The Quran in the everyday life
What is the first Ayat that is recited in the beginning of almost all surahs of the Quran?
Bismillahir- Rahmanir- Rahim
In the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful
What is the first surah in the Quran revealed on the prophet?
Surah Alaq
What meanings of the word kitab are conveyed in the Quran?
Kitab as revelation
kitab as light & guidance
Kitab as past revelations
kitab as Umm al-Kitab (safeguarded tablet/ heavenly book)
What is Tafisr and who is a Mufassir?
Tafsir- explanations and interpretations of the Quran
Mufassir- the one who interprets the Quran.
How many prophets were sent by Allah to guide the community?
124000
What two surahs of the Quran is commonly recited in all most all types of prayers?
Surah Fatiha
Surah Ikhlas
How does the Quran define itself in the Quran?
As Reminder
As RecitationAs Kitab
As the Prophetic experience
According to certain sources, what was the reason behind Hazrat Umar's suggestion on the compilation of the Quran?
Heavy casualties among the reciters of the Quran in the battle of Yamama.
What are Muhkamat and Mutashabihat verses of the Quran?
Muhkamat- Clear verses that have a single decisive meaning
Mutashabihat- ambiguous verses with multiple meanings
How many prophets were mentioned in the Quran? Name any 3 with their biblical names
25 prophets
Prophet Nuh (Noah)
Prophet Musa (Moses)
Prophet Isa (Jesus)
Prophet Ibrahim (Abraham)
What principle of faith is expressed in Surah Ikhlas?
The principle of Tawhid- Oneness of Allah
What is the chronological order of the Quran
It is the order in which it had been revealed during the lifetime of the prophet (starting from the Meccan verses to the Medinan verses)
Share a Shia account on the compilation of the Quran?
Imam Ali has devoted himself in the arrangement & collection of the Quran since the death of the Prophet.
Imam Ali has written down in his own hands both the text and its interpretations along with the abrogated and abrogating verses.
Highlight two different types of Tafsirs?
Tafsir bil ra'y- explanation based on personal reflection
Tafsir bil ishara- explanation based on allusion
Tafsir bil mathur- explanation based on tradition
Tafsir al Quran bil Quran- explanation of the Quran based on the Quran
What is reception history?
how the Qur’an has been ‘received’ by Muslims in various periods and places. It includes the variety of ways in which the Qur’an has been read, discussed, interpreted and applied in Muslim contexts over the centuries.
List five different ways in which the Quran is part of everyday life of people.
Listening and Recitation
Memorization
Prayers and other religious practices
Art- music and calligraphy
Architecture
In what ways we can identify the difference between style of the Meccan and Medinan surahs?
Rhyming scheme in Meccan Surahs
Strong imagery in the Meccan Surahs
Themes in Meccan Surahs- Religious beliefs, Reassurance & comfort to the Prophet, Day of Judgement, God' signs in the natural world, Ethics
Themes in Medinan Surahs- Umma, Ethics, Islam & Iman, Jihad
Briefly share the role of Hazrat Uthman in the compilation and the standardization of the Quran?
Hazrat Uthman asked the 3 Qurayshis to ensure that the Qur’an conformed to Meccan Arabic. He wanted to stop the differences in recitations by establishing a standard version of the Qur’an that was to be used in mosques. He sent a copy of this collection of the Qur’an to the major Muslim centres of the day (such as Mecca, Damascus, Basra and Kufa) and ordered that all other collections be destroyed. As a result, the Uthmanic collection (mushaf) of the Qur’an became the ‘official’ version.
Explain Tanzil and Tawil using metaphors from the scholarly writings
tanzil- revelation
tawil- going back to origin
metaphors by Sijistani- raw material, craft man, final product
metaphors by Nasir Khusraw- Ocean, pearls, diver
Share any one example of the reception history from the stories of the Prophet Adam and Prophet Nuh?
Prophet Adam- Iblis's pride in the Ginan
Prophet Adam- The three pearls by Rumi
Prophet Nuh- diverse understandings of the Ark i.e. The symbolic Ark with Ahl al Bayt