Definition of al-Qur'an

[KashifN]

assalaamu alaikum

Did anyone ever take the Ulum ul-Qur'an class with the AOU? My notes are packed away at the moment and i wonder if anyone can recall the definition of "al-Qur'an." The parts i can remember are:

1) That which was revealed upon the Prophet Muhammad
2) through the medium of the trustworthy Angel Jibreel
.
.
.
.
x-1) And which begins with al-Fatiha and ends with an-Naas
x) And whose recitation is considered an act of worship.

jazakallahu khair

Kashif
Wa Salaam

the book revealed to Prophet Muhammad (SAW) in the Arabic language; the miraculous; set up for challenge; the one by which Allah is worshiped; transmitted to us thru chains of Tawatur (abundant number of narrators), which starts with Fatiha and ends with surah Anas

This is the defnition we learned in The Code Evolved class from Sheikh Yasir Birjas

[KashifN]

assalaamu alaikum

jazakallahu khair, that fills in some more of the gaps.

1) That which was revealed upon the Prophet Muhammad
2) through the medium of the trustworthy Angel Jibreel
3) which has been transmitted in a mutawatir form
.
.
x-1) which begins with al-Fatiha and ends with an-Naas
x) and whose recitation is considered an act of worship.

I think there were one or two other things mentioned (i don't remember the 'miraculous' and 'setup for challenge' bit in the definition given to me).

[bintMunir]

You just need the Shariah meaning?

The lexical meaning was "That which is recited and that which gathers."

sister sarah, i had the knee jerk reaction you did!

brother kashif, it's been a while since i took the class with AOU, but i went back and heard the first tape by Ali Tamimi on it

so, here is the specific definition you wanted according to that particular class:

1. Allah's inimitable speech (i'jaz-miraculous nature not reproducible by created)
2. sent down upon the seal of the Prophets and Messengers, Muhammad ibn Abdullah, sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam
3. through the intermediary of the Trustworthy Spirit: Angel Jibrael 'alaihissalam
4. as found written in the scriptures-musahif (meaning the scriptures we have today are exactly what were the original from Allah that have been preserved)
5. transmitted through mutawatir chains of narration
6. the recitation of which is permissible for use in acts of worship (this is slightly different than what you have)
7. and which begins with Suratul Fatiha and ends with Suratun Nas

again, there are different definitions which are similar/overlap/complement one another, but this is the specific one mentioned in the lecture by Ali Tamimi in the Sciences of the Quran course at AOU

Jazakallah for the review!

[KashifN]

assalaamu alaikum

sister fatimahye,
jazakillahu khair, it was exactly Sh. Ali's definition that i was looking for.

[KashifN]

assalaamu alaikum

OK next question. Can anyone give me an example of two different qira'at in which the wording in a verse changes, which adds to/explains the meaning of the verse?

I don't think this was discussed in the AOU lecture though.

Kashif
Wa Salaam

[KashifN]

assalaamu alaikum

jazakallahu khair again. Just what i needed.

Kashif
Wa Salaam

Originally Posted by KashifN

OK next question. Can anyone give me an example of two different qira'at in which the wording in a verse changes, which adds to/explains the meaning of the verse?

so how many questions are on this exam? j/k

may Allah grant you success in your studies

[KashifN]

assalaamu alaikum

Not for an exam - i just wanted a recap on the topic, but all my books are packed away.