Names of the Holy Qur’an :
Al-Kitab (The Book)
Al-Furqan (The Separator)
Al-Hudah (The Guidance)
Al-Tanzil (The Revelation)
Al-Hukm (The Judgment)
We will explain them one by one Insha Allah
Al-Kitab (The Book)
The Qur’an has as another name, the book. This is contained in Qur’an 2:2 thus:
“That is the book, in which there is no doubt, it is a
guide for those who fear Allah.”
Although, the Qur’an is described as a book, it is not like any other book. The term book is only in the textual nature of the compilation, we should not look at the Qur’an as a book from the same way we perceive other books we use in our day-to-day activities.
For example, most of the books we use in our daily activities have human beings as their authors; the author of the Qur’an is Allah Himself. Again, ordinary books undergo several editions, assessments, modifications and corrections. The Qur’an as we have in the days of Prophet remains the same even today. It has not and will never go through any revisions.
Even in other holy books recognized by Islam, man mixed his words with ALLAH S.W.T ’s, but in the case of Qur’an, we find only the words of ALLAH S.W.T , and in their original form. In addition, the original texts of most of the known divine books were lost altogether, and only their translations exist today. In the case of Qur’an, it is exactly intact today as it was revealed to the Prophet. Not a word, not even a syllable has been changed.
Some holy books were sent in languages which died long ago. No nation or community now speaks those languages and there are only a few people who claim to understand them. Thus, to even interpret those books and put them into practice becomes a difficult talk. On the other hand, the language of the Qur’an is a living language; millions of people speak it, and millions know and understand it. Arabic is being taught and learnt in many universities of the world. Thus, it is easy to interpret the Arabic Qur’an and then follow the injunctions therein.
Al-Furqan (The Separator)
Another name by which Qur’an is known is The Separator, i.e. the one that distinguishes the truth from falsehood. This perfectly refers to the emergence of the book at a time when the Makkans were grossly involved in all forms of falsehood both in terms of worship and social life. The idolaters of Makkah thrive in falsehood by worshipping man- made ALLAH S.W.T s and ALLAH S.W.T desses, and so the Qur’an came as a separator between these and worship of the only one ALLAH S.W.T , Allah.
True Prophet is raised by ALLAH S.W.T Himself. It is He who has sent him to mankind to convey His message to His people. It is His command that one should put one’s faith in the Prophet and follow him. Thus, one who refuses to believe in ALLAH S.W.T ’s messenger refuses to follow ALLAH S.W.T ’s commandment and becomes a rebel. The evidence of those who are on the wrong path and those on the straight path are contained in the Qur’an, a distinguisher.
Perhaps, the position of Islam would not have been better appreciated if Muhammad S.A.W was only to come out and call the people to the one only one true ALLAH S.W.T , without an evidence that he was actually sent by Him. To separate the false and feeble kind of ALLAH S.W.T (which the Makkans were worshipping) from the strong and all-encompassing, all-powerful Allah, the Qur’an provides all these through its contents.
Whatever notions the pre-Islamic Arabs had of morals, culture and civilizations were primitive in the extreme. They could hardly discriminate or distinguish between pure and impure, lawful and unlawful. Their lives were barbaric. They take pleasures in adultery, gambling and drinking. Looting and murder were part of their everyday existence. They would stand stark naked before each other without any shame or conscience. It is the Qur’an that now came to separate between these horrible life in which the Arabs were living and the purified, neat and wholesome one, which is Islam.
Al-Hudah (The Guidance)
The Qur’an is a guidance from darkness to the light of Islam. The Qur’an chapter 2 verse 185 states:
“Ramadan is the (month) in which was sent down the Qur’an, as a guide to mankind, also clear signs for guidance and judgement (Between Right and Wrong) …”
The guidance imparted through the Prophets of the past was not complete. Every Prophet was followed by another who effected alterations and additions in the teachings and injunctions of his predecessors, and in this way, the chain of reform and progress continued. That is why the teaching of the earlier Prophets, after the lapse of time, were lost. Obviously, there was no need to preserve their teachings when amended and improved guidance had taken place. At the last, the most perfect code of guidance was imparted to mankind through Muhammad S.A.W . By this, all the previous codes were automatically replaced.
It is futile to follow an incomplete code when the complete code exists. That complete code is the Qur’an. It guides the mind towards a perfect life and teaching which never existed in the books of the earlier Prophets who had come before Muhammad. The guidance of the Qur’an is to provide for man an entry point to the eternal pleasure of the Almighty Allah. Whoever follows it, will have an everlasting peace of mind, and whoever rejects will suffer perdition in the end.
Like the wandering shepherds in the wilderness, the Arabs before Islam needed a true guidance for their life to be secured, and for mankind in general to be provided with a complete code of life, which is Islam. This is what the Qur’an has come to do for the Arab idolaters and by extension the entire world. Thus it is found in the Qur’an a guide to one’s economic, social, political, matrimonial and indeed every facet of life. No wonder therefore that in Suratul Fatihah, the only prayer is “Guide us on the right path”. Whoever has been guided will never go astray in terms of worship and complete peace of mind.
The Qur’an guides us on how to behave among ourselves, how to respect our parents, how to transact businesses, how to administer inheritances, how to pilot affairs of a group or nation, how to treat the orphans and so on.
Al-Tanzil (The Revelation)
The Qur’an is not just a book written by someone, somewhere, somehow. It is a revealed message, a compendium brought together as a reference material for believers. ALLAH S.W.T had revealed His Books to His Prophets before Muhammad S.A.W and these books were sent down in the same way as He sent down the Qur’an. It is part of faith in Islam to believe in the previous revelations such as Torah (revealed to Prophet Musa), Injil (to Prophet Isa) and Zabur (to Prophet Daud). A muslim should believe that whatever books were sent down by ALLAH S.W.T are all true.
While the original texts of most of the former divine books were lost altogether, and only their translation exists today, the Qur’an, exists exactly as it was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad. Not a word is changed or even added to it. Thus, Qur’an is available in its original text as a revealed and preserved book of all times. If the Qur’an had been a man-made work, several mistakes, additions and errors would have been discovered in it. The Qur’an 26:192 states:
“Verily, this is a Revelation from the Lord of the worlds”.
That the Qur’an is a revelation from Allah should be of the nature that it is purely and absolutely ALLAH S.W.T’s own words, that it is perfectly true, that every word of it is preserved, that everything mentioned therein is right, that it is duty bound on every man and woman to carry out in his life and every community every command of it and that whatever be against it must be rejected.
The Qur’an within its texts also confirms the status of being a revelation from the Supreme Being, the wise. This is why several passages in the book directs the mind to reflect on certain phenomena around man, and how these have impacted on the life of man. Prophet Muhammad S.A.W was not known to be a scientist. But the message is full of scientific discoveries. This can only testify to it as being a revelation from the Almighty, the all-knowing Allah.
Al-Hukm (The Judgment)
The Qur’an has the name al-hukm, i.e. the judgement which truly represents the supremacy of the book over the affairs of man on earth. The Qur’an 13:37 states:
“Thus have We revealed it to be a judgement of authority in Arabic …”
Among the features of the Qur’an is that it contains injunctions, verdicts and rulings on the various aspects of human life. These judgements are of divine origin and this is why in over one thousand years when the Qur’an was revealed, no one has come up to fault the judgements. This is because Allah Himself is just, and will never be unjust to His creatures.
In view of the complexity of man, he needs divine judgement of the activities which he embarks upon and which require divine blessings. Thus Qur’an provides judgements on the distribution of estate of a deceased Muslim in such a manner that everyone in the family is taken care of. Similarly, in the case of divorce between man and woman, the judgement of the Qur’an provides a balanced resolution, when properly executed.
The Qur’an judgement on criminal matters have been found to be the best, and in the best interest of the larger society even by non-Muslim jurists of the world. Today, several codified laws borrow from the Qur’anic provisions (although without stating so) in view of the fairness of the Qur’anic provisions. And this makes a Muslim appreciate the blessing of the Qur’an on man, as against the man-made laws that require updating, amendments and reviews from time to time.
Al-Kitab (The Book)
Al-Furqan (The Separator)
Al-Hudah (The Guidance)
Al-Tanzil (The Revelation)
Al-Hukm (The Judgment)
We will explain them one by one Insha Allah
Al-Kitab (The Book)
The Qur’an has as another name, the book. This is contained in Qur’an 2:2 thus:
“That is the book, in which there is no doubt, it is a
guide for those who fear Allah.”
Although, the Qur’an is described as a book, it is not like any other book. The term book is only in the textual nature of the compilation, we should not look at the Qur’an as a book from the same way we perceive other books we use in our day-to-day activities.
For example, most of the books we use in our daily activities have human beings as their authors; the author of the Qur’an is Allah Himself. Again, ordinary books undergo several editions, assessments, modifications and corrections. The Qur’an as we have in the days of Prophet remains the same even today. It has not and will never go through any revisions.
Even in other holy books recognized by Islam, man mixed his words with ALLAH S.W.T ’s, but in the case of Qur’an, we find only the words of ALLAH S.W.T , and in their original form. In addition, the original texts of most of the known divine books were lost altogether, and only their translations exist today. In the case of Qur’an, it is exactly intact today as it was revealed to the Prophet. Not a word, not even a syllable has been changed.
Some holy books were sent in languages which died long ago. No nation or community now speaks those languages and there are only a few people who claim to understand them. Thus, to even interpret those books and put them into practice becomes a difficult talk. On the other hand, the language of the Qur’an is a living language; millions of people speak it, and millions know and understand it. Arabic is being taught and learnt in many universities of the world. Thus, it is easy to interpret the Arabic Qur’an and then follow the injunctions therein.
Al-Furqan (The Separator)
Another name by which Qur’an is known is The Separator, i.e. the one that distinguishes the truth from falsehood. This perfectly refers to the emergence of the book at a time when the Makkans were grossly involved in all forms of falsehood both in terms of worship and social life. The idolaters of Makkah thrive in falsehood by worshipping man- made ALLAH S.W.T s and ALLAH S.W.T desses, and so the Qur’an came as a separator between these and worship of the only one ALLAH S.W.T , Allah.
True Prophet is raised by ALLAH S.W.T Himself. It is He who has sent him to mankind to convey His message to His people. It is His command that one should put one’s faith in the Prophet and follow him. Thus, one who refuses to believe in ALLAH S.W.T ’s messenger refuses to follow ALLAH S.W.T ’s commandment and becomes a rebel. The evidence of those who are on the wrong path and those on the straight path are contained in the Qur’an, a distinguisher.
Perhaps, the position of Islam would not have been better appreciated if Muhammad S.A.W was only to come out and call the people to the one only one true ALLAH S.W.T , without an evidence that he was actually sent by Him. To separate the false and feeble kind of ALLAH S.W.T (which the Makkans were worshipping) from the strong and all-encompassing, all-powerful Allah, the Qur’an provides all these through its contents.
Whatever notions the pre-Islamic Arabs had of morals, culture and civilizations were primitive in the extreme. They could hardly discriminate or distinguish between pure and impure, lawful and unlawful. Their lives were barbaric. They take pleasures in adultery, gambling and drinking. Looting and murder were part of their everyday existence. They would stand stark naked before each other without any shame or conscience. It is the Qur’an that now came to separate between these horrible life in which the Arabs were living and the purified, neat and wholesome one, which is Islam.
Al-Hudah (The Guidance)
The Qur’an is a guidance from darkness to the light of Islam. The Qur’an chapter 2 verse 185 states:
“Ramadan is the (month) in which was sent down the Qur’an, as a guide to mankind, also clear signs for guidance and judgement (Between Right and Wrong) …”
The guidance imparted through the Prophets of the past was not complete. Every Prophet was followed by another who effected alterations and additions in the teachings and injunctions of his predecessors, and in this way, the chain of reform and progress continued. That is why the teaching of the earlier Prophets, after the lapse of time, were lost. Obviously, there was no need to preserve their teachings when amended and improved guidance had taken place. At the last, the most perfect code of guidance was imparted to mankind through Muhammad S.A.W . By this, all the previous codes were automatically replaced.
It is futile to follow an incomplete code when the complete code exists. That complete code is the Qur’an. It guides the mind towards a perfect life and teaching which never existed in the books of the earlier Prophets who had come before Muhammad. The guidance of the Qur’an is to provide for man an entry point to the eternal pleasure of the Almighty Allah. Whoever follows it, will have an everlasting peace of mind, and whoever rejects will suffer perdition in the end.
Like the wandering shepherds in the wilderness, the Arabs before Islam needed a true guidance for their life to be secured, and for mankind in general to be provided with a complete code of life, which is Islam. This is what the Qur’an has come to do for the Arab idolaters and by extension the entire world. Thus it is found in the Qur’an a guide to one’s economic, social, political, matrimonial and indeed every facet of life. No wonder therefore that in Suratul Fatihah, the only prayer is “Guide us on the right path”. Whoever has been guided will never go astray in terms of worship and complete peace of mind.
The Qur’an guides us on how to behave among ourselves, how to respect our parents, how to transact businesses, how to administer inheritances, how to pilot affairs of a group or nation, how to treat the orphans and so on.
Al-Tanzil (The Revelation)
The Qur’an is not just a book written by someone, somewhere, somehow. It is a revealed message, a compendium brought together as a reference material for believers. ALLAH S.W.T had revealed His Books to His Prophets before Muhammad S.A.W and these books were sent down in the same way as He sent down the Qur’an. It is part of faith in Islam to believe in the previous revelations such as Torah (revealed to Prophet Musa), Injil (to Prophet Isa) and Zabur (to Prophet Daud). A muslim should believe that whatever books were sent down by ALLAH S.W.T are all true.
While the original texts of most of the former divine books were lost altogether, and only their translation exists today, the Qur’an, exists exactly as it was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad. Not a word is changed or even added to it. Thus, Qur’an is available in its original text as a revealed and preserved book of all times. If the Qur’an had been a man-made work, several mistakes, additions and errors would have been discovered in it. The Qur’an 26:192 states:
“Verily, this is a Revelation from the Lord of the worlds”.
That the Qur’an is a revelation from Allah should be of the nature that it is purely and absolutely ALLAH S.W.T’s own words, that it is perfectly true, that every word of it is preserved, that everything mentioned therein is right, that it is duty bound on every man and woman to carry out in his life and every community every command of it and that whatever be against it must be rejected.
The Qur’an within its texts also confirms the status of being a revelation from the Supreme Being, the wise. This is why several passages in the book directs the mind to reflect on certain phenomena around man, and how these have impacted on the life of man. Prophet Muhammad S.A.W was not known to be a scientist. But the message is full of scientific discoveries. This can only testify to it as being a revelation from the Almighty, the all-knowing Allah.
Al-Hukm (The Judgment)
The Qur’an has the name al-hukm, i.e. the judgement which truly represents the supremacy of the book over the affairs of man on earth. The Qur’an 13:37 states:
“Thus have We revealed it to be a judgement of authority in Arabic …”
Among the features of the Qur’an is that it contains injunctions, verdicts and rulings on the various aspects of human life. These judgements are of divine origin and this is why in over one thousand years when the Qur’an was revealed, no one has come up to fault the judgements. This is because Allah Himself is just, and will never be unjust to His creatures.
In view of the complexity of man, he needs divine judgement of the activities which he embarks upon and which require divine blessings. Thus Qur’an provides judgements on the distribution of estate of a deceased Muslim in such a manner that everyone in the family is taken care of. Similarly, in the case of divorce between man and woman, the judgement of the Qur’an provides a balanced resolution, when properly executed.
The Qur’an judgement on criminal matters have been found to be the best, and in the best interest of the larger society even by non-Muslim jurists of the world. Today, several codified laws borrow from the Qur’anic provisions (although without stating so) in view of the fairness of the Qur’anic provisions. And this makes a Muslim appreciate the blessing of the Qur’an on man, as against the man-made laws that require updating, amendments and reviews from time to time.