ISLAM’S ORIGINAL SOURCES

ISLAM’S ORIGINAL SOURCES The Quran and Sunnah A TRUE believer in Islam is one who subordinates his thinking to God, who follows God’s dictates in all aspects of his life. What are the dictates of God? These are preserved in the original sources of Islam: the Quran and the Sunnah. Both the Quran and Sunnah were transmitted to us through the last Messenger of God, Muhammad bin Abdullah. The Quran The Quran is a book containing the literal Word of God. It was transmitted from God through the Angel Gabriel to Prophet Muhammad, who, in turn, delivered it to us. The Quran covers a wide variety of topics, including evidence to support its claim of being the Word of the Creator, stories of earlier generations, instructions which humanity is asked to obey and tidings of the Hereafter. The claim of the Quran that it is protected from change is confirmed by the fact that in its 1400 year history, not one of its verses has been proven to be wrong even with the coming of the scientific era and the fact that the earliest copies and the latest copies are exactly the same. The Quran is no new heavenly scripture. It is only an authentic edition of the previous heavenly scriptures. In this respect, the Quran is a book for all human beings of all nations. It is the expression of God’s mercy for one and all. It is a comprehensive message sent by God for each one of us. The Quran is a light of guidance for the world just as the sun is the source of light and heat for the world. The Quran has 114 chapters. Its contents in a nutshell are: belief in one God, and considering oneself answerable to Him; firm belief that the guidance sent by God through the Prophet Muhammad is the truth and that man’s eternal salvation rests thereon. The Sunnah/Hadith The Sunnah can be described as the sayings and the actions of the last prophet of God: Prophet Muhammad. Through the Sunnah, we obtain examples from the life of the Prophet, who is a model for a believer. Whatever the Prophet did, said, or approved of is a source of Islam just The Quran is a book containing the literal Word of God.