📘 ❞ VARIANT READINGS OF THE QUR AN A CRITICAL STUDY OF THEIR HISTORICAL AND LINGUISTIC ORIGINS ❝ كتاب ــ احمد على الامام اصدار 1998

عن كتاب VARIANT READINGS OF THE QUR AN A CRITICAL STUDY OF THEIR HISTORICAL AND LINGUISTIC ORIGINS:
This book has multiple significance and is related to diverse fields of
interest. Therefore, its subject occupies a distinctive place in the field of
Qur'anic studies in particular, and Islamic studies in general. Moreover,

this is a subject that, at times transcends the field of essential or funda-
mental Islamic studies and moves into the sphere of subjects like language,

rhetoric, and logic.
There are a number of possible approaches to deal with this subject,
and it is essential to distinguish between them and then to choose the best.
For example, one may study the relationship between the Quran and the
Sunnah of the Prophet; the essential differences between the Book and the
Sunnah; the Arabic language and its capacity for expressing, with power,

divine revelation; the extent to which the human tongue is capable of deal-
ing with a language that served as a conduit for the Divine, in terms of the

ease or difficulty of pronunciation or understanding; or its capacity to deal

with, and to comprehend, the changes that inevitably occur in the organi-
zation, style, expressiveness, and illimitability of languages.

Some of the most important issues to be dealt with in this field have
come to us through hadith narrations of varying degrees of authenticity (or
the lack thereof), particularly those concerning the plurality of Qur'anic
recitations, the ways that these were passed down, and the relative renown
of each. Witness, for example, the hadith concerning the "seven letters"
and the many different narrations in its support. Thus, it is fitting that our
approach to this book be the study of the relationship between the Blessed

Book and the Sunnah of the Prophet. In doing so, I hope that I may pro-
vide a framework from which to read and understand this book appropri-
ately.

Imam Shafi'i defined the relationship between the Book and the

Sunnah in a very precise manner, though most scholars, owing to their pre-
occupation with jurisprudence, have not paid attention to the subtleties in

his definition. Thus, most interpretations of Imam Shafi'i's definition of
that relationship are less than satisfactory. In his work on jurisprudence, AI

Risa/iih, Imam Shafi'i explained the place of the Sunnah in terms of eluci-
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dation, or bayan. As such, the Sunnah represents one form among many
that brings lucidity to the Qur'an. At times, the Qur'an is perfectly clear,
immediately apparent, and requires no further elucidation. At other times,
the meaning of its verses is explained by other verses, or the meaning is

interpreted over the course of time. In most instances, however, the mean-
ing is clarified by means of the Sunnah, either by word or in deed. This is

because the basic function of the Sunnah is to elucidate. Furthermore, the
elucidator is subservient to the elucidated which, in this case, equates with
the text of the Qur'an.

Imam Shafi'i affirmed that the Qur'anic text occupies the highest pos-
sible place and that nothing can compare or compete with it (in terms of

its significance) other than something that is equal to it (i.e., another verse
from the Qur'an). He then went on to generate a number of particular
instances from this principle, although owing to their intricacies, many of

these, too, were misunderstood. Then, given his understanding of the rela-
tionship, and his limiting the concept of "text" or na$$ to the Qur'an alone,

A book, in pdf format, written by Ahmed Ali Al-Imam, a serious critical and critical studies that dealt with the various readings of the Holy Qur'an, and the author highlights their historical and linguistic origins.

The book begins by talking about the seven letters, and in the second chapter it talks about the codification of the Holy Quran, how it was formed in the era of Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, and how it was in the era of Uthman ibn Affan may Allah be pleased with him.

The third chapter talks about the development of the Ottoman Koran, chapter four and fifth on the language of the Holy Quran, and then speaks in chapter six about the origin of the various readings of the Holy Quran, and concludes with an important chapter on selection and weighting in the issue of readings.