2. (The notion that) denying the Prophetic compilation of the Qur’an is tantamount to accusing the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam of negligence

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2. (The notion that) denying the Prophetic compilation of the Qur’an is tantamount to accusing the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam of negligence

The following scholars of the Imamiyyah express this sentiment:^[1]

1. ‘Abdul Hussain Sharaf al Din al Musawi says:

 

ومن عرف النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم في حكمته البالغة ونبوته الخاتمة ونصحه لله ولكتابه ولعباده وعرف مبلغ نظره في العواقب واحتياطه على أمته في مستقبلها ير أن من المحال عليه أن يترك القرآن منثورا مبثوثا حاشا هممه وعزائمه وحكمه المعجزة من ذلك

Whoever knows the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam in his profound wisdom, the finality of his prophethood, and his well-wishing to Allah, His book, and His servants; and whoever knows the extent of his foresight into future events and his concern for his Ummah and its future, will see that it is impossible that he would have left the Qur’an scattered and dispersed, in spite of his resoluteness, determination, and miraculous wisdom.^[2]

 

2. Abu al Qasim al Khu’i said:

 

وإذا سلم عدم اهتمام المسلمين بجمع القرآن على عهده صلى الله عليه وسلم فلماذا لم يهتم بذلك النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم بنفسه مع اهتمامه الشديد بأمر القرآن فهل كان غافلا عن نتائج هذا الإغفال أو كان غير متمكن من الجمع لعدم تهيؤ الوسائل عنده ومن الواضح بطلان جميع ذلك

a. If we accept that the Muslims were not concerned with compiling the Qur’an during the Prophet’s time salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, why did the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam not see it fit to occupy himself with it, in spite of his great concern for the Qur’an? Was he unaware of the consequences of this neglect? Or did he simply lack the means? It is clear that all of this is wrong.^[3]

 

ومع هذا الاهتمام كله كيف يمكن أن يقال إن جمع القرآن قد تأخر إلى زمان خلافة أبي بكر

b. With this level of concern, how can it be said that the compilation of the Qur’an was delayed until the time of the Caliphate of Abu Bakr?^[4]

 

3. Jafar al Subhani said:

 

إن النبي الأكرم صلى الله عليه وسلم هو أحكم الحكماء أفيصح أن يجاهد قائد يعاني من شتى المشاكل ويواجه المصاعب في بقاء شريعته وديمومتها عبر الأجيال ثم يترك عماد شريعته وبرهان نبوته مبعثرا بين العسب واللخاف وصدور الرجال وتقر عينه بذلك ويرضى به حتى تعرج روحه للقاء الله إن هذا لعمر النبي يعد استهانة بالمعجزة الكبرى

Certainly, the noble Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was the wisest of the wise. Would it be right for a leader—who is stricken by so many challenges and faces so many hardships in order to preserve and perpetuate the Shari’ah across multiple generations—to simply leave the pillar of this Shari’ah and the proof of his prophethood scattered among palm branches, animal scapulae, and the hearts of men, with him being content and satisfied with that until his soul ascends to meet Allah? By the life of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, this is nothing but disdain for the greatest miracle!^[5]

 

4. Nasir Makarim al Shirazi said:

 

وإذا رجعنا إلى استقصاء طبيعة الأشياء في مجال جمع القرآن ألفينا أنه من غير المعقول أن يترك النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم هذه المهمة الكبيرة بينما نجده يهتم بدقائق الأمور المرتبطة بالرسالة أليس القرآن دستور الإسلام وكتاب هداية البشرية وأساس عقائد الإسلام وأحكامه أليس من الممكن أن يتعرض القرآن إن لم يجمع في عصر رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم إلى الضياع وإلى الاختلاف فيه بين المسلمين

If we return to investigate the nature of things regarding the compilation of the Qur’an, we find that it is irrational that the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam would leave this very important matter to chance, while we find him being concerned even with the smallest of details connected to the revelation. Is the Qur’an not the constitution of Islam, the book of guidance for mankind, and the foundation of Islamic beliefs and rulings? Is it not possible that the Qur’an—had it not been compiled—would have been exposed to loss during the time of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and to disagreements about it between the Muslims?^[6]

 

Discussion of Issue 2

This issue is invalid from various perspectives, including:

 

The first perspective

There is a convincing reason that is acceptable to the sound intellect for the prevention of our Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam from collecting the Qur’an during his lifetime; he was in a state of constant anticipation of Qur’an to be revealed at any time. As long as he was alive, the possibility of verses being revealed at any given moment remained.^[7] If he were to collect it and spread it among the Muslims and then receive the revelation of new verses, it would be very difficult to recall all the copies that had been made and disseminated and then re-arrange them with the addition of the new verses. This would be the case every time the Qur’an was collected, as the expectation of new additional verses would remain, meaning that editing would have to occur every time.

Among the scholars of the Imamiyyah who also support this rationale include:

1. Muhammad Jawwad al Balaghi al Najafi who mentions under the heading ‘Section 2: concerning its (the Qur’an’s) compilation into a single Mushaf’:

 

هذا ولما كان وحيه لا ينقطع في حياة رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم لم يكن كله مجموعا في مصحف واحد وإن كان ما أوحي منه مجموعا في قلوب المسلمين وكتاباتهم له… ولما اختار الله لرسوله دار الكرامة وانقطع الوحي بذلك فلا يرجى للقرآن نزول تتمة رأى المسلمون أن يسجلوه في مصحف جامع فجمعوا مادته

And since His revelation did not cease during the life of the Messenger of Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, it was not all collected in one Mushaf, even though what had been revealed up to that point was collected in the hearts of the Muslims and the personal copies that they kept for him salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. When Allah took His Messenger to his final abode and the revelation consequently ceased, there was no hope for the Qur’an to be revealed again in a final and complete format. Thus, the Muslims realised that they should record it in a single, comprehensive Mushaf, so they collected the available material.^[8]

 

2. This reasoning is also affirmed in multiple statements by Muhammad Hadi Ma’rifah in his book al Tamhid fi ‘Ulum al Qur’an:

 

كانت السور مكتملة على عهده صلى الله عليه وسلم مرتبة آياتها وأسماؤها غير أن جمعها بين دفتين لم يكن حصل بعد نظرا لترقب نزول قرآن على عهده صلى الله عليه وسلم فما دام لم ينقطع الوحي لم يصح تأليف السور مصحفا إلا بعد الاكتمال وانقطاع الوحي الأمر الذي لم يكن يتحقق إلا بانقضاء عهد النبوة واكتمال الوحي

a. The chapters were completed during his salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam lifetime and their verses and names had been arranged, but their collection between two covers had not yet occurred due to the anticipation of continuous revelation of Qur’an during his salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam lifetime. As long as the revelation had not ceased, it would not have been wise to compile the chapters into a single Mushaf, except after the completion and cessation of revelation, an event that could not occur until the end of the prophetic mission.^[9]

 

ثالثا ترتيب السور بين دفتين في صورة مصحف كما هو الآن هذا أمر بقي مؤجلا إلى ما بعد وفاته صلى الله عليه وسلم حيث ترقب الوحي ونزول آيات وسور ما دام صلى الله عليه وسلم على قيد الحياة

b. Thirdly, arranging the chapters between two covers of the Mushaf in its current state is a matter that remained postponed until after his salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam passing, as he anticipated the revelation of verses and chapters as long as he salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was alive.^[10]

 

أما جمع السور بين دفتين وترتيبها كمصحف موحد فلم يحصل حينذاك نظرا لترقب نزول قرآن عليه فما لم ينقطع الوحي لا يصح جمع القرآن بين دفتين ككتاب

c. As for collecting the chapters between two covers and arranging them as a unified Mushaf, this did not happen at that time, due to the anticipation of the revelation of the Qur’an upon him. So, unless revelation ceased, it would not have made sense to collect the Qur’an between two covers as a book.^[11]

 

من طبيعة الحال أن هذه السور المكتملة كانت تحتفظ وتجمع في مكان في نحو صندوق أو كيس ونحو ذلك ولكن من غير أن يجعل لها ترتيب أو تنظيم بتقديم الطوال على القصار على غرار تنظيمها الحاضر وذلك لأن القرآن لما ينته نزوله وكان يترقب نزول سور وآيات ما دام الوحي القرآني لم ينقطع والرسول صلى الله عليه وسلم على قيد الحياة

d. Naturally, these completed chapters were preserved and collected someplace, in a box or bag or something similar, but without arranging or organising them by placing the longer chapters before the short ones, as it is arranged in its present-day format. This is because the revelation of the Qur’an had not yet ended, the revelation of new chapters and verses was still pending, and the revelation of Qur’an did cease as long as the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was alive.^[12]

 

3. Fakhr al Din al Tarihi says:

 

ولعله صلى الله عليه وسلم ترك جمعه في المصحف لئلا تسير به الركبان إلى البلدان فيشكل طرح ما نسخ منه فيؤدي إلى خلل عظيم

Perhaps he salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam refrained from collecting it in one Mushaf, so that people would not travel with it far and wide, leading to a problematic situation where people reject the abrogation of certain verses, which would be catastrophic.^[13]

 

The second perspective

If the notion that denying the Prophetic compilation of the Qur’an necessitates insulting the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, then why have the leading ‘Ulama’ and authorities^[14] of the Imamiyyah adopted it and expressed it? Were they ignorant of the insult to the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam implicit in their statements?

 

The third perspective

If the notion that denying the Prophetic compilation of the Qur’an necessitates accusing the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam of neglecting the Qur’an^[15], then the most senior ‘Ulama’ of the Imamiyyah ascribe this purported negligence to the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, since they openly express the fact that he salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam did not organise the chapters of the Qur’an. Rather, he left it unorganised; so this would constitute the very same neglect the Imamiyyah claim to abhor!

Among their ‘Ulama who stated that there was no prophetic arrangement of the chapters of the Qur’an are:

 

1. Za’im al Madhhab^[16], Abu al Qasim al Khu’i, says in numerous statements such as the following:

 

سؤال 1321: ترتيب سور القرآن وترتيب آيات السور على ما هو عليه الآن في المصاحف هل كان على زمن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم وهل كان لغيره صلى الله عليه وسلم دخل في ذلك بعده الخوئي أما ترتيب الآيات فنعم وأما ترتيب السور فلا وقد حصل بعده صلى الله عليه وسلم والله العالم

a. Question (1321): Did the arrangement of the chapters of the Qur’an and the arrangement of the verses of the chapters as we have it today occur during the time of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam or did someone else have a hand in it after him salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam?

Al Khu’i: As for the arrangement of verses, then yes. As for the arrangement of chapters, then no, since it was done after his demise salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. And Allah knows best.”^[17]

 

فمن البين جدا أن السور لم تكن مترتبة في عصره صلى الله عليه وسلم على النهج المألوف بيننا

b. It is abundantly clear that the chapters were not arranged in his salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam time in the way that is familiar to us.^[18]

 

ولا سيما بالإضافة إلى عامة الناس الذين لا يعرفون أن الترتيب أمر حادث…ولو فرضنا القول بجواز ذلك استنادا إلى ما عرفت من عدم كون القرآن مرتبا في عصره صلى الله عليه وسلم

c. Especially with regards to the common masses who don’t even know that the arrangement of the Qur’an is a recent event… And even if we entertain the possibility of this, we are reliant on what is known about the Qur’an not being arranged in his time salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.^[19]

 

2. Jafar al Subhani affirms this in multiple statements:

a. He says:

 

وما ذكره ابن النديم يثبت أن القرآن كان مكتوبا في عصر النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم كل سورة على حدة وكان فاقدا للترتيب الذي رتبه الإمام على سبعة أجزاء

And what Ibn al Nadim mentioned affirms that the Qur’an was written in the time of the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, each chapter on its own, but it was forfeited in favour of the structure in which it was arranged by the Imam (‘Ali ibn Abi Talib radiya Llahu ‘anhu) of seven parts.^[20]

 

b. He acknowledges that the arrangement of the chapters of our current Qur’an was not a matter instituted by our Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. He says:

 

وقد اتفقت كلمات المحققين على أن ترتيب السور لم يكن توقيفيا

There is agreement in the statements of all the scholars that the arrangement of the chapters was not prophetically instituted.^[21]

 

Here are the scholars of the Imamiyyah accusing our Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam of inadequacy for neglecting the arrangement of the chapters of the Qur’an and leaving it to the ijtihad of the Sahabah radiya Llahu ‘anhum, leading to division and conflict! Their claim—that the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam not arranging the chapters of the Qur’an necessitates the attribution of negligence to our Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam—is substantiated by their scholar Mir Muhammad al Zarandi, who said:

 

وأما دليلنا على ذلك هو ما أشرنا إليه غير مرة في نظائر المقام من أن العقل والاعتبار يدلان على أنه لا يجوز التسامح في أمر القرآن المعجز الخالد حتى في ترتيب سوره بأن يوكل الرسول صلى الله عليه وسلم أمر ترتيبه إلى غيره من الصحابة فيؤلفونه حسب أهوائهم واجتهاداتهم وهل هذا إلا إلقاء للأمة التي يختلف أفرادها اختلافا شديدا في الفهم والذوق إلى مزالق الخلاف والتشتت

In terms of evidence for this, consider what we have pointed out numerous times in similar cases: reason and consideration indicate that it is unfathomable (for the Prophet) to be nonchalant in the matter of the eternal miraculous Qur’an, even in the arrangement of its chapters, such as the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam entrusting its arrangement to the Sahabah and their ijtihad, so that they can compile it according to their whims and fancies. Could this be anything other than casting the Ummah, whose individuals differ immensely in understanding and perception, into the perils of disagreement and dissolution?^[22]

 

Thus, the scholars of the Imamiyyah fall into the trap they had fled from: their accusation of our Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam of negligence in the arrangement of the chapters of the Qur’an.

 

NEXT⇒ 3. Referring to the Qur’an as the Book suggests that it was written and compiled

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^[1]  It is important to note that this issue does not originate among scholars of the Imamiyyah. Rather, it is based on postulations made by Abu al Qasim al Balkhi al Mu’tazili (d. 312), as his statements are reported by the Imami scholar, Ibn Tawus al Hilli, in his book Sa’d al Sa’ud, pg. 192-193:

وأنكر البلخي قول من قال إن القرآن جمعه أبو بكر وعثمان بعد وفاة النبي فقال البلخي في إنكار ذلك وإني لأعجب من أن يقبل المؤمنون قول من زعم أن رسول الله ترك القرآن الذي هو حجة على أمته والذي تقوم به دعوته والفرائض التي جاء بها من عند ربه وبه يصح دينه الذي بعثه الله داعيا إليه مفرقا في قطع الحروف ولم يجمعه ولم يصنه ولم يحفظه ولم يحكم الأمر في قراءته وما يجوز من الاختلاف وما لا يجوز وفي إعرابه ومقداره وتأليف سوره وآياته هذا لا يتوهم على رجل من عامة المسلمين فكيف برسول رب العالمين

Al Balkhi denied the claim of those who say that the Qur’an was collected by Abu Bakr and ‘Uthman after the demise of the Prophet. In his rebuttal, al Balkhi says, “I am amazed that the believers would accept the claim of those who say that the Messenger salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam left the Qur’an—which is a proof for his Ummah, upon which his call and the obligations that he brought from his Lord are based, and through which the religion which Allah sent him to propagate is perfected—separated into disparate parts and letters and did not collect it, preserve it, or memorise it, and did not give rulings on its recitation and what constitutes permissible and impermissible variance with regards to its grammar, quantity, and the composition of its chapters and verses. This is unfathomable of a commoner. How, then, can it be fathomable of the Messenger of the Lord of the Worlds?”

^[2]  Al Musawi: Ajwibat Masa’il Jar Allah, pg. 36.

^[3]  Al Khu’i: Al Bayan fi Tafsir al Qur’an, pg. 216-217.

^[4]  Ibid., pg. 255.

^[5]  Al Subhani: Rasa’il wa Maqalat, 8/323.

^[6]  Al Shirazi: Al Amthal fi Tafsir Kitab Allah al Munazzal, 1/24.

^[7]  This reason is reported by Hafiz Ibn Hajar al ‘Asqalani from al Imam al Khattabi and others in his book Fath al Bari, 9/10:

وقال الخطابي وغيره يحتمل أن يكون صلى الله عليه وسلم إنما لم يجمع القرآن في المصحف لما كان يترقبه من ورود ناسخ لبعض أحكامه أو تلاوته فلما انقضى نزوله بوفاته صلى الله عليه وسلم ألهم الله الخلفاء الراشدين ذلك وفاء لوعد الصادق بضمان حفظه على هذه الأمة المحمدية زادها الله شرفا فكان ابتداء ذلك على يد الصديق رضي الله عنه بمشورة عمر ويؤيده ما أخرجه ابن أبي داود في المصاحف بإسناد حسن عن عبد خير قال سمعت عليا يقول أعظم الناس في المصاحف أجرا أبو بكر رحمة الله على أبي بكر هو أول من جمع كتاب الله

Al Khattabi and others said that it is possible that the Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam did not collect the Qur’an in the Mushaf because he was anticipating the revelation of a verse abrogating some of its rulings or recitation. When its revelation ended with his demise, Allah inspired the Rightly-Guided Caliphs to do so, in fulfilment of the promise of the truthful Prophet salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam to guarantee its preservation for the Muhammadan Ummah, may Allah increase it in honour. It began with Abu Bakr al Siddiq radiya Llahu ‘anhu with the advice of ‘Umar. This is supported by what Ibn Abi Dawood reported with a hassan chain of narration in al Masahif on the authority of Abd Khayr who reports, “I heard ‘Ali say, ‘The person with the greatest reward for collecting the Mushafs is Abu Bakr. May Allah have mercy on Abu Bakr; he was the first to collect the Book of Allah.’”

^[8]  Al Najafi: Ala’ al Rahman fi Tafsir al Qur’an, 1/18.

^[9]  Al Tamhid fi ‘Ulum al Qur’an, 1/285.

^[10]  Ibid., 1/278.

^[11]  Ibid., 1/290.

^[12]  Ibid., 1/291-292.

^[13]  Al Tarihi: Majma’ al Bahrayn, 1/398.

^[14]  Their expressions rejecting the Prophetic compilation is reported under proof 1 in Chapter 1 (of this book), and they are:

1. Muhammad al Tabrizi
2. Fakhr al Din al Tarihi
3. Muhammad Hadi al Tahrani al Najafi
4. Muhammad Jawwad al Balaghi
5. Al Fayd al Kashani
6. Agha Buzurk al Tahrani
7. Muhammad Hussain al Tabataba’i
8. Muhammad Hadi Ma’rifah
9. Abu al Qasim al Khu’i
10. Hashim Ma’ruf al Hassani

^[15]  Their expressions to this effect are reported in the beginning of the discussion of Problem 2 (in this book).

^[16]  ‘Leader of the Mazhab’: A title ascribed to this scholar for service to the Shia school of thought.

^[17]  Al Tabrizi: Sirat al Najah, 1/469.

^[18]  Al Khu’i: Al Ijarah, 1/502.

^[19]  Ibid.

^[20]  Al Subhani: Dalil al Murshidin ila al Haqq al Yaqin, pg. 170.

^[21]  Al Subhani: Rasa’il wa Maqalat, 8/327.

^[22]  Al Zarandi: Buhuth fi Tarikh al Qur’an, 101.