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The History of the Qur anic Text From Revelation to
Compilation A Comparative Study with the Old and New
Testaments First Edition (January 1, 2003) Muhammad
Mustafa Al-Azami Digital Instant Download
Author(s): Muhammad Mustafa al-Azami
ISBN(s): 9781872531656, 1872531652
Edition: First Edition (January 1, 2003)
File Details: PDF, 15.02 MB
Year: 2003
Language: english
THE HISTORY OF THE QUR'ANIC TEXT
THE HISTORY OF THE
QUR>ANIC TEXT
From Revelation to Compilation

A Comparative Study with the

Old and New Testaments

MUI:IAMMAD MU~TAFA AL-A<~AMI

UK ISLAMIC ACADEMY
LEICESTER· ENGLAND
 For my dear motlier, wlioseface I was tooyoung to
remember, whose greatest wislifor me(as I was later
told)was to memorise tlie Qur'an, and wlio I liope to
meet again in tlie gardens ofHeaven. :May)l[fali
accept from us our 6est deeds. Jlmeen.
VI

THE AUTHOR

MlJl:lAMMAD MUHAFA AL-A'~AM1, one of the world's premier scholars of

Hadith, was born in Mau, India in the early 1930s and received his education
successively at Dar al-'Ulum Deoband, India (1952),al-Azhar University, Cairo
(M.A., 1955), and University of Cambridge (Ph.D., 1966). He is Professor
Emeritus at King Sa'ud University (Riyadh) where he also chaired the
department of Islamic Studies; he holds a Saudi citizenship. Al-A'zarni served
as curator of the National Public Library, Qatar; Associate Professor at Umm
al-Qura University (Makkah); Visiting Scholar at University of Michigan (Ann
Arbor); Visiting Fellow at St. Cross College (University of Oxford); King Faisal
Visiting Professor for Islamic Studies at Princeton; and Visiting Scholar at
University of Colorado (Boulder). He is also an Honorary Professor at
University of Wales (Lampeter). His publications include Studies in Early /fadfth
Literature, Hadiih. Methodology and Literature, On Schacht's Origins qf Muhammadan
Jurisprudence, Diriisatfi al-Haditn an-Nabauii, Kuttab an-Nabi, Manhqj an-Naqd find al-
Muhaddithin, and al-Muf;addithiin min al-Yamdmah. Among his edited works are al-
'Ilal qf Ibn al-Madini, Klwb at-Tamyi; qf Imam Muslim, Maghiiz'i Rasiilulldh. qf
'Unoah ibn Zubayr, Miaoaua' Imam Malik, $aJ;1lJ ibn Khuzaimah, and Sunan ibn
MiiJah. Many of al-A'zami's works have been translated internationally, and his
forthcoming works include The Qyr'iinic Chal1£nge: A Promise Fulfilled, and The
Isniid !iJstem: Its Origins and Authenticity. In 1980 he was the recipient of the
prestigious King Faisal International Award for Islamic Studies.
 Vll

CONTENTS

PREFACE xv

1. The History of the Qjir'anic Text

1. INTRODUCTION 3
2. EARLY HISTORY OF ISLAM: A BRIEF LOOK 15
1. Pre-Islamic Arabia 15
i. The Geo-Political Condition 15
ii. Ibrahlm and Makkah 16
iii. Qu~ayy Gains Full Control of Makkah 19
iv. Makkah: A Tribal Society 20
v. From Qu~ayy to Muhammad ~ 21
vi. The Religious Conditions in Arabia 22
2. Prophet Muhammad (53 B.H.-ll A.H./571-632 C.E.) 23
i. The Birth of Muhammad :I 24
ii. Muhammad ja, the Amin 24
iii. Muhammad the Messenger of Allah 25
iv. Abu Bakr and his Acceptance of Islam 26
v. The Prophet Preaches Openly 26
vi. Quraish Offers Muhammad ~ Great Temptations 27
vii. Quraish Boycotts Muhammad :I and his Clans 28
viii. The Pledge of 'Aqaba 29
ix. The Plot to Assassinate the Prophet 30
x. Muhammad ja in Madinah 30
xi. Prelude to the Battle of Badr 32
xii. The Execution of Khubaib bin 'Adi al-Ansari 33
xiii. The Conquest of Makkah 34
3. Death of the Prophet and Accession of Abu Bakr 35
i. Abu Bakr Handles Widespread Apostasies 35
ii. Military Advances in Syria 37
4. The Countries and Provinces Conquered During the Reigns
of 'Dmar and 'Dthman 37
5. Conclusion 39
Vlll THE HISTORY OF THE QUR' ANIC TEXT

3. REVELATIONS AND THE PROPHET MUI:IAMMAD ~ 41

1. The Creator and some of His Attributes 42
i. The Purpose Behind Mankind's Creation 43
ii. The Message of the Prophets 43
2. The Final Messenger 44
3. Receiving the Revelations 45
i. The Beginning of Wal,J.y and the Miracle of Qur'an 47
ii. The Impact of the Prophet's Recitation on thePolytheists 48
4. The Prophet's Roles Regarding the Qur'an 50
5. Recitation of the Qur'an in Turns withJibrli 52
6. A Few Remarks on Orientalist Claims 53
7. Conclusion 54
4. TEACHING THE QUR'AN 55
1. Incentives for Learning, Teaching and Reciting the Holy
Qur'an 56
2. The Makkan Period 59
i. The Prophet as Teacher 59
ii. The Companions as Teachers 60
iii. The Outcome of this Educational Policy in the
Makkan Period 61
3. The Madani Period 61
i. The Prophet as Teacher 61
ii. Dialects used by the Prophet for Teaching in Madinah 62
iii. The Companions as Teachers 63
4. The Outcome of the Educational Activities: Huffaz 64
5. Conclusion 66
5. THE RECORDING AND ARRANGEMENT OF THE QUR'AN 67
1. During the Makkan Period 67
2. During the Madani Period 68
i. Scribes of the Prophet 68
ii. The Prophet's Dictation of the Qur'an 69
iii. Recording the Qur'an was Very Common Among
Companions 69
3. The Arrangement of the Qur'an 70
i. The Arrangement of Verses Within Suras 70
ii. The Arrangement of Suras 72
iii. The Arrangement of Suras in Some Partial Mushafs 73
4. Conclusion 76
 CONTENTS ix

6. THE WRITTEN COMPILATION OF THE QUR'AN 77

1. Compilation of the Qur'an During Abu Bakr's Reign 78
i. Appointment of Zaid bin Thabit as Compiler of the
Qur'an 78
ii. Zaid bin Thabit's Credentials 78
iii. Abu Bakr's Instructions to Zaid bin Thabit 79
iv. How Zaid bin Thabit Utilised the Written Materials 81
v. Zaid bin Thabit and the Use of Oral Sources 82
VI. Authentication of the Qjir'an: The Case of the Last
Two Verses from Sura Bara'a 83
vii. Placement of the Suhuf into the State Archives 84
2. 'Umar's Role in the Spread of the Qjir'an 85
3. Conclusion 86
7. 'UTHMAN'S MU~l;IAF 87
1. Disputes in Recitation and 'Uthman's Response 87
2. 'Uthman Prepares a Mushaf Directly from the Suhuf 88
3. 'Uthman Makes an Independent Copy of the Mushaf 89
i. Appointing a Committee of Twelve to Oversee the Task 89
ii. Arranging for an Autonomous Copy 89
iii. 'Uthman Retrieves the Suhuf from 'A'isha for Comparison 90
iv. 'Uthman Retrieves the Suhuf from Hafsa for Verification 92
4. The Sanctioning and Distribution of 'Uthman's Mushaf 93
i. The Final Copy Read to the Companions 93
ii. The Number of Certified Copies Made 94
iii. 'Uthman Burns All Other Manuscripts 94
iv. 'Uthman Sends Reciters Along with Mushafs 94
v. 'Uthman's Instructions with the Mushafs He Sent 96
5. Studies on 'Uthman's Mushaf 97
i. Studies on the Mushaf of Malik bin Abi 'knir al-Asbahi 100
6. Al-I:Iaiiaj and His Contribution to the Mushaf 102
7. Mushafs in the Marketplace 105
8. Conclusion 107
8. THE EVOLUTION OF READING AIDS WITHIN THE MU~l;IAF 109
1. Sura Separators 109
2. Ayah Separators III
3. Conclusion 114
9. THE HISTORY OF ARABIC PALAEOGRAPHY 115
1. The Historical Background of Arabic Characters 115
2. Studies in Early Arabic Documents and Inscriptions 118
x THE HISTORY OF THE QUR'ANIC TEXT

i. The Blurred Line Between Nabataean and Arabic

Inscriptions 118
ii. What Language Did the Nabataeans Speak? 120
iii. The Early Arabic Language Possessed a Distinct
AJphabet 122
iv. The Emergence of Various Scripts and the Issue of
Dating Knfic Mushafs 125
3. Conclusion 128
10. ARABIC PALEOGRAPHY AND ORTHOGRAPHY IN THE QUR'AN 129
1. Writing Styles During the Time of the Prophet 130
2. Studies on the Orthography of 'Uthman's Mushaf 131
3. The Nuqat (Dotting) Scheme in Early Mushafs 135
i. Early Arabic Writings and the Skeletal Dots 136
ii. The Invention of the Diacritical Markings 139
iii. Parallel Usage of Two Different Diacritical Marking
Schemes 141
4. Sources of the Skeletal and Diacritical Dotting Systems 143
5. Orthographic and Pa1aeographic 'Irregularities' in Early
Non-Qur'anic Script 145
6. Conclusion 148
11. CAUSES OF VARIANT READING 151
1. The Qjra'at is Sunna 152
2. The Need for Multiple Readings: Simplifying Recitation
for Unaccustomed Masses 153
3. Main Cause of Multiple Readings (Variants): the
Orientalist View 155
4. Secondary Cause of Multiple Readings (Variants) 159
5. Altering a Word for its Synonym During Recitation 162
6. Conclusion 163
12. THE MUSLIM EDUCATIONAL METHODOLOGY 165
1. The Hunger for Information 166
2. Personal Contact: An Essential Element for Learning 167
3. Beginning and Development of the Isnad System 167
i. The Phenomenon of Isnad: Proliferation 169
4. The Authentication of Isnad and Hadnh 172
i. Establishing Trustworthiness 172
ii. The Unbroken Chain 175
iii. Supporting or Negating Evidence 176
iv. A Test Case with a Misleading Isnad 176
 CONTENTS Xl

5. The First Generations of Scholars 177

6. Preserving Books from Adulteration: A Unique System 178
i. Conditions for Utilising a Book 181
ii. Glosses: the Addition of External Material 182
iii. Establishing Authorship 182
7. Certificates of Reading 184
i. The Importance of Reading Notes 186
8. Impact of Hadith Methodology on Other Branches 191
9. Isnad and the Transmission of the Qur'an 192
10. Conclusion 193
13. THE SO-CALLED MU~I:lAF OF IBN MAS'DD AND ALLEDED
VARIANCES THEREIN 195
1. First Point: The Arrangement of Ibn Mas'ud's Mushaf 196
2. Second Point: The Text Differed from Our MU~1;af 197
3. Third Point: Three Suras were Omitted 199
i. Analysis of the Contents of Ibn Mas'ud's Mushaf 200
ii. Ibn Mas'ud's Beliefs 201
4. When Can Any Writing be Accepted as Part of the Qjir'an? 203
i. Principles for Determining Whether a Verse
Belongs to the Qur'an 203
ii. Examples of Scholars Punished for Violating the
Above Principles 205
5. Conclusion 206

II. The History of the Biblical Scriptures

14. EARLY HISTORY OF JUDAISM: A BRIEF LOOK 211

1.Jewish History Prior to Establishing the Kingdom 211
2. Jewish History After Establishing the Kingdom 218
i. The Divided Kingdoms 219
ii. The Destruction of the First Temple (586 B.C.) and
the Babylonian Exile (586-538 s.c.) 224
iii. The Restoration of Jerusalem and the
Establishment of the Second Temple (515 s.c.) 224
iv. The Hellenistic rule (333-168 s.o.) and the
Maccabaean Revolt (168-135 B.C.) 224
v. The End of the Maccabaean Dynasty (63 B.C.),
the Roman Rule and the Destruction of the
Second Temple (70 C.E.) 225
3. Conclusion 226
XlI THE HISTORY OF THE QUR'ANIC TEXT

15. THE OLD TESTAMENT AND ITS CORRUPTION 227

1. History of the Old Testament 227
i. History of Torah According to Jewish Source 228
ii. History of the Torah According to Modern Scholars 230
2. The Sources of Jewish Literary Culture 232
i. Original Language of the Old Testament was Not
Called Hebrew 232
ii. The Early Jewish Script: Canaanite and Assyrian 234
iii. The Sources of the Torah 235
3. History of the Oral Law 236
4. History of the Hebrew Text: The Masorah 238
i. Only Thirty-one Surviving Masorah Text of OT 238
5. In Search of an Authoritative Text 240
i. The Role of the Council of Jamnia - Late First
Century C.E. 241
ii. The Old Testament Text was known in a Variety of
Differing Traditions 241
iii. Approximately 6000 Discrepancies Between the
Samaritan and Jewish Pentateuchs Alone 242
iv. Unintentional Corruptions of the Text 243
v. No Qualms Felt in Altering the Text when there
Appeared to be Adequate Doctrinal Reasons 244
vi. No Single Authoritative OT Text Existed Till 100 C.E. 245
vii.Jewish Scholars Established the Text of the OT in the
Tenth Century, Actively Destroying Earlier Manuscripts 246
viii. The Masora and Textual Integrity 246
6. The Jewish Revival: a Legacy of Islamic Literary
Advancements 247
i. Pointing and Vocalization Induced by Islamic
Achievements 247
ii. Masoretic Activity Flourished in the West Under
Islamic Influence 249
iii. The Talmud and Islamic Influence 250
7. Establishing the Date for a Fixed, Authoritative OT Text 251
i. Qumran and the Dead Sea Scrolls: The Western View 251
ii. The Counter View: The Terminus Datum of Qumran
and Other Caves is False 252
8. Some Major Examples of Deliberate Textual Corruption 256
9. Conclusion 261
 CONTENTS Xlll

16. EARLY HISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY: A BRIEF LOOK 265

1. Did Jesus Exist? 265
i. References toJesus in Non-Christian Books from
the First Century 266
ii. The Historical Christ in Christian Circles 266
iii. Christ and His Mother-Tongue 268
iv. Christ: the Moral Attributes of God? 268
2.Jesus' Disciples 269
i. Some Remarks on the Twelve Disciples 272
3. Jesus and his Message: Repent, for the Kingdom of
Heaven is at Hand 272
i. Jesus and the Scope of his Message 273
ii. Christian Creeds 273
iii. The Implications of the Term 'Christian' in the
Early Days 275
4. The Persecution of Early Christians 276
5. Practices and Belief in Early Christianity and its
Aftermath 277
6. Conclusions 278
17. THE NEW TESTAMENT: ITS ANONYMOUS AUTHORSHIP AND
CORRUPTION 279
1. The Lost Gospel Q - A Challenge 279
2. The Authorship of the Present Four Gospels 280
3. Are the Gospels Inspired? 281
4. Transmission of the New Testament 282
i. The Creation of Different Text Types 283
ii. Dates of Recensions 284
5. Textual Corruption 285
i. Variant Readings in the New Testament 285
ii. Scribal Alterations 288
6. The Erasmus Bible and the CommaJohanneum 290
7. Contemporary Corruption of the Text 291
8. Early Manuscripts Negates the Prevalent Christian Doctrines 295
9. Conclusion 298
XIV THE HISTORY OF THE QUR'ANIC TEXT

III. An Appraisal of Orientalism

18. THE ORIENTALIST AND THE QUR' AN 303

1. The Necessity of Proving Distortions in the Qur'an 303
2. Orientalist Criticism of the Qur'an's Compilation 304
3. Transmutation of Islam into Foreign Idioms 305
4. Orientalist Accusations of Appropriation 306
i. Accusations of Botched Appropriation 306
ii. A Counterfeited Bible 307
5. Deliberate Distortion of the Qur'an 308
i. Fliigel's Attempted Distortion of the Qur'an 308
ii. Blachere's Attempted Distortion of the Qur'an 309
iii. Mingana's Attempted Distortion of the Qur'an 311
6. Puin and the San'a' Fragments 314
i. Are the Santa' Fragments the Only Proof of the
Qur'an's Completion by the First Century? 315
7. Conclusion 318
19. ORIENTALIST MOTIVATIONS: A STUDY OF SUBJECTIVITY 321
1. The Jewish Analogue 321
i. The Validity of an Anti-Semitic Work 321
ii. Can an Anti-judaic Scholar be Impartial When Dealing
with aJewish Theme? 322
iii. Are Jewish Scholars Free to StudyJewish Topics? 323
2. The Muslim Counterpoint 325
i. Israeli Suppression of Palestinian History 325
ii. An Orientalist Pioneer and Deceiver of Muslims 326
3. Searching for Impartiality 327
i. A Historical Perspective: Jews, Christians, and Romans 327
ii. Impartiality in Modern Studies 330
4. Pressures and Motives 331
i. Colonialism and the Demoralisation of Muslims 331
ii. The Jewish Question and the Erasure of History and
Fabrication of a New One 333
5. Conclusion 339
20. CLOSING REMARKS 341
BIBLIOGRAPHY 347
INDEX 357
 '0\\~\\;t~ ~
~~~~/
In the Name Q/ Alldh, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

PREFACE

This work comprises a short introduction to the history of the Qjir'an, its
recording and its collection. The reader may therefore be puzzled as to
why one third of the material in this book tackles the Old Testament (O'T)
and the New Testament (NT), wondering what significance this has on
the Qur'an's history. This significance shall, I hope, be made clear as the
chapters progress, since I have attempted to present only those details which
have a direct bearing on the current subject matter.
The idea of authoring a book about the Qur'an, about its collection and
immaculate preservation, had long germinated in my mind, and approx-
imately three and half years ago I finally began working on this book along
side another entitled Islamic Studies: VVhat Methodology? It was journalist Toby
Lester's article in The Atlantic Monthl;y (january 1999) however, and the chaos
it had the potential to sow among Muslims, which prompted a greater
concentration on this work. His article suggested that Muslims, despite
believing in the Qur'an as the unadulterated Book of Allah, were thoroughly
incapable of defending this view in any scholarly fashion. The gauntlet was
thrown, and I felt it necessary to take on this challenge and explain the
stringent methodology used by early Muslim scholars in accepting a text
as genuine, or rejecting it as fake. This has lead to the unavoidable repetition
of some material in both books. As most of the scholars that Lester quotes
are eitherJews or Christians, I also considered it fitting to cover the histories
of the Old and New Testaments by way of comparison. This should help
the reader to regard the disparity of opinions between Muslim and Ori-
entalist scholars with a fair measure of insight.
With their insistence on a purely oral transmission, most Orientalists
reject all reports that cite recording and compilation of the Qur'an during
the Prophet Muhammad's lifetime. Many of them even deny that any [mal
compilation occurred during Abu Bakr's reign, while some accept the role
of the third caliph 'Uthman in this regard. Only fifteen years lapsed between
the Prophet's death and 'Uthman's distribution of written copies of the
Qur'an to different provinces of the Muslim world. Viewing this interval
XVI THE HISTORY OF THE QUR' ANIC TEXT

with serious misgivings, Orientalists have often focused on the possibility of

deep-seated corruptions crawling into the text within this time span. Stran-
gely, many Biblical scholars deem the text of the Old Testament to be
historically viable even though some of the OT books were maintained
purely as an oral tradition for up to eight centuries. 1
The Orientalist spotlight has also been cast on the Arabic script with
discussions of its shortcomings, though it took only half a century from the
Prophet's death for the script to evolve and extinguish its initial ambiguities.
They blame this period again for triggering textual distortions, though in
doing so they contradict themselves and negate their earlier emphasis on
oral transmission (which is a fact, in that people were memorising the Qur'an
even while they possessed it in written form). Hence the 'defective script'
should not have had any impact within a span of fifty years. By contrast the
Hebrew script, transforming with the return of Jews from their captivity
in Babylon to Palestine, was thoroughly devoid of vowels and in fact
remained so for two thousand years, until contact with the Muslim Arabs
spurred them on in this regard. To suppose that the lapse of fifty years
proved damaging to the Qjir'anic text whilst the OT, suffering from a
severely disjointed oral tradition and a vowel-less text for two millennia,
deserves a more hearty benefit of the doubt is totally unscientific,
Along similar lines, there exist Mushafs in the Hejazi script from the early
first century of Hijra (late 7th-early 8th C.E.)2 as well as dated manuscripts
of portions of the Qur'an belonging to the first century. Discarding the
value of these specimens, Orientalists claim that they are still too late to
prove that the text is untainted by corruption; some choose to simply regard
them as fakes." By comparison the oldest complete and dated manuscript
of the Hebrew Bible belongs to the beginning of the 11 th century C.E.,4 and

Even the existence of this oral transmission is highly questionable; see Chapter 15.
1
Whenever possible I will use C.E. (common era) as a substitute for A.D. (anno
2
Domini), the latter of which means 'year of the Lord.'
3 M. Minovi in his article "Outline History of Arabic Writing," claimed that the
extant early Qur'anic specimens are all either forgeries or suspect. [A. Grohmann,
"The Problem of Dating Early Qur'ans", DerIslam, Band 33, Heft 3, Sep. 1958, p.
217].
4 In the words of A.B. Beck in his introduction to the Leningrad Codex, "The
Leningrad Codex is the world's oldest complete manuscript of the Hebrew Bible ...
The only other extant manuscript of the 'complete' Hebrew Bible from this scribal
tradition is the Aleppo Codex, which is about a century older ... However, the
Aleppo Codex is now fragmentary and undated, while the Leningrad Codex is
complete and dated 1008 or 1009 C.E." ["Introduction to the Leningrad Codex", in
The Leningrad Codex: A Facsimile Edition, WB. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1998, pp. LX-
x.]. For further detail see this work pp. 238-40.
 PREFACE XVII

the earliest dated Greek manuscripts of the Gospels were written c. the
10th century C.E.,5 yet these same concerns do not seem to apply here.
This discrepancy in the attitudes towards the Qur'an on the one hand,
and the 01' and NT on the other, must be addressed if we are to fully
assess the Qur'an's integrity.
The established practice at the dawn of Islamic literary history was that
any religious text (~ad'ith, tqfsir,jiqh etc.) had to be transmitted by those who
had learned the work directly from its authors, they in turn teaching it to
the next generation. Full records of these transmissions were kept, allowing
us to peer into the pedigree of every book regarding shan'a,6 at least in its
early stages - a method of authentication unsurpassed in the world even
now.7 If we were to apply the tenets of Muslim literary transmission to any
random book at the local bookstall, proving its authenticity and authorship
would in all likelihood be impossible. Despite all the books of the 01' and
NT having been penned anonymously, however, Western scholarship fmds
it easier to grant them historical legitimacy than to the Muslim transmission
chains, which are often cast under suspicion or found altogether inadequate.
After delving into both the Muslim and Western methodologies, I will let
the reader decide which of the two is the most reliable.
Judaism and Christianity are undoubtedly religions in history, but where
the doubt does arise is on the authorship of the Old and New Testaments.
The answer cannot in fact be established. The 01' was initially considered
a work of revelation, but was later deemed the work of Moses; the latest
theory is that multiple sources (extending over approximately one thousand
years) contributed to the authorship of the five books of Moses." Who
were these shadow writers? How honest and accurate were they? How
reliable was their knowledge of the incidents involved? Did they ever
participate in any of these incidents? And how did these books eventually
reach us? The only known facts are that the 01' books appeared on the
scene only to disappear promptly for a few hundred years, before abruptly
resurfacing? Again they disappeared without trace for many centuries,

5 According to B.M. Metzger, " ... one of the earliest dated Greek manuscripts of
the Gospels .,. was written by a monk named Michael in the year of the world 6457
(= A.D. 949). It is now in the Vatican Library (no. 354)." [The Text if the New Testament:
Its Transmission, Corruption, and Restoration, 3rd enlarged edition, Oxford Univ. Press,
1992, p. 56]. For more detail see this work pp. 285-6.
6 Islamic law.
7 See Chapter 12.
8 Muslims believe that the Torah and the Zabur were revealed but were subsequently
lost or corrupted. A very small percentage of the current Old Testament may contain
the original revelations, but it is scattered throughout the text. Recognising it is difficult;
the only criterion is that it must agree with the teachings of the Qur'an and sunna.
9 See 2 Kings 14-l6.
XVlll THE HISTORY OF THE QUR'ANIC TEXT

and were once again suddenly recovered. Compare this history with that
of a few thousand honest souls living alongside the Prophet and actively
participating with him in war and peace, in jest and misfortune, in hunger
and ease, meticulously documenting every verse and every hadith. Their
biographies form a poignant chronicle though Orientalists dismiss much
of it as fiction; for the Wansbrough school it is purely an example of a
'salvation history', with no bearing on what really happened.
Meanwhile other scholars are actively engaged in expunging their own
religious narratives in favour of something new, which I can illustrate briefly
here by referring to the tale of Jesus' crucifixion. The Orthodox Jewish
viewpoint states that,

According to the Talmud,Jesus was executed by a proper rabbinical

court for idolatry, inciting other Jews to idolatry and contempt of
rabbinical authority. All classical Jewish sources which mention his
execution are quite happy to take responsibilityfor it: in the Talmudic
account the Romans are not even mentioned. 10
In addition to a series of scurrilous sexual allegations againstJesus,
the Talmud states that his punishment in hell is to be immersed in
boiling excrement ... II

Ironically, the New Testament and modern Christianity are being cleansed
of all such references even though they exist in the Talmud. What is the
definition of sacredness if deliberate shifts in wording and tone are being
wrought within the Scriptures in this day and age?" And with such
goings-on as a backdrop, how can some intellectuals accept]udaism and
Christianity as historical religions while denying the same to Islam?"
At issue here is not what Islam is or what Islamic sources say, but rather
how Muslims perceive their own faith and how Orientalist research wants
them to perceive it. Several years ago Professor C.E. Bosworth, one of the
editors of Brill's Encyclopaedia of Islam, delivered a lecture at the University
of Colorado. When asked why Muslim scholars, even those trained in
Western institutions, were not invited to contribute to the Encyclopaedia's
essential articles (such as Qyr)iin, ~adIth,jihiid, etc.), he responded that this

10 Israel Shahak, Jewirh History, Jewirh Religion, Pluto Press, London, 1977, pp. 97-
98.While the Qur'an categorically denies the crucifixion [Qur'an 4:! 57], it does record
theJewishclaimof crucifYingJesus.
11 ibid, pp. 20-2l.
12 For details refer to this workpp. 291-2.
13 Andrew Rippen, "Literary analysis of Qur'an, Tafsir, and Slra: The Metho-
dologies of John Wansbrough", in R.C. Martin (ed.), Approaches to Islam in Religious
Studies, Univ. of Arizona Press, Tuscan, 1985, pp. 151-52.
work was by the Western pen for Western people. His answer though was
only half correct: this work is not intended solely for Western consumption.
To quote something which Edward Said uses in his work, Orientalism:

"They cannot represent themselves; they must be represented." - Karl

Marx. 14

Here Marx is discussing the French peasantry, but the idea of muting
great swathes of people with a single sentence and casting the burden of
representation wholly upon outsiders is by no means a novel one.
One last point before ending this preface. When a certain amount of
research finally yields a theory, academia dictates that this theory must
face rigorous testing. If it fails then it must be either modified and retested
or abandoned altogether. But studies of Islam are unfortunately littered
with ill-conceived theories that have ascended to the point of almost
becoming hard fact, even when they fail on several counts. The next two
examples will clarify.
Professor Wensinek comments on the famous ~adith regarding the five
pillars of Islam:

r\.,.P J ,.t5")1 .l.::<lJ ,.J\...dl rt:9lJ ,ill! :11 .01:1 J\ i~,+-", :<L-..>- ~ (A,,:jl <5'

...:...".,JI C:-J ,J~)

Islam has been built on five pillars: testifying that there is no god but
Allah,performing the prayers, paying the zakat, fastingRamadan, and
making the pilgrimage to the House."

He views this as spurious since it contains the kalima shahiida (;;~~:

bearing testimony that there is no god but Allah). According to his view,
the Companions of Prophet Muhammad introduced the kalima only after
coming across some Christians in Syria who employed a declaration of
faith, thus thieving this idea from the Christians to develop one of the core
pillars of Islam. Confronted with the problem that the kalima shahada is also
part of the tashahhud (~) in the daily prayers, Wensinck put forward another
theory instead of modifying his earlier one: the prayer was standardised
after the Prophet's death." Perhaps a further theory is required, since
Wensinck has not explained the existence of the kalima in the adhiin (JI~i)
and the iqiima (.... t:91), 17 nor when these two were introduced into Islam.

14 EdwardSaid, Orientalism, Vintage Books, NewYork, 1979, p. xiii.

IS Muslim, Sa1J0, al-Iman:22. The 'House' refers to the HolyMosque in Makkah.
16 A.J. Wensinck, Muslim Creed, Cambridge, 1932, pp. 19-32.
17 These are the two calls to the Muslims five daily prayers. The adhdn is the first
callwhile iqiima is the second call Gust prior to the initiation of the prayer).
xx THE HISTORY OF THE QUR' A.NIC TEXT

My second example is Goldziher, who theorised that the differences in

the qird'at (..:..>I.I): readings) of the Qjir'an are due to the consonantal text
used in early copies. Bringing forth a few examples to show the validity
of his idea, he avoids alluclingto the hundreds of instances where his theory
fails - though that has not stopped it from acquiring great popularity in
certain circles. 18
Considerable effort has been invested in making this work, while worthy
of the scholar, accessible to the layman as well. If there are any passages
which the former may find repetitious, or the latter esoteric, it is because
maintaining a happy medium has not always been possible.
Regarding the rendition of verses into English, no single English trans-
lation of the Qur'an was used uniformly throughout this book, though
most of the verse renderings are based either on the efforts of Yusuf 'Ali
or Mohammad Asad. These translations were occasionally modified, and
sometimes even rewritten, depending on how clear I found the original
rendition to be. This does not constitute tampering since the Qur'an is in
Arabic, and the translator's duty is to distil some of the shades of meaning
in the text; the end product is not Qur'an but simply a translation Gust as
a shadow is merely a shadow), and so long as nothing is misquoted or
taken out of context, there is no need to follow one particular translation
or another.
The reader may perceive that I have generally dispensed with the phrases
of glorification or invocation that followcertain names, such as ~ (illustrious
be His Majesty) after Allah, ;I (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)
after the Prophet Muhammad, ~I (peace be upon him) after the names
of other prophets and messengers (e.g. Abraham, Ishmael, Moses, Jesus
etc.), or ~ (may Allah be pleased with him) after any of the Companions.
My purpose was to maintain the text's flow as much as possible, with the
hope that the Muslim reader will mentally insert these phrases into the text
as appropriate. Some of Islam's greatest scholars adhered to this same
practice in fact, including no less a figure than Imam Ahmad b. Hanbal,
and though subsequent writers saw fit to add all such phrases explicitly
into the text, the eye is just as capable of slotting them in by instinct.
And a note of caution. A Muslim's faith requires firm belief in the purity
and righteous conduct of all of Allah's prophets. I will be quoting from non-
Muslim sources however, some of whom feel no hesitation in referring to
their own LordJesus Christ as an adulterer or a homosexual, to David as
an adulterous schemer, or to Solomon as an idolater (0 Allah, how unjust
are such words.) As it is very cumbersome to insert a note whenever I

18 For a detailed discussion, see Chapter 11.

 PREFACE XXI

quote such low ideas, I will suffice for the most part by explaining the
Muslim position here, that these words in no way reflect the veneration
which Muslims hold unconditionally for all of Allah's prophets. Finally,
in composing this book I have often chosen the single best representative
view to illustrate a few cases, and have avoided a detailed discussion of
all existing views, as this would hold little interest for the common reader.
The reader will, I hope, continue through the coming pages in light of
this overture.
I feel obliged,with pleasure, to mention a fewnames from Yemen.Without
their tremendous help, cooperation, and permission, it would have been
almost impossible to obtain photocopies of the early Qur'anic manuscripts
from San'a'. They include Sheikh 'Abdullah b. Husain al-Ahmar, Sheikh
al-Qadl Isma'tl al-Akwa' (who treats me with a father's affection), Dr. Yusuf
Mohammad 'Abdullah, al-Ustadh 'Abdul-Malik al-Maqhafi, and Nasir
al-'AbsI (who kindly photographed the manuscripts). May Allah reward
them, here and in the hereafter. I must also acknowledge the Khuda Bukhsh
Library, Patna, and the SalarJung Museum, Hyderabad (and especially Dr.
Rahmat 'All) for permitting me to utilise their extensive material, and Dr.
Wiqar Husain and Abu Sa'd I~lai:tI of Raza Library, Rampur for providing
the colour slides of certain Qur'anic manuscripts.
And there are still others who deserve special recognition: the King
Faisal Foundation for nominating me as their visiting professor to Princeton
University, the Princeton Seminary for providing a kaleidoscope of rich
materials for this book, and the people behind the Medina MUf/yif for printing
the most accurate Qur'anic text in the world. Thanks are also due to M.
Madani Iqbal Azmi and Tim Bowes for their assistance in typesetting this
text, to Muhammad Ansa for his work on indexing, to Ibrahim as-Sulaifih
for being a paragon of neighbourly help during the composition of this
book, and to Prof Muhammad Qutb, Dr. 'Adil Salahi, Br. Daud Matthews,
Dr. 'Umar Chapra, Sheikh Jamal Zarabozo, Br. Hashir Farnqi, Sheikh
Iqbal Azmi, 'Abdul-Basit K~mI, 'Abdul-Haq Muhammad, Sheikh Nizam
Ya'qnbi, Dr. 'Abdullah Subayh, Haroon Shirwani, and the many others
who participated in proofreading the text and providing valuable feedback.
I must also extend tremendous gratitude to my familyfor their unwavering
assistance throughout the many stages of this effort: to my elder son 'Aqu
for his continuous help with manuscript preparation, transliteration and
compiling bibliography, to my daughter Fatima for extensive photocopying,
and to my younger son Anas who receives complete credit for making the
manuscript's English sound and lucid. And a particular tribute to my wife
for tolerating me through fifty years of marriage and suffering through
XXli THE HISTORY OF THE QUR' ANle TEXT

the many sacrifices she has had to bear with extraordinary patience and a
loving smile. May Allah reward all of them for their kindness and generosity.
Finally, my deepest gratitude to Almighty Allah for providing me with
the opportunity and privilege of embarking on this topic; whatever faults
are present in this book are entirely my own;" and whatever pleases Him
is for His Glory alone. I pray that He will accept this work as a sincere effort
on His behalf.
This book was initially completed in Riyad, Saudi Arabia in Safar 1420
A.H./May 1999. Subsequent years witnessed its revision in various cities
and countries throughout the Middle East and Europe, including once in
al-Haram ash-Sharifix: Makkah during Ramadan 1420 A.H./December 1999,
and culminating in a final revision in Riyad, Dhul-Qj' dah 1423 A.H./
January 2003.

M.M. al-A 'zamt

19 I can only recall the saying of an early scholar: '4l::5' p);- :-"t:;s:J a.....-)I .JJI ,-,,1. [A.
Shakir (ed.), ar-Risdlah. of ash-Shdfi'i, P: 73 footnote no. 8].
 I

The History of the Qur> anic Text

 CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

~ ~ ,
I,.f-.. /~.?'-?-
"~'J . h, ..: ..~j'L
,~ -,-"..t ~
;1'1';.. ,d~ 1Y.Y
-: ~ ~ ·<-1y-o -: .:Jllh~}.
:' I; ~, ~ .. 'Y
'J.e ..
.... " J,,'. 1:.......... ,.11 ~,~ ., "" ,." t J , , ,. -' ~t "'".. '" ) . . . . .,-
ZP t''jj 0lil.:.
1,;., , , __

.;,1)1 0 } .JJI I~IJ l$~ Yjl.JA 1.,1#1 1.,1~ ~I

1,,( "~." ..- );.;.~ t' :I'
'\W --:.) 1..4j..r-;>
"0you whobelieve! StandoutfirmlyfOr Allah, as witnesses tofair dealing,
andletnotthe hatred if others toyou makeyou swerve towards inequity and
departftomjustice. Bejust: that is closer to Piety: andftar Allah. For Allah
is well-acquainted with all thatyou do."

Guidance, comfort and beauty. For the believing Muslim the Holy Qur'an
is all this and much more: the heartbeat of faith, a remembrance in times
of joy and anguish, a fountain of precise scientific reality and the most
exquisite lyricism, a treasury of wisdom and supplications. Its verses hang
from the walls of shops and living rooms, lie etched in the minds of young
and old, and reverberate through the night from minarets across the globe.
Even so, Sir William Muir (1819-1905) adamantly declared it one of "the
most stubborn enemies of Civilisation, Liberty, and the Truth which the
World has yet known". 2 Others have been no more charitable, seeing fit
to heap abuse or cast suspicion upon it throughout the centuries and up
to our present day, among them scholars, missionaries, and now even the
occasional politician. Such a dichotomy is aggravating to Muslims and
certainly perplexing to the non-Muslim, who would be well justified in
supposing that each group was alluding to a different book altogether.
What are the facts and what is the evidence? Faced with such an immense
and sensitive topic brimming with ideas to consider, I could have begun
my explorations anywhere; the starting point, as it finally turned out, was
to be an article by someone I had never heard of before.
"What is the Koran?", the lead article of the January 1999 issue of The
AtlanticMonthly, raised many issues concerning the origins and integrity
of the Qur'an." The author's credentials, a certain Toby Lester, are given

1 Qur'an 5:8.
2 Quoted in M. Broomhall, Islam in China, New Impression, London, 1987, p. 2.
3 Cited thereafter as Lester. Also, though his article spells the Qur'an as 'Koran',
this is technically incorrect and I will utilise the proper spelling whenever I am not
directly quoting.
4 THE HISTORY OF THE QUR'ANIC TEXT

in the magazine and suggest that he does not have any knowledge of Islam
aside from having lived in Yemen and Palestine for a few years, though
this hardly seems to hinder him for he delves headlong into controversy.
He mentions that:

WesternKoranic scholarship has traditionally taken place in the context

of an openly declared hostilitybetween Christianity and Islam.... The
Koran has seemed, for Christian and Jewish scholars particularly, to
possess an aura of heresy... 4

After citing William Muir's denunciation of the Qpr'an he states that

even early Soviet scholars subjected Islam to their ideological biases: N.A.
Morozov for instance flamboyantly argued that "until the Crusades Islam
was indistinguishable from Judaism and ... only then did it receive its
independent character, while Muhammad and the first Caliphs are mythical
figures"."
Such passages may suggest to some that Lester's approach is purely
academic: a curious reporter filing an objective report. In an interview with
the ash-Sharq al-Aiosai Daily" he denies any bad intentions, hard feelings,
or wrongdoing towards Muslims, insisting that he sought only the truth.
But there is no doubt that he has taken pains to collect his information
strictly from the anti-traditionalist camp, heralding the arrival of secular
reinterpretations of the Muslim Holy Book. He extensively quotes Dr. Gerd
R.Joseph Puin, associated with the restoration of old Qur'anic fragments
in San'a', Yemen (which I have seen recently, and for which he and his team
deserve due gratitude). Now, a bookbinder who completes a magnificent
binding of a complex mathematical text will not automatically ascend to
the rank of mathematician, but because of his restoration of the pages of
old manuscripts, Puin is fashioned into a world-authority on the Qur'an's
entire history.

"So many Muslims have this belief that everything between the two
covers of the Koran is just God's unaltered word," [Dr. Puin] says.
"They like to quote the textual work that shows that the Bible has a
history and did not fallstraight out of the sky, but until now the Koran
has been out of this discussion. The only way to break through this
wall is to prove that the Koran has a history too. The San'd'fragments will kelp
us to do this."?

4 Lester, p. 46.
5 ibid, pp. 46-7.
6 London, 18 February 1999.
7 Lester; p. 44. Italics added.
 INTRODUCTION 5

Lester's next point of reference is Andrew Rippin, Professor of Religious

Studies at the University of Calgary, who states that:

"Variant readings and verse orders are all very significant. Everybody
agreeson that. These manuscriptssaythat the earlyhistoryof the Koranic
text is much more of an open question than many have suspected: the
text wasless stable, andtherqore hadless authority, than hasaluoysbeen daimedl'"

Personally I find Prof Rippin's comments baffling; on the one hand

variant readings (or rather, multiple readings) have been recognised and
commented on by Muslim scholars since the time of the Prophet. By no
means are they a new discovery. On the other hand not even Puin (as far
as I am aware) claims to have uncovered differences in the order of verses
in his manuscripts, though his views on the Qur'an are in line with modern
revisionism.

"My idea is that the Koran is a kind of cocktail of texts that were not
all understood even at the time of Muhammad," [puin] says. "Many
of them may even be a hundred years older than Islam itself. Even
within the Islamic traditions there is a huge body of contradictory
information, including a significant Christian substrate; one can derive
a whole Islamic anti-history from them if one wants." Patricia Crone
defends the goals of this sort of thinking. "The Koran is a scripture
with a history like any other - except that we don't know this history
and tend to provoke howls of protest when we study it."g

Arabic speakers have long held the Qur'an as a Book of unique beauty;
even the idol-worshippers of Makkah were spellbound by its lyricism and
failed to produce anything resembling it.'? Such qualities do not deter
Puin from speaking disdainfully about it.

"The Koran claims for itself that it is 'mubeen', or 'clear'" he says. "But
if you look at it, you will notice that every fifth sentence or so simply
doesn't make sense. Many Muslims - and Orientalists - will tell you
otherwise, of course, but the fact is that a fifth of the Koranic text is
just incomprehensible." 11

8 ibid, p. 45. Italics added. It mustbe noted that all thesedamagingjudgementshave

been passedevenbefore anyonehasthoroughly studiedthesemanuscripts. Suchisoften
the nature of Orientalist scholarship.
9 ibid, p. 46.
10 See this work pp. 48-50.
II Lester, p. 54.
6 THE HISTORY OF THE QUR' ANIC TEXT

G.R. Puin strings many words together but provides no examples, which
is unfortunate because I have absolutely no idea where this incomprehensible
fifth of the Qur'an happens to be. Lester then states that the unwillingness
to accept the conventional understanding of the Qur'an only began in
earnest in the 20th century; 12 he references Patricia Crone, quotes R.S.
Humphreys," and ends up at Wansbrough. The main thrust of Wansbrough's
work is to establish two major points: firstly, that the Qur'an and ~arlith
were generated by various communities over the course of two centuries;
and second, that Islamic doctrine was modelled on Rabbinical Jewish
prototypes. Puin is apparently re-reading his works now, for his theories
have been germinating slowlyin certain circles even though "many Muslims
understandably find them deeply offensive."14 Readers have known Cook,
Crone and Wansbrough for a quarter of a century, but the new face to
emerge from this piece is Dr. Puin, whose findings form the backbone of
Lester's lengthy article. Some of the Yemeni parchments, dating back to
the first two centuries of Islam,

[reveal] small but intriguing aberrations from the standard Koranic

text. Such aberrations, though not surprising to textual historians, are
trou blingly at odds with the orthodox Muslim belief that the Koran as
it has reached us today is quite simply the perfect, timeless, and unchanging
Word of God. The mainly secular ifJOrt toreinterpret the Koran - in part based
on textual evidence such as that provided by the Yerneni fragments!" -
is disturbing and offensive to many Muslims,just as attempts to reinterpret
the Bible and the life of Jesus are disturbing and offensive to many
conservative Christians.... [Such secular reinterpretation] can be none-
theless very powerful and - as the histories of the Renaissance and the
Reformation demonstrate - can lead to major social change. The Koran,
after all, is currently the world's most ideologically influential text.l"

So the entire matter lies before us:

The Qur'an is currently the world's most ideologically influential
text.
Many Muslims look to the Qur'an as the Christians once did to
the Bible, as God's unaltered Word.

\2ibid, p. 54.
13ibid, p. 55.
14 ibid, p. 55.
15 Just for the record: in my assessment the Turk ve Islam Eserleri Miaesi (Museum of
Islamic Art) in Istanbul may house an even greater collection than that in Yemen.
Unfortunately I was denied access to this collection, so this notion must remain
speculative, though according to F. Deroche it houses about 210,000 folios ["The
Qur'an of Amagur", Manuscripts of the Middle East, Leiden, 1990-91, vol. 5, p. 59].
\6 Lester, p. 44. Italics added.
 INTRODUCTION 7

The Yemeni fragments will help secular efforts to reinterpret the

Qur'an.
• Though offensive to countless Muslims, this reinterpretation can
provide the impetus for mqjor social changes that mirror what Christianity
experienced centuries ago.
• These changes may be brought about by 'showing' that the Qur'an
was initiallya fluid text, one which the Muslim community contributed
to and freely rearranged over several centuries, implying that the
Qur'an was not as sacred then as it has now misguidedly become.
The majority of Lester's references, those quoted or mentioned in his
piece, are non-Muslim: Gerd-R.Joseph Puin, Bothmer, Rippin, R. Stephen
Humphreys, Gunter Luling, Yehuda D. Nevo, Patricia Crone, Michael
Cook, James Bellamy, William Muir, Lambton, Tolstoy, Morozov and
Wansbrough. He also spreads the glad tiding that, within the Islamic world,
revisionism is on the move. In this category he names Nasr Abu Zaid,
Taha Husain, 'Ali Dushti, Muhammad Abdu, Ahmad Amin, Fazlur-
Rahman, and finally Muhammad Arkoun and his fervent advice to battle
orthodoxy from within.'? Scholars from the traditional school of Islamic
thought are largely cast aside and ignored, with only Muhammad Abdu's
controversial name being included.
But what is the revisionist school? Lester fails to defme it clearly, so I
will allow Yehuda Nevo, one of the authorities he quotes, to supply the
definition:

The 'revisionist' approach is by no means monolithic... [but they] are

united in denying historical validity to accounts based purely on 'facts'
derived from the Muslim literary sources ... The information they
provide must be corroborated by the 'hard facts' of material remains ...
[The written sources] should alwaysbe checked against external evidence,
and where the two conflict, the latter should be preferred. 18

Because external evidence must necessarily be found to verify every

Muslim account, absence of such corroboration helps to negate the account
and implies that the event never took place.

That there is no evidence for it outside of the 'traditional account' thus

becomes positive evidence in support of the hypothesis that it did not
happen. A striking example is the lack of evidence, outside the Muslim
literature, for the view that the Arabs were Muslim at the time of the
Conquest. 19

17 ibid, p. 56.
18 J. Koren and YD. Nevo, "Methodological Approaches to Islamic Studies", Der
Islam, Band 68, Heft I, 1991, pp. 89-90.
19 ibid, pp. 92.
8 THE HISTORY OF THE QUR' ANIe TEXT

The outcome of tills revisionist approach is a complete erasure of Islamic

history, and the fabrication of another in which such events as the pre-
Islamic presence of paganism in Makkah, the Jewish settlements near
Madinah, and the Muslim victory over the Byzantine Empire in Syria
are absolutely denied. In fact, revisionism argues that the paganism which
afflicted Makkah prior to Islam is simply a fictitious back-projection of a
pagan culture that thrived in southern Palestine.P
The central point, which must be made clear, is that there is a definite
motive behind all these 'discoveries'. Such fmdings do not exist in a vacuum
or fall unexpectedly into the scholar's lap; they are the brainchild of a
particular ideological and political arena, served up in the guise of break-
through academic research.s'
Attempts to distort Islam and its sacred texts are in fact as old as the
religion itself, though the strategy behind these efforts has fluctuated
according to the intended goal. Beginning with the rise of Islam and up
until the 13th century A.H. (7th-18th century C.E.), the first objective was
to establish a protective fence around Christians to counteract the rapid
advance of the new faith in Iraq, Syria, Palestine, Egypt, Libya etc. Among
the notables of this period were John of Damascus (35-133 A.H.l675-750
C.E.), Peter the Venerable (1084-1156 C.E.), Robert of Ketton, Raymond
Lull (1235-1316 C.E.), Martin Luther (1483-1546 C.E.) and Ludovico
Marraci (1612-1700 C.E.), their pens dipped in unsophisticated yet wilful
ignorance and falsehood. Spurred by the change in political fortunes and
the start of colonialism from the 18th century onwards, the second phase
of attack witnessed a shift in posture from defensive to offensive, aspiring
to the mass conversion of Muslims or, at the least, of shattering any pride
and resistance that emanated from their belief in Allah.
Abraham Geiger (1810-1874) belongs squarely to this second period;
his 1833 dissertation, Was hat Mohammed aus den Judentum aujgenommen?
("What did Mohammed take from Judaism?"), inaugurated the search
for ulterior influences on the Qur'an and lead to innumerable books and
articles aimed at branding it a poor Biblical counterfeit, replete with
mistakes.
Future chapters will bring to light other names which have spearheaded
this second phase, including Noldeke (1836-1930), Go1dziher (1850-1921),
Hurgronje (1857-1936), Bergstrasser (1886-1933), Tisdall (1859-1928),
Jeffery (d. 1952) and Schacht (1902-1969). A third phase, beginning in
the mid 20th century on the heels of the founding of Israel, has actively

20 ibid, pp. 100-102. See also this work pp.337-8.

21 For more on this essential topic, refer to Chapter 19.
 INTRODUCTION 9

sought to purge all verses that cast an unfavourable light onJews. Among
the followers of this school are Rippin, Crone, Power, Calder and not
least of all Wansbrough, whose theory, that the Qur'an and hadith. are a
community product spanning two centuries which were then fictitiously
attributed to an Arabian prophet based onJewish prototypes, is doubtlessly
the most radical approach to ousting the Qur'an from its hallowed status.
The previous decades have witnessed a quickened maturation of these
last two phases, swelling in multi-faceted ways; a fairly recent scheme for
assailing the Qur'an has been its reduction to a cultural text, one which
is a by-product of a particular era and is therefore obsolete, rather than
a Book that is meant for all nations at all times.

Traditional Islam had not been resistant to the notion that the revelation
reflected the milieu in which it was revealed ... But traditional Islam
could never have made the leap from the idea of a scripture which
engages the society in which it was revealed to the notion of one which
is a product of it. For most Muslims in the modern world any significant
move in this direction is still hardly an option, and it is unlikely to
become one in the near foreseeable future. 22

This was the inspiration for Nasr Abu Zaid (declared an apostate by
Egypt's highest court and according to Cook, a 'Muslim secularist's"),
whose central belief about the Qur'an was that,

If the text was a message sent to the Arabs of the seventh century, then
of necessity it was formulated in a manner which took for granted
historically specific aspects of their language and culture. The Koran
thus took shape in a human setting. It was a 'cultural product' - a phrase
Abu Zayd used several times, and which was highlighted by the Court
of Cassation when it determined him to be an unbeliever."

Approaching the Qur'an from a textual viewpoint appears benign enough

to the uninitiated; how insidiouscould concepts such as 'semantics' and 'textual
linguistics' be? But the focus is not a study of the text itself so much as it
is a study of the evolution of the text, of how forms and structures within
the Qur'an can be derived from 7th/8th century Arabic literature." This
essentiallyleads to a thorough secularisation and desanctification of the text.

22Michael Cook, TheKoran: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford Univ. Press, 2000, p. 44.
23 ibid, p. 46.
24 ibid, p. 46. Italics added.
25 For details, refer to Stefan Wild's (ed.) Preface to The Qyr'an as Text, EJ. Brill,
Leiden, 1996, p. vii-xi.
10 THE HISTORY OF THE QUR' ANIC TEXT

Speaking of the Biblical scholar Van Buren, Professor E.L. Mascall states
that " [he] finds the guiding principle of the secularization of Christianity
in the philosophical school which is commonly known as linguistic analysis."26
If such is the aim of linguistic analysis in Biblical studies, what other motive
can there be in applying it to the Qur'an?
This being outside the realm of what is tolerable to Muslims, an alternate
strategy is to substitute the holy text with vernacular translations, then
inflate their status such that they are held on a par with the original Arabic.
In this way Muslim societies, three-quarters of which are non-Arab, can
be severed from the actual revelations of Allah.

There is necessarily a mismatch between the Arabic of the Koran and

the locallanguage of primary education... The tensionis exacerbated by
the fact that modernity brings an enhanced concern for the intelligibility
of scripturesamong the believers at large. As the TurkishnationalistZiya
Gokalp (d. 1924) put it: ':<\ country in whose schools the Koran is read
in Turkish is one in which everyone, child and adult, knows God's
commands't.F

After describing the futile Turkish efforts to displace the actual Qur'an
with a Turkish translation, Michael Cook concludes,

To date, the non-Arab Muslimworld shows littlesignof adopting the idea

of a vernacularscripture in the manner of sixteenth-century Protestantism
or twentieth-century Catholicism."

If all other stratagems are left in tatters, one last resort remains. As
described by Cook:

In a modern Western society it is more or less axiomatic that other

people's religious beliefs (though not, of course, all forms of religiously
motivated behaviour) are to be tolerated, and perhaps even respected.
Indeed it would be considered ill mannered and parochial to refer to
the religious views of others zs false and one's own as true ... the very
notion of absolute truth in matters qf religion sounds hopelessly out qf date. It
is, however, a notion that was central to traditional Islam, as it was to
traditional Christianity; and in recent centuries it has survived better
in Islam.i"

26 E.L. Mascall, The Secularization if Christianity, Darton, Longman & Todd Ltd.,
London, 1965, p. 41. Dr. Paul M. Van Buren is the author of "The SecularMeaning
of the Gospel", which is based on the analysis of Biblical language [ibid, p. 41.]
27 M. Cook, TheKoran: A Very Short Introduction, p. 26. Interestingly Ziya Gokalpwas
a Donma]ew who convertedto Islam [M. Qu~b, al-Mustashriqim tea al-Isldm, p. 198].
28 M. Cook, The Koran: A Very Short Introduction, p. 27.
29 ibid, p. 33, emphasis added. Cook'swords, 'that was central to traditionalIslam',
seem to imply that it is no longer appropriate for modern Islam.
 INTRODUCTION 11

Cook writes this under the heading "Tolerating the beliefs of others",
but what he expounds instead is universalism. Imbued with tolerance, Islam
maintains clear and fIrm injunctions governing the rights of non-Muslims;
this is well known. Cook's thrust here is instead about doubt and relativism:
the notion that all religions are equally valid because to think otherwise
is to betray oneself as provincial and ignorant. This, sadly, is an easier
pitfall for many contemporary, ill-educated Muslims. And as a corollary
to this idea, "There [is] a nearly unanimous rejection of any attempt to
distinguish between a non-Muslim and a Muslim scholarship in present-
day Qur'anic studies."30
A rising chorus of Western scholars now come forward to assail the
traditional tofsir literature," demanding something altogether new. Arguing
for the exclusive right to interpret the holy text, many Orientalists dismiss
earlier Muslim writings on this topic "on the grounds that Muslims -
being dupes, as it were, of the notion that [the Qur'an] was Scripture -
of course could not understand the text so well as could a Western
scholar free from that limitation't." Basetti-Sani and Youakim Moubarac
both insist that tafsir be made compatible with 'Christian truth', a sentiment
endorsed by WC. Smith and Kenneth Cragg. 33 This last, an Anglican
bishop, urges Muslims to scrap the verses revealed in Madinah (with their
emphasis on the political and legal aspects of Islam) in favour of their
Makkan counterparts, which are generally more involved with basic issues
of monotheism, leaving precious little of the religion intact aside from the
verbal pronouncement that there is no god except Allah. 34-
All these concepts are meant to shake the already-slender faith of wary
Muslims, arming them with Orientalist barbs and setting them out to
question and dismiss the very Book which they have inherited, in the
process becoming more susceptible to Western ideology. Toby Lester's
article is just another card in this deck, and the tales behind the Yemeni
fragments simply another bait. Dr. Puin himself has in fact denied all the
findings that Lester ascribes to him, with the exception of occasional
differences in the spelling of some words. Here is a part of Puin's original

30 Stefan Wild (ed.), The QJir'an as Text, p. x. The original contains 'was' instead of
'is', but changing the tense seems valid given that nothing else has changed. In fact,
Muslim scholarship concerning the Qur'an is generally relegated to second-class
status in Western circles, since the former espouses traditionalism while the latter
seeks revisionism. .
31 Exegesis of the Qur'an,
32 we. Smith, 'The True Meaning of Scripture", J]MES, vol. 11 (1980), p. 498.
33 Peter Ford, "The Qur'an as Sacred Scripture", Muslim fiVorld, vol. lxxxiii, no. 2,
April 1993, pp. 151-53.
34 A. Saeed, "Rethinking 'Revelation' as a Precondition for Reinterpreting the Qur'an:
A Qur'anic Perspective", JQ.S, i:93-114.
12 THE HISTORY OF THE QUR' A.NIC TEXT

letter - which he wrote to al-QaQi Isma'il al-Akwa' shortly after Lester's

article - with its translation. 35

~\!P .;0 ~\4..V' ~wJ.I (.J\ ~ 'vI

A.;" ~V\ I;JJ ~ j.s- c.--,s:;o\ • ~ ,:",:,>\i):J'~:"'"

Figure 1.1 Part if Dr. PuinJs original letter to al-Qjrjz al-Akioa'

The important thing, thank God, isthat theseYemeniQur' anic fragments
do not differ from those found in museums and libraries elsewhere,
with the exception of details that do not touch the Qur'an itself, but are
rather differences in the way words arc spelled. This phenomenon is
well-known,even in the Qur'an published in Cairo in which is written:
Ibrhim (1'"""".r. 1) next to Ibrhm (~.r.\)
Qyriin (0\)) next to Qrn (0})
Simdhum (~L...:---) next to Simhum (~) etc.
In the oldestYemeniQur'anic fragments, for example, the phenomenon
of not writing the vowel algis rather common.

This deflates the entire controversy, dusting away the webs of intrigue
that were spun around Puin's discoveries and making them a topic unworthy
of further speculation." But let us suppose for the sake of argument that
the fmdings are indeed true; what then is our response? Here we face three
questions:
a) What is the Qjir'an?
b) If any complete or partial manuscripts are uncovered at present or
in the future, claiming to be Qur'an but differing from what we now
have in our hands, what impact would this have on the Qur'anic
text?
c) Finally, who is entitled to be an authority on the Qur'an? Or in
general terms, to write about Islam and all its religious and historical
facets?

35 Forthe Arabic text of his completeletter,see the Yemeni newspaper, ath- Thauna,
issue 24.11.1419 A.H./ 11.3.1999.
36 I will cover Puin's discoveries and claims in pp. 314-8.
 INTRODUCTION 13

These will be pondered over the course of this work, to reveal not only
the following answers but also the logic which stipulates them:
a) The Qur'an is the very Word of Allah, His [mal message to all
humanity, revealed to His [mal messenger Muhammad and trans-
cending all limitations of time and space. It is preserved in its original
tongue without any amendments, additions or deletions.
b) There will never be a discovery of a Qur'an, fragmented or whole,
which differs from the consensus text circulating throughout the
world. If it does differ then it cannot be regarded as Qur'an, because
one of the foremost conditions for accepting anything as such is
that it conform to the text used in 'Uthman's Mushaf "
c) Certainly anyone can write on Islam, but only a devout Muslim
has the legitimate prerogative to write on Islamic and its related
subjects. Some may consider this biased, but then who is not? Non-
followers cannot claim neutrality, for their writings swerve depending
on whether Islam's tenets agree or disagree with their personal
beliefs, and so any attempts at interpretation from Christians,]ews,
atheists, or non-practicing Muslims must be unequivocally discarded.
I may add that if any proffered viewpoint clashes with the Prophet's
own guidelines, either explicitly or otherwise, it becomes objec-
tionable; in this light even the writings of a devout Muslim may be
rejected if they lack merit. This selectivity lies at the very heart of
Ibn Sirin's golden rule (d. 110 A.H./728 C.E.):

« ~~ 0J .b-t ~ IJ;';lA,jI.~ r-W\ \..L. 0[»

This knowledge constitutes your deen (religion), so be wary of
whom you take your religion from."

Some may argue that Muslims do not have any sound arguments with
which to counteract non-Muslim scholarship, that for them the case is
based entirely on faith and not on reason. I will therefore bring forward
my arguments against their findings in future chapters, though I will first
begin by recounting some passages from early Islamic history as a prelude
to an in-depth look at the Qur'an,

37 i.e. the skeleton of the text whichmay showsomevariations in vowel writing, see
further Chapters 9, 10and II. Wemustnevertheless take into consideration that there
are over 250,000 manuscripts of the Qur'an scattered all over the globe [see p. 316
note 38]. When comparing them it is always possible to find copyingmistakes here
and there; this is an exampleof human fallibility, and has been recognised as such by
authors who havewritten extensively on the subjectof "unintentional errors." Such
occurrences cannot be used to prove any corruption (...;..;..J.) within the Qur'an.
38 In fact Ibn Hibban has credited this saying to other scholars as well, e.g. Abu
Huraira (d. 58 A.H.), Ibrahim an-Nakha'i (d. 96 A.H.), ad-Dahhak b. al-Muzahim (d.
circa 100 A.H.), al-Hasan al-Basri (d. 110 A.H.) and Zaid b. Aslam (d. 136 A.H.). [Ibn
Hibban, al-Majrii~ln, i:21-23].
14 THE HISTORY OF THE QUR'ANIC TEXT
 CHAPTER Two

EARLY HISTORY OF ISLAM: A BRIEF LOOK

1. Pre-Islamic Arabia

i. The Geo- Political Condition

Arabia. Situated near the crossroads of three continents, at the heart of the
Old World, the Arabian Peninsula juts out into one of the most recognisable
features on the globe. Bordered by the Red Sea to its west, the Persian Gulf
to its east, the Indian Ocean to the south and Syria and Mesopotamia to
the north, it is famously arid but for the vegetation of the Sarawat Mountains,
which anchor the western coastline. Despite the scarcity of liquid there
are a few sources of underground water available, and these have produced
oases which have long served as the backbone for human settlements and
caravans.
The Arabian Peninsula has been populated since the earliest days of
recorded history, the inhabitants of the Persian Gulf actually establishing
city-states prior to the third millennium C.E. 1 Many scholars consider this
region to be the cradle of all Semitic races, though there is by no means a
full consensus. Theories on this cradle include: Babylonia (the opinion of
Von Kremer, Guide and Hommelg/ the Arabian Peninsula (Sprenger, Sayee,
DeGoeje, Brockelmann, and others);" Africa (Noldeke and others);" Amuru
(A.T. Clay);" Armenia (John Peaters);" the southern part of the Arabian
Peninsula (John Philby);? and Europe (Ungnand)."
Phillip Hitti, in his work, History if the Arabs, says:

"Though the term 'semitic' has of late come to be used in the West
more generally with reference to theJews because of their concentration
in America, it is more appropriately applicable to the inhabitants of

I Jawad 'All, al-Muff¥~alfi TarilrJz al-Arab Qgbl al-Isldm, i:569.

2 ibid, i:230-31.
3 ibid, i:231-232.
4 ibid, i:235.
5 ibid, i:238.
6 ibid, i:238.
7 ibid, i:232-233.
B ibid, i:238.
16 THE HISTORY OF THE QUR'ANIC TEXT

Arabia who, more than any other group of people, have retained the
Semitic characteristics in their physical features, manners, customs,
habit of thought and language. The people of Arabia have remained
virtually the same throughout all the recorded ages.??

Most hypotheses regarding racial origins emanate from linguistic research

(and occasionally the information supplied by the OT),l0 and much of this
is neither scientific nor historically accurate. For example, the OT includes
among nations of Semitic stock many who are not Semites, such as the
Elamite and Ludim, whilst discarding many which are Semitic, such as
the Phoenicians and Cannanites.!' Given the myriad viewpoints, I subscribe
to the notion that the Semitic races emerged from within Arabia. As to the
question of who is or is not Semitic, Arabs and Israelites share a common
ancestry through Abraham. 12

ii. Ibrahim and Makkah

At a fixed time in history Allah bestowed on Ibrahim (Abraham) a son in

his old age, Isma'il (Ishmael), whose mother Hajar (Hagar) - supposedly
a slave - was a gift tendered by Pharos to Sarah. Isma'll's birth stirred
great jealousy in Sarah's heart, and she demanded that Ibrahim cast out
this 'bondwoman' and her son." Faced with this domestic squabble, he
brought Hajar and Isma 'n to the barren land of Makkah, to a harsh sun-
beaten valley bereft of inhabitants, food, and even water. As he began the
trek home, Hajar gazed at the emptiness around her in bewilderment,
and asked him thrice whether he was deserting them. He made no reply.
Then she asked whether this was the command of Allah, and he replied:
yes. Hearing this she said, "Then He will not abandon us." And indeed
He did not abandon them, causing the waters of Zamzam to eventually
gush out of the sand at the infant Isma'Il's feet; this spring made possible
the first settlements in the area, with Jurhum being the earliest tribe to
settle there."

9 M. Mohar Ali, Sirat an-Nabt, vol. lA, pp. 30-31, quoting P.K. Hitti, History of the
Arabs, pp. 8-9.
lO Jawad 'Ali, al-Mufassal, i:223.
II ibid, i:224.
12 ibid, i:630. The OT declares that both Arabs and Jews are descendants of Shem,
son of Noah.
13 King James Version, Genesis 21:10.
14 Al-Bukhari, $a)/iJ}, al-Anbiya', hadith nos. 3364-65 (withIbn Hajar's commentary).
 EARLY HISTORY OF ISLAM; A BRIEF LOOK 17

Several years later Ibrahim, on a visit to his son, informed him of a

vision:
I~L: ~~ ~1i ji ~L:..J1 J ls) jj ~ JLi ~1 ~ ~ ~ ,
_ f1........ ... ",,'" J~,J _'" " ...... ~J ....'" J . . . ...."',.. ..".$ ,...... .... t.. ........
W; ~ U'~I:r.uJ\;~ uj ~~ rY t, ~I <;-<il< Ju ~.;
~ c_.... J,J .... ., -: "" '" . . . . ,....,.,. t J ..............<:= . . ., ,.;..... ........ t
\.:,1... 4~JI -.::.J...L,o ..u Q ~').Ji< u l
.---="....
,,"-,-<.l.0j t®J
-=
~
........
>~j W-:I
~
e!:I:! ,,"-,-<..l9j ~ ~I 1y.l;J1 jl \~ ~j ~~ ~llS~~'..:D
• J .... "....... "",""" J J ""'" • , ,. ...""'" J.... -; .... .... " ',J ".'.... -: ....

~ ,

15i,~"'~
,~)~ ......

"Then, when (the son) reached (the age if serious) work withhim, (Ibrahim)
said: '0 my son! I see in a dream thatI qJftryou in sacrifice: nowsee what
isyour view!' (The son) said: '0 myfather! Do asyou are commanded:you
willfind me, if Alliih so wills, one practicing Patience andConstancy! ... And
fVe ransomed him with a momentous sacrifice."16

On the heels of this incident, Ibrahim and Isma'Il received a divine

commission to establish the first sanctuary on earth dedicated for the sole
worship of Allah.
17 .""'"
£¢,),·....
,,~~~ l".;)
','. ->, ,f.""
\,:II'/"..tA'JD''--'~'/"-'J.J
J.
c- '",'
·.f,
l",.;',.. ~
,"11'.' '" "!I" I
I.l,UJl-pJC-'J'J ,"),.
.... \... ... / -. """ft'1'

Thefirst House (if worship) appointedfor people was thatat Bakka;ftll

if blessing and if guidancefor all kinds if beings"
Bakka is another name for Makkah, and in that rocky vale both father
and son concerted their efforts towards the construction of the sacred
Ka'ba, with the piety of one whose gruelling ordeal had just been resolved
by the Almighty Himsel£ Upon its completion Ibrahun made the following
supplication:
... r,; .... ,""'" ... ,,"" .... ... .... ~ J J .... t .. _ ""/
lS.:ij i~1 .!.~ ~ Uj lS~? ~1J:i ~~~ ~ ~I ~l lS.:ij ,
CJ·,:ftl;" ...,j~+ :'_~I~,-/"': 01 <:»
" .r-: ~ \" JJJ IY"t ""'-tr...r
--:" ~:l.Jf'I~,:,~a'I"-lli"~
Q ,~ r-' ~
~'I
18£ ~ :.\/ch:
'>J:t ~~.....,.J..r--; ~;f
"0 our Lord! I have made some if my qffipring todwell in a valley without
cultivation, l!J 'Your Sacred House; in order, 0 our Lord, that they may establish
regular Prayer: Sofill the hearts if some among men withlove toward them,
and.feed them with Fruits: So that they may give thanks."

15 Qur'an 37:102-107,
16 The translation of verses 103-6 has been dropped for brevity.
17 Qur'an 3:96.
18 Qur'an 14:37.
18 THE HISTORY OF THE QUR' ANIC TEXT

Soon the roots of this supplication had visibly blossomed and Makkah
was no longer desolate, gaining lifein the presence of Allah's noble sanctuary,
the waters of Zamzam, and a burgeoning population. It eventually became
a central junction on the trade routes to Syria, Yemen, Ta'if and Nejd.l?
which is why "from the time of Aellius Gallus down to Nero all the emperors
cherished the desire of extending their influence to the important station
of Mecca and made tentative efforts in this direction."20
There were naturally other population movements within the Arabian
Peninsula. Of note were the Jewish refugees who, many centuries later,
introducedJudaism to Arabia during the Babylonian Exile,settlingin Yathrib
(present-day Madinah), Khaibar, Taima' and Fadak in 587 B.C.E. and 70
C.E. 21 Nomadic Arab tribes were also in flux. Banu Tha'liba (the tribe of
Tha'Iiba) from the Qahtanite stock also settled in Madinah; among their
descendants were the tribes of Aws and Khazraj, later dually known as
al-Ansar'" (Supporters of the Prophet). Banu Haritha, later known as Banu
Khuza'a, settledin Hejaz and displacedthe earlier inhabitants, BanuJurhum,23
becoming the custodians of the House in Makkah. They were subsequently
responsible for introducing idol worship/" Banu Lakhm, another clan of
Qahtanite origin, settled in Hira (present-day Kufa in Iraq) where they
founded a buffer state between Arabia and Persia (c. 200-602 C.E.).25 Banu
Ghassan settled in lower Syria and founded the Ghassanid Kingdom, a
buffer state between Byzantine and Arabia, which lasted till 614 C.E. 26
Banu Tayy occupied the Tayy Mountains while Banu Kinda settled in
central Arabia.'? The common feature of all these tribes was their lineage
to Ibrahim through Isrna 'il. 28
This section is not meant to serve as a history of Makkah prior to
Islam, but as a starting point for the closest ancestral family member of
the Prophet who had a direct bearing on his life. For the sake of brevity

19 M. Hamidullah, "The City State of Mecca", Islamic Culture, voL 12 (1938), p. 258.
Cited thereafter as The City State of Mecca.
20 ibid, p. 256, quoting Lammens, LaMecque aLa Vielle deL'Hegire(pp. 234, 239) and
others.
21 Jawad 'All, al-Mufassalfi Tiirfkh al-'Arab Qgbl al-lsldm, i:658; ibid, i:614-18 contain
very important information on Jewish settlements in Yathrib and Khaibar.
22 M. Mohar Ali, Sirat an-Nabi, vol. lA, p. 32.
23 ibid, voL lA, p. 32.
24 Ibn Qutaiba, al-Ma'arif, p. 640.
25 M. Mohar Ali, Sirat an-Nabi, voL lA, p. 32.
26 ibid, voL IA, p. 32.
27 ibid, voL lA, p. 32.
28 ibid, vol. lA, p. 32.
 EARLY HISTORY OF ISLAM: A BRIEF LOOK 19

I will pass over numerous details and pick up the trail with Qu~ayy, the
great-great-great grandfather of the Prophet.

iii. Qusayy Gains Full Control of Makkah

Some two hundred years prior to the Prophet's birth, Qusayy; a keenly
intelligent, powerful and highly administrative chieftain, ascended within
the ranks of Makkah's political scene. Taking advantage of the Byzantine
interest in Makkah, he acquired their help in securing full control of the city
while successfully remaining outside Byzantine influence and neglecting
their regional interests.P
Qu~ayy
(born c. 365 C.E.)

'Abdul-Dar 'Abd Manaf 'Abd 'Abdul-'Uzza

(born c. 430 C.E.)

Naufal Muttalib Hashim 'Abd Shams

(born c. 442 C.E.)

~---I----.....,---------,
'Abdul
Asad Muttalib Abu Saifi Na<;lla
(born c. 497 C.E.)

i
...
«e

cS·

'Ali ]a'far M~auun.ad (Ii)

(born c. 570 C.E.)

Figure 2.1: A briefgenealogy qf Q,ll.}qyy.

Qusayy married Hubba bint Hulail, the daughter of the Khuza'ite

chieftain of Makkah; this chieftain's death allowed him to assume further

29 Ibn Qutaiba, al-Ma'drif, pp. 640-41. The Byzantine Empire had a new prospect
of extending their influence on Makkah a fewgenerations later when a Makkan, 'Uthman
ibn al-Huwairith of the Asad clan, embraced Christianity. The Emperor placed a crown
on his head and sent him to Makkah with Ukase, ordering the Makkans to accept
him as their king. But even his own tribe refused to accept him. [TheCif:y State if Mecca,
pp. 256-7, quoting as-Suhaili (Raurf.ul urif, i:146) and others].
20 THE HISTORY OF THE QUR' ANIe TEXT

power and pass custody of the House into the hands of his descendants"
The tribe of Quraish, scattered throughout the region, was finally brought
together in Makkah and forged into a single unity under his leadership."
Figure 2.1 (above) shows Qu~ayy's genealogy in brie£32

iv. Makkah: A Tribal Society

Though developed as a city-state, Makkah remained a tribal society up until

its conquest by the Prophet Muhammad. The mainstay of Arab society
around which all social organisation revolved, the tribe was based on the
concept that the sons of anyone clan were brothers and shared the same
blood. An Arab would not have understood the idea of nation-statehood
unless it was within the context of the nation-state of the tribe,

"which was a nation-state of relationship binding the family to the tribe,

a state based on flesh and bones, on flesh and blood, i.e. a nation-state
based on lineage. It was family connections that bound together the
individuals in the state and gathered them into one unit. This was for
them the religion of the state and its agreed and acknowledged law."33

Every tribal member constituted an asset for the entire tribe, so that
the presence of an accomplished poet, an intrepid warrior, or someone of
famed hospitality within the tribe, generated honour and credit for all those
of his lineage. Among the prime duties of every stalwart clan was defence,
not only of its own members but also those who temporarily came under
its umbrella as guests, and in protecting the latter there was always much
honour to be gained. Thus Makkah, the city-state, welcomed people who
either sought to attend fairs, or perform pilgrimage,34 or pass through with
their caravans. Serving this demand required security and the appropriate

30 Ibn Hisham, Sira, ed. by M. Saqqa, 1. al-Ibyarl and 'A. Shalabi, 2nd edition,
Mustafa al-Babi al-Halabi, publishers, Cairo, 1375 (1955), vol. 1-2,pp. 117-8. This
book has been printed into two parts, part one covers volumes 1-2,while part two
covers volumes 3-4. The page numbering of each part runs continuously.
31 Ibn Qutaiba, al-Ma'ari], pp. 640-41.
32 Ibn Hisham, Sira, vol. 1-2, pp. 105-108. For the dates in the chart, see Nabia
Abbott, TheRiseif the North Arabic Script anditsKuranic Development, withafUllDescription
if the Kuran Manuscripts in the Oriental Institute, The University of ChicagoPress, Chicago,
1938, pp. 10-11. Abbott has mentioned somedisagreement among Orientalists about
the dates.
33 Ibn Hisham, Sira, vol. 3-4, p. 315.
34 By this time the Ka 'ba was surrounded and housed with hundreds of idols.
 EARLY HISTORY OF ISLAM: A BRIEF LOOK 21

facilities, and so the following institutions were set up in Makkah (some of

them by Qusayy himselfj:35 Nadioa (city council), Mashura (advice council),
Qiyiida (leadership), Sadiina (administration of the sanctuary), lfijiiba (gate-
keeper of the Ka'ba), Siqiiya (supplying water to the pilgrims), 'Imdratul-bait
(ensuring that the sanctity of the Ka'ba was not violated), gada (those who
permitted the first departure in a ceremony), [jiiza, Nasi' (the institution of
adjusting the calendar), Qybba (pitching a tent to collect donations for some
public emergency), A'inna (reins of the horse), Rcfiida (tax for feeding the
poor pilgrims), Amwiil mul;ajjara (offerings to the Sanctuary), Aysiir, Ashndq
(assessing the value of pecuniary liabilities), Hukiima, Sifirah (ambassador-
J
ship), 'Uqdb (standard-bearer), liwii (banner) and lfulwiin-un-nafr (mobilisation
gratuity).

v. From Qu~ayy to Muhammad ~

These sundry duties became the responsibility of Qu~ayy's sons. Descendants

of 'Abdul-Dar for example retained the custody of the Ka'ba, the council-
hall and the right of mounting the banner on its staff in case of war.36 'Abd-
Manaf managed the foreign relations "with the Roman authorities, and the
Ghassanide prince. Hashim [son of 'Abd-Manaf] himself concluded a treaty,
and he is said to have received from the Emperor a rescriph authorizing the
Quraish to travel through Syria in security?" Hashim and his party maintained
the office of providing food and water to the pilgrims; his wealth allowed
him to entertain pilgrims with princely magnificence."
While trading in Madinah, Hashim met and became enamoured of a
Khazarite noblewoman, Salma bint 'Amr. He married her and returned
with her to Makkah, but with the onset of pregnancy she chose to journey
back to Madinah and there gave birth to a son, Shaiba. Hashim died in
Gaza on one of his trade journeys,39 entrusting his brother Muttalib to take
care of his son'? who was still with his mother. Travelling to Madinah for
this purpose, Muttalib found himself embroiled in a fight with Hashim's
widow over the custody of young Shaiba, which he eventually won. With

35 The City State if Mecca, pp. 261-276.

36 William Muir, The 4ft if Mahomet, 3rd edition, Smith, Elder, & Co., London,
1894,p.xcvi.
3 i ibid, p. xcvii.
38 ibid, p. xcvi.
39 Ibn Hisham, Sira, vol. 1-2, p. 137.
40 ibid, vol. 1-2, p. 137.
22 THE HISTORY OF THE QUR'ANIC TEXT

uncle and nephew returning to Makkah, people mistook the little boy to
be the slave (..y.: 'Abd) of Muttalib. Hence Shaiba's nickname: 'Abdul-
Muttalib."
The death of his uncle meant that 'Abdul-Muttalib inherited the duties
of Siqiiya and Raftida. 42 And having rediscovered Zamzam, whose waters
had been buried and forgotten beneath the weight of sand and neglect for
many years, he gained such prominence and dignity that he effectively
became the chief of Makkah. In earlier years he had made a vow that if
granted ten sons, he would sacrifice one of them to an idol. Now, having
been blessed with this number, 'Abdul-Muttalib sought to fulfil his pledge
by consulting with the Azliim43 to fmd out whom to sacrifice. The name of
his youngest (and favorite) son 'Abdullah appeared. Human sacrifices being
distasteful to Quraish, they conferred with a soothsayer who revealed that
'Abdullah could be ransomed with camels. The A:dam were consulted
again, and the boy's life was spared for the price of one hundred camels.
Delighted with this turn of events, 'Abdul-Muttalib took his son 'Abdullah
to Madinah to visitsome relatives. There 'Abdullah married Amina, the niece
of Wuhaib who was their host and of the same ancestral tribe (Qusayy's
brother founded Banu Zuhra, Wuhaib's clan). 'Abdullah enjoyed the
domestic comforts of home life for some time before embarking on a trade
route to Syria. Along the way he fell ill, returned to Madinah and died.
By then Amina had already conceived Muhammad.

vi. The Religious Conditions in Arabia

In the time preceding Muhammad's prophethood, Arabia was thoroughly

antagonistic to any religious reformation. For centuries the cult of pagan
worship had withstood both the presence ofJewish settlements and foreign
attempts at evangelisation from Syria and Egypt. William Muir, in his The
Lift qf Mahomet, argues that this Jewish presence helped to neutralise the
spread of the gospel in two ways; first, by establishing itself in the northern
frontiers of Arabia, and thus forming a barrier between the Christian
expanses to the north and the pagan stronghold to the south. His second
argument is that Arabian idolatry had formed a sort of compromise with
Judaism, incorporating enough of its legends to diminish the exotic appeal
of Christianity." I do not concur at all with his theory. What the Arabs

41 ibid, vol. 1-2, p. 137.

42 ibid, vol. 1-2, p. 142.
43 A procedure for picking a candidate randomly, using divining arrows that were
kept under the protection of a certain deity.
44 William Muir, The Lift of Mahomet, pp. lxxxii-Ixxxiii.
 EARLY HISTORY OF ISLAM: A BRIEF LOOK 23

professed in fact was a distorted remnant of Ibrahim and Isma'il's mono-

theistic faith, corrupted by centuries of superstition and ignorance. The
legends which the Jews and Arabs held in common were, therefore, a
result of their common ancestry.
The Christianity of the 7th century was itself mired in corruption and
myth, caught in a state of complete stagnation. Formally submitting Arabia
to Christianity would have required, not religious persuasion, but the political
coercion of a superior Christian power." No such power bore down upon
the pagan Arabs, and idolatry held Arabia in the tightest of grips. Five
centuries of Christian evangelism had produced meagre results: converts
were limited to the Bam} Harith of Najran, the Bam} Hanifa of Yarnama,
and some of the Banu 'fayy at Tayma' .46 In these five centuries, historical
records do not show any incidence involving the persecution of Christian
missionaries.This isvastly different from the fate which awaited Muhammad
and his earliestfollowers in Makkah, revealing perhaps that while Christianity
was viewed as a tolerable nuisance, Islam was deemed overtly dangerous
to the institutional fabric of pagan Arabia.

2. Prophet Muhammad ~ (53B.H.-IIA.H.I571-632c.E.) 47

Covering the life of the Prophet of Islam is an immense undertaking, one

that can easily fill volumes; copious literature is readily available on this
topic for every interested reader. The aim of this section is somewhat
clifferent. In upcoming chapters we will discuss some of the prophets of
Israel, including Jesus, and witness both their hostile reception by the
Israelites and the rapid corruption of their divine teachings. Here, in lieu
of retracing paths already carved out by other writers, I will simply offer
a brief synopsis to complement such future references to Moses andJesus.

45 ibid, p. Ixxxiv. This also holds true for more recent times, when Christianity was
often advanced by dint of Colonialist coercion.
46 ibid, pp. lxxxiv-lxxxv.
47 The Christian date is approximate. Invented using the model of the Islamic
Calendar, it did not come into official public use until at least ten centuries after Jesus
(most likely more), passing through several modifications. The Gregorian calendar as
presently used goes back only to 1582 c.E./990 A.H. when it was adopted by the then-
Catholic countries on the decree of Pope Gregory XIII, in a Papal Bull on 24 February
1582. [See Khalid Baig, "The Millennium Bug", Impact International, London, vol. 30,
no. 1,January 2000, p. 5]. Modern writers project back the dates fictitiously, thus creating
many problems in the dating of events.
24 THE HISTORY OF THE QUR'ANIC TEXT

i. The Birth of Muhammad ~

As mentioned earlier 'Abdullah, Muhammad's father, died while Amina

was in pregnancy. Muhammad was therefore born into precarious circum-
stances, a member of a poor but very noble family. Soon bereft of his mother
as well, he became an orphan at the age of six and took to working as a
shepherd in Makkah's barren landscape." Following in the footsteps of
Quraishi fashion he began engaging in trade, and here his integrity and
success as a merchant attracted the attention of an older and particularly
intelligent rich widow, Khadfja, who eventually married him.t? Muhammad
was renowned throughout the city for this honesty and integrity in all
matters; quoting Ibn Ishaq: "Prior to the revelations, Quraish labelled the
Prophet as 'the trustworthy one' (c:r.,..\tl: am'in)".50

ii. Muhammad ~, the Amm

There came a time when Quraish concurred on the necessity of rebuilding

the Ka'ba; allocating the work among themselves, each sub-clan gathering
stones and built a portion of the structure by itself As the construction
reached the Black Stone (~r\t\pI) a controversy ignited. Every sub-clan
quarrelled for the sole honour of depositing the Black Stone into its appro-
priate corner, to the point where alliances were quickly formed and hostilities
appeared inevitable. Abu Umayya, who at the time was the oldest man in
Quraish, urged them to consent to the judgment of the first man entering
the gate of the Holy Sanctuary, and they approved. It so happened that
the first to enter was none other than Muhammad, Seeing him Quraish
exclaimed, "Here comes the amin, we are pleased with him [as a judge].
Here comes Muhammad." When he was informed of the dispute he asked
for a cloak. He then took the Black Stone, placed it on the cloak, and told
each sub-clan to clutch a side of the garment and lift it collectively. This
they did, and once they were at the designated spot he raised the Black
Stone and set it in with his own hands. With the controversy dissipated
to everyone's satisfaction, the construction continued without incident.!'

48 Al-Bukhari, SaWz, Ijara:2.

49 Ibn Hisham, Sira, vol. 1-2, pp. 187-189
50 ibid,vol. 1-2,p. 197.
51 ibid, vol. 1-2, pp. 196-7.
 EARLY HISTORY OF ISLAM: A BRIEF LOOK 25

iii. Muhammad ~ the Messenger of Allah

Blessed with an ideal nature and a hatred of idolatry, Muhammad never

prostrated before Quraish's idols nor took part in any of their polytheistic
rituals. Instead he worshipped one God, in whatever manner he thought
best, his complete illiteracy precluding any knowledge of Jewish or Christian
practices.Soon the time was ripe for his commissionas Prophet and Messenger,
and Allah prepared him for this task gradually. First he started beholding
true visions. 52 He noticed a rock saluting him;53 he also observed the Archangel
Jibrll (Gabriel) calling him from the sky by his name," and observed a
light."
,"~'isha reports that the prelude of prophethood for Muhammad were
his perfect dreams: for six months he witnessed visions so accurate that they
seemed to materialise from the very fabric of reality. Then suddenly the first
revelation descended upon him while he was secluded in the cave of Hira';
Jibrll appeared before him and repeatedly asked him to read, countering
Muhammad's insistence that he was illiterate by continuing the same
demand, till at last he divulged to him the first verses of Sura al-'Alaq:56
rf-ll ~jj i)1 ,Q; ~ ~ ~ i .j1; ~1.j1; l$;J1 ~j ~~ i)1 fr
.,r" -- ",J ~ ".."...,~ 11 11",
57 L \~, ~;J
't ~ r-' L: ~
:, 'i~11 ~ !/f))..J,iJL
<,
'>{oj,;
~ l$jJl~;
,~
"Readin the name ofyour Lordand Cherisher, who created. Created man,
out of a leech-like clot. Proclaim! AndyourLordis Most Bount:jjUl. He Who
taught (the use qf) the Pen. Taught man that which heknew not. "

This was the first descent of the wahy (c.?J: revelation), the very beginning
of the Qur'an. -
And so, unexpectedly at the age of forty, Allah summoned Muhammad
with a simple message, sharply outlined and crystal clear: ~ illl ~l.Jl '1
ill\ J Y'.J ('There is no god except Allah, and Muhammad is His Messenger').
And with this he was given a living eternal miracle, something to satisfy
the intellect, capture the heart, and give rebirth to stifled souls: the Holy
Qur'an,

52 Ibn J:Iajar, Fathul Ban, i:19; al-Bukhari, SaI;z!;, Bad) al-WaJ:.1y:2.

53 Muslim, Sa!;z!;, Fac.la'il:2, p. 1782.
54 'Urwah b. az-Zubair, al-Maghiizl, compiled by M.M. al-A'zami, Maktab at-Tarbiya
al-'Arabia Liduwal al-Khalij, 1st edition, Riyad, 1401 (1981), p. 100.
55 Ibn Hajar; Fathul Ban, i:23.
56 Sura 96, see al-Bukhari, Sa!;z!;, Bad' al-Wahv
57 Qur'an 96:1-5.
26 THE HISTORY OF THE QUR'ANIC TEXT

iv. Abu Bakr and his Acceptance of Islam

The first man to embrace Islam outside the Prophet's family was Abu
Bakr ibn Quhafa (later nicknamed as-Siddiq), an experienced and well-
respected merchant, and a devoted friend of the Prophet. He asked him
one day, "Is it true what Quraish claims regarding you, 0 Muhammad?
That you have forsaken our gods, belittled our minds and disbelieved in
the ways of our forefathers?" 'Abu Bakr," he replied, "I am the Prophet of
Allah and His Messenger, I was sent to convey His message .... I call you
to Allah with the Truth, and it is for the Truth that I am calling you to Allah,
to the One Who has no associates. To worship none but Him, and to be
supportive of those who obey Him." He then recited to Abu Bakr some
verses from the Qur'an, which so captivated him that he forthwith announced
his conversion to Islam.t"
Besides being a highly respected merchant, Abu Bakr was also greatly
regarded within Quraish. Taking it on himself to further the message, he
began inviting to Islam all those he trusted among the people who frequented
his quarters, and many embraced it, including az-Zubair b. al-'Awwam,
'Uthrnan b. 'Affiin, Talha b. 'Uhaidullah, Sa'd b. Abi Waqqas and 'Abdul-
Rahman b. 'Auf Abu Bakr became the Prophet's staunchest supporter, his
faith standing him in good stead in every difficulty. In the case of the Prophet's
nocturnal journey to Bait al-Maqdis lJerusalem), some early followers could
not rationally accept this occurrence and deserted Islam. Makkah's poly-
theists, keen to seize this opportunity and divert Abu Bakr, goaded him
as to whether he believed that Muhammad journeyed toJerusalem by night,
returning to Makkah before dawn. He replied, "Yes, I believe it. I believed
an even stranger thing when he informed me that he was receiving revelations
from Heaven."59

v. The Prophet Preaches Openly

After three years of preaching in secret, the Prophet was ordered by Allah
to spread the word openly.
..... J."'~ "" "'''' .......... -; -:_.~." ,",JI,.. ."t ,,,,,,J. ... ., ""
J!-P 1~ [;,1 W U:iPI \.f' ~-rlj fY ,
.".,Jl ....

~ t~1.!
60 L r1ff'~
"'\ \\~;)j

58 Ibn Ishaq, as-Senwaal-Maghazr, the version of Ibn Bukair, p. 139. Here Abu Bakr's
questions do not mean that the Prophet once followed the way of the polytheists. It
simply means, 'Did you denounce openly?'
59 Ash-Shami, Subul al-Hudd, iii: 133.
60 Qur'an 15:94-95.
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 L.

Land, division of, between Goths and Romans, 337.

Landlord, dispute with, concerning lease, 339.
Landmarks, how preserved, 348;
penalty for destruction of, 348.
Law, what it is, 5;
its action, 5;
why made, 6;
when amended, at what time in force, 11;
all persons subject to, 12;
no one can allege ignorance of, 13;
penalty for criticizing, 16;
of foreign nations forbidden, 20.
Lawmaker, his method, 1;
duties, 2–3–4.
Leases, lands held under, must be restored, 338;
where a greater area of land cultivated than granted under,
338.
Lèse majesté, 19.
Lex Talionis, its provisions, 215.
Limitation, Statute of, 91–344;
claim for property cannot be asserted after fifty years, 343;
fugitive slave free after fifty years, 343;
suit cannot be brought after thirty years, 343;
runs in all cases except where slaves of the Crown are
concerned, 344;
does not run while party is absent, 346.
Litigant, may be chosen to act for others, 39;
must declare for whom he acts, 48.

M.

Marriage, must be accompanied by a dowry, 75;

father has right to dispose of children in, and mother, if he is
dead, 81;
when unlawful, 83;
 penalty for, 83;
with holy virgins or widows, incestuous, 107.
Master, where one marries a slave to a freewoman, 86;
may claim property of slave who is sold, 165;
responsible for illegal acts, 264.
Mayhem, what constitutes, penalty for, 225.
Merchant, foreign, where a, sells stolen property, 357;
shall be judged by his own magistrates, 357;
where a, carries away a hired person, 358;
where a, takes away a slave for trade, 358.
Mills and ponds, damage to, 296.
Minors, at what age can testify, 62;
cannot make contracts, 66;
definition of, 131;
suit against, 131.
Money, stolen from the king, 241.
Mother, entitled to share estate with children, 125.
Murder, of freeman, 222.

N.

Nuptial contract, cannot be rescinded when a gift is made, 77.

O.

Officer, where corrupted, permits soldiers to depart, 320;

where an, deserts, 321;
where an, returns home, 322;
where an, receives a bribe, 323.
Officials must not subject persons to unnecessary expense,
360.
Oppression in litigation, by parties in power, 52.
Orchards, enclosure of, 278.
Ordeal of hot water, how applied, 37.
Ox, where used without consent of owner, 287.

P.
Pardon, persons who have received, exempt from punishment,
18.
Parents, where rescue daughter from ravisher, 89;
where consent to rape, 90;
how inherit from children, 128;
what property, may bestow upon children at marriage, 140;
cannot sell or give away children, 163;
right to dispose of property where no children, 130.
Parricides, punishment of, 228;
distribution of property of, 228.
Parties, where they cause unnecessary delay, 33;
both may be compelled to be present in court, 41.
Partition, when made, remains in force forever, 334;
if made between brothers, may be revoked, 334;
wishes of majority rule in, 334;
among relatives of slaves, 340.
Patrons, gifts of, 158;
property acquired through, 158.
Perjury, effects of, 58;
penalty for, 58–59–60;
crime of and penalty, 230.
Personal property must all be classed under one title, 341.
Physician, cannot bleed a woman except her relatives are
present, 353;
shall not visit prisoners, 354;
where treats disease under contracts, 354;
compensation from student due to, 355;
cannot be imprisoned without a hearing, 355.
Pledges, when stolen, 177;
given as security for debt, 177;
where not restored, 178.
Poison, penalty for administering, 204.
Princes, cannot conduct their own cases in court, 47.
Property, illegally taken for a debt, 43;
of persons convicted of incest, 109;
given to husband or wife by king, 152;
given to wife in addition to dowry, 153;
 given verbally, or in writing, 154;
cannot be seized, except under legal process, 266;
which may not be alienated, 167;
where transferred while in litigation, 169;
loaned and destroyed by fire, 172;
where lost at sea, 173;
entrusted to a slave, 174;
reparation for, when injured or destroyed, 243.

Q.

Question, how may be inflicted, 194.

R.

Rape, 91;
of a freewoman, 88;
where brothers consent to, 90;
of betrothed woman, 90;
must be prosecuted within thirty years, 91;
by a slave, 92.
Ravisher, where killed, not criminal homicide, 91.
Relatives, cannot testify against a stranger, 62.
Rent, where tenant does not pay, 341.
Rescue of criminals, 244;
of cattle seized in crops, 280.
Retaliation, law of, 211;
amount due in lieu thereof, 212–213.
River, right to enclose, where bank cultivated, 295.
Robbers, where concealed by freeman or slaves, 316.
Robbery, accessories before the fact, 267;
committed while on an expedition, 267.
Royal order, penalty for contempt of, 36.

S.

Sale, void if made under compulsion, 160;

where price not paid after earnest money given, 160;
 where part of price paid, 161.
Sanctuary, where a homicide takes, 227;
one claiming, cannot be rescued by force, 331;
may be killed if resists with arms, 331.
Scandal, public, what course to be pursued in, 324.
Seduction, penalty for, 93.
Self defence, where assault committed, 215.
Sentence of court must be public, 252.
Shipwreck, property rescued from, 243.
Slave, not worthy of credit, 61;
when allowed to testify, 61;
when given in marriage to another, 85;
may be tortured to reveal adultery, 98;
may not be liberated to conceal adultery, 98;
of Church, if emancipated cannot marry a freeborn person,
150;
penalty for, 151;
free after thirty years, 347;
sales by, void, 164;
where accuses former master of crime, 165;
may not be redeemed with his own property, 166;
where transferred for crime, 167;
where captured and sold by an enemy, 169;
how liberated, 181;
where has several masters, consent of all must be had, 182;
how may be returned to slavery, 183;
liberation of royal, 188;
if a criminal, may be demanded, 193;
where a, insults a freeborn person, 216.
Sodomy, penalty for, 111.
Soil, fruits of, what may be demanded, 175.
Solidus, no one may refuse to accept a, of legal weight, 262.
Soothsayers, penalty for consulting, 203.
Stolen property, when bought ignorantly, 240;
knowingly, 241;
he in possession of, must name thief, 269.
Strays, when found, must be taken up and appraised, 281;
 where leave before driven out, 282;
if mutilated, penalty for, 282;
notice must be given, how, 301;
care of, 301;
must not be sheared or branded, 301.
Streams, right to enclose, 295.
Subornation of perjury, penalty for, 62.
Summons, penalty for refusal to obey, 25;
time within which must be obeyed, 26.
Sunday, no litigation lawful on, 21.

T.

Tenant, must pay rent for land sublet, 339.

Testator, cannot dispose of same property in two different ways,
72.
Testimony, must be furnished by both parties, 41.
Theft, when committed by a slave, 238;
by a freeman and slave, 239;
by a master with his slave, 239;
of mill machinery, 242.
Thief, how punished, 242;
where killed, not homicide, 243;
where killed at night, 243;
heirs of, 244;
when to be brought before the judge, 245.
Tombs, penalty for injury of, 356.
Tonsure, punishment of those who illegally assume, 108.
Torture, shall not be inflicted upon persons of noble birth, 49;
for what, and how inflicted, 194;
penalty for, if accused innocent, 194;
how slaves tortured, 196.
Traps for wild beasts, neighbors must be informed of, 292.
Traveler, where deprived of liberty, penalty for, 214.
Treason, penalty for, 17.
Trees, compensation for cutting down, 274;
where injury results from cutting, 275.
Trespass, vi et armis, penalty for, 264.
Trespasser, where one falls into a trap set for wild animals, 292.

V.

Vendor, if not of good character, must give security, 160.

Vineyards, where injured, penalty for, 276;
where planted on land of co-heirs, 336;
on land where no title, 336.

W.

Wards, when of legal age, 134.

Water, theft of, 296.
Widows, guilty of fraud, 109.
Wife, no right to earnings of slave under husband, 126.
Wills, how drawn up and executed, 67;
must be published within six months, 68;
how proved when made on a journey, 68;
must be published in the presence of a priest or a witness, 69;
how genuineness established, 71;
invalid if executed under duress, 72;
who are entitled to custody of, 176;
alteration of, 256;
forging of, 256;
nuncupative, 67;
holographic, 70.
Witchcraft, how punished, 204;
where employed against property, 205.
Witness, who may not be, 54;
must be sworn, 54;
where contradicted by documentary evidence, 54;
impeachment of, 59;
must sign or seal will, 67;
penalty for neglect, 68;
cannot testify to what is not in a will, 72.
Women, may conduct their own cases in court, 50;
cannot appoint an attorney, 50;
advanced in years cannot marry young men, 77–78;
where they marry slaves, 83–84–85;
must not marry within year of husband’s death, 83;
where, marry again in absence of husband, 86;
of bad character, 102;
entitled to share of entire estate, 123.

The End.
 FOOTNOTES:
[1] It must be remembered that under the Gothic polity, the
legislator, invariably a member of the ecclesiastical order, was
frequently called upon to exercise the exalted functions of the
judge. In some instances, the two officials had concurrent
jurisdiction; in others, the bishop was authorized to decide
questions of law and fact in the absence of the magistrate.
Especially was this the case where the interests of the Church
were, in any way, concerned. Hence arises the apparent
confusion of the duties of legislator and judge, in this and other
chapters of the Visigothic Code.—[Ed.]
[2] Preambles, such as the above, which are of frequent
occurrence in this body of laws, show unmistakably its
ecclesiastical origin, and the theocratic principles, which, at all
times, dominated those who framed it. The Mosaic Code alone,
among those of great antiquity, is constantly pervaded by similar
religious sentiments; which, emanating from the high authorities
of the Church, undoubtedly exerted great and beneficial influence
over an ignorant and superstitious people. Such additions to legal
enactments would seem strangely out of place at the present day.
—[Ed.]
[3] The first sentence of this chapter is directly at variance with
the maxim subsequently inculcated with such diligence by the
Church of Rome; through the rigid enforcement of which it long
maintained its despotic empire, and which it still regards as one of
the most important sources of its power: “Ignorance is the mother
of Devotion.”
It may be conjectured from the above, that the familiar legal
axiom, “Ignorantia legis neminem excusat,” already ancient, and
well established in the seventh century, is probably as old as the
law itself.—[Ed.]
[4] The Visigothic Councils, whose authority was presumed to
emanate from Heaven, and whose alleged sacred character
invested also, to a certain extent, the monarchs elected by them,
presumed to legislate for all coming time. Instances often occur
where future kings are declared to be bound irrevocably by the
acts of their predecessors, and by the decrees of the collected
wisdom and piety of the nation, represented by the ecclesiastical
assemblies of Toledo. Despite the solemn adjurations of prince
and prelate, however, few kings hesitated to repeal or abolish the
laws of their ancestors, when those laws either offended their
prejudices, or interfered with their ambition.
The manifest injustice and iniquity now recognized by nearly
all civilized nations as attaching to ex post facto laws, were not
appreciated by the Visigothic legislator, or sovereign. Laws were
frequently made retroactive, and were enforced with great
severity in cases affecting questions of religious belief, as well as
in those relating to the rights and privileges of the Crown.—[Ed.]
[5] Considering that the crown was elective; that the monarch
was only “Primus inter pares,” and that the subject had apparently
the right to sometimes admonish his sovereign of his errors, a
relic of the sturdy independence which characterized all northern
barbarians; the doctrine of lesé-majesté seems to have early
acquired great importance among the Visigoths, judging from the
severe penalties visited upon those guilty of the offence.—[Ed.]
[6] The coins principally in use among the Visigoths were
those of the Byzantine Empire at that epoch, as follows:—Gold,
The Libra, or pound, twelve ounces in weight, and divided into
seventy-two Tremisæ, or twenty-four Siliqæ; and Silver, The Libra,
containing twenty Solidi, and the Solidus, containing twenty
Denarii of copper. The smaller coins, of which there were many,
were those of ancient Rome, and of the Eastern Empire.
The Libra of gold was worth $368, and the one of silver worth
$88, or, at the present value of money, $4,048, and $968,
respectively. The Solidus ($56 gold, and $44 silver,) was the
standard coin in circulation.
The gold Tremisa was the only coin struck by the royal mints
during the Visigothic domination. Heavily alloyed, rude in design,
and coarse in execution, these clumsy medals disclose the
primitive conditions of the numismatic art of the period, being
notably inferior to the contemporary examples of Byzantine
coinage, themselves far below the artistic models of ancient
Rome.
The severe fines imposed under the Visigothic Code, and
whose non-payment generally involved the alternative of
perpetual servitude, often caused the financial ruin of the
offender.
 [7] Nothing in the whole system of the Visigoths is more
remarkable than the care with which they attempt to preserve the
integrity of the judiciary. It is not impossible that the notorious
corruption attending the dispensation of justice by the Roman
tribunals, in the days of the decadent Empire, may have prompted
the drastic legislation against judicial misconduct which is so
prominent a feature of the Code. The penalties in extreme cases
are but little inferior in severity to that said to have been imposed
by Cambyses; who flayed a corrupt judge, and placed his skin in
the judgment seat, as a suggestive warning to his successors. It
may well be presumed that, in the face of such punishment, the
acceptance of bribes was not a common vice among the
Visigothic magistrates. The latter did not receive regular salaries,
but were paid according to the work they performed; a regulation
which would appear, in some instances, rather calculated to
encourage, than to suppress litigation.—[Ed.]
[8] This chapter does not appear in the Castilian translation. It
is the only instance in the Visigothic Code where any ordeal is
permitted as a means of obtaining evidence of crime. The other
ordeals, subsequently so popular during the Middle Ages, and
employed not only in proceedings before judicial tribunals, but
also by the clergy to establish the existence of demoniacal
possession, do not seem to have been practised by, or even
known to, the Visigoths. Nor did they ever appeal to the wager of
battle, so congenial to the spirit of the pugnacious barbarian, and
which afterwards became one of the institutions of the age of
chivalry and feudalism.—[Ed.]
[9] “Decalvatio” was one of the most dreaded punishments
sanctioned by the Visigothic laws. The tonsure was itself
considered degrading, among a people who attached the highest
importance to a luxuriant growth of hair, even when, as a
distinctive mark of their calling, it was undergone by ecclesiastics;
and shaving the head, in the execution of a judicial sentence, was
often regarded as an indelible mark of infamy. There were several
degrees of this punishment, all of which did not entail the same
suffering and disgrace. In some cases, the hair was cut in the
form of a cross; in others, the head was entirely shaved. He who
was “turpiter decalvatus,” was scalped, and had the skin entirely
stripped from his head above the ears; a practice surpassing in
barbarity that peculiar to the American Indian. It was not unusual,
in the infliction of this cruel penalty, to include a portion, or even
all, of the skin of the forehead; thereby horribly disfiguring the
victim for life.—[Ed.]
[10] The mutual relations and liabilities of principal and agent,
and constituent and attorney, seem to have been well defined
among the Visigoths. The attorneys, “assertori,” referred to in the
Code, were, in reality, attorneys-in-fact. Strictly speaking, lawyers
(although the assertor appeared in court, and, to some extent,
exercised the functions of an attorney-at-law) did not exist among
the barbarians who had migrated from the Euxine and the
Danube, and by whom members of the legal profession were
looked upon with both suspicion and hatred. It is said that Alaric,
by way of mockery, cut out the tongue of a distinguished Roman
advocate who fell into his hands. In the Visigothic tribunals each
party stated and argued his own case; and, where an attorney
was appointed, every precaution was taken to prevent the
exertion of that insensible, but none the less weighty, influence
which everywhere attaches to the possession of superior wealth,
rank and power. The effect of written instruments delegating
authority to agents of various kinds, was also well understood,
and their validity was insured by the attestation of reputable
witnesses.—[Ed.]
[11] Branding was a penalty rarely imposed under the
Visigothic system, and was deemed especially infamous on
account of it being reserved for crimes involving unusual
turpitude. He who was “notatus infamia” was deeply burned upon
the forehead with a red-hot iron, which left an ineffaceable scar.
Few offences were more detested by the Visigoths than perjury.—
[Ed.]
[12] There were various degrees of slavery recognized by the
Visigoths. Slaves in the service of the Crown were often highly
educated and accomplished for that age; exercised important and
responsible employments at court; enjoyed many privileges, and
were exempt from many restrictions ordinarily attaching to the
servile condition. They were rather serfs than bondsmen; and
could themselves own, and, under certain conditions, dispose of,
slaves: a singular anomaly which could hardly exist, for any
length of time, in a thoroughly civilized state. While the Roman
master, under the law, was invested with absolute control over his
slave, even to the extent of putting him to death, the Visigoth
could exert no such irresponsible power. The worst features of the
Roman System, rendered necessary where slaves existed in
immense numbers, were rejected by the Visigoths, who
displayed, in this instance, far more humanity than their polished
and corrupt predecessors. Among them the Roman legal axiom,
“Partus sequitur ventrem,” did not exclusively prevail; as the
children followed the condition of the father as well as that of the
mother. In both the Roman and the Visigothic codes the slave
was considered as devoid of all personality; and was merely a
chattel, with which debts and other obligations could be
discharged, as with any other article of portable property. The
servus idoneus, or slave of superior rank, was distinguished for
his ability and integrity, or for the confidence reposed in him by his
master; the servus vilis was ignorant, debased, and frequently
criminal. In the infliction of penalties, a distinction was made
between the individuals belonging to these two classes, and
always in favor of the former. Freeborn persons who, by the
sentence of the law, were reduced to slavery, a common
occurrence under the Visigothic system, and a penalty from which
tyrannical and corrupt judges were not exempt, were designated
mancipia. Slaves belonging to the Church were generally of a
high order of ability and trustworthiness, like those who were the
property of the Crown. The owner was made liable in damages
for any injury committed by his slave; as the latter not being a
person, and still less a free agent, was legally presumed to be
under the control of his master, who, consequently, was
responsible for his acts. The Visigothic Code in comparison with
others, protects the rights of slaves with great impartiality, and
often treats their minor offences with marked indulgence.—[Ed.]
[13] This is probably the first instance on record, of a law
authorizing the taking of depositions. It will be observed that no
provision is made for the service of notice on the other party to
the suit. The art of cross-examination does not seem to have
been either recognized, or practised, by the Visigothic tribunals.
The rigid investigation by the judge, who examined all witnesses,
was presumed to be amply sufficient to elicit the truth—[Ed.]
[14] In the words of the text, “pari simul sententia falsarii
teneantur.” Subornation of perjury was, as will be seen from the
above, placed in the same category with perjury. The penalty for
the latter crime varied with the social status of the culprit, from the
loss of the fourth of his property, to scourging, and perpetual
servitude. See Book VII, Title V, Chapter II.—[Ed.]
 [15] A large part of the preceding Book has been borrowed
from the Roman jurisprudence, and some of it is older than the
Twelve Tables. It is hardly necessary to remark that the
intelligence and experience of semi-barbarians are unequal to the
task of the framing, construction, and execution of enactments
relating to the enforcement of civil obligations, and the
testamentary disposition of property, as set forth in these
chapters. The power to distrain, referred to in Chapter VIII as
effecting the property of a surety for a debt, is a remedy whose
origin antedates all history. It was the pignoris captio of the
Romans, among whom it was a summary proceeding, undertaken
without previous application to a judicial tribunal. It was
supplemented by the manus injectio, or seizure of the person of a
debtor or wrongdoer; followed by his subjection to hard labor, and
often to cruel treatment, until the unpaid claim was satisfied, or
the tort he had committed, had, in the opinion of the injured party,
been sufficiently punished. This form of execution was much used
by the Visigoths, and its severity was somewhat modified by their
laws; but while its most oppressive features were eliminated,
enough remained to render the proceeding liable to great abuse.
The rules relating to the execution, attestation and proof of
wills and other legal documents, contained in the Forum Judicum
were, for the most part, derived from the Codes of Theodosius
and Justinian. The provisions governing nuncupative and
holographic testaments are very similar in all these collections.
The will made by a traveller or a soldier, while on a journey or
absent in the service of the government, is merely the peculium
castrense, or military will of the Roman legionary. Codicils,
introduced by the laws of Justinian, were unknown to the
Visigoths.—[Ed.]
[16] The crime of rape was considered by the Visigothic
legislator in the original and broader acceptation of the term, and
not according to the more limited significance attaching to it at the
present day. It included, therefore, the offences of abduction and
kidnapping; all survivals of practices observed by mankind in their
natural condition; one of whose customs, marriage by capture,
still prevails among certain barbarous nations. By the Visigoths,
as by the Romans, rape, theft, and some other crimes, were
classed as private wrongs, to be expiated by the infliction of
personal vengeance. For this reason, the ravisher was delivered
up to the tender mercies of the relatives of the victim; or, reduced
to servitude, he was compelled to serve the latter for life.—[Ed.]
 [17] The Statute of Limitations could be pleaded in few crimes,
under the Visigothic Code, and especially was this true where the
defendant had been guilty of what we would call a felony. The
reason for its adoption in this instance is obscure, and this law
may have been enacted for some special purpose, or to fit some
particular case; retroactive legislation being common under the
Visigothic Monarchy. In all other laws published under this Title,
marriage between the parties is not only absolutely prohibited, but
every precaution is taken to make it impossible. As the former
decrees and enactments are not stated to have been abrogated
by the promulgation of the above-mentioned law, its application
and enforcement would seem to have been difficult, to say the
least. Such conflicting legislation was, however, not unusual
under the polity of the Visigoths.—[Ed.]
[18] No one can doubt that, under such conditions, it was “fully
satisfied.” This is another instance where the punishment of a
personal injury was regarded, not as an offence against the
community, and a breach of good morals, but as a case
demanding private retribution, as is specifically stated in the law
itself.
The distinctions between the crimes of rape, adultery and
fornication, as now established, are not clearly set forth in the
Visigothic Code. Intercourse with a widow is designated adultery.
The rape of a woman of any condition, is frequently called
adultery with violence. The excessively harsh penalties
prescribed for such offences, and which, as a rule, were only
limited by the caprice or compassion of the party injured, are a
relic of the customs of the Northern barbarians, with whom female
chastity was as much the rule as, on the other hand, it was the
exception among the warmer-blooded nations of Southern
Europe. Most of the laws relating to crimes against women are
termed “ancient,” showing their derivation from a remote antiquity,
or Roman origin.—[Ed.]
[19] The extraordinary leniency shown by this law to
ecclesiastical culprits, as compared with laymen guilty of the
same offence, openly displays the bias of the legislative power.
There was one rule for the priest, and another, and a very
different one, for his parishioners. It will be noted, also, that no
provision is made for the punishment of the higher clergy; while it
was notorious that the bishops and metropolitans were the
greatest of all offenders, where women were concerned. As they
framed the laws which governed the people, and were presumed
to receive their inspiration from heaven, they naturally came to
regard themselves as above their own decrees, and not liable to
their penalties and restrictions. The dissolute character of the
priesthood in those times, and long subsequently, is well known to
every student of history. The indulgence with which the bishop
was accustomed to regard the failings of his subordinates is
disclosed by the fine imposed upon him for neglect to discipline
the former. No mercy is shown to the women involved, and, what
is unusual, no distinction is made where the latter belong to
different castes, or stations in society. It is probable that this law,
so far as the punishment of the clergy was concerned, “was more
honor’d in the breach than the observance.”—[Ed.]
[20] The right of dower, established by the Visigothic Code, is
Roman in origin. It was derived from the bestowal of the dowry,
“res uxorica,” which was an almost indispensable part of every
marriage contract, and with which it is sometimes now
confounded. While, under the Roman law, the dowry was given
by the intended wife or her relations to the intended bridegroom,
or to some member of his family, with the Visigoths it came from
the bridegroom, and represented, in fact, the purchase money
paid for the bride; a survival of the ancient barbarian custom of
marriage by purchase, just as the wedding-ring is symbolical of
the presumed subordination of the wife to her husband, a
ceremony whose purpose, as well as significance, have both long
since been forgotten.
Both the rights of dower and curtesy, as defined by the legal
polity of the Visigoths, it will be seen, are practically the same as
they now exist under the laws of England, and of those of many of
the States of the Union. Considering the lapse of time, the
differences of race and religion, the wide divergence of political
systems, and the antagonistic character of many of the social
usages observed during epochs separated by thirteen centuries,
this fact is very remarkable. While the wife had a right to the use
of half of the deceased husband’s property during her lifetime, he
had a right to the use of only one third of hers, as he has to-day.
The favor generally shown to the wife in the stipulations of the
marriage contract, are largely the result of the independence
enjoyed by the sex under Teutonic and Scandinavian customs.—
[Ed.]
 [21] There is some ambiguity in this and in the preceding
chapter, growing out of the use of the term pupillus in the text; it
denoting indiscriminately, minor, ward, and orphan. The
provisions would apply with equal propriety to any or all of these,
but it is most probable that minors alone were intended to be
designated.—[Ed.]
[22] As the law of primogeniture, so popular with mediæval
and modern nations, was not recognized by the Roman
jurisprudence, so it was also rejected by the Visigothic legislator.
The testamentary distribution of estates under the Code was
governed by far more equitable principles than obtain, even in our
time, among many peoples who have enjoyed, for centuries, the
experience and advantages of a highly developed civilization.
While the testator was, for the most part, unhampered in the final
disposition of his property, he could not disinherit any of his
children without just cause, and that cause was required to be
specifically stated in his will. Where children or grandchildren
shared equally in the estate of their parents or grandparents, all
cause for family dissensions on account of favoritism or undue
influence, was absolutely removed. As it was provided by law that
the estate of the decedent must descend in the direct line, to the
exclusion of stepchildren, another source of dissatisfaction and
temptation to fraudulent interference with the rights of the next of
kin was permanently disposed of.
The interests of all heirs were jealously guarded. Even the
dowry of the wife, peculiarly her own property, as it represented
the purchase price paid for her by her husband, could not be
alienated, to the prejudice of her children. The dutiful conduct of
the latter was insured by the law which declared all their rights in
the estates of their parents to be forfeited, in case they were guilty
of gross insult or violence toward the former. In the case of wards
and minors, there is probably no body of laws which protects with
more solicitude the interests and property of such helpless
beings, than do the provisions of the Visigothic Code.—[Ed.]
[23] This decree, promulgated about 660, is one of the first of
the statutory declarations recognizing the principle of mortmain.
The Codes of both Theodosius and Justinian contained similar,
but far less sweeping provisions relating to the acquisition of
property by the Church; but these were concerned, for the most
part, with bequests. From the nature of the case, however, in the
organization and perpetuation of ecclesiastical societies, custom
and necessity must early have rendered real property inalienable
by bodies which never die; and which are encouraged to add to
their wealth by every expedient, honorable and dishonorable, but
are prohibited by tradition, policy, and legal enactment from
conveying their possessions to the laity.—[Ed.]
[24] Priests and deacons, under the Visigothic ecclesiastical
system, which, it must not be forgotten, was at all times practically
independent of papal authority, were permitted to marry; as were
their Arian predecessors. Such a union, however, was subject to
certain restrictions. It could only be entered into once; the bride
had to be a virgin; and where the husband was raised to a higher
dignity in the Church he was compelled to, at once, repudiate his
wife. The marriage itself was an impediment to promotion, as
priests without families were much more sure to rise in their
profession than those who had contracted marital obligations.—
[Ed.]
[25] The holding of a plurality of livings by a single
ecclesiastic, an abuse which, in after times, assumed such
gigantic proportions under papal rule, especially in England,
where, by reason of the hardships it produced, it promoted in no
small degree the progress of the Reformation, was scarcely
known to the Arian, or Catholic clergy of Spain. The enjoyment of
the revenues of one, or a greater number of benefices by a
layman, no matter how wealthy or powerful the latter might be—a
custom elsewhere so prevalent—was not provided for by the
sacerdotal legislature of the Visigoths in their Code of laws; for
the reason, no doubt, that such a thing was deemed too
improbable for serious consideration.—[Ed.]
[26] The institution of patron and libertus, or client, adopted by
the Visigoths almost without alteration, dates back to the primitive
ages of Rome. The regulation was recognized by the Law of the
Twelve Tables, and was modified by various enactments during
the eras of the Republic and the Empire. Its survival, during all the
vicissitudes attending the Roman domination, attests its peculiar
adaptability to the national character, and to the political and
social organization of the people who established it. It presents a
greater analogy to the Highland clan than to any other modern
institution, although marked and radical differences exist between
the two; the strongest resemblance being in the devoted
allegiance due to both the patronus and the chieftain. By the
ordinary act of manumission the slave became a libertus or
freedman; a term of much more limited significance than it has at
present. The former master then became the protector and
guardian of his freedman; and, in return for this protection, the
latter was bound to perform certain duties, which he could not
evade without the reproach of ingratitude, and the certainty of
punishment. One of these obligations was that of military service,
which differed from those subsequently required by the law of the
Feudal System, only in that it was not especially rendered as a
condition for the tenure of a fee. The relation of patron and client,
which, under the Romans, could only be dissolved between
individuals by death, or by the loss of his freedom by the client for
misconduct or insolence, was not so strictly observed among the
Visigoths. Under their system, the freedman had a right to transfer
his allegiance to another patron; an act which caused the
forfeiture to his former master, of at least half his property. Not
only individuals, but churches, and municipal bodies, could
exercise patronal rights. While the term client was generally
applied by both nations to a manumitted slave, it had in fact, a
much broader meaning; and denoted any person who voluntarily
placed himself under the care or supervision of another of
superior rank or power. This institution had more influence in
preserving and perpetuating the distinctions of caste—that most
pernicious and fatal of evils which cause the disintegration of
nations and overthrow of governments—than any other arbitrary
and oppressive regulation of ancient times.
[27] Among the clients owing services to a patron, were the
buccelarii, who derived their appellation from the buccela, or
ration, furnished them. They may be designated “bailiffs,” as their
duties resembled, in many respects, those of the Spanish
alguazil. They formed part of the armed retinue of the patron,
accompanied him to war, and guarded his property in times of
revolution and disorder.—[Ed.]
[28] The irresponsible, and more than despotic authority
vested by the Roman laws in the father over the son, was
thoroughly repugnant to the Visigothic conception of justice and
freedom, which had been transmitted through many generations
of barbarian ancestors. The Roman father not only possessed the
power of life and death over his children, but had the undisputed
right to sell them into slavery. The parental and filial relation was
hedged about with such restrictions that it was almost impossible
to sever it during life. By the law of the Twelve Tables a son could
not be free, unless he had been sold as a slave and manumitted,
three times. His reduction to a condition of servitude carried with it
many civil disabilities which could never be removed. The
independence of a son of his father’s control rendered his
inheritance of the parental estate impossible. These oppressive
regulations were either greatly modified, or entirely abrogated, by
the more equitable policy of Visigothic legislation. In the case of
female children also, under the latter system, principles more
consonant with ideas of justice prevailed. The emancipation of the
sex from arbitrary restraint also made great progress, when it is
remembered that a woman, no matter what her age or position,
was always considered by the Romans to be in a condition of
tutelage.—[Ed.]
[29] This affords curious and instructive information as to the
cost of books in the seventh century. The silver solidus is meant,
as, where any coin referred to is of gold, the fact is always stated
in the Forum Judicum. As the solidus was nominally worth $4.00
of our money, but in reality $44.00, taking into consideration the
difference of values at that and the present time, it will be seen
that the price fixed by law, of a copy of the Visigothic Code, was
$17,600.00. This appears incredible, but it must be borne in mind
that all books were in manuscript; that few persons were qualified
to write them; and, as ignorance was almost universal, the
demand for literature was extremely limited. The preparation of a
literary work was then a formidable and expensive undertaking.
Most of the books of that age, and, indeed, for centuries
subsequently, were of a religious character, such as missals,
fabulous chronicles of the Church, and spurious and imaginary
biographies of saints. Making the sale of a collection of laws at a
price above a certain sum a penal offence, punishable with the
scourge, is an example of crime unique among the mala
prohibita.—[Ed.]
[30] Twelve and a half per cent was the ordinary rate; but, in
some instances, it was much higher. The law against usury was
habitually violated by the Jews, who extorted enormous rates of
interest both from individuals and from the Crown.—[Ed.]
[31] All the laws relating to bailments, included under this and
the preceding Title, are of ancient origin; that is, borrowed, almost
without change, from the Roman jurisprudence. The responsibility
of the bailee for property entrusted to him, is determined by the
same principles which experience and a sense of equity, in all
ages, have demonstrated to be just and expedient, and which