What is the Qur'an ?

 

 

Verily this is a Revelation from the Lord of the Worlds: With it came down the spirit of Faith and Truth- To your heart and mind, that you may admonish. In the perspicuous Arabic language.  (Surah Ash-Shu'ara, Ayahs 192-195) 

 

The word "Qur'an" comes from the root word “qir'a” which means "recitation. " The word Qur'an, therefore, may be perceived as the highest superlative form of that verb which symbolizes the text which is most read: The book of Allah.

 

 

For Muslims, the Qur'an is the revealed, eternal, and infallible word of God. It is an ultimate authority in all religious, social, and legal issues. The message of the book is straightforward: There is no God but Allah, and He has given His message to Muhammad to be relayed to the people as both a warning and a promise. The warning is to all who refuse to believe in the one God, and the promise is of eternal rewards to those who believe in Allah and do His will.

 

 

The Qur'an comprehends the complete code for the Muslims to live a good, chaste, abundant and rewarding life in obedience to the commandments of Allah, in this life and to gain salvation in the next.. It is the "chart of life" for every Muslim, and it is the "constitution" of the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth.

 

The Qur'an is the guide, the “by-laws” the reference book, the check list, and an eternal contemporary of the Muslims. Each generation of Muslims has found new sources of strength, courage and inspiration in it. It is also, for them, a "compass" in the turbulent voyage of life.

 

Indeed, there has come to you light and a clear book from Allah; With it Allah guides him who follow His pleasure into the ways of safety and brings them out of utter darkness into light by his will and guides them to the right path.  (5: 15-16)

 

It deserves the highest praise for its conceptions of Divine nature in reference to the attributes of Power, Knowledge, and Universal Providence and Unity. It is Qur'an which transformed the simple shepherds and wandering Bedouins of Arabia into the founders of empires, the builders of cities, the collectors of libraries. If a system of religious teachings is evaluated by the changes which it introduces into the way of life, the customs and beliefs of its followers, then Qur'an as a code of life is second to none! It is not strange then, that more translations and more commentaries of the Holy Qur'an have been published than that of any other book claimed to be the Divine Revelation.  

 

Tomorrow's Topic: Miracles of the Qur'an

 

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