The Chronological Analysis of the Quran

The Quran was revealed in Arabic to the Prophet Mohammad in 610 CE
over 22 years. In the first twelve years of the revelation, the
Prophet was living in Makkah (Mecca). Persecution, at the hands of the
tribe of Quraysh then forced him, allallaahu alayhi wa sallam, and his
companions to leave to Al-Madeenah, in what is known as the Hijrah
(immigration), where he lived thelast ten years.
The 114 chapters of the Holy Quran are not listed in the chronological
order of their revelation. This special order, however, was inspired
to the Prophet by Allaah, the Most Exalted, so it is a genuine quality
of the Quran. Each chapter is described as either Makkan or Madeenan,
depending on whether the majority of its verseswere revealed before or
after the Hijrah.
Knowing the chronological order in which the different Soorahs
(Quranic chapters) or verses wererevealed can be of importance in some
cases. And even though this may not be possible for all ofthe 6234
verses, because the sequence was recorded at anytime, through sound
Ijtihaad (research) and analysis, scholars were capable of putting
togetherthe cases where authentic reports confirmed such order andthe
cases where that order was made clear.
These efforts resulted in the development of a method in which the
revelation of the Quranwas looked at in chronological terms as well as
dividing revelation into Makki (Makkan) and Madani (Madeenah) types or
periods.
We will first look at some of the benefits of this chronological
analysis, then proceed to discuss the Makki and Madani criteria
andtheir use in the Tafseer (interpretation of the Quran) and the
deduction of Fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence) rulings.
In the following we will present avery brief look at three main
benefits of the chronological analysis of the Quran, other benefits
and many more examples can be found in Al-Itgaan, by Imaam As-Suyooti
:
Assessment of Rulings' Abrogation
Abrogation is a term that refers to the cases in which a ruling gets
abrogated by another. Simply put, abrogation means the replacement of
one verse by another thus reversing or repealing the ruling that was
revealed in it. Therefore, if we have a case in which we have
twoverses that carry in them two rulings which oppose one another and
we could reconcile them in a way that is acceptable under the
Principles of Fiqh (Jurisprudence), then we look at the chronological
order of their revelation to assess which verse carries the abrogated
ruling. Obviously, the verse revealed first carries the abrogated
ruling, and we should uphold the ruling carried in the late-revealed
one.
Examples of that: If we knew that:
1. The verses making Salaah (prayer) obligatory were revealed in
Makkah before the Hijrah [migration of Prophet Muhammad and his
companions from Makkah to Madeenah].
2. The verses making Zakaah (the Poor Due) and Sawm (fasting)
obligatory were revealed during the second year of Hijrah, and
3. The verses that established theobligation of Hajj (pilgrimage to
Makkah) were revealed in the sixth year of Hijrah,
We would know the sequence in which these pillars of Islam were established.
Appreciation of the Gradual Process in Legislation
This is an important part of the general message of Islam, especially
the aspect related to making prohibitions and having people go through
major changes of lifestyle. Knowledge of the chronology of how these
aspects were made in the early period of Islam leads one to appreciate
the wisdom behind the gradual process of legislation. A good example
of this is the prohibition of inebriants. First, people were toldthey
are bad but may have some benefit, as in the verse (which means):
"They ask you (O Muhammad ) about wine and gambling. Say, 'In them is
great sin and [yet, some] benefit for people.'" [Quran 2:219]
Then they were told not to drink before Salaah, through the verse
(which means): "O you who have believed, do not approach prayer while
you are intoxicated ..." [Quran 4:43]
And later inebriants were prohibited altogether, through the verse
(which means): "O you who have believed, indeed, intoxicants,
gambling, [sacrificingon] stone alters [to other than Allaah], and
divining arrows are but defilement from the work of Satan, so avoid it
that you may besuccessful. " [Quran 5:90]
In this example we notice the way the legislation considered the fact
that drinking was a major solid part of the Arabs' social life. But
the gradual approach used in indicating its harms and making it
prohibited on them made it easy for them toaccept, a realistic
approach whichwe can all learn from.

Evolution of the sciences of the Quran - II

After the Era of the Companions
It was through the effortsof such Companions as the four Caliphs, Ibn
'Abbaas, Ibn Mas'ood, Zayd bin Thaabit, Abu Moosa Al-Ash'ari, Ubay bin
Ka'b and 'Abdullaah bin Az-Zubayr among others, that all of the
knowledge related to theQuran was transferred and conveyed to the
Taabi'een (the second Muslim generation after the companions) and from
them onto the rest of the Ummah (Muslim Nation).
Among these successors, some are noteworthy: Mujaahid, 'Ataa' bin
Rabaah, 'Ikrimah, Qataadah, Al-Hasan Al-Basri and Maalik bin Anas .
These great scholars laid the foundation for the subject of Tafseer
(exegesis) of the Quran, as well as the numerous other branches of
knowledge that eventually comprised the sciences of the Quran.
Very little was written in specialised books or treatises in the first
Hijri century, but many were later documented towards the end of the
second century, marking the beginning of what is referred to as 'The
Era of Scriptwriting.'
Since most scholars were focused on Hadeeth (prophetic statements),
this remarkable era provided the first collections of Ahadeeth (plural
of Hadeeth) dealing with the subject of Tafseer, such as those
collected by Shu'bah bin Al Hajjaaj (160 AH), Waaki' bin Al-Jarraah
(197 AH), 'Abdur-Razzaaq (211 AH), and Ahmad ibn Hanbal (240 AH) whose
collection exceeded 100,000 Ahadeeth, but never reached us except what
has remained as part of his Musnad (Hadeeth collection).
So, Tafseer originated as an oral tradition that wastransmitted along
with other topics of the Sunnah (Prophetic tradition) to find its
placein the books of Sunnah. Ifany of these scholars had written a
Tafseer book, then it was either lost or has not yet reached us. The
first major, authenticand complete Tafseer compilation was written by
Imaam Ibn Jareer At-Tabari (310 AH) . Many similar writings followed
it.
Many other books were written that dealt with other topics and
subjects related to the Quran. These writings primarily focused on a
single issue or theme per book. Of the many books written throughout
the centuries, only some have been checked, edited and printed. Imaam
Ali bin Al-Madeeni(234 AH) for example, wrote about the Circumstances
of Revelation, Imaam Abu 'Ubayd Al-Qaasim bin Salaam (224 AH) wrote
about Abrogation and about the Qiraa'aat (modes of Quranic
recitation), while Imaam Ibn Qutaybah's (276 AH) book dealt with the
subject of Mushkil (unclear or problematic) words and meanings of the
Quran.
This thematic approach continues to this day, andAl-Baqillaani (403
AH) wrote about the miraculous nature of the Quran while
Al-Maawardi(450 AH) chose to discuss its Amthaal (proverbs or
parables). Later, Imaam Ibn Al-Qayyim (751 AH) wrote about the oaths
or vows that are found in the Quran.
The first book known to use the term and was entitled '`Uloom
Al-Quran'was written by Imaam Alibin Ibrahim al-Hawfi (430AH) . It is
available butmissing some volumes, and is still in manuscript form,
and has not yet been printed. This book deals with and covers topics
that partially comprise what we consider today as Sciences of the
Quran, which is a major treatment of topics related to the Quran.
Later, Imaam As-Suyooti (911 AH) wrote 'Al - Itqaan Fi `Uloom
Al-Quran' that followed the same lines of '`Uloom Al-Quraan', but in
an abridged format, with added topics, and is printed today in two
large volumes. These twoworks are considered theclassical references
on the subjects of the Sciences of the Quran. Today, there are more
than a hundred books written on all aspects related to the Quran and
Tafseer , some of which have been translated intoEnglish.

Evolution of the science of the Quran –I

The Era of the Companions:
The Quran is the final revelation sent by Allaah to Prophet Muhammad .
It is an eternal miracle that grows in clarity and strength with time
and each new scientific discovery. It was revealed over nearly
twenty-three years, during which the Prophet taught it and explained
it to his companions . He sallallaahu' alayhi wa sallam also answered
all of their questions and did not die before completely delivering
themessage of the Quran, making it clearly understood.
At the same time, the Companions were verykeen to memorise, understand
and practice it. Due to their mastery ofArabic, the purity of
theirminds and hearts, and because they had witnessed the Quran being
revealed under many circumstances and in response to diverse events,
they were able to accumulate much understanding and knowledge of the
Quran.
Some of them actually mastered its knowledge. Abdullaah bin Mas'ood
was one of those whorealised this great achievement. He described his
knowledge of the Quran by saying: "I swear by Allaah that there is not
a verse of the Quran except that I know where and why it was revealed,
and if I knew of anyone who knows the Book of Allaah more than I do, I
would travel to him." [Al-Bukhaari]
Other Companions devoted all of their lives to the Quran. Abdullaah
bin 'Umar for example,was reported by Imaam Maalik in 'Al-Muwatta'as
having spent eight consecutive years completely memorising and
learning Soorah (chapter) Al-Baqarah (thesecond Quranic chapter).
It was also reported that the Companions used to say, "It is
considered tobe a great thing that one of us learns the Soorahs
Al-Baqarah and Aal 'Imraan (The second and third chapters)." And that:
"They used to learn the Quran from the Prophet ten verses at atime,
and that they would not go beyond them until they had learned all
possible knowledge and actions in them and applied them."
This great knowledge was not all written down as text, except for what
was written down by some Companions . The reason was that the basic
process of teaching and learning in those times was the oral
tradition. Only the Quran itself and those Companions' writings were
received in written format by the next generation of Muslims.
However, many of the Companions were known for their
excellentknowledge and understanding of the Quran. People like
'Uthmaan, Ali, Zayd, Ubay,Ibn Mas'ood, Ibn 'Abbaas and Ibn 'Umar as
well as others, had many brilliant and inspired students, such as
Mujaahid, Qataadah and 'Ataa' who then conveyed that knowledge to the
rest of Ummah (Muslim community) as the practice of writing down
knowledge became widespread.
The Companions' circles of teaching were attended by hundreds of
students. As those students went back home, they taught othersthe same
knowledge as they had learned. Within a short period of time, the
Companions' knowledge, was spread across the vast Muslim lands.
What is so remarkable is that after writing became popular, the pieces
of knowledge collected from different scholars who had never seen or
known one another were found to be the same and, therefore, supported
oneanother – showing consistency in the knowledge and the guidance of
Islam.
To this day and forever, no other Ummah or religion can claim
similarity to this unique feature of Islam.

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The nose has a left anda right side.
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