Transcript The Qur’an & the Bible in light of modern research By

The Qur’an Exposed:
Truth, Lies or Forgery?
By Hamza Andreas Tzortzis
Presentation for the Liverpool University
Islamic Awareness Week
4th March 2008
Introduction
My background
 www.theinimitablequran.com
 hamzatzortzis.blogspot.com
 Popular culture
 Socio-political implications

Setting the Scene

The Islamic perspective
– Searching for truth is based upon evidence
– There is no blind thinking or blind adoption of
the Islamic creed
– Pre-requisite is belief in a sole cause for the
universe (creator)
– Unlimited ‘mind’ vs. limited mind
– External revelation is required
The Qur’an:
Its History &
Preservation
Recurrent Reporting & Verification
Recurrent reporting oral
tradition (mutawatir)
 The huffadh were dying, as a
result Zayd Ibn Thaabit was
the main scribe instructed to
write down the whole Qur’an
 Zayd referred to all those
who had memorised the
Qur’an and to all the written
copies, verifying them with
other witnesses
 Others that were included in
the recurrent reporting were:

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–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Umar Ibn al- Khattab
Ali
Uthman
Abu Bakr
Ubay Ibn Kab
Abdullah Ibn Masood
Muadh ibn Jabal
Abu Musa al-Ashari
Muawiya ibn Abi Sufyan
Uqba ibn Amir
Abdullah ibn Aqram
Khaleed ibn Saeed
And others
Manuscript Evidence & No Variants
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Tashkent Manuscript (2nd Century after hijra)
Topkapi Manuscript (Uthmanic)
Husayn Mosque in Cairo (Ali’s manuscript)
There is no deviation in the manuscripts we
have today
The Institute fur Koranforschung, University of
Munich, Germany, collected and collated some
42,000 complete or incomplete copies of the
Qur’an gathered from all over the world. After
some fifty years of study they reported that in
terms of differences there was no variants.
Western Scholarship
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
Adrian Brockett
“The transmission of the Qur’an after the death of
Muhammed was essentially static, rather than organic. ..
The efforts of those scholars who attempt to reconstruct
any other hypothetical original versions of the (written)
text are therefore shown to be disregarding half the
essence of the Muslim scripture.”
Arthur J. Arberry
“… the Qur’an as printed in the twentieth century is
identical with the Qur’an as authorized by Uthman more
than 1300 years ago.”
The Qur’an:
Linguistic & Literary
Miracle
The Eternal Challenge

Qur’an Chapter 2 Verse 23
“And if you are in doubt concerning that which We
have sent down to our servant (Muhammed pbuh)
then bring a chapter of the like thereof and call
your witnesses (supporters and helpers) besides
Allah if you are truthful”
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General Meaning
Historical Scholarly Approach
Six Main Arguments
Six Main Arguments
Rational Deduction
Complexities of
Classical Arabic
Grammar
Eloquence
Six Main
Arguments
Unique Literary
Form
Unique Genre
Rhetoric
The Unique
Literary Form
Unique Literary Form
Arabic
Language
Qur’an
Poetry
Prose
Rhythmical
Patters
Unique
Saj’
Mursal
Forms of Speech

Arabic Language has two main forms of speech
– Poetry
– Prose

Prose: Saj’ and Mursal
Poetry: Strict Rhythmical Pattern.
16 Types of Patterns: al-Bihar
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Metrical Patterns
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
at-Tawîl
al-Bassit
al-Wafir
al-Kamil
ar-Rajs
al-Khafif
al-Hazaj
al-Muttakarib
al-Munsarih
al-Muktatab
al-Muktadarak
al-Madid
al-Mujtath
al-Ramel
al-Khabab
as-Saria'
Why is it Unique?

Nelson & Arberry: All pre-Islamic and postIslamic poetry fit into the al-Bihar
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Arberry, Nicholson, Lawrence, Gibb, Qutb,
Haleem: The Qur’an can not fit into any of the
known forms

This is achieved by not adhering to the rules of
poetry and prose, by intermingling metrical and
non-metrical speech and stylistic differences
such as semantically orientated assonance.
Eloquence
Eloquence
“Eloquence consists in expressing an appropriate
meaning with a noble, apt and clear phrase,
indicating what is to be without superfluous
additions.”
Imam al Haramayn al Juwayni
“…humans cannot imitate the Qur'an because their
knowledge does not encompass all the words of
Arabic, all the ideas in them, and all the varieties
of structure.”
Issa Boulata
Word Order

Example:
‘You shall not kill your children because you cannot
support them. We provide for you and for them.’
Qur’an 80:151
‘You shall not kill your children for fear of want. We will
provide for them and for you.’
Qur’an 17:31
Meticulous Accuracy

In the first verse when the killing is from want due to the
poverty of the family, the Qur’an emphasizes Allah’s
provision over the parent thus they are mentioned first.
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In the second verse however the killing of such innocent
children is conceded by the fear of the future possibility
of poverty, Allah assures one not do so by emphasizing
the children before the family and how they will receive
this provision.

The words are meticulously chosen even the letters are
meaningfully used. No addition, elision, advancing, or
retarding occurs but by careful design. This approach is
unequalled in any human composition. It is only found in
the Qur’an.
The Unique
Linguistic Genre
Cohesive & Rhetorical Features

The Qur’an combines rhetorical and cohesive
features in every verse.

Rhetoric in the Arab tradition is “…the conveying
of meaning in the best of verbal forms”

Cohesiveness is the feature that binds sentences
to each other grammatically and lexically. It also
refers to how words are linked together into
sentences and how sentences are in turn linked
together to form larger units in texts.
Why is it Unique?

These elements combine with each other in such
a way that interlock and become inseparable.

This unique combination captivates the reader
and achieves an effective communicative goal.
The rhetorical and cohesive components of the
Qur’anic text cannot be divorced from each
other.
 K. Gragg in his book “The Event of the Qur’an”:

“…the Qur’an is understood to say what it says
in an inseparable identity with how it says it.”
Example
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Example:
“Men who remember Allah much and women who
remember” Qur’an 33:35
The Qur’anic verse above, in a different word order such
as the verse:
“Men who remember Allah much and Women who
remember Allah much”
The non Qur’anic verse would not deliver the same
effect as it has lost its rhetorical effect and is superfluous
in meaning.
Non-Qur’anic Arabic texts mostly employ cohesive
elements but the Qur’an uses both cohesive and
rhetorical elements in every verse.
Rational Deduction
Historical Fact
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Margoliouth, Muir and Zammit: Historical fact that the
Arabs at the time of revelation were masters in the use
of Arabic
They were articulate users of the language but also held
those skilled in the arts of linguistic composition in high
esteem.
“It should be known that Arabs thought highly of poetry
as a form of speech. Therefore, they made it the
archives of their history, the evidence for what they
considered right and wrong, and the principal basis of
reference for most of their sciences and wisdom.”
Ibn Khaldun
They All Failed
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If the people best placed to challenge the Qur’an failed,
then who can do it?
Some of the challengers:
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Musaylamah
The Quraish
Ibn Al-Mukaffa‘
Abu'l-'Ala Al-Marri
Yahya b. Al-Hakam al-Ghazal
Sayyid 'Ali Muhammad
Ibn al-Rawandi
Bassar bin Burd
Sahib Ibn 'Abbad
Abu'l - 'Atahiya
A Failure
“The elephant. What is the elephant? And who
shall tell you what is the elephant? He has a
ropy tail and a long trunk. this is a [mere] trifle
of our Lord's creations.” Musaylamah

Concerning the style of his speech; he followed
the kahin style of rhymed prose, and of the
pronouncing of oaths.

If the Arabs at that time failed, who is the
author? Using Rational Deduction, it can not be
a Arab, a non-Arab or even the Prophet
Muhammed.
God’s Word?
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Rational deduction
Is it from an Arab, Non-Arab, the Prophet (pbuh) or the
Creator?
The Prophet and Hadith – Linguistic differences
The pre-requisite – Creator
No other rational explanation!
Western Scholarship
Non-Muslim Scholarship

Consensus opinion on the superior nature of the Qur’an’s
language.
"The Koran [sic] admittedly occupies an important
position among the great religious books of the world….
it yields to hardly any in the wonderful effect which it
has produced on large masses of men. It has created an
all but new phase of human thought and a fresh type of
character. It first transformed a number of
heterogeneous desert tribes of the Arabian peninsula
into a nation of heroes…."
G. Margoliouth
Miracle After Miracle
My favourite…..
“As tangible signs Qur’anic verses are expressive of
an inexhaustible truth. They signify meaning
layered within meaning, light upon light, miracle
after miracle.”
Bruce Lawrence
“…and that though several attempts have been
made to produce a work equal to it as far as
elegant writing is concerned, none has as yet
succeeded.”
F. F. Arbuthnot
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Conclusion: A Miracle Indeed it is!

Martin Zammit concludes in his book “A comparative
Lexical Study of Qur’anic Arabic”:
“Notwithstanding the literary excellence of some of the
long pre-Islamic poems…the Qur'an is definitely on a
level of its own as the most eminent written
manifestation of the Arabic language.”

Rev. R Bosworth Smith concludes that the Qur'an, in his
book "Muhammad and Muhammadanism", is:
"…It is the one miracle claimed by Muhammad, his
standing miracle, and a miracle indeed it is."
Forgery?
Grammatical Mistakes?
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The Qur’an is a source text for Arabic grammar!
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Example: “You notice that the word was written
Saabi'uuna in 5:69 and was written Saabi'iina in 2:62
and 22:17. In the last two verses the word was declined
correctly. But the word Saabi'uuna in 5:69 was given the
'uu….This then is an obvious grammatical error.”

Neal Robinson, Haleem, Abdur Raof and Ibn Athir: This
change in case is similar to changes of number and
person and tense. All these are used in the Qur’an for
rhetorical purposes in their contexts. This is a well
known feature called iltifaat. Of which there are
countless examples in Classical Arabic
Foreign Words?

Claims that the Qur’an is not, as it states, in a “…plain
Arabic Qur’an” due to the presence of ‘foreign’ words:
Mount (Qur’an 95:2) borrowed from Syriac
Heavy (Qur’an 18:31) from Persian
Sinai (Qur’an 95:2) from Nabatean
The Inscription (Qur’an 18:9) from Greek
The Sea (Qur’an 7:136) from Coptic
To turn onto someone (Qur’an 7:156) from Hebrew
Imam Shafi’i: Natural Linguistic phenomenon - These
foreign words in the Qur’an had already been naturalised
into the Arabic language
 al-Suyuti: A few foreign words does not make it any less
Arabic then the presence of foreign words in a Persian
Poem would not make it any less Persian.
 Additionally the reference to “Plain Arabic…” is to the
Qur’an as a whole, and not the individual words in it.

Authorship Theories
A Poet?
 A Madman?
 Taught by Others?
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A Poet?
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Claims by Bell, Rodinson and Stobart
Bell describes the Prophet as a poet
“…not of the ordinary type”!
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Stylistic differences
Non-conformity to the Metrical patterns
“This is not the word of a poet! Little faith you
have!”
Qur’an 69:41
A Madman?
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Claims by San Pedro and the Historian
Theophanes
Historian Phillip K. Hitti wrote “The Prophet
experienced ecstatic seizures as he received the
revelations, giving rise to the charge he was
epileptic”
Even Orientalists like Daniel refute these claims
“…epilepsy as applied to the Prophet was the
explanation of those who sought to amuse
rather than to instruct”
“Do they not reflect and ponder? There is no
madness in their companion..” Qur’an 7:194
Incongruence between medical symptoms an
Islamic literature
Taught by Others?
Claims by Muir, Margoliouth and others that Baheerah
the monk taught the Prophet, allegedly when they met
when he was a teenager.
 Even if the incident is true how can the whole Qur’an be
developed from a meeting lasting only a few hours?
 Others such as Menzes and Gardner claim the Qur’an
was taught by Salmaan al-Farsee
 Where did the Prophet get all of the other information
before he met the convert Salmaan al-Farsee?
 Other such as Bodly and Gibb claim it was the Arab
Christian Qis ibn Sa’eedah.
 They both conveniently forget that this individual died
over a century before the Prophets birth!
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Conclusion
To Conclude…
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There is a corpus of material available concerning
today’s topic
The Qur’ans claim has been proven and affirmed by
western scholarship
The Qur’an has shown that it is a unique inimitable
Arabic textual construction that has stood the test of
time
Modern authorship theories do not provide adequate
evidence and the question of authorship continues to
baffle academics
The Qur’an is the final testament that doesn’t claim a
monopoly on the truth, but claims it is divine and has an
unbroken chain
This presentation should evoke many questions and
provide a fertile ground for a frank and honest discussion
Thank you!
Email: [email protected]
 Mobile: 07988850946

www.theinimitablequran.com
 hamzatzortzis.blogspot.com

Alhamdulillahir Rabbil’Alameen
[All Praises & Thanks Due to the Lord of the Worlds]
References & Further Reading
hamzatzortzis.blogspot.com
www.theinimitablequran.com
www.islamic-awareness.org
H. Abdul-Raof. 2003. Exploring the Qur'an. Al-Maktoum Institute Academic Press.
M. Abdullah Draz. 2001. The Qur'an an Eternal Challenge (al-Naba' al-'Azim).The Islamic
Foundation.
M. Sells. 2000. A Literary Approach to the Hymnic Surahs of the Qur'an. Curzon Press.
Muhammed Abdel Haleem. 2004. The Qur'an: A New Translation. Oxford University Press.
Muhammed Abdel Haleem. 1999. Understanding the Qur’an: Themes & Styles. I. B.Tauris
Publishers
The history of the Qur’anic text from revelation to compilation – A comparative study with old
and new testaments, Dr M. M. al-Azami
G. Yule. 1985. The Study of Language. Cambridge University Press, p. 52
H. Abul-Raof. 2003. Exploring the Qur’an. Al-Makhtoum Institute Academic Press, p. 38
A. Jeffrey. 1938. The Foreign Vocabulary of the Qur’an. Baroda: Oriental Institute, p. 110
al-Suyuti. 1996. al-Itqan fi Ulum al-Qur’an. Vol. 1. Beirut: Dar Ihya’ al-Ulum, p. 367
M A S Abdel Haleem Grammatical Shift For The Rhetorical Purposes: Iltifāt And Related
Features In The Qur'ān Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, 1992, Volume LV,
Part 3.
Approaches to the History of Interpretation of the Qur’an, p 44
Arberry’s translation of the Qur’an, Introduction
William Wright. 1955 (1898). A Grammar of the Arabic Language, Vol II, part 4. Cambridge
University Press, p. 350-390
Louis Cheikho, Shu’ara' 'al-Nasraniyah, 1890-1891
Bruce Lawrence. Journal of Qur’anic Studies. Vol VII, Issue I 2005. Approximating Saj’ in
English Renditions of the Qur’an, p. 64
References & Further Reading
A Literary Approach to the Hymnic Surahs of the Qur'an: Spirit, Gender and Aural
Intertextuality. Curzon Press, p. 3-25; Mitwalli al-Sharawi, The Miracles of the Qur’an. Dar ul
Taqwa. See Qur’an 15:45-52 & 12:31-35 for examples of the unique fusion of metrical and nonmetrical speech.
Guide to Conclusive Proofs for the Principles of Belief, Imam al Haramayn al Juwayni
Rhetorical Aspect of the Qur’an, Issa Boulata
H Abdul-Raof. 2001. Qur’an Translation: Discourse, Texture and Exegesis. Curzon Press, p. 137
I Boullata. 1988. The Rhetorical Interpretation of the Qur’an: I’jaz and Related Topics. Oxford:
Claredon Press, p. 143 R
H Abdul-Raof. 2001. Qur’an Translation: Discourse, Texture and Exegesis. Curzon Press, p. 107108
K Cragg. 1994. The Event of the Qur’an. 2nd Edition. Oxford: Oneworld, p. 46
H Abdul-Raof. 2001. Qur’an Translation: Discourse, Texture and Exegesis. Curzon Press, p. 137
Martin Zammit. 2002. A comparative Lexical Study of Qur'anic Arabic. Brill Academic Publishers
& R. Bosworth Smith. 2004. Muhammad and Muhammadanism. Kessinger Publishing.
Bruce Lawrence, p. 18. The Qur’an: A Biography. 2006.
F. F. Arbuthnot. 1885. The Construction of the Bible and the Koran. London, p 5
G. Margoliouth. 1977. Introduction to J.M.Rodwell’s, The Koran. Everyman’s Library, p. vii
Ibn Khaldun, Al-Muqaddima, 1406. vol. 3, 375.
Philip K. Hitti, History of the Arabs, London, 1967, pp. 87 ff.
Al-Bidayah wan-Nihayah 6:320 and Al-Isabah 3:225
A F L Beeston, et al (Ed.), Arabic Literature To The End Of The Ummayyad Period, 1983, CUP,
p. 212