Quranism: Difference between revisions

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m (→‎Five Pillars of Islam: Added in a (very) small section on issues with Quranism referencing characters that are introduced without explaining who they are, or in the case of Abu Lahab, what they did to be condemned etc, that require secondary literature to explain.)
(→‎Five Pillars of Islam: I have added in some more scholarly information and citations on this topic, and changed some of the more polemical language to be more balanced which I will continue to review. And I've added a small section on the Sunni-shia as nothing on electing religious leaders is in the Quran.)
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==Qur'an only Islam==
==Qur'an only Islam==


Within [[Islam]] the two largest sects are the [[Sunni]]s (up to 90%)<ref name="rl"></ref><ref>[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/295507/Islam Islām] - Encyclopædia Britannica (2010)</ref><ref>[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/574006/Sunnite Sunnite] - Encyclopædia Britannica (2010)</ref><ref name="pew">[http://pewforum.org/Muslim/Mapping-the-Global-Muslim-Population%286%29.aspx Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World’s Muslim Population] - Pew Research Center, October 7, 2009</ref><ref name="pew2">Tracy Miller - [http://pewforum.org/newassets/images/reports/Muslimpopulation/Muslimpopulation.pdf Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World's Muslim Population] - Pew Research Center, October 2009</ref> and [[Shiites|Shi'ite]]s (approx 10-20%).<ref name="rl">[http://www.religionfacts.com/islam/comparison_charts/islamic_sects.htm Comparison of Sunni and Shia Islam] - ReligionFacts</ref><ref>[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/540503/Shiite Shīʿite] - Encyclopædia Britannica Online (2010)</ref><ref name="pew"></ref><ref name="pew2"></ref> Together they make up almost the entirety of Islam. However, there is a small heretical group who are collectively known as "Qur'anists" (also referred to as ''Quraniyoon'', ''Ahle Quran'', or ''hadith rejectors''). They reject the [[Hadith]] (oral traditions) and the [[Sunnah]] (example) of [[Muhammad]], an integral part of Islam, and are viewed by mainstream Islam in much the same way as the Jehovah's Witnesses are viewed by mainstream Christianity (i.e. Catholics, Protestants, Orthodox etc).  
Within [[Islam]] the two largest sects are the [[Sunni]]s (up to 90%)<ref name="rl"></ref><ref>[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/295507/Islam Islām] - Encyclopædia Britannica (2010)</ref><ref>[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/574006/Sunnite Sunnite] - Encyclopædia Britannica (2010)</ref><ref name="pew">[http://pewforum.org/Muslim/Mapping-the-Global-Muslim-Population%286%29.aspx Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World’s Muslim Population] - Pew Research Center, October 7, 2009</ref><ref name="pew2">Tracy Miller - [http://pewforum.org/newassets/images/reports/Muslimpopulation/Muslimpopulation.pdf Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World's Muslim Population] - Pew Research Center, October 2009</ref> and [[Shiites|Shi'ite]]s (approximately 10-20%).<ref name="rl">[http://www.religionfacts.com/islam/comparison_charts/islamic_sects.htm Comparison of Sunni and Shia Islam] - ReligionFacts</ref><ref>[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/540503/Shiite Shīʿite] - Encyclopædia Britannica Online (2010)</ref><ref name="pew"></ref><ref name="pew2"></ref> Together they make up almost the entirety of Islam. However, there is a small heretical group who are collectively known as "Qur'anists" (also referred to as ''Quraniyoon'', ''Ahle Quran'', or ''hadith rejectors''). They reject the [[Hadith]] (oral traditions) and the [[Sunnah]] (example) of [[Muhammad]], an integral part of Islam, and are viewed by mainstream Islam in much the same way as the Jehovah's Witnesses are viewed by mainstream Christianity (i.e. Catholics, Protestants, Orthodox etc).  


===Rejected as Apostates===
===Rejected as Apostates===
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For one thing, the Qur'an is full of [[Contradictions in the Quran|contradictory verses]] and commands; sometimes commanding believers to seek out and kill pagans ({{Quran|9|5}}), other times commanding Muslims to leave pagans to practice their polytheistic religions in peace ({{Quran|109|1-6}}). Without the Hadith there would be no [[Abrogation (Naskh)|Abrogation]], the Qur'an can then be interpreted in multiple ways. The pacifist can decide to take from it a peaceful message by deliberately ignoring or twisting violent verses whereas the sadist can easily interpret a violent message by focusing on such verses as are found in Surah 9]].  Both Muslims could be selectively justified by the Qur'an because of its contradictory messages from [[Chronological_Order_of_the_Qur'an|Muhammad-in-Mecca versus Muhammad-in-Medina]].
For one thing, the Qur'an is full of [[Contradictions in the Quran|contradictory verses]] and commands; sometimes commanding believers to seek out and kill pagans ({{Quran|9|5}}), other times commanding Muslims to leave pagans to practice their polytheistic religions in peace ({{Quran|109|1-6}}). Without the Hadith there would be no [[Abrogation (Naskh)|Abrogation]], the Qur'an can then be interpreted in multiple ways. The pacifist can decide to take from it a peaceful message by deliberately ignoring or twisting violent verses whereas the sadist can easily interpret a violent message by focusing on such verses as are found in Surah 9]].  Both Muslims could be selectively justified by the Qur'an because of its contradictory messages from [[Chronological_Order_of_the_Qur'an|Muhammad-in-Mecca versus Muhammad-in-Medina]].


To be a Qur'anist requires a good deal of faith and a considerable lack of theological common sense. If one rejects the Hadith (ie. Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawud), the Tafsir (ie. Ibn Kathir, Ibn Abbas, al-Jalalayn, Maududi), and the History (ie. al-Tabari, Ibn Sa'd, al-Waqidi, Ibn Ishaq), then the entire historical context of the Qur'an, along with any proof of Muhammad's existence, is lost. It simply becomes an ancient Arabic document of rambling, repetitive, and often-times confusing, statements and commands. The reader is left with such questions as "Who wrote this and why?" and "Who is Abu Lahab, and why are he and his wife going to be tortured?" and "Why don't these stories match the ones found in the Bible?" and "Who is [[Isa|'Isa]]?" The Qur'anist is ultimately a monotheist who creates their own religion based on a 1400-year-old nonsensical Arabic document.  
If one rejects the Hadith (ie. Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawud), the Tafsir (e.g. Ibn Kathir, Ibn Abbas, al-Jalalayn, Maududi), and the History (ie. al-Tabari, Ibn Sa'd, al-Waqidi, Ibn Ishaq), then the entire historical context of the Qur'an, along with proof of Muhammad's existence is lost. It simply becomes an ancient Arabic document of partially incoherent, repetitive, and often-times confusing statements and commands. The reader is left with such questions as: "Who wrote this and why?" and "Who is Abu Lahab, and why are he and his wife going to be tortured?" and "Why don't these stories match the ones found in the Bible?" and "Who is [[Isa|'Isa]]?".  


The often-leveled charge by the obscure Qur'an-only sects that "Sunni's and Shi'ite's are following a deviant form of Islam by introducing these man-made books," is laughable and the epitome of hypocrisy, considering most of the narrators of hadith are the very same people who passed down the Qur'an itself. The first Muslims ([[Sahabah]]- companions of Muhammad, which include all four [[Caliph|Rightly Guided Caliphs]]) who partook in the Hijra to [[Medina]], ''were not'' Qur'an-only Muslims. The generation of Muslims that followed the death of Muhammad (the [[Tabi'un]]) ''were not'' Qur'an-only Muslims. And the generation of Muslims that followed them (Tabi' al-Tabi'un) ''were not'' Qur'an-only Muslims. Recording and sorting through these narrations in written form was little more than codifying and clarifying already existing beliefs. To suggest that adhering to Muhammad's sunnah constitutes a deviation from pure Islam is ludicrous.
The often-levelled charge by the Qur'an-only sects that "Sunni's and Shi'ite's are following a deviant form of Islam by introducing these man-made books," is also questionable, considering most of the narrators of hadith are the very same people who passed down the Qur'an itself. The first Muslims ([[Sahabah]]- companions of Muhammad, which include all four [[Caliph|Rightly Guided Caliphs]]) who partook in the Hijra to [[Medina]], ''were not'' Qur'an-only Muslims as far as we can tell, nor the generation of Muslims that followed the death of Muhammad (the [[Tabi'un]]). And the generation of Muslims that followed them (Tabi' al-Tabi'un) ''were not'' Qur'an-only Muslims etc.. Recording and sorting through these narrations in written form was to codify and clarify already existing beliefs - though admittedly much later than the time of Muhammad, with the majority of compilations recorded in the 9th century (for a history on this, see the Britannica entry on [https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hadith Hadith]), leading to many [[Mawdu' (Fabricated) and Daif (Weak) Hadiths|Mawdu' (Fabricated) and Da'if (Weak) Hadiths]] being recorded.  


These Qur'an only "Muslims" reject the Hadith, a fundamental aspect of Islam, simply due to it highlighting the immoral truths of Muhammad, early Islam and its numerous [[Islamic laws|laws]]. They may deny this as the reason behind their rejection of Hadith, but this fact is proven by many Qur'anists who alternatively accept Hadith as a historical source but dismiss it as a religious one. Furthermore they reject anything about Muhammad which they claim "contradicts the Qur'anic description of him". This approach is intellectually dishonest and logically unfeasible. Either the Hadith are a valid source of information for Muslims or they are worthless. You cannot pick and choose which bits you want to keep and which bits you want to throw out when the good and the bad all originate from the same sources.  
It can be argued that Qur'an only Muslims often reject the Hadith, a fundamental aspect of mainstream Islam, simply due to it highlighting the immoral truths of Muhammad, early Islam and its numerous [[Islamic laws|laws]]. They may deny this as the reason behind their rejection of Hadith, but this appears to fit the idea by many Qur'anists who accept Hadith essentially as a historical source for the emergence of Islam but dismiss it as a religious or law-giving one. Critics argue this approach is logically unfeasible - either the Hadith are a valid source of information for Muslims, or they are not. One should not be able to pick and choose which bits to keep and which bits to ignore when the 'good' and the 'bad' all originate from the same sources.  


===Other verses===
===Other verses===
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<BR>1. To testify that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah and Muhammad is Allah’s Apostle.”}}
<BR>1. To testify that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah and Muhammad is Allah’s Apostle.”}}


These are Muhammad's words and are not found within the Qur'an. Therefore, Islam’s First Pillar is utterly meaningless, and impossible to implement, without the work of Muslim historians Ibn Ishaq (704-770 AD) and al-Tabari (838-923 AD). If there is no definition as to what the [[Shahadah]] should be, it can be any arbitrary phrase in any language. In fact there are at-least three different shahadahs used by various Qur'anist sects.
These are Muhammad's words and are not found within the Qur'an. Therefore, Islam’s First Pillar is utterly meaningless, and impossible to implement, without the work of Muslim historians Ibn Ishaq (704-770 AD) and al-Tabari (838-923 AD). If there is no definition as to what the [[Shahadah]] should be (or indeed if there is one), it can be any arbitrary phrase in any language (or not be carried out at all). In fact there are at-least three different shahadahs used by various Qur'anist sects.


===Salah===
===Salah===
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{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|2|7}}|“2. To offer the (compulsory congregational) prayers dutifully and perfectly.”}}
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|2|7}}|“2. To offer the (compulsory congregational) prayers dutifully and perfectly.”}}


Once again, this is not feasible. The “compulsory congregational [[Salah|prayer]]” is not described in the Qur’an at all. In fact, the Qur’an says that there should be three prayers, none of which it depicts, and the Hadith demands five. The only explanation of the obligatory prostration is found in the Sunnah, and even then it is never described by Muhammad himself. Muslims are performing a ritual without Qur’anic precedence. As such, the Second Pillar is rubble. Qur'anists do not even agree upon the number of daily prayers that should be offered. The various number of prayers should be offered are 0, 2, 3 or 5. Also in the prayer itself, certain Arabic recitations and verses are recited. The Qur'an does not give specifications for these recitations so unless one follows hadiths and traditions, the recitations can be anything for a Qur'anist.
Once again, this is not feasible. The “compulsory congregational [[Salah|prayer]]” is not described in the Qur’an at all. In fact, the Qur’an number of prayers could be interpreted several ways (Qur'anists do not even agree upon the number of daily prayers that should be offered. The various number of prayers should be offered are 0, 2, 3 or 5),<ref>''[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quranism#:~:text=Some%20Quranists%20pray%20five%20times,Isra'%20and%20Mi'raj. Quranism.]'' Wikipedia. Accessed 02/02/24.</ref> and none of which depict exactly how to pray, while the hadith clarify five. The only explanation of the obligatory prostration is found in the Sunnah, i.e. Muslims are performing a ritual without Qur’anic precedence. Also in the prayer itself, certain Arabic recitations and verses are recited. The Qur'an does not give specifications for these recitations so unless one follows hadiths and traditions, the recitations can be anything for a Qur'anist.


===Zakat===
===Zakat===
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{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|2|7}}|“3. To pay Zakat.”}}
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|2|7}}|“3. To pay Zakat.”}}


How is that possible when the terms of the [[Zakat]] are omitted from the Qur’an? The first to commit them to paper was Ishaq. A century later, Tabari referenced Ishaq’s Hadith. The only reason Muslims can pay the Zakat is because Ishaq explained it to them.
The terms of the [[Zakat]] are omitted from the Qur’an. The first to commit them to paper was Ishaq. A century later than that, Tabari referenced Ishaq’s Hadith. The only reason Muslims can pay the Zakat is because Ishaq explained it to them.


===Hajj===
===Hajj===
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{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|2|7}}|“4. To perform Hajj.”}}
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|1|2|7}}|“4. To perform Hajj.”}}


This is also impossible. The only explanations of the [[Hajj]] are found in the Sunnah. No aspect of the pilgrimage can be performed without referencing the Hadith. Muslims would be lost without it.
This is also missing instructions, as well as the purpose for the rituals described in the Quran.<ref>''Muhammad'' (Past Masters) Michael Cook. 1996 (Revision of 1983 original) 9780192876058 (ISBN10: 0192876058). (Kindle Locations 469-487). Kindle Edition. </ref> The only full explanations of the [[Hajj]] are found in the Sunnah. No aspect of the pilgrimage can be performed without referencing the Hadith. Muslims would essentially therefore be lost without it.


===Sawm===
===Sawm===
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Strangely, the one pillar that is actually described in the most detail in the Qur'an, is actually a borrowed [[Pagan Origins of Islam|pagan]] ritual Qusayy invented pre-dating Muhammad's Islam. Qusayy's family took a cut on merchandise sold during the “truce of the gods” fairs of Ramadhan.
Strangely, the one pillar that is actually described in the most detail in the Qur'an, is actually a borrowed [[Pagan Origins of Islam|pagan]] ritual Qusayy invented pre-dating Muhammad's Islam. Qusayy's family took a cut on merchandise sold during the “truce of the gods” fairs of Ramadhan.
== Islamic Law ==
This issue continues into many different aspects of Islamic law, as Islamic Scholar Michael Cook notes:
{{Quote|Muhammad (Past Masters). Michael Cook. 1996 (Revision of 1983 original) 9780192876058 (ISBN10: 0192876058). (Kindle Locations 457-486). Kindle Edition.|In the early Islamic period there was a school of thought which saw the Koran as the sole and sufficient basis of Islamic law. God Himself, it was argued, describes the Koran as a book which makes everything clear. The consensus of Muslim scholars, however, was against this view. Too much is left unsaid in the Koran; for example, it tells the believer to pray, but omits essential information as to how he should do it.
The bulk of Islamic law as it actually evolved is thus non-Koranic in substance. Some of what is missing is supplied from the innumerable traditions regarding the sayings and doings of Muhammad. A typical example of such a tradition was given in Chapter 2: at the conquest of Khaybar, Muhammad is said to have declared the eating of the flesh of the domesticated ass forbidden. At the same time, the lawyers had to rely, in one way or another, on their own legal reasoning. All this would bulk large in any survey of Islamic law as such; here, however, I shall focus on such law as there is in the Koran.
Although it does not add up to a comprehensive law-code, the Koranic treatment of law covers a wide range of subject-matter. In the first place, it deals with specifically religious rituals and duties: washing, prayer, almsgiving, fasting, and pilgrimage to the sanctuary. The treatment is uneven; thus the instructions on the fast are fairly full, whereas no indication is given as to how much alms a believer should give. It is nonetheless clear from the way in which the topics are treated that God's interest as a lawgiver is not confined to generalities.
For example, the believer in preparing himself for prayer is specifically instructed to wash his arms up to the elbows, and to wipe his feet to the ankles. In the second place, the Koran discusses a range of less narrowly religious aspects of law: marriage, divorce, inheritance, homicide, theft, usury, the drinking of wine, and the like.
Again, the treatment is uneven: thieves are to be punished by having their hands cut off, but the fate of the unrepentant usurer is not prescribed (though he receives a dire warning that he will find himself at war with God and His messenger)..}}
=== Sunni-Shia Split ===
There is nothing mentioned about how religious leaders are rightfully meant to be chosen, nor how religious laws are meant to be administered. With no direct instructions for a successor, or how to chose one (or them) in the Quran, there was a civil war almost immediately after Muhammad's death - which according to traditional accounts lead to the Sunni-Shia split. A quick summary of this can be read in this history.com [https://www.history.com/news/sunni-shia-divide-islam-muslim article].


'''Characters in the Quran'''
'''Characters in the Quran'''

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Qur'an only Islam

Within Islam the two largest sects are the Sunnis (up to 90%)[1][2][3][4][5] and Shi'ites (approximately 10-20%).[1][6][4][5] Together they make up almost the entirety of Islam. However, there is a small heretical group who are collectively known as "Qur'anists" (also referred to as Quraniyoon, Ahle Quran, or hadith rejectors). They reject the Hadith (oral traditions) and the Sunnah (example) of Muhammad, an integral part of Islam, and are viewed by mainstream Islam in much the same way as the Jehovah's Witnesses are viewed by mainstream Christianity (i.e. Catholics, Protestants, Orthodox etc).

Rejected as Apostates

According to Sunni and Shi'ite orthodoxy, the hadith literature is an integral part of the Muslim faith. The 11th century Andalusian Maliki theologian and scholar Yusuf ibn abd al-Barr wrote in his Jami' Bayan al-'Ilm wa Fadlihi (Compendium Exposing the Nature of Knowledge and Its Immense Merit):

The Sunna is divided into two types. The first is the consensus transmitted from the masses to the masses. This is one of the proofs that leave no excuse for denial and there is no disagreement concerning them. Whoever rejects this consensus has rejected one of Allah's textual stipulations and committed apostasy. The second type of Sunna consists in the reports of established, trustworthy lone narrators with uninterrupted chains. The congregation of the ulamas of the Community have said that this second type makes practice obligatory. Some of them said that it makes both knowledge and practice obligatory.
Ibn Abd al-Barr - Jami' Bayan al-'Ilm (2:33)

According to many high-ranking figures at Al-Azhar University, the most respected authority in Islam (and who also accept Shi'ite fiqh as a fifth school of Islamic thought),[7] Qur'anists are not Muslims:

Dr. Yousef Elbadry, a member of the Higher Assembly of Islamic Affairs, accuses the Quranists of having a strange logic because relying on the wholly [sic] Quran only; while the Quran itself -as he claims- is in need for the Sunna,. Dr. ELbadry wonders what the Quranists say about verses like, "He who obeys the messenger obeys God?" Dr. Elbadry added that these Quranists went astray and should be considered apostates.
. . .

Dr. Mohamed Said Tantawy, the Sheikh of AL-Azhar replied saying that those who call for relying only on the wholly Quran are ignorant, lairs, and do not know religious rules because the ideas in the Sunna came from God, but it was put into words by the prophet (Peace be upon him). Moreover, Sunna explains and clarify the rules mention as in the wholly Quran.
. . .
Dr. Mahmoud Ashour, a member of the Committee of Islamic Research, that the Sunna is indeed a source of the Islamic Sharia, and that those who deny it are illogical because it is impossible to understand Islam with the Sunna. Dr. Ashour stresses that denying the Sunna costs the Quranists to lose their faith. He then called to protect Islam against those Quranists who plan to destroy Islam and pose the greatest threat on Islam and Muslims. He finally accused the Quranists to be spies and agents for other forces to aim at destroying Islam from Inside, but God will protect his religion as he promised.
. . .

Dr. Mohamed Abdelmonem Elberry, a professor at the School of Hadith and Explanation, Al-Azhar University, stressed the point that most Muslims have always agreed on validity of the Sunna, whether it is the verbal of practical Sunna. "The wholly Quran ordered us to obey the Messenger, and since this who do not are not true believers,"
Sheikhs of Alazhar: Quranists are Apostates; and the Evidence from the Holey Book Proves Their Guilt

Contemporary scholars such as Gibril Haddad have commented on the apostatic nature of a wholesale denial of the probativeness of the Sunnah according to Sunni Orthodoxy, writing "it cannot be imagined that one reject the entire probativeness of the Sunna and remain a Muslim".[8]

The Grand Mufti of Pakistan Muhammad Rafi Usmani has also criticised Qur'anists in his lecture Munkareen Hadith (refuters of Hadith); he states:

The Qur’aan, which they claim to follow, denies the faith of the one who refuses to obey the Messenger (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and does not accept his ruling: “But no, by your Lord, they can have no Faith, until they make you (O Muhammad) judge in all disputes between them, and find in themselves no resistance against your decisions, and accept (them) with full submission.” [al-Nisa’ 4:65 – interpretation of the meaning]

Why it is not possible

The Qur'anists have a major dilemma on their hands. Indeed, it is one of the reasons why reforms to Islam are an impossibility. The Qur'an alleges that it is entirely composed of Allah’s commands, not Muhammad’s, yet the Qur'an itself orders Muslims to obey the Messenger.

He who obeys the Messenger, obeys Allah: But if any turn away, We have not sent thee to watch over their (evil deeds).
Quran 4:80

If you do not know what the Messenger had ordered, then this is impossible. The Qur’an also commands Muslims to follow the Messenger’s example, yet the only place this example is established is in the Sunnah. Without the Hadith, you cannot know Muhammad. Without knowing Muhammad, there is no Uswa Hasana. If you doubt the Hadith you are doubting the entirety of Islam. If you reject the hadiths, then you are in-turn rejecting Islam by going against the orders of the Qur'an and are therefore apostate/murtad/kafir (whichever may apply). Ultimately, to remain faithful to Allah and the Qur'an, the hadiths cannot be rejected.

Islam means submission (contrary to popular belief that it means peace), and more specifically it means submission to the will of Allah. What is the will of Allah, one may ask. Qur'an-only Muslims would have us believe that the Qur'an clearly defines what exactly Allah's will is. But this is not the case.

For one thing, the Qur'an is full of contradictory verses and commands; sometimes commanding believers to seek out and kill pagans (Quran 9:5), other times commanding Muslims to leave pagans to practice their polytheistic religions in peace (Quran 109:1-6). Without the Hadith there would be no Abrogation, the Qur'an can then be interpreted in multiple ways. The pacifist can decide to take from it a peaceful message by deliberately ignoring or twisting violent verses whereas the sadist can easily interpret a violent message by focusing on such verses as are found in Surah 9]]. Both Muslims could be selectively justified by the Qur'an because of its contradictory messages from Muhammad-in-Mecca versus Muhammad-in-Medina.

If one rejects the Hadith (ie. Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawud), the Tafsir (e.g. Ibn Kathir, Ibn Abbas, al-Jalalayn, Maududi), and the History (ie. al-Tabari, Ibn Sa'd, al-Waqidi, Ibn Ishaq), then the entire historical context of the Qur'an, along with proof of Muhammad's existence is lost. It simply becomes an ancient Arabic document of partially incoherent, repetitive, and often-times confusing statements and commands. The reader is left with such questions as: "Who wrote this and why?" and "Who is Abu Lahab, and why are he and his wife going to be tortured?" and "Why don't these stories match the ones found in the Bible?" and "Who is 'Isa?".

The often-levelled charge by the Qur'an-only sects that "Sunni's and Shi'ite's are following a deviant form of Islam by introducing these man-made books," is also questionable, considering most of the narrators of hadith are the very same people who passed down the Qur'an itself. The first Muslims (Sahabah- companions of Muhammad, which include all four Rightly Guided Caliphs) who partook in the Hijra to Medina, were not Qur'an-only Muslims as far as we can tell, nor the generation of Muslims that followed the death of Muhammad (the Tabi'un). And the generation of Muslims that followed them (Tabi' al-Tabi'un) were not Qur'an-only Muslims etc.. Recording and sorting through these narrations in written form was to codify and clarify already existing beliefs - though admittedly much later than the time of Muhammad, with the majority of compilations recorded in the 9th century (for a history on this, see the Britannica entry on Hadith), leading to many Mawdu' (Fabricated) and Da'if (Weak) Hadiths being recorded.

It can be argued that Qur'an only Muslims often reject the Hadith, a fundamental aspect of mainstream Islam, simply due to it highlighting the immoral truths of Muhammad, early Islam and its numerous laws. They may deny this as the reason behind their rejection of Hadith, but this appears to fit the idea by many Qur'anists who accept Hadith essentially as a historical source for the emergence of Islam but dismiss it as a religious or law-giving one. Critics argue this approach is logically unfeasible - either the Hadith are a valid source of information for Muslims, or they are not. One should not be able to pick and choose which bits to keep and which bits to ignore when the 'good' and the 'bad' all originate from the same sources.

Other verses

(We sent them) with Clear Signs and Books of dark prophecies; and We have sent down unto thee (also) the Message; that thou mayest explain clearly to men what is sent for them, and that they may give thought.
Quran 16:44

The message (Qur'an) is explained and elaborated upon by the Prophet. Preserving the message (Qur'an) also requires preserving the Sunnah which explains the message, as the previous verse states.

Whatever Allah has restored to His Messenger from the people of the towns, it is for Allah and for the Messenger, and for the near of kin and the orphans and the needy and the wayfarer, so that it may not be a thing taken by turns among the rich of you, and whatever the Messenger gives you, accept it, and from whatever he forbids you, keep back, and be careful of (your duty to) Allah; surely Allah is severe in retributing (evil)
Quran 59:6

This verse asks Muslims to follow everything Mohammad gives them, and abstain from everything he forbids. That means they are commanded by Allah to follow the Sunnah.

Five Pillars of Islam

The concept "5 pillars in Islam" is practiced and preached widely in the Muslim world and is a crucial part of the Muslim way of life. Yet this concept is not described or defined in the Qur'an in any way. It is only found in the hadith. Looking at the pillars individually, four out of five of Islam’s Pillars would not make any sense without the Hadith, therefore making Islam impossible to practice.

Shahadah

Allah’s Apostle said: “Islam is based on (the following) five (principles):
1. To testify that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah and Muhammad is Allah’s Apostle.”
Sahih Bukhari 1:2:7

These are Muhammad's words and are not found within the Qur'an. Therefore, Islam’s First Pillar is utterly meaningless, and impossible to implement, without the work of Muslim historians Ibn Ishaq (704-770 AD) and al-Tabari (838-923 AD). If there is no definition as to what the Shahadah should be (or indeed if there is one), it can be any arbitrary phrase in any language (or not be carried out at all). In fact there are at-least three different shahadahs used by various Qur'anist sects.

Salah

“2. To offer the (compulsory congregational) prayers dutifully and perfectly.”
Sahih Bukhari 1:2:7

Once again, this is not feasible. The “compulsory congregational prayer” is not described in the Qur’an at all. In fact, the Qur’an number of prayers could be interpreted several ways (Qur'anists do not even agree upon the number of daily prayers that should be offered. The various number of prayers should be offered are 0, 2, 3 or 5),[9] and none of which depict exactly how to pray, while the hadith clarify five. The only explanation of the obligatory prostration is found in the Sunnah, i.e. Muslims are performing a ritual without Qur’anic precedence. Also in the prayer itself, certain Arabic recitations and verses are recited. The Qur'an does not give specifications for these recitations so unless one follows hadiths and traditions, the recitations can be anything for a Qur'anist.

Zakat

“3. To pay Zakat.”
Sahih Bukhari 1:2:7

The terms of the Zakat are omitted from the Qur’an. The first to commit them to paper was Ishaq. A century later than that, Tabari referenced Ishaq’s Hadith. The only reason Muslims can pay the Zakat is because Ishaq explained it to them.

Hajj

“4. To perform Hajj.”
Sahih Bukhari 1:2:7

This is also missing instructions, as well as the purpose for the rituals described in the Quran.[10] The only full explanations of the Hajj are found in the Sunnah. No aspect of the pilgrimage can be performed without referencing the Hadith. Muslims would essentially therefore be lost without it.

Sawm

“5. To observe fast during the month of Ramadan.”
Sahih Bukhari 1:2:7

Sawm, the final pillar of Islam is also not described in the Qur'an, the “perfect, detailed, and final revelation to mankind”. Though the Qur'an describes the fast, without the Hadith, Muslims wouldn’t know why Ramadan was so special to them. The accounts of the meaning of Ramadan are in the Traditions, initially chronicled by Ibn Ishaq and then copied by the hadith compliers such as Bukhari, Muslim etc. and historians/exegetes like Al-Tabari.

Strangely, the one pillar that is actually described in the most detail in the Qur'an, is actually a borrowed pagan ritual Qusayy invented pre-dating Muhammad's Islam. Qusayy's family took a cut on merchandise sold during the “truce of the gods” fairs of Ramadhan.

Islamic Law

This issue continues into many different aspects of Islamic law, as Islamic Scholar Michael Cook notes:

In the early Islamic period there was a school of thought which saw the Koran as the sole and sufficient basis of Islamic law. God Himself, it was argued, describes the Koran as a book which makes everything clear. The consensus of Muslim scholars, however, was against this view. Too much is left unsaid in the Koran; for example, it tells the believer to pray, but omits essential information as to how he should do it.

The bulk of Islamic law as it actually evolved is thus non-Koranic in substance. Some of what is missing is supplied from the innumerable traditions regarding the sayings and doings of Muhammad. A typical example of such a tradition was given in Chapter 2: at the conquest of Khaybar, Muhammad is said to have declared the eating of the flesh of the domesticated ass forbidden. At the same time, the lawyers had to rely, in one way or another, on their own legal reasoning. All this would bulk large in any survey of Islamic law as such; here, however, I shall focus on such law as there is in the Koran.

Although it does not add up to a comprehensive law-code, the Koranic treatment of law covers a wide range of subject-matter. In the first place, it deals with specifically religious rituals and duties: washing, prayer, almsgiving, fasting, and pilgrimage to the sanctuary. The treatment is uneven; thus the instructions on the fast are fairly full, whereas no indication is given as to how much alms a believer should give. It is nonetheless clear from the way in which the topics are treated that God's interest as a lawgiver is not confined to generalities.

For example, the believer in preparing himself for prayer is specifically instructed to wash his arms up to the elbows, and to wipe his feet to the ankles. In the second place, the Koran discusses a range of less narrowly religious aspects of law: marriage, divorce, inheritance, homicide, theft, usury, the drinking of wine, and the like.

Again, the treatment is uneven: thieves are to be punished by having their hands cut off, but the fate of the unrepentant usurer is not prescribed (though he receives a dire warning that he will find himself at war with God and His messenger)..
Muhammad (Past Masters). Michael Cook. 1996 (Revision of 1983 original) 9780192876058 (ISBN10: 0192876058). (Kindle Locations 457-486). Kindle Edition.

Sunni-Shia Split

There is nothing mentioned about how religious leaders are rightfully meant to be chosen, nor how religious laws are meant to be administered. With no direct instructions for a successor, or how to chose one (or them) in the Quran, there was a civil war almost immediately after Muhammad's death - which according to traditional accounts lead to the Sunni-Shia split. A quick summary of this can be read in this history.com article.

Characters in the Quran

There are also characters supposedly contemporary to Muhammad such as Abu Lahab (Quran 111:1 (and his wife Quran 111:4)) and Zayd (Quran 33:37), who have no equivalents in biblical literature to refer to, that are named but not introduced formally - so the meaning of the verses and who they are is highly obscure (if not impossible to understand fully) without secondary literature.

Criticism of hadiths

Critics wonder why if these secondary texts/examples/revelations, which include the hadith as well as biographies of the prophet, are so important, they could not simply be included in the main holy book to avoid ambiguity and misleading scripture (not to mention schisms in sects across Islam). Especially when the Qur'an is claiming it is the preserved word of God - yet extra secondary revelations are needed to understand it and add to it, with many contradicting each other (see Contradictions in the Hadith and further examples from a Muslim website here) as well as the Qur'an itself (as this Islamic website shows), not to mention science (Scientific Errors in the Hadith) and common sense (see Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars: Remarkable and Strange Islamic Traditions).

The entire method of verifying isnads[11] (a chain of narrators leading back to the prophet or his companions), and therefore the hadith, as being classed as authentic, good, weak or fabricated is also never mentioned in the Qur'an. These tell the reader whether they should be followed or not, so are of utter importance to the religion. However as Britannica notes, these are also a non-contemporary (to Muhammad or early companion's of his) invention:

During Muhammad’s lifetime and after his death, hadiths were usually quoted by his Companions and contemporaries and were not prefaced by isnāds; only after a generation or two (c. 700 CE) did the isnād appear to enhance the weight of its text. In the 2nd century AH (after 720 CE), when the example of the Prophet as embodied in hadiths—rather than local custom as developed in Muslim communities—was established as the norm (sunnah) for an Islamic way of life, a wholesale creation of hadiths, all “substantiated” by elaborate isnāds, resulted. Since hadiths were the basis of virtually all Islamic scholarship, especially Qurʾānic exegesis (tafsīr) and legal theory (fiqh), Muslim scholars had to determine scientifically which of them were authentic. This was done by a careful scrutiny of the isnāds, rating each hadith according to the completeness of its chain of transmitters and the reliability and orthodoxy of its authorities.
"Britannica entry on 'Isnads'", https://www.britannica.com/topic/isnad. 

This has resulted in many different large collections across different books, which examining them all and personally scrutinising these chains being such an enormous task, it is usually simply left to scholars to issue rulings on matters, rather than a personal reading.

Many scholars produced collections of hadiths, the earliest compilation being the great Musnad of Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, arranged by isnād. But only six collections, known as al-kutub al-sittah (“the six books”), arranged by matn—those of al-Bukhārī (died 870), Muslim ibn al-Ḥajjāj (died 875), Abū Dāʾūd (died 888), al-Tirmidhī (died 892), Ibn Mājāh (died 886), and al-Nasāʾī (died 915)—came to be recognized as canonical in orthodox Islam, though the books of al-Bukhārī and Muslim enjoy a prestige that virtually eclipses the other four.
"Britannica entry on 'ʿilm al-ḥadīth'", https://www.britannica.com/topic/isnad. 

See Also

External Links

Links from Muslims

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Comparison of Sunni and Shia Islam - ReligionFacts
  2. ↑ Islām - Encyclopædia Britannica (2010)
  3. ↑ Sunnite - Encyclopædia Britannica (2010)
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World’s Muslim Population - Pew Research Center, October 7, 2009
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Tracy Miller - Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World's Muslim Population - Pew Research Center, October 2009
  6. ↑ Shīʿite - Encyclopædia Britannica Online (2010)
  7. ↑ al-Azhar Verdict on the Shia - Shi'ite Encyclopedia v2.0, Al-islam
  8. ↑ Gibril Haddad - The Sunna as Evidence: The Probativeness of the Sunna - Living Islam, August, 1999
  9. ↑ Quranism. Wikipedia. Accessed 02/02/24.
  10. ↑ Muhammad (Past Masters) Michael Cook. 1996 (Revision of 1983 original) 9780192876058 (ISBN10: 0192876058). (Kindle Locations 469-487). Kindle Edition.
  11. ↑ https://www.britannica.com/topic/isnad
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