100 Proofs That Islam Is True (Part 10): A Book Without Contradiction
Mufti Faijullah Aman
Introduction
No matter how wise a person is, errors and contradictions remain in his writing. Views change with age, and thoughts change with circumstances. That is why authors correct their earlier mistakes in new editions of their books. Here the Qur'an makes a unique claim, and it also invites us to test that claim.
The Claim of the Qur'an
Allah says: "Do they not reflect upon the Qur'an? Had it been from anyone other than Allah, they would have found in it much contradiction." (Surah an-Nisa 4:82)
He also says: "Allah has sent down the best of speech, a Book whose parts resemble and agree with one another." (Surah az-Zumar 39:23)
Notice that the Qur'an does not call people to blind faith. Rather, it says: reflect, examine, search for yourselves.
Under What Circumstances Was It Revealed?
To understand the weight of this claim, we must see how the Qur'an was revealed.
1. The Qur'an is not a book written all at once. It was revealed little by little over twenty-three years.
2. Some parts were revealed in Makkah, when the Muslims were persecuted and weak. Other parts were revealed in Madinah, when they were governing a state.
3. Some verses came on the battlefield, others in times of peace. Some came in the joy of victory, such as Badr and the conquest of Makkah. Some came in the pain of defeat, such as Uhud.
4. The Prophet's personal life also saw deep grief. His beloved wife Khadijah and his uncle Abu Talib died in the same year. He lost his own children one after another.
5. Verses were revealed according to events, and the Prophet (peace be upon him) would instruct where each verse should be placed in which chapter. The order of revelation and the order of arrangement are different.
If any human being had spoken under such circumstances, his words would carry the marks of those circumstances: one thing when weak, another when in power; despair in times of grief, pride in times of victory. Yet the Qur'an's description of God, its belief in One God, the Hereafter, its morality, and its stories of the prophets are in perfect harmony from beginning to end.
The Prophet's Words and the Words of the Qur'an
Another amazing aspect is that the Prophet's own words (hadith) and the style of the Qur'an are completely different. For twenty-three years, two kinds of speech came from the mouth of the same man, yet they never once mixed with each other. No human being can keep two distinct styles so perfectly separate over such a long time.
Even more astonishing, the Qur'an at times corrected the Prophet himself. For example, Surah Abasa was revealed when he did not give attention to a blind companion. (Surah Abasa 80:1-10) In another place it says: "May Allah pardon you! Why did you give them permission?" (Surah at-Tawbah 9:43) If the Prophet had composed the Qur'an himself, why would he write criticism of himself, recite it before everyone, and preserve it forever?
Fourteen Centuries of Testing
This claim of the Qur'an is no secret. For fourteen hundred years, opponents of Islam have read every word of the Qur'an closely, trying to find contradictions. Every objection raised has been answered by Muslim scholars, who showed that such objections came from not understanding the context, not knowing the language, or reading incompletely. Countless books written on the difficult passages of the Qur'an bear witness to this.
A Comparison
Imagine a person keeping a diary for twenty-three years, in war and peace, in happiness and sorrow. How many changed opinions and contradictory statements would be found in that diary at the end! Yet the Qur'an, which speaks about life, society, law, history, belief, morality, nature, and the Hereafter, contains no such contradiction.
Conclusion
When a book that speaks about countless subjects, under the different circumstances of twenty-three years, remains in complete harmony, we must understand that its speaker is not a human being bound by circumstances. He is the One whose knowledge is perfect and whose views never change. He is Allah, and the Qur'an is His word.
In the next part, the eleventh proof, in sha Allah.
