Changes

One of the more contentious findings of secular scholars is that historical evidence suggests that the Qur'an as it exists today differs significantly from the text that was in existence in the late seventh century, the evidence suggesting that the text was a work still in progress over the eighth and ninth centuries <ref>John Wansbrough,  Quranic Studies: Sources and Methods of Scriptural Interpretation, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 1977 pg.160-163</ref> , for instance one of the early [[Arab]] observers in the late 7th century Ummayad court [[John of Damascus]] commented in his writings on sections of the Qur'an that existed during the age of  the [[Umayyad]] caliphate which have vanished in modern versions.<ref>John of Damascus "Concerning Heresy" (peri aireseon) – (Chapter 101) On the Heresy of the Ishmaelites. Circa 720 AD ''Then there is the book of The Camel of God. [112] About this camel he says that there was a camel from God and that she drank the whole river and could not pass through two mountains, because there was not room enough. There were people in that place, he says, and they used to drink the water on one day, while the camel would drink it on the next. Moreover, by drinking the water she furnished them with nourishment, because she supplied them with milk instead of water. Then, because these men were evil, they rose up, he says, and killed the camel. However, she had an offspring, a little camel, which, he says, when the mother had been done away with, called upon God and God took it to Himself. Then we say to them: ‘Where did that camel come from?’ And they say that it was from God. Then we say: ‘Was there another camel coupled with this one?’ And they say: ‘No.’ ‘Then how,’ we say, ‘was it begotten? For we see that your camel is without father and without mother and without genealogy, and that the one that begot it suffered evil. Neither is it evident who bred her. And also, this little camel was taken up. So why did not your prophet, with whom, according to what you say, God spoke, find out about the camel—where it grazed, and who got milk by milking it? Or did she possibly, like her mother, meet with evil people and get destroyed? Or did she enter into paradise before you, so that you might have the river of milk that you so foolishly talk about? For you say that you have three rivers flowing in paradise—one of water, one of wine, and one of milk. If your forerunner the camel is outside of paradise, it is obvious that she has dried up from hunger and thirst, or that others have the benefit of her milk—and so your prophet is boasting idly of having conversed with God, because God did not reveal to him the mystery of the camel. But if she is in paradise, she is drinking water still, and you for lack of water will dry up in the midst of the paradise of delight. And if, there being no water, because the camel will have drunk it all up, you thirst for wine from the river of wine that is flowing by, you will become intoxicated from drinking pure wine and collapse under the influence of the strong drink and fall asleep. Then, suffering from a heavy head after sleeping and being sick from the wine, you will miss the pleasures of paradise. How, then, did it not enter into the mind of your prophet that this might happen to you in the paradise of delight? He never had any idea of what the camel is leading to now, yet you did not even ask him, when he held forth to you with his dreams on the subject of the three rivers. We plainly assure you that this wonderful camel of yours has preceded you into the souls of asses, where you, too, like beasts are destined to go. And there is the exterior darkness and everlasting punishment, roaring fire''</ref>

One of the more contentious findings of secular scholars is that historical evidence suggests that the Qur'an as it exists today differs significantly from the text that was in existence in the late seventh century, the evidence suggesting that the text was a work still in progress over the eighth and ninth centuries <ref>John Wansbrough,  Quranic Studies: Sources and Methods of Scriptural Interpretation, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 1977 pg.160-163</ref> , for instance one of the early [[Arab]] observers in the late 7th century Ummayad court [[John of Damascus]] commented in his writings on sections of the Qur'an that existed during the age of  the [[Umayyad]] caliphate which have vanished in modern versions.<ref>John of Damascus "Concerning Heresy" (peri aireseon) – (Chapter 101) On the Heresy of the Ishmaelites. Circa 720 AD ''Then there is the book of The Camel of God. [112] About this camel he says that there was a camel from God and that she drank the whole river and could not pass through two mountains, because there was not room enough. There were people in that place, he says, and they used to drink the water on one day, while the camel would drink it on the next. Moreover, by drinking the water she furnished them with nourishment, because she supplied them with milk instead of water. Then, because these men were evil, they rose up, he says, and killed the camel. However, she had an offspring, a little camel, which, he says, when the mother had been done away with, called upon God and God took it to Himself. Then we say to them: ‘Where did that camel come from?’ And they say that it was from God. Then we say: ‘Was there another camel coupled with this one?’ And they say: ‘No.’ ‘Then how,’ we say, ‘was it begotten? For we see that your camel is without father and without mother and without genealogy, and that the one that begot it suffered evil. Neither is it evident who bred her. And also, this little camel was taken up. So why did not your prophet, with whom, according to what you say, God spoke, find out about the camel—where it grazed, and who got milk by milking it? Or did she possibly, like her mother, meet with evil people and get destroyed? Or did she enter into paradise before you, so that you might have the river of milk that you so foolishly talk about? For you say that you have three rivers flowing in paradise—one of water, one of wine, and one of milk. If your forerunner the camel is outside of paradise, it is obvious that she has dried up from hunger and thirst, or that others have the benefit of her milk—and so your prophet is boasting idly of having conversed with God, because God did not reveal to him the mystery of the camel. But if she is in paradise, she is drinking water still, and you for lack of water will dry up in the midst of the paradise of delight. And if, there being no water, because the camel will have drunk it all up, you thirst for wine from the river of wine that is flowing by, you will become intoxicated from drinking pure wine and collapse under the influence of the strong drink and fall asleep. Then, suffering from a heavy head after sleeping and being sick from the wine, you will miss the pleasures of paradise. How, then, did it not enter into the mind of your prophet that this might happen to you in the paradise of delight? He never had any idea of what the camel is leading to now, yet you did not even ask him, when he held forth to you with his dreams on the subject of the three rivers. We plainly assure you that this wonderful camel of yours has preceded you into the souls of asses, where you, too, like beasts are destined to go. And there is the exterior darkness and everlasting punishment, roaring fire''</ref>

Secular scholars, such as [[John Wansbrough]], [[Michael Cook (historian)|Michael Cook]] and [[Patricia Crone]], have challenged traditionalistic notions that the text of the Qur'an would have been collected under Uthman per traditional accounts, since the earliest surviving copies of the complete Qur'an are centuries later than Uthman. (The oldest existing copy of the full text is from the ninth century.<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/islam/texts/quran_1.shtml The Qur'an], ''bbc.co.uk'', retrieved [[February 17]], [[2007]]</ref>)  

Secular scholars, such as [[John Wansbrough]], [[Michael Cook (historian)|Michael Cook]] and [[Patricia Crone]], have challenged traditionalistic notions that the text of the Qur'an would have been collected under Uthman per traditional accounts, since the earliest surviving copies of the complete Qur'an are centuries later than Uthman. (The oldest existing copy of the full text is from the ninth century.<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/islam/texts/quran_1.shtml The Qur'an], ''bbc.co.uk'', retrieved February 17, 2007</ref>)  

Crone and Cook co-authored a book called ''[[Hagarism]]'' (1980), which was extremely controversial at the time, as it challenged not only Muslim orthodoxy, but the prevailing attitudes among secular Islamicists. They alleged that Islam was formed slowly, over the centuries after the Muslim conquests, as the Islamic conquerors elaborated their beliefs in response to Jewish and Christian challenges..<ref>P. Crone and M. Cook, ''Hagarism: The Making Of The Islamic World'', 1977, Cambridge University Press </ref>

Crone and Cook co-authored a book called ''[[Hagarism]]'' (1980), which was extremely controversial at the time, as it challenged not only Muslim orthodoxy, but the prevailing attitudes among secular Islamicists. They alleged that Islam was formed slowly, over the centuries after the Muslim conquests, as the Islamic conquerors elaborated their beliefs in response to Jewish and Christian challenges..<ref>P. Crone and M. Cook, ''Hagarism: The Making Of The Islamic World'', 1977, Cambridge University Press </ref>

== Early influence on the Qur'an ==

== Early influence on the Qur'an ==

According to the [[Catholic Encyclopedia]],<ref>[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08692a.htm Koran], by Gabriel Oussani, ''The Catholic Encyclopedia'', retrieved [[April 13]], [[2006]]</ref> and modern secular scholars <ref>Martin Bright The great Koran con trick ''The new Statesment Dec 2001

According to the [[Catholic Encyclopedia]],<ref>[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08692a.htm Koran], by Gabriel Oussani, ''The Catholic Encyclopedia'', retrieved April 13, 2006</ref> and modern secular scholars <ref>Martin Bright The great Koran con trick ''The new Statesment Dec 2001

With no contemporary Muslim sources to refer to, a group of young historians working under the brilliant linguist Professor John Wansbrough at the University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in the Seventies developed new scholarly techniques, drawing heavily on earlier biblical scholarship. Following Wansbrough's lead, they decided to look at the Koran as a literary text, to compare it to other devotional writings of the period and to look at internal clues to its origin. They found that it owed much to Judaism, especially the Talmud, a collection of commentaries and interpretations of the Hebrew Bible''</ref>the text in the Qu'ran is traced to six sources:  

With no contemporary Muslim sources to refer to, a group of young historians working under the brilliant linguist Professor John Wansbrough at the University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in the Seventies developed new scholarly techniques, drawing heavily on earlier biblical scholarship. Following Wansbrough's lead, they decided to look at the Koran as a literary text, to compare it to other devotional writings of the period and to look at internal clues to its origin. They found that it owed much to Judaism, especially the Talmud, a collection of commentaries and interpretations of the Hebrew Bible''</ref>the text in the Qu'ran is traced to six sources:  

==Oldest copy known today==

==Oldest copy known today==

Several manuscripts, including the [[Samarkand manuscript]], are claimed to be the original copies sent out by Uthman<ref>[http://www.islamic-awareness.org/Quran/Text/Mss The Qur'anic Manuscripts], ''islamic-awareness.org'', retrieved [[April 02]], [[2006]]</ref> in the 7th century CE. Some non-Muslim scholars, however, doubt that any of the Uthmanic originals remain.  

Several manuscripts, including the [[Samarkand manuscript]], are claimed to be the original copies sent out by Uthman<ref>[http://www.islamic-awareness.org/Quran/Text/Mss The Qur'anic Manuscripts], ''islamic-awareness.org'', retrieved April 2, 2006</ref> in the 7th century CE. Some non-Muslim scholars, however, doubt that any of the Uthmanic originals remain.  

Having studied early Quran manuscripts [[John Gilchrist (Islamic Studies)|John Gilchrist]] states: "The oldest manuscripts of the Quran still in existence date from not earlier than about one hundred years after Muhammad's death." ("Jam' Al-Qur'an", page 153) He comes to this conclusion because two of the oldest manuscripts, the Samarqand and Topkapi codices are both written in the [[Kufic|Kufic script]]. It "can generally be dated from the late eight century depending on the extent of development in the character of the script in each case." (Ibid. page 146)  

Having studied early Quran manuscripts [[John Gilchrist (Islamic Studies)|John Gilchrist]] states: "The oldest manuscripts of the Quran still in existence date from not earlier than about one hundred years after Muhammad's death." ("Jam' Al-Qur'an", page 153) He comes to this conclusion because two of the oldest manuscripts, the Samarqand and Topkapi codices are both written in the [[Kufic|Kufic script]]. It "can generally be dated from the late eight century depending on the extent of development in the character of the script in each case." (Ibid. page 146)  

== External links ==

== External links ==

*[http://www.consider.net/forum_new.php3?Action=Display&newDisplayURN=200112100017 "The great Qu'ran con trick"], by Martin Bright, ''consider.net'', [[December 10]], [[2001]], retrieved [[April 08]], [[2006]]

*[http://www.consider.net/forum_new.php3?Action=Display&newDisplayURN=200112100017 "The great Qu'ran con trick"], by Martin Bright, ''consider.net'', December 10, 2001, retrieved April 08, 2006

*[http://www.sunnipath.com/library/QuranHome.aspx?leftNavID=2 A number of works on the Qur'an, including vonDenffer's Introduction to the Sciences of the Qur'an - at SunniPath.com]

*[http://www.sunnipath.com/library/QuranHome.aspx?leftNavID=2 A number of works on the Qur'an, including vonDenffer's Introduction to the Sciences of the Qur'an - at SunniPath.com]

*[http://www.islamic-awareness.org/Quran/ Examining the Qur'an] - from Islamic-Awareness.org

*[http://www.islamic-awareness.org/Quran/ Examining the Qur'an] - from Islamic-Awareness.org