Originally, I wanted to make these into blog posts, but I thought if I posted them here on the main forum, they'd get more traffic, and also it would be easier to communicate and interact with the members so we can discuss whatever I post here.
I thought I'd try something different. My intention is not to discuss with you the history behind the Qur'an, its background and its structure and so on. Rather, I thought I'd go with you through the pages of the Qur'an and discuss those directly with you. I'd just go through the first few pages in maybe 6 or 7 posts and that's it. Just to get you started, and get you used to what the Qur'an actually is, in case you wanted to keep on reading on your own, so you wouldn't feel lost or confused.
The way I imagined it, is that we'd open the Qur'an as if we knew nothing about it nor about Islam. So that the question we'd be discussing is 'What do the verses actually say to me?' At the same time I will try to share with you the limited knowledge I have about the text, to help you understand what the verses are actually talking about.
I will try not to go into that much detail, although if you have specific questions about anything, of course you are more than welcome to post them. The reason I say this is because there's so much detail that's in the text. Like we could go into the roots of the words used, their meaning, the choice of words, the order of the words in a sentence, why this letter was used here and not the other, why was a verb used in the present tense and not the past tense etc.
I will still try to provide you with links in case you want to go deeper into the meaning of the verses, but here, I will try to convey to you the message or the idea without going through all the details so we can get a general idea about the Qur'an. Though, I'll probably start slower and then pick up the pace.
Quick definitions, before I forget:
Ayah. Usually people (including me) translate this as verse. This is not correct. The literal meaning of this word is sign, proof, evidence, miracle etc. As if every 'verse' of the Qur'an is a miraculous sign of God.
Surah. Again this is usually translated as chapter, which is also not correct. But as is the case with Ayah, I will use the word chapter sometimes just for the sake of helping you understand.
Also, before we begin, I'd just like to explain something about the Qur'an, since it's not similar to other books out there. You see, usually books start with 'once upon a time' or 'in the beginning such and such happened'. Books are usually made of chapters, so that chapter two is based upon the info of chapter one and so on. The Qur'an is not like that. It doesn't go like, chapter one, how to pray. Chapter two, how to fast. Chapter three, how to kill all the infidels. It's different. If I wanted to sound smart I'd say the Qur'an is four dimensional.
I hate to make this comparison, but I will use it anyway to help you understand what the Qur'an is like. Have you ever listen to a concept album? Where all the songs tell a general story? Where each song in on itself has its own theme or structure but they are all still connected to each other, so that each song leads smoothly to the next?
The Qur'an is similar to that. Each Surah has its own theme or idea or a feeling it wants to get across. It's own rhyme scheme even. Sometimes you'd read the same story in different parts of the Qur'an, but each time it is told from a different angle, because it's focusing on a certain aspect it wants you to think about and so on.
Anyways, I don't want to make this longer than it already is, so I'll just stop now. I'll probably update this thread every week so that you get a chance to comment and discuss things with me, before we move on to the next part or passage. If you have any suggestions let me know. I hope you enjoy this and benefit from it, god willing.
I thought I'd try something different. My intention is not to discuss with you the history behind the Qur'an, its background and its structure and so on. Rather, I thought I'd go with you through the pages of the Qur'an and discuss those directly with you. I'd just go through the first few pages in maybe 6 or 7 posts and that's it. Just to get you started, and get you used to what the Qur'an actually is, in case you wanted to keep on reading on your own, so you wouldn't feel lost or confused.
The way I imagined it, is that we'd open the Qur'an as if we knew nothing about it nor about Islam. So that the question we'd be discussing is 'What do the verses actually say to me?' At the same time I will try to share with you the limited knowledge I have about the text, to help you understand what the verses are actually talking about.
I will try not to go into that much detail, although if you have specific questions about anything, of course you are more than welcome to post them. The reason I say this is because there's so much detail that's in the text. Like we could go into the roots of the words used, their meaning, the choice of words, the order of the words in a sentence, why this letter was used here and not the other, why was a verb used in the present tense and not the past tense etc.
I will still try to provide you with links in case you want to go deeper into the meaning of the verses, but here, I will try to convey to you the message or the idea without going through all the details so we can get a general idea about the Qur'an. Though, I'll probably start slower and then pick up the pace.
Quick definitions, before I forget:
Ayah. Usually people (including me) translate this as verse. This is not correct. The literal meaning of this word is sign, proof, evidence, miracle etc. As if every 'verse' of the Qur'an is a miraculous sign of God.
Surah. Again this is usually translated as chapter, which is also not correct. But as is the case with Ayah, I will use the word chapter sometimes just for the sake of helping you understand.
Also, before we begin, I'd just like to explain something about the Qur'an, since it's not similar to other books out there. You see, usually books start with 'once upon a time' or 'in the beginning such and such happened'. Books are usually made of chapters, so that chapter two is based upon the info of chapter one and so on. The Qur'an is not like that. It doesn't go like, chapter one, how to pray. Chapter two, how to fast. Chapter three, how to kill all the infidels. It's different. If I wanted to sound smart I'd say the Qur'an is four dimensional.
I hate to make this comparison, but I will use it anyway to help you understand what the Qur'an is like. Have you ever listen to a concept album? Where all the songs tell a general story? Where each song in on itself has its own theme or structure but they are all still connected to each other, so that each song leads smoothly to the next?
The Qur'an is similar to that. Each Surah has its own theme or idea or a feeling it wants to get across. It's own rhyme scheme even. Sometimes you'd read the same story in different parts of the Qur'an, but each time it is told from a different angle, because it's focusing on a certain aspect it wants you to think about and so on.
Anyways, I don't want to make this longer than it already is, so I'll just stop now. I'll probably update this thread every week so that you get a chance to comment and discuss things with me, before we move on to the next part or passage. If you have any suggestions let me know. I hope you enjoy this and benefit from it, god willing.
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