1. What is the Quran?
The Quran is the word of God, revealed to the last prophet Muhammed through the Angel Gabriel and protected by God from corrution or loss.
2. How did the Quran reach us today?
Through numerous persons both verbally and in writing, in the precise words as they were revealed to the Holy Prophet. This process is called "tawatur" i.e the unbroken chain of transmission.
3. Why is the Quran called a miracle?
1. Its language and style excels all other texts of the Arabic language.
2. Its comprehensiveness can not be matched.
3. Its legislation and legal rulings and their sophistication cannot be surpassed.
4.Its revealation about the unknown can only result from a revelation from the creator (eg. creation of the universe, Day of Judgement, Paradise, Hell fire, Stories of the Prophets, etc.)
5. It has no contradiction with the most advanced sound discovery of all branches of science.
6. Its fulfilment of all prophecies.
7. Its complete harmony with human natural needs.
8. It speaks of the human heart as well as the human faculty of reason at the individual level and at the group level.
9. It was delivered 1430 years ago by a messenger who could not read nor write.
10. It transformed a group of 100,000 early muslims through a quantum and giant step to be the best examples for humanity in only 23 years.
11. No other piece of literature, in any language, can match its combined beauty and sophistication, touching the mind and the heart.
4. Mention examples of how the Quran contain scientific facts only discovered by modern science in the last 50 years?
1. The earth was previously part of the sky and only after separation, it became a habitable for mankind (21:30)
2. All life originated from water(21:30)
3.The Universe was in the shape of a fiery gas (41:11)
4. Matter is made up of minute particles (10:62)
5. The oxygen content of the air is reduced at higher altitudes (6:125)
6. Everthing consists of complementary elements (equivalent to male and female), animals, man, plants and inorganic material (36:36)
7. The embryo in the womb is enclosed by three coverings.(39:6)
8. The fertilization of certain plants is done by wind (15:22)
9. Microscopic organisms exist that are not visible to the naked eye (96:1).
10. Each human has permanent individual fingerprints (75:4)
5. What is the procedure for a non-Muslim to convert to Islam?
The basic beliefs one is required to accept while entering into Islam are the following:
(i) God is one. He has neither a partner, nor a son or daughter. He is One in the true sense of the word which has no room for a disguissed polytheism.
(ii) The Holy Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) is the last Messenger of God after whom no messenger or prophet of God (in any sense of the word) will come.
(iii) The Holy Quran is the last of the Divine books revealed on the Holy Prophet Muhammad and all its contents are true.
(iv) The life hereafter is the eternal life one has to live after his death where he will have to face the fate of his good and evil deeds.
Once a person accepts all these fundamental beliefs as true, both verbally and with his heart, he becomes a Muslim.
Conversion to Islam has no particular procedure, like baptism etc. As soon as a person accepts the aforementioned beliefs with his heart and soul and professes them verbally, he enters the fold of Islam. It is not necessary that he seeks the mediatation of a saint or priest. However, it is advisable to go to a learned Muslim who can inform him about the basic beliefs of Islam and can teach him the concise and comprehensive words to express his acceptance to those beliefs.
Normally the following sentences are used for that purpose:
I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship but God, and I bear witness that Muhammad (P.B.U.H) is His slave and messenger.
I have believed in God and His angels and His books (as they were originally revealed on His Prophets) and in His messengers and in the Last Day and in the fact that all the good and bad destinies come from God and being raised alive after death.
A further requirement for a convert Muslim is to free himself from those beliefs of his former faith or religion which are not in line with the Islamic beliefs.
6. All religions basically teach their followers to do good deeds, so why should a person follow Islam?
Islam is God's final message, and it offers a complete legal code for humankind. It eliminates and corrects the human errors that found their way into previous religions in the realm of both beliefs and practice. Just as any new revised law supersedes and nullifies what came before it, Islam naturally abrogates all earlier religions.
( This day, I have perfected for you your religion, completed My favor upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion) 5:3
Without doubt one will find in every religion, especially those of divine origins, noble teachings, good moral values, encouragement toward good deeds and warnings against evil. However, what distinguishes Islam from other faiths is that Islam goes beyond simply urging people to be upright and honest. Islam diagnoses illneses and prescribes the treatment. It gives practical solutions human's problems and provides the means of achieving righteousness and eliminating evil from individual and collective lives. Islam is guidance for mankind from the Creator who knows what is best and most suitable for His creation. That is why Islam is called the natural religion of humanity.
7. Who is Allah? Do Muslims worship a different God?
Some people believe that Muslims worship a God that is different from the worshipped by the Jews and Christians. This might be due to the fact that Muslims often refer to God as "Allah". Thisconcept false, since "Allah" is simply the Arabic word for true "God" who created the universe and all humanity.
Arabic speaking people of all religions refer to God as "Allah". For example, if you pick up an Arabic translation of the Bible you will see the word "Allah" where the word "God" is used in theEnglish Bible.
Therefore, Allah is not only the god of the Muslims, but the same God worshipped by all monotheistic faiths. This idea that "Allah" is different from "God" is illogical since it is tantamount to saying that the French worship a different "god" because they use the word "Dieu" and that the Zulus worship a different god because they say "UMvelinqangi" for God.
The Quran, which is the divine scripture of the Muslims, was revealed in the Arabic language, so Muslims use the word "Allah" for "God", even when they speaking other languages. A more literal translation of the word "Allah" into English might be "the one-only God" or "the one true God".
It should be clearly understood that what Islam is primarily concerned with is correcting humankind's concept of Almighty God. What people are ultimately going to be held accountable for at the end of their worldly lives is what was their concept of God, not whether they preferred the word "Allah" or the word "God". The true concept of God is clarified only within the message revealed by Him.
8. Some believe that Muslims worship Muhammed. Is this true?
Muslims do not worship Muhammed in any way. We believe that he was the last messanger sent by God and like all His other prophets and messangers, he was a human being.
However, some people mistakenly assume that Muslims worship Muhammed and this is one of the reasons that Muslims were erroneously called "Mohammedans".
Muhammed never claimed divine status. He called people to worship Almighty God alone, and he continually emphasized his humanity.
Muslims strive to follow the great example of the Prophet Muhammed but do not worship him in any way. Islam teaches Muslims teaches all of Allah's prophets and messangers. However, respecting and loving them does not mean worshipping them. Islam teaches that all worship must be directed to God alone.
If a person claims to be a Muslim but worships anyone else or anything else other than God, it invalidates one's claim to Islam. The Declaration of faith makes it clear that muslims must worship God alone.
9. Is it true that Islam is a religion only for the Arabs?
This idea can be easlily disproved, as only about 15 to 20 percent of Muslims in the world are Arabs. There are more Indian Muslims than Arab Muslims, and more Indonesian Muslims than Indian Muslims. This assumption is possibly based on the fact that that most of the first generation of Muslims were Arabs, that the Quran is in Arabic and that the Prophet Muhammed was an Arab.
From the very beginning of the mission of the Prophet Muhammed his followers came from a wide spectrum of countries and races. Among them was Bilal the African, Suhaib the Byzantine Roman, Abdullah bin Salam the Jewish Rabbi; and Salman the Persian.
Furthemore, it should be clarified that not all Muslims are Arabs and not all Arabs are Muslims. An Arab might be a Muslim, Christian, Jew, atheist or a follower of any religion or ideology.
Since religious truth is eternal and unchanging, and humanity is considered as one universal brotherhood, Islam teaches that God's revelations to humanity have always been consistent, clear and universal
Islam is meant for all people regardless of race, nationality, cultural or linguistic background. A brief look at the Muslim world, from Nigeria to Bosnia and from Malaysia to Afghanistan is sufficient proof that Islam offers a universal appeal; a message for all mankind- not to mention the fact that significant numbers of Europeans and Americansof all races and backgrounds are finding and coming into Islam.
10. Is it true that Muhammad (P.B.U.H) wrote the Quran or copied from the Bible?
It is interesting to note that no other religious scripture claims to be totally the direct word of God
as clearly and as often as the Quran. God Almighty says in the Quran:
"Do they not reflect upon the Quran? Had it been from [any] other than God, they would have found within it much contradiction" 4:82
At the time when the Quran was revealed, the Arabs recognized that the language of the Quran was unique and distinctly different from the language spoken by the Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) and his people. This, was despite the fact that the Arabs at that time were known for their skill in poetry and mastery of the Arabic language.
It is not difficult to prove that Muhammed (P.B.U.H) did not possess the knowledge that is expounded and detailed in the Quran prior to the revealation, such as the accurate knowledge of historical events, previous prophets and natural phenomena. The Quran mentions in several places that Muhammad (P.B.U.H) and his people did not know these things. God Almighty says in the Quran:
"This is the news of the unseen which We reveal unto you; neither you nor your people knew it before this. So be patient. Surely, the (good) end is for the pious" 11:49
Suffice it to say that not only is the Quran the most memorized and well preserved scripture on earth, it is also unequaled in its eloquence, spiritual impact, clarity of message and purity of its truth.
Furthermore, the Quran recounts several instances where the Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) was critized and corrected by God for his unintentional human errors. Had he been the author of the Quran he would not have included these rebukes in the Quran. For example, the Prophet Peace be upon him) was once deeply and earnestly engaged in attempting to invite one of the pagan leaders to Islamwhen he was interrupted by a blind man who had come to him for information and to learn the Quran. The Prophet (peace be upon him) naturally disliked the interuption because he was hopeful of affecting the influential leader's heart toward Islam. He frowned and turned away, a gesture that went unnoticed by the blind man. No sooner had the Prophet (peace be upon him) finished talking to the leader than he recieved the following revelation which he conveyed to his people without the least bit of hesitation:
"He [i.e the Prophet] frowned and turned away, because there came to him a blind man. But what would make you percieve [O Muhammad] that perhaps he might be purified or be reminded, and the reminder would benefit him?" 80:1-4
This incident reflects the highest degree of sincerity on the part of the Prophet (peace be upon him) regarding the revealation that was revealed to him. These verses provide substantial proof that the Prophet (peace be upon him) was not the author of the Quran, nor was he the founder of Islam.
Some critics often claim that Muhammad (peace be upon him) was not himself the author of the Quran but he copied or adapted it from Jewish and Christian scriptures. However, the Prophet Muhammad's contacts with the Jewish and Christian scholars were extremely limited. Historical records available show that he made only three trips outside Makkah before his Prophethood: At the age of nine he accompanied his mother to Madinah. Before the age of twelve, he accompanied his uncle on business trip to Syria. And before his marriege, at the age of 25, he led the caravan to Syria.
Some of Muhammad's (peace be upon him) pagan opponents accused him of learning the Quran from a Roman blacksmith, a Christian who was staying on the outskirts of Makkah. A revealtion of the Quran was sufficient to refute this charge. God Almighty said in the Quran:
"And We surely know that they say, 'It is only a man that teaches him.' The tongue of the one they refer to is foreign, while this (Quran) is in a clear Arabic language" 16:103
Muhammad's enemies kept a close watch on him, with the hope of uncovering a shred of evidence to support their claim that he was a liar. But they could not point to a single instance when the Prophet (peace be upon him) might have had secret meetings with any particular Jews or Christians.