Passages from the Qur'an

Note: the following passages, from the Qur’an (Dawood’s Penguin translation, 5th edition) unless otherwise noted, are designed to facilitate an initial appreciation of Islam by non-Muslims. The selections illustrate, for the most part, themes that Islam has in common with other traditions. In my opinion, it is best to begin an understanding by emphasizing teachings held in common.

THE EXORDIUM. In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

Praise be to God, Lord of the Creation, The Compassionate, the Merciful, King of the Last Judgment! You alone we worship, and to You alone we pray for help. Guide us to the straight path, the path of those whom You have favored, not of those who have incurred Your wrath, nor of those who have gone astray.

DAYLIGHT. In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

By the light of day, and by the fall of night, your Lord has not forsaken you, nor does He abhor you. The life to come holds a richer prize for you than this present life. You shall be gratified with what your Lord will give you. Did he not find you an orphan and give you shelter? Did He not find you in error and guide you? Did he not find you poor and enrich you? Therefore do not wrong the orphan, nor chide away the beggar. But proclaim the goodness of your Lord.

THE CITY

. . . . Would that you knew what the Height is! It is the freeing of a bondsman; the feeding, in the day of famine, of an orphaned relation or a needy man in distress; to have faith and to enjoin fortitude and mercy. . . .

QAF

. . . . We created man. We know the promptings of his soul, and are closer to him than the vein of his neck.

THE FORGIVING ONE

. . . . We gave Our guidance to Moses and made the Israelites the inheritors of the Book: a guide and an admonition to men of understanding. Therefore have patience; the promise of God is true. Implore Him to forgive your sins and celebrate His praise morning and evening.

THE CREATOR

. . . In the ways of God you shall find no change or alteration. . . .

SHEBA

. . . . He will surely reward those who have faith and do good works; they shall be forgiven and a generous provision shall be made for them. . . .

THE SPIDER

. . . . Be courteous when you argue the People of the Book [e.g., Jews and Christians], except with those of them who do evil. Say: ‘We believe in that which is revealed to us and which was revealed to you. Our God and your God is one. To Him we surrender ourselves.’

THE BELIEVERS

. . . . Requite evil with good. . . .

SHE WHO IS TESTED

. . . . He is God, besides whom where is no other god. .He is the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One, the Giver of Peace, the Keeper of Faith, the Guardian, the Mighty One, the All-powerful, the Most High! Exalted be He above their idols!

He is God, the Creator, the Originator, the Modeller. His are the most gracious names. All that is in heaven and earth gives glory to Him. He is the Mighty, the Wise One.

SHE WHO PLEADED

God has inscribed the Faith on their very hearts and strengthened them with a spirit of His own. He will admit them to gardens watered by running streams, where they shall dwell forever.

THE CHAMBERS

The believers are a band of brothers. Make peace among your brothers and fear God, so that you may be shown mercy.

THE COW

Believers, Jew, Christians, and Sabaeans—whoever believes in God and the last Day and does what is right—shall be rewarded by their Lord; they have nothing to fear or to regret.

… Righteousness does not consist in whether you face towards the east or the west. The righteous man is he who believes in God and the Last Day, in the angels and the Scriptures and the prophets; who for the love of God gives his wealth to his kinsfolk, to the orphans, to the needy, to the wayfarers and to the beggars, and for the redemption of captives; who attends to his prayers and pays the alms-tax; who is true to his promises and steadfast in trial and adversity and in times of war.

… We gave Jesus the son of Mary veritable signs and strengthened him with the Holy Spirit.

… God: there is no god but Him, the Living, the Eternal One. Neither slumber nor sleep overtakes Him. His is what the heavens and the earth contain. Who can intercede with him except by His permission? He knows what is before and behind men. They can grasp only that part of His knowledge which He wills. His throne is as vast as the heavens and the earth, and the preservation of both does not weary Him. He is the Exalted, the Immense One.

… A kind word with forgiveness is better than charity followed by insult.

… To be charitable in public is good, but to give alms to the poor in private is better . . . . .

WOMEN

Show kindness to your parent and your kindred, to the orphans and to the needy, to your near and distant neighbors, to your fellow-travellers, to the wayfarers, and to the slaves whom you own.

… There is no virtue in much of their counsels; only in his who enjoins charity, kindness, and peace among men. He that does this to please God shall be richly rewarded.

The following paragraphs are taken from “The Islamic Tradition” by Mahmoud M. Ayoub, professor in the Department of Religious Studies at Temple University (p. 366 in Williard G. Oxtoby, ed., World Religions: Western Traditions [New York: Oxford University Press, 1996]).

“Jesus is presented in the Qur’an as a miracle in himself. His virgin birth, healing the sick, feeding the hungry, and even raising the dead are seen as life-giving miracles. They are meant to affirm God’s creative and life-giving power against the denial by many Jews and non-Jews of his time of the resurrection and life to come. Furthermore, they are performed at a time when Greek medicine, science, and philosophy question the sovereignty, power, and wisdom of God as the sole creator and Lord of the universe. The miracles of Jesus therefore serve to assert the power of God over human science and wisdom.

“The Qur’an presents Jesus as a messenger of God to the children of Israel with the message: ‘God is surely my Lord and your Lord. Worship him, therefore; this is the straight way’ (Q. 3.51). For Muslims, particularly the mystics, Jesus is an example of a world-renouncing ascetic, a wandering prophet with stern piety but deep compassion for the poor, suffering, and oppressed, whoever they may be. He has no home or possessions; ‘his mount was his two feet and his servant his two hands.’

“Jesus is a great prophet for Muslims, but the Qur’an categorically denies his divinity and divine sonship (see Q. 5:116, 19:34-5, and 5:17 and 72). His role extends far beyond his earthly existence as a prophet into sacred history. Jesus, the Qur’an insists, did not die, but was lifted up by God to heaven (Q. 4:157-8). He is to return at the end of time as ‘a sign of the knowledge of the Hour [that is, the Day of Resurrection]’ (Q 43:61). He shall kill the anti-Christ (al-Dajjal, the deceiver), and establish true Islam on earth.

“Each prophet must, in accordance with God’s covenant with all prophets, prepare for and support the prophet to come after him. Thus Jesus in the Qur Qur’an announces the coming of Muhammad, saying, ‘O children if Israel, I am the messenger of God to you, confirming the Torah that was before me, and announcing a messenger who shall come after me whose name is Ahmad’ (Q. 61.6).Q. ”