf of Allah is not possible for a weak human through imitating Allah whose knowledge and power encompass everything. Besides, if he attempted to do it, he would not be influential; if he were, it would not last long.

3. The person who asserts coming with a book revealed by Allah is at the highest degree of mankind if he says the truth; and if not, he is at the lowest degree of forgery. There cannot be a mid-way place between those two places. All of the humanity, including his enemies, agree that Hazrat Muhammad (PBUH) had all excellent characteristics of goodness, truthfulness and high. Therefore, what he introduced is true: no one can ascribe the greatest and the most grievous deceitfulness and fraudulence to him.

4. If the Quran is the book of Allah, then it has as the most exalted significance over everything: if not, -Allah forbid- it should have gone down in the history as the most grievous and the greatest documentary of forgery and deceitfulness. There can be no station between those two. While the influences, effects and the principles of the Quran which lead mankind to the truth and goodness are conspicuous, even the Satan could not attempt such a grievous fraudulence to it. Therefore, it is a Holy book revealed by the Sustainer of the Worlds.

Quoted from the authors article A debate with Satan released from Zafer Publishing

In many verses, the Quran instructs humans not to drown in feelings known as mahsosat (sense perceptions) and to gaze at the maqulat (human reasoning) the wisdom world. In addition, the Quran draws our attention to the wonderful works of art, which we ignore because we see them everyday and do not think about them very much.

Just an example:

In the Surah Ghaashiyah, the humans are asked to look at the creation of the camel, sky, mountains, and earth:

Do they not consider the camels, how they are created? And the heaven, how it has been raised high? And the mountains, how they have been set firm? And the earth, how it has been spread out? (Al-Ghaashiyah Surah, 88:17-20)

We leave the boundless meaning of the verses to the Quranic interpretations (Tafseer) on. We are going to point to the similarities in the shapes of the creatures, which are presented to our thoughts (tafaqqur).

Whoever raised the hump of a camel on its waist also raised the mountains on the waist of the earth. The sky also, as a whole, is reminiscent of the hump of a camel.

The verse draws our attention first to the camel, then the sky, the mountains and finally to the earth. This order is a miracle of rhetoric just by itself. Draw a line from the human eye to the camels hump, then an imaginary line to the sky, then continue that line back to the mountain and then to the earth. You will get another hump or another mountain.

The Surah Naml (88) states:

You see the mountains, thinking them to be firmly fixed, but in reality they (are in constant motion) and pass by (with the movement of the earth) like the passing of the clouds. (And so will they be crumbled on Doomsday so as to take on the form particular to the other world.) This is the pattern of God Who has perfected everything. He is fully aware of all that you do. (An-Naml Surah, 27: 88)

The movement of the hump of the camel would mean the walk of the camel and this informs us fourteen centuries ago that the earth is not stationary and that it moves.

Many verses like these teach us to go from the work of art to the owner of that work of art. That would be the wisely and exemplary tafaqqur- thinking deep about the creator of the works of art, ones nafs -self and this world. The people who take this thinking lesson from the Quran will not die like an unwary badawi –desert dweller without watching a camel to the full nor will they leave this earth like a nonbeliever astronomer without thinking about the sky.

Say: Is it that ye Deny Him Who created the earth in two Days? And do ye join equals with Him? He is the Lord of (all) the Worlds. (Fussilat 9)

He set on the (earth) mountains standing firm, high above it, and bestowed blessings on the earth and measured therein all things to give them nourishment in due proportion, in four Days, in accordance with (the needs of) those who seek (sustenance). (Fussilat 10)

So He completed them as seven firmaments in two Days, and He assigned to each heaven its duty and command. And We adorned the lower heaven with lights, and (provided it) with guard. Such is the Decree of (Him) the Exalted in Might, Full of knowledge. (Fussilat 12)

When God Almighty willed to create the universe, He produced an indefinite amount of energy by showing His endless power; that energy condensed in time and turned to gas. Then it condensed again and turned to its present solid state. The earth formed in two geological eras and then the sources there were determined; it reached its present state by forming in four geological periods eras based on the plan. The word yawm (day) in the verse means a long period whose beginning and end is not definitely known  (...) The skies formed seven layers together with the earth in seven long periods. They were all in the state of gas. It took them two periods to concentrate and solidify.

According to the analysis of the first sentence, the meaning is He created the earth in two days. When the earth was created, there was no “day” in the sense we know yet; so, day means time, that is, in two periods; Allah knows the best. One of them is the day when the sky was separated from the earth as it is stated in this verse: " Do not the Unbelievers see that the heavens and the earth were joined together (as one unit of Creation), before We clove them asunder? " (al-Anbiya, 21/30), and the other is when the crust of the earth was started to be placed in the form of a cream layer as it is stated in this verse:  “And it is He Who spread out the earth." (ar-Ra'd, 13/3). According to the second analysis, the meaning is He created the earth in two days. In this case, it is not mentioned in how many days the earth was created but its state in two days after it was created is mentioned; it means the two solstices that divide the year into two. The earth was created in a form to cycle between those two periods.  

He pressed onto it; the mountains nail the crust of the earth to its base. That "waw" is used for the beginning; it does not refer to the verb because there is an interval. He brought about abundance in it. He produced good things, and sources of abundance like water sources, mines plants and animals with their power to be born and die. He ordained their sustenance in it; that is, He determined the amounts of rain and other things that plants and animals needed in order to live and arranged them in the form of earth. He did all of them in four days. Including the previous two, it is four days; there are two meanings in it like the others. One is the creation of the mines and the mountains; the other is the creation of the plants and animals, which amounts to four with the previous two. The other is the state, which shows the four seasons; thus, the previous two are included here. In my opinion, this meaning here is more in the foreground and more appropriate in terms of the coherence of the expression. The bounties and sustenance of the earth grow in the four seasons every year. Their number, amount and shape form in them; therefore, attributing them to the verbs may express the same meaning. Then, in terms of that meaning, this sentence becomes clear:  four days equally for all researchers because all of the sustenance of those that seek sustenance grows in those four seasons; even if the sustenance is not equal, the days are equal. The number of the four seasons for each of them is four. It may be thought to mean those who ask about it.

Then, the skies are dealt with and it is stated that they were completed to seven strong skies in two days. One of those two days is for the creation of matter and the other is for the formation of things, which form the two days of the six days stated in the chapter al-Araf. Or, one of them is before the creation of the earth and the other is after. The creation of some celestial bodies like the moon, Venus, Mercury, etc is after the creation of the earth.
In my opinion, it is probable that one of those two days is the world and the other is the hereafter. He made them strong and completed them. He gave each sky the command related to them in the form of revelation. He gave the angels in each sky the command of the events to take place there, which is included in the completion. Since the evidence of the power of the Creator has become manifest and appeared in the creation and completion of them, the subject of the sentence is transformed into the first person singular from the third person singular, and the following is stated: " We have indeed decked the lower heaven with beauty (in) the stars." (as-Saffat, 37/6) . And we have protected them. The devils cannot approach them. It is the determination of Allah, al-Aziz (the Mighty and Strong) and al-Alim (the Knower of All).

Your Guardian-Lord is Allah, Who created the heavens and the earth in six Days, then He established Himself on the Throne (of authority) … (al-Araf, 54)

An example of the harmony between the Quran and modern science is the issue of the age of the universe: Cosmologists calculated the age of the universe to be 16-17 billion years. It is stated in the Quran that the whole universe was created in 6 days. There is a surprising harmony between those figures that seem different at first sight. As a matter of fact, both of those figures related to the age of the universe are correct. That is, the universe was created in 6 days as it is stated in the Quran, and that period corresponds to 16-17 billion years in our perception of the time.

In 1915, Einstein put forward that time was relative and that the flow coefficient of time changed based on the place, the speed of the traveling person and the force of gravity at that time. It is seen that the duration of the creation of the universe stated in 7 different verses of the Quran is greatly parallel to the calculations of the scientists when the differences in the flow coefficient of time is considered. We can consider the 6 days mentioned in the Quran as 6 periods. When the relativity of time is taken into consideration, “day” expresses the 24-hour period only as perceived in the world under the circumstances of today. However, in a different place of the universe, at a different time and under a different condition, “day” is a much longer period of time. As a matter of fact, the word ayyam (days) in the phrase “6 days” (sittati ayyamin) also means era, period, duration apart from meaning days in the following verses: (as-Sajda, 4; Yunus, 3; Hud, 7; al-Furqan, 59; al-Hadid, 4; Qaf, 38; al-Araf, 54).

In the first periods of the universe, time flowed. Much faster than the pace that we are used to today. The reason is this: during the Big Bang, the universe had been condensed into a very small point. The expansion of the universe since that big bang and the tension in the volume of the universe expanded the borders of the universe to billions of light years away. As a matter of fact, the fact that the space has been tensioning since Big Bang has played an important role on the time of the universe.

The energy during the moment of Big Bang slowed down the flow of the time of the universe million by million times (1012). When the universe was created, the flow coefficient of the time of the universe, as it is perceived today, was a trillion times bigger, that is time flowed faster. Thus, during the time when we live a trillion minutes in the world, only one minute passes in terms of the time of the universe.

When the period of 6 days is calculated by taking the relativity of time into consideration, it corresponds to 6 trillion.  It is because the time of the universe flows a trillion times faster than that of the world. The number of years corresponding to 6 trillion days is about 16,427 billion. That figure falls into the interval of the estimated age of the universe. 

6.000.000.000.000 days / 365,25 = 16.427.104.723 years

On the other hand, each one of the 6 days of the creation corresponds to different time periods from one another – in terms of our perception of time. It is because of the fact that the flow coefficient of time decreases inversely proportional to the expansion of the universe. Every time the size of the universe doubled since Big Bang, the flow coefficient of time decreased in half. As the universe got bigger, the doubling speed of the universe slowed down increasingly. That expansion rate is a scientific reality that is explained in the textbooks “the Fundamentals of Physical Cosmology” and that is widely known all over the world. When we calculate each day of the creation in terms of the time of the world, the following state appears:

* When the moment that time started is taken into consideration, the 1st day (1st period) of the creation lasted 24 hours. However, that period corresponds to 8 billion years to the time as we perceive in the world. 

* The 2nd day (2nd period) lasted 24 hours. However, that period lasted half as much as the 1st day, that is 4 billion years in terms of the time we perceive in the world.

* The 3rd day (3rd period) lasted half as much as the 2nd day, that is, 2 billion years.

* The 4th day (4th period) lasted 1 billion year.

* The 5th day (5th period) lasted 500 billion years.

* And the 6th day (6th period) lasted 250 billion years.

* Conclusion: The 6 days, that is, the 6 periods, of the creation lasted 15 billion 750 million years when they are added in terms of the time of the world. That figure is close to the estimations of today.

That conclusion is the reality found out by the science of the 21st century. Science has once again approved the truth expressed by the Quran 1400 years ago. That harmony between the Quran and science miraculously proves that the Quran is the revelation of Allah, Who knows everything and created everything.

Why were the heavens and earth created in six days?

Sealing of a heart is described as hardening of a heart through unbelief and disobedience and having a state that makes it impossible to believe. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) says: "A black stain occurs in the heart as a result of every sin." The following is stated in a verse, “Allah forgiveth not that partners should be set up with him; but He forgiveth anything, else to whom He pleaseth.” (an-Nisa, 4/48).
What we understand from the hadith and verse above is that the biggest stain that blackens the heart is polytheism, that is, associating partners with him. If a person advocates polytheism and struggles against believers defending it, the black stain in his heart becomes darker and larger day by day. Gradually, it invades all of the heart. It becomes almost impossible for that man to accept belief and oneness. To put it in the words of the writer of Risale-i Nur Collection, “they are incapable of reform and unreceptive to good.”
The verse mentioned above was sent down about the polytheists that formed a group opposed to the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) and struggled against him. The fact that polytheism established sovereignty over their hearts and no place was left for oneness is expressed as “the sealing of the hearts”. The ones for whom the door of guidance is closed are those polytheists. The closing of the door of guidance is not in question for every person who commits sins, oppresses others or associates partners with Allah. Otherwise, how can we explain the fact that tens of thousands of people that had worshipped idols before embraced Islam in the Era of Happiness?  If the heart of everybody that associated partners with Allah were sealed, no polytheist would become a Muslim. Those whose hearts are sealed are the ones that are impossible to turn to oneness. And they fall in that pit by using their own wills.
We would like to mention an important point: In Risale-i Nur Collection, unbelief is analyzed in two parts: non-acceptance and acceptance of non-existence. The following is stated about non-acceptance, that is, “not accepting the truths of belief”, “it is indifference, a closing of the eyes to something, an ignorant absence of judgment.” In acceptance of non-existence to advocate the unbelief and to try to prove its wrong creed is in question. The second group mostly stands in the unbelief front and struggle against the people of belief.
We say mostly because there are some people among them, though very few, who find the true path and embrace Islam. As to those who reject Faith, it is the same to them whether you warn them (about the torture of Allah) or do not warn them; they will not believe. However, the warning and not warning are not the same to you; it is the same to them. You have done your duty, showed them the evidence of Allah and explained it to them; the reward is yours and the sin is theirs. As for the indifference, why they do not believe: it is because Allah, the Exalted, sealed their hearts and ears. They no longer have the ability to perceive, to search and find out, to listen to and to hear and to accept the truth.
They have their hearts but they have lost their strength in the beginning of the creation; they have acquired a second habit that covered it with their bad attitudes. That acquisition was caused by Allah.  From then on, they have never looked at anything accept their own selves, desires, wishes and their personal and individual aims. All of the activities and abilities of those hearts that were created to understand the truth were suffocated by the desires of their souls; they were covered with obstinacy against the truths about the future except their own interests in the future and in the present. In accordance with this verse: “Did we not give you long enough life so that he that would should receive admonition?" (Fatir, 35/37), they completed the period of thinking and unbelief became their apparent acquisition, nature and second creation. They will not think about, listen to, want to listen to, know, want to know or accept the truth, evidence about souls like the heart, and a spiritual and rational miracle like the Quran. In addition, there is a veil on their eyes...
In the visible world, they will not see the form of the world, the formation of the ores, the situation the plants and animals, the visible true evidence like anatomy even if they want to look because their ayes are veiled. A veil of ignorance, lust, evil and egoism pervaded them.  For instance, they look at the sky every day and see the view that their hearts like but they do not see and think about how the small eye in the body perceive that distant view with a momentary light that matches the pupil of the eye. When they are hungry, they seek bread but they do not think about and see how they perceive the bread outside, how and thanks to whom they harmonize with it.... Thus, they are deprived of all of the three means of knowledge that are necessary to understand the truth: the heart and the mind, sound senses and hearing the news.
How are hearts sealed? As it is known, things like envelopes, containers, covers and doors are sealed. The hearts of men are like the envelopes and containers of sciences and knowledge. Our sense of understanding is kept there. An ear is like a door; the things we hear enter through that door. Especially the news in the past, in the future and in the present, the concepts in the books are known through hearing. Then, the sealing of the heart is like the sealing of the envelope; the sealing of the ear is like the sealing of the door. Our Prophet stated the following in a hadith:
"When a sin is committed for the first time, a black point, that is, a black stain occurs in the heart. If the person repents and asks forgiveness from Allah, the heart shines again. If the person does not repent and he repeats the sin, the stain becomes larger; in time, it becomes so large that it covers all of the heart like a cover. It is what is mentioned in the following verse in Chapter al-Mutaffifin:  "By no means! But on their hearts is the stain of the (ill) which they do!" (al-Mutaffifin, 83/14). It is the stain mentioned in the verse."
That hadith shows that sins cover the heart like an envelope if they are repeated. Then, it is sealed by Allah as it is mentioned in the verse. That pervasive stain is impressed on the heart. Although it is like erasable ink that is written on a shiny surface of paper at first, it becomes an inerasable, printed stain afterwards. In other words, it becomes a second nature through habits. It is neither erased nor removed; then, there is no way to faith, nor a cure for unbelief.
The acquisition of the sealing and the impression are by the slave; their creation is by Allah. Then, the attribution of the act sealing to Allah is not rational metonymy but is truth as Ahlu Sunnah understands it and there is no forcing. That hadith and verse explain the habit in ethics very well. It explains very well that the value of the ethics and religion lie in continuation and habits. That point is the secret of education and training. It also explains the difference between insisting on sins and not insisting in terms of religion. The fact that regarding sins as halal and regarding haram as halal are acts of unbelief is related to that principle. The result of those habits, that second nature and that strong ability for the unbelievers relating to the issue of belief are the same for believers in terms of deeds. Good deeds become your habit as you do them continuously. Bad deeds become a second nature through habits. The course of life means the acquisition of the habit.  Man’s will has no connection with the first creation. However, in the habit, his first share is important. However, the creation of the result out of it belongs to Allah. Then, there is no forcing in those issues like the first creation. Man has no creation here but acquisition. Man receives what is created and on the other hand , he acquires what will be created; his heart is the way through which Allah creates. Man is not the original; he is the deputy.  If Allah had not given men hearts in the beginning or if He had given them as sealed, then, there would have been forcing. However, the verse does not say so.
Then, to try to attribute forcing to Allah through those verses as some Europeans do means not to understand those verses.  Although Allah knew that they would not believe, he held them responsible for belief.  Since nothing can take place outside the knowledge of Allah, the following question is asked, "Is that belief not something that one cannot afford?" However, it should be understood as follows: That offer is not something that one cannot afford in terms of the first creation, therefore it took place. However, the second offer is something that cannot be afforded. Therefore, it was not made but it was known. According to the wisdom of the Quran and Islamic principles, there exists no act of forcing in knowledge. They also say that there is no mental obligation in it. Forcing and obligation are the results of will and creation.
The fact that Allah knows something from the present and past does not mean that He makes it or He has it made. The one who knows does not have to do it; something that is known does not have to be done.  The wish can become an action only through a power and a creation together with that power. Therefore, we find in ourselves a lot of knowledge that is not connected with will and a lot of wills that did not take place although there is power.

All of them show us that knowing, wanting, power and creation are a group of attributes. Therefore, that fact that Allah knows does not mean that He makes people do something by forcing them. And Allah created the seal after the slave wanted the second nature and the power he mentioned; and the offer eventually became unaffordable in a transient and variable way. It is possible and it is what has happened. It is appropriate for it to take place like that.
To sum up fate is not something that forces. They did not become unbelievers because Allah knew it; Allah knew that they would become unbelievers and ordained that they would be unbelievers. If the meaning of the ordaining of the one who is never infallible is considered, it is understood easily. There is no salvation for them; there is a great punishment for them because they do not believe in belief and the hereafter doubtlessly. As the name of Allah, the book of Allah, prophets, the hereafter are mentioned, those sealed hearts become twisted and wriggled; those sealed ears wuther, those veiled eyes become stupefied.  After they die, they undergo the torture of Hell.

O Muhammad! If your Lord had so willed, all the people on the earth would have become believers whether they had wanted or not. However, Your Lord let people free to believe with their own wills because of His wisdom. So, you cannot force them to believe. Your duty is to preach His word.

If your Lord had willed, surely all humans would have become believers. Yet, He did not do so as it was against the wisdom  because, Allah, the Almighty wished His people to believe in Him based their own needs but not by force. Will you force people to become a believer and convert into your religion? No such duty was given to you after all. This verse is for the consolation and relief for the Prophet who was distressed by his desire for all people to believe.

The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) sometimes felt upset and sorry that people did not accept the right path. He saw people around who were on the way to Hell and due to his grief, he felt too depressed. It is impossible for a Muslim to accept and consent to his Muslim brother who is on the way to Hell.

So, Messenger of Allah (pbuh) was trying to hinder these people from their way to Hell and get them to enter Paradise. I wonder what I must do to get these people on the right path? How can I help them so that they will win their right to enter Paradise? So ambitious was Messenger of Allah (pbuh) regarding the issue that he was trying to spend what he possessed to this end. He was doing what he must but he was still thinking on what to do more than this.

See that our Lord states, “ O, My Prophet! You do not need to worry yourself to death because of this matter. Do not forget that if Your Lord had willed, He would have made all the people Muslims.” If Allah had willed, none of the people would have become deniers or polytheists. If Allah had so willed, none of these people would have attributed partners to Allah, they could not have challenged Him and they would not have led a life of rebellion against Allah. If these people prefer polytheism and denial despite Allah and His words and if they have the chance to lead their lives however they like today, this is because of the law Allah imposed and a result of the permission Allah granted them.

So, in this case, will you force them to become believers? However, their finding the right path does not depend on your plans and programs. No doubt that, My Prophet, you cannot make those whom you want enter them right path. Neither you nor somebody else can get them who have chosen denying and polytheism to the right path. This is what only Allah can do. This is a law that Allah has made. No one can rescind it.

In this case, O My Prophet, Your duty is not to revive the dead. You must only tell people what We sent down to you without fear and hesitation. If Allah had willed, He would have gathered them in the right one, within Islam. Yet, Your Lord had not willed so and had not done so.” 

All the prophets who did their duty to preach never forced people in their duties, and they only fulfilled their duty to preach and left the result to Allah:

“Nothing rests with the Messenger but to convey the Message fully.” ( The Qur’an, Al-Ma’idah, 5:99)

( Regarding the issue, see the Qur’an, Aal-i‘Imran, 3:20; Al-Ma’idah, 5:92; Ar-Ra’d, 13:40), An-Nahl, 16:35/82; An-Nur, 24:54; Al- Ankabut, 29:18; Ya-Sin, 36:17; Ash-Shuara, 42:48; At-Taghabun, 64:12).

The verses about the vessel sailing in the sea can be deemed as attribution to the buoyancy force of water.

A vessel is the first technological product which provided people with civilized and social solidarity such as transportation, trade and economy. When we consider this matter with proofs of benevolence, this marvelously occurring of a mechanism which brings us all these advantages leaves us no doubt that this is an obvious proof of the All-Merciful God’s benevolence. Therefore, the vessel mentioned in the Qur’an is cited along with great pictures of blessings such as the sun, the moon, atmosphere, clouds and so on: 

 “Surely in the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the alternation of night and day (with their periods shortening and lengthening), and the vessels sailing in the sea with profit to people, and the water that God sends down from the sky, therewith reviving the earth after its death and dispersing therein all kinds of living creatures, and His disposal of the winds, and the clouds subservient between sky and earth – surely there are signs (demonstrating that He is the One God deserving worship, and the sole Refuge and Helper) for a people who reason and understand.” ( the Qur’an, al-Baqarah, 2:164)

In the verse, eight different cosmological proofs are listed:

1. The creation of the heavens
2. The creation of the earth
3. The alternation of night and day
4. Vessels sailing in the sea
5. Water pouring down the sky and therewith reviving the earth after its death
6. Spreading of all kinds of creatures on the earth
7. Disposal of the wind to different directions
8. Clouds moving and changing their places

It is interesting that all these proofs are ordinary natural events that surround humans and that humans live in and see continuously every day. So, humans live in the heart of the proofs which reflect all the time the presence and uniqueness of Allah and His power and might.

Nature is a miracle itself; but people are unaware of the manifestations in natural events since they constantly see such events every day. For example, had the heavens, in other words celestial bodies and their systems been designated differently, and the earth been differently created, there would not have been the life system and living creatures as we know them. The constant alternation of day and night in the same order is not only useful for humans but also for other kinds of creatures like animals and plants.

Vessels sailing in the sea, constitutes the importance of divine regulations which provide us with these sorts of means of transport and lets us make use of them to continue our lives and ease them.

Rain, is one of the most important natural events which engenders the world worth living. Disposal of winds towards different directions and the movement of the clouds in the same way provide numerous benefits from the order of meteorological events to the pollination of plants and to the distribution of rain.

It is because of the presence of Allah that nature is present and the order in nature continues. Processing of nature in order proves not only the presence of Allah but also His uniqueness, His not having an associate, the perfection of His will and power, His continuality and His disposal and impact on things as well. If He lost interest in the universe just for a second, then, at that very moment, the universe would be destroyed or there would only be a chaos left.

These short explanations show us that along with the book of inspiration, the book of universe is full of evidence of the presence of Allah; however, only those who reason can understand these verses. For this reason, at the end of the verse, it is stated that in such events that are listed, “Surely there are signs (demonstrating that He is the One God deserving worship, and the sole Refuge and Helper) for a people who reason and understand.” (the Qur’an, al-Baqarah, 2:164). As the mind is one of the greatest blessing Allah bestowed on humans, it is also necessary that humans make good use of their minds and reasoning in order to come to truer conclusions with appropriate examination of events which proves the presence, oneness and power of a Sublime Creator, as they do in other issues.

According to Fakhraddin Ar-Razi, this verse shows that it is necessary to make use of not only traditional information but also mental abilities in the matter of proving the presence of the Creator. ( IV, 179)

In order to appropriately examine and observe beings and events in nature, and to reach scientific facts and in this case to discover divine order and regulations in nature, and to see the “verses” which lead us to Allah consequently, it is necessary to study natural sciences which mean the methods of examining, observing and discovering. It is impossible for those who lack mental and scientific maturity that is obtained by examining nature, to see and discover the regulations and proofs therein. Also, this shows that the Qur’an leads us through scientific world to belief and the right path. ( Kur’an Yolu, Interpretation – Religious Affairs, I: 158, 159)

Furthermore, it is Allah Who creates causes and effects. People usually cannot see this fact, and even if they can, they forget. For instance, just like it is Allah Who created water and its buoyancy force, it is also Allah Who lets huge vessels sail in the water. The verse displays us this and similar proofs of His oneness. In this way, it emphasizes that we get to know more about Allah Who created these blessings and made them servants for us; and we worship Him and be thankful to Him.

Moreover, Allah, the Almighty, calls people to use their minds to notice the physical law which makes a vessel sail in the water and not sink, and He advises them to contemplate. So, in this verse, it is pointed out that people should consider deeply the matter of how a material can float on the water without sinking, and as a result, they should establish and develop marine sciences, researches and studies and marine industry.

The word “fulk” in the original text of the Qur’an means “to revolve” and we can consider that it reminds us of water turbines. It may be pointing out to the program to produce the necessary technology to convert water power into energy.

Vessels sailing in the sea help people a lot. There are vessels by means of which commercial goods are transported; and there are vessels that are used in the war and there are ones that are used for research. It is understood from the verse that all these have been produced for the use of people. Technology based on the law of buoyancy of materials on the surface of water will be for the benefit of people.

Quran is the remarks of Allah Almighty. Because of the command explained in the 79th verse of the Surah of the Inevitable Event (Al-Waqia) “Which none shall touch but those who are clean”, it is not right to touch the Quran without wudhu (ritual ablution). Even if there is someone who comments that verse different, Islam scholars’ consensus is “it is not right to touch Quran without wudhu.”

However, it is acceptable to recite and read Quran without touching it without wudhu. Like as one who is canonical unclean can not touch Quran, also can not recite and read, too. But if the canonical unclean recite Ayatelkursi, Fatiha and Ihlas with the intention of pray, there is no drawback for it. (Hamdi Yazir, Interpretation, Al-Waqia, 79th verse’s explanation, Celal Yildirim, The Islamic Fiqh, IV. 157.)

The translation of the Quran can be read without wudhu. However, if the original Quran and its translation to any language are together in the same book, -because the books that including the original Quran with its translation are accepted as Quran- it is not acceptable to touch it without wudhu.

The essentials of faith conveyed by the prophets from Adam to our prophet Mohammad (peace and blessing be upon them) are same. This is a common case of the religions conveyed by the prophets. Neither any prophets changed the essentials of faith, nor did they add anything new. What the Adam (PUH) called people to believe in is same as that the last prophet Mohammed (PBUH) conveyed to his community. 

As there are no differences between the divine religions about the essentials of faith, the basic principles of worship have no differences either.
Thus, performing salah (prescribed prayers), which is the pillar of religion, was decreed as an obligatory duty to all prophets and their communities. The difference is just about their times and rakahs. And five times daily prayer, the sawap (benefit) of which is equal to fifity times, was decreed as obligatory to us.
The essence that the salah was decreed to the former-communities is directly mentioned in the Quran. For instance, in one verse it is said that Prophet Abraham (PUH) always performed prayer and advised his descendants to perform the prayer permanently. The verse is as follows: “O my Lord! make me one who establishes regular Prayer, and also (raise such) among my offspring, O our Lord!, and accept Thou my Prayer.” (1)
Prophet Moses (PUH) was decreed to perform prayer (salah) too. It is mentioned in the 12th verse of chapter Al-Maida that it was gotten a promise out of Jews that they would perform the salah.
Prophet Shoayb (PUH) was performing a good many prayers. As a matter of fact, he was affronted because of that. Such event is mentioned in the Quran as follows;
“They said: "O Shuàib! Does thy prayer command thee that we leave off the worship which our fathers practiced, or that we leave off doing what we like with our property? truly, thou art the one that forbeareth with faults and is right- minded!" (2) 
Also, it is mentioned in the Quran that the prophets Ishak, Jacob, Zakariyaa (Zechariah) and Jesus (Christ) (peace be upon them) were performing the prayers as well.
On the other hand, Zakah (alms) and fasting too are not worships just performed by the Muslim community, besides Quran declares that such worships were decreed to be done by the former community. For example, in the 183rd verse of chapter Al-Bakara it is said;
“O ye who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, that ye may (learn) self-restraint,-)
Yes, salah (prayer), fasting, zakah (obligatory alms) and much other worship were included in the sharia of other prophets. But, Jews and Christians abandoned or changed such kinds of worship.
And so, instead of saying “Muslims took prayer from Jews”, to say “The Almighty God decreed prayer to Jews and other communities too” is more correct.
REFERENCES:
1. Abraham Sura (chapter), 40;
2. Hûd Sura (chapter), 87;
Taceddin Şimşek

While the verse which is translated as “Verily, Allah purchased the souls and the properties of believers in exchange for Paradise” is interpreted in Nur Collection, an exemplary anecdote is given and in the anecdote this message is placed: “The devices in those factories will be operated in my name and on my workbench. And their costs and payments will increase from one to a thousand.” The Words

During a conversation with my friends, I asked them how much soil and water cost and I could not get an answer. When I asked how much bananas cost, they told me a high value. So, when soil and water enter a tree, which is a factory of Allah, they come out in the form of bananas and gain a high value. In the same way, we give grass to a live factory called cow and we get meat and milk from it. Common beets come out of factories in the form of sugar and flower pollens become honey in beehives.
If one gives his soul and property to Allah’s workbench of orders, drawing lessons from the innumerable cautionary scenes surrounding him, he will be elevated to that supreme position called  “ala-i iliyyin” (the highest of the high ones) and will have the honor of being one of the dwellers in Heaven.

In Nur Collection, a significant lesson of truth is given by stating: “unbelief destroys the essence of humanity and transforms it from diamond into coal”. That is to say, humankind is created in the best stature (ahsan at-taqwim) like a diamond. If he strays away from the allowed way, the straight way, he is degraded to the lowest position as a punishment. That degradation is symbolized with “coal”. According to scientists, the main stone of both coal and diamond are the same. The only difference is in their way of crystallization. And from this difference, come out two opposing qualities. Just as different words can be written with the same letters, so too can reverse fruits come out from the same essence of humanity such as: believer-unbeliever, righteous-sinful, just-unjust, and modest-proud.

According to this exemplary anecdote:

The best stature: “state of being created as capable of writing the best”
The highest of the high: “the supreme position of those who can succeed in the previous one”
The lowest of the low: “the great fall and destruction of those who fail to write correctly”

The Messenger of Allah says: “The world is the field of the Hereafter”. In this sense, one needs to reach to the highest of the high, at least as a seed, in the worldly life so that it can manifest itself as that supreme position in the Hereafter. And one will deserve the position of the lowest of the low by committing sins and it will bear the fruit of that severe agony of punishment.

In summary: Both high people and low people grow in this world. And everyone tastes bliss or punishment in the afterlife based on their own deeds.

In Quran, sometimes verses, sometimes anecdotes, sometimes sentences and sometimes words are often repeated. It is expressed with the term Repetition of Quran that some words and verses in Quran are repeated in one or more places (1). Generally, in literature, repetitions in spoken or written expressions display sometimes a beautiful and sometimes an ugly appearance. While repetitions of expressions that concern needs of people and attract their attention give pleasure, repetitions that do not attract the attention of the addressee and that do not concern his needs cause disturbance and boredom.

Surely, repetitions in Quran give pleasure, not boredom, as they concern the needs of the addressees. For instance, repetition of the verses expressing the punishment or mercy of God surely gives pleasure, not boredom, as they deal with the most important matters of humans (2).

Bediüzzaman explains the repetitions in Quran: As is the case in the principle; Everything that glisters is not blazing fire. not every repetition is boring. It is true that some repetitions are boring. However, this cannot be generalized for every word and every book. There is many a repetition which appears to be boring, but which is accepted as beautiful in eloquence and is thus praised. We can liken repetitions in expressions to repetitions in foods. For, one of them is material food, the other spiritual. As is known, the things we humans eat fall into two groups; first one, fruits; the second one, foods and drinks like bread and water. While eating the same fruits over and over again causes boredom, there is power and pleasure in the repetition of foods. Because as needs are repeated, it will be as pleasing for the foods to be repeated. For this reason, we do not feel bored in the least with eating bread repeatedly. However, the repetition of a fruit that much will make us bored.

Likewise, expressions also fall into two groups: Those that fall into the first one-mention truths that are food to souls and that empower ideas. As long as they are repeated, they give life to souls and ideas like the light of the sun. The expressions that fall into the second group, however, are of the character of fruits and it is not much accepted to repeat them. Therefore, the repetitions of Quran, which are a food to hearts, power to ideas, and life to souls, cause not boredom, but a pleasing delight. The more they are repeated, the more pleasing they become. Actually, the repetitions of Quran are not repetitions in its real meaning, because each one of its repetitions points out to other purposes and different truths according to their specific places (3).

Bediüzzaman likens the expressions of Quran to the fruits of the paradise. He quotes the verse: Every time they are provided with fruits (of different color, shape, taste, and fragrance and that are constantly renewed) therefore, they say, "This is what we were provided with before." For they are given to them in resemblance (to what was given to them both in the world, and just before in the Gardens, familiar in shape and color so that they may not be unattractive because unknown). (4) and says: As it is explained in the verse that the fruits of paradise presented to people at different times show similarity just in appearance to the fruits of world and of paradise that were seen by them before; however, in pleasure and flavor, they are very different; the same thing is the case for the repetitions in Quran.

The Wisdom of Repetitions in Quran

According to some scholars, there are three purposes in the repetitions of anecdotes, especially in the anecdotes of prophets, in Quran:
The first one: The rest of the anecdote a part of which is mentioned in a certain place is related in another place. This is seen like a repetition in respect to its appearance.
The second: In order to show its clarity and eloquence, Quran relates an anecdote it related rather lengthily in a certain place this time in a different place and in a very pithy way.
The third: In the remembrance of anecdotes, there are different purposes like proving the prophethood especially that of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), proving the existence and oneness of God, giving the lesson that God has the power to punish the cruel, warning the disbelievers by relating the gloomy end of the communities that lived before Islam. In each place where needed, the repetition of an anecdote is required in order to give one or a few of the lessons mentioned above in a purposeful way (6).
In his work Mesnevi-i Nuriye, Bediüzzaman evaluates the repetitions in Quran as another gleam of its being a miracle (7). In his another work he named the Flower of Emirdağ, he handled the purposes of repetitions in Quran from many perspectives.

Some of these purposes:

1. There are important purposes in some repetitions in Quran for believers who are often faced with troubles and sins. Such anecdotes as those of Moses and Abraham (UWBP) were repeated in order to soothe believers who are subjected to troubles and cruelties by showing the salvation of the prophet or prophets related in the anecdotes.

On the other hand; by relating the destruction of such communities as Sodom and Gomorra, which were destroyed because of their rebellions, the lesson is given to believers to abstain from rebellions and sins.

2. For the public who do not deal much with knowledge and who constitute most of the addressees of Quran, the Noble Quran proves the existence and oneness of God by showing again and again the proofs of creation that are the easiest to see like the earth and heavens.

3. In order to encourage believers who are always open to the assaults of the self and the devil, the favors they will receive in the paradise; and in order to discourage believers from sins, punishments they may incur in the hell are often shown them.

4. As Quran is a book of supplication and remembrance, of Sharia, of an invitation and proclamation, of oneness, of wisdom and a description of being a slave to God, it calls for repetitions.

This is as follows:

As repetition of supplication strengthens the possibility of its being accepted, it should be repeated. In the same way, the repetition of remembrance enlightens; for this reason, expressions of remembrance, offering thanks, and declaring God as the greatest are to be often repeated.

From the perspective that Quran is a book of Sharia: Quran establishes the principles of this sound and great religion. It makes radical revolutions in the social life of humankind. Certainly, it must use repetitions in order to stabilize and fortify these principles.

From the perspective that Quran is a book of offer and proclamation, it must frequently show the importance of the cause it calls people into and the beauties of Islam. And this necessitates repetition.

From the perspective that Quran is a book of oneness, it must often emphasize the existence and oneness of God. Quran mentions important issues and invites hearts to believe in them. It explains fine truths and summons minds to learn them. Therefore, they must be repeated in different ways and in various styles in order for them to be established in the hearts and minds of all the people from all walks of life in the community.

From the perspective that Quran is a book of wisdom, it must explain the real purpose of the creation of the universe and of man in every occasion.

In the respect that Quran systematizes worships and social lives of believers, it must frequently explain how to be a slave to God and what social duties believers are responsible for in order to establish them fully.

5. Quran is an address and a cure for every sort of people from the most intelligent to the silliest, from the most pious to the far deviated, from the ones who escape the attraction of the world and work earnestly for the Hereafter, to the lax ones who are captivated by the world.

However, not everybody finds the chance to read the entire Quran, which is a cure and remedy for everyone. Therefore, God, who puts pearls of wisdom and benefits into whatever He does and who possesses endless mercy and compassion toward His creatures, has put into some surahs and especially long ones the basic aims of Quran. Each surah has thus become a small Quran and eased the way for everybody. Quran calls out encouraging the humanity:

And indeed (by revealing it through human language) We have made the Quran easy for remembrance (of God, and taking heed), then is there any that remembers and takes heed? (Al-Qamar Surah, 54; 17)

6. It is stated in the hadith; Each verse has dimensions of meaning: explicit, implicit (the meaning behind the explicit meaning which can be understood only by the capable) meanings; a scope and a circle of meaning. And each one of these four dimensions of meaning has details, signs, branches, and points. (8); in other words, while each verse has many layers of meaning, there are many ways, judgments, benefits and points for each purpose. For this reason, while it is related in a place in one way, in another it is related in another way. In this surah, it is explained with one purpose, in another with another purpose. In this respect, there is no repetition in reality, but a repetition only in appearance. This is like; although eyes, ears and fingers resemble each other, they are each different in reality.

7. Just as bodily needs of the human are each different; some we need every moment like air, some occasionally like water when thirsty, some everyday like food, some once a week like light, some once a month, and some once a year like medication.

In the same way, spiritual needs of the human are each different, too. Some we need every moment like saying Hu-He which refers to God- and God, some every time like saying In the name of God, some every hour like saying There is no God but Allah. The others can be compared.

This being the case, repetition of verses and some words stems from repetition of needs and points out the intensity of the needs for them.

8. In Quran, there are the answers of the questions asked repeatedly by the various sorts of humans with the speech of mouth and condition. That the questions are asked repeatedly necessitates that the answers be given repeatedly.

9. And, for example, in repeating many times the stories of Moses (Upon whom be peace), which contain many instances of wisdom and benefits like the Staff of Moses, and of the other prophets (Upon whom be peace), it demonstrates that the prophethoods of all the other prophets are a proof of the Prophethood of Muhammad (PBUH). In accordance with the undeniable wisdom for the point of view of reality of this Being's Prophethood and since everyone does not always have the time or capability to read the whole Quran, like the important pillars of belief, it repeats those stories in order to make all the long and middle-length Surahs each like a small Quran. To repeat them is not excessive, indeed, it is required by eloquence, and teaches that the question of Muhammad (PBUH) is the greatest question of humankind and the most important matter of the universe.

As a conclusion, based on the purposes listed above and on many others not listed, there are some repetitions in Quran. The repetitions of Quran do no cause boredom like expressions of ordinary people; on the contrary, they give pleasure as needs are so intense and the repetitions stem from these needs.

Besides, although Quran, which has been illuminating every moment of the lives of Muslims for centuries and which is read again and again in their prayers, is read that frequently, it does not cause boredom for any believer; it is easily established in the minds of children who try to memorize Quran; it is as sweet as zamzam water for the ones in deathbed. All these show that as Quran is a miracle in every respect, it is so also in respect to its being read. It is a requirement of its being a miracle that some of its parts are repeated.

Footnotes:
1. see Cerrahoğlu, Tefsir Usûlü, 173; Turgut, 179.
2. krş. Cerrahoğlu, a.g.e., 173-174; Turgut, 180.
3. see Işârât, 31-32.
4. Al-Baqarah Surah, 2/25.
5. see Işârât, 32.
6. see Ibn Cuzeyy, 6.
7. Mesnev-i Nuriye, Ondördüncü Reşha
8. see Ebu Yâlâ, el-Musned 9:287; at-Taberânî, al-Mucemül-Evsat 1:236

A possible interpretation of the related verses can be as follows:

“Consider the semen you emit! Is it you who make it become a human or We who do it?”

Here it is pointed out that causes really have no effect in the matter of creation.

The male’s emission of his semen into the female’s womb is a cause for a baby to come into life. However, there are a lot of married people who do the same thing yet they cannot have a baby. This means that the emission of semen alone is not sufficient to bring a baby to life and the real creator of a baby is the Creator of everything and He is Allah, himself. The next verses after them give us the same message :

“Have you ever considered the seed you sow (in the ground)? Is it you who cause it to grow, or is it We Who make it grow? If We so willed, We would surely make it into chaff, and then you would not cease to exclaim: "We are indeed in a great loss (with our money, time, and efforts gone to waste)!” ( the Qur’an, al-Waqi’ah, 56: 63/64/65/66).

There is a great reward for reading the Surah (chapter of the Holy Qur'an) of The Cave (al-Kahf) on Friday or other days; however, reading it on Friday has more rewards.

Woman at the state of menses and childbed cannot touch or read the Quran but she can listen to the Qur’an. In addition, she could recite Surahs such as Fatiha (The Opening Chapter), Nas (Humankind), and Falaq (The Daybreak) with the intention of supplication.

There are some Hadiths (saying of the Prophet Muhammad) expressing that reading the Surah of The Cave on Friday night and day has many rewards.

For example: “He who reads the Surah of The Cave On Friday night, is brightened up with a light from the ground to the heaven in Doomsday. His minor sins, which are committed between two Fridays, are forgiven.” (For different narrations, please see at-Targhib wa't-Tarhib, Kitabu'l-Juma, 1/512-513)

Two of the other Hadiths about the Surah of The Cave are as follows:

“Usayd b. Hudayr, companion of the Prophet, recited the Surah of The Cave (in his prayer), and in the house; he had a horse. Just then, the horse got frightened and started jumping. So, Usayd prayed as “O Lord! Protect me from the disaster”. Immediately, a mist or a cloud hovered over him. Then, Usayd informed the Prophet Muhammad of that incident and The Apostle and Prophet of God said “O so-and-so! Recite, for this (mist or cloud) was a sign of peace descending for the recitation of Quran”. (Bukhârî, Manâqib, 25; Bukhârî, Fadâilu'l-Qur'ân, 11; Tirmizi, Fadâilu'l-Qur'an, 6).

The Prophet Muhammad said the following: “If anyone learns by heart the first ( in another narration “ the last”) ten verses of the Surah of The Cave, he will be protected from the Dajjal.” (Muslim, Musâfirûn, 257; Abu Dâwud, Manâhim, 14; Tirmizi, Fitan, 59; Ibn Majah, Fitan, 33).

Yet, we need to be careful at some points during the assessing of those narrations which are for encouraging people.

That day, Allah will punish them with exactly what they deserve, and they will understand and know that Allah is a reality. That ’is to say; the one who makes every truth visible and whose existence is unquestionable is Allah, the Glorious.

On the Dday of Jjudgement; i.e. mahshar; body organs will testify against their sinful owners. Their tongues, hands and feet will be a part of this againstcounter-testification.

One’s own body keeps the records of their sins committed in earthly life. Actually, our body records our all sins. In addition to this, the angels called kiraman katibin (lit. honorable recorders) keep the record of thoese sins in a book as well. On the Dday of Jjudgement, both this book and our own body will reveal our deeds.

“This Day, We shall seal up their mouths, and their hands will speak to Us, and their legs will bear witness to what they used to earn. (It is said that one's left thigh will be the first to bear the witness).” (Ya-seen, 36/65).

“At length, when they reach the (hell fire), their hearing, their sight, and their skins will bear witness against them, as to (all) their deeds. They will say to their skins: "Why bear ye witness against us?" They will say: "Allah hath given us speech― (He) Who giveth speech to everything: He created you for the first time, and unto Him were ye to return.” (Fussilat, 41/20-21).

Allah, the Glorious, will inflict punishment on them completely in Hereafter. Testification of their body organs also means a severe punishment for them. The testification of the body organs with which they committed sins means a severe torment as well.

The word “aed-din” mentioned in this hadith means “punishment”. The word “din” mentioned in the 4th verse of chapter al-Fatiha means “punishment” as well.

Here the word “din” and the word “eal-haqqkk” are juxtaposed. It is possible to construe interpret the word “Hakkqq” as “complete, truth, what they deserve”. This It is expressesd that their punishment will be inflicted completely, or they will get their true punishment, or they will be punished with what they deserve. The interpretation of this is as follows:It means there may be some incompleteness in punishment in earthly life; however, as the punishment in Hereafter is complete, there will not be any incompleteness.

People will gain indisputable knowledge on the Dday of Jjudgement. Some people commit sins in earthly life due to the fact that they do not have certain knowledge about Allah and belief in His closeness and reality, that He knows and sees and also He is informed of everything we do, and that He surrounds it them all. If they approached the attributions of Allah the Glorious with certain knowledge and belief, and internalized it, they would not commit sins such as slandering, etc and others.

They will gain the knowledge proving that Allah the Glorious, his very self, is apparently the truth there. The events happening in the on the Dday of jJudgement will lead them to this truth. However, the people who fulfill the requirements of being a true believer or a human being will find this knowledge on the earthly life and acquire it.

If only the concepts of “knowing”, perceiving”, “indisputable knowledge” and indisputable observation” mentioned in the chapter of at-Teakasthur would come true in this earthly life. The blinds and chains preventing the heart from seeing the truth will be broken there and people will understand the indisputable truth and especially they will know that the only reality is Allah. Haqqkk is an expression of truth and “mubeen” is of perspicuousness. However, the word “mubeen” also means “who explains clearly”.

When related to the verse written above, it is possible to understand it thatis way. We can come to the following conclusion depending on thatis meaning: They will understand that it is Allah who lets tongues, hands and feet testify against them and reveal their deeds. Actually, the 21st verse of the chapter Fussilat informs us that it is Allah Wwho makes body organs speak. Consequently, they will understand there that the revealer of deeds is Allah.

In fact, Allah will give the permission for to organs to speak and testify. “..none shall speak except any who is permitted by (Allah) Most Gracious” (an-Naba, 78/38).

The order in this verse is clear. Giving this order to His Prophet, the guide for all humanity, Allah, the Almighty, pointed out what an important way of worshipping the Prayer is. This surah was revealed in Makkah and it refers to the period when the Prayer was set as an obligatory duty for the believers. In other words, the Prophet was ordered to teach his family how and in which times to perform the Prayer. Moreover, In Madinah, our Prophet (peace be upon him) went to Ali’s (may Allah be pleased with him) and Fatima’s (may Allah be pleased with her) houses to wake them up so that they would perform the morning prayer. ( ar-Razi, the interpretation of the related verse)

Besides, the words “ family and community” in the verse have led to such interpretations whether these words refer to the Prophet’s ( peace be upon him) relatives or his ummah. (ibid)

According to Imam Mawardi, the words “family / community” in the verse refer to the Prophet’s own family or his ummah – which is a sort of family to him. And the second order “ be diligent in its observance” (the Qur’an, Ta-Ha, 20:132) in the same verse  can be interpreted as “ Continue to invite your family and community to the Prayer and continue to perform your own Prayer”. ( Mawardi, the interpretation of the related verse)

Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) used to wake his family members up to Prayer, obeying this order. After reciting the mentioned verse, Urwa, son of Zubayr used to say to his wife “ let us perform our Prayer”. (Al-Qurtubi, the interpretation of the related verse)

As stated in the beginning, this order is a lesson to all humanity, for which Prophet Muhammad ( peace be upon him) stands as an example, and an emphasis as well on the importance of the Prayer. It does not mean oppression but a reminder, an advice and telling why the Prayer is important and useful, maintaining its continuality and if necessary teaching and rendering it as a habit because there is no point in praying by force or intimidation. Such a prayer would be performed not for the sake of Allah but for the person who forces and intimidates. Especially the head of the family – the parents must be good examples for the issue of praying and it is necessary that they perform their prayers without a delay. As a matter of fact, the second order in the verse has a meaning aiming it.

Be sure We shall test you with something of fear and hunger, some loss in goods, lives and the fruits (of your toil), but give glad tidings to those who patiently persevere.― Who say: when afflicted with calamity: "To Allah we belong and to Him is our return." They are those on whom (descend) blessings from their Lord and Mercy and they are the ones that receive guidance. (Al-Baqara, 155-157)

No calamity, even if it were the prick of a thorn, shall be unreciprocated. That has a reward, too. This hadith shed light on this truth:

Abu Hurairah narrates: “Whenever a Muslim is afflicted with a hardship, sickness, sadness, worry, harm, or depression – even a thorn’s prick, Allah expiates his sins because of it.” (Bukhari, Marda,1;Muslim, One, 52).

There are many hadiths about patience. The hadith narrated by Imam Ahmad is enough for understanding the subject.

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said; “The decision/judgment of Allah for believers makes me considerably happy as follows; a believer praises and thanks Allah if something good happens to him, and praises Allah and shows endurance if he is smitten by affliction. The believer is rewarded for everything, even for the morsel he raises to his wife's mouth” (Ahmad b. Hanbal, 1/173).

This hadith shows that a Muslim’s life is always full of profits. He/she shows endurance at the time of troubles and in return he gets reward; he thanks when in comfort and gets reward again. How happy are believers who spend their lives in the way of truth!

Any trouble that befalls of a Muslim is definitely a benefaction: It either deletes his/her past sins or prevents any upcoming troubles or calamities. It is either a notice or a warning or a test for increasing his/her spiritual rank further.

Now that Allah Almighty has created this universe to make Himself known, so if there were not any kind of diseases and calamities in this worldly life, wouldn’t our knowing Him come true all the same? Then what is the wisdom of such an ordaining?

It is said that troubles are the reflections of the punishment of God. Is this the case for all the troubles?

What is the main cause of the present uneasiness and depression in the society?

What kinds of purposes and benefits are there in handicaps, illnesses, and troubles?

It is not haram to eat or drink with the left hand. However, eating wit the left hand is contrary to the eating manner of our Prophet; thus, that person will be deprived of thawabs (rewards). Therefore, it is necessary to get used to eating with the right hand beginning from the early ages.

Please click on the link given below;

Can you give information about whether the Sunnah is binding, it should be accepted as a mode and it is based on revelation or not?

Translation of the related verse:

“Those who disbelieve say: "This (Qur'ān) is but a fabrication which he (Muhammad) himself has invented, and some others have helped him with it, so they have produced a wrong and a falsehood. "They also say: "(It consists of) only fables of the ancients which he has got written. They are being read to him in the early mornings and evenings (while people are at home). "Say: "(It is a Book full of knowledge, revealing many secrets such as no human being could in any wise discover by himself:) He Who knows all the secrets contained in the heavens and the earth sends it down (to teach you some of these secrets and guide you in your life so that you may attain happiness in both worlds). He surely is All-Forgiving, All-Compassionate. ” ( the Qur’an, al-Furqan, 25:4-5-6)

They verse were sent in Makkah. Those who said it most probably did not believe in a concept like inspiration. They were trying to interpret what they did not believe with their own minds. Idol worshippers from Makkah, in fact, were trying to obstruct through different ways the impact of the Qur’an, of which the decrees, they thought, were harmful for their false beliefs and their present order based on oppression.

One of these ways was their claiming that  God’s Prophet ( pbuh) invented The Qur’an himself with the help of “some people”, in other words,  several people who were the believers in the Holy Books at that period in Makkah. This claim that He collaborated the Qur’an, such a magnificient book, with information He collected from some randomly chosen people was nothing but a nonsense one. In the 6th verse that we quoted above, the claims of idol worshippers are refused and also the statement: “He Who knows all the secrets contained in the heavens and the earth sends it down” points out this fact : The Qur’an contains rich secrets, informations on the unknown and facts that nobody can bring out with their own humanly abilities and without the help of Allah. Thus, the evidence that proves the Qur’an is not any human’s word but God’s is the Qur’an itself and its content.

Historical sources inform that the actual reasons of those who disbelieved in Muhammad (pbuh) were various such as social, political and economic ones. In fact, disbelievers did not witness any behavior of Muhammad (pbuh) which was to blacken his personality, character, and his well-known security, reliability and sincerety. However, because of various reasons, they deemed his behaviour as a madness, a poetship and an oracle when they did not accept his prophethood, - considering that he was illiterate - they claimed that the source of the Qur’an and parables especially ones that they usually heard of around  were from the Book of the Jews. The statement that “some others have helped him with it” from the verse, is especially a sign of their mentioning about three slaves from Makkah who had been reading the Torah. ( Zamakhshari, Tabari, Razi, the interpretation of the related verse)

To sum up, such claims do not really originate from the situation that disbelievers considered to be doudtful. No matter what the reason is, those who did not accept Muhammad’s ( pbuh) prophethood attempted to refute him with various fabrications. The Holy Qur’an – using a scientific method – first enunciates their claims and after that gives the necessary answer. Here, in this case, including their claims that ,in short, “ The Qur’an is a fabrication which has been made by Muhammad, the illiterate, to memorize night and day by those who read the previous books like the Torah”, the Qur’an replies this claim of theirs briefly : “No! There is no such a thing to happen. The Qur’an has been sent down only by Allah, The Holy One who knows the secrets of the heavens and the earth.” This means: It is apparent injustice and malign to claim such a book like the Qur’an to be a fabrication although this book informs about the knowledge that can only be known by the Creator – especially at that time – such as the creation and the phases of creation of the heavens and the earth and human, triangulation points of incidents that happened to past communities and the crucial points of historical events.

Virtually, Allahs Word does not resemble the way men talk by any means. Firstly, while we are talking, we use our tongues, mouths, teeth, vocal cords and lungs which Allah bestowed us. In the meantime, the brain organizes the coordination between those organs and our feelings through a mechanism the mystery of which we have not discovered yet. Then, with Allahs permission, we load, in the way Allah taught us, our words and expressions to the air, which is His creation too, and send them to listening ears. Our ears, which are designed like private stereophonic studios for each of us, collect the voices and transmit them to the brain. Codes are deciphered in the brain and we comprehend the meaning of what we hear in the limits of our knowledge.

We need particular organs and equipments for both talking and listening. Moreover, our talking and listening has limits. We can talk in the rate of our knowledge and as much as we can express ourselves. We use our voice as much as our vocal cords permit. Our ears cannot hear the voices which are under or over certain levels. Additionally, we make sense of the voices we hear in comparison to our knowledge and comprehension.

Allah who taught us to talk can surely talk. He who bestowed us the ability of hearing can hear definitely. However, his speech and listening do not resemble ours. If they resembled, He would need what we needed. However, He is the One who creates all what we need. Would the Creator need what He created?

After distinguishing Allahs Word from mens talk with exact boundaries, we find ourselves being addressed the following question:

As human beings who need many things for talking and hearing, how can we hear and how can we comprehend the speech of Allah Who needs nothing?

We cannot exceed the bestowed abilities no matter how much we want. Our eyes recognize light but cannot see radio waves, which indeed have similar nature. In addition, our eyes have an endurance limit for light. Trying to exceed this limit could yield being deprived of our eyes forever: for example, looking at the sun for a long time during the day!

Consequently, there are two ways in order to be able to hear Allahs speech: either Allah will bestow us such abilities to provide hearing His Divine speech, or He will talk in the form which we can listen and understand.

The first way, as we learned from the Quran, is an extremely exceptional incidence which was bestowed as a miracle upon Hazrat Musa (Moses). Since not every individual human being can be a Moses, the second way is chosen lest entire human being should be deprived of Allahs words. Actually, the second way was preferred. The Quran was revealed as a book in the form of which we can comprehend by reading, we can make as the point of reference for every stage of this world and the Hereafter and we can learn and teach one another. If it were not in the form of human speech, how could we hear it? Even if we heard it, how would we recite and repeat it? If we did not read it, how would we benefit from it? If we did not benefit from it, what wisdom (reason) would exist in its revelation?

Apart from his miracles and special attributes, the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was a human being in all his actions, conducts, and behaviors. He submitted to and complied with the Divine laws and commands manifested in creation. He too suffered from the cold, experienced pain, and so on. His deeds and attributes were not all made out of the ordinary so that he could be the leader of his community through his actions, its guide through his conduct, and instruct it through all his behaviors. If he had been out of the ordinary in all his conduct, he could not himself have been the leader in every respect, the total guide of everyone, the 'Mercy to All the Worlds' through all his attributes.

Similarly, the All-Wise Qur'an is the leader for people having mind and consciousness, the guide for the believers of jinn and men. He is the teacher of those attaining perfection, and instructor of those seeking reality. Therefore, it is the necessity of the wisdom that it should be in the same form as man's talking and understanding style. Men and jinn learn their worshipping their prayers from it; they express their concerns in its language, and learn from it the rules of social behavior, the laws and the secrets of the universe. Everyone has recourse to it. If, therefore, it had been in the form of the Divine speech which the Prophet Moses heard on the Mount Sinai, man could not have endured listening to it and hearing it, nor could man made it the point of reference and recourse. Hazrat Moses, one of the five greatest prophets, could only endure to hear a few words.

The goal of the devil or the ones who ask such questions under the leadership of devil is to represent a resemblance as the sameness and by this way, to cheat man. Actually, they refer to a nonsensical way known as paralogia in psychology. Assume a patient saying, a table has for legs, so does a cat. Therefore they are the same. Similarly, the devil says Men talk by means of words and sentences and the Quran is written by using words and sentences. Therefore, the Quran is a word of man. and he attempts to deceit people. As a matter of fact, every for legged thing is not a cat; similarly, expressing oneself by means of words does not only pertain to man . The devil himself, deceived Musaylama by means of fabricating many irrational stuff resembling human talk and asserting them to be Allahs words. As for The Lord of all worlds, He, more than anyone, has the power required for revealing the most beautiful exposition of all expositions with the words and expressions which He taught us.

Quoted from the authors article A debate with Satan released by Zafer Publishing.

Jews are asked not to pursue worldly possessions, ranks and prestige, which are not worth anything when compared to denying the true religion and being deprived from the salvation in the hereafter. The expression meaning, " nor sell My Signs (verses) for a small price ", is a definite warning for those who use the glorious and sacred book of Allah and his religion for their personal, material interests , who misinterpret it and who show what is haram as halal and what is halal as haram. (see Ate?, I, 155-156; Ibn Ashur, 1,467-469; Kur’an Yolu:I/52-53)

The issues mentioned by verses like that do not mean to sell the verses in return for a certain amount of money. On the contrary, they mean to sell the religion in return for the world, to violate the orders and prohibitions stated in the verses sent by Allah in return for the valueless interests of the worldly life, to surrender to the delusions of the devil and the evil-commanding soul, thus having a mean situation.

For instance, it is possible to see the issue at the end of the 44^th verse including the expression “do not sell signs (verses) of Allah for a small price” of the chapter al-Maida, which addresses Jews as “If any do fail to judge by (the light of) what Allah hath revealed, they are (no better than) Unbelievers” and at the end of the 47^th verse of the chapter al-Maida which address Christians as “If any do fail to judge by (the light of) what Allah hath revealed, they are (no better than) those who rebel”.

The fact that Jewish judges took bribes and gave wrong and unfair judgments deliberately, that they did not carry out the decree of stoning to death or they carried it out only for ordinary people, that they concealed the attributes of Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) so as not to lose the favor of people and their posts while applying the laws means to sell the verses of Allah for a small price.  

- If the truth that Hazrat Muhammad was the true prophet became clear, scholars would have to obtain the information they needed from him. The rabbis and priests would lose their state of being religious authorities; they would have to stay in the background when people followed the new prophet. Those posts were also material posts apart from spiritual posts.  As a matter of fact, when the Byzantine king listened to the envoys of Hazrat Prophet (pbuh) and Abu Sufyan, who had not become a Muslim yet, he accepted that Muhammad was the true prophet but when the priests who were present there objected, he had to pretend that he was joking in order to keep his post.   

However, as it is stated clearly in the Quran, the Jewish rabbis who sold their religion for the world and who were used to leading their lives based on unjust profits like bribery would not only lose their posts but also their income...

It is permissible to sell the books and plates that contain verses from the Quran. It has nothing to do with the issue mentioned in the verse.

Although the people of Egypt were polytheists then, that verse indicates that they accept the existence of Allah. The fact that they exonerated Allah and that they likened Hazrat Yusuf to angels shows that they had the belief of Allah and angels. (Vehbi Efendi, Kur’an Tefsiri) The fact that the women exonerated Allah shows that there existed some leftovers of the religion of oneness.

The villages (or cities) of the Lot tribe were built by a road. This road is the one which is between Madinah and Damascus. Passengers who use this road, pass by the ruins of the villages of the Lot tribe and can still see them. They can observe the impact and the consequence of God’s rage and punishment because they did not become earth and their traces are still present.

According to an annotation by Ibn Abbas, the word “la bi sabilin” from the verse in the original text of the Qur’an was used in the meaning of “ still on the ruins (of a destroyed city)”.

While Mujahid states that “ it is on a marked road and it is not hidden from anyone”, Qatada says “ it is on an apparent road.”

In the destruction and punishment sent down on those cities or those places, there are proofs and warnings for believers because believers in God and His Prophet (pbuh) take lessons out of the traces they see and they know that this is a punishment from God for those ignorant people who refused to accept the truths. Unbelievers, however, deem such events as coincidental occurrings in the universe. ( Ali Arslan, Buyuk Kur’an Tefsiri, Arslan Publishing : 9:257,269)

Lot tribe vanishing from the scene of history is considered to be worth taking lessons from in many aspects and the ruin of their destruction in the city of Sodom is reported to still remain on that particular road as a sign of warning, and Quraysh people that Muhammad ( peace be upon him) was sent to address to are reminded to take as a lesson and warning from that ruins. ( Zamakhshari, II: 318; Ibn Atiyya, 370)

In this case,  people from Makkah who were working on trade, used to see the remainders of the city of Sodom in Paletsine, where Lot tribe had been living, during their commercial trip to Syrian territory. ( Zamakhshari, II:524)

According to Muhammad Asad’s note : The existence of this road in Northern Hejaz which follows the shore of the Dead Sea, where cities of Sodom and Gomorra lie in the north-east, and streches up to the north until Syria has been proved with amazing photographs in bird-eye view published by The American School of Oriental Research (New Haven, Connecticut).  These particular photographs clearly show this road as a bold line which leads a bit parallel to the eastern coast of the Dead Sea and curls up to the north. ( Interpretation of Qur’an by Religious Affairs, Kur’an Yolu : III : 324,325).

The expressions in various verses in the Quran can cause the understanding of the order of the creation of the earth and the sky differently. Therefore, interpreters have long examined the issue within the framework of the interpretation of especially the 29th verse of the Quran.  

Tabari (Tafsir Tabari, I/192-195.) quotes the opinions that reflect different views without mentioning his own view; Qurtubi mentions different views but says, “As Qatada says, Allah created the sky in the form of dukhan (gas) and then he organized the sky and put the world in order.(Tafsir Qurtubi I/256), mentioning his own view. If it is examined carefully, it will be seen that he points out that from one aspect, the earth, and from another aspect, the sky was created earlier.

Badiuzzaman Said Nursi dealt with the same issue in the interpretation of the 29th verse of the Chapter al-Baqara. 
According to him:

The 29th verse of the Chapter al-Baqara: “It is He Who hath created for you all things that are on earth; then He turned to heaven and made them into seven firmaments; and of all things He hath perfect knowledge.” shows that the earth was created first; the 30th verse of the Chapter an-Naziat: “And the earth, moreover; hath He extended (to a wide expanse); shows that the sky was created first; the 30th verse of the Chapter al-Anbiya: “Do not the Unbelievers see that the heavens and the earth were joined together (as one unit of Creation), before We clove them asunder? We made from water every living thing. Will they not then believe?” shows that they were created together.

The view of Badiuzzaman, who deals with the issue in terms of exact sciences is summarized as follows:

The theory that exact sciences accept about the creation the earth and the sky is as follows: The sun and the stars that are dependent on the sun that we see and that is called the solar system was a simple singularity; then it turned to a kind of vapor; a liquid fire originated from that vapor; then the liquid fire cooled and solidified. Then it threw away some big pieces with its violent movement; those pieces condensed and became planets. The earth we live on is one of them.  

Under the light of the explanations above, there can be conformity between the interpretation of the interpreters of the Quran and the exact sciences. As it is understood from the expression of the verse: " the heavens and the earth were joined together (as one unit of Creation), before We clove them asunder ", the solar system, which included the earth, was in the form of a dough kneaded from dark matter. Dark matter is a substance that is more fluent in comparison to other beings and penetrates through all of the beings like water.

The word water in the verse: “His Throne was over the Waters " (Hud, 11/7) indicates dark matter. That is, the throne of God Almighty was on dark matter, which was like water; Dark matter became the essence of the first inventions of the Exalted Creator after it was created. That is, after creating dark matter, the Great Maker transformed dark matter into elements; then He condensed some of them and transformed them into solid matters. Then, He created seven globes, one of which is inhabited. The earth is one of them. In terms of condensing, solidifying, being covered by a crust and being a source for life, the creation and formation of the earth is before the sky.

However, the perfection of the earth, its being made suitable for human beings to live is after the formation and arrangement of the skies. In this aspect, the creation of the earth is after the creation of the skies.

However, as it is expressed above, the sun, the earth and the stars that are dependent on the sun that we see and that is called the solar system was a simple singularity, that is the earth and the sky were together. As it is understood from that explanation, the issue that can be seen as a controversy at first sight is not a controversy, and on the contrary, it is the reflection of a laconic style used in order to indicate various forms of the creation phases. (see Nursi, İşârâtu'l-İ'caz, 286-287.) (Abu's-Suud dealt with the same issue using similar expressions: see. Irshadu'l-Aqli's-Selim ila Mazaya'l-Qur'ani'l-Karim, IX/102-103).

To sum up: While interpreting the verses in question, Badiuzzaman dealt with the issue in terms of new discoveries in the exact sciences. He stated that the earth and the sky were created from the same matter and added that although the cooling of the earth and the formation of its crust took place before the creation of the sky, the transformation of the earth into a state suitable for human beings to live and the final arrangement of it like a bed took place after the final transformation of the skies.

Accordingly, the different verses regarding the issue explain each of those different states separately. In one aspect, the formation and appearance of the skies is earlier in a sense. The breaking away and separation of the earth from the skies is later. Then, the earth was made suitable for life and in the fourth phase, the skies were arranged. That is, the issue started with the skies and ended with the sky by kind of drawing a curve.

Abrogation-abrogated (Naskh-mansukh)...

NASKH (ABROGATION): “To change a decree, to abrogate.”

NASIKH (ABROGATING): “Something that makes another thing invalid, something that changes other things.”

MANSUKH (ABROGATED): “Something that is (was) made invalid, Something that is (was) changed.”

AHKAM FAR’IYYA (SECONDARY DECREES): “Decrees that are not related to fundamentals.” “Decrees other than fundamental and unchangeable decrees.”

First, I would like state that naskh is mentioned in the Quran. The decrees of Islam abrogated the decrees of previous religions.

All of those naskhs took place in the secondary decrees related to worship and penal code not in the fundamental decrees and decrees related to creed.  

This fact is stated as follows in the Risale-i Nur Collection:

“Sacred Laws change depending on ages. Indeed, in one age different prophets may come, and they have come. Since subsequent to the Seal of the Prophets, his Greater Shariah is sufficient for all people in every age, no need has remained for different Laws.” Sözler (Words), 485

“One of the secondary decrees may be beneficial at a certain time and harmful at another time. A drug may be a cure for someone and trouble for another. Therefore, the Quran abrogated some secondary decrees. That is, their time ended, it is the turn of other decrees.” İşarât-ül İ’caz, 50

Fundamental decrees are the same for all prophets; they do not change, they are not abrogated. For instance, the principles of belief are the same in all true religions and worship is present in all of them. However, there are some differences in the secondary decrees of worship, that is, there are some differences in detail. Some naskhs took place in decrees like the form and time of worship, the direction of qibla (direction to be faced while praying).

In parallel to the material and spiritual progress Allah granted human beings, He abrogated some of the secondary decrees and ordered others instead. That change seen in the shariahs of prophets was not seen, in essence, in the shariah of the last prophet. The verse “This day have I perfected your religion for you, completed my favor upon you” (Chapter al-Maeda, 3) has stated it clearly. Since then, there has been and there will be no change in the times of prayers, qibla, decrees of halal (lawful, permissible) and haram (unlawful, forbidden), the month in which fasting is observed. However, some ijtihads were applied in decrees that could be regarded as details of shariah. For instance, witr prayer (final night prayer) is three rakats in all sects. However, the issue of performing three rakats (units) intermittently, or praying two rakats first, and then praying one rakat separately is something secondary. The issues that are not involved with fundamental decrees of the religion like those became subject to ijtihad.

On the other hand, as the verse points out, the perfection and completion of Islam did not take place at once, but in phases. During those phases, some secondary decrees were allocated. It should be understood easily; as a matter of fact, it should be regarded as evidence for the fact that Islam is a universal religion.

The fact that a decree was abrogated does not mean it was wrong and was replaced by the correct one. A verse regarding the issue:

“None of Our revelations do We abrogate or cause to be forgotten, but We substitute something better or similar.” Chapter al-Baqara, 106

The expression “something better or similar” in the verse is very important at this point. That is, the abrogated degrees are good like the new ones. The quality of being good for human beings is valid for all verses.

Let us give only one example: the verse in Chapter al-Kafiroon “To you be your religion, and to me my religion” was allocated by jihad verse. However, today, in many places in the world Chapter al-Kafiroon is valid. Muslims in non-Muslim countries do not interfere with the religion of that nation, like the first period in Makkah, and live their own religions. They do not choose the way to make jihad against them using arms. So the decree of the verse in Chapter al-Kafiroon was not abrogated, it will be applied exactly when there are appropriate conditions for it.

On the other hand, the relevant verses have some other meanings apart from their meaning in terms of fiqh; they were not abrogated. It is because they are not decrees. Let us give an example for it. It is said that the decree, “...Wherever you turn, there is Allah's countenance.” in verse 115 of Chapter al-Baqara was abrogated by verse 114 of the same chapter: “Turn then your face in the direction of the Sacred Mosque.” However, the meanings of the first verse that denote beyond the direction of qibla, are still valid.  Wherever man looks, he sees another work of Allah, and reads another divine name that is manifest there. In this sense, we are surrounded by signs and evidence that inform us about Allah and direct us towards Allah. Another meaning of the verse denotes the following: if a person does not know the direction of qibla and cannot find anybody to ask, he does not quit prayer; he performs prayer by turning towards the direction he estimates to be qibla. Even if he estimates the direction of qibla incorrectly, his prayer is valid. “Wherever you turn, there is Allah's countenance.” It can be said that the decree of the verse is still valid under some conditions.

Some of the verses that were subject to abrogation teach human beings a lesson in a different area. For instance, alcoholic drinks were prohibited gradually. A very good divine guidance is hidden in it, showing us that it is necessary to have patience while correcting wrong behaviors of people and that it is not right to utter, at the beginning, the word that is difficult to accept and that needs to be uttered in the end. What is more, the meanings of those verses are still true. The first verse says, “In alcohol is great sin, and some profit for men; but the sin is greater than the profit”. This decree is true today, too. It is a fact that alcohol is used in pharmaceutical industry and that alcohol gives a person a temporary ease when it is taken. In the second phase, it was prohibited to approach prayer when drunk. That decree is still valid. It is still necessary today that a drunken person should not approach prayer. In the third phase, alcohol was prohibited completely and made haram.

Abrogation is also present in the book of the universe, but the abrogated things are not void or mistaken. For instance, first man was created directly out of the dust of the ground, then that decree was abrogated; after that, men have been born out of their mothers. Both ways are nice.

When we consider the day and night, the changing of seasons, the childhood, youth and senility phases of man, and the phases of the universe, we will see endless abrogation. Each of them is nice in their place.

Prof. Dr. Alaaddin Başar

Allah is All-Knowing, Almighty and All-Powerful. He knows everything and he knows well the ones who deserve His mercy and His guidance.

While the former verse informs that anyone who wills takes a straight path toward their Creator in the guidance of the Qur’an, in this verse it is stated that Allah will grant his mercy to the ones whom He wills. That means sincere believers give themselves in to God’s will along with their egos.

Our creation and coming to life in the country and the world that we are in, our presence in a certain family and community comes into existence out of our will. They took place by the relevation of divine will. They exist according to His plan, which He prepared with His eternal knowledge and will.

After coming to life and reaching the age of “responsibility” which is to say that the age of discretion, our wills start to take part in our lives. We are desired to be led by being notified with divine commands. At this point, we need to stop and think. That is, after notification and showing the right way, a person is let to choose with their own will; on the other hand, God’s will prevails as stated in the verse “you cannot will (to do so) unless God” ( The Qur’an, At-Takwir, 81:29). We can conclude this as “man is bound by the divine will within a certain limit”. A person can find the right path if He wills, but if not, he cannot.

In this case, what are people held responsible for? If we just look only at the outer appearance of the verse without analyzing the indicated meaning, we might think that the claims of the Qadariyyah and Jabriyyah schools turn out to be correct. However, the matter is of ultimate importance and subtlety. It is hard to come to a conclusion unless its wisdom is comprehended. As stated in the related verse, Allah tells us about the limit of possibility and will that He has put between Him and with His people; in other words, a border of right path. That is, unless a person reaches the level of that border with the help of his mind, intelligence and will, and religious advice and knowledge, God will not manifest His supreme will, and for this reason, the door of guidance path will not open for him.

Do we not encounter this limit in almost every matter? Without plowing and without any strife, by only sprinkling seeds onto dry soil, how can we expect yield from these seeds? People are obliged to do what they are expected to in this matter, and then, the rest depends on the divine will. At that point, we cannot will unless God wills. Unless He manifests his guidance and help, we cannot enter the right path and cannot benefit from the job we have started. 

We can summarize the issue as below:

There is no such a decree like compulsion or invalidity of human will. What this is all about is the situation of crossing the limits of possibility and will that we mentioned above. When that limit is crossed, divine will and guidance of the Almighty God play their roles above all sorts of will; He opens the door of guidance for the ones whom He wills or he does not open for those whom He does not will. The door of guidance will not open for the ones who have not been able to use the will and as a result, will not be able to take themselves to the mentioned border.

The statement “You cannot will unless God wills” describes the ability to choose and to wish which Allah has installed in the creation of human; no extra meaning is included because bestowal of this kind of ability on humankind is emphasized in a number of verses in the Qur’an with definite and clear expressions. Thus, we can count this as a strong principle of Islamic teaching. Moreover, the one who desires this will and ability to be available in man is Allah, the Almighty, Himself. For this reason, the choice of guidance or deviation by a person is within this extent. That is to say, as far as we comprehend, there is no contradiction. The fact that the consoles the Prophet ( peace be upon him) due to negative reactions he received, that deniers are described as “evil ones” as if it was their basic quality is a strong clue of their deviation from guidance and deserving Allah’s punishment because of their evil intentions and unjust deeds . And it stands as a message for us to interpret the statement “He takes the ones whom He wills to a right path” as “the ones with well-intentions and who desire to enter the right path.   

If God did not grant us wills in this world as a requirement of the position and the trial of this world and He did not let us choose whatever we wanted, then nobody would have this kind of right to choose. O people! That is, you should know, to say that your ability to choose denying or rebellion depends on God’s permission. If He had taken hold of the rope around your necks from the time you were born onwards, just like angels, mountains, rocks, sky, the moon, stars, the sun and plants and so on, in other words, if you had been created without your wills, none of you would have had the right to choose whatever you wanted.

Only man is provided with this opportunity. Freedom of rebelling and challenging has only been given to man in accordance with Allah’s law. This is because the obedience of man is much different from other creatures, which is to say that human’s obedience to Allah is different from the slave’s obedience to his master. Since freedom to rebel has been granted, man’s obedience is a lot more precious. Angels, mountains, skies, stars, the moon, animals and plants are also Allah’s servants but their obedience is their usual nature.

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“And slay them wherever ye catch them, and turn them out from where they have turned you out; for tumult and oppression are worse than slaughter……” (al-Baqara,191) What does this verse mean?

In Surah Al-Tawba, it is announced, “Slay the idolaters wherever you find them.” (9/5) How do you explain this verse?

In general, we can say that living beings were created from drinking water, that is, rain water. As a matter of fact, water is also important for the maintenance of life. Hazrat Adam, the first human being, was created from earth and water, and the other human beings were created from sperm, which is a kind of water.

Everything that is living, whether it is an animal or a human being, was created from water. Some scholars say what is meant by water here is sperm. However, in that case, it will be necessary to attribute the concept of living to some living beings. However, if the word water is used in its known, general meaning, the phrase “everything that has life” will cover plants, too, along with animals. Doubtlessly, the relation of both animals and plants with water is a very well known fact.

The divine message states that human beings and all living beings were created from water and earth; in fact, the things that constitute the essential material of living beings consist of the elements that are present in earth and water. It has scientifically been determined that the human organism consists of 30% organic material (solid matter) and 70% water.

"He created man from sounding clay like unto pottery" (ar-Rahman 14)

It is stated that Adam was created from clay (mud), that is, a mixture of earth and water, to put it more clearly, clay shaped from dry mud, and then he was revived after divine soul was breathed into it.

In fact, it is known that the essential material that forms not only human beings but also all living beings consists of the elements in the earth and water, and that especially the human organism consists of 30% organic material (solid matter) and 70% water. If that composition is taken into consideration, it is seen that the human organism has a structure consisting of mostly water.

Wronging One’s Own Soul: 

Wronging one’s own soul means to walk in the direction which Allah has forbidden. Actually, no matter whom one wrongs - Allah or other people - he is regarded to wrong his very own soul every time. This is because one who does something unfair will himself suffer its results sooner or later. As a matter of fact, the Quran says: “And if any one earns sin, he earns it against His own soul…” (an-Nisa, 4:111) In this sense, attitudes such as, attributing partners to Allah, unbelief, denying the verses and decrees, not believing in the Day of Judgment are all considered as wronging one’s own soul, when evaluated in terms of creed. 

“It was not We that wronged them: They wronged their own souls: the deities, other than God, whom they invoked, profited them no whit when there is sued the decree of thy Lord: Nor did they add aught (to their lot) but perdition!” (Hud, 11:101) 

“Evil as an example are people who reject Our Signs and wrong their own souls.” (al-Araf, 7: 177) 

When we approach the subject in terms of deeds, we see that many verses in the Quran evaluate lots of deeds, which are minor and major sins, as “wronging one’s own soul”. Homicide, exceeding the limits drawn by Allah, keeping women and preventing them from re-marrying after divorcing them and the likes are all indeed wronging one’s own soul. 

The phrase “wronging one’s own soul” is mentioned in the subjective form determining the “soul” in two places in the Quran (al-Nisa, 97/al-Nahl, 28). And others are in the form of passive voice. 

Another point about wronging one’s own soul in the Quran, which captures our attention, is as follows: In four places in the Quran, there is confession of wronging one’s own soul because of sins committed and Allah’s forgiveness is sought. These supplications are responded and accepted by Allah. In these supplications, the translations of which we are going to give below, Muslims are somewhat taught how a good example of supplication should be. First, we are going to accept, confess and declare our sin and guilt and then we are going to seek Allah’s forgiveness.

Adam and Eve, after having eaten the forbidden fruit, regretted it and sought Allah’s forgiveness through the following words: “They said: "Our Lord! We have wronged our own souls: If thou forgive us not and bestow not upon us Thy Mercy, we shall certainly be lost."” (al-Araf, 7:23)

We see the same in Prophet Jonah’s supplication: “And remember Zun-nun, when he departed in wrath: He imagined that We had no power over him! But he cried through the depths of darkness, "There is no god but thou: glory to thee: I was indeed wrong!"” (al-Anbiya, 21:87)

“Zun-nun” means the owner of fish. This refers to Prophet Jonah here., Because the people upon whom he was sent as a prophet did not listen to his call, Prophet Jonah left them without waiting for Allah’s permission and boarded on a ship. One of the passengers on the ship had to be thrown into the sea because the ship would not move or it would sink. They cast lots and as a result, they threw Jonah into the sea. A fish swallowed him in the sea. The fish left Jonah, who supplicated to Allah for a while in the stomach of the fish, on a shore.

The Queen of Sheba, Balqis, used the same expressions when converting into Islam and seeking Allah’s forgiveness: “She said: "O my Lord! I have indeed wronged my soul: I do (now) submit (in Islam), with Solomon, to the Lord of the Worlds.” (an-Naml, 27:44)

As we stated in the beginning of our subject, no matter whom one wrongs, Allah or other people, he indeed happens to wrong his very own soul because the sins one has committed are only against his very own self. So, in this sense, what kind of a situation are those who have wronged their own souls in? After all that we have written about wronging one’s own soul so far, we can come up with this conclusion: If one has wronged his own soul by attributing partners to Allah, Allah states in the surah an-Nisa that He will not forgive them. If one has wronged his own soul by violating others’ rights, nothing can save him from the suffering of this guilt and sin, as the only way of repentance he has got is to compensate for them and seek their forgiveness. Actually, hadiths say nobody can get away with what they have done and on the Day of Judgment; Allah will take the wronged ones’ revenge on the wrong-doers. If one has wronged his own soul in a way that is outside these two ones, Allah says that He is very forgiving and protective of such people when they seek forgiveness: “If any one does evil or wrongs his own soul but afterwards seeks God's forgiveness, he will find God Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.” (an-Nisa, 4:110).

“Say: "Are they ever equal, those who know and those who do not know? " Only the people of discernment will reflect (on the distinction between knowledge and ignorance, and obedience to God and disobedience,) and be mindful.” (the Qur’an, az-Zumar 39:9)

In this verse, the difference between the ones who consider God’s various works and blessings and as a result of this consideration decide on the belief in the oneness of God and the ones who remain unwary and stray from the right path is emphasized.

Ignorant, ignorance: They are used to describe a person who does not know how to do something, who has no experience and in every day speech, who is unaware of knowledge and understanding. The state of an ignorant person is called ignorance. Ignorance also means to be against knowledge and not to know.

Knowledge means to know; knowledge is the best of everything, whereas ignorance is the opposite of it, the worst of everything. While people who possess knowledge are considered respected and praiseworthy people, ignorant people are always looked down on.

The Qur’an describes the deniers as people “who are quite heedless (of truth) in an abyss of ignorance.” (the Qur’an, adh-Dhariyat, 51:11). And in order to avoid the ignorant people, believers are commanded:” (Even so, O Messenger) adopt the way of forbearance and tolerance, and enjoin what is good and right, and withdraw from the ignorant ones (do not care what they say or do).”  (the Qur’an, Al-A’raf, 7:199).  People who lack of knowledge are like the blind: “Are they ever equal, those who know and those who do not know” ( the Qur’an, az-Zumar 39:9). “Similarly those who can see and who cannot are not equal”

Ignorant people try to get away from those who have chosen the guidance of knowledge and truth to lead them and who are clever because the ignorant people who have been infected with delusions of grandeur understand nothing from the knowledgeable people who are modest. The ignorant people can only see the external appearance and crust of everything. They think they know everything and claim nonsense stuff. However, they cannot comprehend that there is a perceivable side behind the visible side. Their precautions and thoughts are rootless and weak. For this reason, “The ignorant people have been described as “living dead”; “dead while alive”. Jesus (peace be upon him) said, “I managed to bring the dead back to life but I could not do it to the ignorant people”.

Among people, there is a well-known expression that people consider as a hadith: “the enmity of an intelligent person is better that the friendship of an ignorant person”.

Ali (may God be pleased with him) said, “People envy the one who are wise. And the ignorant people become enemies for those who are wise”. In the past, In Islamic societies, when people were angry with a wise person, he was imprisoned next to an ignorant person and forced to live with him as a punishment. This is why, the expression “Even if you give a dime to an ignorant person, do not indulge him”.

Qur'an is the word of Allah. It is not permissible to touch the Qur'an without ablution since in the 79th verse of the surah Al-waqıa (56th surah) it is said; “(the Quran) Which none shall touch but those who are clean.” Although some commentators comment on this verse in another way, Islamic scholars have reached a consensus that touching the Qur’an without ablution is not permissible.

However, one without ablution can read Qur’an without touching it and one can recite the surahs those one knows by heart.

If one needs to perform full ablution (ghusl), one cannot read or recite the Qur’an or cannot touch it as well. One can recite some verses and surahs like Ayatal- Kursi, Fatiha and Ikhlas with the intention of praying.

It is not permissible to touch the Quran without ablution.

However, it is permissible to look at and read it without ablution. And the computer is not a book of the Quran. In this sense, it is permissible to read the Quran on the internet and cell phone without ablution. Nevertheless, without full ablution (ghusl), when one is supposed to have, it is not permissible to read the Quran, even by heart.

First of all, we should state that that crime may have been committed at various times. However, it became widespread and turned to a tradition during the time of Hazrat Lot.
The issue you ask about is mentioned in the 80th and 81st verses of the chapter al-Araf and the 28th verse of the chapter al-Ankabut in the Quran.
The translation and explanation of those verses are as follows:
Translation
80. We also (sent) Lut: he said to his people: "Do ye commit lewdness such as no people in creation (ever) committed before you?”
81. "For ye practise your lusts on men in preference to women: ye are indeed a people transgressing beyond bounds."
Hazrat Lot is the son of Haran, the brother of Hazrat Ibrahim (Abraham). In the Islamic resources, he is mentioned as Lot, the son of Haran, who is the son of Tarah. He left Iraq together with Ibrahim; according to what is mentioned in the Torah, Lot was appointed as a prophet in Sodom and Gomorrah near the Dead Sea. The people who lived there regarded denying God and homosexuality legitimate. Hazrat Lot criticized them due to their practice of homosexuality, which they practiced to such a great extent that it had never been so common in any nation; he told them that he was a trustable messenger, that they should obey him and that they should obey Allah’s call by fearing Allah (see ash-Shuara 26/160-164); he defined them as “squanderers” due to what they did.  It is understood that the word ‘squander’, which means “transgressing sensible criteria and measures is used for sexual perversion here.
The claim that Hazrat Lot’s daughters got their father to drink wine, lay with him and became pregnant (Genesis, 19/32-37) is a foul slander even for an ordinary man, let alone a prophet.
Although the punishment for fornication is determined in the Quran and Sunnah, the punishment for homosexuality, which is forbidden because it is perversion and offensiveness, is not determined; therefore, Muslim scholars proposed various ways of execution like stoning to death, burning, knocking down a wall on and throwing down from a high place for homosexuality. Imam Abu Hanifa and some other scholars regarded tazir punishment (punishment other than death decided by the judge) sufficient for homosexuality. (see Ibn Ashur, VIII/2, p. 232-234).
The translation of the 28th verse of the chapter al-Ankabut:
And (remember) Lut; behold he said to his people: "Ye do commit lewdness, such as no people in Creation (ever) committed before you.”
Allah arranged natural reproduction and sexual life in the system of existence in the form of intercourse between the male and female. It is stated clearly in those verses and other verses of the relevant chapters that the only legitimate way of intercourse for men was marrying women; homosexuality was forbidden definitely in the same verses; it was stated that the punishment for the society in which homosexuality was common was a grave disaster.

‘We know indeed that they say "It is a man that teaches him." The tongue of him they wickedly point to is notably foreign, while this is Arabic pure and clear.’ (an-Nahl 103)

As it is known, the Quran is the name of words that indicate the meaning sent down to Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) through Jibril (Gabriel) by God Almighty. It was revealed to the heart of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) not only as meaning but also as words. As a matter of fact, from the verses that express that the Quran is in Arabic in ten different places in the Quran,

“Verily this is a Revelation from the Lord of the Worlds: With it came down the Spirit of Faith and Truth― To thy heart and mind, that thou mayest admonish, In the perspicuous Arabic tongue.” (ash-Shuara 26/192-195)

“Thus have we sent this down― Arabic Qur'an.” (Ta-Ha 20/113)

“(It is) a Qur'an in Arabic, without any crookedness (therein): in order that they may guard against Evil.” (Zumar, 39/28)

“A Book, whereof the verses are explained in detail― a Qur'an in Arabic, for people who understand.” (Fussilat, 41/3) (Yusuf, 12/2; Ra’d, 13/37; an-Nahl, 16/103; ash-Shura, 42/7; az-Zukhruf, 43/3; al-Ahqaf, 46/12) it is understood clearly and definitely that not only the meaning but also the words are included in the content of the concept ‘the Quran’.

The Quran is in Arabic. Some people may claim that there are some Persian, Turkish, Hindi and Abyssinian words in it and give some examples saying that there are foreign words in the Quran but it is not a valid claim. Every living nation borrows words from other languages and adapts them. 

The Quran is a clear Arabic book. That is, anyone who knows Arabic can understand the Quran. There may be some words in the Quran that were borrowed from other languages beforehand but they are already Arabic words. They are words used in Arabic. Here, there is an accusation just for the sake of claiming without considering linguistics. It is something that is observed in every language not only in Arabic. Every language borrows words from other languages and uses them. The same thing is valid for Turkish. The fact that some words come from other languages does not mean that a sentence is not Turkish. On the contrary, even if almost all of the words in a sentence are borrowed words from other languages, it is a clear sentence that everybody can understand. The Quran was written in understandable Arabic like that. In the verses above, that aspect of the Quran is emphasized.

The Quran was sent down in the language of Arabic. In many verses, the Quran is described as being in Arabic.
The Messenger of Allah read the Quran to his tribe in a clear language, Arabic, that is, in the language of Quraish, which was spoken in Hejaz and Makkah fifteen centuries ago. There is no doubt about it. However, it should be known that Arabic was a language in that period, a language with different dialects. The Quran was sent down in the dialect of Quraish because Makkah was a cultural center; the most beautiful Arabic was spoken there.

Makkah was both the cultural center of Arabs and a trade center, with the season of pilgrimage, the Kaaba, fairs of Ukaz, Dhul-Majaz and Majannah, which were also literary societies. Arab tribes and trade caravans went to the north and south and contacted other nations. Those who went to the north contacted the Christians that were subject to the Byzantines and those who went to the northeast contacted Iranian fire worshippers. During those contacts, they acquired information about culture, civilization, literature, etc. The transfer of civilization and culture from one nation to the other takes place through contacts. Neighboring nations learn from each other. During those contacts and commercial relations, Persian and Greek words entered Arabic. The greatest culture is language. The first thing that is influenced as a result of the contacts of nations with one another is the language. Through the same process, words from Syriac, Hebrew and even Turkish entered Arabic. The people of Makkah and Hejaz had contacts with the Jews too. The Jews were located on the trade way. The trade caravans that went to the south had similar contacts too. There were even some Iranians, Greeks, Egyptians and Abyssinians although very few that lived in Makkah, which was a trade center. Doubtlessly, they learned Arabic. It is natural that many words entered Arabic through them.  

So, words from other languages entered Arabic. Is there a language in the world that did not borrow any words from other languages? Do common words not exist in the languages that are regarded as distant to each other? There are so many words in the languages that belong to the same group. There are many common words in French, English, German and Persian. Those languages have words borrowed from Arabic too. There are many Persian words in Turkish, and many Turkish words in Persian. Similarly, there are words from other languages in Arabic. The scholars of Islam determined those words.

Abdullah Ibn Mesud is the Sahaba (companion of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)) who read the Quran aloud first.

When Abdullah Ibn Mesud became Muslim, Muslims could not openly perform their worships along with our Prophet (PBUH) and could not recite aloud the Quran. Such an act of Muslims provoked the ignorantly behaviors of Mushriks (polytheists) and made them to attack criminally and violently on Muslims. Therefore, Muslims to preserve themselves from the danger of polytheists, they abstained from the behaviors that agitate polytheists against them. Thus, in those hard days Abdullah Ibn Mesud wanted to recite Quran in the Ka’bah. Our Prophet (PBUH) and his companions told him that it was a dangerous act, there wasn’t a powerful family with him in Mecca to protect him and polytheists would act cruelty against him and torture him, but with his exalted faith he dealt with all these troubles and he said “Allah protects me from their cruelty” and went to the Ka’bah.
At the same time the elder polytheists of Quraysh assembled in Harem and discussed on a topic. While they were discussing, he (Abdullah Ibn Mesud) recited Bismillah firstly and started to read surah Ar-Rahman from the Quran with a fascinating voice. Everybody was astonished and when they turned towards him to find out who this brave man was, they realized that he was Abdullah Ibn Mesud. Polytheists of Quraysh got angry with him and wanted to punish him with a severest punishment. They laid him down on a hot desert and forced him to abandon the Islam religion. But Ibn Mesud never paid even the least little bit attention to their punishment. They set him free when they realized that punishment will not change his mind. 
Abdullah Ibn Mesud became sick because of such disloyal behavior of polytheists, but his exalted light of belief and spirituality never died down. At the earliest opportunity, Ibn Mesud did the same act, near the assembly of the Quraysh’s polytheists he recite the Quran with his loudest voice again, so he is the one who conveyed Islam to the polytheists by reciting the Quran aloud first in the Ka’bah after our Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). (Ibnu’l-Esir, Usdu’l-Gabe, III, 256-257)

The religion of Islam does not consider polytheists (those associating partners to Allah) and the people of the Book, namely Christians and Jews, as the same. In the Surah of Al-Maidah, Allah (SWT) announces, The food of the People of the Book is lawful unto you and yours is lawful unto them (Al-Maidah Surah, 3:5). There can be economical and commercial ties with them. The following part of the verse reads that Muslim men can marry chaste women from the people of the Book. Yet a Muslim is not allowed to marry an idolater.


We deem it useful to show these Quranic verses about the people of the Book:

Say: "O People of the Book! Come to common terms as between us and you: that we worship none but Allah; that we associate no partners with Him; that we erect not, from among ourselves, Lords, and patrons other than Allah." (Al-i-Imran Surah, 3:64)

And dispute ye not with the People of the Book, except with means better (than mere disputation), unless it be with those of them who inflict wrong (and injury); but say, "We believe in the Revelation which has come down to us and in that which came down to you; our God and your God is One; and it is to Him we bow (in Islam)." (Al-Ankabut Surah, 29:46)

Strongest among men in enmity to the Believers wilt thou find the Jews and Pagans; and nearest among them in love to the Believers wilt thou find those who say, "We are Christians" (Al-Maidah Surah, 5:82)

"Some people say the khatm of the Qoran can only be done by reciting it personally."

The first rehearsing of the Qoran was made by our Prophet (PBUH) and Jibril in the form of one of them reciting and the other listening. In the hadith the rehearsing of the Qoran by our Prophet (PBUH) and Jibril is referred to as "recite reciprocally". The translator of Bukhari, Ayni, explains it as follows:

"Our Prophet and Jibril used to recite the Qoran reciprocally. This reciting was continued by hafizes of the Qoran (hafiz: a person who memorized the whole Qoran). One of them would recite, say, ten verses and the other would listen, and then vice versa; it was a reciprocal reciting."(1)

Today in our mosques and masjids one or more hafizes recite a juz (20 pages) every day; the Muslims who can read the Qoran observe and follow it from the Qoran, those who do not, just listen to it. On the last day of Ramadan the thirtieth juz is recited and so a khatm is done.

Here not only the hafizes that recite the Qoran but also the people who observe and follow it and also those who listen to it regularly for a month are regarded to have done a khatm and acquire rewards from Allah. (2)

As for listening to the Qoran from a tape or video, some say it will not be regarded as a khatm. However, these devices can be used to help us recite the Qoran correctly. People who listen to the Qoran using these devices should learn to recite the Qoran in time and try to do khatm themselves.

However, since the Qoran is saintly, we hope that those who observe, follow and listen to it from a tape, radio, computer or television will acquire the reward of khatm.

For instance the reflections of the sunlight in the mirror, its heat and colors have the same properties as the sun. Similarly, the recitation of the Qoran by reflecting them in different devices can have its properties.

References:
1. Umdatu'l-Kari, 1:75.
2. Mehmed Paksu Çağın Getirdiği Sorular

Badiuzzaman Said Nursi explains this subject as follows:

If you say: We frequently offer supplications, but they are not accepted. But the verse is general, it states that every supplication is answered.

The Answer:

To answer is one thing, to accept is something quite different. Every supplication is answered, but its being accepted and exactly what was sought being given is dependent on Almighty God’s wisdom. For example, if a sick child calls the doctor, saying: “Doctor! Doctor!”, and he replies: “Here I am, what do you want?”, and the child says: “Give me that medicine!”, the doctor will either give him exactly what he asks for or something better and more beneficial for him. Or knowing that medicine is harmful for his illness, he will give him nothing.

Thus, since Almighty God is all-present and all-seeing, He responds to the supplications of His servants. Through His presence and response, He transforms the desolation of loneliness and solitude into familiarity. But He does this, not in accordance with man’s capricious and importunate demands, but in accordance with the requirements of dominical wisdom; He gives either what is sought or what is better than it, or He gives nothing at all. (The Words-Twenty-Third Word)

Besides there are glorious hadiths on this subject as a hadith narrated by Abu Hurairah, Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) says as follows:

 “Your prayers are answered, unless you hasten, However, there are some who hasten by saying, 'I prayed, but no answer came.” Another riwayah of Muslim: “Unless a believer demands to have sin or breaks the Silat-Ur-Rahim-(Keeping Family Ties/establishing them) his/her prayers are accepted.” Again a riwayah from Tirmidhi: “Anyone who prays to Allah (SWT), He will answer them. This will be either in this world or in the hereafter or as long as he/she prays, his/her sins will be erased on condition that he/she does not demand to have sin and want to break the Silat-Ur-Rahim or hasten to see the results of his prayers”. (Tirmidhi, Daawat 145)

As it is understood from the hadith given; A person’s prayers are accepted as long as he/she does not demand things that are considered haram or sin.

Allah stated: Call on me so that I will answer your prayers. Since both supplication and worshipping have been mentioned, it is necessary to interpret supplication as worshipping or to interpret worshipping as supplication; tafsir scholars explained it in two ways. The first one is this: As it is stated in many places in the Quran, supplication is used in the sense of worshipping; so it means worship me and I will reward you. According to the interpretation reported from Ibn Abbas, Dahhak and Mujahid, asking is not carried out by the tongue but by the deeds. The following explanation would be suitable for this meaning: Those who turn away from worshipping, that is, who do not want to worship me due to their conceit will definitely enter Hell in a despicable and humiliated form. The second one is as follows: “Call on Me; I will answer you” means ask from me; that is what is reported from Suddi and what is understood at first glance. However, according to this interpretation, it is necessary to interpret supplication as worshipping. The fine point in expressing it in two ways is to state that worshipping necessitates supplication and supplication necessitates worshipping; on the other hand, supplication is like the bone marrow of worshipping; worshipping is one of the conditions of the acceptance of the prayer.

This command of supplication is very important. Here, the expression of man’s free will and the rejection of force are present. Whether it means worshipping or supplication, asking is commanded for both of them; asking was laid as a condition for the grant of Allah. It was such a condition that since the lack of the condition necessitates the lack of the thing that is stipulated, the threat of entering Hell is mentioned for abandoning it. Then, the command is used for obligation; as for the issue of answering the supplication, it depends on asking as it is stated in the following verse:  “Nay― On Him would ye call, and if it be his Will He would remove (the distress) which occasioned your call upon Him…” (al-Anam, 6/41)  That is, what is understood from it is that the hypothesis of the condition is not universal but ignored. It depends on some conditions as it is expressed by the following verse: “To Him mount up (all) Words of Purity: it is He Who exalts each Deed of Righteousness.” (Fatir 35/10) Therefore, it is mentioned together with worshipping here. The following is reported from Ka’b in Kashshaf: “Allah gave three properties to this ummah; he did not give them to anybody except the prophets He sent from His place. Allah said to every prophet, “You are my witness over people” and He said the following to this ummah: “That ye might be witnesses over the nations” (al-Baqara, 2/143)

Allah said, “there is no difficulty to you “as it is expressed by this verse: “There can be no difficulty to the Prophet in what Allah has indicated to him as a duty” (al-Ahzab, 33/38); He said the following to this ummah: “Allah doth not wish to place you in a difficulty” (al-Maida, 5/6) Allah said, “Pray me; I will answer you.” He said to this ummah: “Call on Me; I will answer your (Prayer)” (Ghafir, 40/60)

 “Call on Me; I will answer your (Prayer)” also means this: Call me so that I will answer you. That is, ask me from me, I will answer you; you will find me. He who finds me finds everything because the following is stated in the Quran: “Verily, when He intends a thing, His command is "Be" and it is!” (Yasin, 36/82), which is the prayer that is never rejected. In some resources, the following is stated: “He who demands me finds me.” Those who keep away from worshipping me, that is, who are too conceited to demand me through prayer will be kept away from me and will be despicable and humiliated in the hell of deprivation. (Hak dini Kur'an dili)  

The interpretation of the related verse:

“If we had wanted it so, we could have led everyone to the right path. But, this word of Mine will definitely come into reality : ‘ I will fill Hell with some of the jinns and the humans’.” ( the Qur’an, as-Sajdah, 32:13).

Before and after this verse and the verse itself, a scene from the hereafter is portrayed vividly and people are strongly warned for the hereafter: After the deadline of the test, which is the very wisdom in the creation of this world, ends, beginning to believe and feeling remorseful will be of no use. For this reason, before death arrives, everyone must make up their minds and utilize the opportunity granted to them before facing the reality of Allah’s infinite knowledge.

If Allah, the Almighty had willed, He could have definitely got people to follow the right path in their worldly lives. However, He desired to make this life meaningful by making it a place for testing of conscious beings and He informed them whom He held responsible of this wisdom. For this reason, God’s informing that He will fill Hell with some of the jinn and humans bears the meaning of not a sentencing in advance but on the contrary, a reminding of the opportunity they have been granted. In the same way, in the following fourteenth verse, the statement “taste the punishment because you acted in oblivious heedlessness of (the appointment I gave you for) this Day” defines that the punishment for the sinners is bound to a reason and this punishment is definitely a reprisal for what they have committed. Moreover, in a number of verses and hadiths, it is stated that a person will not be punished for a sin which he/she has not committed and even sins can be forgiven based on a suitable way of repentance and similar reasons and on the other hand, they will be rewarded for any good deed he/she has committed.

If Allah, he Almighty had willed, He could have kept people away from the factor which is called nafs (soul) and which mostly suggests evil to them and leads them to that destination. He also could have granted it the nature of an angel and brought it to a level which would have become an obedient servant for Him in all aspects. Or with the inspiration of the angels, He could have raised the soul to very supreme levels with the manifestation of His power that way and by making bad desires of the soul ineffective, He could have made man an angel in a sense.

Yes, If Allah had willed so, He would have determined one path for all the humans and that would have been the right path. As a matter of fact, Allah, the Almighty has determined one route for the creatures who find their ways with the help of instincts and inspiration installed in their inborn nature. Insects, birds and other sorts of animals follow only one path during their life times. Creatures like angels do nothing but obey God. Nevertheless, God’s will wants this creature called human to possess a special nature and ability to choose either the right path or the wrong paths, and also He wants him to choose either guidance for the right path or keep away from it if he wants to do so. Allah has provisioned people to carry out their duties they have taken on in the universe thanks to this special nature Allah bestowed on their innateness according to the purpose and the wisdom Allah has installed in the project of all of the beings. For this reason, Allah, the Almighty determined filling Hell with jinn and humans who have chosen deviation and the path that leads to Hell as an unchangeable decree.

Then why did He not create like this; What would have happened, what kind of drawbacks would have occurred?

As already known, divine power is at the level of perfection; that is, it has no limits and an end. For this reason, He is able to do what He wishes. For Him, concepts like difficulty, distress, obstruction etc are out of question. He is clean and free from deficient attributes. However, when He willed to create man in the best appearance and with the best features, He also created things for him in order to get him to know his Creator and to worship Him. Allah created man like neither  angels nor animals, bestowing on him features between these two kinds; He desired man to experience both worldly life and life in the hereafter. Therefore, both of those lives complete each other and one reflects the wisdom and the purpose with the help of the other.

Worldly life is completely a period of action, struggle, working hard and meeting needs. In order to provide them, man is given the soul and emotions like wish, will and desire related to the soul. Yet, books and prophets were sent to help us keep these emotions within legal and acceptable limits.

If man had been created like angels, there would have been no need for the present order; in fact, there would have been no need for man to be created on the earth and this would have been against the divine wisdom.

Because of the reasons and wisdom like these, Allah did not create human as an angel or like an angel but equipped him with both angelic and animal features and placed him in the plan and after that by informing him about the good and the bad and explaining their advantages and disadvantages, He set man free. Therefore, man has been held responsible for whatever he will do in this world and been informed that he will be called to account for his deeds in their second lives ( in the hereafter).

And about the divine word in the verse :

The divine word that emerged from Allah, is a decree based on how humans will spend their lives according to present resources and environment, whether they can enter the right path by means of their mind and perception, if they can see the divine seal on things and see the traces of divine art on them and whether they leave the right one and follow evil. Also, this decree is based on whether they are defeated by their will and they will let it control them, and if they will make use of the prophet’s guidance and preaching. As His knowledge will not fail, His decree based on His knowledge will not change.

Here is the meaning of His promising to fill Hell with jinn and humans. Otherwise, it is not that Allah will deliver these two different creatures to Hell regardless of their deeds and inclinations of their wills. So then, in that case, testing and trial would be meaningless, prayers would lack wisdom and good and bad deeds would be but deception. Allah is free from setting such an order.

It is understood from the clear statement of the verse that jinn are also held responsible with divine proposals as humans are. For this reason, Our Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) is called Rasul ath-Thaqalayn (Prophet of humans and jinn), which shows He is the prophet of humans and jinn and the prophet of this world and the hereafter.

As a matter of fact, in the 56th verse from the surah Adh-Dhariyat, the following is stated :

“I have not created the jinn and humankind but to (know and) worship Me (exclusively).” ( the Qur’an, adh-Dhariyat, 51:56)

So, in that case, from the 13th verse of the surah As-Sajdah, we must conclude the following : Paradise and Hell should not be deemed as  components of symbolic expression but should be understood as information that has been sent down by means of divine inspiration on the life in the hereafter and as truths that make us keep constantly in mind the consciousness of responsibility. ( see Tabari, Razi, Shawkani, Ibn Ashur, Department of Religious Affairs, Celal Yildirim, the interpretation of the related verse).

Firstly, we should not forget that it is very easy it is to prove the existence of something; it is similarly hard to prove its non-existence. For instance, it is enough to present certain pieces of evidence to prove the reality of the event of “Seven Sleepers”. However, to prove that such an event did not take place, one has to travel to all the past times, study all the history books, rebut hundreds of proofs showing that the Qur’an is Allah’s word, disprove the hundreds of miracles which are the documents of Muhammad’s prophethood, peace and blessings upon him, and which are handed down to us from sound sources. Only by this way can one assert such a claim. As it is impossible to realize those conditions, it is not possible to disprove the event of “Seven Sleepers”, either.

Those criteria that we have mentioned are each scientific and logical necessities. Now, just because of the words of a couple of ignorant people, are we going to discard the words of the Qur’an, which has challenged people for about 15 centuries announcing that it is not possible to bring about a similar book, which stands upright with the principles of rhetoric, with disclosing certain news of the unknown, with its astounding and wondrous style?

Certain specific events and subjects that the Qur’an points out are samples indicating the happening of other events. For instance, while mentioning the Barrier of Dhul-Qarnayn, attention is drawn to the barriers, reservoirs, and fortresses like artificial mountains, which humans made in history for protection. Similarly, while information is given about saving the Pharaoh’s body from water and its not being food to fish, and not decaying in the water, attention is drawn to the habits and cults of the old Egypt, to the Egyptian pharaohs who believed traditionally in reincarnation and had themselves mummified thinking that they would be resurrected in another body.

The event of Seven Sleepers can also be evaluated from the same perspective. Through this specific event, emphasis is put on the sufferings that believers were put through by unbelievers, on the patience they showed in the face of any suffering for the sake of their belief and the hardships they underwent, abandoning their homeland and taking refuge in caves.
Moreover, the Prophet (PBUH) and other believers were given solace especially because of the sufferings they were put to by the unbelievers during the period of Makkah and they were reminded that during the times of the former prophets, too, believers encountered similar sufferings and still showed patience.

Similarly, the aim of the Qur’an is to give lessons of belief with reference to historical events, rather than instructing history. Therefore, this anecdote especially sets an example for the resurrection after death.

The information found in the sources that this event has different versions in different places shows that there are similar events to this one. For more information about this event, refer to Tabari, Razi; Ibn Kathir, Ibn Atiya, Alusi, Ibn Ashur, the explanation of the 9th and 10th verses of Surah Al-Kahf.

It is quite meaningful that the details of this event are not provided in the Qur’an, that names and places are not specified, and that it is associated with similar events.

It should not be forgotten that we do not learn the fact that the Qur’an is Allah’s word from the event of Seven Sleepers; rather, we learn the accuracy of this event from the Qur’an because there are many proofs that the Qur’an is Allah’s Word and every word of God is true without any doubt.

As in the sources of the Qur’anic explanations, according to the historical records, too, the people of Quraysh, prompted by the Jews, asked the Prophet about this event, and thereupon certain verses were revealed about the subject. (see Ibn Kathir, Al-Bidaya-Shamila-2/125) According to Ibn Khaldun, the place where this event took place is Afsus. (see Tarikh Ibn Haldun (History, Ibn Haldun), 2/147)

In his History, Tabari, too, explained at length that certain young people who accepted Christianity with the encouragement of Prophet Jesus’ disciples escaped, fearing the king of the time and took refuge in a cave. (see Tarikh Tabari, 1/355-374)
Dhahabi, too, dealt with this subject in his History. (see Dahabi, Tarikhu’l-Islam-Shamila-, 1/55; 1725 (Extensive History of Islam)

It is necessary to view the Quran in two ways.

a. The material and created aspect of the Quran, which is the paper, ink, cover, voice, articulation point and the case of the Quran that are seen by the eye, heard by the ear and touched by the hand.

b. The spiritual and kalam, which is a divine attribute, aspect of the Quran. From this point of view, the Quran is not created. Since Allah is not created and He is pre-eternal, His attributes are not created, either. One of His attributes is the attribute of kalam (speech). We call the Quran “kalamullah” (speech or word of Allah). Kalamullah is a divine attribute; in this aspect, it is not created. It is a divine attribute and modesty that has become manifest so that we will understand what Allah wants from us.

Those who have memorized the whole Quran are called “Hafiz”. The expressions “Hafiz-i-Quran and “Hafiz-i Qalam” are used for them. Those who have memorized the whole Quran are called “whole hafiz” and those who have memorized half of it are named as “semi-hafiz”.

When our Prophet was alive, the verses of Quran and hadiths were written down and memorized. One of the reasons that speeded up the compilation of the Quran was that many of Hafizes were martyred in Jihad arenas.

In a hadith, the characteristics of hafizes are described and memorizing Quran is encouraged. According to a hadith reported by Hazrat Aisha (Radhiyallahu-Anha) “A Hafiz person, who reads or recites Qur’an form his/her memory, will be together with the Safaratul Kiram (the noble emissaries/angels).(Bukhari, Kitabut Tafsir,458)

According to this, Being Hafiz is not fard though it has a great reward. The person who does not become Hafiz is not considered a sinner. However, performing the wish of your parents has a great reward in terms of both becoming a Hafiz and persuading them. But disobeying the wish of them is not a sin either.

Quran is always fresh and young. (1) 

The Universe is flowing towards the end prepared for it by Allah, going through some changes and developments. This change and development improves every newborn being, matures them, and kills or fades them. It stales every fresh thing, and makes anything that is adequate today inadequate tomorrow. After all, time grinds everything like a mill and makes them insignificant. And this mill does not operate by itself; there is someone who makes it operate. For this reason, having noticed this destroying side of time, the Prophet (pbuh) warned the ones who got angry with time saying: “Do not swear at time because Allah is the time Himself.” (2) and pointed out to the fact that it is not actually time that grinds. On the other hand, Allah the Glorious uttered the same reality by pointing out to the ignorance of those who mistake time for god and say “We shall die and we live, and nothing but time can destroy us.” (al-Jathiyah, 24). As a matter of fact, time is a servant of Allah, too, and its duty is to grind mortal beings. 

Time also covers religions, beliefs and systems of thoughts and tries to grind them as well. “Whether a system of thoughts, a belief and a system of practices rules over time or not; whether it can preserve its freshness and firmness is closely related to its dimension of time. If a thought, a belief and more specifically a religion and its teachings are still fresh and new in time, which wears everything out, if it can offer infinitely new and fresh scents to its followers, it is the red apple of all humankind; a jug of water of life, which our lips have been longing for…” (3) 

Having been the first human being to have gone through the tunnel of time, Hazrat Adam was also the first prophet. Other people were reproduced by him and his wife Eve and increased in number over the time. (al-A’raf, 189). The history of humankind which began with one human being turned into a family, a clan, a tribe, a nation and then lots of nations and has reached billions today. For this reason; prophethood, which began with Prophet Adam, advanced towards perfection gradually in accordance with divine causes and sublime aims which have gone through changes and developments as Allah the All-knowing and Omnipotent wills; and it continued to mature until the universal and final prophethood arrived… (4) Because Divine Will sent down messengers to educate people temporarily until they reached perfection, books, booklets and duties of prophets, who did not bring with them perpetual religious laws, were beaten by time and thus they were either totally forgotten or were exposed to distortion which means they lost their pure divine characteristics… From this point of view, the Quranic verse “This day have I perfected your religion for you, completed My favor upon you” (al-Ma’idah, 3) indicates that the process of gradual perfection ended and divine prophethood reached its zenith and the most mature point.” (5) This continued like that until the last prophet and the last book. The verse “Muhammad is not the father of any of your men, but (he is) the Apostle of God, and the Seal of the Prophets” (al-Ahzab, 40) points out to the fact that we have reached the final ring of the chain of prophets. (6) 

The religion of Islam, the aim of which is to enable humans to reach happiness by developing the good, virtues and feeling of justice in their disposition, reached perfection with Hazrat Muhammad. And the Quran is declared to be protected by Allah, the Glorious, from all kinds of additions and derogations, distortions and alterations with a certain statement “We have, without doubt, sent down the Message; and We will assuredly guard it (from corruption).” (al-Hijr, 9). With this statement, Allah promises that the Quran is never going to be corrupted in any way; because humans (human nature-human disposition) will always need it with its uncorrupted form until the end of time. 

That a religion is based on human nature and disposition means that its teachings are suitable for nature and disposition and there is harmony between humankind’s natural and dispositional needs and the principles of that religion. For this reason, the Quran offers solutions which are like tailor-made dresses for authentic situations in fields of principles, morale and law. These dresses just fit human disposition right, neither large nor small… No matter how much we check these dresses, we cannot see anything against any of human societies in them. The religion of Islam is a divine law, a set of laws which enables man – who is supposed to mature due to his disposition - to his goal via the shortest and the safest way, and this is why Islam is the final, everlasting and universal religion on the earth.” (7) 

“Universality means that a religion, a political doctrine, a system of law or a system of economy or a philosophical teaching can meet humankind’s expectations irrespective of centuries. Universality of a religion is possible when its principles of law and ethics, its worldview altogether, comply with humankind’s physiological and psychological structure totally.” (8) 

Fourteen centuries that have passed since the time the Quran honored the earth for the first time have turned lots of things that people considered to be truth into wrong and lots of things that people considered to be wrong into truth, and made opinions upside-down, swallowed many giants and states, and changed traditions, customs, clothing, moral values and knowledge. Especially fascinating scientific discoveries and developments in the last half of the twentieth century proved many previous religions, philosophies and systems of thought to be wrong. This period of fourteen centuries has also shown that the Quran is still standing there right and valid like the first day; because, for instance, although the distortion in the Torah and Bible has been proved by rapidly developing modern science in the last century, it has reinforced the truths of the Quran and proved that it is still fresh and all new.

We see the most beautiful expression of this in Maurice Bucaille, who although originally was Christian converted to Islam as a result of his researches. He says: “These scientific considerations, which are very specific to the Qur'an, greatly surprised me at first. Up until then, I had not thought it possible for one to find so many statements in a text compiled more than thirteen centuries ago referring to extremely diverse subjects and all of them totally in keeping with modern scientific knowledge. In the beginning, I had no faith whatsoever in Islam. I began this examination of the texts with a completely open mind and a total objectivity. If there was any influence acting upon me, it was gained from what I had been taught in my youth; people did not speak of Muslims, but of 'Muhammadans', to make it quite clear that what was meant was a religion founded by a man and which could not therefore have any kind of value in terms of God.” (9)

“While I was looking for the degree of compatibility between the Qur'anic text and the data of modern science, I first examined the Qur'anic Revelation…. It was only when I examined the text very closely in Arabic that I kept a list of them at the end of which I had to acknowledge the evidence in front of me: the Qur'an did not contain a single statement that was assailable from a modern scientific point of view. I repeated the same test for the Old Testament and the Gospels, always preserving the same objective outlook. In the former I did not even have to go beyond the first book, Genesis, to find statements totally out of keeping with the cast-iron facts of modern science.” (10) 

“My approach was to pay special attention to the description of numerous natural phenomena given in the Qur'an; the highly accurate nature of certain details referring to them in the Book, which was only apparent in the original, struck me by the fact that they were in keeping with present-day ideas, although a man living at the time of Muhammad could not have suspected this at all… Whereas monumental errors are to be found in the Bible, I could not find a single error in the Qur'an. I had to stop and ask myself: if a man was the author of the Qur'an, how could he have written facts in the Seventh century A.D. that today are shown to be in keeping with modern scientific knowledge? (11)  How could a man, from being illiterate, become the most important author, in terms of literary merit, 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 the time, and all this without once making the slightest error in his pronouncements on the subject? (12) 

Maurice Bucaille’s research has shown that the Quran is also a basic miracle of history of science beginning from the emergence of Islam until the Day of Judgment. (13) Time has been incapable of canceling anything in it or proving it wrong. (14) Bucaille, who converted to Islam at the end of this research, is not the only Westerner who appreciates the Quran. Many Westerners who are non-Muslim also admit the power of the Quran and its freshness in our century. Ismail Hamdi Danisment, who presents Westerners’ admiration of the Quran by quoting from their own works, comes to the following conclusions on behalf of them:

 “The only universal religion which appeals to the whole humankind all over the world is the religion of Islam, conveyed by the Quran.” 

“The Quran is also the source of inspiration for all disciplines and philosophical movements.” 

“Only the Quran declared a principle of certain equality between all people, with no exception to any race, color and nationality.” 

“For this reason, the source of a social and global revolution that includes all humankind on the earth is the Quran.” 

“This is also why Islam is preserving its all power and might whereas influence of other religions over people is gradually decreasing and weakening.” 

“The most important source of ideals for the humankind is the Quran, too.” 

“The Quran’s level of perfection has not been reached throughout all history and it will not be reached at all times, either.” (15) All of these are some of the results of the equitable westerners’ confessions. 

As the Quran is a book that is going to be adequate until the end of time, it is necessary for it to endure changes and time; and the Lord of the Realms sent it down with this feature. It is an inevitable result that this book, the divinity of which has been proved in this way in a sense, will always stay fresh, young, new and bright forever, as it is protected from human intervention. And moreover, as this book is the last holy book, it needs to be defendable and to be able to be found reasonable by at least sincere people, until the Day of Judgment. And this depends on its freshness. Otherwise, it cannot be the base of any new civilizations because a book the worldview of which has turned out to be unsupportable (16) is no more new, but old and done… 

One of the ageless aspects of the Quran that endures time is its miraculousness in terms of language and literature. Its call for challenge to all humans and the jinn to produce a like of it has not been answered yet. As a matter of fact, this challenge was for proving their incapability. The statement “Wa lan taf’alu” which is translated as “…and of a surety ye cannot” (al-Baqarah, 24) would remain as a seal of incapability for centuries. This succinctness of it let the Quran’s voice make its harmony heard by even those who have closed their ears, and this eloquence and fluency penetrate into their souls… Even the letters of the Quran are ordered in such a way that the sound of each letter feels like a musical note to the ear. This musical effect softens hard hearts and excites souls with attraction. For this reason, whoever hears the Quran cannot leave it anymore. One can never have enough of its sweet harmony… Even someone who does not understand Arabic admires it when he listens to the Quran recitation; his consciousness trembles and the depths of his heart wavers…” (17) 

Let alone the other properties of the Quran, this harmony and music in its recitation (18) has enchanted billions of people – both those who understand its meaning and those who do not – for centuries; and there is not any other bouquet of harmony which influences people, who have got so different tastes of music and traditions, in the same way, which never ages and does not lose anything from its influence. A young girl of four can memorize the Quran from beginning to the end, as a reflection of the same miracle, and the Quran that she recites with her beautiful voice can influence President Nelson Mandela, who is not even Muslim. (19) Regis Blachere states in his work titled “Introduction to Quran (Introduction au Coran)” that what a great excitement those who listen to the Quran recitation feel. Then he says “With what else can this feeling of excitement, this ecstasy be explained other than the quality of the Quran’s language?” Again, the same author, in his work titled “Quran” says, “Loud recitation of this word of Allah that was revealed deeply impresses listeners in a miraculous way.” (20) Because of this enchanting harmony coming from Quran’s expression, phonetics and lingual beauty (21), it feels as though it is being revealed just right now and right before our eyes and our ears are hearing it for the first time. (22)

One of the Islamic scholars who tell about this power of the Quran and its freshness in details is Badiuzzaman Said Nursi. When he lists the miraculous aspects of the Quran, in his works, he counts its freshness in, too, (23) and considers this very important. Especially, the main theme of the twenty-fifth part of the book The Words, which is also known as “The Miraculousness of the Quran”, is the miracles of the Quran. At the very beginning of this part, Badiuzzaman starts by describing the Quran as “THE QUR’AN is the pre-eternal translator of the mighty Book of the Universe; the post-eternal interpreter of the various tongues reciting the verses of creation; the commentator of the book of the Worlds of the Seen and the Unseen; … ; it is the instructor of the world of humanity; the light and water of Islam, the macroanthropos; the true wisdom of mankind; and the true guide and leader urging humanity to prosperity and happiness; it is a both a book of law, and a book of prayer, and a book of wisdom, and a book of worship, and a book of command and summons, and a book of invocation, and a book of thought, and a unique, comprehensive sacred book comprising many books to which recourse may be had for all the needs of all mankind; it is a revealed scripture resembling a sacred library which offers treatises suitable for all the various ways and different paths of the all the saints and the veracious ones and the wise and the learned, which is appropriate for the illuminations of each way and enlightens it, and is suitable for the course of each path and depicts it.” (24) These statements indicate that the Quran is an ageless book, also pointing out to its perpetuity. 

He also states that the Quran is still as fresh and new as it was the first day, as a like of it has not been written yet and its challenge has not been answered yet, by saying “This is the eloquence of the Qur’an, which is at the degree of miraculousness. Its eloquence is a wonderful eloquence born of the beauty of its word-order, the perfection of its conciseness, the marvels of its style, its singularity and pleasantness, the excellence of its expression, its superiority and clarity, the power and truth of its meanings, and from the purity and fluency of its language, which for one thousand three hundred years (now for one thousand four hundred years) has challenged the most brilliant men of letters of mankind, their most celebrated orators, and the most profoundly learned of them, and invited them to dispute it. It has provoked them intensely. And although it has invited them to dispute it, those geniuses, whose heads touch the skies in their pride and conceit, have been unable to so much as open their mouths to do so, and have bowed their heads utterly humiliated.” (25) “And no one has been able to imitate it. Its style has always preserved the freshness, youth, and singularity it possessed when it was first revealed and continues to preserve it.” (26) “This shows that miracles are divine stamps and seals on the Quran.” (27)

While telling about eloquence of Quran, the eminent master, Nursi, describes another way of freshness in it as “Yes, it does not weary even if repeated thousands of times; indeed, it gives pleasure. It is not burdensome for the memory of a small and simple child; children can memorize it easily. It is not unpleasant to the ear, pained by the slightest word, of someone extremely ill; it is easy on it. It is like sherbet to the palate of one in the throes of death. The recitation of the Qur’an gives sweet pleasure to the ear and mind of such a person just like Zemzem water to his mouth and palate. The reason for its not causing boredom, and the wisdom of it, is this: it is food and sustenance for the heart, strength and wealth for the mind, water and light for the spirit, and the cure and remedy for the soul. Everyday we eat bread, yet we do not tire of it. But if we were to eat the choicest fruit every day, it would cause boredom. That means it is because the Qur’an is truth and reality and truthfulness and guidance and wonderfully eloquent that it does not cause weariness and preserves its freshness and agreeableness as though preserving a perpetual youth…” (28) 

As the Master Nursi stated, the Quran has been able to appeal to different minds and different hearts in all times. Due to this flexible style of its, everyone has been able to enjoy it and find peace with it despite their differences; and it has been able to earn humankind new things in every age. Therefore, although there have been scientific developments more than ever in our age, especially in the last fifty years, it has not harmed the Quran at all; and it has not caused any damage to its divinity and trueness. (29) Actually, the Quran was sent down in order to guide people to the right way in all times and under all circumstances and to solve people’s problems, for which it has got the power. (29) As a matter of fact; French scientist Raymond Lerouge, although he is a Christian, states that the Quran has got the power to save the humankind from today’s depressions and Hazrat Muhammad is still the man of the time. (31) 

Badiuzzaman expresses it with his concise words as follows: “Indeed, as the speech of the All-Glorious Creator of the universe, the Qur’an proceeds from the ultimate degree of His dominicality, passes over all the other degrees guiding those who rise to them, and passing through seventy thousand veils, it looks to each and illuminates it. It scatters its radiance and spreads its light to the thousands of levels of those it addresses, the understanding and intelligence of whom are all different. Although it has lived through ages and centuries whose capacities are all different, and has broadcast its meaning to this great extent, it has not lost an iota of its perfect youth and juvenility, and retaining its total freshness and delicacy, it teaches every ordinary person in a most easy, skilful, and comprehensible manner. Whatever aspect of a wonder-displaying book which thus teaches, convinces, and satisfies with the same lesson, the same words, numerous levels of people whose understanding and degrees are all different -whatever aspect of such a book is studied, a flash of miraculousness will surely appear.” (32) Its juvenility does not decrease, but seems to increase, as it is a book which combines all issues of the past and the future, of pre-eternality and post-eternality.” (33); because it is the book of Allah the Glorious, who looks at the past and the future, at the pre-eternality and post-eternality like the witness of time (34). 

“The Quran was sent down not for a specific century but for all times. It is not exclusive to a certain group of people but it covers all groups of people. It does belong not to a specific class of people but is related to all classes of people. For this reason, everyone, every group, every century can have a share from the realities of the Quran according to their own understanding and capabilities and they do so. However, people differ in their degrees, in their likes and tastes, and they do not resemble each other in terms of their tendencies, likes, tastes and dispositions… In short, the Quran, the Miraculous Statement, ordered and positioned its verses and sentences in such a way that people with different minds and capabilities can have their shares from it according to their own tastes… As it is deduced from this remark, one of the miraculous eloquences of the Quran is as follows: Its verses are in such a style that they can adapt to all centuries and all groups.” (35) As a requirement of its fluency, it speaks to its addressees from different groups of people in all centuries in the most appropriate manner. (36) Lapse of time cannot wear that style out; thus, it is always young and fresh.” (37) 

As the Master Said Nursi, pointed out, contemporary civilizations have been incapable of surpassing the Quran not only in terms of knowledge but also literature and eloquence; and have had to kneel down before its unfading and ageless power and beauty of words. The Quran, with this freshness, appeals and addresses directly to every group of people in all times, as though it was specially written for them…” (38) For this reason, it managed to stay always fresh and young; because although circumstances change from century to century, this book has preserved its brightness and have never been outdated. 

 Master Bediuzzaman Said Nursi, with his nice and eloquent expression, states: “This is the Qur’an’s youth. It preserves its freshness and youth every age as though newly revealed. In fact, the Qur’an has to have perpetual youth since as a pre-eternal address, it addresses at once all the levels of mankind in every age. And that is how it has been seen and is seen. Even, although all the centuries are different with regard to ideas and capacity, it as though looks to each particularly, and teaches it. Man’s works and laws grow old like man, they change and are changed. But the rulings and laws of the Qur’an are so firm and well-founded that they increase in strength as the centuries pass...” (39) 

The Quran seems to be capable of meeting the needs of this era, with its freshness, like those of every era. This situation is an indication of its perpetuity. Each verse that one discovers in himself or in the universe is a manifest proof of the Quran’s perpetuity and trueness. Science, laws of nature and discoveries in social sciences add more to the rightness of the Quranic view. (40) “Modern civilization, which is the product of the thought of all mankind and perhaps the jinn as well, has taken up a position opposed to the Qur’an, which individuals and communities have failed to dispute.” (41) “They managed to do nothing but just confirmed the verse ‘If the whole of mankind and the jinn were to gather together to produce the like of this Qur’an, they could not produce the like thereof, even if they backed up each other with help and support.’ (al-Isra, 88). Even when the principles that the Quran established for social life of the humankind and its wisdom, and the principles, philosophies developed by modern civilization and the humankind’s wisdom are taken into consideration together, the freshness of the Quran and the deceptiveness of modern civilization that is destined to age at any time will be realized as clear as daylight. (42). “Since the Qur’an’s principles and laws have come from pre-eternity, they shall go to post-eternity. They are not condemned to grow old and die like civilization’s laws. They are always young and strong.” (43) If a book can address to every era, with its principles, freshness and juvenility, if it does not fall behind the times, if it preserves its contact with all kinds of development, it is an eternal miracle. 

For this reason, according to the Master Nursi; “Things like the airplane, electricity, railways, and the telegraph have come into existence as wonders of science and technology as the result of man’s progress in science and industry. Surely, the All-Wise Qur’an, which addresses all mankind, does not neglect these. Indeed, it has not neglected them; it indicates them in two ‘Ways’. The First: In the form of the miracles of the Prophets... The Second is this: it indicates them in the form of certain historical events.” (44) The Quran has preserved its freshness in this aspect, too. It has not been flabbergasted by discoveries and inventions, and has not left its followers helpless. “The All-Wise Qur’an is wise. It affords everything a position in relation to its value. Thus, one thousand three hundred years ago, the Qur’an saw concealed in the darkness of the future, man’s hidden fruits and progress, and showed them in a form better than we see and shall see. That means the Qur’an is the Word of One Who sees at the same instant all time and all within it.” (45) This means that the expositions of the Qur’an cannot be attributed to man’s partial knowledge, and particularly to the knowledge of someone unlettered. They rest rather on a comprehensive knowledge and are the word of One Who is able to see all things together and observe in one moment all truths between pre-eternity and post-eternity. (46) Such a book that is under guaranteed protection against distortion will of course stay fresh forever. 

In summary, “Master Said Nursi includes the fact that Quran stays always fresh and preserves its freshness as though it was being re-sent in every century, and that it never ages and appeals to and addresses all times and all people from all classes as a pre-eternal sermon within the bounds of the Quranic miracles. Yes, according to Nursi, the Quran looks at different centuries which differ in their views and capabilities and meets each century’s needs. Every century takes its share from it and does not touch the shares of centuries to come. Therefore, the Quran does not age.” (47) It is almost as though the Quran grows younger as time grows older. (48) Great changes in the world have not caused damage to the precious truths and beautiful style of the Quran; they have not been able to age it and have failed to decrease its value and wash its beauties away. (49) 

Let me finish my article with a hadith which points out that the Quran is the safe haven for the problems to come out in the future and it will always stay young. The Messenger of Allah said: “It (Quran) has got the news of things that happened before you and that will happen after you; and the judgment of cases between you. It is the book that distinguishes the right from the wrong and the truth from the falsehood; it is never a game. It is such a book that Allah breaks the neck of the imperious person who leaves it; and causes those who seek the right way not in the Quran but somewhere else to go astray. It is the firm rope of Allah; it is an invocation full of wisdom; it is the most right way; it is the book because of which desires will not go astray; tongues will not have difficulties, the book with which scholars will not be tired of reading and the interesting aspects of which will never end. It is the exposition about which the jinn said “We have really heard a wonderful Recital!” (al-Jinn, 1). It is such a book that whoever declares an opinion that is in accordance with it, says the truth and whoever judges with it judges right. Whoever behaves in accordance with it earns thawabs and whoever calls it is guided to the right way.” (50) Therefore, it will always stay young and fresh. 

Footnotes:

1 Prof. Dr. Lütfullah Cebeci is a lecturer at Ataturk University, Faculty of Theology.

2 Musnad, 5/299, 311 (see also Bukhari, interpretation of surah 45, 1; tawhid, 35, adab, 101; Muslim alfaz, 1-6; Abu Dawud, adab, 169).

3 Sadık Kılıç, "Risaletin zaman Boyutu ve Kur'ân'ı Derinliğine Okumak", Ebedi risalet, 2/265, Işık publications, İzmir, 1993.

4 Ahmed Hamdi Akseki, İslâm, p.333, İrfan publication, İstanbul, 1966

5 S.Kılıç, 2/271-272

6 M. Sait Ramazan al-Buti, "Hz. Muhammed'in Risaletinin Evrenselliği", Ebedi risalet, 2/314-315, Işık publications, İzmir, 1993

7 A.H.Akseki, p. 355-357

8 Mahmut Kaya, "İslâmın Evrenselliği Üzerine, "Ebedî risalet, 2/301, Işık publications, İzmir, 1993; Akseki, p.335.

9 Maurice Bucaille, The Bible, The Qur’an and the Science

10 M. Bucaille, p. 12

11 M. Bucaille, p. 181

12 M. Bucaille, p. 188

13 Mustafa Sadık ar-Rafi'i, İ'jazu'l-Qur'ân, p. 114-129, Daru'l Kitabi'l-Arabi, Beirut, 1973

14 Subhi as-Salih, Mebahith fi Ulumi'l-Qur'ân, p. 320 ff., Daru'l Ilm, Beirut, 1874.

15 İsmail Hami Darüşmend, Garp İlminin Kur'ân-ı Kerim Hayranlığı, p. 66-68, Hareket Publications, İstanbul, 1973.

16 Dücane Cündioğlu, Sözün Özü, p. 7-8 Tibyan Publications, İstanbul, 1996

17 Osman Keskioğlu, Nüzülünden Günümüze Kur'ân-ı Kerim Bilgileri, p. 198-199, T.Diyanet Vakfı publications, Ankara, 1987; M.S. ar-Rafi'i, p. 166-188.

18 M.S. ar-Rafi'i, İ'jazu'l-Qur'ân, s. 212-220, daur'l kitabi'l-Arabi, Beirut, 1973; as-Salih, p.334-340

19 Yeni Şafak Gazetesi, "İslâm ve Toplum eki, p.12, February, 1998

20 İ.H. danişmend, p. 55-56

21 Kur'ân-ı Kerim ve Kur'ân İlimlerine Giriş, p. 130-131

22 S.as-Salih, p. 342.

23 The Words, p. 404-407, Envâr Publications, İstanbul, 1996.

24 The Words, s.366-367; İşarâtü'l-İ'câz, s. 10-11, Envâr Neşriyat, İstanbul, 1996.

25 The Words, p. 368.

26 The Words, p. 374; The Signs of Miraculousness, p. 34-35

27 The Words, p. 382-384; Mehmet Kilerci, risale-i Nur'da Kur'ân Mucizesi, p. 37, İz publications, İstanbul 1997

28 The Words, p. 378

29 M. Ghazalî, Kur'ân'ı Anlamada Yöntem, p. 332, Sor publications, Ankara, 1993.

30 M. Ghazalî, p. 131.

31 İ. H. Danişmend, p. 54-55, Vie de Mahomet, 1939, Paris, reported from p. 21.

32 The Words, p. 390-395.

33 The Words, p. 396

34 The Words, p. 397

35 The Signs of Miraculousness, s. 39-40

36 The Signs of Miraculousness, p. 47; kilerci, p. 132-133

37 The Letters, p. 181, Envâr Publications, İstanbul, 1996

38 The Words, p. 411-414

39 The Words, p. 407

40 M. Gazalî, p. 330.

41 The Words, p. 407

42 The Words, p. 407-411, also see. Kilerci, p. 261-266

43 The Words, p. 407 ff.

44 The Words, p. 252-253

45 The Words, p. 267

46 The Words, p. 141

47 Kilerci p. 39

48 Kilerci, p. 318 - 319

49 Kilerci, p. 319

50 Tirmidhi, fadâailil - Qur'ân, 14 (5/172

 “Let them laugh a little: much will they weep: a recompense for the (evil) that they do.” (Surah At-Taubah 9/82)

This verse was revealed about the hypocrites who remained behind from the Tabuk expedition. Almighty Allah (SWT) informed us about the situations of the hypocrites who offered excuses for justifying their absence from the expedition and saw the expedition as a bad thing and rejoiced at sitting still behind in their homes as follows:

Those who were left behind (in the Tabuk expedition) rejoiced in their inaction behind the back of the Messenger of Allah: they hated to strive and fight with their goods and their persons, in the Cause of Allah: they said, "Go not forth in the heat. Say "The fire of Hell is fiercer in heat." If only they could understand! Let them laugh a little: much will they weep: a recompense for the (evil) that they do. (Surah At-Taubah 9/81-82)

Almighty Allah (SWT) answered them in return for their rejoicing for sitting still behind by saying that “The fire of Hell is fiercer in heat”. That is, the fire of hell which is prepared for the disobedient and for you because of your opposition is fiercer than the heat that you run away from. If they could have thought about it, they would not have rejoiced. Then, Allah informed about the result of their actions as follows: “Let them laugh a little: much will they weep”.

Almighty Allah threatens them because of their own decisions and actions and informed us that they will rejoice for a short time but will weep a lot in Hell.

Although the cause of this verse’s revelation is hypocrites’ attitude, the warning of this verse is valid for all humans. In a hadith, the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said the following: “Verily, if you knew what I know you would laugh less and weep more.” (Ibn Maja, Zuhd: 19; Bukhari, Riqaq: 27)

According to this verse: “Allah hath purchased of the Believers their persons and their goods; for theirs (in return) is the Garden (of Paradise)” (Surah At-Taubah, 9:111), the people who do not sell their lives and goods to Allah (SWT), that is, who do not use them in the way of His orders and as a result of their attitude, will weep more; laugh less. Let them laugh a bit, rejoice and have fun as much as they can. However, they will weep a lot in the hereafter because this world life is too short and limited, but the life is permanent in the hereafter. How long is the joy of this world life, which is very short when compared to the weeping of the hereafter, which is permanent?

However, if those who repent for what they did in this world and weep, then their repentance will be accepted by Allah. The only reason of informing the torment and remorse is to warn people who insist on walking on the way of mischief.

The last divine book that Allah sent down in order to show humanity the true path and to make them reach the bliss in the world and in the hereafter is the Quran. The Quran is the pre-eternal speech of Allah. It has met all of the needs of humanity for fourteen centuries and it will meet the needs of the human beings that will come to the world until the Day of Judgment. However, man should accept it, believe in it, read and understand it as necessary, and apply it in his life.

Humanity will not deviate from the right path as long as they stick to the Quran, understand and interpret it correctly and practice it in their lives because the straightest and strongest way is the way of the Quran. It is the strong, unbreakable rope of Allah and His straight path.

What are the universal principles that the Quran has brought for us, human beings?

The universality of the Quran is a vast issue. Therefore, it is necessary to write a book about it. Here, we will mention a few points in short.

Our Prophet (pbuh) defined the Quran as follows: “The stories of those who lived before you, the news about those who will live after you, and the judgments about the things among you are present in the Quran , the Book of Allah. It is the book that discriminates the truth from what is wrong. It never speaks meaninglessly. It is the strong rope of Allah. It is the wise dhikr. It is the straight path. Bad desires can never deviate it from its target. Tongues cannot distort it. Scholars cannot have enough of it. Muttaqis (people who fear Allah) are never tired of it. It does not become old as it is read repeatedly. It is the book that the jinn said, “We have really heard a wonderful Recital! It gives guidance to the Right, and we have believed therein.” (al-Jinn 1-2) as soon as they heard it. He who speaks based on its criteria speaks the truth. He who acts in accordance with it gains rewards (thawabs). He who rules with it becomes just. He who calls people to it calls them to the true path. (Tirmidhi, Fadailu’l-Qur’an, 14; Fadailu’l-Qur’an, 1)

The Quran is a book that was sent down for loftiness and true targets. The Quran itself informs us why it was sent down clearly. The following verses are the most impressive examples regarding the issue: “Alif Lam Mim. This is the Book; in it is guidance sure, without doubt, to those who fear Allah.”(al-Baqara, 1-2) “(Here is) a Book which We have sent down unto thee, full of blessings, that they may meditate on its Signs, and that men of understanding may receive admonition.”(Sad, 29) That is, the Quran was sent as guidance for those who fear Allah and so that people would meditate on it and receive admonition. In other words, the Quran was sent down to ask us to do the following: to read it, to mediate on it, to understand it, to explain it sincerely, to receive admonition and practice it in our lives.

The Quran which was sent more than 1400 years ago is a book that have principles that can solve the problems of today and that can bind the people of this age against the change that has been existent since the creation of man and that has become dazzling in this age. 

When we examine those principles, we see that they are general principles and that they contain criteria that all people can carry out at all times. We will make short explanations about five of those universal principles that have the meaning of command among those universal principles that were brought by the Quran.

The five things among those principles that are ordered to be fulfilled are as follows: 1) to work, 2) to be just, 3) to be honest, 4) to keep your promise, 5) to protect the things entrusted to you.

To work is the pre-eternal law of Allah. Allah expresses the importance of working as follows in the Quran: “That man can have nothing but what he strives for; That (the fruit of) his striving will soon come in sight; Then will he be rewarded with a reward complete.” (an-Najm, 39-41) those verses state that man can advance only by striving and that the key to bliss in the world and the hereafter is to work legitimately.

The basic of Islam is justice. Justice is the combination of humane and social values like acting properly, not taking things belonging to others, not deviating from the straight path. The Quran orders an absolute justice. It does not differentiate between believers and unbelievers, those who are near and far, the rich and the poor regarding the issue. As a matter of fact, Allah states the following: “...speak justly, even if a near relative is concerned...” (al-An’am, 152) “O ye who believe! stand out firmly for justice, as witnesses to Allah, even as against yourselves, or your parents, or your kin, and whether it be (against) rich or poor: for Allah can best protect both. Follow not the lusts (of your hearts) lest ye swerve and if ye distort (justice) or decline to do justice, verily Allah is well-acquainted with all that ye do.” (an-Nisa, 135)

One of the principles that we are ordered in the Quran is honesty. As a matter of fact, the following is stated in the Quran regarding the issue: “O ye who believe! Fear Allah, and (always) say a word directed to the Right: That He may make your conduct whole and sound and forgive you your sins: he that obeys Allah and His Messenger, has already attained the highest Achievement..” (al-Ahzab 70-71) “Therefore stand firm (in the straight path) as thou art commanded― thou and those who with thee turn (unto Allah); and transgress not (from the Path): for He seeth well all that ye do.” (Hud, 112)

One of the principles that the Quran emphasizes repeatedly is keeping your promise and fulfilling your obligations. The word “ahd” means “to order something to be fulfilled, to give an instruction, to make a promise; command, instruction, undertaking, contract, liability and trustable word”. A person must keep his promise whether he makes it to Allah or to believers and fulfill its necessities because Allah states the following in the Quran, “O ye who believe! fulfil (all) obligations...” (al-Maida, (5): 1) “Nay―Those that keep their plighted faith and act aright―verily Allah loves those who act aright.” (Aal-i-Imran, 76) “...and fulfil (every) engagement, for (every) engagement will be enquired into (on the Day of Reckoning).” (al-Isra, 34)

The last universal Quranic principle that we will deal with is to be trustable. In general, trust is used to mean, ”something entrusted to someone for protection”. However, along with this meaning, it also covers the spiritual, bodily and financial facilities that man has and that are given to him temporarily. In Islamic law, trust is the name given to the whole duties assigned by Allah to man regarding both the rights of Allah and the rights of creatures. “Those who faithfully observe their Trusts and their covenants.” (al-Mu’minun, 8)

We have given some examples of universal commands of the Quran that man can apply everywhere and at all times. Each of those principles will bring happiness to a community when they are applied whether by Muslims or non-Muslims. In the world where those principles are not applied, human beings become unhappy and hopeless – as it is the case in the world today. We, as people who heartily believe in those principles, must have a lifestyle in accordance with those principles and serve as examples for the humanity, because it is our duty to convey goodness to the humanity. 

We have given universal examples of the Quran that man can apply under every condition and at all times. There are also some prohibitions brought by the Quran; we want to explain five of them in short. They are: 1- To associate partners with Allah; 2- To disobey one’s parents; 3- To kill a person unjustly; 4- To take bribes; 5- To gossip and backbite.

According to the Quran, the greatest sin is to associate partners with Allah; it means accepting other beings as partners of Allah, worshipping stones, trees, the sun, the moon, stars, angels, prophets, sheikhs or any being other than Allah. The Quran defines associating partners with Allah as shirk (polytheism), the greatest injustice and oppression. As a matter of fact, the following two verses give the most impressive examples regarding the issue: “Allah forgiveth not (the sin of) joining other gods with Him: but He forgiveth whom He pleaseth other sins than this: one who joins other gods with Allah, hath strayed far, far away (from the Right).” (an-Nisa, 116); “For false worship is indeed the highest wrong-doing.” (Luqman, (31): 13) Oppression means taking something from the place where it has to be and putting it somewhere else, deviating from the aim. Allah is the Lord that revives, kills, gives sustenance and bounties; it has no partners. When something is accepted as a partner of Allah, it is the greatest oppression. Therefore, it is stated in the Quran that those who associate partners with Allah will be punished severely and that it is impossible for them to enter Paradise: “Whoever joins other gods with Allah―Allah will forbid him the Garden and the Fire will be his abode. There will for the wrong-doers be no one to help.” (al-Maida, 72)

The Quran orders us to do favors for our parents and prohibits us from disobeying them by saying, “Thy Lord hath decreed that ye worship none but Him, and that ye be kind to parents. Whether one or both of them attain old age in thy life, say not to them a word of contempt, nor repel them, but address them in terms of honor. And, out of kindness, lower to them the wing of humility, and say: "My Lord! bestow on them Thy Mercy even as they cherished me in childhood.” (al-Isra, 23-24) In the verses above, Allah orders us to do favors for our parents after worshipping Him and He orders us not to say even “Ugh” to them, because it is Allah who creates man and the parents are the means of it. 

Man is an honorable being that Allah appreciates and renders superior to all beings in the world. It is forbidden to despise and to blame him, to carry tales about him no matter how, and to kill him unjustly. To kill a person unjustly is regarded the same as killing the whole people as it is stated in the following verse and when the characteristics of believers are listed, they are defined as “they do not kill anybody”: “If anyone slew a person―unless it be for murder or for spreading mischief in the land― it would be as if he slew the whole people.” (al-Maida, 32); “Those (believers) who invoke not, with Allah, any other god, nor slay such life as Allah has made sacred, except for just cause, not commit fornication― and any that does this (not only) meets punishment.” (al-Furqan, 68)

The last two universal principles consist of two humanly and social illnesses that gnaw away the community secretly and eliminate the feeling of trust: bribery and gossiping. They are prohibited in the Quran as follows: “O ye who believe! Eat not up your property among yourselves in vanities: but let there be amongst you traffic and trade by mutual good-will.” (an-Nisa, 29), “And do not eat up your property among yourselves for vanities, nor use it as bait for the judges, with intent that ye may eat up wrongfully and knowingly a little of (other) people's property.” (al-Baqara, 188) “and spy not on each other, nor speak ill of each other behind their backs. Would any of you like to eat the flesh of his dead brother? Nay, ye would abhor it...but fear Allah: for Allah is Oft-Returning, Most Merciful.” (al-Hujurat, 12) The Quran is a book that was sent down to make human beings happy; its principles are universal and they can be applied at all times and under any conditions. Everybody should contemplate thoroughly; which one of those principles is invalid in this age?

Note: We recommend you to read the following article about the issue: 

The Universality of the Quran

Since the beginning of the creation of the world, every idea that appeared had an opposite idea, and every thesis had an antithesis. In short, everything was created in the form of pairs: “And of everything We have created pairs: that ye may receive instruction.” (adh-Dhariyat/51:49) the earth-the sky, life-death, brightness-darkness, angel-devil, good-bad, male-female, etc; it is possible to give more examples. It is an accepted truth that every Adam has a devil against him and that every religion has irreligiousness against it. However, the opposition changes and appears in different forms in the course of time. The opposition will continue as the world exists.  

In this system of the world that was established, Allah sent human beings prophets among themselves in order to warn human beings, to teach them the reason why they were sent to the world, to protect them from the effects of the wrong paths, to inform them how to have high ethics and be virtuous, thus to become useful individuals both for themselves and for the humanity: “Verily We have sent thee in truth, as a bearer of glad tidings, and as a warner: and there never was a people, without a warner having lived among them (in the past).” (Fatir/35:24)

No matter how much the humankind advances in terms of science and technology, no matter how many scientific discoveries it makes, it is impossible for the humanity to reach the real happiness without revelation. In order to reach it, the most appropriate and natural way is to return to the religious belief that is inherent in the nature of man. The concrete name of this way is ISLAM, which all of the prophets emphasized and tried to explain to their nations and which Muhammad (pbuh), the last Prophet, was appointed to convey to human beings.

In fact, the essence of the religions is the same. The principles of belief brought by all the prophets are the same because the source of all of the religions is Allah, the Sublime Creator: “The same religion has He established for you as that which He enjoined on Noah--that which We have sent by inspiration to thee--and that which We enjoined on Abraham, Moses, and Jesus: namely, that ye should remain steadfast in Religion, and make no divisions therein” (ash-Shura/42:13) the prophets mentioned in the verse are the ulu’1-azm (the five greatest) prophets; the rest of the prophets should be examined in the same category , too. That is, the religions unite in the essence and principles. The differences are related to details. The following hadith of the Messenger of Allah clarifies the issue: “Prophets are like half brothers. Their father is the same; their mothers are different. Their religion is the same.”

The message of the Quran is the continuation of the revelation that started with Hazrat Adam, the first man and the first prophet. The essence of the religion before of Allah is the same and it is ISLAM: “The Religion before Allah is Islam.” (Aal-i-Imran/3:19) the prophets that emerged in different periods and places do not reject each other; Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) does not reject any of them, either: “The Messenger believeth in what hath been revealed to him from his Lord, as do the men of faith. Each one (of them) believeth in Allah, His angels, His books, and His Messengers "We make no distinction (they say) between one and another of His Messengers." And they say: "We hear and we obey; (We seek) Thy forgiveness, Our Lord, and to Thee is the end of all journeys.” (al-Baqara/2:285) “Say: "We believe in Allah, and in what has been revealed to us and what was revealed to Abraham, Isma`il, Isaac, Jacob, and the Tribes, and in (the Books) given to Moses, Jesus, and the Prophets, from their Lord; we make no distinction between one and another among them, and to Allah do we bow our will (in Islam)".” (Aal-i-Imran/3:84) On the contrary, Hazrat  Muhammad (pbuh) is like the continuation of all of the previous prophets and he complements their prophethood. However, there is a small difference; it is impossible for any prophets to come after him; He is the last Prophet, hence, he is the one that takes the divine message to universal dimensions.

It is quite normal that religions that are the same in essence have some differences in details based on the time and place regarding some issues. The world changes, human beings change, needs change, in short, everything changes in the course of time. It is very well known that there are great differences between the things that the first men needed and that that the people who lived later. 

Allah, who created man, who knows him in detail, who meets his needs, sent the necessary message to people living in every age and had the last word with Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh). That is, there will be no prophets after him, no change in the revelation; human beings will continue their lives with this last revelation: “..This day have I perfected your religion for you, completed my favor upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion..” (al-Maida/5:3 “If anyone desires a religion other than Islam (submission to Allah) never will it be accepted of him; and in the Hereafter he will be in the ranks of those who have lost. (all spiritual good)” (Aal-i-Imran/3:85). “Muhammad is not the father of any of your men, but (he is) the Messenger of Allah, and the Seal of the Prophets: and Allah has full knowledge of all things.” (al-Ahzab/33:40)

That is, Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) is the prophet that ended the chain of the prophets; he is the last prophet; he is also the divine seal that approves and documents all of the prophets. If he had not come, the other prophets would have been forgotten; it would have been impossible to prove their existence in history and the veracity of their prophethood scientifically. With the prophethood of Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh), the humanity reached the final point of advancement in terms of religion. No prophets must be expected after him and the light of Muhammad must be followed.

Since there will be no religion after Islam and no prophet after Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh), it is necessary for the religion of Islam to meet the needs of people until the Day of Judgment and it is necessary for its fundamentals to be valid until then. To express it in short, it is obligatory for this religion to be universal. In this study, we will deal with that aspect of the Quran, which is the source of this religion, discuss the necessary conditions for the universality and will try to search whether they are present in the Quran. Universal, which means covering the world, comprehensive, concerning the mankind, worldwide, etc, can be defined as a thought, idea or belief that embraces all times and places and that addresses everybody.

CONDITIONS OF UNIVERSALITY

It is quite natural that every thought and ideology claim that they are universal because their continuality and acceptability depend on being universal. However, what is the degree of truth in their claims? Do they really have the conditions of universality as they claim? As for the universality of the Quran, which is our topic, we can list the basic qualities of the universality of the Quran as follows: 

1. Its Source is Divine

Allah created the universe, but he did not leave it on its own. The universe was not left on its own after being wound up like a clock as some people claim. There is always activity and vivacity in it. The Will of Allah is always dominant over it. That dominant Will did not leave people on their own and showed them the right path because the human mind cannot always comprehend the principles that are useful for him and is drifted into some wrong paths.

It is Allah who created man. He is the one that knows man best. Man’s needs, life, the difficulties he will face in life, the ways of overcoming those difficulties, etc were all determined by his Creator.  It is not logical if some people say, “man can be ruled by such and such principles in the best way.” It is not possible for the various currents of ideas and thoughts whose sources are not divine and that emerge for the happiness and peace of man to be universal. They become valid for a certain time and for a certain place, but they become invalid and out of fashion after a while, and nobody is interested in them any more. In this context, although their foundations are divine, Judaism and Christianity are limited to a certain time and certain nations; and since they could not preserve their original identities, they were replaced by Islam, with its perfect form, conveyed by Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh); therefore, they are not universal.   

It is not possible for any beings that were created to lead people to the truth. Although there are signs that show the existence of Allah subjectively and objectively, documents, angels, prophets and guidance through them for those who think, none of them can guide themselves or find the guidance unless they are guided by Allah, who is witness of all things (al-Hajj, 22/17; Saba, 34/47; Fussilat, 41/53; Mujadila, 58/6...). that truth is expressed clearly in the following verse: “..Is then He Who gives guidance to Truth more worthy to be followed or he who finds not guidance (Himself) unless he is guided?” (Yunus 10/35)

If a thought, idea or ideology is not based on a sound source of revelation, it is very difficult for that ideology to meet the needs of all kinds of people at all times. Some people whose sources are not divine and who try to direct people based on their own minds were not able to have a proper place in history; they  managed to be remembered by some words that made people laugh! For instance, it will be surprising for many people to hear the following sentences from Gandhi, one of the important leaders of the 20th century:

“When I see a cow, it is not an animal to eat; it is a poem of pity for me and I worship it and I shall defend its worship against the whole world. Mother cow is in many ways better than the mother who gave use birth. For instance, our mother gives milk for a little while and expects us to serve her when she grows old. Mother cow gives us milk and butter all along and expects from us nothing but grass and grain...”

The Quran that Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) conveys to people originates from the divine source. It is not the word of someone else; it is sent by Allah himself to human beings. This book, the Quran, itself states that it is not the book of Hazrat Muhammad but “Verily this is the word of a most honorable Messenger, Endued with Power, with rank before the Lord of the Throne, With authority there, (and) faithful of his trust.” (at-Takwir/81:19-21) And that messenger is Jibril (Gabriel); he took it from the Lord of the Realms, the Knower of All, the Perfectly Wise, and brought it down to the heart of Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) in clear Arabic. In many verses of the Quran, it is emphasized repeatedly that its source is nothing or no one but Allah and only Allah: “Ha Mim. A Revelation from (Allah) Most Gracious, Most Merciful― A Book, whereof the verses are explained in detail― a Qur'an in Arabic, for people who understand― Giving Good News and Admonition: yet most of them turn away, and so they hear not. They say: "Our hearts are under veils, (concealed) from that to which thou dost invite us, and in ours ears in a deafness, and between us and thee is a screen: so do thou (what thou wilt); for us, we shall do (what we will!)." Say thou: "I am but a man like you: it is revealed to me by inspiration, that your God is One God: so stand true to Him and ask for His forgiveness." And woe to those who join gods with Allah―...”(Fussilat, 41/1-6) “But the Misbelievers say: "Naught is this but a lie which he has forged, and others have helped him at it." In truth it is they who have put forward an iniquity and a falsehood. And they say: "Tales of the ancients, which he has caused to be written: and they are dictated before him morning and evening." Say: "The (Qur'an) was sent down by Him Who knows the Mystery (that is) in the heavens and the earth: verily He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.".” (al-Furqan. 25/4-6)

Today, only the Quran has the first and most important condition of universality: having a divine source. Besides, each of the religions like Judaism, Christianity and Buddhism are attributed to a person and named after that person, but, the principles that the Quran brought were not attributed to anyone; it was emphasized that the Quran was sent by Allah and its name became Islam not Muhammadanism. We all know very well where some -isms that emerged with the claim that they would give happiness to and enlighten the humanity took the humanity, and we know how much they were right in their claims. However, the civilization that the Quran established caught the attention of even the unbelievers (except some who are and were evil-minded), and it was approved to be right since it is based on revelation. 

2. Its Source is Sound

What we mean when we say its source is sound is that a system that claims to be based on revelation must be free of all kinds of intervention from its beginning up to now. That is, having a divine source when it emerges is not enough; it is necessary to preserve this property up to the end. The history of the mankind is full of messengers sent by Allah. Each of them fulfilled their duties thoroughly and worked hard for the happiness of the mankind. However, it is not possible to say that all of them reached their targets. Let alone the people living in the same country, their closest relatives did not approve their prophethood; some of the prophets were killed; some of them managed to convey their message to very small communities. Here, the mistake does not belong to the prophets but to the stubborn people that they addressed. However, we remind it in order to determine a truth. We do not want to say that some prophets are superior from this point of view.

There exists the institution of revelation that arranges the lives of people together with the prophets. Each prophet guided the people with the revelation that was sent down to him: “(We sent them) with Clear Signs and scriptures and We have sent down unto thee (also) the Message; that thou mayest explain clearly to men what is sent for them, and that they may give thought..” (an-Nahl 16/44), “We sent aforetime our messengers with Clear Signs and sent down with them the Book and the Balance (of Right and Wrong), that men may stand forth in justice...” (al-Hadid/57:25) However, when each prophet died, the revelation either got lost or was distorted, or was forgotten because it was abrogated by a prophet coming after him. Therefore, there is no book of a prophet that reached us without distortion except for the Quran. Although it is claimed that the Old Testament and the New Testament that are present today are the same as their original forms, it is only a claim because the Quran itself states it clearly: “Then woe to those who write the Book with their own hands, and then say: "This is from Allah" to traffic with it for a miserable price! Woe to them for what their hands do write and for the gain they make thereby!” (al-Baqara/2:79) “..they change the words from their (right) places...” (al-Maida/5:13) “..They change the words from their (right) times and places...” (al-Maida/5:41)

The Gospels that we have today have a special state. In the light of historical realities, each Gospel is “a biography of Jesus Christ” mentioning what he “said” and what he “did”, and reporting what the writer of that Gospel managed to learn from other sources.  Therefore, the New Testament (Gospels) does not resemble the Quran or the books of hadiths; they are like the biography books that narrate the life of Hazrat Muhammad (sirah); Some of those sirah books about the Messenger of Allah were written during the period of the Companions or after that period. It is very well-known that there were more than four gospels in the past and that the present four gospels were approved by the council that convened in Nicaea in 325 A.D.

When we have a look at the Quran in terms of the soundness of its source, we will see that the Quran has a state that is not valid for any heavenly book. Fist of all, it is under divine protection: “We have, without doubt sent down the Message; and We will assuredly guard it (from corruption).” (al-Hijr/15:9) “No falsehood can approach it from before or behind it: it is sent down by One Full of Wisdom, Worthy of all Praise.” (Fussilat/41:42) “Had it been from other than Allah, they would surely have found therein much discrepancy..”(an-Nisa/4:82) It is interesting enough that it is impossible to find similar verses, that is, statements that they will be protected, in the Torah or the Gospel. The fact that those books were not protected from changes and distortions, and that the Quran was protected absolutely shows that, apart from the efforts of the Messenger of Allah, his Companions, Islamic scholars, the Messenger of Allah is the last prophet, Islam is the last, perfect and universal form of the divine religion that leaves no need for the sending down of another book.

The transferring of the Quran to this age is based on the following two reasons that cannot be separated from each other: The fact that it was memorized and that it was recorded by writing. Whenever a part of the Quran was revealed, the Messenger of Allah summoned one of the Companions that could read and write and showed him where to write the new verse among the previously revealed verses and dictated the newly revealed verse(s). After the dictation finished, he asked the scribe to read what he wrote to him and corrected the mistakes if any.

Although there were some individuals who gathered the whole verses of the Quran during the period of the Messenger of Allah and although many Companions memorized the whole Quran, it was compiled and brought together officially during the period of Hazrat Abu Bakr and put in the form of one book. Then, it was duplicated and reached this age without any distortions. The Quran has received a lot of opposition and criticism since the day it started to be revealed; however, in all of the files that were sued against the Quran, the Quran was acquitted, and the struggles were ended by the victory of the Quran. That is, the principle of the soundness of the source, which is one of the most important conditions of universality is a property that the Quran absolutely has. And it is not possible to show a second book like it. 

3. The Conveyor must be Sincere in his Cause

For the universality of a thought or religion, first of all, the person who represents it must do what he preaches and show it to other people so that people will believe heartily that this lifestyle is livable and support it. Secondly, the person appointed to convey that thought or religion must be able to form a community based on those principles while he is alive. Thus, it will be understood that the thought or the religion is not only for individuals and that it has the capacity to form a community and to rule it.

When we have a look at the history of the mankind, we will see that practice and theory do not always go together. In many different times and places new leaders emerged and tried to gather people around some principles but the leaders themselves did not practice what they preached, or even if they practiced they could not form communities as they wanted hence their movements did not live long. 

To say something is very easy but to practice and do that thing is not so easy. Many people appearing as saviors emerged; they made very nice speeches and people deemed them as saviors. However, in a short time, it became clear that those people had nothing to do with what they talked about or they could not form communities as they wanted. Thus, both the person that deemed as a founder or savior and his ideas were left in the pages of history and forgotten.

A leader must practice what he says and must utter what can be practiced. In other words, he must practice the principles, virtues and responsibilities with his lifestyle and ethics. He must do the things that he preaches in his social, family and individual life in such a way that he must serve as an example for the people to come.   

When we examine the movements that emerged especially in the 19th and 20th centuries, we see that none of them had the characteristics mentioned above. They resemble the glowworms that glimmer at night, but it is soon understood that they are not stars. When their real identities become obvious, everybody leaves them and they are forgotten.

When we examine history from this point of view, we see that the person who had the conditions mentioned above perfectly was Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh). He practiced the universal decrees of the Quran that he preached in his own life first and then formed a perfect community based on those decrees. He did not only practice the principles that he preached in his own life but he also formed a state and community that those principles were practiced. It is possible to give a lot of examples regarding the issue but it will be sufficient to give a few examples.   

a. “Nay, but worship Allah, and be of those who give thanks!” (az-Zumar/39:66) This verse orders the Messenger of Allah and the whole ummah to worship only Allah stating that other things are not worthy of worshipping and orders them to thank Allah. We see the manifestations of this verse very clearly and in a very high level in the life of the Messenger of Allah. The following narration from Hazrat Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) will be enough to enlighten the issue:  

“Our Prophet would pray at night until his feet were swollen. When I asked, ‘O, Messenger of Allah! Allah has forgiven your past and future sins. Why do you force yourself to worship so much in spite of this?' he answered, ‘Should I not be a grateful servant for this blessing of Allah?”

Yes, when he conveyed the message “Worship Allah” to his ummah, he himself showed it through his worshipping; actually, he worshipped so much that no other person could worship like him; thus, he himself did what he preached first.

b. “O ye who believe! stand out firmly for justice, as witnesses to Allah, even as against yourselves, or your parents, or your kin, and whether it be (against) rich or poor: for Allah can best protect both. Follow not the lusts (of your hearts) lest ye swerve and if ye distort (justice) or decline to do justice, verily Allah is well-acquainted with all that ye do.” (an-Nisa/4:135)

“Judge thou between them by what Allah hath revealed and follow not their vain desires, but beware of them lest they beguile thee from any of that (teaching) which Allah hath sent down to thee...” (al-Maida/5:49)

We are ordered to keep to the justice, truth and righteousness and not to deviate from what is right when we judge and decide about people and when we witness. The Messenger of Allah, who was appointed to convey it to people, practiced those commands in his own life and served as an example to people; he himself did the things fully what he asked others to do. For instance, they applied him regarding a case of theft. The person who stole belonged to a noble tribe and they asked him to forgive her. They sent some notable people as intercessors. However, the Messenger of Allah frowned his brows; his face became red due to that intercession and said:

“What destroyed the nations preceding you was that if a noble amongst them stole, they would forgive him, and if a poor person amongst them stole, they would inflict Allah's Legal punishment on him. By Allah, if Fatima, the daughter of Muhammad stole, I would cut off her hand.”

The following narration regarding the issue is also a nice example: “There was a person who made a lot of jokes from Ansar. When that Companion amused the congregation once, the Messenger of Allah poked him with the stick in his hand. He was a bit hurt. Then, he asked for retaliation. The Messenger of Allah let him for retaliation. Then, the man said, “You have clothing on you, but I did not have anything.” Thereupon, the Messenger of Allah folded up his clothing. Then, the man started to kiss the back of the Messenger of Allah especially the seal of the prophethood and said, “O Messenger of Allah! Actually that was what I wanted.” 

c. “..They ask thee how much they are to spend; say: "What is beyond your needs."” (al-Baqara/2:219) “Nor strain thine eyes in longing for the things We have given for enjoyment to parties of them the splendor of the life of this world, through which We test them: but the provision of thy Lord is better and more enduring.” (Taha/20:131)

In the verses above, the believers are advised to spend their money on the way of Allah and not to look at the unbelievers enviously. However, the Messenger of Allah himself applied what is ordered in the verse in a very high level; he spent his money on the way of Allah so much that sometimes he did not eat anything for days; he did not ever have barley bread; sometimes, there was no fire in his house for months to cook soup. Whenever someone wanted something from him, he would give it if he had it; if he did not have it, he would promise to give it. Sometimes, some people wanted the only clothing on him; and he would give it without any hesitation.

Once a Bedouin came and asked something from him. The Messenger of Allah gave it to him. Somebody else asked something and he gave to him, too. A third person came and asked something; the Messenger of Allah had nothing to give him so he promised to give him something as soon as he had it. That situation distressed Hazrat Umar; he was disturbed by the attitude of the people. He stood up and said, “O Messenger of Allah! They asked and you gave them. They asked again and you gave them again. They asked again and you promised to give them. Do not torment yourself so much.”

However, the Messenger of Allah did not like what Umar said. Meanwhile, Abdullah b. Huzafatu’s-Sahmi stood up and said, “O Messenger of Allah! Give. Do not think that Allah will make you poor and that he will deprive you of his bounties!” After keeping silent for a while, Hazrat Prophet (pbuh) said, “That is what I was ordered to do.”

It is possible to see many examples in the life of the Messenger of Allah regarding the issue. He applied what the Quran ordered delicately in his life and raised an ummah that acted like that. When we look at the lives of Muslims in the periods when the Quran was practiced truly, it will be seen that many things that the Prophet did were practiced by the ummah, too. We will give just one example here about someone who was very close to him.  

Hazrat Abu Bakr led a very plain and poor life. When he was the Caliph, he milked the sheep of other people to earn his living for a long time. However, a salary was allocated for him later but he deemed it too much. He accepted the poorest person of Madinah as a criterion for him. Therefore, he put the money remaining from his salary into a pitcher and collected them there for the 2,5 years that he served people as the Caliph. When he was about to die, he stated in his will that the pitcher be given to the Caliph after him. When Hazrat Umar was chosen as the Caliph, he broke the pitcher and saw some coins and a letter in it. Hazrat Abu Bakr addressed the new Caliph as follows in the letter: “The money is what is left from the salary allocated to me. I accepted the poorest person of Madinah as a criterion for me. I put the remaining money in this pitcher. Therefore, the money in it belongs to the Treasury and it must be put there.”

That incident and similar ones that amaze people were not rare. When the history of Islam is examined, we see numerous incidents like that; which are known. There are so many other incidents that are not known and that remained as a secret between the person and Allah; they all show the situation of Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh), who formed a community that practiced what they said word for word. 

4. All aspects of the Prophet (pbuh) were determined

One of the conditions for a religion or thought to be universal is that the biography of the person (prophet) that represented that religion must be known in detail and truly. The thoughts represented by people who are not known where, when, how and under what conditions they lived cannot be universal. It is not possible for people to learn principles regarding all aspects of their lives from those people. Even if people gather around some people whose lives are not completely known, that gathering will be short-lived because people are curious to learn about the lives of people whom they follow in detail. It may last for some time through diversion and delaying with some stories, but it will not last long and everything will be obvious soon. When we look at the history from this point of view, there is only one person with those characteristics: Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh).  

The other prophets do not have the same characteristic in terms of determining all aspects of their lives; it is not in question at all for some other personalities. No matter which historical personality we examine, we will observe that many aspects of them are unknown. For instance, Zoroaster is known as a great prophet by the majority of the people that follow him. However, his real personality in history is not known very well. Buddhism is one of the oldest religions, and it spread to many places. However, we do not have detailed information about Buddha, its founder. Each nation was sent a prophet in history. The Quran informs us about the names and life stories of some of them. We do not have the means to know the whole of their lives. There is some information in the Old and New Testament that contradict each other but they never express the truth because those books were written after the death of their prophets. 

One of the reasons why the life stories of other prophets are not known in detail may be this: Those prophets were sent for their own ages and to their own nations. Their nations took lessons and examples from their prophets when they were alive. However, there was no need for their lives to be known in detail in the periods to come because the prophethood of those prophets would end with the prophethood of Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh), whose prophethood is valid for all times and places. Therefore, he was the prophet whose life needed to be known in detail.

If we look at the life of the Messenger of Allah from this point of view, we will see that there exists a situation that is valid for nobody else. We see that all of his private life with its details, all of his life including his words, acts, attitudes against events, approvals and consents is recorded and transferred to the following generations. The recording and observance of his life by believers is ordered by the Quran. In many places in the Quran, when obedience to Allah is mentioned, obedience to the Prophet is ordered just after it and they are dealt with as if they are an inseparable entity. In these verses, the love of Allah was attributed to obeying the Prophet and turning back from him was regarded as a sign of unbelief. (1) Besides, it was stated clearly that those who obeyed Allah and His Messenger would be admitted to Gardens with rivers flowing beneath and to abide therein for ever and that those who disobeyed Allah and His Messenger would be admitted Hell to abide therein forever (an-Nisa, 4/13-14); and that those who obeyed Allah and the Messenger would be in the company of those on whom is the Grace of Allah― of the Prophets, the sincere lovers of Truth, the witnesses and the Righteous (who do good) (an-Nisa, 4/69); that the messenger was sent only to be obeyed (an-Nisa, 4/64–65); that obeying the messenger was a property of belief (at-Tawbah, 9/71), etc. All of those things mentioned above necessitated knowing all aspects of the life and personality of Hazrat Prophet (pbuh); and they are the results of knowing.   

Secondly, regarding some decrees and judgments given by the Prophet about the interpretation of the Quran and  about the things that were not clearly mentioned in the Quran, what the Messenger of Allah said, did and approved are regarded to be a part of the religion; therefore, they were determined, studied and transferred to the following generations perfectly. The act of transferring was supervised so closely and was carried out based on such principles that everything that did not belong to the Prophet and that had the possibility of being made up by others was sorted out. Moreover, the state of the people who transferred and reported them were examined and a perfect chain of transmission was set up. It is impossible, in history, to find a similar system to that system, that is, the science of hadith, which even the westerners admire and wonder. (2)

If we go back to the beginning of the issue, we can say this: The information about all of the founders of other religions is missing. For instance, we only know about the incidents in the last three years of the 33-year life of Jesus. We know about the religious renewers of Iran only through “Shahnameh” of Firdausi. The history of the religious guides in India is full of legends. The source of information about Moses was lost and the Torah was compiled centuries after the death of Moses, after the slavery in Babel. This situation can be interpreted through the fact that they are not universal because the teachings of those prophets, renewers and guides were not necessary for all times. Maybe, because of this, all of their history did not reach us; only the parts that were necessary to be known were preserved. If we ask the whole world, “Who, among the founders of religions, has the best personality?”, we will receive various answers. If we change our question a bit and ask, “Who is the only person whose book was recorded, determined and preserved so successfully unlike other holy books, whose incidents and events in his life, deeds, expeditions, clothing style, facial expressions, speaking style, walking, laughing, working were recorded in detail and transferred to the people that came after him?”, the answer we will receive is definitely this: “That person is no one but Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh).” (3)

His life was not only reported by people, it was also mentioned in the Quran in detail. His life, ethics, attitudes against incidents, relations between him and believers, unbelievers, his wives and other members of his families, his mission, other aspects of his personality, etc are all reported to us by the Quran. That is, that situation of Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) was not experienced by anybody else.   

Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh), who spent 23 years of his 63-year life as a prophet, did not only convey the revelation that came to him to people during that period but he also showed them how to practice it. Therefore, there is no difference between the worshipping of any Muslim and the worshipping of the Prophet in terms of its nature. It is not possible to say the same thing for the members of the other religions. 

Although it is very difficult to find authentic information about the religious and private life of the previous prophets, thanks Allah, we even have the personal belongings of our Prophet (pbuh) today. I think the psychology behind the fact that some Jews and Christians sometimes attack Islam and the Prophet (pbuh) is the psychology of jealousy originating from this fact. (4)

5. It Addresses Everybody

In order to be universal, it is necessary for an idea, thought, or religion to embrace and call everybody, and to address people from all levels and not to be peculiar to a certain congregation, group, community, race or nation. Otherwise, such a thought or religion is not universal but national and local. From this point of view, it cannot be said that the religions, ideologies and –isms other than Islam are universal.

Is there a prophet other than Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) who was sent with a general prophethood that comprises the humanity? Or, is there a divine religion sent by Allah other than Islam that embraces everybody? Sons of Israel allocated the world only to themselves and regarded the world to be limited with their own borders. They even thought that Allah, who is the Lord of the all realms, was the deity of their nation only. Therefore, when we look at the prophets of Sons of Israel and the Torah, we see that their call is limited with their own nation, not embracing other nations. (5) Even today, we can say that the Sharia of Moses and Judaism is peculiar to Sons of Israel only and does not address others. (6) According to them, Jesus herded only the sheep of Sons of Israel, (7) conveyed his prophethood only to the people in the villages and lands of Sons of Israel and tried not give his sons’ bread to dogs. (8)

The holy books of Hindus, the Vedas, are no different from the Torah. Hindus claim that they are holy books sent down from heaven to their prophets. They believe that the reading and the tune of the Vedas cannot be heard by people other than Aryans because, according to them, all of the people except Aryans are dirty and their ears are filthy. Therefore, they do not deserve hearing the tunes of the holy book. When they hear the verses of the Vedas, it is necessary to pour lead into their ears. (9)

The Quran, which God Almighty sent to Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh), His slave and messenger, was sent in order to show what is good to the whole mankind, to save them from wrong paths and to guide them to the right path, to enable them to reach the guidance, to enable them to abandon the evil and direct toward the good, to save them from worshipping idols, to enable them to have the belief of oneness, to save them from the oppression of people and tyrants, and to enable them to attain the justice of Islam. The Quran, which aims to ensure the happiness of the mankind, was not sent to a certain group or race, to a certain time and country, or to people speaking a certain language but to the whole mankind. (10) Therefore, our Prophet, who was appointed to convey the message of the Quran to people, is not the prophet of a certain time, place or group but all times, places and people. And he is a universal prophet. It is possible to see his universality in many verses in the Quran:

Say: "O men! I am sent unto you all, as the Messenger of Allah, to Whom belongeth the dominion of the heavens and the earth: there is no god but He: it is He that giveth both life and death. So believe in Allah and His Messenger, the unlettered Prophet, who believed in Allah and His words: follow him that (so) ye may be guided." (al-A’raf, 7/158)

We sent thee not, but as a mercy for all creatures. (al-Anbiya, 21/107)

We have not sent thee but as a (Messenger) to men, giving them Glad tidings, and warning them (against sin), but most men understand not. (Saba’, 34/28)

The words used in some other verses indicate that the Quran is universal and addresses everybody because words like nas: people (2/21; 4/79, 7/158; 10/1; 31/33; 35/5; 105, 170), insan : man(75/3–10; 80/17, 24; 89/15; 100/6–8; 103/1–3), abd and ibad: slave and slaves (2/186; 7/32; 15/49; 17/96; 39/7,10; 89/29), bashar: human (74/31, 36), bani Adam: sons of Adam (7/26, 27, 31, 35; 36/60), alamin: realms (21/107; 25/1; 32/2; 38/87; 45/36) express universality. As it is understood from those words used in order to express the prophethood of the Messenger of Allah and his conveying the revelation to people, his prophethood is not limited with time, place and a nation; it embraces everybody.

The Messenger of Allah said that he was not a prophet sent for one nation only but for the whole humanity. “I have been given five things which were not given to anyone else before me. Allah made me victorious by awe for a distance of one month's journey. The earth has been made for me (and for my followers) a place for praying and a thing to perform Tayammum, therefore anyone of my followers can pray wherever the time of a prayer is due. The booty has been made Halal (lawful) for me. Every Prophet used to be sent to his nation only but I have been sent to all mankind. And I have been given the right of intercession.” (11) “Once, Hazrat Umar came to the Messenger of Allah and said, “O Messenger of Allah! I asked someone from Bani Qurayza Jews and he wrote me some verses from the Torah. Shall I read them to you?” The color of the face of the Messenger of Allah changed. One of the people there said to Umar, “Do you not see the face of the Messenger of Allah?” Hazrat Umar said, “I am content with Allah as the Lord, Islam as the religion and Muhammad (pbuh) as the Prophet.” Thereupon, an expression of joy was seen on the face of the Prophet and he said, “I swear by Allah in whose hand is my soul that if Moses appeared among you and if you left me and followed him, you would deviate into the wrong path. You are my share among ummahs; and I am your share among prophets.” (12)
It is understood from those explanations that the Quran comprises all human beings and it will be valid until the Day of Judgment. No book will be sent after it and no religion will be valid in the presence of Allah except the religion that the Quran brought, because the principles brought by the Quran can be applied by everyone and it has a property that meets all needs. However, those who interpret it should understand it properly and find appropriate answers from it appropriate for the needs of people.  

6. It Meets All Needs of People

In order to be universal, it is necessary for a thought or religion to meet all of the needs, requests and desires of the human beings that it addresses. A thought or religion that cannot fulfill it cannot be universal. When we look at the other religions and thoughts from this point of view, we see that they are not interested in all aspects of human beings but some limited aspects and that they ignore some aspects of their lives. However, the Quran is completely free of any deficiencies. It has not left anything that man will need incomplete. It has dealt with everything from the most important one to the less important one and informed people about the best thing. In short, everything is present in the Quran for those who can think, understand and comprehend. The following verse indicates that property: “..there is not a grain in the darkness (or depths) of the earth nor anything fresh or dry (green or withered) but is (inscribed) in a Record Clear (to those who can read).” (al-An’am, 6/59)

For instance, things related to belief are things that man can never abandon. There are detailed principles in the Quran regarding the issue, and the names and attributes of the Creator are dealt with in detail (2/255; 6/102; 20/14; 21/22; 23/91; 42/11; 59/22–24; 67/1–2; 112/1–4);  in addition, it has been emphasized that only Allah deserves being worshipped (7/191–195; 16/17; 22/73–74; 46/4–6); people have been advised to believe in angels, prophets and books sent to them (2/136; 4/136); it has been stated that man will be resurrected after death and that he will be accounted for, and punished or rewarded accordingly. (21/104; 30/27; 32/10; 34/7; 36/78–79; 50/3, 15; 56/47–50; 64/7; 75/3–4).

Principles related to kinds of worshipping like salah, fasting, zakah and hajj have been determined, and rules that will be needed by man have been imposed. For instance, halal (licit) and haram (forbidden) things have been stated (2/188, 275; 3/130; 4/10; 6/152), principles regarding buying and selling have been mentioned (2/282; 4/6; 5/106), decrees about orphans and their custodians have been expressed (4/2–10), issues like marriage, divorce, alimony, iddah, breastfeeding have been stated. Punishments to be applied for some crimes have been stated; for instance, the punishment of retaliation for killing a person deliberately (2/178), punishment for killing by mistake (4/92), punishment for highwaymen (5/33), punishment for theft (5/38, 94; 24/2), punishment for fornication (24/2), punishment for slandering chaste women that they fornicated (24/4) have been stated. The way to be followed when people have quarrels among them has been stated (49/9–10), solutions to family problems have been presented (4/34–35), principles like the rules for the relations between Muslims and non-Muslims , relations during the time of peace (4/90; 8/61), during the time of war (2/190), always being ready for wars (8/60), not being afraid when facing the enemy, not withdrawing and not running away from them (4/104; 8/15–16), the state of the person who demands political asylum (9/6), how to treat prisoners of war (47/4), and the items of contracts (8/58; 9/4; 16/91) have been dealt with.

Another important issue that is emphasized is ethical principles. Many issues like how to treat relatives (4/36), getting rid of bad deeds through good deeds and pardoning as a good characteristic (3/133–134; 5/13; 42/40), encouraging people to be honest (9/119), respecting entrusted things (4/58,107; 8/27; 23/1–11), encouraging people to be just, (16/90), being modest, avoiding conceit and show-off (17/37; 25/63–75; 31/18–19), the unpleasantness of mocking people and giving them bad names (49/11), avoiding bad thoughts about people, backbiting and spying on people (49/12), showing respect to the privacy of other people’s homes, and the principles to be observed while entering other people’s homes (24/27–29, 58–59), importance necessary to be given to the chastisement of women (24/31; 33/32, 33, 59), rules about staying in other people’s homes (33/53) have been dealt with. In short, the Quran has a large variety of issues. And those issues that are dealt with are the issues that people will absolutely face in their lives. Therefore, people can easily find and pick up the issues that they will need from the Quran, which shows that it has a universal characteristic.   

7. The Principles it has Brought are Acceptable

Many ideas have emerged, many philosophical currents have been formed and many systems have been presented to human beings up to now. However, none of them was long-lived; even the ones that seemed indestructible disappeared in a very short time and only their names were left; even the names of some currents were forgotten. The most important reason that made them like that was that the principles they brought did not have a characteristic that would make everybody accept them. As for the Quran, the principles that it brought related to creed, ethics and applications have a characteristic that makes everybody accept it because the owner of those principles is Allah, who is the Creator of man and who knows how much burden a person can carry.  The acceptability depends on the practicability and reasonability of the principles that are put forward. God Almighty has not put people to difficulties; He has not laid anybody a burden that he cannot carry: “..Allah intends every facility for you He does not want to put you to difficulties...” (al-Baqara, 2/185) The verse above shows it clearly.

However, some people objected especially to some decrees stated in the Quran and claimed that they could be valid only in the age that the Quran was sent down and that they should be replaced by some new principles today. Those thoughts were mostly put forward by orientalists and many people were affected by them. For instance, they claimed that cutting off the hand of a person as a punishment for theft, polygamy, giving women fewer shares than men as inheritance, etc could not be valid today. We will not discuss them one by one in this article. However, when those decrees that are criticized are examined through an objective eye, a clean conscience and an unconditioned approach within the integrity of Islam not based on the criteria of the existing debauched civilization that made the majority of the mankind unhappy and that shed a lot of blood all over the world, it will be seen how perfect those decrees are; anyway, they have already been explained by expert people.

When a person examines a command or a prohibition, he will evaluate the issue differently if he imagines that he himself faces the same condition. Instead of acting like that, if a person approaches the issue under the influence of others and by taking refuge in some notions, he will develop wrong ideas. 

In this study, the primary conditions of universality have been discussed. As a result, we have seen very clearly that all of those conditions are present in the Quran. From now on, it is possible for us to say that the Quran is universal and that there is no doubt about it. This state will continue until the Day of Judgment because no books will be sent down after it and no prophet will be sent after Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh).

Ass. Prof. Muhittin AKGÜL

Footnotes:
1. “Say: "If ye do love Allah, follow me: Allah will love you and forgive you your sins; for Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful." Say: "Obey Allah and His Messenger"; but if they turn back, Allah loveth not those who reject Faith..” (Aal–i-Imran, 3/31–32)
2. Dr. Sprenger, a famous German scholar, states the following in the English introduction that he wrote for al-Isaba, the book of Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, printed in Calcutta between 1853–1864: “There is no nation among the previous nations – and there is no nation among the contemporary nations – that did what Muslims did about the science of biography, the life stories of people. They collected the biography of 500.000 people.” Nadwi, Sulayman, ar–Risalatu’l–Muhammadiyya Daru’s–Suudiyya. Jeddah 1984, p. 62 (footnote 1).
3. Shibli, Mawlana, Asr–ı Saadet (Trns: Ömer Rıza Doğrul), Eser Neşriyat ve Dağıtım, İst. 1977, 1/18–19.
4. Kaya, Mahmud, İslâm’ın Evrenselliği Üzerine Ebedî Risalet Sempozyumu l. Işık Yayınları, İzmir 1993, p. 306.
5. A person who reads all parts of the Torah cannot find anything stating that Moses or Sons of Israel are appointed to call others to their religion. What is written in every part confirms the idea that Judaism is a religion peculiar to itself and the Lord is only their God. Reporting from Darwaza, Muhammad Izzah, Tarikhu Bani Israel Min Asfarihim, Çelebi, Ahmet, Mukayeseli Dinler Açısından Yahudilik (Trnsl: Ahmet M. Büyükçınar, Ömer Faruk Harman), Kalem Yayınevi, İst. 1978. p. 186. See also: Faruqi, Ismail Raji, İbrahimî Dinlerin Diyaloğu: Trialogue of the Abrahamic Faiths (Trnsl: Mesut Karaşahan), Pınar Yayınları, İst. 1993, p. 35 ff.
6. The reason why Jews allocate their religion only to themselves and oppose others entering their religion is due to the feeling of egoism and regarding themselves distinguished and superior to others. It is such a feeling that they think as if the value of Jews becomes higher than others and they regard everybody except Jews as wild people or animals. Çelebi, Ahmet, ibid p. 187.
7. The expression: However, Jesus answered saying, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” (Matthew, 15/24) indicates it.
8. Nadwi, Sulayman, ar–Risalatu’l–Muhammadiyya 165–166. See also: Kahraman, Ahmet, Mukayeseli Dinler Tarihi p. 159–160.
9. Nadwi, Sulayman, ar–Risalatu’l–Muhammadiyya p. 166. see also: Kahraman, ibid p. 106.
10. Abdulhalim Mahmud, Ali, Alamiyyatu’d–Da’wati’l–Islamiyya Daru’l–Wafa, Cairo 1992, p. 161.
11. Bukhari, tayammum 1, salat 56; Muslim, masajid 3; Nasai, ghusl 26; Darimi, siyar 28, salat 111.
12. Darimi, muqaddima 39; Musnad 3/471, 4/276.

The people who are mentioned as ignorant in the verses are mostly unbelievers, cruel people and wrongdoers rather than illiterate ones. If the mother and father wish something that is against the orders of Allah (SWT), then their children should not perform their wishes. The expression stated as turning away does not mean leaving completely but avoiding to perform their requests that are haram and unjust. However, it is necessary to show them their mistakes and try to correct their false beliefs because this way is suitable for the cause of the existence of Islam and, in general, the wisdom of the prophets’ being sent.

According to a narration reported by Tabari, when this verse was sent down, Jibril explained it by giving an example “Your Lord orders you to do good against evil, give something to someone who does not give you anything and to continue the brotherhood and kinship relations with those who keep themselves away from you” (See Kur’an Yolu, Heyet, Interpretation of the relevant verse) 

Asma Bintu Ebi Bakr (May Allah be pleased with her) narrates:

"My mother came to see me while she was still a polytheist. She had come to demand something from me. I inquired the prophet (pbuh), "My mother has come to see me and she is expecting something from me. Shall I treat her well?" He said, "Yes. Be kind to your mother." (Bukhari, Hiba 28, Adab 8; Muslim, Zakah 50; Abu Dawud, Zakah, 34)

It is understood that even if a mother and father are unbelievers, we should treat them in accordance with humanistic values and respect them and take care of them as their children. The fact that giving nafaqah (sustenance) to parents even if they are unbelievers is wajib is deduced from this hadith.   

The importance of giving nafaqa to the parents and respecting them even if they are unbelievers is understood from this fact: revelation came because of the incident above and the subject was judged in the Qur’an.

 “Allah forbids you not, with regard to those who fight you not for (your) Faith nor drive you out of your homes, from dealing kindly and justly with them: for Allah loveth those who are just.” (Surah al-Mumtahina, 60/8)

This verse is more clear about respecting the parents even if they are unbelievers:

"But if they strive to make the join in worship with Me things of which thou hast no knowledge obey them not; Yet bear them company in this life with justice (and consideration) and follow the way of those who turn to Me…” (Surah Luqman 31/15)

A woman who is in menses can only listen but cannot read the Qur’an even if the Qur'an is on the computer.

It is wrong to draw the picture of a man only by looking at his little finger; it is similarly wrong and misleading to make a judgment about the Quran only by looking at the translation of a single verse.

There is a verse that some authors always mention and misinterpret in order to conceal the universality, tolerance of Islam and the vast freedom of thought in it:

“And slay them wherever ye catch them, and turn them out from where they have turned you out; for tumult and oppression are worse than slaughter……” (al-Baqara,191)

Before starting to analyze the issue, it is necessary to remind some judgments in the Quran so that the real aim of the Quran will be understood and the real interpretation of the verse mentioned above will be manifested.

A verse that is closely related with the issue is as follows: “Let there be no compulsion in religion. Truth stands out clear from Error …..” (al-Baqara, 256)

In the interpretation of the verse, it is stated, “there is no compulsion in religion” and the following is added, “there is no permission for compulsion not only in religious issues but also in all issues.”

Another verse that teaches the same truth is as follows: “If it had been the Lord's Will they would all have believed all who are on earth! Wilt thou then compel mankind against their will to believe?” (Yunus, 99)

That is, the duty of the prophets and the aim of the Quran is to convey the truth to people. People were sent to the world for trial. One of the essentials of trial is to be able choose one of the ways, the right way or the wrong way, on one’s own. Since compulsion will eliminate the will of a person, there is no use of trial.

There are many verses that strengthen that meaning:

“If it had been Allah's Plan they would not have taken false gods: but We made thee not one to watch over their doings, nor art thou set over them” (al-An’am, 107)
“The Messenger's duty is but to proclaim (the Message). (al-Maida, 99
“If Allah so willed, He could make you all one people.” (an-Nahl, 93)
In another verse, attention is attracted to the following truth: “but if any deny faith; Allah stands not in need of any of His creatures.”(Aal-i-Imran, 97)

That is, Allah does not need anything of the any of the realms that He created and educated. He does not need the sunlight, the fruit of the trees, the blowing of the wind, the seasons following one another, the seeing and hearing of the living things; He does not need to be believed in, recognized and worshipped by people, either.

There are many verses like that. What is deduced from them is as follows: Allah calls people to believe and to continue worshipping for their own benefits; similarly, He orders them to carry out the duty of jihad for their own benefits. Although this meaning is valid for all ages and for the whole world of humanity, it addresses the Companions, who are the first people to be addressed by those verses, and the struggle between belief and unbelief in the Arabian Peninsula more.

When the religion of Islam emerged in the Arabian Peninsula, the main belief of the people living there was idolatry. The main aim of the Quran was to embed the belief of “oneness” (tawhid) in the hearts.

The chapter al-Fatiha starts with the declaration that Allah is the “Lord of the worlds”. All of the realms, skies, earths, people, animals, jinn, angels, plants were created, educated and trained by Allah, and they fulfill their duties thanks to Allah. It is a lesson of oneness.

It is emphasized in the following verses of the chapter that only Allah can be worshipped and that only His help can be asked for.

In another verse, attention is attracted to the fact that sustenance forms as a result of the cooperation of the sky and the earth, and it is taught that it is the Lord of the skies and the earth that is worthy of thanking.

In another verse, the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) is addressed, “It is true thou wilt not be able to guide everyone whom thou lovest: but Allah guides those whom He will and He knows best those who receive guidance.” (al-Qasas, 56) and it is declared that guidance, which is the greatest bounty, belongs to Allah only.

Thus, the lesson of oneness is given from the beginning to the end of the Quran; in the chapter an-Nas (the last chapter of the Quran), it is stated that Allah is the “Lord of people”. It is only Allah that educates and trains people. It is only He who trains the eyes to see, the ears to hear and the stomachs to digest; similarly, it is only He who trains the minds to understand, the hearts to believe, love and fear.

When we look at the past, we see that the common cause of the prophets is “oneness” (to accept that Allah is one). We also witness that humanity believes in something, whether it is right or wrong, that atheism is not widespread but that all kinds of polytheism is a great “mischief” that lead people astray.

When Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh), the greatest proclaimer of the belief of oneness started his greatest struggle against polytheism in Makkah, all polytheists opposed him and tried to dissuade him from his cause. They sent his uncle to him as a mediator. When he gave his uncle the following answer: “I would not abandon this cause even if they put the sun in my right hand and the moon in my left hand”, the period of force, bullying and torture started.

This point is very important: The polytheists living in and around Makkah were different from those in other places. They not only practiced their wrong belief on their own but also wanted to exterminate the light of oneness that emerged in their town and adopted the idea of eliminating it as a holy ideal; they were ready to sacrifice their lives for it. There were no other alternatives but two left: Either the belief of oneness would be victorious and the light of the Quran would be conveyed to humanity, or the wrong beliefs would invade the hearts of people. In other words, either people would be shown the way to Paradise, or the flow toward Hell would continue.

It is necessary to look at the verses of violence in the Quran about the polytheists of that period through that point of view. For instance, the struggle was not against a few polytheists but against the whole belief of polytheism and those who represented and wanted to protect it. As a matter of fact, we see that the Quran does not continue its harsh statements about the polytheists of Makkah when it addresses other polytheist nations. The statements about Christians, who have the belief of trinity, and other members of the People of the Book are not harsh at all.

“And dispute ye not with the People of the Book, except with means better (than mere disputation) unless it be with those of them who inflict wrong (and injury): but say "We believe in the Revelation which has come down to us and in that which came down to you; Our God and your God is one; and it is to Him we bow (in Islam).” (al-Ankabut, 46)

Some people who overlook that point say the following:

How can you say that Islam is tolerant toward different beliefs when this verse is present: “And slay them wherever ye catch them, and turn them out from where they have turned you out; for tumult and oppression are worse than slaughter…” (al-Baqara,191)?

It is necessary to analyze some aspects of the issue due to its importance: The people that the verse addresses are Arab polytheists. “In the law of Equality there is (saving of) life to you O ye men of understanding.” (al-Baqara, 179)

In these verses, the believers are ordered to kill those who kill the believers and to exile those who exiled the believers; it is also emphasized that fitnah (mischief) is worse than killing. To kill a person means to exterminate his life in this ephemeral world. To cause mischief, to force people to worship idols means to send them to Hell permanently. It is obvious that the latter is worse than the former. What is more, the mischief of Makkan polytheists had a dimension of killing, too. They buried their daughters alive and declared war against believers in order to kill them.

Here, we want to present another verse expressing the same meaning: “Those who believe fight in the cause of Allah and those who reject Faith fight in the cause of Evil: so fight ye against the friends, of Satan: feeble indeed is the cunning of Satan.” (an-Nisa, 76)

“And fight them on until there is no more tumult or oppression and there prevail justice and faith in Allah altogether and everywhere.” (al-Anfal, 39)

What is meant by the word “them” in the verse are the polytheists, and what is meant by tumult or oppression is associating partners with Allah. “And fight them on until there is no more tumult or oppression and there prevail justice and faith in Allah; but if they cease let there be no hostility except to those who practice oppression.” (al-Baqara,193)

I would like to report two things that I regard very important from the interpretations of the last verse:

“The reason why that verse was sent down was the oppression and torture carried out by the people of Makkah against believers and their pressure to make believers exit Islam. Then, the meaning of the verse is: “Kill polytheists so that you will defeat them and there will be no mischief of exiting Islam. You should fight them in order to be protected from their torture so that polytheism will disappear and the religion of oneness will replace it. (Konyalı M.Vehbi Ef. 1-2/331)

While war is commanded in order to eliminate mischief, another verse brings the following restrictions: “Fight in the cause of Allah those who fight you but do not transgress limits; for Allah loveth not transgressors.” (al-Baqara, 190)

War should be in the way of Allah; the wars that are fought to obtain some interests like invading lands, capturing booty, and obtaining slaves do not have the characteristic of jihad. Another limitation is not to transgress limits. It is a kind of oppression to punish a criminal more than he deserves, like torturing him or cutting one or some of his organs.

In order to be able to interpret the issue correctly, it is very important to understand the first verses of the chapter at-Tawbah:

“A (declaration) of immunity from Allah and His Messenger to those of the pagans with whom ye have contracted mutual alliances.” (at-Tawbah, 1)

“Go ye, then for four months, backwards and forwards, (as ye will), throughout the land, but know ye that ye cannot frustrate Allah (by your falsehood) but that Allah will cover with shame those who reject Him..” (at-Tawbah, 2)

Those verses declare that the contracts signed with polytheists, who did not keep their promises, were cancelled. They also warn the enemies of Islam, who were given four months of time, that they will be defeated.

In the next verse, the polytheists are called to repent; they are warned that they will be tortured in hell if they do not.

In the fifth verse, the following order is given, “But when the forbidden months are past, then fight and slay the pagans wherever ye find them …….”
In the sixth verse, it is stated that if any of the polytheists asks to be forgiven although the period of contract is over, they need to be forgiven and the following is added:
“so that he may hear the word of Allah; and then escort him to where he can be secure: That is because they are men without knowledge..”

Those verses are the last ones that were sent down. Muslims were victorious; the unbelievers were informed that they should either become Muslims or agree to fight; they were given four months (a long period) to believe or to leave; the Messenger of Allah clearly declared that there would not be two religions in the Arabian Peninsula.

The people that the verse and the hadith were notified to were those who tried to extinguish the light of Islam for more than twenty years, who exiled Muslims from their hometowns, who followed the Muslims to Madinah and tried to kill them there, who were killed for the sake of polytheism and who martyred many Companions; they were idealistic and determined polytheists. In spite of all these things, a contract was signed with them, and Muslims tried to live peacefully with them. It was the polytheists who always broke those agreements (except for two tribes). They were notified clearly that when the duration of the contract ended, the peace period would end. From then on, either the belief of oneness or polytheism would prevail. It was time to end it all.

Although Muslims defeated polytheists, they gave polytheists some time; those who wanted to know and learn Islam were let do so; if they did not believe, they were not killed but they were made sure to return to their towns safely. Besides, they were warned once more at the end of the verse that a tragic end awaited them.

The reason why Makkan polytheists were treated differently form other polytheists and the People of the Book was in order to settle and strengthen the true religion and the belief of oneness in and around Makkah and then to spread it to the whole world. The seed should be strong so that many trees would originate from it. From then on, nobody would worship idols, nobody would circumambulate the Kaaba naked, nobody would bury their daughters alive, everybody would believe in the Lord of the worlds, everybody would obey His orders and avoid His prohibitions in the Arabian Peninsula. Everybody would know that they were travelers to the hereafter and would do good deeds for the eternal land.

Thus, blessed and magnificent believers that would surpass angels would be brought up and they would try hard to convey the light of Islam to the whole world.

They would make jihad in order to eliminate oppression in the towns that people were oppressed but they would not force anybody to become Muslims when they were victorious; they would only lift the embargo imposed on the minds and hearts and they would present people with an environment of freedom that they could choose the good.

The following verse that orders those who suffered from the oppression of Makkan polytheists to be saved is an important guide which is very significant in terms of lifting similar oppression:

“And why should ye not fight in the cause of Allah and of those who, being weak, are ill-treated (and oppressed)?― men, women, and children, whose cry is: "Our Lord! rescue us from this town, whose people are oppressors; and raise for us from Thee one who will protect; and raise for us from Thee one who will help!"?” (an-Nisa, 75)

In order to eradicate the harmful elements around that cadre, the Muslims in Makkah started the attempt to conquer Makkah based on the order of that verse and eventually achieved it. After that, the cadre became perfect. In a very short time, the civilization of Andalusia and after that the Seljuk and Ottoman civilizations emerged and the light of the Quran illuminated the world. First, polytheism was cleared off the hearts and oneness became prevalent. Justice replaced oppression and high ethics replaced debauchery.

The believers who drew lessons from that verse started to make jihad and conquer new countries in order to break the strength of those who wanted to force people to accept their wrong beliefs and to end the oppression inflicted on Muslims.

“The aim of war in Islam is not taking revenge, killing or forcing people to adopt Islam but defeating the enemy and breaking their strength, hence making them subject to the decrees of the truth by letting them be free in their religion.” (Elmalılı Tefsiri, 2/864-5)

By collecting a tax called jizyah from the people of the countries that they conquered, Muslims made those people their subjects and protected their lives and property.

The following hadith about zimmis (non-Muslims living in a Muslim country and having the right of benefiting from the rights of citizenship by paying jizyah) is very significant:

“… If a person oppresses a zimmi and loads him a burden more than he can afford will find me against him in the Day of Judgment.” (Abu Dawud, Imarah, 33, see Munawi, Fayzu`l-qadir, 6/19; Baghdadi, Tarikh Baghdad, 8/170; Ajluni, Kashfu`l-khafa, 2/342.)

The following explanation of Fakhraddin Razi, the great interpreter (mufassir), about jihad is very significant: “A person who fights unbelievers must have the aim and determination of eliminating unbelief. Therefore, it is wajib for a person who is fighting an unbeliever to give up killing him if he thinks that the probability of dissuading the unbeliever from unbelief without fighting him is greater.” (Tafsir Kabir; 4/436)

Those who utter the objections that are dealt with in this article should evaluate the following decree of Islam very well: “If an unbeliever becomes a zimmi and pays jizyah in the land of Islam or makes peace with Muslims outside the land of Islam, his rights are reserved.”

Accordingly, a person who kills a zimmi is retaliated just as a person who kills a Muslim is retaliated. If Muslims had misinterpreted that verse like those people mentioned above, they would have killed all of the polytheists, idolaters, Christians and Jews of the countries that they conquered.

History tells us just the opposite. The churches and synagogues that still exist in Islamic countries refute that claim.

Those who interpret the above-mentioned verse wrongly and incompletely and attack Islam are wrong; similarly, those who evaluate that verse based on their own minds and think of killing all non-Muslims are wrong like those people and are far away from the spirit of Islam.

The mistakes of those people, whom Badiuzzaman describe as “bigoted in religion and lacking reason” cannot be attributed to Islam.

It is wrong to attack Islam by using those people as a pretext. If it is necessary to attack somebody or something, the committees of seduction and subversion that have been trying hard to lead Muslims away from Islam continuously for over a century should be attacked.

The people who were deprived of learning Islam truly and who learned the Quran incompletely or even wrongly have eventually started to harm those enemies of Islam, too.

Moreover, it is well known that the organizations that organize people like that are supported by foreign countries, that they act like a company of murdering and that they make people commit many disgraceful acts from smuggling arms to drug trafficking in return for money.

This verse, explains the mortality of every created being. Every Human tastes death; similarly, our world also shall have a taste of death. We call the death of the world Doomsday.

The 68^th verse of Surah of Az-Zumar, mentions about the sounding of the trumpet for twice. At the first sounding, all that are in the heavens and on the earth will be made stand up, except those that Allah does not wish. According to the narrations, the four important angles are excepted Gabriel (Jibrail), Michael (Mikail), Raphael (Israfil) and the angel of death Azrael known as (Malak al-Mawt). In some of the narrations, the angels which are called as “Hamala al-Arsh” (the carriers of the divine Throne) included in this exception.  

In the explanation of the 16th verse of Surah Al-Mumin, this narration is given:

After the Qiyamah, Allah (SWT) asks; “Who possesses the power today?” As there is no one to answer, He answers “It is (Allah) who possesses the name Al-Wahid (The One) and Al-Qahhar (The All Compelling Subduer).

The verse: “Everything (that exists) will perish except His own Face.” (Al-Qasas 88) can also be mentioned in this context

The event of Death is not the death of the soul but its departure from the body. Until the Qiyamah, souls will continue to live in a life which is called as barzakh (the intermediate of realm). The name al-Mumit (the Taker of Life) of Allah becomes manifest with the Doomsday. Then, the trumpet is blown for the second time and the bodies are returned to the spirits. Everybody gathers in Mahshar (Gathering Place)

Doç. Dr. Şadi Eren

Author: İslam Ansiklopedisi, 09-2-2006

It is a phrase used for a group of young believers known as cave friends or sleepers in the cave. This event, which is narrated in the eighteenth chapter of the Quran and which gives the chapter its name, is the story of young believers who abandoned their tribe that rejected belief in Allah and adopted idolatry and who took refuge in a cave and whose situation is exemplary in terms of belief in the hereafter and resurrection after death. Those people, who are known as "Ashabu'l-Kahf wa'r-Raqim" that is, "People of the Cave and the Inscription", rejected the belief of the community in which they lived and stated that they accepted the orders and prohibitions of Allah; therefore, they were prosecuted by the Roman military governor and they were wanted to be punished. Those believers, who did not want to be punished like that, left their city secretly, and entered a cave near the city and hid there. According to the prevalent narration in the books of history and tafsir, this event took place near Tarsus in the second half of the third century, when Anatolia was under Roman rule. Decius, who was the governor of the region, called them and wanted them to abandon their belief; he warned them that he would kill them if they did not do so. Those believing youths said that their belief was right that it was a wrong and superstitious belief for man to show respect to an idol that he himself made and that they would not give up their religion; they left the city after saying so. The believing youths hid in the cave in the foot of a mountain outside the city together with a dog that followed them. "So they stayed in their Cave three hundred years, and (some) add nine (more).” (al-Kahf,18/25). The young people who lived there for three hundred and nine years were moved to the right and left by the grace and miracle of Allah so that their bodies would not decay during that period and they were kept alive. After that period, one day in the afternoon, they woke up. When they woke up, they felt as if they had slept for one day. After they had left the city, this event was forgotten and many other events happened after that. When the young people woke up, they sent one of them to the city to buy food with the money they had. When the young man called Yemliha approached the city, he was surprised. The roads and the surroundings of the city had changed a lot. A lot of time passed after the Period of Decius, who tortured Christians at that time. When Yemliha wanted to buy bread, the baker who saw the money in his hand suspected that he had found a treasure due to the appearance of his clothes and informed the authorities about him. When the state of the man who wanted to do shopping with the coins of three hundred years earlier was regarded as strange, he was taken to the presence of the ruler. Probably, Theodaius was the ruler then. Yemliha informed them about what had happened. However, at that time, Christianity had replaced idolatry and there was a community that believed in resurrection after death there. Finding what Yemliha narrated interesting, the people of the city and the ruler went to the place where the cave was and where the other young people were. When they got to the cave, Yemliha and his friends disappeared together with their dog. The ruler built a temple in front of the entrance of the cave and declared the cave a holy place. After that incident, the belief in the hereafter strengthened. Many people started to believe in the resurrection after death.  

The issue of their number is controversial. We see that their names are written as follows in the resources: Yemliha, Mekselina, Meslina, Mernush, Debernush, Sazenush ve Kefetatayyush. The name of their dog is known as Qitmir. It is believed that the event took place near Tarsus but there are narrations that it took place in Elbistan, Maraş and even in the Urumchi region of Eastern Turkistan. Christians believe that it took place in Ayasuluk Church.

It does not matter where it took place. What matters is the fact that the story mentioned in the Quran strengthens the belief in the hereafter and calls people to believe it.

Ahmed AĞIRAKÇA

1. The world existed before that event. Human beings did not live there. The structure of the world is appropriate for the Doomsday. Satan may have learnt about the strike of the Doomsday while he was together with angels. Although human beings did not live on the earth, the jinn including Satan lived on the earth. Therefore, the Doomsday was in question for them too. 

According to some scholars, since Satan lived in al-mala al-a’la (the high place) and then in Paradise, he thought he was a person of Paradise. When he found out that he was going to be deported to the earth, he started to think that he was going to be executed and that he was going to die. Therefore, he begged Allah ‘to give him respite until the day they are raised up’. (See Ibn Ashur, the interpretation of the verse).

2. Allah knows best; probably the Doomsday would not strike in Paradise because it is the place of eternity. There may have been more information and talks that are not mentioned in the concise expression of the Quran. Satan may have found out that human beings would live on the earth and that the Doomsday would strike during those talks.

We think, as it is stated in the verse “I will create a vicegerent on the earth.”(al-Baqara, 2/30) that Angels and Satan learned that human beings would live on the earth after Allah stated that Hazrat Adam would be a vicegerent on the earth.

Besides, when we take into consideration the order of the verses in the chapter al-Araf, we will see two scenes.

In the first scene, Hazrat Adam was created; Satan was ordered to prostrate to him; Satan refused to prostrate; he was deported to the earth from the place where he was (according to some scholars, that place is not Paradise but al-mala al-a’la); Satan asked for a respite for his life. (al-Araf: 11-18).

In the second scene, Hazrat Adam settled in Paradise with his wife; he ate from the forbidden tree due to the seduction of Satan; he was expelled from Paradise together with Satan. And they settled on the earth. (al-Araf: 19-25)

It is understood from the explanations above that when Satan mentioned the Doomsday, he was on the earth not in Paradise. Therefore, it is normal that he mentioned the Doomsday.

A Muslim can help his Muslim brother in many ways. Some of these helps can be material; the better and effective ones are spiritual. For instance a Muslim, in his prayers, wants his brother to be pardoned, his sins to be forgiven and his brother to reach Allah's satisfaction. The prayer we make during tahiyyat which means "O Allah! Pardon me, my parents and all of the believers" is a kind of help; our Prophet (PBUH), who said the best help a Muslim can give his brother was to pray for him when he was not there, advised that believers should support each other spiritually. On the other hand, a living person needs more mercy, prayer and sawab (reward) than a dead person. A living person is continuously in a struggle with the devil, his self and his environment. If his believer brothers help him spiritually, support him with their prayers, worshipping and sawabs, he will be more likely to win this struggle. The Qoran is the greatest mediator and supporter to that effect. What can be more pleasant than a person's prayer for his Muslim brother by making the Qoran a mediator and grant the reward of it to his brother? To imagine the nonexistence of such cooperation is like to claim that there are no spiritual connection and relation among Muslims.

There can be different ideas among Muslims about the foreign policy, and this is quite normal. It should be appreciate within the frame of intellectual freedom. But sometimes we know no bounds in such arguments. For example, someone make some Muslims faithless for they are in favor of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization). They say “By this thought you subscribe to Christians and embrace unbeliefness.” When you try to set him right about his wrong thought, he jumps on you and says; “Doesn’t Quran tell us ‘take not the Jews and the Christians for your friends and protectors…?”  

A part of answer of Bediuzzaman ( an Islamic Scholar) to some circles, who misconceive such verse and are opposed to commercial and military pacts done with Christians, is as follows:  
“Our friendship with them is to appreciate and make use of their civilizations and developments and to keep the peace which is the essence of the world’s happiness. Thus, such friendship is clearly out of prohibition of the Quran.” (Munazarat (Disputation))

By this statement it is stated that making use of technical developments and scientific inventions appeared among the Christians’ world and reaching an agreement with them to keep the peace is not prohibited by the verse.
In the next part of the same issue it is drawing attentions to a point that embracing Jewishness of Jews and Christianity of Christians is prohibited by Quran. And with a perfect example it is confirmed:
“If you have a wife out of the people of book, surely you will love her.” That is to say; if you have a wife out of the people of book _for example out of Christians_ you will love her since she is your wife not because she is Christian.
Thus, being deprived of such sensitiveness costs a pretty penny to Muslims.

In Matthew (5/39-40), “But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well” is present, but the following is also present in Matthew (10/34) “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword”
That verse in the Quran does not order violence; it orders that the mischievous people (people causing fitna) who are the source of violence, chaos and war be punished. It is necessary for the peace of the humanity that those people who disturb the peace of the community be purged from the community.
Fitna in Arabic means to put gold into the fire in order to remove the foreign matter in gold. It may also mean testing, trying, torture, misfortune, trouble, sin and disorder. To spread polytheism and atheism, to make someone convert from the religion, to transgress the prohibitions (harams) of Allah, to disturb the peace, to banish people from their countries are all kinds of fitna.  In the verse above, it means to torture in order to make someone convert from the true religion. Makkan polytheists had tortured some of the Companions of the Prophet in the haram (forbidden) months (the months in which fighting is prohibited); they could not bear the torture and they were martyred. That verse permitted the declaration of war in order to stop the torture because that kind of torture was more important than showing respect to haram months. Although the reason of the revelation is special, the decree is general because it expresses the comparison of fitna to killing. 
Man should avoid doing injustice to others; he should also try to prevent others from doing injustice. It is a duty.

Basmala is a verse in the chapter an-Naml in the Quran. It is disputable whether the basmala mentioned at the beginning of each chapter in the Quran is a verse or not. When the original version of the Quran was written, basmala was written at the beginning of each chapter except the chapter of Baraah (at-Tawba). In all of the versions that were written based on that original version, basmala was written at the beginning of each verse. The companions of the Prophet never added anything in mushaf (the Quran) that was not present in the Quran. At that time, the dots and other signs were not present in the Quran. The dots and other signs that were added later were written in different ink so that they could be distinguished from the original text.

According to the narration of Abu Dawud from Ibn Abbas: "The Prophet (pbuh) did not know how to distinguish between two chapters or when a chapter ended until "Bismillahirrahmanirrahim" was sent down.(1)" It is reported that Umm Salama said, "The Prophet (pbuh) is reported to have read basmala as a verse of the chapter al-Fatiha.(2) According to the narration of Abu Hurayra, the Prophet (pbuh) said,: “When you read al-Fatiha, read ‘Bismillahirrahmanirrahim’ too, because al-Fatiha is the mother of the Quran and the mother of the Book, and the seven oft repeated verses. Bismillahirrahmanirrahim is one its verses.(3)"

Based on the evidence mentioned above, Imam Shafii regarded basmala as a verse in the chapter al-Fatiha. Shafi had some hesitations about the basmalas in other chapters, and he sometimes said basmala was a verse in every chapter and sometimes said basmala was a verse in the chapter al-Baqara only.(4)"

Although there are hadiths stating that Hazrat Prophet read basmala before al-Fatiha, those hadiths do not prove that basmala is a verse in al-Fatiha. The Prophet read basmala when he started to read al-Fatiha in order to show that it was a principle of Islam to read when starting every act or task. Besides, there are hadiths stating that Hazrat Prophet read al-Fatiha without reading basmala first. It is narrated that Hazrat Aisha said, "The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) started performing prayers saying Allahu akbar (Allah is the greatest) and reading by alhamdu lillahi rabbi'l-alamin (Praise be to Allah, the Cherisher and Sustainer of the Worlds). Anas Ibn Malik said: "I performed prayers behind the Prophet (pbuh), Abubakr and Umar. They started with alhamdu lillahi rabbi'l-alamin; they did not recite bismillahirrahmanirrahim before they started or after they ended the prayer.(5)" "I did not hear any of them recite bismillahirrahmanirrahim.(6)" "They started reading by alhamdu lillahi rabbi'l-alamin.(7)

Hazrat Abu Hurayra reported the following hadith from the Prophet: "Allah, the Exalted, stated: I divided salah (prayer) into two between me and my slave. Half of it is for me; and half of it is for my slave. What my slave wants will be given to him. When my slave says ‘alhamdu lillahi rabbi'l-alamin’, Allah says: my slave praised me. When the slave says: ‘ar-Rahmani'r-rahim’ (Most Gracious, Most Merciful), Allah says: my slave mentioned my honor. When the slave says ‘maliki yawmi'd-din’ (Master of the Day of Judgment), Allah says my slave referred his business to me. When the slave says, ‘iyyaka na'budu wa iyyaka nasta'in’(Thee do we worship, and Thine aid we seek), Allah says this is a secret between me and my slave. What my slave wants will be given to him.(8) When the slave says ‘ihdina's-sirata'l-mustaqim…’ (Show us the straight way…), Allah says what my slave wants will be given to him." Here, Hazrat Prophet (pbuh) did not mention basmala while listing the verses of al-Fatiha.
Thus, Imam Malik concluded that basmala was not a verse except in verse 30 of the chapter an-Naml, based on the evidence mentioned above. According to him, the reason why basmala is written at the beginning of every chapter is the fact that Hazrat Prophet ordered so and that he wanted every act or deed to be started with basmala. Although it was reported by tawatur (report by a large group of people)  that basmala should be written at the beginning of every chapter, there is no tawatur about basmala being a part of the Quran.

There are hadiths stating that the Prophet did not read and did read basmala while performing prayers. However, the ones stating that he read are stronger. There are hadiths stating that he and his companions read basmala silently during prayers. It is understood from those narrations that Hazrat Prophet read basmala sometimes loudly and sometimes silently during prayers.

Allah, the Exalted, stated the following: "So eat of (meats) on which Allah's name hath been pronounced. “(9). Hazrat Noah (Nuh) ordered the believers to embark on the arc by saying: "Bismillahi majraha wa mursaha inna rabbi laghafuru'r-rahim” (in the name of Allah, whether it move or be at rest! For my Lord is, be sure, Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful); Hazrat Sulayman (Solomon) wrote ”Bismillahirrahmanirrahim” (10) at the beginning of his letter. Since Allah said to His Prophet: "Follow the guidance they received"(11) it is a strong sunnah to start every permissible thing like eating, drinking, going out, coming in, etc.

According to Hanafis, although the fact that basmala is written in the Quran shows that it is part of the Quran, it does not show that it is a verse in every chapter. The hadiths stating that basmala is not recited loudly with al-Fatiha prove that basmala is not a verse of the chapter al-Fatiha. Then, basmala, existing at the beginning of every chapter is an independent verse; it is not part of that chapter. Only the basmala in the middle of the chapter an-Naml is a verse of that chapter.

It is understood that the last view mentioned above is the best view because the fact that nothing that was not in the Quran was not written in the text of the Quran but basmala was written shows that basmala is part of the Quran. The hadiths stating that basmala is not recited loudly with al-Fatiha show that basmala is not a verse of the chapter al-Fatiha. Besides, there is other evidence supporting that view.

Hazrat Prophet (pbuh) said that the chapter al-Mulk consisted of thirty verses. The readers of the Quran and verse counters agreed that the chapter al-Mulk consisted of thirty verses without basmala. Hazrat Prophet also said the chapter al-Kawthar consisted of three verses. The chapter al-Kawthar consists of three verses without basmala. If basmala was included in those chapters, the chapter al-Mulk would have thirty-one and al-Kawthar would have four verses. That is to say, basmala is not included in the chapters; it is an independent verse.

It would not be right not to regard basmala as part of the Quran because there is not tawatur that it is part of the Quran. It is not necessary for each verse to be said it is part of the Quran and to be reported as tawatur. The proof of the state is enough for it. The fact that our Prophet called the scribes of revelation and told them to write something in a certain place in the Quran shows that it is part of the Quran.

Basmala was written in the Quran like that. Hazrat Prophet (pbuh) said, “Write it at the beginning of each verse.”

Due to the difference of opinion about whether basmala is a verse or not and if it is a verse whether it is part of the chapter or not, there are different opinions about the issue of reading basmala during salat (prayers).

Imam Malik does not regard it permissible to read basmala loudly or silently in fard prayers because he does not regard it as a verse. Imam Shafii and Imam Ahmad regard basmala as a verse belonging to each chapter; therefore, they say it is fard to read basmala silently in prayers in which the Quran is read silently and loudly in prayers in which the Quran is read loudly. Abu Hanifa says it is sunnah to say basmala silently before al-Fatiha since he regards it as an independent verse.
 
Kaynaklar:
1- Abu Dawud, Salat, 122
2- al- Fathurrabbani, 3/189
3- Daraqutni, Salat, babu wujubi qiraati bismillah
4- al- Jami’li Ahkamil-Qur’an 1/93
5-Muslim, Salat 52; Nasai, Iftitah 20.
6- Muslim, Salat 51.
7- Darimi, Salat 34.
8- Abu Dawud, Salat: 132; Tirmidhi, Tafsir, ; Nasai, İftitah 23; Ibn Majah Adab 52.
9- al-Anam: 118.
10- an-Naml: 30
11- al-Anam: 90.

Science has come to existence through gradual development like a child.
The evolution of science has found its peak with the advent of Islam.
Western scholars confess that the source of the contemporary science is Islam and the Islamic Works. The most manifest example of it is the Andalusian Civilization.
The reason why the western civilization has not been based on the science and  has been far from the scientific approach is that they believed “The fruit that Adam was banned to eat in  Paradise was the knowledge. After he ate it, he was expelled from Paradise”
The Europeans achieved the Renaissance because they translated the Islamic books into Latin in the 12th century. (İslamda kitle eğitimi, :Mass Education in Islam, Dr. H. Küçük, 18)
The Quran is a written map of the life in this world and in the hereafter.
According to the Imam Fahreddin Razi (a well-known islamic scholar) an Islamic fiqh scholar asks an astronomer what he deals with. He answers: “ I am trying to interpret the verse of the Quran “Do they not look at the sky above them?― How We have made it and adorned, it and there are no flaws in it?”(Qaf 6)”
Science is the common property of the whole mankind. It has always been advancing since its beginning in the depths of the history. The prophets had a leading role in this development. The advance of science paves the way for the imitation of the miracles of the prophets.
For example, even in 794, the son of the caliph Harun Rashid, Ibn Fazil,  founded the first paper factory in Baghdad because they needed paper for the publication of books. It was followed by others, one in Egypt in the year 800 and another in Andalusia in the year 950. It took ages to set up a paper factory in Europe. The paper plants were established in Byzantine in 1100, in Sicily in 1102, in  Germany in 1228, and in England in 1309.
 Confessions of the Europeans: Professor Jacques Risler: “The Maths instructors of our Renaissance are Muslims”.  A French professor E.Gautier says : “Europe took, not only algebra, but all of  the   Mathematical sciences from Muslims. Today’s Western Maths is nothing but the Islamic Maths”
The well-known western scholar Gustave Lebon says: “ While Europe was going through a dark period of barbarity, the two Islamic centers, Baghdad and Cordoba,  were cradles of civilzsation that illuminated the world with their shining lights.”
Undoubtedly, the reason under the remarkable achievements of the Muslims in scientific discoveries and inventions is the importance given to science by Islam. In every matter, the first order of the Quran is “Read” (al-Alaq, 1)
The Italian philosopher, Bruno, was sentenced to death by burning by the Inquisition Court because he supported the Copernicus’ theory. However, the famous Muslim scholar, Biruni, who wrote works about every branch of science, had said 500 years before Copernicus that the earth was rotating both around itself and around the sun. Roundness of the earth and its elliptic shape was mentioned in the Quran with the verse “Daha” (an-Naziat, 29; Majmuatun Minat- Tafasir. (Arabic) Beydawi-Nasafi-Hazin-Ibn Abbas. 6/453) (Muhakemat, Said Nursi, 51,68,123)

As it is narrated from Muhammad b. Isa, Ibnu’l-Asqa said:
A man came to Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings upon him, and asked what the most virtuous verse in the Qur’an was. The Prophet said: “Lailaha illa huwa'l-Hayyu'l-Qayyum…” (Muslim, Musafirin, 258; Abu Davud, al-Huruf wa'l-Qiraa, 35; Ibn Hanbal, V, 142). In another hadith, he said: “The most virtuous verse of the Qur’an is Ayat al-Kursi in Surah al-Baqara. When this verse is recited/read in a house, the Devil goes away from there.” (Tirmidhi, Fadailu'l-Qur'an, 2)
Once, Allah’s Messenger asked Ubay bin Ka’b what the more elevated one was among the verses he memorized, and when Ubay replied: “Allah and His Messenger know better.” Then the Prophet repeated the question, upon which Ubay said that the most exalted verse he knew was "Allahu la ilaha illa Huwa, Al-Hayyul-Qayyum". Allah’s Messenger was pleased with the answer he received and patting Ubay’s chest, he said: “O Abu Munzir! May wisdom be exalted to you!” (Abu Davud, Witr,17). Moreover, The Prophet said: “Ayat al-Kursi is the sultan of the verses of the Qur’an.” (Tirmidhi, Fadailu'l-Qur'an, 2)
In this verse, information is given about the sublimity of Allah, His attributes, about the fact that every event taking place in the universe happens completely in accordance with His will, that without His will and leave no one can intercede for anyone, about His Supreme Throne, and that whatever is in the heavens and the earth belongs to Him. Its translation is as follows:
“God, there is no deity but He; the All-Living, the Self-Subsisting (by Whom all subsist). Slumber does not seize Him, nor sleep. His is all that is in the heavens and all that is on the earth. Who is there that will intercede with Him save by His leave? He knows what lies before them and what lies after them (what lies in their future and in their past, what is known to them and what is hidden from them); and they do not comprehend anything of His Knowledge save what He wills. His Seat (of dominion) embraces the heavens and the earth, and the preserving of them does not weary Him; He is the All-Exalted, the Supreme.”
Some hadiths (sayings of the Prophet) about reading/reciting Ayat al-Kursi:
“Gabriel (Archangel) came to me. He said: “An ifrit (a bad individual) from the Jinn wants to ambush you. Recite Ayat al-Kursi when you enter your bed. In other words, before you go to bed, recite Ayat al-Kursi.”
“Whoever recites/reads Ayat al-Kursi after each obligatory prayer, s/he becomes protected until the next prayer.” Because of this, after each obligatory prayer, Ayat al-Kursi is recited.

“Whoever recites Ayat al-Kursi and the two verses before the surah of “Ha-Mim tanzilul kitabi minallahil azizil alim” when s/he goes out in the morning, s/he becomes protected that day until the evening (from troubles and accidents). And whoever recites them in the evening, s/he becomes protected that night until s/he reaches the morning.”
“The Devil does not get closer to the one who recites Ayat al-Kursi when s/he goes to sleep.” (See Kütüb-i Sitte Tercüme ve Şerhi, Prof. Dr. İbrahim Canan )

HAYAH (LIFE)
Liveliness. Living. Being alive.
Life is an attribute of the spirit. Plants, which do not have a spirit, have a kind of life that is called semi-liveliness and functions as life. As Badiuzzaman Said Nursi points out, man has not been able to solve the mystery of the challenge of life in the seed. How can he explain the attribute of life? Life is created without any reason because all of the beings except it are lifeless; and it is a plain truth that a non-living thing cannot bring about a living thing.
The world is a realm of wisdom. Causes and their effects happen in a regular order, phase by phase. Life is an exception to that rule.
Scientists cannot determine a cause for life; they only list laws of nature, elements, and seasons. The building blocks of this realm of matter function in only our bodies. Our mind, memory, love and fear have nothing to do with the sky, earth, oxygen, nitrogen or any other element.
• FIRST SIGN
 The index-like answer to the questions "What is life?" "What is its true nature and purpose?", which are a greatest manifestation of the Names of Ever-Living and Giver of Life, is this:
 Life is:
(1) the most important aim of the universe;
(2) and its greatest result;
“As may be established empirically, matter is not essential so that existence may be made subject to it, and be dependent on it. Rather, matter subsists through a meaning, and that meaning is life, it is spirit.
Also, as may be established through observation, matter is not the thing served so that everything may be ascribed to it. Rather, it is the servant; it renders service to the process of the perfection of a truth. And that truth is life. And the fundament of that truth is spirit.
Also, as is self-evident, matter is not dominant so that recourse may be made to it or perfections sought from it. Rather, it is dominated; it looks to the decree of some fundament, it is in motion in the way that that decree dictates. And that fundament is life, it is spirit, it is consciousness.
Also, as is necessary, matter is not the kernel, it is not the fundament, it is not a settled abode so that events and perfections may be affixed to it or constructed on it. Rather, it is a shell prepared to be split, rent, dissolved; it is a husk, it is froth, it is a form.
Consider the following: a creature so minute it can only be seen with a microscope has such acute senses that it can hear its friend’s voice, and see its sustenance; it has extremely sensitive and sharp senses. This demonstrates that the effects of life increase and the light of the spirit intensifies in proportion to the reducing and refining of matter. It is as though the more matter is refined and the more we become distanced from our material existences, the closer we draw to the world of the spirit, the world of life, and the world of consciousness; and the more intensely the heat of the spirit and the light of life are manifested.
Is it therefore at all possible that there should be this many distillations of life, consciousness, and spirit within this veil of materiality, and that the inner world which is beyond this veil should not be full of conscious beings and beings with spirits? Is it at all possible that the sources of these numberless distillations, flashes, and fruits of meaning, spirit, life and the truth apparent in this material existence in the Manifest World should only be ascribed to matter and the motion of matter, and be explained by it? God forbid! Absolutely not! These innumerable distillations and flashes demonstrate that this material and manifest world is but a lace veil strewn over the inner and spirit worlds.” (1)
The Second Station: You know, as has been discussed, that life is the discloser of beings; indeed, it is its result. So how could endless space be devoid of inhabitants and the heavens lack their populace? All the intelligent have in effect agreed on the concept of the angels and their reality, even if their interpretations have differed. In fact, the Peripatetic philosophers called them "the disembodied spiritual essences of species;" and the Illuminists called them "the [ten] intellects and masters {arbdb) of the species:" and the followers of the religions have called the Mountain Angel, the Sea Angel, and the Rain Angel, for example. For the Materialists even, who believe only what they see, it has not been easy to deny the concept of the angels and they have associated them with the pervasive forces or power (al-qüwõt al-sdriyya) in the laws of creation. (2)
(3) and its most brilliant light;
Moreover, since, as is plain to see, Pre-Eternal Power creates innumerable animate beings and beings with spirits from the most common substances and densest matter, and giving it great importance, transmutes dense matter by means of life into a subtle substance; and since it strews the light of life everywhere in great abundance, and gilds most things with the light of consciousness, with such flawless power and faultless wisdom, the All-Wise and All-Powerful One would certainly not neglect the other floods of subtle matter like light and ether, which are close to and fitting for the spirit; He would not leave them without life, without consciousness, inanimate. Indeed, He creates animate and conscious beings in great numbers from light, which is also matter, and even from meanings, air, and even words. Just as He creates numerous different species of animals, so too from these torrents of subtle matter does He create numerous different spirit creatures. One kind of them are the angels, others are the varieties of spirit beings and jinn.
(4) and its subtlest leaven;
Just as water freezes to its own detriment, and ice melts to its own detriment, and a kernel gains strength to the detriment of the shell, and a word becomes coarse to the detriment of the meaning, and the spirit weakens on account of the body, and the body becomes finer on account of the spirit, so too this world, the dense world, becomes transparent and refined with the functioning of the machine of life on account of the Hereafter, which is the subtle world. Creative Power sprinkling the light of life on dense, lifeless, extinguished, dead objects with an astonishing activity is a sign that It dissolves, burns, and illuminates this dense world with the light of life on account of the subtle world. (3)
(5) and its distilled essence;
Yes, just as life is the distilled essence of the universe; and consciousness and sense perception are distilled from life and are the essence of life; and intelligence too is distilled from consciousness and sense perception and is the essence of consciousness; and spirit is the pure, unsullied substance of life, its stable and autonomous essence; so too, the physical and spiritual life of Muhammed•(PBUH) is the distilled quintessence of the universe; and the Prophethood of Muhammed (PBUH) is the very purest essence distilled from the senses, consciousness, and intelligence of the universe. Indeed, the physical and spiritual life of Muhammed (PBUH), is, through the testimony of its works, the very life of the life of the universe. And the Prophethood of Muhammed (PBUH) is the consciousness and light of the universe's consciousness. While the Qur'anic revelation, according to the testimony of its living truths, is the spirit of the universe's life and the intelligence of its consciousness.

Yes, yes, yes! If the light of the Prophethood of Muhammed (PBUH) was to depart from the universe, the universe would die. If the Qur'an was to depart, the universe would go mad, the earth would lose its head and its reason; it would even strike its now unconscious head on a planet and Doomsday would occur. (4)

(6) and its most perfect fruit;
(7) and its most elevated perfection;

"The perfection of existence is through life. Rather, the true existence of existence is through life. Life is the light of existence, and consciousness is the light of life. Life is the summit and foundation of everything."

(8) and its finest beauty
(9) and its most beautiful adornment;
(10) and the secret of its undividedness;

"Just as life, which displays a manifestation of Divine Beauty, is a proof of Divine Oneness, and a sort of manifestation of Unity, death, too, which displays the manifestation of Divine Glory, is a proof of Divine Unity."

For example, And God’s is the highest similitude, like by showing the sun’s light and reflection, the bubbles on a large flowing river sparkling in the sun and transparent objects glistening on the face of the earth testify to the sun, on those groups and tribes of bubbles and transparent objects passing and disappearing, the magnificent continuation of the sun’s manifestations and the uninterrupted and continual display of its light on the successive groups and tribes of bubbles and transparent objects which follow on after them, testifies decisively that the little images of the sun and the lights and flashes which appear and sparkle, flare up and die away, and are changed and renewed, are the manifestations of an enduring, perpetual, elevated, single Sun whose manifestation is undying. That is to say, just as through their appearance and becoming visible, those shining droplets demonstrate the sun’s existence, so too, with their disappearance and extinction, they demonstrate it’s continuation, permanence, and unity. (5)

(11)and the bond of its unity;
(12)and the source of its perfections;
(13)and in regard to art and nature, a most wondrous being endowed with spirit;
(14)and a miraculous reality which makes the tiniest creature like a universe;
(15)and in addition to its being the means of the universe being situated in a tiny animate creature, and its showing a sort of index of the huge universe in the creature, it is a most extraordinary miracle of Divine power which connects the animate creature to most beings and makes it a tiny universe;

Consider the following: a lifeless object, even if it is a great mountain, is an orphan, a stranger, alone. Its only relations are with the place in which it is situated, and with the things which encounter it. Whatever else there is in the cosmos, it does not exist for the mountain. For the mountain has neither life through which it might be related to life, nor consciousness with which it might be connected.

Now consider a tiny object like a bee, for example. The instant life enters it, it establishes such a connection with the whole universe that it is as though it concludes a trading agreement with it, especially with the flowers and plants of the earth. It can say: “The earth is my garden; it is my trading house.” Thus, through the unconscious instinctive senses which impel and stimulate it in addition to the well-known five external senses and inner senses of animate beings, the bee has a feeling for, and a familiarity and reciprocal relationship with most of the species in the world, and they are at its disposal. (6)

(16) and it is a wondrous Divine art which enlarges a tiny part to being the greatest whole and makes a particular like a universal or world, and shows that in regard to dominicality the universe is an indivisible whole or universal that cannot be broken into parts and which accepts no participation;

(17) and it is the most brilliant, the most decisive, the most perfect of proofs testifying to the necessary existence of the Ever-Living and Self Subsistent One; and among Divine artefacts is the lightest and most apparent, and the most valuable and the most abundant, and the purest, most shining, and most meaningful embroidery of dominical art;

‘He grants life.’
That is, the one who gives life, is He alone, in which case, it is also He alone Who creates all things. For the spirit, light, leaven, fundament, result, and summary of the universe is life, so whoever grants life must also be the Creator of the whole universe. The one who grants life, then, is certainly He; it is the Ever-Living and Self-Subsistent One. And so we point out the mighty proof of this degree in the profession of Divine Unity as follows.

As has been explained and proved in another Word, we see before us the truly magnificent army of animate beings with their tents pitched on the plain of the face of the earth. Indeed, every spring we see a new army emerging From the World of the Unseen freshly mobilized; one army of the innumerable armies of the Ever-Living and Self-Subsistent One. Looking at this army, we see within it more than two hundred thousand assorted and different nations from the plant families, and again more than one hundred thousand from the animal tribes. Although the uniforms of each tribe and family, as well as their provisions, drill, discharge, arms, and period of service arc all different, anyone who has eyes in his head will see, and having seen will be unable to deny, that a commander-in-chief provides all these different needs, with perfect orderliness and precise balance, at exactly the right time. And that He does this through His infinite power and wisdom, His boundless knowledge and will, His unending mercy, His inexhaustible treasuries, without forgetting a single one of them, or confusing or mixing-up or delaying any of them.

Is it at all possible, then, that anything could meddle, interfere, and have a share in this giving of life and administering, in this nurturing and sustaining, other than one who has an a11-comprehensive knowledge which encompasses the army together with all of its attributes, and one who has absolute power with which to administer the army and all of its necessities? God forbid! A hundred thousand times?

It is obvious that if there are ten tribes in one battalion, because the difficulty in equipping them all separately will amount to that of ten battalions, impotent human beings would be compelled to equip them in a single fashion. Whereas the Ever-Living and Self-Subsistent One provides the different equipment necessary for the life of the more than three hundred thousand tribes within that magnificent army. Moreover, He provides it with no trouble or difficulty, in a light and easy manner, most wisely and maintaining orderliness. And He causes the mighty army to declare with one tongue: "It is He Who gives life " and causes the vast congregation in the mosque of the universe to recite:

God, there is no god save Him, the Ever-Living and Self-Subsistent One. Neither slumber overtakes Him nor sleep. His is all that is in the heavens and all that is on earth. Who is there that could intercede with Him, except by His leave? He knows all that lies open before men and all that is hidden from them, whereas they cannot attain to ought of His knowledge save that which He wills. His Throne extends over the heavens and the earth, and He feels no weariness in preserving them. And He alone is Truly Exalted, Tremendous. (7)

(18) and it is the most brilliant, the most decisive, the most perfect of proofs testifying to the necessary existence of the Ever-Living and Self Subsistent One; and among Divine artefacts is the lightest and most apparent, and the most valuable and the most abundant, and the purest, most shining, and most meaningful embroidery of dominical art.

"Indeed, life is hidden and subtle, because the life of plants even, which is the lowest of the levels of life, and the awakening of the life-force in seeds, that is, their stirring, opening, and growth, which are the first steps in plant life, has remained unfathomed by human science since the time of Adam, despite being so evident and familiar, so ubiquitous and common. Man’s reason has been unable to discover its true reality. Moreover, life is so pure and unblemished that in both its aspects, that is in both its inner and outer faces, it is pure, translucent, transparent. Not veiling it with causes, the Hand of Power touches it directly. Whereas It made apparent causes a veil, to be the source of the insignificant aspects of things and their base external qualities, which are inappropriate to the dignity of Power" (8)

(19) and it is a graceful, refined, delicate manifestation of Divine mercy which makes other beings serve itself;

"We see in the creation of the world that its beings are arranged as though in a circle with life created as its central point. All beings look to life, and serve life, and produce the necessities of life. That is to say, the One Who created the universe chose life from it." (9)

(20) and it is a most comprehensive mirror of the Divine attributes.

"Yes, in every living being there are a seal of Divine Oneness and a stamp of Eternally Besoughtedness. For a living being displays together in its mirror most of the Divine Names the manifestations of which are apparent in the universe. Quite simply, like a point of focus, each displays the manifestation of the Greatest Name of Ever-Living and Self-Subsistent One. Thus, since it shows a sort of shadow of the Oneness of the Divine Essence under the veil of the Name of Giver of Life, it bears a stamp of Divine Oneness. And since the living being is like a miniature sample of the universe and a fruit of the tree of creation, it shows a seal of Divine Eternally Besoughtedness, which conveys altogether with ease to the tiny sphere of its life its needs which are as many as the universe. That is to say, this situation shows it has a Sustainer Who is such that His looking to it and regarding it takes the place of all things. All things cannot take the place of this regard.

Furthermore, this situation shows that like its Sustainer is in need of nothing, so too nothing diminishes His treasury and nothing at all is difficult for His power. This, then, is a sort of seal of Eternally Besoughtedness.

Thus, in every living being is a seal of Divine Oneness and stamp of Eternally Besoughtedness. Yes, through the tongue of its life, every living being recites: Say, He is God, the One, * The Eternally Besoughted.30

In addition to these two seals are several more important ‘windows’, but since they have been explained in detail in other places, here the discussion has been brief.

Seeing that each particle in existence at once opens up three windows and two openings onto the Unity of the Necessarily Existent, and life too opens two doors, you can compare how the levels of beings from particles to the sun spread the light of knowledge of the All-Glorious One.

Thus, you can understand from this the degrees of progress in knowledge of God, and the levels of awareness of His presence." (10)

(21) and it is a wonder of dominical creation comprising the manifestations of numerous Most Beautiful Names like Merciful, Provider, Compassionate, Munificent, and All-Wise, which subjects to itself many truths like sustenance, wisdom, grace, and mercy, and is the source and origin of all the senses like sight, hearing, and touch; 

"Life is the most luminous, the most beautiful of the miracles of Dominical Power. It is the most powerful and most brilliant of the proofs of Divine Unity. It is the most comprehensive and most shining of the mirrors displaying the manifestations of the Eternally Besought One.

Yes, on its own, life makes known a Living and Self-Subsistent One together with all his Names and acts. For life is a light, a medicament, like a potion blended from numerous attributes. Just as the seven colours are combined in light, and various drugs are blended together in a medicament, so also life is a reality made of numerous attributes. Some of the attributes in its reality expand by means of the senses; they unfold, and are differentiated. However the greater part make themselves perceived in the form of the emotions; they make themselves known by welling up out of life.

Furthermore, life comprises sustenance, mercy, grace, and wisdom, which are dominant in the planning and administration of the universe. It is as if life fastens them on behind it and draws them into the place it enters. For example, when life enters a body, the Name of All-Wise is also manifest; it makes its home well and orders it with wisdom. In the same way, the Name of All-Generous is manifest, and it organizes and decorates its dwelling according to its needs. At the same time, the manifestation of the Name of All-Compassionate is apparent; it bestows all sorts of bounties for the continuance and perfection of life. And again at the same time, the manifestation of the Name of Provider appears; it produces the sustenance, material and immaterial, necessary for the perpetuation and unfolding of the life, and in part stores them up within its body. That is to say, life is like a point of focus; various attributes enter one another, indeed, they become one and the same. It is as if in its entirety life is both knowledge, and at the same time power, and at the same time wisdom and mercy, and so on... Thus, with regard to this comprehensive essence, life is a mirror of the Eternally Besought One reflecting the essential Dominical attributes. It is due to this mystery that the Necessarily Existent One, Who is the Ever-Living and Self-Subsistent One, creates life in great abundance and plenitude, and scatters it far and wide and broadcasts it, and gathers everything around life and makes it serve it. For life's duty is great. Yes, it is not easy to be the mirror of the Eternally Besought One, it is not some petty duty.

Thus, the sudden and continuous coming into existence from nothing of these countless, numberless lives which we all the time see before our eyes - and of spirits, which are the origins and essences of lives - their being sent, demonstrate the necessary existence, sacred attributes, and Most Beautiful Names of a Necessarily Existent and Ever-Living and Self-Subsistent One as clearly as rays show the existence of the sun. Just as someone who does not recognize and accept the existence of the sun is compelled to deny the light which fills the day, so also one who does not recognize the Sun of Divine Oneness, Who is Ever-Living and Self-Subsistent and the Giver of Life and Death, has to deny the existence of the living creatures which fill the earth and even the past and the future; he has to fall a hundred times lower than an animal, to fall from the level of life to become something utterly ignorant and lifeless." (11)
(22) and life is a transformation-machine in the vast workshop of the universe which continuously cleanses everywhere, purifies, allows progress, and illuminates. And living bodies, the dwellings of life, are guest-houses, schools, barracks for instructing and illuminating the caravans of particles, enabling them to perform their duties. Quite simply the EverLiving Self-Subsistent One makes subtle this dark, transient, lowly world, illuminates it and gives it a sort of permanence, preparing it to go to another, everlasting world;
(23) and life's two faces, that is, its inner and outer faces, are both shining, elevated, and without dirt or defect. It is an exceptional creature on which apparent causes have not been placed, veiling the disposal of power, in order to show clearly that it has emerged directly without veil or means from the hand of dominical power.
(24) and the reality of life looks to the six pillars of belief, proving them in meaning and indirectly. That is to say, it is a luminous truth which looks to and proves,
(25) both the necessary existence of the Necessarily Existent One and His eternal life,
(26) and the realm of the Hereafter and everlasting life,
(27) and the existence of the angels,
(28) and the other pillars of belief
(29) Also, just as life is the purest essence of the universe, distilled from all of it, so is it a mighty mystery yielding thanks, worship, praise, and love, the most important Divine purposes in the universe and most important results of the world's creation.

(1) The Words, The Twenty-Ninth Word, First Fundamental Point
(2) Isharatul I'jaz, The Second Station
(3) The Words, The Twenty-Ninth Word
(4)The Thirtieth Flash, The Fifth Point
(5) The Words, The Twenty Second Word
(6) The Words, The Twenty- Ninth Word
(7) The Letters, The Twentieth Letter, The Second Station
(8) The Words, The Twenty-Ninth Word
(9) The Letters, The Twenty- Eighth Letter
(10) The Words, Twenty-Second Word, The Second Station
(11) The Words, The Thirty-Third Word, Twenty-Third Window

The interpretation of the related verses:

“(Moses) said: O my Lord! Expand me my breast;

Ease my task for me;

And remove the impediment from my speech.

So they may understand what I say:

And give me a Minister from my family,

Aaron, my brother;

Add to my strength through him,

And make him share My task:

That we may celebrate Thy praise without stint,

And remember Thee without stint:

For Thou art He that (ever) regardeth us." (Surah Taha, 20/25-35)

In these verses of the Qur’an, the Prophet Muhammad (BPUH) and all anunciators who convey the belief in oneness of Allah (SWT) are told about the necessity of the idea is being suggested that whatever conditions are in, not losing the trust for Allah (SWT) even for a while from the life of prophet Moses.

As a matter of fact, Moses was worried that he would be unsuccessful due to the weight of the duty but he took refuge in the vast grace of his Lord. Allah informed him that his wishes regarding the expansion of his breast, clearing his mind, easing his task for him, removing the impediment from his speech and being supported by a minister from his family so that he will fulfill his duty successfully; and in the following verses, he was reminded how he reached his situation at that time.  

As it is known, prayer (dua) means presenting one’s needs to his Lord and begging Him to accept his wishes. From this point of view, a prayer is eloquent, decent, reasonable and acceptable to the extent that it is connected with the problems of the person, it is in harmony with his wishes and that person is capable of expressing himself.

Doubtlessly, as regards every issue, the most skilled people about prayers (dua) are prophets. That prayer of Moses is a kind of petition having those features.

What Moses needed most at that time was the expansion of his breast and heart, to be capable of uttering wise and convincing words and to persist in conveying the message despite the resistance of the people. He asked Allah to meet his needs like that by saying, “expand my heart”.  

Besides, it is a difficult task to revolt against the Pharaoh, the tyrant, and to declare a new religion against the administrators of a country with powerful armies. Thus, in an environment where it was difficult to cope with things, Moses asked Allah to help him with His grant and grace – not with His wisdom based on causes but – with His endless power, which is beyond all causes, with his prayer, “easy my task for me”,

The struggle of Moses against the Pharaoh and his followers was not through sword but tongue. Therefore, his most urgent need in this spiritual battle was fluency and eloquence, which were the bullets of the tongue. Thus, Moses took refuge in the mercy of his Merciful Lord through his prayer, “and remove the impediment from my speech, so they may understand what I say”, asking Him to make his tongue (sword), which he needed the most in this battle, sharp and to make his arrows (words) that he would shoot through his bow (tongue) hit the target.

It means the speaker must study hard and be able to convey his message very well so that the people he addresses will understand it and be convinced. It is an important point to understand from the verse.

- One of the meanings of the expansion of the heart may be “the breast being filled with divine light” because the heart that is filled with divine light settles and becomes brave. They also express being freed from stress, downheartedness, anxiety and fear.  

- Moses asks for help in detail instead of asking in general. First, he requests his breast to be expanded and his task to be eased due to its difficulty. We can understand this from his prayer: Man should ask help from Allah for the good deeds that he will do. He should believe that Allah will help him and he should be conscious about it.

The impediment and lisping of Moses prevented him from being understood well when he spoke. What was meant by impediment was what made the people who listened to him difficult to understand him. Therefore, both the listener and the speaker are important; and being understandable is also important.

- Moses made this request because he wanted the people who listen to him understand him, and because he needed support and someone to share his duty. Moses asked Allah to strengthen him by appointing Aaron as a prophet, too. On the other hand, he would be a partner for Moses. A Muslim should know whether he can manage to fulfill, on his own, the task given to him and should do whatever is necessary about it. If necessary, he should find an assistant. On the other hand, brothers should not be jealous of each other; they should be able to see the different of features of his brother(s) and to make use of them.   

After Asking Allah to remove the impediment from his speech and to appoint Aaron as a prophet to help him so that he would convey the divine revelation better, Moses wanted the freedom to worship Allah in a secure place, which they could attain with the help of Allah.

- The expression, “for Thou art He that (ever) regardeth us” is a dua and dhikr. Besides, it means help us, look after us and protect us. You know our feelings and our acts; you always watch us; you know what we need. It means if our prayers comply with our needs, you will help us.

Allah informs us about the prayer of Moses and asks us to lead a life in compliance with it: “There is for you an excellent example (to follow) in Abraham, and those with him”. “There was indeed in them an excellent example for you to follow― for those whose hope is in Allah and in the Last Day” (see al-Mumtahina, 60/4,6)

Actually, every single verse in the Quran is about individuals’ and public’s worldly happiness. The religion of Islam evaluates human beings from all aspects and with all characteristics, with its exclusive worldview and comprehensive understanding of society. Therefore, not only does it provide individuals’ and public’s level of worldly life but also cares for their moral virtues, spiritual maturity and perfection, which are the most important dimensions of human life; and it employs this as its goal in all of its judgments and principles. It offers basic principles and solutions to enable individuals and public to be happy both in the material life and spiritual life. 

In our century, unbelief and denial have damaged society’s spiritual aspect and lots of questions, superstitions and nonsense things occupy people’s minds causing individual and social problems, which all show us once again how desperately we are in need of principles brought by the Quran. We should keep in mind that individuals’ worldly happiness and especially spiritual happiness and peace enable public’s peace. Verses related to public’s peace are many in number. We are going to quote some of them below. 

The religion of Islam demands people to be good to believers and to prevent them from being bad. We see this clearly in the following verse: “They believe in God and the Last Day; they enjoin what is right, and forbid what is wrong; and they hasten (in emulation) in (all) good works: They are in the ranks of the righteous.” (Aal-i Imran, 3:114) 

Allah the Glorious also states that unbelief and evilness are undesirable in believers’ hearts: “God has endeared the Faith to you, and has made it beautiful in your hearts, and He has made hateful to you unbelief, wickedness, and rebellion: such indeed are those who walk in righteousness.” (al-Hujurat, 49:7) Religion is the leading one of the most important factors that can control and prevent immorality and crime witnessed in the society. Presenting crime not only as a crime but also as a sin serves as a double preventive factor for discouraging it.

The religion of Islam clearly disapproves harmful habits which damage social life deeply and cause individual and social problems, and orders people to follow the rules it has brought on this subject: “O ye who believe! Intoxicants and gambling, (dedication of) stones, and (divination by) arrows, are an abomination, - of Satan's handwork: eschew such (abomination), that ye may prosper. Satan's plan is (but) to excite enmity and hatred between you, with intoxicants and gambling, and hinder you from the remembrance of God, and from prayer: will ye not then abstain?” (al-Maidah, 5:90-91)

“O mankind! Reverence your Guardian-Lord, who created you from a single Person, created, of like nature, His mate, and from them twain scattered (like seeds) countless men and women; - Fear God, through whom ye demand your mutual (rights), and (reverence) the wombs (That bore you): for God ever watches over you.” (an-Nisa, 4:1)

The System of the Universe was established with justice. Therefore, people should base their individual and social relations on justice. Justice should rule the human society as it rules the universe. As for building an exemplary society, the Quran places the principle of “God commands justice…” (an-Nahl, 16:90) on the base of life.

Although scholars have different opinions regarding teaching how to read the Quran in return for money, they generally decided that it was not haram.

The verse addresses both sinful believers and all of the unbelievers including polytheists. A polytheist or atheist may repent and believe in Allah. However, if a polytheist or atheist dies before he repents, he will stay in Hell forever.  

The people who have deviated from the way of Allah and committed some wrong and bad deeds are addressed by the verse and they are informed that their mistakes, faults and sins will be forgiven if they repent and follow the way of the religion of oneness:

Say: "O my Servants who have transgressed against their souls! Despair not of the Mercy of Allah: for Allah forgives all sins: for He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful." (az-Zumar, 39/53).

According to what is reported from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him), some people who were polytheists and committed various sins came to Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) and said to him: "The way (religion) that you tell people and that you invite to is something good. Is there anything that will cause to forgive the bad deeds we have committed? Will you inform us about it? Thereupon, the verse mentioned above was sent down. (Abdulfattah al-Qadi, Asbabu'n-Nuzul, Egypt, 194). (Nureddin TURGAY)

The true calamity and the harmful calamity is the one which harms our faith, our essence of being Muslims and our high moral qualities. We must always seek refuge with Allah and beg for His help because of these calamities. (see Tirmidhi, Daawat: 79). 

However, calamites which are not concerned with religion are not calamities in reality. Some of them are warnings from Allah and some of them are a means of redemption for sins and some others, such as diseases, are blessings from Allah, which serve as purification. (see Bukhari, faith, 39; Muslim, birr, 52). 

As a matter of fact, the Prophet said in a narration: “Sins drop off a person because of trembling with marsh fever just like fruits drop off a tree because of being shaken.” (Bukhari, Marda: 3, 13, 16; Muslim, Birr: 45). A disease cleans off a Muslim’s sins just like fire cleans off the stains of gold and silver.” (Ibn Majah, Medicine 18). 

And in another hadith, the Prophet says that Allah causes the most violent and the most severe calamities to the ones whom He loves the most: “People who experience calamities the most are, firstly, prophets and then saintly people based on their levels. One is exposed to calamities and tests according to his faith. If his faith is strong, he experiences more calamities. However, if his faith is weak, he experiences calamities accordingly. By experiencing calamities again and again, a person is purified from all his sins.” (Tirmidhi,Zuhd 57; Ahmad bin Hanbal 1, 172, 174). 

“If a human being is not to deserve a place prepared for him in Heaven with his deeds, Allah causes a calamity to his body or to his properties or to his family so that he is made to deserve this place through his patience with this calamity.” (Ahmad bin Hanbal V-272) 

Therefore, believers can experience calamities and troubles because of many reasons and wisdom, all of which are for their own good. 

1- They are as a result of sins committed. 

“Whatever misfortune happens to you, is because of the things your hands have wrought.” (ash-Shurah, 30) 

“whatever evil happens to thee, is from thy (own) soul (your own sins).” (an-Nisa, 79) 

“Verily never will Allah change the condition of a people until they change it themselves (with their own souls).” (ar-Ra’d, 11)

2- Calamities, misfortunes and diseases are redemption for sins.

One who suffers calamities in the worldly life and reacts with patience passes to the otherworld purified from sins or with sins decreased. 

Each calamity is because of a sin that is to be forgiven. (Abu Nuaym) 

Each calamity that happens to a believer redeems his sins. (Bukhari) 

Calamities and diseases happen to a believer until his sins are forgiven. (Hakim) 

3- Calamities happen to a believer so that he will deserve a sublime place in Heaven. 

For this reason, Prophets experienced lots of calamities and misfortunes. 

The most violent calamities happen to Prophets and saintly people. (Tirmidhi) 

Calamities happen to one to allow him to receive blessings. (Bukhari)

Misfortune happens in order to lead to a higher degree. (Abu Nuaym) 

A human being, of whom Allah wills the best, experiences calamities. (Tabarani) 

If one was always in good health and fineness, these two would be enough to destroy him. (I. Asakir) 

Even if a believer hides in a nest of lizard, someone will still find him to give trouble to. (Bayhaki) 

World is a dungeon for believers (compared to the blessings of Heaven). (Muslim) 

Whoever loves Allah and His Messenger should gird on armor! (be prepared!) (Bayhaqi) 

In short, we can say the most violent calamities happen to those whom Allah loves the most. Patience against calamities allows saintly people to advance. The Prophet prayed to Allah to give him endurance against calamities which might happen to him.

Yes, the superiority of prophets over one another is mentioned in the Quran. However, it is also stated that we should not discriminate between one another of the prophets.   

There may different verses and hadiths regarding an issue. It is necessary to look at each of them as to in which sense they are used. Belief in prophets and the difference among them in terms of virtue are different things. Believers have belief in all prophets. The statement, “We make no distinction (they say) between one and another of His Messengers” in the 285^th verse of the chapter al-Baqara expresses it. The statement, “Those messengers We endowed with gifts some above others” in the 253^rd verse expresses that prophets are different in terms of virtues and levels. Accordingly, it is one of the essentials of belief to believe in all prophets. Although they are all prophets, some of them are superior to others in terms of virtue.

All prophets are equal in terms of prophethood but some of them or each of them will be different because they are given a special superiority, virtue and a different rank. Allah talked to some of them Himself, making them “kalimullah” (one who speaks with Allah); as matter of fact, Musa (Moses) listened to the word of Allah on Mount Sinai and on some special nights without any intermediary or angel. He elevated some of them to higher points. He took His beloved Muhammad, beyond Sidra al-Muntaha (Lote tree of the extremity) and at a distance of but two bow-lengths or (even) nearer (an-Najm, 53/9), making Him as a mercy for all worlds and the last Prophet and elevating him to the praised station (maqam al-mahmud).  

Besides the verse, “We sent thee not, but as a mercy for all creatures”( al-Anbiya, 107) shows that the means of mercy for all creatures is our Prophet (pbuh).

Based on the explanations above, we can say that it is an essential of the belief to love all prophets. However, to love Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) among them, shows the perfection of our belief. 

Author: Questions on Islam

Chapter al-Kahf, Verses 22 – 26:

22. (Some) say they were three, the dog being the fourth among them; (others) say they were five, the dog being the sixth― doubtfully guessing at the unknown; (yet others) say they were seven, the dog being the eighth. Say thou: "My Lord knoweth best their number; it is but few that know their (real case)." Enter not, therefore, into controversies concerning them, except on a matter that is clear, nor consult any of them about (the affair of) the Sleepers!

23-24. "Nor say of anything, "I shall be sure to do so and so tomorrow"― Without adding, "So please Allah!" And call thy Lord to mind when thou forgettest, and say "I hope that my Lord will guide me ever closer (even) than this to the right road."

25. "So they stayed in their Cave three hundred years, and (some) add nine (more).

26. Say: "Allah knows best how long they stayed: with Him is (the knowledge of) the secrets of the heavens and the earth: how clearly He sees, how finely He hears (everything)! They have no protector other than Him; nor does He share His Command with any person whatsoever.

Explanation of the Relevant Verses:

Interpreters (Tafsir scholars) regarded those verses as complementary to one another and stated two different views regarding their interpretation: 

First View: Verse 25 is the sentence of those who uttered different things about the number of the People of the Cave. People had different views about their numbers; similarly, they uttered different numbers about the period they stayed in the cave. Some people said, "They stayed three hundred years in the cave"; others added nine more years and said, “They stayed three hundred and nine years." The fact that Ibn Mas'ud read the verse by adding the phrase "wa qalu (and they said)" at the beginning supports this view. Accordingly, Allah did not inform people about the number of the People of the Cave and the number of the years they stayed there. As a matter of fact, it is stated in verse 26 that this knowledge is with Allah. Besides, the People of the Book said the following to each other: “Allah (alone) knows best how long you have stayed here." (Verse 19)

Secon View: Verse 25 is the word of Allah. Thus, they stayed three hundred and nine years in the cave. According to an interpretation, the People of the Book stated that the People of the Cave slept for three hundred and nine years in the cave. Accordingly, the phrase "and (some) add nine (more)" can indicate the fact that the number three hundred and nine expresses the number in the lunar calendar used by Arabs and the number three hundred uttered by the People of the Book expresses the number in the solar calendar. Thus, verse 26 stated the period they stayed in the cave and eliminated the disagreement among people regarding the issue, emphasizing that Allah knows the issue best. Allah, who knows all of the secret things in the skies and the world, knows how much they slept in the cave. He sees and hears endlessly. He is the only owner of what is in the skies and the world. He does not accept anyone as a partner in His sovereignty. (For the explanation, see Diyanet Tefsiri, Kur’an Yolu:III/471-472.)

Please click on the link given below;

Can you please give information about Ashab Al-Kahf (People Of The Cave)?

In the verses “ A number of people from those of old And a few from those of later times. ", the people who are pioneers in belief and virtue are mentioned. 

The 10-16th verses of the chapter al-Waqia:

10. And those Foremost (in Faith) will be Foremost (in the Hereafter).

11.  These will be those Nearest to Allah:

12.  In Gardens of Bliss:

13.14  A number of people from those of old - And a few from those of later times.

15.  (They will be) on Thrones encrusted (with gold and precious stones).

16.  Reclining on them facing each other.

Hadiths regarding the issue:

Jabir b. Abdillah (may Allah be pleased with him) says:

When the chapter al-Waqia was sent down and when the verse: " A number of people from those of old And a few from those of later times " was recited, Hazrat Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) was sorry and asked: 

«O Messenger of Allah! A number of people from those of old And a few from those of later times, is that right?» After a while, the 39 and 40th verses of the same chapter: " A (goodly) number from those of old― And a (goodly) number from those of later times." were sent down, explaining the previous verses in the form of glad tidings. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) called Hazrat Umar and said:

«O Umar! Come and hear the verses that Allah has sent down!» and he stated the following after reciting the 39 and 40th verses that had just been sent down:   

«Know it well that all of the believers  that passed away beginning from Adam to me form a big group and my ummah forms a big group, too. We will not be able to form one-third of our group until we receive help from two significant groups of camel herdsmen who witness by saying “La ilaha illa'llahu wahdahu la sharika lah” (There is no god except Allah alone; he has no partners)» (Hafiz Ibn Asakir, from Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him)

«My Ummah is like rain, it is not known whether the first part of it is better or the last part.» (Tirmidhi/adab: 91)

«A group of my followers will remain predominant till Allah's Order (the Hour) comes upon them while they are still predominant.» (Bukhari/ i'tisam :  10- Muslim/Iman : 247, imarah:  170, 173- Abu Dawud/ fitan:  1- Tirmidhi/ fitan : 27, 51- Ibn Majah, Muqaddima: 1, Ahmad: 5/34, 269, 279.)

«I swear by Allah who has my soul in his hand that your group will be resurrected on the Day of Judgment; they will be like the darkness of the night and they will cover the whole ground due to their multitude. Then, the angels will say: 

«Those who came with Muhammad (pbuh) are more than those who came with other prophets.» (Tabarani, from Abu Malik)

The Group that will be formed from the True believers of Ummahs:

« A number of people from those of old And a few from those of later times.»

The Quran divides the people who have belief and deserve to form a group into two:

’A number of people from those of old’ are the prophets that passed. ‘A few from those of later times’ are the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) and the scholars from his ummah. The real scholars of this ummah have a degree that is close to the degree of the prophets of the Sons of Israel.

The interpretation above belongs to Fakhruddin ar-Razi. Another interpretation is as follows:

’A number of people from those of old’ are «muhajir» and «ansar» that embraced Islam first. ‘A few from those of later times’ are the believers that embraced Islam but did not emigrate and stayed in their hometowns. 

Or, as it is stated in the hadith reported from a single channel, the 39 and 40th verses of the same chapter explain it.

There is another interpretation, which is stated below:

’A number of people from those of old’ are the Companions of the Prophet. ‘A few from those of later times’ are the Tabi’in, who met the Companions of the Prophet and believed in Islam. Allah knows the best. (Celal Yıldırım, İlmin Işığında Asrın Kur’an Tefsiri, Anadolu Yayınları: 12/5990)

Or, what is mentioned in those verses is the ummah of the Messenger of Allah; the first of those are the Companions of the Prophet. They are the Muslims that believed in the guidance brought by our Prophet (pbuh) despite all of the adverse conditions of the first period full of troubles and supported the Prophet although they were threatened and suffered all kinds of oppression and torture.

It is natural that most of them are from the Companions and few of them are from the Muslims that came later.

Or, it is natural that those who supported Noah (pbuh) when the whole community rejected him, those who were together with Moses (pbuh), those who were together with Abraham (pbuh), Saleh (pbuh), Lot (pbuh), those who supported prophets, who sacrificed themselves for prophets, who were killed due to their support to prophets, who did not mind torture belong to that first group.

The first people, first believers, first Muslims believed in very difficult conditions; therefore, they belong to the first group and the generations that followed belong to the second group mentioned as a few. At first, the first group will come; then, in the periods when it is easy to become Muslims, Muslims that think of nothing but being a Muslim will come. (See Basairu’l Qur’an)

Questions on Islam

To read. In prayer (salah), qiraah means (for a person) to read some verses from the Quran by pronouncing the words audibly enough to hear himself. Qiraah is fard as a pillar of the prayer. If a person cannot hear what he reads even himself, it is not regarded qiraah. However, a person who follows the imam is excepted.

Qiraah is fard in all rak’ahs of supererogatory prayers and witr prayer, and in any two rak’ahs of fard prayers. The following is stated in the Quran: "Read ye, therefore, as much of the Qur'an as may be easy (for you)" (al-Muzammil, 73/20). The order here indicates obligation. The Prophet said, "No prayer without qiraah." (Muslim, Salat, 42; Abu Dawud, Salat, 132, 167)

The amount of reading that is fard must be as long as a verse with at least six letters according to Abu Hanifa; for instance, the verses like, "Thumma nazara (Then he looked round)" (al-Muddaththir, 74/21) and "Lam yalid (He begetteth not)" (al-Ikhlas, 112/3). Since the origin of the latter is "Lam lawlid", the number of the letters amount to six. According to Abu Yusuf and Imam Muhammad ash-Shaybani and another narration from Abu Hanifa, qiraah in the prayer is at least three short verses or one longer verse as long as three short verses in each verse. That is more suitable for prudence. (al-Kasani, Badayiu's-Sanayi', Beirut 1328/1910, I, 110; Ibnu'l-Humam, Fathu'l-Qadir, Cairo, n.d., I, 193, 205, 222, ff; az-Zaylai, Tabyinu'l Haqaiq, l, 104, ff; Ibn Abidin, Raddu'l-Mukhtar, Egypt, nd, I, 415).

Qiraah is not fard but wajib in the first two rak’ahs of four-rak’ah prayers. It is reported that Hazrat Ali (d 40/660) said, "The qiraah in the first two rak’ahs is enough for the last two rak’ahs, too. Abdullah b. Mas'ud (d 32, 652) and Hazrat Aisha (d. 57/676) said a person could read some verses from the Quran or could glorify Allah in the last two rak’ahs. It is the same as reading al-Fatiha, another chapter or three verses. (az-Zuhayli, al-Fiqhu'l-Islami wa Adillatuh, Damascus 1405/1985, I. 646).

According to Hanafi scholars, it is fard not wajib to read the chapter al-Fatiha in prayers. It does not matter whether it is a prayer in which reading is carried out silently or aloud, whether the imam or the followers read it. While explaining a companion who performed the prayer wrongly how to pray, the Messenger of Allah said, "Then, read as much of the Qur'an as may be easy for you." (Bukhari, Husumat, 4, Isti'dhan, 18, Istitaba, 9, Ayman, 15; Muslim, Salat, 45; Abu Dawud, Salat, 144, Tatawwu', 17, Witr, 22; Tirmidhi, Salat, 110, the Qur'ân, 9; Nasai, Iftitah, 7, 37, Tatbiq, 77; Ibn Majah, Iqama, 72; Ahmad b. Hanbal, Musnad, I, 40, 43, II, 437).

Most of the scholars of Islam regard the qiraah of al-Fatiha as fard. They interpret the verse “Read ye, therefore, as much of the Qur'an as may be easy (for you)” as al-Fatiha because the following is stated in hadiths: "No prayer is valid without reading al-Fatiha." (Muslim, Salat, 42; Abu Dawud, Salat, 132, 167; Tirmidhi, Salat, 116; Ahmed b. Hanbal, II, 307, 428, 443), "The prayer of a person who does not read Ummu'l-Qur'an (al-Fatiha) is not sufficient." (Tirmidhi, Mawaqit, 29, 116), "Perform the prayer as I do." (Bukhari, Adhan, 18, Adab, 27, Ahad, 1)

Hanafis base their views regarding the issue on the following evidence:

a. The order of reading what is easy from the Quran for a person is absolute. That order is fulfilled when the minimum reading from any place in the Quran is performed. On the other hand, it is definite by consensus (ijma) that it is not fard to read the Quran outside the prayer. Thus, it becomes certain that qiraah is fard in the prayer.

b. The hadiths that inform us to read al-Fatiha in the prayer are ahad (narrated by only one narrator). It is not permissible to add something based on ahad hadith to an issue that is definitely fard based on Quranic evidence. Thus, the qiraah of al-Fatiha becomes wajib. It is makruh tahrimi (strictly abominable) to abandon it. A person who abandons it by mistake or delays it must perform prostration of forgetfulness (sajda as-sahw).

c. Hazrat Prophet said to a companion who performed a prayer wrongly, "When you want to perform a prayer, make ablution properly, turn to the qiblah, say Allahu akbar and read as much of the Qur'an as may be easy (for you)" (Bukhari, Husumat, 4, Isti'dhan, 18, Istitaba, 9, Ayman, 15; Muslim, Salat, 45; Abu Dawud, Salat, 144, Tirmidhi, Salat, 110, the Qur'ân, 9; Nasai, Iftitah, 7, 37). If the qiraah of al-Fatiha were fard or a pillar of the prayer, Hazrat Prophet would have informed the companion who performed the prayer wrongly about it. 

d. The hadith reported from Ubada b. As-Samit (may Allah be pleased with him) (d 34/654); "No prayer is valid without qiraah." (Muslim, Salat, 42; Abu Dawud, Salat, 132, 167 Tirmidhi, Salat, 116) means the lack of virtue. It does not mean that the prayer is not valid. As a matter of fact, in the following hadith: "The prayer of a person who lives close to the mosque is not valid unless he prays it in the mosque”, it is meant that the virtue of the prayer is missing (az-Zaylai, Nasbu'r-Raya, I, 365, 366; az-Zuhayli, ibid, I, 647). However, this hadith, which is reported by Daraqutni is weak.

According to Hanafis, the basmala at the beginning of the chapter al-Fatiha and other chapters are not verses. Only the basmala in the thirtieth verse of the chapter an-Naml is a verse. The following was reported from Anas (d. 91/717) (may Allah be pleased with him): "I prayed together with the Messenger of Allah (pbuh), Hazrat Abu Bakr (d.13/634), Umar (d.23/643) and Uthman (d. 35/655). I did not hear any of them say basmala in the prayer" (Ahmad b. Hanbal, Musnad, III, 264, 273, 275, 278).

A person who prays alone reads audhu basmala silently after Subhanaka and repeats the basmala before al-Fatiha in each rak’ah. When al-Fatiha ends, he says, "amin". Its meaning: O our Lord, accept our prayer (az-Zuhayli, ibid, I, 646, 647).

Qiraah of the people who follow (muqtadi) the imam:

According to Hanafis, the people who follow the imam do not perform qiraah. The evidence that they base their views on is as follows:

a. The Book (the Quran). The following is stated in a verse: "When the Qur'an is read, listen to it with attention, and hold your peace: that ye may receive Mercy" (al-A'raf, 7/204). Ahmed b. Hanbal states that scholars unanimously agree that this verse is related to the prayer. The verse orders people “to listen” and “to be quiet”. The former is related to the prayers in which qiraah is performed aloud like morning, evening and night prayers. Keeping quiet is related to all of the prayers whether the qiraah is performed aloud or silently. Accordingly, it is wajib for the followers of the imam to listen when the qiraah is performed aloud and to be quiet when the qiraah is performed silently. It is makruh tahrimi not to act in accordance with this principle.

b. The Sunnah. The following is stated in a hadith: "The qiraah of a person who follows the imam is the qiraah of the imam. (Ibn Majah, Iqama, 13). This hadith includes all of the prayers whether the reading is carried out silently or aloud. In another hadith, the following is stated: "The imam stands at the front so that he will be followed. When he makes takbir, you make takbir too. When he reads, be quiet." (Bukhari, Salat, 18, Adhan, 51, 74, 82, 128, Taqsiru's-Salat, 17; Muslim, Salat, 77 , 82).

While Hazrat Prophet was leading the afternoon prayer one day, a man behind started to read the chapter beginning with, "Sabbihi'sma Rabbikal-a'la". The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) turned toward the congregation after the prayer and asked who had read that chapter. When a man said he did, Hazrat Prophet said, "I thought some of you were arguing with me." (Muslim, Salat, 48). This hadith shows that it is necessary for the followers of the imam not to read in the prayers in which the imam reads silently. Since this is the case in the prayers in which the imam reads silently, it must definitely be so in the prayers in which the imam reads aloud.

c. Qiyas (Analogy). If it were necessary for the followers of the imam to read in the prayer, the masbuq (a person who has not caught up with the imam in the first rak’ah) who caught up with the imam during ruku’ (bowing down) would be regarded responsible for qiraah. However, a person who catches up with the imam during ruku’ is regarded to have performed that rak’ah. Thus, the qiraah of the followers of the imam is compared to the qiraah of the masbuq. (al-Kasani, ibid, l, 110 ff.; az-Zuhayli, ibid, l, 648)

According to the majority of the scholars other than Hanafis, it is necessary to read al-Fatiha in the prayer. The following hadiths are the evidence for it. "The prayer of a person who does not read al-Fatiha is not valid.", "A prayer in which al-Fatiha is not read is not sufficient.", "Perform the prayer as I do." (see Ibn Rushd, Bidayatu'l-Mujtahid, Egypt, nd, I, 119 ff.; Ibn Qudama, al-Mughni, 3rd impression, Cairo, nd., I, 376-491, 562-568; ash-Shirazi, al-Muhadhdhab, Matbaatu'l-Babi al-Halabi, I, 72). It is sunnah to read a chapter after al-Fatiha in the first two rak’ahs of every prayer. A person who follows the imam reads al-Fatiha and a chapter in a prayer in which the imam reads silently. According to Malikis and Hanbalis, a person who follows the imam does not read anything in a prayer in which the imam reads aloud. According to Shafiis, a person who follows the imam reads only al-Fatiha in a prayer in which the imam reads aloud. According to the view of Ahmad b. Hanbal which has become apparent, the followers read the first half of al-Fatiha when the imam keeps silent for the first time and the other half when the imam keeps silent for the second time. Between those two readings, they listen to the qiraah of the imam. (az-Zuhayli, ibid, I, 649).

Islamic scholars unanimously agree that the qiraah in any other language than Arabic in the prayer is not valid because the language of the Quran is Arabic. The following is stated in the verses: "Thus have we sent this down― Arabic Qur'an." (Taha, 20/113), "We know indeed that they say, ‘It is a man that teaches him.’ The tongue of him they wickedly point to is notably foreign, while this is Arabic pure and clear." (an-Nahl, 16/103). The Quran is a miracle with its words and meaning. If the words are changed through translation, the Quran will lose its poetic quality. Therefore, the translation of the Quran is not like the Quran. However, the translation can be regarded as its interpretation. On the other hand, according to some Hanafis, a person who cannot read al-Fatiha in Arabic can read its translation temporarily until he learns to read al-Fatiha in Arabic. (al-Kasani, ibid, I, 112).

Hamdi DÖNDÜREN

“O you who believe! Seek help (against all kinds of hardships and tribulations) through persevering patience and the Prayer; surely God is with the persevering and patient.” (the Qur’an, al-Baqarah, 2:153)

Patience spiritually matures, improves and strengthens man. The Prayer is the most exalted way of expressing of serving for Allah and surrendering Him and being thankful for the blessings He bestows and an indication of an active and proper life. In the particular verse, we are advised to make use of two main principles which defend people and make them strong in both spiritual and every day life against difficulties.

In the verse, it is not clearly stated in which situations we need to be patient. For this reason, maintaining patience in any situation which needs sustainability like observing prayers, restraining yourself from the forbidden things, resisting against any hostile acts, and bearing troubles and sorrows are included in this decree.

Patience is the product of self-sacrifice and determination that a person puts forth for a purpose and a strong perseverance and will; so patience is an attitude related to a person’s own personality. The Prayer is his turning to Allah with his body, his word and his heart in brief with his whole presence; in this case, the prayer is related to a believer’s attitude towards Allah. Thus, a person who strengthens his personality with the help of patience and who keeps in touch with Allah with the help of the Prayer fulfils the psychological conditions of success. ( see. Diyanet, Kur’an Yolu, the interpretation of the 153rd verse from the surah al-Baqarah in the Qur’an)