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Welcome to the Ramadan Daily Quran Studies for 2018

(Note: Any new posts during Ramadan will be filed below this post.)

Prayers urged on LAM members for Ramadan by Maulana Muhammad Ali: English translation |  Urdu original

Some further prayers in Urdu advised by Maulana Muhammad Ali (added here 29 May)

Section on Lailat-ul-Qadr in Sahih Bukhari, translated into English by Dr Zahid Aziz and Mr Nasir Ahmad (added here 6 June)

• Fast 1 — Fasting
• Fast 2 — Fasting: Its purposes
• Fast 3 — Fasting: Developing good qualities
• Fast 4 — Fasting: The month of Ramadan
• Fast 5 — Fasting: Conclusion
• Fast 6 — Prophets and Messengers of Allah — raised in all nations
• Fast 7 — Prophets and Messengers of Allah — raised in all nations for guidance

• Fast 8 — Prophets and Messengers of Allah — Muslims to believe in them all
• Fast 9 — Prophets and Messengers of Allah — as mentioned in the Quran
• Fast 10 — Prophets and Messengers of Allah — as mentioned in the Quran
• Fast 11 — Prophets and Messengers of Allah — as mentioned in the Quran
• Fast 12 — Prophets and Messengers of Allah — Dhul Kifl
• Fast 13 — Prophets and Messengers of Allah — Dhul Kifl
• Fast 14 — Prophets and Messengers of Allah — Mercy of the Prophet Muhammad

• Fast 15 — Prophets and Messengers of Allah — Mercy of the Prophet Muhammad
• Fast 16 — Prophets and Messengers of Allah — Buddha's fasting
• Fast 17 — Moderation in fasting (1)
• Fast 18 — Moderation in fasting (2)
• Fast 19 — Muslims extended belief in prophets to include prophets not mentioned in the Quran
• Fast 20 — Prophets and Messengers of Allah — Prophets taught only One God
• Fast 21 — Prophets and Messengers of Allah — None told people to take him for a god

• Fast 22 — Prophets and Messengers of Allah — Meaning of terms
• Fast 23 — Broad use of word 'messenger'. All prophets were "a single community"
• Fast 24 — Prophets and Messengers — Their submission to God (1)
• Fast 25 — Prophets and Messengers — Their submission to God (2)
• Fast 26 — Prophets and Messengers — Their submission to God (3)
• Fast 27 — Prophets and Messengers — Their submission to God and their mortality
• Fast 28 — Prophets and Messengers — were mortals, and so are their followers

• Fast 29 — Prophets and Messengers — Prophet Muhammad as a mortal
• Fast 30 — Prophets and Messengers — Prophet Muhammad as culmination

Many of us will have a Ramadan of 29 days this year. Nonetheless I always produce 30 Studies.

Thanks to Allah for passing us through another month of Ramadan. May He keep us safe and well over the next year, ameen. Eid Mubarak to all readers!

After much research, I have completed a comprehensive book of the above title, with the sub-title: Background, History, and Influence on Later Translations. See link.

I am pleased, as well as relieved, and thankful to Allah, to have done this duty to repay in some small amount the debt of gratitude we owe to the founders of the Ahmadiyya Anjuman Ishaat Islam Lahore.

Given below is my Preface to the book:

This booklet has been compiled to mark the centenary of the publication of the English translation of the Quran, with extensive commentary, by Maulana Muhammad Ali in 1917. It was, in any practical sense, and in terms of theological scholarship, the first English translation of the Quran by a Muslim. It was certainly the first to be published and to be available in Western countries. Some thirty years after it first appeared, it was thoroughly revised by Maulana Muhammad Ali. It is now a century that it has continued to be reprinted and re-published in different formats, most recently also in digital editions. His translation and commentary has also been used as the basis for producing translations into several other languages.

Later English translations by Muslims were influenced by this work, as we show in the present booklet. In fact, this translation paved the way for them since it broke through the barrier imposed by the orthodox scholars of Islam who held that the Quran must not be translated and who opposed the appearance of any such work.

The most remarkable fact is that a movement which is insignificant in number and meagre in resources, and faces hostility from within the Muslim world and from outside it, has been able to maintain this translation in existence and spread it widely all over the world for a century.

In chapter 1 of this book, we begin by tracing the source of inspiration which led to the producing of this translation and explain the need for such a work. Then its history at Qadian is described till the events of March 1914 which led to the establishment of the Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha‛at Islam at Lahore. Continuing the historical account, chapter 2 covers the completion of the translation after the move to Lahore and its printing and publication from Woking, Surrey, England. It goes on to quote many of the reviews which appeared both at that time and in later years. Brief mention is also made in this chapter of the Maulana’s Urdu translation and massive commentary, and the English editions without Arabic text, all these appearing in the 1920s.

In chapter 3 there is a somewhat detailed examination of the relationship of the Maulana’s translation with certain well-known translations by other Muslims which appeared afterwards. It shows really the great debt which these translators owed to Maulana Muhammad Ali.

Chapter 4 relates the work of thorough revision of his translation and commentary which the Maulana carried out in the years 1947–1951 to produce the 1951, fourth revised edition. It brings the subject up to date with some details of the subsequent reprints and editions after the 1951 revised translation.

Chapter 5 gives excerpts from the writings of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad on the importance of the Quran to the world, Muslim and non-Muslim. It was his emphasis on the status, qualities and role of the Quran which inspired and motivated the pioneers of the Lahore Ahmadiyya to undertake the task of presenting the Islamic scripture to the world.

In an Appendix are displayed images of title pages of various editions of Maulana Muhammad Ali’s translations of the Quran and some typical pages from inside them.

The information brought together and compiled in this booklet, much of it not generally known, will be found indispensable for an accurate assessment of the history of the translation of the Quran into English.

— Zahid Aziz

Someone has submitted a couple of comments under an old thread about the death of Jesus which last received a comment in 2009. So instead of posting them there I am posting them here combined as one comment.

There is an English translation of the Quran endorsed by the Saudi Arab government authorities, published in the mid-1980s, based on Abdullah Yusuf Ali's translation. The following is stated in its preface. I have placed some text below in bold:

"A number of individuals have in the past ventured to translate the Quran, but their works have generally been private attempts, greatly influenced by their own prejudices. In order to produce a reliable translation free from personal bias, a Royal decree (No. 19888, dated 16/8/1400 AH) was issued by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Fahd ibn Abdul Aziz, at that time the deputy prime minister, authorising the General Presidency of the Departments of Islalmic Researches, Ifta, Call and Guidance to undertake the responsibility of revising and correcting a particular translation which would be selected for this purpose and made publicly available later.

To accomplish this enormous task, a number of committees were formed, comprising scholars well-qualified both in Islamic Shari'a and the English language. Some of these scholars were associated with the General Presidency of the Departments of Islamic Researches, Ifta, Call and Guidance.

The first committee was given the task of examining the existing translations and choosing the most suitable one from among them. The committee discovered that there was no translation free from defects and so there were two options open for consideration: the first was to select the best translation available and then adopt it as a base for further work as well as a source of reference, with the objective of revising its contents and correcting any faults in view of the objections raised against it; the second was to prepare a fresh and independent translation, starting from scratch.

It became obvious from studying these translations that the second option demanded much time and effort, neither of which were available at the time. The first option was therefore considered to be more practical, since it met the existing urgent requirements and helped to achieve the desired goal in a comparatively short period of time. The translation by the late Ustadh ABDULLAH YUSUF ALI was consequently chosen for its distinguishing characteristics, such as a highly elegnnt style, a choice of words close to the meaning of the original text, accompanied by scholarly notes and commentaries.

The committee began revising and correcting this translation with the aid of other translations available, by comparing and then adopting best expressions as well as by introducing fresh expressions where necessary. … In the second stage, the entire work of this committee was referred to a number of individuals and organisations who then augmented any deficiencies in the work of the committee.

A third committee was set up to collate all their suggestions. It then compared all such views regarding specific issues, selected the appropriate one(s) and arrived at a text as authentic and defect-free as was humanly possible.

Finally, a fourth committee was formed to look into the findings of the second and third committees and to implement the recommendations made by them…"

It is not clear what the "existing urgent requirements" were, due to which a fresh translation, starting from scratch, could not be done. The Saudi authorities would have been able to command vast resources of manpower, scholars and funds. Why was the required "time and effort" not available at the time? In the past, individual translators working on their own had managed to devote sufficient time and effort. In case of Maulana Muhammad Ali, he was at the same time engaged in much other work when he did his translation single-handed, with only a few helpers to assist in the project, while the organization that he belonged to was facing severe opposition within the Muslim world.

I wonder if the urgency was due to the fact that Muhammad Asad's translation, The Message of the Quran, had been published in 1980. This no doubt was a source of embarrassment for the Saudi authorities, as they had sponsored his work until the first volume, consisting of the first nine surahs, appeared in 1964, and they then realized that his interpretations were not what they liked. So they withdrew their sponsorship and destroyed the copies they had purchased. Perhaps they were worried that his translation might still be regarded by some as supported by them.

But considering that they withdrew their sponsorship of Asad's translation in 1964, one would think they could have produced their own version by the early 1970s, even starting afresh.

See here the cover and acknowledgements page from that volume of Asad's translation, published in 1964. The 'Muslim World League' mentioned there is known in Arabic as Rabita al-`Alam al-Islami.

— Zahid Aziz

Here is the Ramadan Message by Hazrat Ameer Dr A.K. Saeed, Head of the Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement.

Welcome to the Ramadan Daily Quran Studies for 2017

(Note: Any new posts during Ramadan will be filed below this post.)

Prayers urged on LAM members for Ramadan by Maulana Muhammad Ali: English translation |  Urdu original

• Preliminary: What is Dars of the Quran? Its function and importance, by Maulana Muhammad Ali
• Fast 1 — Fasting
• Fast 2 — Fasting in Religions before Islam
• Fast 3 — Fasting in Islam: Its Purposes
• Fast 4 — Fasting in Islam: Developing good qualities
• Fast 5 — Fasting in Islam: The month of Ramadan
• Fast 6 — Fasting in Islam: Conclusion
• Fast 7 — Humanity-wide approach of Surah Fatiha

• Fast 8 — Humanity-wide approach of Surah Fatiha — “Beneficent” and “Merciful”
• Fast 9 — Humanity-wide approach of Surah Fatiha — “Master of the Day of Judgment”
• Fast 10 — Justice towards all (1)
• Fast 11 — Justice towards all (2)
• Fast 12 — Justice towards all (3)
• Fast 13 — God’s extensive favours to all human beings (1)
• Fast 14 — God’s extensive favours to all human beings (2)

• Fast 15 — God’s extensive favours to all human beings (3)
• Fast 16 — God as the only and ultimate Judge of who is on the right path and who is not (1)
• Fast 17 — God as the only and ultimate Judge of who is on the right path and who is not (2)
• Fast 18 — Duty of the Prophet is only to convey the message revealed to him
• Fast 19 — Everyone responsible for their own actions
• Fast 20 — Forgiveness of sins by Allah (1)
• Fast 21 — Forgiveness of sins by Allah (2)

• Fast 22 — Can non-Muslims preach their religions to Muslims? (1)
• Fast 23 — Can non-Muslims preach their religions to Muslims? (2)
• Fast 24 — Self-preservation is a duty
• Fast 25 — Jihad (1)
• Fast 26 — Jihad (2)
• Fast 27 — Lailat-ul-Qadr
• Fast 28 — Does the Quran mention the concept of the “evil eye” (nazar-i bad)?
• Fast 29 — Argument between materialistic and spiritual outlooks of life
• Fast 30 — Proper knowledge can save man from wrongdoing and exalts him

Many of us will have a Ramadan of 29 days this year. Nonetheless I always produce 30 Studies.

Thanks to Allah for passing us through another month of Ramadan. May He keep us safe and well over the next year, ameen. Eid Mubarak to all readers!

After completing this revision, Maulana Muhammad Ali delivered a khutba which I have translated at this link.

Some interesting excerpts are given below:

"Reading the Quran illuminates your heart, but this depends on the concentration with which you read this word of God. The more you concentrate on it, and the deeper you go into it, the more it will enter your heart. This can be made clearer by the following example. Just as pearls are found in the depths of the oceans, likewise the boundless treasures of knowledge contained in the Quran, which will continue to be unfolded till the Day of Judgment, are to be found in the depths of the meanings of its words. It is an ocean that no one is denied access to, but to obtain those valuable pearls from it, which give us light to solve our problems, is dependent on how much effort and exertion we put in for their acquisition….

I must tell you that the true knowledge of the Holy Quran has in this age been disclosed particularly to your Jama‘at, and this blessing is in reality due to that man at whose feet we gained this knowledge. He set us on the right path. To gain true knowledge, a balanced mind is required, and it is the blessing of God that this Jama‘at has maintained its mental equilibrium. This is why the Promised Messiah’s intellectual heritage has passed to this small Jama‘at.

It is perfectly true that we accepted Hazrat Mirza sahib as Mujaddid, as Mahdi and as the Messiah. However, we never accepted him as one to be followed blindly. We used to differ with him sometimes. The Nawab of Mongrol felt much attraction and love for this Movement. To a large extent he believed the Ahmadiyya Movement to be true. When once we were with him, a Maulvi tried to incite him against us and said to him: ‘These people whom you respect and honour so much, who believe Mirza sahib to be the Promised Messiah, they have differences with their own Promised Messiah; he did not believe that Jesus was born of a father, but these people believe he had a father.’

The Nawab sahib put this question to me. I replied that this just shows that we have not accepted the Promised Messiah without thinking, but after thinking and understanding, with open eyes, which are still open. The Promised Messiah has declared the Holy Quran to be supreme over everything. So if we see something clearly in the Quran, then in a secondary matter we consider it permissible to hold a different interpretation from the Promised Messiah, provided it is supported by strong arguments. We have learnt the Quran from the Promised Messiah but he did not shut the doors of knowledge upon us; rather, he opened them.

Therefore, it is no sin to differ, even with the greatest of persons. Of course, one cannot differ with the founder of the religion, the Holy Prophet Muhammad. After him, one can differ with anyone from Hazrat Abu Bakr to Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad. The concept that such differences are not allowed caused Muslims to become stagnant. Prior to that, the Muslims were racing on the path of progress, in terms of both knowledge and deeds. They led the world in all aspects of life. But when this nation got stuck in the mire of taking religious leaders “for lords besides Allah” (the Quran, 9:31), it went into decline."

Written by Ikram

An ‘un-Trumped’ View of the World, its Contemporary Problems and their Solutions

A Discussion In Light of the Quran

Today is 25^th of December which is also the day celebrated by about half of the world population as Christmas. We, the Muslims, wish them a Merry Christmas. We stand in solidarity with Christians in the message of peace which Jesus Christ symbolizes, Quran emphasizes, Prophet Muhammad epitomizes and Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad simplifies. We stand with Christians and pray to the same God that Jesus Christ cried out to on the cross while suffering in pain, as the world today, as a whole, is traumatized and suffering, in the similar spiritual and physical pain, at the hands of tyrants and ignorant. It is to this solidarity and common ground that Quran refers to and states – Say, `Do you dispute with us with regard to Allâh, while He is our Lord and your Lord (as well). We shall be judged by our deeds, and you by your deeds, and to Him alone are we sincerely devoted (2:139 – Al-Baqarah – The Cow: Nooruddin). Additionally, we believe in the same God that Moses spoke to on Mount Sinai, Buddha got enlightenment from and Krishna sang to. Islam has the unique distinction to accept and validate other religions and Quran repeatedly emphasizes it – Surely, those who (profess to) believe (in Islam), and those who follow the Jewish faith, the Christians and the Sabians, whosoever (of these truly) believes in Allâh and the Last Day and acts righteously shall have their reward with their Lord, and shall have nothing to fear, nor shall they grieve (2:62. Al-Baqarah – The Cow: Nooruddin ).

The world is changing before our eyes. Local issues are becoming global and the global changes range across technological progress, material growth, economic disparities, ideological developments and political realignments. In turn, these issues are mutually intertwined into a Gordonian knot, which seems to be tightening with every effort to untangle it. Hope is giving way to despair, and despair is finding hope in drum beats of war and resurrection of the monster of bigotry, racism, misogyny and class divide, at least in the United States, if not globally.

Before it were the Crusades, and then came the Colonial wars. Recently it was the Cold War and that gave way to Clash of Civilizations under President Bush, which is now deteriorating into Religious War. We see the glaring example of religious conflict brewing in the response of president-elect Trump to the terror-attack of a truck overrunning a Christmas market in Berlin and murder of Russian Ambassador in Turkey, when team Trump termed the terror incidents as conflict of Muslims against Christians.¹

No single science, be it physical, economic, social or psychological science, or any combination thereof can solve this myriad of chaos that the world is facing for the simple reason that the experts in each field are practitioners of their own fields only and they too are experimenting with hypotheses. The trader on Wall Street has not the slightest ideas of the struggles of the farmer facing the global warming, the physicist in a lab does not know about the challenges the social services are facing in single parent homes, and a psychologist might be confounded with the issue he or she is facing as to whether it is presence of mental illness or lack of mental health.

Despite the advancement in various fields of knowledge, why are the problems and uncertainties increasing and not decreasing? Answer is simple in the words of the Quran – And He raised the heaven high and set up the (law of) harmony and balance. (He explains this to you) that you should not violate the (law of) harmony and balance. Hold balance with justice (giving everyone his due avoiding extremes). Do not disturb the (law of) harmony in the least. And He has set the earth for (the common good of) all (His) creatures (55:7-10, Al-Rahman – The Most Gracious: Nooruddin). Simply put, we as individuals and nations have disturbed the laws of harmony and balance in our selfish desires, hedonistic tendencies and national interests while turning blind eye to a balanced accommodation of others, in which the term ‘me’ supersedes ‘we’ and ‘we’ over ‘them.’ The balance of wealth has been disturbed in which according to Oxfam, only 85 individuals have the same wealth as the combined assets of 3.5 billion people of the earth.² Balance of justice and equity in Middle East and Kashmir has been disturbed for over 60 years and those lands have yet to breathe peace. Balance of compensation for labor is 60 fold more in the West over the underdeveloped world,³ while the calories burnt in human muscles are the same for the same job. Now the North Pole has started to melt in the winter rather than summer.⁴ These are only a few examples of a disturbed balance at the hands of humankind, yet some of us are still deniers of these facts.

Despite history repeating itself in history and in the present, why do we keep repeating the same mistakes? The reason is probably embedded in our DNA or imprinted in the simple pin-head sized reward center of our brains which compels us to keep pecking the rewards till we are consumed by the reward itself. Quran simplifies this dilemma for us in Surah Al-Takathur which I quote in toto with embedded explanatory comments – (Oh People! your) vying with one another to excel in multiplying worldly possessions diverts you (from God and true values of life). Until (on your death) you embrace the graves. Nay, (you should never hanker after worldly gains, power and position,) you shall come to know in time (that you have been chasing at a shadow). Nay, again (We repeat, never should you misuse your life of probation,) you shall come to know (the consequences of it) in time. No, never! if you only knew the consequences thereof with sure and certain knowledge . You will certainly see the very hell-fire (in this present life by seeing the sad fate of the wicked). Again, you shall most certainly see it (in the Hereafter) with the eye of certainty. And then on that day (of Reckoning) you shall be called to account for the favours (bestowed upon you) (102.1-8. Al-Takathur – The Vying With One Another: Nooruddin).

The obvious question then arises, as to where is the solution to it all? Again, Quran makes that claim of providing a solution when it states – O people! there has come to you an exhortation (to do away with your weaknesses) from your Lord and a cure for whatever (disease) is in your hearts, and (a Book full of) excellent guidance and a mercy, (and full of blessings) to the believers (in the ultimate form of the Qur'ân). Say, `All this (revelation of the Qur'ân) is through the grace of Allâh and His mercy. In this, therefore, let them rejoice, (because) this (Qur'ân) is better than all that they hoard.' (10:57-58. Yunus – Jonah: Nooruddin).

This last verse that I quoted from Surah Yunus, I requote – Say, `All this (revelation of the Qur'ân) is through the grace of Allâh and His mercy. In this, therefore, let them rejoice, (because) this (Qur'ân) is better than all that they hoard.' This one verse throws open challenge to all the theorists in history and those amongst us. They can bring forth whatever solution they may. If the fundamentals of their theories are congruent to Quran, then their works can act as exegesis of Quran, else their destiny will be in the dustbins of history. Human mind is quite apt at creating and forwarding isms, 234 isms so far⁵, and still counting, and no solution yet in sight. Not one ism has been able to withstand the test of times, by that I mean various theological isms and others such as colonialism, communism, and socialism, Nazism, Fascism, Zionism and Atheism etc. Capitalism in its current form is only surviving a little longer. For example, if the founders of Communism had paid heed to three simple verses in Quran – And that a human being will have (to his account) what he strives for. And that his strivings shall necessarily be seen (and evaluated), Then will he be recompensed fully and fairly (53:39-41. Al-Najam – Parts of the Quran: Nooruddin), they could have realized that they could not set up a system in which individual were to be recompensed without striving on their part and those who did strive were neither adequately recompensed nor their efforts necessarily were seen by others. Theirs was a system that was bound to fail as it was against human nature that is identified in Quran. Similarly, Capitalism in its current form is bound to fail too as it is defying another law laid out in Quran – (It has been) so (ordained) that the (wealth) should not circulate (only) among your rich people (59.7. Al-Hashr – The Banishment: Nooruddin). Oxfam report points to this impending failure as “the wealth of the one percent richest people in the world amounts to $110 trillion. That’s 65 times the total wealth of the bottom half of the world’s population.”

Quran in its solution simplifies the needs of each person and that simplicity naturally then flows into the societal fabric. Message of Quran touches each individual and cuts at the root and eliminates from the minds any vestige of racism, gender discrimination, class divide, economic disparity, injustice and inequity. It supplements these fundamentals by a policy framework in which it puts education first. It mandates – Read in the name of your Lord Who creates, creates man from a clot (of blood), read and your Lord is most Generous, Who taught by the pen, taught man what he did not know (96:1-5. Al-Alaq – The Clot: Muhammad Ali – Zahid Aziz). If we re-read one of these verses – read and your Lord is most Generous, we see a fundamental law in this declaration. The more one reads, the more generosity of God pours on that person and the society. No wonder, the West took a lead by reading more. East is gradually catching up, not by wearing jeans or eating hamburgers and French fries, but by reading, which is obvious in the explosion of number of universities in China, Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia, and India etc. We might one day discover and harness antigravity, a theoretical impossibility, but we will never be able to disprove the fundamental law in Quran i.e. read and your Lord is most Generous. This law will prevail on the earth or any other future planet we inhabit. Little did the votaries in the United States pay attention to Bernie Sanders in 2016 primaries, whose pivotal mandate was to make college education free for all its citizens. Those left behind in United States would have caught up with the rest in one generation, but they chose sound bites over fundamental moral laws and voted for trumpets and trumpeters making noise as if the life was merely a big ball game. In time, all such games end, the coliseum in Rome is only a testament to that – We have destroyed so many townships because (the people thereof) were given to wicked ways so that they have fallen down on their roofs, and how many a well is completely deserted: (similarly) many a strongly built lofty castles (met the same doom because We destroyed their occupants). Why do they not travel in the land so that they should have hearts that help them to understand and ears which can help them hear? As a matter of fact (when going astray) it is not the (physical) eyes that are blind but blind are the hearts which lie in the bosoms (22:26-27. Al-Hajj – The Pilgrimage: Nooruddin).

So far, we have touched upon secular aspects of Quran in furtherance of a good society. But, Quran does not stop at that. It takes into account the human development. As the body grows from conception to birth and onward, it reaches its physical zenith after which is begins its decline. On the other hand, the mind and soul continue to mature; eventually crossing the threshold where the human “spirit” transgresses physical needs and aspires for moral gratification. For its nurturance, as Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad states, the human spirit then seeks morality, chastity, honesty, humility, politeness, forgiveness, goodness, courage, veracity, patience, sympathy and, in due course, the existence of God.

Quran even simplifies the natural yearning of humans for God by a simple statement – there is no god but Allah (47:19. Muhammad – Muhammad: Muhammad Ali – Zahid Aziz). There is an ocean hidden in this simple statement. Hindsight is 20/20. At least the history tells us that all the chaos, wars, mayhems, cruelties, pogroms, genocides, burning of witches, slavery, economic bondage etc. were essentially, one and all, sacrifices on mass scales on the altars of false deities and idols of polytheism, hate, greed, selfish nature, prejudice, arrogance, ignorance, intolerance, bigotry, cronyism, haughtiness, racism, gender divide, class divide, dogmas, soulless ritualism, soulless homilies and so on. In simple terms this simple statement of – there is no god but Allah unfetters one’s mind in that one is not to take others as God and neither his own low desires as God. This stops false worship in its tracks. It is with this negative human experience in history and present, Quran states the obvious: Have you considered (over the plight of) one who has taken his own low desires for his deity? Can you then be a guardian over such a one? (Al-Furqan – The Standard of True and False: Nooruddin).

While simplifying religion, Quran sets the standards of mutual exegesis of Islam and human nature, else it terms any other interpretations violating this relationship as falsehood – So pay your whole-hearted attention to (the cause of) faith as one devoted (to pure faith), turning away from all that is false. (And follow) the Faith of Allâh (-Islam) to suit the requirements of which He has made the nature of mankind. There can be no change in the nature (of creation) which Allâh has made. That is the right and most perfect Faith, yet most people do not know (it) (30:30. Al-Rum – The Byzantines: Nooruddin). Quran thus throws the gauntlet at the skeptics. Approach nature and you will find Quran in it and vice versa too there will no incongruence of Quran with laws of nature, because both are one and same.

Quran makes its own case in that it is the only and comprehensive purse-string of a doctrine of peace. It does so by addressing all moral, social and economic issues facing each individual and collectively the society, be it an underdeveloped nation or the superpower of our times. They all have a lot to gain by paying attention to Quran for what Quran is and not what the Islam haters, and even the ignorant from within the ranks of Muslims, falsely make of it. Quran is cognizant of the false allegation against it when it states – And (some) among them are illiterate, who do not know the Scripture except cramming it up, and are doing nothing but making conjectures (2:78. Al-Baqarah – The Cow: Nooruddin). In another place it similarly states – There are some among them who twist their tongues while reciting their Scripture that you may think that (what they recite) is a part of the Scripture, whilst it is no part of the Scripture and they say, `This is from Allâh,' whereas it is not from Allâh. They tell a lie in the name of Allâh deliberately (3:78. Al-Imran – The House of Amran: Nooruddin).

For those, on either side of the divide, who want to make the current conflict into a conflict of Christianity versus Islam must bear in mind that they may pick a fight against Muslims, but they will never be able to deny Quran its merits. Quran not only brings peace between different religions but brings dignity to other faiths for when it clarifies the concept of God. Besides, validating the previous scriptures, Quran distinctly declares God Himself as the source of the Book; it is God as the “Lord of the Mankind” and not of a particular race, region or religion; Quran vivifies God by bringing to light His Attributes; removes the human-ness of god and instills the godliness of humans; God for the benefit of man and not the ritualistic vice versa; God as the first observer of His own laws; a God of action and not of slumber; a Hearing, Seeing and Speaking God.

Quran expounds its message with proofs based upon logic, reason, history, physical phenomenon, science and sociology, when it discusses monotheism, human nature, equality and fraternity of man, the sinless soul, and the physical and moral states of man. On the same principles it describes the purpose of the man and the universe he lives in. It declares nature as being subservient to man. It outlines virtues and sins, paths of salvation, emphasis on action rather than homilies, the state of life after death, and the concept of hell and heaven. Quran launders the previous prophets from all of the historical smears and offers this as a doable example of Quran. It brings morality, spirituality, physicality and science into a mutually complementary logic. Quran declares the divine guarding of its own everlasting purity, free from adulteration and contradiction and with an open challenge to any to bring even a chapter matching that of Quran. It identifies the divine origin of all monotheistic faiths and the completion of religion with Islam.

In summary according to Quran – Allâh invites (us all) to the abode of peace and He guides him who wishes to be guided to the exact right path leading to the goal (10:25. Yunus – Jonah: Nooruddin). This abode of peace, if taken in its true spirit, could find its way into both the Trump Tower and the White House and the houses of all its votaries.

A friend has referred us to an article under the above title in The Independent at this link.

This translation has been around for a while, and is one from which I quoted the translation of 4:34 in my submission to the Shariah Councils Inquiry of the UK Parliament's Home Affairs Committee. I wrote there:

"The words iḍribū-hunna have been generally translated as “beat them”, “hit them”, “strike them” and “chastise them”. … Translators of the Quran into English are now increasingly translating these words of this verse as “go away from them” (Laleh Bakhtiar), “depart away from them” (Safi Kaskas and David Hungerford), …"

If you wish to check the translation of any individual verse in this translation, as compared with several other translations, you can visit this website, select a particular verse and look through the table of various translations.

On Amazon a partial view of this book is provided and there I found the following:

— Zahid Aziz

Submitted by Abid Aziz

I came across this article about alien life on bbc's website. It can be read on the following link.

http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20161215-if-we-made-contact-with-aliens-how-would-religions-react

I quote a little section from the article as follows

"If we wake up tomorrow morning to the news that we’ve made contact with intelligent aliens, how will religion respond? Some believe that the discovery will set us on a path the end goal of which will be to outgrow religion"

As far as Islam is concerned it clearly supports the existence of alien life. Following verse of Quran clearly refers to alien life.

"And of His signs is the creation of the heavens and the earth and what He has spread forth in both of them of living beings. And He is all-powerful to gather them together, when He will." (42:29)

Bearing the above words in mind, which occur in the Quran, 57:3, please watch the video entitled: “Dimensions: Cosmic Eye”.

Starting from the eye of the girl, the view rises above from it, more and more, showing the scale of distance involved, till it reaches 10 billion light-years away from her. Then it zooms back in towards the girl’s eye, and passing within it it magnifies ever smaller objects inside her, till the scale reaches 1 femtometre (10 to the power minus 15 metres). Presumably these are the largest and the smallest distances so far discovered.

Allah is the “manifest (zahir)” because He is the outermost, even beyond the largest known distance, and He is the “hidden (batin)” because He is the innermost, beyond the smallest distance known. He encompasses the largest distance from above it and the smallest distance from beneath it.

Now read at this link the explanation of Dr Basharat Ahmad, from the collection of his articles Basharat-i Ahmadiyya, about the words of the Quran: “He is the First and the Last and the Manifest and the Hidden” (57:3). He deals more with “the First and the Last”, though.

In his Lecture Lahore, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad says about God:

“Being remote, He is very near, and being near, He is still far off. He is above all but still it cannot be said that beneath Him there is anything else, and He is the most hidden of all things, but it cannot be said of any thing that it is more manifest than He.” (Lecture Lahore; Ruhani Khaza’in, v. 20, p. 152-153)