Chapter One : The Noble Qur’an is the Only Source in Islam
1) The Qur’an is the only book for the Muslim.
2) The Qur’an hasn’t left anything out.
Some of us make easy work of believing in books other than the Qur’an and reverentially equating them to the holy Qur’an. Some of us see that belief in the Qur’an alone is enough, but see no harm in believing in other books with the Qur’an which the imams wrote and ascribed to the prophet (peace be upon him!). However, if we were to reflect on the mighty words of God in the honourable Qur’an, we would become sure that the Qur’an is the only book to which the Muslim must hold fast to the exclusion of other books. We would also become sure that the Qur’an is not in need of these human authored books; for the Qur’an has left nothing out, and it came down clarifying everything, and in it came the details of everything needed in clarity and precision.
The Qur’an is a reminder, it is wisdom, and it leads to the straight path. It is the truth in which there is no doubt. And in the end, the Qur’an is the only source in Islam, this is what should be. Let us now review the verses of God in this subject.
1) The Qur’an is the only book for the Muslim.
– There is no god but God, and there is no book for the Muslim except the Qur’an, the Book of God.
God the Almighty has said, “…There is none beside Him as Lord and Master, and He never permits any partners to share in His kingship. You shall recite what is revealed to you of your Lord’s scripture. Nothing shall abrogate His words, and you shall not find any other source beside it. (18:26-27).” Thus, God alone is the Lord and Master who never permits any partners to share in His kingship; the Qur’an is the only book that was revealed to the prophet, nothing shall abrogate its words, and the prophet didn’t find another book other than the Qur’an to which he referred. The prophet didn’t find other than God as a god and lord. “Say, “No one can protect me from God, nor can I find any other refuge besides Him. (72:22)” The prophet, too, didn’t have a source to which to refer except the Qur’an, “You shall recite what is revealed to you of your Lord’s scripture. Nothing shall abrogate His words, and you shall not find any other source beside it. (18:27).” If the prophet himself referred only to the Qur’an, then what of us ourselves?
– God is sufficient for the believer as a lord, and the Qur’an is sufficient as a book.
With regard to God Almighty being enough for the believer as a lord, He says “Is God not sufficient for His servant?... (39:36)” God alone is the creator, and God alone is the provider/sustainer, “…Is there any creator other than God who provides for you from the heaven and the earth?... (35:3)” For this reason, The Almighty must suffice the believer as a lord “Say, “Shall I seek other than God as a lord, when He is the Lord of all things?”... (6:164)”
So long as God is sufficient enough for the Believer as a lord, then so too is the Book of God sufficient enough for guidance and legislation, The Almighty says “Is it not enough of a miracle that we sent down to you this book, being recited to them?... (29:51).”
It should be noticed that the honourable verses which concern God’s being sufficient as a lord, and the Quran as a book, all take the form of questioning in the negative, that is, negating those who take gods with God and books alongside the Book of God. The Lord of Might has made clear that the Quran is enough, and that it is a mercy and reminder for the believers, “Is it not enough of a miracle that we sent down to you this book, being recited to them? This is indeed a mercy and a reminder for people who believe. (29:51).” It is from God’s mercy on us that He imposed on us one book, which is easy to understand, it’s protected from edition, and He made it plain and clear. It has a beginning and an end, and it doesn’t ask us to refer to other books authored by humans who are just like us, and who are capable of making mistakes, forgetfulness, susceptible to prejudice, and even disobey. Moreover, these books contradict one another, and there is neither a beginning to their books nor an end.
– The Qur’an is the truth in which there is no doubt, and all else is conjecture, and conjecture should not be followed.
The Almighty speaks on the Qur’an: “This scripture is infallible; a beacon for the righteous. (2:2)” The Qur’an has no scope for doubt or uncertainty, the facts of the Qur’an are absolute, and the authors of all other books admit that the truth of the facts therein are relative which are likely to be true or false; and anything which is likely to be either true or false is classed as conjecture. The true religion of God is not based on anything except certain truth in which there is no doubt, so that humans will not have a case against God on the Day of Resurrection. For this reason, God has assured the protection of His Book from any human edition or ineffectuality, “Absolutely, we have revealed the reminder, and, absolutely, we will preserve it. (15:9)” The Almighty says with regard to His wise Book, “Those who have rejected the Qur’an’s proof when it came to them, have also rejected an Honorable book. No falsehood could enter it, in the past or in the future; a revelation from a Most Wise, Praiseworthy. (41:41-42)”
As to more inferior human religions, they are highly susceptible to conjecture and doubt. For this reason, He commands us to follow the truth in which there is no doubt, and to avoid assumptions which arise from conjecture. The Almighty says concerning assumptions which arise from conjecture, “…Those who set up idols beside God are really following nothing. They only think that they are following something. They only guess. (10:66)” The Almighty also says concerning legislation based on conjecture, “The idol worshipers say, “Had God willed, we would not practice idolatry, nor would our parents, nor would we prohibit anything.” Thus did those before them disbelieve, until they incurred our retribution. Say, “Do you have any proven knowledge that you can show us? You follow nothing but conjecture; you only guess. (6:148)” The Almighty says comparing following truth and following conjecture, “Most of them follow nothing but conjecture, and conjecture is no substitute for the truth… (10:36).” The same phrase is used in chapter 53, “… They follow conjecture, and personal desire, when the true guidance has come to them herein from their Lord. (53:23)”, “…They only conjectured. Conjecture is no substitute for the truth. (53:28).”
God The Great speaks truth! “Conjecture is no substitute for the truth.”
However, the problem is that the great majority of humans disregard the truth and follow conjecture, The Almighty says speaking to the honourable prophet, “If you obey the majority of people on earth, they will divert you from the path of God. They follow only conjecture; they only guess. (6:116)” Our problem, as Muslims, is that we believe the scholars of hadith[1] who assure [us] that the great majority of hadith attributed to the prophet (peace upon him!) are dependent by virtue of their being handed down from generation to generation with accuracy. However, they admit that [these ahadith] can contain conjecture, and not complete certainty. In spite of this, some of [those scholars] instruct us to follow conjecture even though it is no substitute for truth.
May God guide us to the straight path!
Attention should be drawn to the fact that God Almighty has described His Exalted Self that He is The Truth, and He described the bringing down of the Qur’an ‘with truth’, and He described the Qur’an itself as being the truth. Concerning God’s describing truth, He, The Truth, says, “Such is God, your rightful Lord. What is there after the truth, except falsehood? … (10:32)”, and “This proves that God is the truth, while any idol they set up beside Him is falsehood… (31:30)”. Concerning the Qu’an’s being brought down ‘in truth’, The Almighty says, “Truthfully, we sent it down, and with the truth it came down… (17:105)”. Concerning the description of the Qur’an that it is the truth, The Almighty says “What we revealed to you in this scripture is the truth… (35:31)”, and “Absolutely, this is the narration of the truth… (3:62)”. Indeed, God Almighty describes the Qur’anic truth as being the absolute certain truth, He says “This is the absolute truth. (56:95)”, and “Surely, it is the absolute truth. (69:51).” So, if God has endowed us with the truth, then how can we take hearsay alongside it, [especially seeing that] there is no scope for conjecture in the true religion?
– The Qur’an is the only hadith in which we must believe.
God Almighty has described the Quran as hadith, and He challenged the polytheists to bring a hadith like it, The Almighty says “Do they say, “He made it all up?” Instead, they are simply disbelievers. Let them produce a Hadith like this, if they are truthful. (52:33-34)”. He described the Qur’an as the best hadith “God has revealed herein the best Hadith; a book that is consistent, and points out both ways (to Heaven and Hell). The skins of those who reverence their Lord cringe there from, then their skins and their hearts soften up for God’s message. Such is God’s guidance; He bestows it upon whoever wills (to be guided)… (39:23)”. So, if God Almighty has honoured us with the best hadith, then why should we take other hadith in its place?
Our Lord has made it clear that all truth is [found] in the hadith of God, i.e. the Qur’an, “…Whose hadith[2] is more truthful than God’s? (4:87).” God Almighty has threatened those who lie about His hadith in the Qur’an, “Therefore, let Me deal with those who reject this Hadith; we will lead them on whence they never perceive. (68:44)”. Our Lord has confirmed that faith is not to be placed in anything other than His hadith, i.e. the Qur’an, He says at the end of chapter 77, “Which Hadith, other than this, do they uphold? (77:50).” The same meaning was repeated when He said “Have they not looked at the dominion of the heavens and the earth, and all the things God has created? Does it ever occur to them that the end of their life may be near? Which Hadith, beside this, do they believe in? (7:185).”
This is an open invitation for us to reflect before the inevitable appointed time comes to pass. Indeed, God Almighty has made faith in the Qur’an alone equal to believing in Him alone. Just as one should not believe except in the hadith of the Qur’an alone, then, so too, one should not believe except in God alone. And just as the believer suffices in God alone, then, so too, is the hadith of theQur’an sufficient as hadith. Such ideas have been conveyed in His saying, “These are God’s revelations that we recite to you truthfully. In which Hadith other than God and His revelations do they believe? Woe to every fabricator, guilty. The one who hears God’s revelations recited to him, then insists arrogantly on his way, as if he never heard them. Promise him a painful retribution. (45:6-8).” This refers to he who turns away from God’s verses, and instead holds fast to hadith other than the Qur’an, which the Qur’an [itself has] called ‘baseless hadith’, The Almighty says “Among the people, there are those who uphold baseless Hadith, and thus divert others from the path of God without knowledge, and take it in vain. These have incurred a shameful retribution. And when our revelations are recited to the one of them, he turns away in arrogance as if he never heard them, as if his ears are deaf. Promise him a painful retribution. (31:6-7).” And when The Lord of Might says “Among the people,” He establishes the fact that this verse is applicable to any community, in any time, and at any place.
– The written revelation which came down to the messenger consists of chapters and verses of the Qur’an only.
God has challenged the polytheists to produce a single chapter like the Qur’an, “If you have any doubt regarding what we revealed to our servant, then produce one sura like these… (2:23),” and “If they say, “He fabricated it,” say, “Then produce one sura like these…” (10:38).” This evidence shows that what God Almighty revealed to the honourable messenger consists of chapters (suwar), and there are no chapters except in the Qur’an. So, the Qur’an is the only written revelation which came down to the messenger (peace upon him!).
– On the Day of Judgment, people will be questioned about their faith in the Qur’an.
On The Day of Resurrection The Almighty will say, “O you jinns and humans, did you not receive messengers from among you, who narrated to you My revelations, and warned you about the meeting of this day?… (6:130).” Thus, the messengers used to narrate the revelations of God which He brought down to them.
The Almighty says about the people of the Fire, “Those who disbelieved will be led to Hell in throngs. When they get to it, and its gates are opened, its guards will say, “Did you not receive messengers from among you, who recited to you the revelations of your Lord?… (39:71).” That is, the messengers used to recite the verses of God, and whosoever turns away there from, he will enter the Fire and our Lord will resurrect him blind, “He will say, “My Lord, why did you summon me blind, when I used to be a seer?” God will say, “Because you forgot our revelations when they came to you, you are now forgotten.” We thus requite those who transgress and refuse to believe in the revelations of their Lord… (20:125-127).” We are thus required to believe in the verses that came down to the prophet, and there are no verses of revelation outside the Quran, thus, the Quran and nothing but the Quran.
– There is no equal to the Qur’an just as there is no equal to God The Praised.
The Almighty says about His Self, “…There is nothing that equals Him. He is the Hearer, the Seer. (42:11).” And He says about His Book “Say, “If all the humans and all the jinns banded together in order to produce a Qur’an like this, they could never produce anything like it…” (17:88)” therefore, there is no equal to the Qur’an, just as there is no equal to God!
God is one in His Self and in His attributes, and there is no one like Him from among His creations, “Proclaim, “He is the One and only God. The Absolute God. Never did He beget. Nor was He begotten. None equals Him.” (112:1-4).” It isn’t within the capability of any creation to create one chapter like a Qur’anic chapter, “…then produce one sura like these… (2:23),” and “…then produce one sura like these… (10:38).”
There is no equal to the Qur’an, and there is no chapter which is equal to any chapter of the Qur’an. In spite of this, they claim that God revealed to the prophet the Qur’an ‘and its equal alongside it’, so where is this ‘equal’ thing if God Almighty has denied its existence?
2) The Quran hasn’t left anything out.
– The Qur’an clarifies the Qur’an; it is an inherently clear book.
The Almighty says, “Those who conceal our revelations and guidance, after proclaiming them for the people in the scripture, are condemned by God; they are condemned by all the condemners. As for those who repent, reform, and proclaim, I redeem them. I am the Redeemer, Most Merciful. (2:159-160)”.
The Book of God is an inherently clear book, and its verses are described as clarifications, i.e. in order to understand them one needs only to read, study, think, and reflect. The One who made the Book clear and made its verses clear is our Lord, who says “…after proclaiming the revelations for the people in the scripture…”, and the One who said about His Book; “We made the Qur’an easy to learn. Do any of you wish to learn? (54:22)”, and “We thus made this (Qur’an) elucidated in your tongue, in order to deliver good news to the righteous, and to warn with it the opponents. (19:97)”, and “We have thus clarified it in your language, that they may take heed. (44:58)”.
All that is required of us is to read the Qur’an, and if we read it, then its verses will speak for themselves for they don’t need anything from us except to read them and not to ignore them and be silent. For this reason, God Almighty makes silence and suppression (of verses) the opposite of proclamation, which is why God Almighty threatens those who silence or suppress the verses of God which He made clear in His book, “Those who conceal our revelations and guidance, after proclaiming them for the people in the scripture, are condemned by God…”
God says about the people of the book, “God took a covenant from those who received the scripture: “You shall proclaim it to the people, and never conceal it.”… (3:187)”. Thus did God explain to humans that the Book is to be proclaimed and not silenced or suppressed, i.e., it should be studied and read. Thus, whenever we read the Book, its verses speak for themselves for whoever wants to ponder over them.
The verses which speak about the Qur’an’s being a clarifying and clear book are too many to be examined, and in spite of this, some of us still believe that the book of God is obscure and ambiguous and is in need of exegesis. Keeping in mind that God says about His book “Whatever argument they come up with, we provide you with the truth, and a better understanding. (25:33).” So the best understanding of the Qur’an is in the Qur’an.
Even Ibn Kathir admits at the beginning of his loquacious exegesis that the best understanding is to understand the Qur’an with the Qur’an.
– The Quran didn’t leave anything out, and was brought down to clarify everything, it came down with the details for everything we need.
He says, “…We did not leave anything out of this book… (6:38),” and “…We have revealed to you this book to provide explanations for everything… (16:89),” and “…This is not fabricated Hadith; this (Qur’an) confirms all previous scriptures [and] provides the details of everything… (12:111).”
The person who believes in the Quran is in no hurry to accuse the Book of God with deficiency or ambiguity making it in need of clarification, or that it came to us sketchy and thus it’s in need of someone to give the details.
Thus, the one who believes in the Qur’an, believes God’s assertion that He did not leave anything out of the Quran and that it came down clarifying and detailing everything.
And just so that no one manipulates the Qur’an’s intended meaning with their evil desires or bad intentions so that they say ‘where is such and such a thing mentioned in the Qur’an?’ – they must grasp the concept of the Qur’an’s logic before they are quick to accusations.
The Almighty says “…We did not leave anything out of this book… (6:38),” tafreet[3] means to omit or, leave out a crucial and important thing. For example, we don’t find a problem regarding the method for prayer or the number of its units. If God (The Knower of the past, future, and present!) knew that we would face a problem with regard to prayer, then He would have made clear to us its method, the number of prayers, and its times with detail. However, He only brought down the Qur’an clarifying what we actually need in the present and the future, He brought down the Qur’an with truth and with the law “God is the One who sent down the scripture, to deliver the truth and the law… (42:17).” There is no scope for addition for which we have no need. Had the Qur’an been revealed detailing for us the prayers while we already know what it is and have been practicing it since our childhood, then that would have been somewhat flippant; and there is no scope for flippancy in the Book of God “By the sky that returns (the water). By the earth that cracks (to grow plants). This is a serious narration. Not to be taken lightly. (86:11-14)”.
Thus, the Qur’an has not left out anything for which we have a need.
The Almighty says “…We have revealed to you this book to provide explanations for everything… (16:89),” Tibyaan[4] means to clarify something which requires clarification and explanation. Yet, something which is inherently clear doesn’t require elucidation, lest any excessive explanations amount to curiosity and mere prattle for which we have no need.
God, Most Glorious, revealed His Book with straightforward verses in which is no scope for nonsense or addition. For this reason, the Qur’an clears up what it has to clear up, and everything that requires clarification and elucidation has been clarified and elucidated in the Qur’an. And something which doesn’t require elucidation is in no need to be elucidated, especially in a Book whose verses have been detailed from a Most Wise, Most Cognizant.
For this reason, elucidation in the Qur’an is connected to guidance, mercy, and good news for the Muslims, “…We have revealed to you this book to provide explanations for everything, and guidance, and mercy, and good news for the submitters. (16:89)”. Thus, the explanations of the Qur’an are a “guidance” for the one seeking guidance amongst a mass of ambiguity and uncertainty. The explanations found in the Qur’an are also a “mercy” for the one seeking guidance because it makes known to him/her what was unknown, and it guarantees him/her security and divine mercy as well as good news.
The details of the Qur’an are also connected to guidance and mercy, The Almighty says “We have given them a scripture that is fully detailed, with knowledge, guidance, and mercy for the people who believe. (7:52)”. Therefore, the Qur’anic details which include everything are a guidance and a mercy for those who need these details. And if it so happened that such things were clear and didn’t require detailing or clarification, then it would be futile to clarify what is already clear.
Exalted is God above futility!
We humans are prone to convert any details in our communication to unnecessary blather and mere loquaciousness for which there is no need and cannot, practicably, be put to use; and this is exactly what the details of the Book avoid, for it only provides the details we actually need. For this reason, the details of the Qur’an are connected to precise laws, and God says in this regard, “A.L.R. This is a scripture whose verses have been perfected, then elucidated. It comes from a Most Wise, Most Cognizant. (11:1)”.
The Almighty says about divine knowledge “We have given them a scripture that is fully detailed, with knowledge, guidance, and mercy for the people who believe. (7:52)”.
For this reason, the believers who research and study the whole Qur’an and who find it sufficient, they are the only ones who understand the Quran. Regarding this God says “… We thus explain the revelations for people who know. (7:32),” and “…We thus explain the revelations for people who reflect. (10:24),” and “…We thus explain the revelations for people who understand. (30:"http://www.ahl-alquran.com/English/%22#_ftn6"" title="""">[6] That’s because they cut off this part of the verse from what precedes it, so they make this as their proof of the existence of another source alongside the Qur’an. They believe that there is another dhikr which has been sent down to the prophet with which he clarified the Qur’an which was sent down to the people. If we really want to understand the verse correctly, we must reflect on the Qur’anic context. God says about the previous prophets “We did not send before you except men whom we inspired. Ask those who know the scripture, if you do not know. We provided them with the proofs and the scriptures…” that is, God Almighty sent the previous prophets to the People of the Book, and He sent with them the proofs and scriptures, then He directs the reference to the prophet and says “…And we sent down to you the dhikr…”, i.e. the Qur’an, “…to proclaim for the people everything that is sent down to them…”, i.e. to make clear to the People of the Book what was previously revealed to them of the proofs and scriptures perhaps they will reflect.
The word ‘people’ in the phrase “…to proclaim for the people everything that is sent down to them…,” doesn’t necessarily mean all people in general, rather, it means – taking into account the context of the verse – the People of the Book to whom was revealed the previous Divine Scriptures, however, after some time, they disagreed about the scriptures and they edited parts of them.
The use of the word ‘people’ in reference to a particular group of people mentioned in the context occurs frequently in the Qur’an, e.g., “Those who when the people say to them, “People have mobilized against you; you should fear them,” this only strengthens their faith… (3:173),” and “Joseph my friend, inform us about seven fat cows being devoured by seven skinny cows, and seven green spikes, and others shriveled. I wish to go back with some information for the people.” Clearly, the word people in these two examples doesn’t refer to all people in general, rather, it refers to a specific group of people mentioned in the context[7].
With regard to God’s saying “…And we sent down to you the dhikr, to proclaim for the people everything that is sent down to them…” the intended meaning for the word ‘people’ is the People of the Book, because the verse speaks about the previous prophets and what God has brought down to them of books and of proofs. Thus, ’ahl al-dhikr are the people who have knowledge of the previous divine books.
The verse points out one reason out of many with regard to the book’s revelation, “…And we sent down to you the dhikr, to proclaim for the people everything that is sent down to them…”, thus, the Qur’an’s purpose here is to make clear for the People of the Book the truth that can be found in the previous divine scriptures even though they underwent editions, modifications, suppression and secretion, and God says regarding this, “O people of the scripture, our messenger has come to you to proclaim for you many things you have concealed in the scripture, and to pardon many other transgressions you have committed. A beacon has come to you from God, and a profound scripture. (5:15).” God says about the role of the Qur’an in clarifying the truth for the Children of Israel, “This Quran settles many issues for the Children of Israel; issues that they are still disputing. (27:76)”, He also says “We did not send before you except men whom we inspired. Ask those who know the scripture, if you do not know. We provided them with the proofs and the scriptures. And we sent down to you this message, to proclaim for the people everything that is sent down to them, perhaps they will reflect. (16:43-44)”.
These two verses (16:43-44), have been explained by another two verses in the same chapter, God says “By God, we have sent (messengers) to communities before you, but the devil adorned their works in their eyes. Consequently, he is now their lord, and they have incurred a painful retribution. We have revealed this scripture to you, to point out for them what they dispute… (16:63-64)”. All this confirms that the Qur’an is the dhikr which came down to the prophet to make clear for the People of the Book what came down to them before, and to point out for them what they dispute, we can thus infer form this the following: that which came down to the prophet is one Book, one dhikr (remembrance), one Qur’an, which has no equal and there is nothing alongside it.
The Qur’an has often been described in the Qur’an as dhikr, e.g. “…you simply deliver this reminder for all the people. (12:104)”, and “This is a reminder for the world. (38:87)”, and “Absolutely, we have revealed the reminder, and, absolutely, we will preserve it. (15:9)”, and “This too is a blessed reminder that we sent down… (21:50)”. God says confirming that the dhikr of God is only the Qur’an, “When you read the Qur’an, we place between you and those who do not believe in the Hereafter an invisible barrier. We place shields around their minds, to prevent them from understanding it, and deafness in their ears. And when you preach your Lord, using the Qur’an alone, they run away in aversion. (17:45-46)”.
The polytheists used to flee from the prophet because he used to mention his Lord using only what was found in the Qur’an. The Almighty says, “…And when you preach your Lord, using the Qur’an alone, they run away in aversion.” The evidence here is the word “alone” which can refer to God and the Qur’an together. It is a literary miracle that the word “alone” is suffixed with the singular pronoun which can refer either to God or His Book; this confirms that the Muslim is he who suffices with God “alone”, and with the Qur’an “alone”, or even he who suffices with God and His book “alone.” As for the one who worships other than God, then he prefers that his sources and his gods be numerous, “…And when you preach your Lord, using the Qur’an alone, they run away in aversion.” This is what the verse makes clear.
We ask of God guidance for us all!
– The Qur’an is complete, perfect and requires nothing else alongside it.
The Almighty says, “The word of your Lord is complete, in truth and justice. Nothing shall abrogate His words. He is the Hearer, the Omniscient. (6:115)”. The word of God has been made complete for us with the Qur’an, and none can abrogate His word.
He says “…Today, I have completed your religion, perfected My blessing upon you, and I have decreed Submission as the religion for you… (5:3)”, in light of this, God’s blessing on us has been perfected with Islam and He has decreed for us the religion upon the completion of the Qur’an’s revelation.
He also says “If all the trees on earth were made into pens, and the ocean supplied the ink, augmented by seven more oceans, the words of God would not run out… (31:27)”.
There is no maximum limit to the words of God which do not run out. The Qur’an is a multiple-meaning book with different meanings being repeated therein, and it clarifies things and details them with wisdom and knowledge. Sometimes, the word “qul” (which means “say”), confirms a meaning which has already been mentioned in the Qur’an so that anything the prophet said is found in the Qur’an itself and not from his own opinion or outside the Qur’an.
If God wanted His words to be non-ending for us He would have done so, and in which case if all the trees in the world were pens and if all the seas were ink, God’s words would still not run out. However, God’s mercy has willed that He bring down to us one complete, perfect, clear, and fully detailed book; and He has ordered us to find it sufficient.
For this reason, finding the Qur’an to be sufficient is a mercy, “Is it not enough of a miracle that we sent down to you this book, being recited to them? This is indeed a mercy and a reminder for people who believe. (29:51)”. God Himself is witness over the fact that His book is enough, the Almighty says, “Say, “God suffices as a witness between me and you. He knows everything in the heavens and the earth. Surely, those who believe in falsehood and disbelieve in God are the real losers.” (29:52)”.
– The Qur’an is God’s Straight Path and anything else is a departure from the Straight Path.
In the opening chapter of the Qur’an we call God and we say “Guide us in the right path.” The right path is the Qur’an; God says about His Book, “This is the straight path to your Lord. We have explained the revelations for people who take heed. (6:126)”.
The Almighty says commanding us to follow the Qur’an with the exclusion of all else, “This is My path - a straight one. You shall follow it, and do not follow any other paths, lest they divert you from His path. These are His commandments to you, that you may be saved. (6:153)”. God Almighty has commanded us to follow the Qur’an, His Straight Path, and has prohibited us from following any other paths so that the Muslims don’t become divided and so that they don’t stray far from His Path. What God warned us about has already happened, because the Muslims chose to believe in hadith falsely attributed to the prophet (peace upon him!), and they dispute over the chains of narration. The ‘science of hadith’ attempts to amend those narrations and the chains of narration. The Almighty has already said, “…and do not follow any other paths…”[8]; what is interesting here is that the scholars of hadith establish these narrations and these chains of narration based on routes, or paths so that they say a certain hadith is from the chain of so-and-so, and that a narration came via “so-and-so’s path;” that is, once they strayed off the Path and left it behind, they followed other paths and they forgot God’s saying “…do not follow any other paths, lest they divert you from His path…” These are the routes, paths, and chains which the ‘science of hadith’ establishes, which has caused endless division and dispute. True is what the word of God Almighty warned us about.
God Almighty warned us about division and said to the messenger (peace upon him!), “Those who divide themselves into sects do not belong with you… (6:159)”, that is, He commanded him to disown those who divide themselves.
The prophet, on the Day of Resurrection, will announce his innocence from those who left the book of God and forsook it in place of other sources and beliefs to which God gave no authority. The Almighty says, “The messenger said, “My Lord, my people have deserted this Qur’an.” We also set up against every prophet enemies from among the guilty. Your Lord suffices as a guide, a master. (25:30-31)”.
The Quran alone is the Straight Path.
It is ‘geometrically’ impossible for there to be more than one book which is described as the ‘Straight Path’. Geometry establishes the fact that a straight line is the shortest distance between two points; there cannot be more than one straight line between two points. Thus, there can only ever be one line which is described as the Straight Line, or the Straight Path. There is only one Straight Line or Straight Path in God’s religion, no more. And since the Qur’an is the complete and perfect book of wisdom, it requires no other book with it.
Even though we implore God in our prayers to guide us to the Straight Path, we are customarily unaware of the meaning of the Straight Path. That is because the devil made clear his objectives of removing us from the Straight Path and turning it into many different paths, “He said, “Since You have willed that I go astray, I will skulk for them on Your straight path.” (7:16)”.
Lord, guide us to the Straight Path!
– The Qur’an is wisdom.
The Almighty says, “He is the One who sent to the gentiles a messenger from among them, to recite to them His revelations, purify them, and teach them the scripture and wisdom… (62:2)”. It is a common belief that the book is one thing and wisdom another; their proof for this is that the conjunction “and” denotes a difference between the book and wisdom.
However, the fact is that the use of the conjunction “and” in the Quran can used be for purposes of clarification, elucidation, and preference, but not for difference. The proof for this is God’s saying, “We gave Moses and Aaron the Statute Book, a beacon, and a reminder for the righteous. (21:48)”. The Statute Book, the beacon, and the reminder are all descriptions of the Torah. In another place, The Almighty says about the Torah whilst talking about Moses and Aaron, “We gave both of them the profound scripture. (37:117)”. So the Torah, or the profound scripture, is the same as The Statute Book, the beacon, and the reminder. The conjunction here is thus being used to clarify and detail one thing, but not for difference.
God Almighty says to Jesus, “…I taught you the scripture, wisdom, the Torah, and the Gospel… (5:110)”. He also says about Jesus, “He will teach him the scripture, wisdom, the Torah, and the Gospel. (3:48)”.
In light of this, the scripture, and wisdom are descriptions for the Torah and Gospel; and this doesn’t mean that God Almighty taught Jesus four separate and different things, and the proof is God’s saying about Jesus “When Jesus went with the proofs, he said, “I bring to you wisdom… (43:63)”. The ‘wisdom’ referred to here denotes the Gospels which Jesus brought. This verse sums up the above two verses regarding the scripture, wisdom, the Torah, and the Gospel. Therefore, wisdom is the book of God.
Regarding the final prophet, there are in the Quran many successive instructions in chapter 17, which begin with God’s saying “You shall not set up any other god beside God…” all the way to His saying “You shall not walk proudly on earth…” then, at the end of these Quranic injunctions, the Almighty says “This is some of the wisdom inspired to you by your Lord…” (17:22-39)”. So, wisdom is the verses of the Quran, and the Quran is wisdom, for it is the speech of the Mighty, the Wise. The One who made it a perfect book, “…This is a scripture whose verses have been perfected, then elucidated. It comes from a Most Wise, Most Cognizant. (11:1)”.
Wisdom is one of the many descriptions of the Quran and it is synonymous with the book itself. The use of the word ‘wisdom’ is the same as the use of other words like ‘the Statute Book’ and ‘the light.’
Our last proof, that wisdom is the Quran, is God’s saying “…Remember God’s blessings upon you, and that He sent down to you the scripture and wisdom to enlighten you with it[9]… (2:231)”. Now, if wisdom constituted a thing other than the Quran, He would have said ‘and that He sent down to you the scripture and wisdom to enlighten you with them.’ However, because wisdom is the Quran, He said “…to enlighten you with it…”, proving that they are indeed one and the same thing, which is why the pronoun refers to them both in the singular.