The Quran is the holy Islamic scripture known to have been the same since its first revelation to Muhammad (PBUH) -1400 years ago- and till now. It is the only religious book that challenges people to bring something similar and guarantees within its texts that it will be preserved.
If you are curious to know some insights on the preservation of the Quran and clues that it is still the same, follow this article.
Here we will learn the following:
How old is the Quran?
The Quran was first revealed from God (SWT) to Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) through His angel Jibril at around 610 CE. It was revealed part by part throughout 23 years till 633 CE after Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) conveyed the whole Quran and died.
This actually means that the Quran is more than 1410 years old by now. The Quran is believed to remain the same throughout these years without any change. Moreover, Muslims believe it would never be changed according to the Quranic verses: “It is certainly We Who have revealed the message (Quran), and it is certainly We Who will preserve it.” (15:9)
Is the Quran truly preserved? That’s what we are going to discuss in this article.
Are there different versions of the Quran?
It is well-known that there is only one unique version of the Quran. It is the only read version for 1400 years, and anywhere in the world. You can examine that yourself by asking 5 different Muslims from 5 countries about a single verse, and tell us your feedback in a comment!
The Qira’at Are Not Different Quranic Versions
It is worth mentioning that the Quran can be read in different ways / Arabic dialects – exactly as Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) taught. These are called Qira’at which means ways of reading and not different versions.
To elaborate more about the readings of the Quran, it is worth mentioning that:
1- Qira’at were taught by Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) in his life by a revelation from God. They didn’t appear afterwards as new versions.
2- Qira’at are different Arabic accents in which all Qira’at refer to the same verse yet read quite differently.
3- Differences between Qira’at occur in the way of recitation of ONLY a few words within the verse, not the whole verse.
4- The Quran in different Qira’at is the same. The Surahs and the verses are not altered.
Translations of the Quran Are Not Different Quranic Versions
The Quran was revealed to Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) in Arabic. The Arabic text of the Quran is the only original text sent by God. However, any other translations are only human translations of the MEANING and are not considered a divine holy text for worship.
So, any translation is only to convey the Quranic message to non-Arabic speakers and not considered another version.
Is the Quran preserved perfectly?
The Quran is perfectly preserved as it has been the same for centuries. In the following paragraphs, we will discuss some of the clues why the Quran is still the same.
1- Oral Transmission Of Quran And Isnad System
Arabs were well-known for their high ability to orally transmit scripts and pieces of poetry. This was perfectly evident in the old Arabian poetry that is still studied nowadays in Arabic literature. This fact actually reflects Arabs’ outstanding recall and memorization skills.
Although Arabian Poetry is believed to have a few differences from the original ones, but for the Quran, the case is quite different. Yes, Muslims used to memorize and orally transmit the verses of the Quran as part of their innate nature. Moreover, there was a religious tendency and obligation to perfectly and precisely transmit letter by letter and Haraka (vowels in Arabic) by Haraka.
Isnad System
Add to it, Muslims had the most perfect system of oral transmission called; The Isnad system. Isnad, in brief, is a series of people; each learned the Quran from a Muslim close to the Prophet and then taught the Quran to another Muslim till they formed a chain of connected people starting from God, Jibril, and Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) till nowadays Muslims. This oral transmission was in a high level of accuracy and precision and may be done several times till the learner perfects the Quran exactly as his teacher.
One may wonder that there must be unnoticed change over these decades. Yes, this would be totally right if we have one single chain or Isnad. However, we have THOUSANDS of chains; all are perfectly similar to each other. If we have millions of people who agree over the same text through these long Isnad Chains, then they must have all agreed to the original primary text of the Quran.
2- Preserved Old Written Quran Manuscripts
The Quran is the only divine revelation that still has original Manuscripts going back to the time of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) or very close to it. Although writing was not the main means of preserving the Quran, written manuscripts agree with the Quran transmitted through the Isnad system.
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was keen on assigning the writing of the Quran to certain qualified Sahaba (prophet’s companions) as Zayed Ibn Thabet. He ordered them -at a certain time- not to write down the sayings/hadiths of the prophet himself to avoid confusion between hadiths and the Quran.
Examples On Quran Manuscripts:
There are several numerous Quran Manuscripts that could reach hundreds. Writing in detail about these manuscripts requires a separate research article. However, we will list a few of them here:
- The Uthmanic Manuscripts: Contain more than 99% of the text of the Quran.
- The Quranic Manuscripts attributed to Ali Ibn Abi Talib: Contain 86% of the text of the Quran.
- Sana’a Script: One of the oldest Manuscripts that dates to before 671 CE.
- Tübingen fragment: This Manuscript is dated back to between 649 and 675 CE. It contains verses from 17:36 to 36:57 (and part of verse 17:35).
- Birmingham Quran: This Manuscript is dated between 568 and 645 CE.
3- Memorization of the Quran by Milliards
Beyond the fact that the Quran is transmitted by the Isnad system along with written manuscripts, the Quran is memorized by milliards at all times. This makes it very hard -or almost impossible- to change the Quran without nearly all Muslims noticing that.
Attempts to fabricate the Quran by anti-Islam people happened before. However, none was successful in deceiving Muslims or changing a single letter of the Quran.
You can examine that yourself by watching videos for Quran Halaqas where Quran students recite the Quran from their memory. If any of them makes a single minute unnoticed mistake, they correct him immediately. This actually happens on a large scale in the Muslim Ummah (community).
4- The Quran Is Always Recited And In Prayers
The Quran is not abandoned as other religious scriptures. It is not a text recited in the Mosque and that’s it. However, the Quran is strongly present in every single Muslim home. Nearly all Muslims have several copies of the Quran at home, recite it on a regular basis, and memorize it -or part of it- by heart.
You can hear the Quran on the streets, in the work office, in many markets, and even in kitchens. Many Muslims hear the Quran and reflect upon it as much as you can imagine. Add to it, Muslims pray 5 times a day 24/7 and in each rakaa, they recite the Quran. This impossibly makes the Quran a piece of cake for anyone to fabricate either intentionally or not.
5- The Quran Still Has Its Unique Qualities
The Quran has special characteristics that make it unique in its speech. The Quran challenged people to get something similar to it -even a single verse. Yet, no one could.
Nowadays, no one has the ability to meet this challenge. This suggests that the unique characteristics of the Quran are still present and not altered or fabricated.
6- The Quranic Speech Isn’t Affected By Modern Language
This argument is quite near to the previous one. If you are familiar with Arabs nowadays, you will know that Arabs don’t speak pure Fusha Arabic anymore. Fusha Arabic is only studied in academia and used in formal speech. Moreover, later Arabs were weak Fusha speakers and writers.
If you read the Quran, you will feel the pure Fusha Arabic language that is not affected by recent Arabic slang and literature. This is an add-on argument to reinforce the previously mentioned ones, that the Quran is not changed.
7- The Divine Promise that the Quran Won’t Be Changed
Although this argument appears to sound for Muslims, it could be rational if you are a non-Muslim as well. Imagine someone told you 10 prophecies and you are pretty sure 9 came true, you would be quite confident the tenth one is true too.
Applying that to the Quran, the Quran said that no one would get something similar like it, it contains many prophecies that actually came true like the Romans beating the Persians, and many others.
Then, when the Quran says it would be preserved, then you would be confident -or maybe sure- that it won’t change. As mentioned earlier, Allah Almighty stated this fact saying: “It is certainly We Who have revealed the message (Quran), and it is certainly We Who will preserve it.” (15:9)
8- Practical Evidence the Quran Is the Same
The Practical Evidence is your own examination of the case. It will be quite evident that the Quran is the same if you ask different people about verses of the Quran, examine the Quran in different masahif (books) and applications. Also, get old masahif and new ones and try to get any difference.
I.e. This applies to the original Arabic text of the Quran. It couldn’t be done in translations of the meaning of the Quran. As we discussed previously, they are man-made translations, where different scholars published different translations that couldn’t by any means be the same.
When was the new Quran written?
There is no new Quran written. As we discussed previously, The Quran is the same since it was revealed by God.
Anyone who assumes a new Quran should prove whether it is an approved new Quranic version by Muslim scholars or if it is only a fabrication by anti-Muslims.
How many times was the Quran changed?
The Quran has never changed. This is an ultimate fact that is well-known among people. It is always the same.
We provided several proofs previously in this article that the Quran was never changed.
Is The Original Quran Still Here?
The original Quran is still the same. In this article, we discussed several aspects concerning the Quran’s perseverance. The Quran is miraculously preserved, mainly by oral transmission and Isnad along with old written manuscripts. Millions of Muslims all over the world memorize the whole Quran by heart which makes it hard for anyone to change or alter it.
In the Explore Islam Blog, we discussed several topics concerning the Quran and others. Subscribe to our Blog to reach the newest articles.
