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Purpose: This paper analyzes the current state of Western research on the variant readings of the Qur’ān and how it differs from traditional Muslim scholarship, through the lens of objectivity and bias.  Methodology: Descriptive and analytical. After a brief survey of the major views in the field, I identify three major sources of contention between the two camps: the problem of sources, disagreements concerning the history of the Arabic language, and disputes over the value of the isnād (chain of transmission) as an indicator of historical reliability. I then discuss how to use the concept of “objectivity as responsibility” (as discussed by Heldke and Kellert) to defuse the bias paradox.  Findings: Each camp’s premises and goals impact their research, and each camp may perceive the other as biased. I chart out five suggestions for measures that the two camps could adopt to facilitate a more productive and objective way forward.  Originality: The article's originality lies in (I) its breadth, including incorporation of recent scholarship, (II) its depth: it pinpoint assumptions and disagreements that underly the rift, (III) analysis of the rift through a philosophical paradigm.

This paper analyzes the current state of Western research on the variant readings of the Qur'ān and how it differs from traditional Muslim scholarship through the lens of objectivity and bias. After a brief survey of the major views in the field, I identify three major sources of contention between the two camps: the problem of sources, disagreements concerning the history of the Arabic language, and disputes over the value of the isnād (chain of transmission) as an indicator of historical reliability. Each camp's premises and goals impact their research, and each camp may perceive the other as biased. I then discuss how to use the concept of \"objectivity as responsibility\" to defuse the bias paradox and outline suggestions for measures that the two camps could adopt to facilitate a more productive way forward.

Objectives: This research focuses on the issue of the methodology of engaging with personal Quranic manuscripts (muṣḥafs) attributed to the early centuries of Islam. Based on a thorough examination of the Sana’a Palimpsest DAM 01-27.1, this study rebuts the Orientalist assertion that the Quran read by Muslims today has evolved from a lost, original text. This study is structured into three sections and seeks to fulfill three main objectives. First, to establish and clarify the relationship between orthography books (rasm) and the documentation of Quranic manuscripts, and to examine how these books define the orthographical features of the text. Second, to examine how Islamic sources addressed private muṣḥafs and provided rulings on them. Third, to provide an examination of the Sana’a Palimpsest. Methodology: This study adopts a foundational and analytical approach, which focuses on establishing the phenomenon’s roots and origin and then analyzing it. Findings: The authenticity of the Quran is attributed to its uninterrupted oral transmission, its agreement with the rasm of the muṣḥaf, and the soundness of its Arabic language. The writing of muṣḥafs involved meticulous review by leading reciters (qurrāᵓ). In addition, the Sana’a Palimpsest serves as direct evidence that supports Uthmān Ibn ᶜAffān’s decision of eliminating personal muṣḥafs and adopting the standard version corresponding to what was written during the time of Prophet Muhammad. This evidence substantiates the ruling that private muṣḥafs contained anomalous readings (shādh), with high probabilities of omissions, alterations, and personal renditions, thus cannot be considered a “lost original text” as Orientalists suggested. Originality: The originality of this research lies in its exploration of how Islamic sources engage with private muṣḥafs and the rulings associated with them. This study examines the implications of these rulings on the reliability of Quranic manuscripts and provides a comprehensive analysis of Sana’a Palimpsest, which has been the subject of significant debate among Orientalist scholars.

Sheikh Sa’ban-i Veli Social Complex is located in the center of Kastamonu. The social complex was built by Suca Efendi, the teacher of Murad III. It consists of dervish lodge houses, a mosque, a tomb, a library and shadirvan. In 1261/1845, it was repaired by Kastamonu District Governor Salih Aga by order of Sultan Abdülmecid, its infrastructure was renewed and it was surrounded by an enclosing wall. The two mansions and the museum building in the middle of them are the work of Azdavaylı Mahmut Pasha in 1318/1900. In the building used as a museum, personal belongings of Sheikh Şa’ban-ı Veli, manuscripts belonging to calligraphers from Kastamonu, and handwritten works are exhibited. Among the manuscripts, there are also illuminated Mushaf-i sharifs belonging to certain periods. The manuscripts and the illuminated Qurans within these manuscripts are the leading application areas of illumination art, which is included in our. It has been seen that the manuscripts with inventory numbers 0259 and 0275, chosen as the research subject, are not the subject of a study in terms of the art of illumination of the Qur’an. For this reason, it is aimed to examine the headings of the works in terms of illumination art. The double full-page heading illuminations of two Mushafs, which are thought to belong to the 1847 and 1861, which constitute the subject of the study, examined period features, stylistic features, patterns, and motifs.

In this article, I discuss the topic of Divine preservation of the Qur’an in the context of exegesis verse 15:9: ‘Indeed, it is We who sent down the reminder (dhikr) [i.e., the Qur’an], and indeed, We will be its guardian’. First, I will briefly examine Muslim and non-Muslim perceptions regarding authentic transmission of the Qur’an. I question some Western researchers, who problematise Muslims’ approaches to the history of the Qur’an with various polemics, and the Muslim perception, which compresses the notion of Divine preservation of the Qur’an into the narrow meaning of verse 15:9 with dogmatic and apologetic reflexes. Then, I chronologically analyse interpretations of the verse from linguistic, historical, theological and sociological aspects of the exegeses from the classical period to the modern times. The main argument of this article is centred on verse 15:9, which, in my opinion, deals with the first route of Qur’anic revelation from God to the Prophet through Angel Gabriel, and the Prophet’s perfect memorisation of it together with his flawless transmission to the Companions. The next processes (post-Prophetic developments in transmission of the revelation) were left to the foresight of the Muslim community, ummah. I believe, while the vertical process (revelation from arsh to farsh (heaven to earth) is guaranteed by God, responsibility for the horizontal process (from the Companions to the following generation and so on) is left to the Muslim community. The use of the same Qur’anic text by Sunnis, Shi’ites, Ibadis, etc., from northern Kazakhstan to West Africa, from Asia Pacific to the Balkans, is the clearest proof that Muslims are preserving the book entrusted to them. They demonstrate the reflection of their understanding of tawhid (Oneness of God) in their faith on the Qur’an by their consensus on a single mushaf.

The science of `adad constitutes an integral part of Quranic-affiliated knowledge. Its main discussion is about the beginning and ending of the verse of the Quran as well as distinction numbering of the verses. There are seven famous opinions in `adad, namely; Madani Awwal, Madani Akhir, Makki, Kufi, Basri, Shami and Himshi. The difference of opinions in the determination of Quranic verses does not only affect the calculation of the total number of verses in the Qur'an, but also contribute to the differences in the nature of mushaf (printed Quran). This is because the scholars have variant views on determining the madhdhab (opinion) of ‘adad relied upon by some qiraat mutawatirah and its riwayah. Thus, this study explores and gathers the views of the scholars in determining the madhdhab (opinion) for respective qiraat mutawatirah, and identify their justifications. This study will then examine the effect of the dispute on mushaf Quran. To achieve the aforementioned objectives, content analysis method was adopted to bring together the views of scholars in determining opinions for each qiraat mutawatirah, and to analyze descriptively the narrations of all opinions to explain the cause of the disagreement among the scholars. In order to know the impact of the differences in `adad on mushaf Quran, induction methods was used on the mushaf Quran which has been printed in several countries with distinctive qiraat mutawatirah. This study finds that the sanad (chain of transmitter) in narrating `adad forms is the contributing factor in dissenting scholars in determining credible opinion for each qiraat mutawatirah. In regards to the printing of mushaf, most of the printed mushafs are aligned with the opinion of scholars in determining the number of the verses, whereas only a few of mushaf which do not comply with such opinion.

This book examines in detail the concept of \"abrogation\" in the Qur’an, which has played a major role in the development of Islamic law and has implications for understanding the history and integrity of the Qur’anic text. The term has gained popularity in recent years, as Muslim groups and individuals claim that many passages about tolerance in the Qur’an have been abrogated by others that call on Muslims to fight their enemies. Author Louay Fatoohi argues that this could not have been derived from the Qur’an, and that its implications contradict Qur’anic principles. He also reveals conceptual flaws in the principle of abrogation as well as serious problems with the way it was applied by different scholars. Abrogation in the Qur’an and Islamic Law traces the development of the concept from its most basic form to the complex and multi-faceted doctrine it has become. The book shows what specific problems the three modes of abrogation were introduced to solve, and how this concept has shaped Islamic law. The book also critiques the role of abrogation in rationalizing the view that not all of the Qur’anic revelation has survived in the \"mushaf\", or the written record of the Qur’an. This role makes understanding abrogation an essential prerequisite for studying the history of the Qur’anic text. Introduction 1. A History of the Concept of \"Abrogation\" 2. Abrogation in Scriptures Before the Qur’an 3. The Term \"Naskh\" in the Qur’an 4. The Concept of \"Naskh\" in the Qur’an 5. Conceptual and Implementational Differences of Abrogation 6. Legal Abrogation 7. The Verse of the Sword 8. Does the Mushaf Contain All of the Qur’an? 9. Did the Prophet Forget Verses? 10. Legal-Textual Abrogation 11. Textual Abrogation I: The \"Stoning Verse\" 12. Textual Abrogation II: The Five-Suckling Verse and the Anomalous Reading of the Oath Breaking Verse 13. Abrogation of the Sunna 14. Islamic Law: A New Reading 15. Conclusion: The Myth of Abrogation A. The Meaning of “Hadīth” and “Sunna” Bibliography Glossary Index of Qur’anic Verses Index of Names and Subjects Louay Fatoohi is the Operations Director at Packt Publishing. His research interests are in Qur’anic studies, including comparisons between the Qur'an’s account of history with Biblical narratives, other Jewish and Christian writings, and historical sources. He is the author of The Mystery of the Historical Jesus (2007) and Prophet Joseph in the Qur’an, the Bible, and History (2007). \"The author offers a refreshing perspective to his readers to understand that Muslim scholars do not always have a monolithic opinion on subjects even as sensitive as this. The book also affirms that critical thinking is not alien to Islamic scholarship. If there is one valuable book in the English Language on the subject, this is it.\" Jabal M. Buaben, University Of Birmingham

AbstractThe account of the 'Uthmānic mushaf of Córdoba, which passed from generation to generation across the western shores of Islam, has played a prominent role in the history of al-Andalus and the Maghrib. The prized codex appears throughout historiographical and literary discourses, stretching from the Hispano-Umayyad caliphate to the dynasty of the Banū Marīn in North Africa. Brought into battle against Christians and fellow Muslims, decorated with ornate coverings, and made into the object of countless panegyrics, the 'Uthmānic codex of al-Andalus offers a glimpse into a sustained network of meaning and power. The codex came symbolically to align successive Muslim dynasties to the early history of Islam. Drawing attention to the parallel phenomena of the furta sacra and the translatio of relics in medieval Christian tradition, this article explores the broader political, religious, and literary dimensions which silhouette the veneration toward the 'Uthmānic codex.