[IslamCity] Who wrote the Qur'aan and how was it put together?
Who wrote the Qur'aan and how was it put together? Question: Who wrote the Qur'aan and how was it put together?. Answer: Praise be to Allaah. Firstly: Allaah has guaranteed to preserve this Qur'aan Himself. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): Verily, We, it is We Who have sent down the Dhikr (i.e. the Qur'aan) and surely, We will guard it (from corruption) [al-Hijr 15:9] Ibn Jareer al-Tabari said in his Tafseer, 14/8: Allaah is saying, it is We Who have sent down the Dhikr (Reminder), i.e. the Qur'aan, and We will guard the Qur'aan against anything false being added to it that is not part of it, or anything that is part of it being taken away, whether that has to do with rulings, hudood punishments or matters having to do with inheritance. Al-Sa'di said in his Tafseer (p. 696): It is We Who have sent down the Qur'aan in which there is mention of all issues and clear evidence, and in which We remind those who want to be reminded. and surely, We will guard it means, when it is being revealed and after it has been revealed. When it is revealed, We protect it from the tampering of every accursed devil, and after it has been revealed Allaah instilled it in the heart of His Messenger. Allaah protected the words from being changed and from anything being added or taken away, or from its meanings being distorted. So no one can attempt to distort its meanings but Allaah will guide someone to explain the truth of the Qur'aan. This is one of the greatest signs of Allaah and His blessing to His believing slaves. Another aspect of this protection is that Allaah protects the people of the Qur'aan against their enemies, and no enemy can overpower them and eliminate them. The Qur'aan was revealed to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) in stages over a period of twenty-three years. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): And (it is) a Qur'aan which We have divided (into parts), in order that you might recite it to men at intervals. And We have revealed it by stages [al-Isra' 17:106] al-Sa'di (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: This means, We have revealed this Qur'aan in stages, to differentiate between guidance and misguidance, between truth and falsehood. in order that you might recite it to men at intervals means, slowly, so that they may ponder and think about its meanings, and understand the different branches of knowledge contained therein. And We have revealed it by stages means, gradually, over a period of twenty-three years. Tafseer al-Sa'di, p. 760. Secondly: Literacy was not widespread among the Arabs. Allaah described them in such terms when He said (interpretation of the meaning): He it is Who sent among the unlettered ones a Messenger (Muhammad) from among themselves [al-Jumu'ah 63:2] They used to memorize the Qur'aan by heart, and a few of them used to write down some verses or soorahs on animal skins, thin white stones and the like. Thirdly: At first the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) forbade the writing of anything other than the Qur'aan, and he forbade them to write down his words for a while, so that the Sahaabah would focus on memorizing the Qur'aan and writing it down, and so that the words of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) would not be confused with the words of Allaah, and so the Qur'aan was protected from anything being added or taken away. Fourthly: The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) appointed a group of his companions who were trustworthy and knowledgeable to write down the revelation. They are known in their biographies as those who wrote down the Revelation, such as the four Caliphs, `Abd-Allaah ibn `Amr ibn al-`Aas, Mu'aawiyah ibn Abi Sufyaan, Zayd ibn Thaabit and others _ may Allaah be pleased with them all. Fifthly: The Qur'aan was revealed in seven dialects as was narrated in the saheeh hadeeth of `Umar ibn al-Khattaab (may Allaah be pleased with him) from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). This was narrated by al-Bukhaari (2287) and Muslim (818); these were the dialects of the Arabs which were known for their eloquence. Sixthly: The Qur'aan continued to be preserved in the hearts of the Sahaabah who had memorized it, and on the skins and other materials until the time of the caliph Abu Bakr al-Siddeeq (may Allaah be pleased with him). During the Riddah wars many of the Sahaabah who had memorized the Qur'aan were killed, and Abu Bakr (may Allaah be pleased with him) was afraid that the Qur'aan would be lost. So he consulted the senior Sahaabah about compiling the Qur'aan in a single book so that it would remain preserved and would not be lost. He entrusted this mission to the chief of memorizers Zayd ibn Thaabit (may Allaah be pleased with him). Al-Bukhaari narrated in his Saheeh (4986) that Zayd ibn Thaabit (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: Abu
[IslamCity] Who wrote the Qur'aan and how was it put together?
Who wrote the Qur'aan and how was it put together? Question: Who wrote the Qur'aan and how was it put together?. Answer: Praise be to Allaah. Firstly: Allaah has guaranteed to preserve this Qur'aan Himself. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): Verily, We, it is We Who have sent down the Dhikr (i.e. the Qur'aan) and surely, We will guard it (from corruption) [al-Hijr 15:9] Ibn Jareer al-Tabari said in his Tafseer, 14/8: Allaah is saying, it is We Who have sent down the Dhikr (Reminder), i.e. the Qur'aan, and We will guard the Qur'aan against anything false being added to it that is not part of it, or anything that is part of it being taken away, whether that has to do with rulings, hudood punishments or matters having to do with inheritance. Al-Sa'di said in his Tafseer (p. 696): It is We Who have sent down the Qur'aan in which there is mention of all issues and clear evidence, and in which We remind those who want to be reminded. and surely, We will guard it means, when it is being revealed and after it has been revealed. When it is revealed, We protect it from the tampering of every accursed devil, and after it has been revealed Allaah instilled it in the heart of His Messenger. Allaah protected the words from being changed and from anything being added or taken away, or from its meanings being distorted. So no one can attempt to distort its meanings but Allaah will guide someone to explain the truth of the Qur'aan. This is one of the greatest signs of Allaah and His blessing to His believing slaves. Another aspect of this protection is that Allaah protects the people of the Qur'aan against their enemies, and no enemy can overpower them and eliminate them. The Qur'aan was revealed to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) in stages over a period of twenty-three years. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): And (it is) a Qur'aan which We have divided (into parts), in order that you might recite it to men at intervals. And We have revealed it by stages [al-Isra' 17:106] al-Sa'di (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: This means, We have revealed this Qur'aan in stages, to differentiate between guidance and misguidance, between truth and falsehood. in order that you might recite it to men at intervals means, slowly, so that they may ponder and think about its meanings, and understand the different branches of knowledge contained therein. And We have revealed it by stages means, gradually, over a period of twenty-three years. Tafseer al-Sa'di, p. 760. Secondly: Literacy was not widespread among the Arabs. Allaah described them in such terms when He said (interpretation of the meaning): He it is Who sent among the unlettered ones a Messenger (Muhammad) from among themselves [al-Jumu'ah 63:2] They used to memorize the Qur'aan by heart, and a few of them used to write down some verses or soorahs on animal skins, thin white stones and the like. Thirdly: At first the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) forbade the writing of anything other than the Qur'aan, and he forbade them to write down his words for a while, so that the Sahaabah would focus on memorizing the Qur'aan and writing it down, and so that the words of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) would not be confused with the words of Allaah, and so the Qur'aan was protected from anything being added or taken away. Fourthly: The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) appointed a group of his companions who were trustworthy and knowledgeable to write down the revelation. They are known in their biographies as those who wrote down the Revelation, such as the four Caliphs, `Abd-Allaah ibn `Amr ibn al-`Aas, Mu'aawiyah ibn Abi Sufyaan, Zayd ibn Thaabit and others _ may Allaah be pleased with them all. Fifthly: The Qur'aan was revealed in seven dialects as was narrated in the saheeh hadeeth of `Umar ibn al-Khattaab (may Allaah be pleased with him) from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). This was narrated by al-Bukhaari (2287) and Muslim (818); these were the dialects of the Arabs which were known for their eloquence. Sixthly: The Qur'aan continued to be preserved in the hearts of the Sahaabah who had memorized it, and on the skins and other materials until the time of the caliph Abu Bakr al-Siddeeq (may Allaah be pleased with him). During the Riddah wars many of the Sahaabah who had memorized the Qur'aan were killed, and Abu Bakr (may Allaah be pleased with him) was afraid that the Qur'aan would be lost. So he consulted the senior Sahaabah about compiling the Qur'aan in a single book so that it would remain preserved and would not be lost. He entrusted this mission to the chief of memorizers Zayd ibn Thaabit (may Allaah be pleased with him). Al-Bukhaari narrated in his Saheeh (4986) that Zayd ibn Thaabit (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: Abu
