Divine Revelation: A study of the qur*anic sciences
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Transcript Divine Revelation: A study of the qur*anic sciences
DIVINE REVELATION:
A STUDY OF THE QUR’ANIC
SCIENCES
Lecture 4
February 10
2013
Qur'anic Sciences - DKI
1
MAKKAN AND MADINAN
REVELATIONS
Chapters
5.1-5.2
TIMES AND LOCATIONS
OF REVELATION
Qur'anic Sciences - DKI
2
MAKKI AND MADANI REVELATIONS
The Surahs in the Qur’an are labeled as “Makki” or
“Madani”
Many misinterpret this to mean that the Surah/Ayah
was revealed in the city of Makkah or Madinah
That is not the case
Makki = Revealed before Hijrah
Madani = Revealed after Hijrah
Qur'anic Sciences - DKI
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MAKKI AND MADANI REVELATIONS
The Prophet ﷺhimself is not known to have
classified the Surahs as Makkan or Madinan
This classification came from the Sahabah and their followers
Some Surahs or Ayahs were not classified by the
Sahabah, but the Scholars were able to classify them
based on consistent patterns found in Makkan or
Madinan revelations
We will cover shortly
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MAKKI AND MADANI REVELATIONS
Some Surahs are entirely Makkan
Ex. Surah Al-Muddathir
Some Surahs are entirely Madinan
Ex. Surah Al-Imran
Some Surahs are Makkan as a whole, but contain one or more
Madinan verses
Ex. Surah Al-A’raf
Some Surahs are Madinan as a whole, but contain one or more
Makkan verses
Ex. Surah Al-Hajj
Classification of a Surah is based on the majority of its verses
But in some cases a Surah is classified based on when its initial
verses were revealed (before or after Hijrah)
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CHARACTERISTICS OF MAKKAN VERSES
CONSISTENT
Any Surah that contains the word
Contains an Ayah of Sajdah
“”كال
According to the Hanafis; Shaf’is consider one Madinan verse to be an Ayah of
Sajdah (Surah Al-Hajj)
FREQUENT
Mention the stor y of Adam and Iblis
Except Surah Al-Baqarah
Contain ( يا ايِّ ها الناسOh People!)
Surahs are shor t in length
Mushrikin (idol-worshipper s) are addressed
Complex, elegant language
T hemes: Tawhid, prophethood, af terlife, resurrection, stories of previous
prophets, comfor t and encouragement of patience
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CHARACTERISTICS OF MADINAN VERSES
CONSISTENT
Mention of the munafiqun (hypocrites)
There were no hypocrites in Makkah
Any Surah mentioning jihad
FREQUENT
Contains ( يا ايِّ ها الذين آمنواOh you who believe!)
Long in length
People of the Book are addressed
Straight-forward language
The language is simpler because majority of these verses discuss Law,
which must be clear and unambiguous
Themes: Family and societal law, jihad, obligations ( fara’id),
penalties (hudud)
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TIMES AND LOCATIONS OF REVELATION
“By the One besides Whom there is no Lord, there is no chapter
revealed in the Book of Allah except that I am the most
knowledgeable one regarding where it was revealed. There is no
verse from the Book of Allah that has been revealed except that
I am the most knowledgeable one regarding the circumstances
of its revelation.”
(Bukhārī , Muslim)
~ Abdullāh ibn Mas’ūd (R)
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CLASSIFICATIONS
Hadri – Verses revealed when the Prophet ﷺwas staying at
home and not travelling
Majority of verses fall in this category
Safri – Revealed during travel
Ex.
َّ َّإ ِن
۟ ٱَّلل َ َي أ ْ ُم ُر ُك ْم أ َن تُؤَ ُّد
ِ وا ْٱْل َ َٰ َم َٰ َن
ت إ ِل َ َٰ ٰٓ أ َ ْه ل ِ َه ا
Nahari – Revealed during the daytime
Most verses are in this category
Layla – Revealed at night
َٰ ِ ٱخ ت
َّ
َ
َّ
ْ ض َو
ِ
ِ س َٰ َم َٰ َو
Ex. ِ ار ل َ َء ا َٰ َي ٍۢت ِّْل ُ ۟و ل ِ ٰٓ ْٱْل َلْ َٰ َب
ه
ن
ٱل
و
ل
ي
ل
ٱ
ف
ل
ِ ت َو ْٱْل َ ْر
َ
َ
ْ
َّ ق ٱل
ِ
ِ ْإ ِنَّ ف ِ ٰٓ َخ ل
ِ
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CLASSIFICATIONS
Sayfi – Revealed during the summer
َٰ
َّ س َت ْفتُ و َن َك ق ُ ِل
َ
َ
َ ْٱَّلل ُ يُ ْفتِي ُك ْم ف ِ ٰٓ ٱل
Ex. ِك ل ل ة
ْ َي
Shitaa’i – Revealed during the winter
Ex. The ayaat from Surah Al-Nur which condemn the slanderers of
Sayyidah ‘Ayesha (RA)
Firashi – Revealed to the Prophet ﷺwhile he was lying in
his bed
Ex.
َّ
َّ
َ
ِص
اس
ن
ٱل
م
ك
م
ع
ي
ٱَّلل
َِن
ُ
ْ
َ
ُ َو
ِ
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CLASSIFICATIONS
Nawmi – Revealed while the Prophet ﷺwas sleeping
Sayyidina Anas: “The Holy Prophet ﷺwas once sitting among us
when he suddenly got a wink of sleep, and thereafter he raised his
head, smiled, and said that a Surah has just been revealed to him,
and then he recited Surah Al-Kauthar.”
This was not actual sleep, but a state particular to the Prophet ﷺ
when Wahy was sent to him
Samaawi – Revealed during the Mi’raj of the Prophet ﷺ
The last verses of Surah Al-Baqarah near Sidrat-ul Muntaha
Fidaai – Not revealed on earth nor in the sky, but somewhere
in the atmosphere – Ibn Arabi
3 verses of Surah As-Saffat and 1 verse of Surah Az-Zukhruf
Imam Suyuti could not find Qur'anic
any authentic
proof for this
Sciences - DKI
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GRADUAL DESCENT OF QUR’AN
Mentioned earlier – Qur’an was revealed bit by bit
Sometimes Jibril (AS) came with a single verse or a portion of
a verse
Smallest portion of Qur’an to be revealed: ( غير أول ٰٓ الضررportion of
Surah Nisa)
Largest revelation: Surah Al-An’am
Reasons for why not revealed all at once:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Difficult for Prophet ﷺbecause he was unlettered
Entire Qur’an would become obligatory all at once
Brought peace to the heart of the Prophet ﷺduring difficulty
Many verses refer to specific incidents (Asbab al-Nuzul)
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ASBAB AL-NUZUL:
CAUSES OF REVELATION
Many verses in the Qur’an were revealed by Allah SW T in
reference to specific incidents and contexts in the Prophet’s
ﷺlife that caused revelation to descend . These incidents
are referred to as the Causes of Revelation, or Asbab al-Nuzul
Knowledge of the causes of revelation is an essential
component of tafsir and understanding of the Qur’an
To understand why a command was given
۟ ُوا ََل َت ْق َر ب
۟ َُٰ َي أ َ ُّي َه ا ٱل َّ ِذ ينَ َء ا َم ن
َٰٰ س َٰ َك َر
ُ ص ل َ َٰو ةَ َو أ َنتُ ْم
َّ وا ٱل
To understand the true meaning of a verse
َّ َّٱَّلل ِ ۚ إ ِن
َّ وا فَ َث َّم َو ْج ُه
۟ ُّ ق َو ٱلْ َم ْغ ِر ُ ۚ فَأ َ ْي َن َم ا تُ َو ل
ْ َو ِ ََّّلل ِ ٱلْ َم
ُ ش ِر
ِ ٱَّلل َ َٰ َو
س ٌع َع ل ِي ٌم
Many more reasons are listed by the Scholars
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CAUSES OF REVELATION:
GENERAL AND SPECIFIC COMMANDS
The verses of Quran revealed regarding a specific incident are
of four kinds in relation to their general or specific
application:
1. If the verse addresses a person by name, the ḥukm is
specific to that person (e.g. Ṣūrat al-Lahab)
2. If the exact name is not mentioned, but other evidence
determines that it is about a specific person, the ḥukm is
specific to him (e.g. Ṣūrat al-Layl) ٰٓ وسيجنّ بها اْلتق
3. If the words of the verse are specific, but Hadith shows that
the Prophet ﷺapplied it generally, it’s ḥukm is general
(e.g. verses of inheritance were revealed specifically, but
Hadith shows that Prophet applied them generally )
4. If words of the verse are general, but Hadith show that they
were revealed for a specific incident, the ḥukm is general
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CHRONOLOGICAL VS. COMPILED ORDER
The Qur’an is not compiled in order of when the Surahs/Ayahs
were revealed
The Prophet ﷺinstructed the Sahabah where to put the Ayahs in
the Surahs when they were revealed to him
There is a difference of opinion regarding the order of the Surahs
1. The order of Surahs was also dictated by Wahy
2. The order of Surahs was determined by the Sahabah
The stronger opinion is the order of Surahs is from Wahy
The chronological order of the entire Qur’an cannot be
mapped with certainty
The Sahabah did not put much importance in this, other than for
understanding the Asbab al-Nuzul
Many non-Muslim scholars have attempted to put the Qur’an in
chronological order, because they feel it is currently “out of order”
The Qur’an is exactly in the order in which Allah SWT has willed
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ASSIGNMENTS & QUESTIONS
Review Chapters 5.1-5.2 in Course Manual
Read ahead to Chapter 5.3-5.5
Recommended supplementary reading:
An Approach to the Qur’anic Sciences
By Mufti Muhammad Taqi Uthmani
Questions?
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