Date: 10/25/2004
THE QURAN WAS COMPILED CENTURIES LATER . . . EARLY WRITINGS OF CHRISTIANS ABOUT MUHAMMAD PROVE IT!
There are accounts by Christians discussing Muhammad and the religion of the Arabs, traceable to the early centuries of Islam. What is remarkable is this: In records from the 7th and early 8th Centuries CE , one finds NO REFERENCE to the Quran or ANY COMPILED ISLAMIC SCRIPTURE!
That's right, Christians discussing the religion of the Arabs HAD NO KNOWLEDGE THERE WAS A QURAN. Alphonse Mingana, "The Transmission of The Koran," reproduced by Ibn Warraq, "Origins of The Quran " (Prometheus Books, Amherst, NY: 1998), pp. 104-111.
This evidence indicates THE QURAN HAD NOT YET BEEN COMPILED!
Here are some references the Christian records tending to show the Quran DID NOT EXIST until over 100 years AFTER MUHAMMAD DIED!
1. Debate Between Amr b. al-As and John I, Patriarch of Antioch - 639 CE:
In this colloquy, the Amir disputed the Christian doctrine of the Trinity but DID NOT CITE THE QURAN in support of his position. Instead, he questioned the Patriarch about the OLD TESTAMENT and sought opinions from JEWS concerning the OLD TESTAMENT in efforts to refute Trintarianism:
"[The Amir] asked whether the Christ born of Mary was God, and whether God had a son, and whether this could be proved FROM THE TORAH . . . And the glorious Amir . . . required that it should be proved to him by QUOTATIONS FROM MOSES that the Christ was God. And the blessed Father among other quotations, brought forth the following from Moses, 'Then the Lord from before the Lord brought down fire and brimstone upon Sodom and Gomorrah;' [Genesis 19:24] and the glorious Amir required that this quotation should be shown to him in the Book [i.e., the Bible]. And our Father showed it to him without delay, in the complete Greek and Syriac Books. In that assembly, some Hagarians [Muslims] were present with us, and they saw the text with their own eyes, and the existence of the glorious name of the Lord twice. And the Amir called a certain Jew, who was believed by the Jews to be a Knower of Books, and asked him if it was literally true in THE TORAH, and the Jew answered, 'I do not know with certainty.'"
Quoted by Alphonse Mingana, "The Transmission of The Koran," reproduced by Ibn Warraq, "Origins of The Quran " (Prometheus Books, Amherst, NY: 1998), pp. 105.
From this document written in the fifth year of Umar's caliphate it is clear that the Quran had NOT BEEN COMPILED. Otherwise, the Amir would have cited the Quran as proof that Jesus was not God, rather than searching for proofs in the Torah.
2. Letter from Ishoyahb III, Patriarch of Seleucia, circa 647 CE:
"In excusing yourselves falsely, you may pehaps say, of the Heretics might make you say: 'What has happened was due to the order given by the Arabs' . . .; but this would not be true at all, because the Arab Hagarians [Muslims] do not help those who attribute sufferings and death to God, the Lord of everything."
Quoted by Alphonse Mingana, "The Transmission of The Koran," reproduced by Ibn Warraq, "Origins of The Quran " (Prometheus Books, Amherst, NY: 1998), pp. 106.
"From what we know of Ishoyahb, he would surely of mentioned or quoted the Islamic book, had he known of it, or even heard of it. . . ." Ibid. This means THE QURAN WAS NOT YET COMPILED!
3. Writing about Islam Printed by Guidi - circa 680 CE:
This Christian author, writing during the Umayyad Caliphate in the reign of Yazid, son of Muawiah, "believed the Arabs to simply be the descendants of Ishmael, who professed the old Abrahamic faith, and GIVE MUSHMMAD AS A GENERAL, WITHOUT ANY RELIGIOUS CHARACTER." Alphonse Mingana, "The Transmission of The Koran," reproduced by Ibn Warraq, "Origins of The Quran " (Prometheus Books, Amherst, NY: 1998), pp. 106.
The relevant excerpt makes NO MENTION of the Quran, or even a prophetic mission of Muhammad:
"Then God raised against (the Persians) the sons of Ishmael like the sand of the sea-shores, with their leader Muhammad. . . . As to the Kabah we cannot know what it was, except in supposing that the blessed Abraham having become very rich in possessions, and wanting to avoid the envy of the Canaanites, chose to dwell in the distant and large localities of the desert; and as he was living under tents, built that place for the worship of God and the offering of sacrifices; for this reason, the placed received its title of our days, and the memory of the place was transmitted from generation to generation with the evolution of the Arab race. It was not, therefore, new for the Arabs to worship in that place, but their worship therein was from the beginning of their days, in this, they were rendering honour to the father of the head of their race . . . and Madinah was called after Madian, the fourth son of Abraham from Keturah, the town is also called Yathrib."
Ibid.
This account indicates that THE QURAN WAS NOT YET COMPILED, as the Arabs are merely described as following the ancestral cult of Abraham, but not the Quran or any teaching from Muhammad!
4. Chronicle of John Bar Penkaye - 690 CE:
This Christian author wrote a detailed chronicle of early Islamic conquests, but was UNAWARE that the "Arabs had any sacred book in 690 CE, when he was writing. Under the caliphate of Abdul-Malik." Alphonse Mingana, "The Transmission of The Koran," reproduced by Ibn Warraq, "Origins of The Quran " (Prometheus Books, Amherst, NY: 1998), pp. 107. On the contrary, Penkaye was under the impression that the Muslims adhered to the Old Testament:
"The Arabs . . . had a certain order from the one who was their leader, in favour of the Christian people and the monks; they held also, under his leadership, the worship of one God, according to the customs of THE OLD COVENANT; at the outset they were so attached to the tradition of Muhammad who was their teacher, that they inflicted the pain of death upon anyone who seemed to contradict his tradition."
Ibid.
This chronicle clearly indicates that THE QURAN WAS NOT YET COMPILED, since it has the Muslims adhering to "the Old Covenant"!
"From these quotations and from many passages os some contemporary writers, it is evident that Christian historians of the whole of the seventh century (CE) HAD NO IDEA that the "Hagarian" [i.e., Muslim] conquerors HAD ANY HOLY BOOK . . . ."
Ibid.
QURAN: GOD SPOKE ARABIC . . . BADLY! #4
Here are MORE EXAMPLES of Bad Arabic in a book supposedly written by God!
To illustrate some of these problems to readers unfamiliar with Arabic, I have used the following methodology: Problematic passages have been highlighted in transliterated Arabic texts and in the Yusuf Ali translation to English. Then, using the work of D S Margoliuth, I have reconstructed what the problematical passages REALLY mean in Arabic . . . if one were interpreting an ordinary Arabic text . I have then explained the problems, using Margoliuth's commentaries.
For more detailed and technical discussion of this material, please see D S Margoliuth, "Some Additions To Professor Jeffrey's Foreign Vocabulary of the Quran," reproduced by Ibn Warraq, "What The Quran Really Says" (Prometheus Books, Amherst, NY: 2002), pp. 193-200.
1. Quran 40:36-37
Arabic:
40.36 Waqala firAAawnu ya hamanu ibni lee sarhan laAAallee ablughu al-ASBABA
40.37 ASBABA alssamawati faattaliAAa ila ilahi moosa wa-innee laathunnuhu kathiban wakathalika zuyyina lifirAAawna soo-o AAamalihi wasudda AAani alssabeeli wama kaydu firAAawna illa fee tababin
YUSUFALI:
40.36 Pharaoh said: "O Haman! Build me a lofty palace, that I may attain the ways and means-
40.37 "The ways and means of (reaching) the heavens, and that I may mount up to the god of Moses: But as far as I am concerned, I think (Moses) is a liar!" Thus was made alluring, in Pharaoh's eyes, the evil of his deeds, and he was hindered from the Path; and the plot of Pharaoh led to nothing but perdition (for him).
English (literal):
40.36 Pharaoh said: "O Haman! Build me a lofty palace, that I may attain ROPE
40.37 "ROPE the heavens, and that I may mount up to the god of Moses: But as far as I am concerned, I think (Moses) is a liar!" Thus was made alluring, in Pharaoh's eyes, the evil of his deeds, and he was hindered from the Path; and the plot of Pharaoh led to nothing but perdition (for him).
"Asbab" "is used elsewhere in the Quran in the sense of 'rope' . . ." D S Margoliuth, "Some Additions To Professor Jeffrey's Foreign Vocabulary of the Quran," reproduced by Ibn Warraq, "What The Quran Really Says" (Prometheus Books, Amherst, NY: 2002), pp. 198. Some instances where the Quran uses "asbab" for "rope": 3.103, 22:15.
Tabari's alternative translations, as 'roads,' 'gates,' and "dwellings,' likewise, make no sense. Ibid.
Yusuf Ali has simply created a translation to fit the context, rather than ACTUALLY following what the Arabic says!
2. Quran 44:24:
Arabic: Waotruki albahra RAHWAN innahum jundun mughraqoona
YUSUFALI: "And leave the sea AS A FURROW (DIVIDED): for they are a host (destined) to be drowned."
English (literal): "And leave the sea RAHWAN [meaningless in Arabic and untranslatable] for they are a host (destined) to be drowned."
"This is the only place in the Quran in which the word 'rahwun' occurs, and it is clear from Tabari [ ] that its signification was UNKNOWN . . . ." D S Margoliuth, "Some Additions To Professor Jeffrey's Foreign Vocabulary of the Quran," reproduced by Ibn Warraq, "What The Quran Really Says" (Prometheus Books, Amherst, NY: 2002), pp. 198.
Yusuf Ali's translation "as a furrow (divided)" fanciful and a guess based on context.
Similarly fanciful are translations as "calm" or "undisturbed." Ibid.
The Quran SHOULD HAVE SAID USED "the Ethiopic 'rekhewe,' 'open'." Id., at p. 199.
Had "Allah" used that word, the resulting verse would have read: "And leave the [parting of the] sea OPEN: for they are a host (destined) to be drowned."
"This sense suits the scene with which the text of the Quran is dealing, in which a way has been left open in the sea through which the Israelites passed: Moses is commanded not to close it, but leave it open for the Egyptians, on whom it will be closed, so that they will be drowned." Ibid.
3. Quran 33:19:
Arabic: Ashihhatan AAalaykum fa-itha jaa alkhawfu raaytahum yanthuroona ilayka tadooru aAAyunuhum kaallathee yughsha AAalayhi mina almawti fa-itha thahaba alkhawfu SALAQookum bi-alsinatin hidadin ashihhatan AAala alkhayri ola-ika lam yu/minoo faahbata Allahu aAAmalahum wakana thalika AAala Allahi yaseeran
YUSUFALI: Covetous over you. Then when fear comes, thou wilt see them looking to thee, their eyes revolving, like (those of) one over whom hovers death: but when the fear is past, they will SMITE you with sharp tongues, covetous of goods. Such men have no faith, and so Allah has made their deeds of none effect: and that is easy for Allah.
English (literal): Covetous over you. Then when fear comes, thou wilt see them looking to thee, their eyes revolving, like (those of) one over whom hovers death: but when the fear is past, they will BOIL OR ASCEND you with sharp tongues, covetous of goods. Such men have no faith, and so Allah has made their deeds of none effect: and that is easy for Allah.
"The most common sense of the word ['salaq']" is "to boil." D S Margoliuth, "Some Additions To Professor Jeffrey's Foreign Vocabulary of the Quran," reproduced by Ibn Warraq, "What The Quran Really Says" (Prometheus Books, Amherst, NY: 2002), pp. 199.
Another is "to ascend" - from the Hebrew "slq." Ibid.
Neither makes any sense!
The Quran SHOULD HAVE SAID USED the Ethopic "tasalaqa," which means "to play with, to mock." Ibid.
Had "Allah" used that word, the resulting verse would have read:
"Covetous over you. Then when fear comes, thou wilt see them looking to thee, their eyes revolving, like (those of) one over whom hovers death: but when the fear is past, they will MOCK you with sharp tongues, covetous of goods. Such men have no faith, and so Allah has made their deeds of none effect: and that is easy for Allah."
4. Quran 83:7-9:
Arabic:
83.7 Kalla inna kitaba alfujjari lafee SIJJEENin
83.8 Wama adraka ma SIJJEENun
YUSUFALI:
83.7: Nay! Surely the record of the wicked is (preserved) in SIJJIN.
83.8: And what will explain to thee what SIJJIN is?
83:9: (There is) a Register (fully) inscribed.
English (literal):
83.7: Nay! Surely the record of the wicked is in PRISON.
83.8: And what will explain to thee what PRISON is?
83:9: A Register inscribed.
". . .Sijjin . . . is derived from the word prison (Sijn) . . . ." Tasfir Ibn Kathir (Darussalam Publishers, Riyadh: 2001), Vol. 10, p. 401. "Some have said that it is beneath the seventh earth." Id., at p. 402.
In the context of Quran 83:7-9, "prison" makes no sense, given that a "prison" CANNOT BE "a register inscribed"!
5. Quran 83:18-20:
Arabic:
83.18 Kalla inna kitaba al-abrari lafee AaILLIYYEENa
83.19 Wama adraka ma AAILLIYYOONa
YUSUFALI:
83.18 Day, verily the record of the Righteous is (preserved) in 'ILLIYIN.
83.19 And what will explain to thee what 'ILLIYUN is?
83:20: (There is) a Register (fully) inscribed.
English (literal):
83.18 Day, verily the record of the Righteous is in PARADISE.
83.19 And what will explain to thee what PARADISE is?
83:20: A Register inscribed.
"Illiyin" "means Paradise." At-Tabari 24:292, quoted in Tasfir Ibn Kathir (Darussalam Publishers, Riyadh: 2001), Vol. 10, p. 407. Indeed, according to Islamic traditions, "It is the seventh heaven and it contains the souls of beleivers." At-Tabari 24:291, quoted Id., at p. 407.
In the context of Quran 83:18-20, "paradise" makes no sense, given that a "paradise" CANNOT BE "a register inscribed"!
6. Quran 18:40:
Arabic: FaAAasa rabbee an yu/tiyani khayran min jannatika wayursila AAalayha HUSBANan mina alssama-i fatusbiha saAAeedan zalaqan
YUSUFALI: "It may be that my Lord will give me something better than thy garden, and that He will send on thy garden THUNDERBOLTS (BY WAY OF RECKONING) from heaven, making it (but) slippery sand!-
English (literal): "It may be that my Lord will give me something better than thy garden, and that He will send on thy garden RECKONING OR PILLOW from heaven, making it (but) slippery sand!-
Quran 18:40 clearly refers to PHYSICAL destruction of the gardens of non-believers.
"Pillow" - "one of the meaning given the Arabic word ['husban']" - a meaning which makes NO SENSE in this verse. D S Margoliuth, "Some Additions To Professor Jeffrey's Foreign Vocabulary of the Quran," reproduced by Ibn Warraq, "What The Quran Really Says" (Prometheus Books, Amherst, NY: 2002), p. 197.
Also unsuitable is the meaning "reckoning,' for which "husban" is used in Quran 6:96. Ibid.
Here, the Quran is discussing PHYSICAL destruction of the gardens of non-believers, not generalized punishment. This has led to fanciful interpretations of the verse, designed to conceal the linguistic problem: "Ibn Kathir thinks violent rain must be meant; other suggestions are lightning, fire and hail." Ibid.
"Allah" SHOULD HAVE USED a word meaning PHYSICAL DESTRUCTION so that the resulting verse would read something like:
"It may be that my Lord will give me something better than thy garden, and that He will send on thy garden DESTRUCTION from heaven, making it (but) slippery sand!-"
7. Quran 34:14:
Arabic: Falamma qadayna AAalayhi almawta ma dallahum AAala mawtihi illa dabbatu al-ardi ta/kulu MINSAATahu falamma kharra tabayyanati aljinnu an law kanoo yaAAlamoona alghayba ma labithoo fee alAAathabi almuheeni
YUSUFALI: Then, when We decreed (Solomon's) death, nothing showed them his death except a little worm of the earth, which kept (slowly) gnawing away at his STAFF: so when he fell down, the Jinns saw plainly that if they had known the unseen, they would not have tarried in the humiliating Penalty (of their Task).
English (literal): Then, when We decreed (Solomon's) death, nothing showed them his death except a little worm of the earth, which kept (slowly) gnawing away at his MINSAAT [meaningless in Arabic and untranslatable]: so when he fell down, the Jinns saw plainly that if they had known the unseen, they would not have tarried in the humiliating Penalty (of their Task).
"This word ['minsaat'] has occasioned difficulty . . . ." D S Margoliuth, "Some Additions To Professor Jeffrey's Foreign Vocabulary of the Quran," reproduced by Ibn Warraq, "What The Quran Really Says" (Prometheus Books, Amherst, NY: 2002), p. 194.
"According to an authority quoted by Taj al-Arrus, al-Farra [a Muslim grammarian] even suggested an emendation, 'min saatihi,' supposing that 'siat' here stood for 'siyat,' the curved end of a bow." Ibid.
The Quran SHOULD HAVE SAID USED the Hebrew "misnt," which means "scepter." Ibid.
Had "Allah" used that word, the resulting verse would have read:
"Then, when We decreed (Solomon's) death, nothing showed them his death except a little worm of the earth, which kept (slowly) gnawing away at his SCEPTER: so when he fell down, the Jinns saw plainly that if they had known the unseen, they would not have tarried in the humiliating Penalty (of their Task)."
Examples from: D S Margoliuth, "Some Additions To Professor Jeffrey's Foreign Vocabulary of the Quran," reproduced by Ibn Warraq, "What The Quran Really Says" (Prometheus Books, Amherst, NY: 2002), pp. 193-200.
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