The Quran

The Quran is the last Book of Allah sent for the guidance of humanity through the last Prophet, Muhammad, peace be upon him (saws). The Quran contains all the rules for us to have healthy lives, alhumdolillah.  We can learn how the Prophets of the past such as Ibraheem and Musa, peace be upon them both, called their people to worship Al Khaliq, The Creater.  The Quran shows us that worshipping Allah must be without partner.

When was the Quran first revealed?

The Prophet Mohamed (saws) new that the people of his town, Makkah, were not worshipping Allah as they should.  He (saws) would travel to a cave just outside Makkah to think about the true worship of Allah. On one of his (saws) visits to the cave, Angel Gibrael (as) came to him.  At first the Prophet (saws) was scared but he soon realised that their was no harm that would come to him.  Angel Gibreal came to the Prophet to inform him that Allah had chosen him to be his Messenger.  This happened during the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, Ramadan.

The first revelation from Allah (swt) through the Angel Gibreal to Prophet Mohamed (saws) was the first five verses of Surah (chapter) Al-Alaq:

"Iqra bismi rabbikalla dhi khalaq. Khalaqal insana min alaq. Iqra wa rabtukal alrram. Alladhi 'allama bil qalam. 'Allamal insana malam ya’lam, "

"Read in the name of your Lord who created, created man from a clot. Read, for your Lord is most
Generous, Who teaches by means of the pen, teaches man what he does not know." (96: 1-5).

The first complete chapter of the Quran was Al Fatiha (The Opening).

How long was the Quran revealed?

The Quran was revealed over a 23 year period.  The first 10 years of revelation was whilst the Prophet Mohamed (saws) lived in Makkah.  These verses of Quran revealed during this time are called 'Makkan'. Makkan surahs stress the Unity and Majesty of Allah, the Most Exalted, Most High (swt), condemn anything being worshiped beside or more than Allah, promise paradise for the righteous and warn wrongdoers of their punishment in Hellfire, confirm the prophethood of Muhammad (saws), and remind humanity of the past prophets and events of their time.  

After 10 years the Prophet (saws) travelled to Madina to help the Muslims and all the verses revealed from this period are called 'Madinian'. Madinian surahs contain the rules and regulations for which the Muslims were to organise themselves. They lay down moral and ethical codes, criminal laws, social, economic, and state policies, give guidelines for foreign relations, rules and regulations for battle and the captives of war. They also contain descriptions of some of the early battles of Islam, condemnation of hypocrites, emphasis on the unified basic message of all the past prophets, and confirmation that the process of prophethood and revelation is complete, so that no Prophet will come after Muhammad (saws).

What was the last revelation?

The last revelation from Allah (swt) to His Prophet (saws) was the third verse of Surah Al-Maidah, which was sent down to the Prophet in 632 C.E. :

"Al yawma akmaltu lakum dinakam wa atmamtualaikam ni'mati wa raditu' lakumul islama dinan'',"

"Today I perfected your religion for you and completed my favor to you and have chosen for you Al-Islam as your religion." (5:3)

How is the Quran organised?

Al-Quran is divided into thirty equal divisions, which are called juz in Arabic. There are 114 chapters, of varying length. The longest chapter is Al-Baqarah consisting of 286 verses and the shortest chapter is AlKawthar consisting of three verses!

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