x Qur'an and hadith MALS: ABDEL BALEEM ‘rie QUR'AN “The Qur'an is the starting point of lami theoopy, and Indeed of ll shings Islamic. As ecinically defined by lla theology and ae it ibe corpus of Arabi uterances sent doen by God to Mubammad, Slowey in ay tht categorically establishes is authenticity" or the wadition, chit classical definition summavises the base haacetstis othe Quran and istngoishes trom anything els the Prophet sa The Key phrase is "sent down by Go”, fr God speaks etl inthe Quran, and Muhammad is seen as «passive recipient 10 “oho the Book was imply sent down” however, tis the last element tie defini whichis most significant in considering che historical ‘ss fo Islamic heli “According co the Muslim historians the Ss sevlaion consisted of two lice in. Ambien the year 610, Muhammed was engaged in a “puitaal erat in eave outside Mea when he was appacbed by an ye who sid to him: "Read! Hoseplid that he could et red, bu he “nye repeal the command and received dhe same response the thi time, the angel rested to im the words "Read inthe name of your Len who ested” j6:t-6. This revelatory experience was soon fol lowed by another, when a second short pavtage was delivered, and berween the time and shorely before the Prophet’ death atthe age of sixty-tee year, the entire text of the Msli sevipure gradually ‘ppeaed. New revelations appeased in ower to supply new tesching Commenting on events or answering questions according to ecu. ‘That the Qu/an is the Word of God reveled to the Prophet ‘Mubaminad is sean by Muslims to be confirmed by the reveaton’s Tangoage. The fst word revealed ("Reals an imperative addressed 20 the Prophet, linguistically exchading his authorship of the text. This made is nantuined throvghou the Quisn. The Book speaks wo the20 MALS Abdel Halters Prophet, or talks about him, and nowhere eaves him to spe foe hhimsel: The Quyfan describes itself a a serpeute which God sat dw” so His prophet, and eh expresion, “sent down nis various Aetvations, is used in the Quran well over ano times. In Arabic thi locetion conveys immeiatly, and, implicly, the principle thatthe ‘origin of the Book i heavenly and chat Muhammad iso more can ts receptacle. God is the one who speaks in this Book: Mubamad fs adiesot a8 “O Prophet”, "O Messenger", "Do, "Do not do, (They ask you." "Say" this last command appesting more than Soo fimes.Somesimes the Prophet is reproached (4 0-1-1) Hs status, ‘unequivocally defined as “messenger” ras, and he is often ‘reminded that his duty is simply to communicate (balgh] the message to his communis ‘A uch repr that during his Sst expricace of revelation the Prophet was alone inthe eave, but subsequent circumstances in whic the reecived episodes of revelation were witnowed by others and recorded. Sometimes these witnesses would report visible, aude end seasory reactions when the Prophet experienced the “state of revel on”. His fae would "become bright, and he wold fall llent nd ‘seem to be contemplating distant things; his body would besume heavy 4 though in seep, humming sound would be heard around hi at ‘eat might spear on his bro, oven on winter days This sage would silly end, and a did so he would ssamediately reste new verses of ‘he serge. The sourees report that this state was not the Prophet's to ‘comumand:ie might descend om him as he was ealkin, siting ding ot aiving a sermon, and there weve oceasons whe he waited fri an ously er overa month whe he needean ane to «question he had ben asked, or sought an interpretation af some even, The Prophet and his followers understood these signs at experiences accompanying tbe ‘emmunicaton of sxipturl verses by Gabriel the Angel of Revelation, his adversaries explained them a oot tat he was "possessed ann this tepard, the Quran itself records many esim and attacks made ‘pon it and upon the Prophet im his fesse = ‘The evidence suggests tht forthe Prophet ims, the Quran was “sent down” and communicated hin by the faithful pst, Gail, and was categorically not his own speech. Styieisly gu anic material Which the Prophet recited following the states of revelation deveabed shove is so evidently dilfeent from the Prophets own sayings recotded in che hath, whether uttered incidentally or after long releetion, tha de tradition has sway ssid them to wo eakcally Aifree levels of dscoure Quan and edith ax ee ee an coal we whch toe te we oe ‘ioe eee ae aaa eed ce iin acontat converain ares ond ported pa ee eee on a ee ee Soeleas aime een ee elect ees eu ee eae ee es eleeee pee eee eee ea aoe ere eae a ead ee ee eos ae ra tl ean reagan cameo fre ee eae eee aa a eee ee agers see serene Sort maa ens ante We age eat meer ed nt snq sam (econ; omental ened peer retay eiee trioeray re ease aemeres pe eee eee area acseoe am ease maces Se ee ee eee ae oe rere ca ea eesiseral Sees ae ecaraeca ators See ceed cmackak aes en ase aay ERay roing in ated anngement hy the ine of22 MAS abl Maloom Prope’ death in the year 632, the ent sripure fad been writen own i the fom of uncllatedcetons, but many of bis followers, having spent yeas in his company where the Quan was a constant presence, ad memoria mul of all of ee text, and the book was bneipaliy experienced as an aural phenomenon These men and women wete metnbers of « cular world thet hala longyanding tradion of eomumieung Iterture, history and genealogy to memory. ‘ueo years afer the Prophe's death the Bale of Yama sean the people f Ns in Cental Azshia tok place, whic namberct those ho know the teat lst thir lives, ob the sources report tt twas feared that pats ofthe text might be ost. The fest eainh, Abo Rakr 6324, chetlore oadered chat the Quren shouldbe collected ingle writen copy, which was chen placed in the custody "Usa, and, aer his deah, was let with the Proghe’s widow Hats This copy was the bass of the codex issued in several copies By the eid caliph "Uthasin 644-36), tobedstbuted to several pats ofthe Atl world este {hat universal standard rest ofthe seripcure would preva. This hes remained the sole canonical text ofthe Que‘, resagnised by Sunn and Shi theologians to che present cme! Although the Quran is che untvaled supreme eevelation of Islam, the tration also recognises second form of revealed sexpene: the hadith bali, Technically, Muslims came to define the hadith s “the aescd reports ofthe savings, actions, and tacit approvals and acer ofthe Peopher Mohammad” These present sctouds ofthe Prophet's statements as well as statements by his companions relating € him. Collectively the hadith iteratre provides evidence forthe Pht’ way fife samo} so thatthe word suana isin de eyes of many synonyms ‘wih dhe word hadith” The relationship between the Quran and hath ‘swell defined: the hadith either emphasises whats inthe Quran stn ‘uaa, explains che manner in which something should he cated ‘ut (anna ubeyyin| or nteduees teaching hase on eran quence ‘verses or principles nna muthbia. The later category in paiculat ‘vat to become a rime soate of material forthe thelegans. "The vast corpus of hadith includes report ofthe Prophet's childhood and his experiences in Mecca before his prephic career began; bu ast hath refer o the Medina penod, when the Prt had thoussnd of followers who asked him questions and recived instruction fos his in allaspses ofthe new eligon The hadith show the Prophet asa skilled Qur'an end hadith 23 cummunicator and teacher? In Medina he ws with his Companion for ‘only all che daylight hous and for uch ofthe eventing his house gave tothe moss, and some hadith show that even when at home fe tould sxecimes bear heated discussions taking pace in the mosque lin would come nat to renove the dapte Thin constane interaction led to he eveation ofthe immense by of hadith, which he is eeaeded as tng his followers co pass on wn others: "God bless the ane whe hss Isa me say something and preserved it in his memory so that he ean pie un o othe, for anya person cares knowledge others mere Feowledecable than hrmsel"” Hosever,whoteas with qo'anic material dhe sources record chat the rophct was cael to have tween down as wel as leat by hea, this was tthe cae with the bath Infact, thesis evidence o suggest that only once the Quran was fly econded did he begin callow these [Cazapanions who could write proicently to record the hadith in wet ten for." ARer is death, he caliph ‘Umar I e344) 8 sald 0 have Aebated a scheme to have the hci eollectcd into n singe text he Secided against this, faring tha might come oval the Ques. The collection of faith sppears not t have received ofa sanction vt fhe time ofthe Umayyad caliph “Umar It 717-19, who seems to have inte and arly cased out the task of collating the material. Bue by ‘he beginning of che second Muslin century the writing down of hadith andof othe forms of Musi lesrmng was speeding exponentially. The ‘community came to rover three secessve generations who ina sted and shaped this proces. These wore the Companions jsahaba) of {he Prophet esteenry made up of al who saw him or hear him spk the ast sald to have died inthe year 110 au the Secessrsea'2n) vaho received the hadith from the Companions (the last of thes, cording to some claims, died in 180) and the Suceessrs ofthe Sue xssors tha” alah, tome of whom alleely lived unt the fst ‘quarter ofthe third century of Islam, Because ofthe delay in commencing the authentication proces, and because of the sheer sizeof she hadith material hich ws preserved in the form of perhaps a million separate report, the early Muslim Scholars admitted the existence ofa large number of forgeries and is tortion, many of which echoed eal sectanan tensions Inaction, the ‘rowing cles of scholar ula} slowly developed inticate methods for assessing the reliability of individual hadith por. A cation of travelling in seach of elevane information hogan, reading the fot: ‘epsof the Companions and others whe had migrated to che far comers ‘of the new Islamic work. We ate tol, for instance, that it tok the