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Those who are sent by God Almighty fulfil a various number of roles. For example, they are at the same time, prophets, messengers, recipients of revelation, divine appointees, arbiters, teachers, and missionaries. Each of these functions is like a priceless jewel which excites and elicits happiness. People are enamoured by them and their hearts recognise that the conduct [of God’s chosen servants] emanates from a greater power. For the moment, let us proceed to consider the Holy Prophet (sas) in his capacity as a recipient of revelation, whereby he excelled over all of humanity and the entire gallery of prophets.
When reflecting on [the role of] a prophet as a recipient of revelation, the content of his divine message must be carefully considered. The grandeur and potency of this word is the barometer by which the eminence of these prophets is judged. All forms of revelation are only as robust as the scope of the message they bring. If it is accepted that the weaponry of the prophets is their revelation, the ammunition given to them must accord with the intrinsic purpose of their mission. If their task is to conquer a formidable enemy and secure magnificent victory, they require a heavy arsenal to succeed in their aims. It is curious how the world has not understood this simple principle and many foolish souls insist that apart from the Holy Qur’an no other miracle was given to the Holy Prophet (sas); implying that the Holy Qur’an is not a miracle in itself. Therefore, [they conclude,] if even this is not a miracle the Holy Prophet (sas) did not show any divine sign at all.
However, this notion proceeds from ignorance and a lack of understanding. It is not true the Prophet (sas) was given no other divine sign [in his support] except for the Holy Qur’an. Every aspect of his life was a miracle and the abundant signs granted to him were unmatched by all the prophets combined. But even if we accept this, the Qur’an in itself is the greatest miracle of all and sufficient to show his superiority over his fellow messengers.
According to a school of thought, the miracle of the Holy Qur’an is its unlimited eloquence as a book. [So those who oppose Islam] look to find fault with it and consequently commit such injudicious errors one cannot help but be amused. In his book, The Life of Mahomet, Sir William Muir argues that prior to the hijra, from the fifth to tenth year of his mission, the Holy Prophet (sas) began to insert elements of Jewish scripture into the Holy Qur’an. This involved a shift in tone from the previous Qur’anic style as the Prophet (sas) laboured and toiled to transcribe Jewish stories into the Arabic language. Yet owing to his commitments, this was not possible by day and so according to Muir: ‘For this end a midnight hour must have been stolen from sleep.’4 Muir refers to the following passage of the Holy Qur’an to support his thesis:
Sir Muir may well be a great scholar. Yet it did not occur to him that the above verses are unanimously accepted as dating from the first year of prophethood, and Surah Muzzammil, the chapter to which they belong, is from among the earliest [revealed portions]. Some researchers even consider it one of the first chapters. Perhaps the greatest miracle is that a part [of the Qur’an] which was revealed in the first year of prophethood, was fulfilled and acted upon by the Prophet (sas) in the fifth to tenth year of his mission as Muir seems to suggest, for it is not possible for a person to foretell a thing which is to occur five or six years into the future when they have no control over it.
In short, the enemies of Islam strive to diminish [the radiance of ] this brilliant sign, yet ultimately their efforts only serve to show that in their hearts they accept the miracle of the Qur’an, otherwise why would they be so agitated by it?
The truth is when compared to the Holy Qur’an, no other divine book can be considered a miracle. [When earlier scriptures were revealed] they were indeed a magnificent sign for the people of that time, but after the sun rose their light faded like the glow of the stars. Now they seek to compete with Islam through the tales and myths found in their scriptures, for there are no limits to which one can exaggerate or embellish a story. Where there is an episode of the Holy Prophet’s (sas) powers of healing, [Christians] produce ten of their own. And when one expresses astonishment at their claims, they immediately reply that if the accounts [of the life of the Prophet (sas)] are to be believed, then so must their own historical traditions be accepted. But if it is said to them the Holy Prophet’s (sas) greatest miracle is the Holy Qur’an, which is a living and verdant sign, and that its foundations are based on fact and not myth and legend, they turn to silence. They do not cite their own scripture because they themselves admit it has been redacted and interpolated. And if there are some among them who are so stubborn as to deny even this, then at the very least, the historical evidence is so overwhelming it cannot be rejected.
There are so many different versions of the Vedas each one appears as though a separate book. Therefore, bits and pieces have been taken from these various texts to produce a single edition. The state of the Torah is such that in one place it recounts the death of Mosesas and says no prophet like him has ever been born, and yet it is also claimed that the whole book was revealed directly to Mosesas himself. And as far as the Bible is concerned, its various editions are so contradictory that [when looked at in juxtaposition], they cannot be recognised as the same book. Time and again Christians change and alter it. At one moment, a particular verse is included in the Bible and considered canonical, and at another it is deemed to be false and taken out. Today, whole chapters have been removed altogether on the pretext that they were added at a later date. But the real issue is that if the Bible had been collated from authentic sources, then the period of interpolation and redaction would not have extended to 1900 years. Admittedly, it can be argued the [Christians] of the past failed to understand biblical verses as lucidly as those who came afterwards. However, in terms of its actual content, it is difficult to justify that early Christians were mistaken in what they inserted and that only now, some 1900 years later, can it be conclusively determined what the makeup of the Bible should consist of. [Accordingly], those who followed extraneous chapters and verses wasted away their lives and their spiritual perception was reduced to nothing. How can people be expected to believe a divine scripture which for nearly 2000 years has been susceptible to numerous redactions? And what is the guarantee other chapters will not be taken out in the future. It is possible, as some scholars have suggested, a time will come when the only part of the Bible that will remain are the words Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani (my God, my God, why have you forsaken me), for they will be considered the sole recorded saying of Jesusas; this sentence will comprise the entire Bible and everything else will be done away with. However, can a lament of abandonment bring people closer to God?
Thus the scriptures of all other religions are so unreliable their missionaries dare not compete with the Holy Qur’an. The same is true of other unique excellences which divine scriptures ought to commonly possess. [People of other faiths] are unwilling to debate on whether the word of God can be considered a miracle, despite the fact that the miracle of revelation is greater than all other signs, for proof of it can be furnished at any time. Conversely, the fog of mythology and legend is able to obfuscate other types of miracle. And unless external proofs and evidence can be called upon, it is difficult to distinguish between truth and falsehood.
The miracle of the divine word, as I have detailed above, has many aspects, and all of these are possessed to their highest excellence by the Holy Qur’an. But in an essay such as this, it is not possible to expand on each of these features, therefore, let us turn to a brief discussion on two in particular. I challenge those [of other faiths] to present similar miracles from their own scriptures—for they claim that their books are also divinely revealed—and then seek to determine whether they can in any way stand comparison with the Holy Qur’an.
The first of these examples is that of the text of the Qur’an. Allah the Exalted says:
Verily, We Ourself have sent down this Exhortation, and most surely We will be its Guardian.
As a general principle, tools which fulfil their purpose are kept and preserved [for their utility]. And when they cease to live up to the function of their design, they are cast aside. So, perforce, any divine scripture must be protected for as long as it serves a need in the world. And when its protection ceases it can be rightly assumed the world has no more need for it and it is thus abandoned. The people to whom the Holy Qur’an was revealed were bereft of all knowledge and learning. In contrast, other scriptures were given to literate peoples and nations. But despite their more pronounced sophistication, they were unable to preserve their original texts. The Holy Qur’an on the other hand is just as it was at the time of the demise of the Holy Prophet (sas). It cannot be said that its preservation owes itself to more favourable circumstances than other holy books, nor can it be claimed its authenticity has yet to be truly tested by historical scholarship and that when it is subjected to rigorous dissection, faults and discrepancies will reveal themselves. In order to conceal [and deflect attention from the] inaccuracies of the Bible, Christian scholars have, for the past century, studied the history of the Qur’an and been so scrupulous in their efforts that at times, it might appear to someone who does not know them well, that they hold the Qur’an in even greater esteem than Muslims. But despite their exertions, they have failed in their objectives—that is to say, they have been unable to produce even a single word which is a later insertion and not an original part of the Holy Qur’an.
Muslims are spread among numerous nations and countries. They all possess copies of the Holy Qur’an and yet not one example can be found where one version differs from another. After extensive research, a certain Dr Mingana claimed to have discovered three different ancient versions of the Holy Qur’an. But when he had a few of their pages published, his findings were [immediately] proven false, and he set aside any plans for having the others brought into the public domain. The ones that were published were not accurate renditions. Instead, the mistakes in them were the work of an ignorant and inexperienced [scribe] and were, therefore, not an error in any real sense. A [true textual error] would be one by which people are misled. There was no need for Dr Mingana to go so far back into history. It was enough for him to present any misprinted copy of the Qur’an as published by Muslims, and point out the relevant verses to prove there are alternative versions. There used to reside a priest in Sialkot who would keep various copies of the Holy Qur’an and note down all the misprints he could find. Then whenever he met a Muslim he would say that contrary to their claims, certain words are written differently in various versions of the Qur’an. And yet he too could have made his point in a simpler manner. He only had to ask a person with a stammer to recite the Holy Qur’an, and with every mispronounced word, his point would have been proven. Again, this foolish soul failed to realise that an error is that by which people are led astray. A mistake which is recognisable on a second reading even to the scribe who wrote it, does not go against the promise made to preserve the Holy Qur’an. The Qur’an is preserved in the minds of people and in its various editions. Typographical errors have no bearing on its teachings or commentaries, as these types of inaccuracies do not lead to mistaken translations or interpretations.
I will say nothing from myself of the divine protection received by the Holy Qur’an. Instead, I will cite the testimony of a devout Christian who has made every effort to undermine the notion the Holy Qur’an has been preserved in its original form. Ultimately though, even he was forced to accept that any such criticism was erroneous and out of place and that the Qur’an of today is the same as the one which existed when the Holy Prophet (sas) departed this world. In his book, The Coran, Sir William Muir variously writes:
The recension of Zeid has been handed down unaltered. So carefully has it been followed, that there is but one and the same Coran in use throughout the vast bounds of the Mahometan world.
The few variations are almost entirely confined to the vowel forms and the diacritical points, which, having been invented at a later period, formed no part of the original or of Zeid’s recension.
There is every security that the work of Zeid was executed faithfully; and, indeed, the acceptance of the Coran by Ali and his party, the antagonists of the unfortunate Othman, is the surest guarantee of its genuineness.
—all this leaves no doubt in the mind that the Coran as we read it now contains the very words delivered by the Prophet.7
When a believer [makes] an argument from their own faith, there exists a degree of uncertainty as to whether they have in some way exaggerated the truth. But the excerpts above are from the writings of an individual who stridently endeavoured to denigrate Islam and its founder. Only God knows of the pain Sir Muir felt in his heart as he acknowledged this truth. But it was unavoidable. He was compelled to admit that the Qur’an has been safeguarded. This testimony shows even the enemies [of Islam] are forced to acknowledge it is free of adulteration. And so the prophecy—Verily, We Ourself have sent down this Exhortation, and most surely We will be its Guardian—has been manifestly fulfilled. And the miracle of this text is such that no other scripture can point to its like.
As a second example, I will present another interpretation of this verse. The word [of God] is protected in various ways. Its content is safeguarded as are its meanings and outcomes. Having discussed the protection of its words, I will now move on to demonstrate the miracle of the safeguarding of its deeper meanings. It is entirely possible for the words of a scripture to be preserved in their original form, yet fail to be understood according to their actual intent. Let us cite here the Vedas. Though much of it is interpolated, there are still elements of its truth which have been preserved. Yet the language of its transmission is now so ancient and rare its true meanings cannot be determined with any degree of certainty. [Teachings about] monotheism, idolatry, superstition, celestial worship, medicine, the finer points of sexual conduct and many other subjects are interpreted in contradictory ways. The words are the same but the meanings extrapolated from them are completely different. It is able to give rise to beliefs as disparate as Vedic philosophy and the tenets of the Wam Margians, all at the same time. The differences exist not in their meaning but in the literal understanding of the words and not just in isolated cases, but throughout the text. But the words of the Holy Qur’an are protected to a degree that though one word which has multiple meanings may be interpreted in different ways at various places, the distinction is not profound. Also, the solution to this problem is found in the Qur’an itself, so it is impossible to formulate an erroneous interpretation. The Holy Qur’an elucidates the meaning of its own verses and if a person subscribes to a false meaning, then another verse of the Holy Qur’an will expose their error and in this way the promise that God Himself will protect the Qur’an is again fulfilled.
No external source is required to understand the essence of the Holy Qur’an. God has instilled it with such meanings that any erroneous interpretations can be swiftly identified. Those who commit mistakes cannot match their interpretation with any other part of the Qur’an. This is a miracle of the Qur’an which cannot be found in any other scripture. Other texts are composed in such a way that if one of their passages is interpolated, the other parts are unable to identify the point of digression. But all the verses of the Holy Qur’an safeguard one another. When a person makes a mistake, other verses draw attention to it and the error is apprehended.
Thus in his capacity as a recipient of revelation the Holy Prophet (sas) was greater than all others. His revelation is alive and eternal. It possesses such miraculous effects that no other form of revelation can compete with it and no scripture can stand alongside the Holy Qur’an.
(Alfazl, 25 Oct 1930)
1 I seek refuge with Allah from Satan the accursed. [Publishers]
2 In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful. We praise Allah, the Exalted, the Greatest, and we invoke His blessings on His Holy Messenger (sas). [Publishers]
3 By the grace and mercy of God Almighty—He alone is the Helper. [Publishers]
4 Sir William Muir, Life of Mahomet, 102 [Publishers]
5 O thou who art bearing a heavy responsibility, stand up in Prayer at night except a small portion thereof — Half of it, or make it a little less than that or make it a little more than that — and recite the Qur’an slowly and thoughtfully. Verily, We are charging thee with a weighty Word. Verily, getting up at night is the most potent means of subduing the self and most effective in respect of words of prayer. Thou hast indeed, during the day, a long chain of engagements. So remember the name of thy Lord, and devote thyself to Him with full devotion. (Surah Al-Muzzammil, 73:2-9) [Publishers]
6 Surah Al-Hijr, 15:10 [Publishers]
7 Sir William Muir, The Coran, 39-40. [Publishers]
