Compilation of Holy Quran PDF

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HOW QURAN PAK COMPILED?...

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Compilation of Holy Quran The Holy Quran is the most widely read book in the history of mankind, a source of immense inspiration, guidance and wisdom for millions of Muslims all over the world. It is the pivotal point of faith, and integral to the foundations of an Islamic society. The Quran is the Holy Book of Islam. It is the word of Allah revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H), over a period of 23 years (from 610 to 633 CE) through the angel Jibreel. The Holy Quran is still in its original form as it was revealed to Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H). During the time of Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H), the Quran was mainly preserved through memorization. Hundreds of Companions of the Prophet were huffaz, and had memorized the Quran without any mistakes. When Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) used to receive a revelation, He dictated it to a Companion, who wrote it down on anything that was available: bark, stone, bones, leaves, etc. The companion then read, what he had written, to the Prophet. If there were any mistakes, Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) would correct it. Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H), also told the order of the verses, etc and they were written accordingly. So, in the days of the Prophet (P.B.U.H) one copy of the Quran existed of what he had gotten written under his personal supervision. It was not in book form but in different parchments. Other Companions also had collections of the Quran for their personal record but no standard copy of the Quran in book form existed.

Compilation in the Caliph of Abu Bakr: After Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) died in 633 CE, then Hazrat Abu Bakr (R.A) became the Caliph. The need of the compilation of the whole Quran in the form of a Book was seen. In the battle of Yamamah and other battles, many huffaz were martyred. Hazrat Umar (R.A) noticed this and went to the Caliph and told him about this matter. At first Hazrat Abu Bakr (R.A) hesitated in doing something that the Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) hadn’t done but then, seeing the importance of this, he agreed. Then Hazrat Zayd bin Thabit (R.A) was called. Hazrat Zayd bin Thabit (R.A) used to write the Quran for the Prophet (P.B.U.H) during his time. At first, Hazrat Zayd (R.A) refused to do so but then, he, too, agreed. The compilation of the Quran started, with Hazrat Zayd bin Thabit (R.A) in charge. Lots of companions, including himself had memorized the whole Qur'an and so the Quran could have easily been written down from memory. There were also complete collections

of the verses of the Holy Qur'an available with many companions. But Hazrat Zayd bin Thabit (R.A) knew he had to be careful. He used both methods by collecting verses that were written during the time of Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) and using memory. He followed four steps. 1. First, he verified the verse with his own memory. 2. Hazrat Umar (R.A) who was a Hafiz was also in charge of the project and he verified it, too. 3. Then, before the verse could be accepted, the two reliable witnesses had to testify that it was written in the presence of Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H). 4. After that, written verses were collated with the collections of different Companions. The purpose of this method was so that the utmost care be taken in the transcription of the Quran, and rather than rely on memory, it should be transcribed from verses that were written in the presence of the Prophet (P.B.U.H). It was this way that the Quran was compiled. In this copy, all Surahs were written separately. The purpose of this transcription was to prepare an organized document with the endorsement of the whole Ummah so that reference could be made to it when required. The transcripts stayed with Hazrat Abu Bakr (R.A). After his death in 634 CE they were passed on to the Second Caliph Hazrat Umer (R.A). And after Hazrat Umer, (R.A), they were given to his daughter Hazrat Hafsah (R.A).

Compilation in the Caliph of Hazrat Usman: When Hazrat Usman (R.A), became Caliph in 644 CE, Islam had spread to far areas such as Iran and Byzantine. People who accepted Islam learned how to read the Quran from Muslim soldiers, traders and other Muslims. There are seven different ways to recite the Quran and different Companions had learned it from the Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H) in different recitals. People though that only their way of reciting was correct and started disputing with other people. Hazrat Usman (R.A), accomplished the feat of making the Quran’s recitation standard. First, Hazrat Usman (R.A) borrowed the first copy of the Holy Quran from Hazrat Hafsah (R.A). He then formed a group of four companions, Hazrat Zayd bin Thabit, Abdullah bin Zubair, Saeed ibn al Aas, and Abdur Rahman bin Harith (R.A). The group had the task of making transcripts of the original copy and also to put the Surahs in sequence. Other companions were also called upon to help them.

Once copies were made the original was returned to Hazrat Hafsah (rad). The new copies were then distributed to every Muslim province with the orders that all other copies of the Quran, be they full or partial copies, were to be burnt and replaced by this original one. Since that day the Holy Quran has remained in its original form and will remain as such in the future by the Grace and Blessings of Allah Almighty. Later some improvements were made in the Arabic script, like the adding of dots and diacritical marks, to make it easier for non-Arabs to read but of course the text of the Quran has remained and will remain the same forever.

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