Contemporary Approaches to The Qur’an

Have you ever wondered in what circumstances a particular verse or Soorah was revealed? In this translation of the great work ‘Asbaab an-Nuzool’ by the great Muslim scholar Ali ibn Ahmad an-Neesaboori, you may well find the answer. This first volume covers the first four sections of the Qur’an, from Sorrah al-Fatihah to verse 22 of Soorah an-Nisa. The publication of this book reflects our continuing effort to bring to the English speaking Muslims works previously only available to Arab speakers.

“Who is the author of the Qur’an?” On this subject scholars have flagrantly contradicted each other. This work attempts to make a critical review of the major ‘authorship’ theories by pressing into service logical arguments, historical evidence, textual analysis and scientific data. Probably, the only point of agreement about the Qur’an is that it was uttered for the first time by a man who was born in Makkah (Mecca), a city of Arabia, in the sixth century—a man by the name of Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him). As to the source of the Qur’an, scholars are divided into three main groups: those who believe that Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him) himself was the author; those who believe that he was not the author himself but learned it from another human author or authors; and those who believe that the Qur’an has no human author but is rather a word-for-word revelation from God. Hamza Njozi examines the three theories and comes to a firm and logical conclusion.