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Question text

What is the viewpoint of Shia scholars about the absence of distortion in Quran?


Answer

Searching through speeches of great Shia scholars who have ever been patterns for all generations, shows that they avoided believing in distortion and ascribed thought of distortion to a single individual narration. It would be impossible to quote sayings of all of them during centuries. Some of them are as follows:
1- Fazl ibn Shazan Nayshaburi (dead in the year 260 A.H.) after criticizing Sunni religion says that: “Umar ibn Khattab said: I fear that people say that Umar added more verses to Quran and inserted this verse in Quran, at the time of the Prophet (s.a.w.) we recited this verse as follows”:
“Stone old man and old woman for committing adultery, this is a punishment from the Powerful, the Wise Allah”. [1]
If Shia had believed in distortion, he would not have criticized Sunnis who believes in distortion, because both were agreed on this belief.
2- Departed Saduq (dead in the year 381 A.H.) says that: “we believe that Quran is Allah’s book and His Revelation, Allah states that:﴿إِنَّهُ لَكِتَابٌ عَزِيزٌ ، لَا يَأْتِيهِ الْبَاطِلُ مِن بَيْنِ يَدَيْهِ وَلَا مِنْ خَلْفِهِ تَنزِيلٌ مِّنْ حَكِيمٍ حَمِيدٍ﴾
[2]“most surely it is a Mighty Book. Falsehood shall not come to it from before it nor from behind it a revelation from the Wise, the Praised One.”
Quran is a narrator of the right, it is a right which separates truth from falsehood, it is not a joke or useless book and Almighty Allah is its creator, sender, supporter of Quran and He speaks with People by it”. [3]
3- Shaykh Mufid (dead in the year 413 A.H.) says that: “some of Shia scholars have said that no words, verses or Surahs have been omitted from Quran, but those matters of the copy of Quran by Imam Ali (a.s.) which was the esoteric interpretation and interpretation of meaning of verses according to the truth of Revelation has been omitted, although those sayings were not from Allah’s word that is Quran and Divine miracle, they were certain and revealed facts, and sometimes the esoteric interpretation of Quran is called Quran, I think this matter that there are some omissions in the esoteric interpretation of Quran is more closer to truth than that some words of Quran have been omitted, I am agree with this opinion. [4]
In answer to “Masai’l Sarwiyah”, he addressed to those who have tried to prove distortion in the Holy Quran by relying on the narrations which have been quoted with different words such as: this phrase “خير ائمة” (the best of Imams) instead of [5] “کنتم خير امة” (You are the best of nation) and this phrase “ائمة وسطا” (medium Imams) has been quoted instead of [جعلناکم امة وسطا“ [6” (We have made you a medium nation) he also says that: “these narrations are from single individual narrations and their correctness are not proved, so we ignore them and continue believing in what is available in Quran”. [7]
4- Sayyid Murtiza (dead in the year 436 A.H.) says that: “in addition to those from whom we quoted in the first reason, a group of Companions have recited and finished the whole Quran for the Prophet (s.a.w.) many times, such as: Abdullah ibn Masud, Abi ibn Ka’b and others. It will be clear that Quran was a compiled collection, not a dispersed one at that time”. [8]
5- Shaykh Tusi (dead in the year 460 A.H.) says that: “speaking about addition and omission in Quran is not suitable for this book, because addition in Quran is unanimously rejected. Omission in Quran is also against the appearance of Muslim’s religion and this is more acceptable about our correct religion. Sayyid Murtiza has also confirmed this matter and narrations apparently confirm that, then he has considered the opposite narrations as single individual narrations. [9]
6- Departed Tabarsi (dead in the year 548 A.H.) writes: “adding to Quran has unanimously been rejected by scholars, but about omission in Quran, some of our companions and a group of Hashviyah from Sunnis believed that some omissions and changes have occurred in Quran, but the correct belief in our religion is against that”. [9]
7- Sayyid ibn Tawus Hilli (dead in the year 664 A.H.) has said that: “Shia believe in the absence of distortion in Quran. [11]
8- Alamah Hilli (dead in the year 726 A.H.) has said in answer to Muhanna that: “the truth is that there is no change, transposition, addition and omission in Quran, Allah save us from this belief and the like, which causes to doubt about everlasting miracle of the Messenger of Allah, the miracle that has been quoted by successive transmission”. [12]
9- About the necessity of becoming sure that what is recited is Quran, Muhaqiq Ardabili (dead in the year 993 A.H.) has said that: “confidence can be gained by successive transmission, and should not only accept the testimony of a just man…, because Quran has been proved by traditions which narrated by several authorities, so it is immune from any disorder…, except that it has been written and has been numbered word by word and movement by movement. Besides the writing ways and the other ways, make this dominant assumption for certain that nothing has been added to or omitted from Quran”. [13]
10- Ghazi Nurallah Shushtari (dead in the year 1029 A.H.) says that: “Shia has been accused of distorting Quran, Imamites Shia generally do not believe in it, it has been said by a few of them who have not a good position by Shia”. [14]
If we quote all the sayings of scholars in this case, it will become lengthy. These quotations made the truth clear. [15]


resources and references

[1] - Al- Izah, p. 217 (Bukhri has written Rijm verse (stoning) in his Sahih, vol. 8, p. 208, chapter of stoning pregnant women).
[2] - Quran, Fussilat, verse. 41- 42.
[3] - Itighadat Saduq, p. 93.
[4] - Awai’l al- Maqalat, p. 53-54.
[5] - Quran, Ale- Imran, verse. 110.
[6] - Quran, al- Baqara, verse. 143.
[7] - Majmua’ al- Risai’l, Shaykh Mufid, p. 366.
[8] - Majma al- Bayan, vol. 1, p. 10, quoting from al- Masai’l al- Tirablisiyah, Sayyid Murtiza.
[9] - Tibyan, vol. 1, p. 10.
[10] - Majma al- Bayan, vol. 1, p. 10.
[11] - Sa’d al- Su’ud, p. 144.
[12] - Ajwabah al- Masai’l al- Muhannai’yah, p. 121.
[13] - Majma al- Fai’idah wa al- Burhan, vol. 2, p. 218.
[14] - Ala’ al- Rahman, vol. 1, p. 25.
[15] - The Aspect of Shia Belief, p. 167.
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