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"Alif Laam Raa. A book which we have
revealed to you (Muhammad) so that you may lead the people
from out of the darknesses into the light by their Lord's
leave to the path of the All-Mighty, the Praiseworthy." [Qur'an 14:1]
What is the Quran?
The Qur'an is a Message from Allah to
humanity. It was transmitted to us in a chain starting from
the Almighty Himself (swt) to the angel Gabriel to the Prophet
Muhammad (saas). This message was given to the Prophet (saas)
in pieces over a period spanning approximately 23 years (610
CE to 622 CE). The Prophet (saas) was 40 years old when the
Qur'an began to be revealed to him, and he was 63 when the
revelation was completed. The language of the original message
was Arabic, but it has been translated into many other
languages.
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"And
whatever the Messenger gives you, take it, and
whatever he forbids you, leave it. And fear Allah:
truly Allah is severe in punishment. "
[Qur'an 59:7]
What is the Hadith?
In Islam, the Arabic word sunnah has
come to denote the way Prophet Muhammad (saas), the
Messenger of Allah, lived his life. The Sunnah is the
second source of Islamic jurisprudence, the first
being the Qur'an. Both sources are indispensable; one
cannot practice Islam without consulting both of them.
The Arabic word hadith (pl. ahadith) is very similar
to Sunnah, but not identical. A hadith is a narration
about the life of the Prophet (saas) or what he
approved - as opposed to his life itself, which is the
Sunnah as already mentioned.
Sahih Bukhari Volume 1, Book 2, Number
47.
Narrated Abu Huraira:
One day while the Prophet was sitting in the company
of some people, (The angel) Gabriel came and asked,
"What is faith?" Allah's Apostle replied, 'Faith is to
believe in Allah, His angels, (the) meeting with Him,
His Apostles, and to believe in Resurrection." Then he
further asked, "What is Islam?" Allah's Apostle
replied, "To worship Allah Alone and none else, to
offer prayers perfectly to pay the compulsory charity
(Zakat) and to observe fasts during the month of
Ramadan." Then he further asked, "What is Ihsan
(perfection)?" Allah's Apostle replied, "To worship
Allah as if you see Him, and if you cannot achieve
this state of devotion then you must consider that He
is looking at you." Then he further asked, "When will
the Hour be established?" Allah's Apostle replied,
"The answerer has no better knowledge than the
questioner. But I will inform you about its portents.
1. When a slave (lady) gives birth to her master.
2. When the shepherds of black camels start boasting
and competing with others in the construction of
higher buildings. And the Hour is one of five things
which nobody knows except Allah.
The Prophet then recited: "Verily, with Allah (Alone)
is the knowledge of the Hour--." (31. 34) Then that
man (Gabriel) left and the Prophet asked his
companions to call him back, but they could not see
him. Then the Prophet said, "That was Gabriel who came
to teach the people their religion." Abu 'Abdullah
said: He (the Prophet) considered all that as a part
of faith.
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Quran links
Quran translation (29.5Mb) can
be downloaded
here
Hadith links
Collections of the hadith in
Sahih Bukhari, Sahih Muslim, Sunan Abu-Dawud,
Malik's Muwatta can be found
here
Riyad as Saliheen
Riyad as Saliheen can be
viewed
here
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Is
it important to know the Quran?
The Qur'an is one leg of two
which form the basis of Islam. The second leg
is the Sunnah of the Prophet (saas). What
makes the Qur'an different from the Sunnah is
primarily its form. Unlike the Sunnah, the
Qur'an is quite literally the Word of Allah,
whereas the Sunnah was inspired by Allah but
the wording and actions are the Prophet's. The
Qur'an has not been expressed using any
human's words. Its wording is letter for
letter fixed by no one but Allah.
Prophet Muhammad (saas) was
the final Messenger of Allah to humanity, and
therefore the Qur'an is the last Message which
Allah has sent to us. Its predecessors such as
the Torah, Psalms, and Gospels have all been
superceded. It is an obligation - and blessing
- for all who hear of the Qur'an and Islam to
investigate it and evaluate it for themselves.
Allah has guaranteed that He will protect the
Qur'an from human tampering, and today's
readers can find exact copies of it all over
the world. The Qur'an of today is the same as
the Qur'an revealed to Muhammad (saas).
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