Spirituality

The word awha, from which ‘wahy’ (revelation) is derived, occurs in a number of shades and meanings in the Quran.


Ulum al-Quran

- Discipline of studies of Quran (also, sciences of the Quran)


The Quran
The Quran can be defined as follows
* The word of Allah, sent down upon the last Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh), through the Angel Gabriel, in its precise meaning and precise wording in Arabic, transmitted to us orally and in written form by groups after groups (tawatur), its recitation in Arabic is an act of worship, guidance to humanity, documented in a book that begins with Surah Fatiha and ends with Surah Nas.
* It is inimitable, preserved, and protected by God.


Difference between Quran, Hadith and Hadith Qudsi


Hadith

* Sayings of the Prophet (Pbuh).

* Some related to issues of personal nature.
v Some related to our religion.
v It is not relayed to us in oral/written format; some relayed to us in groups after groups (mutawaatir) and other by single chain narrators.
v Its recitation is not an act of worship.
v The language of hadith is not inimitable unlike Quran, which is inimitable.
v It is not collected in one book.
Hadith Qudsi
v qudsi, coming from God (quddus- one of the 99 names of God)
v Prophet (Pbuh) is quoting God, but not in the language of God Allah says, “Nor does he (Muhammad) say (aught) of (his own) Desire.” (Quran 53:3)
v It can be classified as sahih (sound) and da’if (weak) according to the methodology of verification.
How was Quran named?
v Zamakhshari, a scholar, said that there are 96 names for the Quran
v Four famous names of the Quran:
quran – qara’a; coming from
furqan - furq: criterion that separates right and wrong
dhikr - memorisation, reminder
kitab - book
v Other names of the Quran:
an-noor - light
shifa - healing
al naba al-azeem- the great news
What is Wahy?
The word awha, from which ‘wahy’ (revelation) is derived, occurs in a number of shades and meanings in the Quran, each of them indicating the main underlying idea of inspiration, directing or guiding someone or something.
v Guidance through natural intuition: ‘so we sent this inspiration to the mother of Moses. . .’ (Quran 28: 7)
v Guidance in natural instinct: ‘and thy Lord taught the bee to build its cells in hills, on trees and in (man’s) habitations’ (Quran 16: 68)
v Guidance by gesture: ‘So Zakaria came out to his people from his chamber: he told them by signs to celebrate God’s praises in the morning and in the evening’ (Quran 19: 11)
v Direction from evil source: ‘Likewise did we make for every messenger an enemy evil ones among men and jinns, inspiring each other with flowery discourses by way of deception ...’ (Quran 6: 112)
v Guidance from God: ‘Remember thy Lord inspired the angels (with the message) ...’ (Quran 8: 12).
(The writer is Sr. Advisor, Muslim Public Affairs Council-MPAC) n