Portal: Islamic Scriptures: Difference between revisions

From WikiIslam, the online resource on Islam
Jump to navigation Jump to search
[checked revision][checked revision]
No edit summary
No edit summary
Line 8: Line 8:
}}
}}


Islam has been defined by its scholars since the 8th century (the second Islamic century). The Arabic word عالم 'aalim means simply "one who knows" and it is also used in Arabic to refer to scientists and specialists in many fields of knowledge. In Islamic discourse the word usually refers to scholars of [[fiqh]] or Islamic law, although the word is also used to refer to the early scholars who gathered the stories of [[maghazi]] (raids) and [[hadith]] of the prophet. In classical times ulemaa such as [[Tabari]] were also knowledgeable in other fields such as philosophy, medicine, and world history, but as with most other fields modernity has forced the concentration of efforts, and modern Islamic scholars tend not to be polymaths. Included in this portal are modern scholars working inside the Islamic tradition, such as [[Yasir Qadhi]], but also modern scholar-preachers such as [[Zakir Naik]]. The scholars of the Shi'i tradition, although fulfilling many of the same roles as their Sunni counterparts, also have a more systematized, organized role in the context of the Shi'ite religious hierarchy, particularly in Iran where the state is currently fused to the Shi'ite clerical establishment.
The idea of scripture is central to Islam; above all else, Islam's own scriptures tell of how [[Allah]] has periodically given his followers books throughout the ages, and refers to Islam's co-abrahamic religionists as [[People of the Book]]. The central scripture of Islam is above all the [[Qur'an]], which orthodox Sunni and Shi'i Islam see as the literal word of Allah through his messenger [[Muhammad]]. The Qur'an, tho, leaves much to be desired when it comes to even the basics of the Islamic religion, let alone as a guide to all aspects of life. To fill in these gaps as it were, the hadith, narrations about the words and deeds of the prophet are also extant; on top of this very important source is the [[sira]], the writings about the lift of the prophet, and the [[tafsir]], learned commentary upon the Qur'an which leverages the other two extra-Quranic scriptures. Although the Qur'an itself is beyond reproach, the other three sources are subject to various degrees of trustworthiness, which have been defined throughout the ages by [[Portal: Traditional Scholars|the Islamic scholarly community]], The evaluation of hadith, sira, and tafsir for its trustworthiness constitutes a large part of the work done for the Islamic community by its scholars.  


== Qur'an==
== Qur'an==


The scholars of the classical or pre-modern period played a tremendous role in defining what Islam would be for later generations. Many questions that Muslim scholars take for granted, such as the nature of the [[Quran]] vis-a-vis [[Allah]] or the place of reason or philosophy vis-a-vis revelation were settled in this period and remain more or less uncontested today.  
The Qur'an is the holiest scripture of Islam; some Muslims, known as [[Quranism|Quranists]], claim to follow it and it alone (these Muslims are considered heretics by orthodox Sunni Muslims, inter alia). According to orthodox Sunni doctrine, it is the full, complete, unaltered word of Allah directly to his apostle Muhammad (Shi'ites claim that though the portion we have is untouched, Sunnis have cut out many chapters and verse which they did not want in the final Qur'an). As such its study is of great importance to Muslim scholars, and Muslim believers study it in their own time for their own spiritual growth. As the direct and literal word of Allah, orthodox Sunni Islam submits that the Qur'an is flawless in every way, from its "clear" Arabic to its claims about history and science. In addition to articles about the Qur'an, its contents, its history, and its interpretation, this section contains our [[as


<div class="articleSummaryColumnsWrapper">
<div class="articleSummaryColumnsWrapper">
<div class="articleSummaryColumn">
<div class="articleSummaryColumn">


{{PortalArticle|image=Gazali_1.jpg|title=Al-Ghazali|summary= Al-Ghazali was a 9th century Islamic scholar who championed the "Islamic sciences" against the philosophy of the Greeks; in theology he was a famous Ash'ari and in fiqh he was a famous Shafi'i jurist|description=}} {{PortalArticle|image=Suyuti.jpg|title=Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti|summary= Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti was a 13th century Islamic scholar and jurist of the Shafi'i madhab, famous for his extremely influential tafsir. He also wrote on a wide variety of subjects and is sometimes called the most prolific writer of the Islamic tradition|description=}} {{PortalArticle|image=Ibn kathir.png|title=Ibn Kathir al-Dimashqi|summary= Ibn Kathir al-Dimashqi was a 12th century Islamic scholar of hadith. His tafsir is considered to be one of the most influential in modern Islamic theology and jurisprudence. He also wrote a work called the Israi'iliyaat about the biblical stories of the Jews.|description=}} {{PortalArticle|image=ibn taymiyyah.jpg|title=Ibn Taymiyyah|summary= Ibn Taymiyyah was an 11th and 12th century Islamic scholar known for his fierce defense of Sunni orthodoxy. Along with Ghazali he helped turn the intellectual tide against Greek philosophy in the Muslim wolrd and also called for [[jihad]] against the Mongols|description=}} {{PortalArticle|image=Tabari.PNG|title=Ibn Taymiyyah|summary= Tabari is one of the greatest scholars of the Islamic tradition; his tafsir and his sira of the prophet have a status of or close to scripture in the Islamic tradition. In addition to his historical works, he was jurist in the Shafi'i tradition.|description=}}
{{PortalArticle|image=|title=Textual History of the Qur'an|summary= The history of the Qur'an as a text comports in many way to the description we have of it in Islamic sources--although there are some discrepencies.|description=}} {{PortalArticle|image=|title=Mary, Sister of Aaron|summary= The author(s) of surat-Maryam, the surah of Mary, seems to be under the mistaken impression that Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ, was also a siter of Aaran, the brother of Moses|description=}} {{PortalArticle|image=|title=Scientific Errors in the Quran|summary= Sunni orthodoxy claims that the Qur'an is infallible when it speaks of matters of science, but a close comparison to the scientific undestanding of the text of the Qur'an to modern science shows many revealing mistakes|description=}} {{PortalArticle|image=|title=Sana'a Manuscript|summary= The majority of the manuscripts of the Qur'an which are today extant seem to be descended from the recension that was ordered created by the caliph [[Uthman]], and show a remarkable uniformity; a palimpset, or impression of an erased Qur'an, on a scroll which was found in the Yemeni city of San'a, however, reveals a manuscript with some remarkable differences from the accepted Uthmanic recension|description=}} {{PortalArticle|image=|title=Naskh (Abrogation)|summary= Many verses in the Qur'an disagree with eachother, sometimes on important points; the doctrine of Naskh explains which vesers take precedence in any given conflict, and how this is decided by the scholars.|description=}}





Revision as of 01:06, 10 February 2021


The idea of scripture is central to Islam; above all else, Islam's own scriptures tell of how Allah has periodically given his followers books throughout the ages, and refers to Islam's co-abrahamic religionists as People of the Book. The central scripture of Islam is above all the Qur'an, which orthodox Sunni and Shi'i Islam see as the literal word of Allah through his messenger Muhammad. The Qur'an, tho, leaves much to be desired when it comes to even the basics of the Islamic religion, let alone as a guide to all aspects of life. To fill in these gaps as it were, the hadith, narrations about the words and deeds of the prophet are also extant; on top of this very important source is the sira, the writings about the lift of the prophet, and the tafsir, learned commentary upon the Qur'an which leverages the other two extra-Quranic scriptures. Although the Qur'an itself is beyond reproach, the other three sources are subject to various degrees of trustworthiness, which have been defined throughout the ages by the Islamic scholarly community, The evaluation of hadith, sira, and tafsir for its trustworthiness constitutes a large part of the work done for the Islamic community by its scholars.

Qur'an

The Qur'an is the holiest scripture of Islam; some Muslims, known as Quranists, claim to follow it and it alone (these Muslims are considered heretics by orthodox Sunni Muslims, inter alia). According to orthodox Sunni doctrine, it is the full, complete, unaltered word of Allah directly to his apostle Muhammad (Shi'ites claim that though the portion we have is untouched, Sunnis have cut out many chapters and verse which they did not want in the final Qur'an). As such its study is of great importance to Muslim scholars, and Muslim believers study it in their own time for their own spiritual growth. As the direct and literal word of Allah, orthodox Sunni Islam submits that the Qur'an is flawless in every way, from its "clear" Arabic to its claims about history and science. In addition to articles about the Qur'an, its contents, its history, and its interpretation, this section contains our [[as

[[File:|150px]]

The history of the Qur'an as a text comports in many way to the description we have of it in Islamic sources--although there are some discrepencies.

[[File:|150px]]

The author(s) of surat-Maryam, the surah of Mary, seems to be under the mistaken impression that Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ, was also a siter of Aaran, the brother of Moses

[[File:|150px]]

Sunni orthodoxy claims that the Qur'an is infallible when it speaks of matters of science, but a close comparison to the scientific undestanding of the text of the Qur'an to modern science shows many revealing mistakes

[[File:|150px]]

The majority of the manuscripts of the Qur'an which are today extant seem to be descended from the recension that was ordered created by the caliph Uthman, and show a remarkable uniformity; a palimpset, or impression of an erased Qur'an, on a scroll which was found in the Yemeni city of San'a, however, reveals a manuscript with some remarkable differences from the accepted Uthmanic recension

[[File:|150px]]

Many verses in the Qur'an disagree with eachother, sometimes on important points; the doctrine of Naskh explains which vesers take precedence in any given conflict, and how this is decided by the scholars.



Other articles in this section

Modern scholars

The modern period brought about a confrontation between modernity, and all of its attendant movements and ideas, and the scholars of Islam, whose background and basis is in the writings of men who lived in a civilization which was very sure of itself and unchallenged. As such, even the most reactionary Islamic scholars can be read as being in conversation with modernity, even if this conversation entails a wholesale rejection of the concept.

Error creating thumbnail: Unable to save thumbnail to destination

Hamood bin Uqla Ash-Shu'aibi was a hardcore salafi scholar who was quoted my Usama bin Laden and was influential in the jihad movement in the 21st century.


Error creating thumbnail: Unable to save thumbnail to destination

Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab was an influential Islamic scholar in the Arabian peninsula during the early modern period. His thought was very influential on the salafi and takfiri schools of jihadi Islam was well as the Hanbali Islam of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.


Error creating thumbnail: Unable to save thumbnail to destination

Gibril Haddad is an influential Beirut-born scholar of hadith as well as translator. He is a self-described opponent of "salafi fundamentalism."

Other articles in this section

Hadith

The modern period has brought many challenges to the Muslim ummah which were not heavily considered by scholars of previous ages, including large Muslim populations living in otherwise non-Muslim governments and socieites in places like Europe and India. This has brought with it debate and competition for the minds and souls of the people in these societies, against other religions such as Christianity and the advance of atheism in the contemporary period. In order to meet this challenge, popular "dawah" preachers have arisen who have a style more familiar to protestant pastors and atheist preachers such as Christopher Hitchens, but who never the less hew to very traditional understandings of the Islamic tradition.

Error creating thumbnail: Unable to save thumbnail to destination

Zakir Naik is a popular Sunni preacher from India. His fiery defenses of Islam and his outreach to other religious groups such as atheists and Hindus have made him popular with many Muslim believers, but he has also stirred controversy with statements supportive of Usama bin Laden and terrorism.


Sira

Shi'i scholar belong to a different tradition than their Sunni counterparts. Thanks to the doctrine of vilayet-e-figh in Iran, many Shi'ite clerics also hold important roles in the contemporary Iranian government

Error creating thumbnail: Unable to save thumbnail to destination

ِAli Meshkini is a high-ranking Shi'i cleric and member and chairman of the Assembly of Experts which picks the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic.


Error creating thumbnail: Unable to save thumbnail to destination

Ali Khamenei is an ayatollah in the Shi'i scholarly tradition and the current supreme leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran


Tafsir

All Articles

Error creating thumbnail: Unable to save thumbnail to destination