Why we believe in Allah's books

Allah did not create people and leave them guessing. He sent messengers, and with many of them He sent a book: His words, telling people who He is, how to worship Him, and how to live.

When the angel Jibril asked Nabi ﷺ what iman is, he said: to believe in Allah, His angels, His books, His messengers, the Last Day, and qadr, the good of it and the bad of it¹. So believing in the books is one of the six pillars of iman.

Allah says: believe in Allah and His Messenger, and the Book He sent down to His Messenger, and the Book He sent down before². And the believers say: we believe in Allah, His angels, His books and His messengers³.

The books Allah named

The Quran names five books, or groups of writings:

• Allah says the Tawrat had guidance and light in it⁴.
• He says the same of the Injil: guidance and light, confirming the Tawrat before it⁵.
• And He sent down the Tawrat and the Injil before, as guidance for people⁶.

Allah may have sent other books too, that He did not name for us. We say, as the Quran teaches us: we believe in what was given to the prophets from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them⁷.

What believing in the books means

Scholars explain it in four simple points:

• They were truly from Allah. Each book was Allah's word, sent to a real prophet, with guidance for its people.
• Believe in the named ones by name, and in the rest in general, without guessing which books they were.
• Believe what Allah tells us about them. When the Quran tells us something that was in the Tawrat or Injil, we accept it.
• Follow the last one. The Quran came confirming the books before it, and as a guardian over them⁸. Its law is the one we now follow.

So a Muslim respects the Tawrat and the Injil as books that Allah once sent. Musa and Isa are our prophets too, and we love them.

What happened to the earlier books

Allah gave the earlier communities the job of looking after their books. The scholars of the Children of Israel were asked to protect Allah's Book⁹. Over a long time, through wars, translations and human hands, parts of those books were lost or changed.

The Quran speaks of people who write the book with their own hands, and then say: this is from Allah¹⁰. So the Torah and the Bible that people hold today may still have true parts from Allah, mixed with words that people added or changed. Only Allah knows which is which in every place.

How to treat what is in them

Nabi ﷺ gave us a fair and wise rule. When people read from their scripture, he said: do not believe them and do not deny them. Say: we believe in Allah and what was sent down to us¹¹.

• If it agrees with the Quran and Sunnah, we accept it, because of the Quran.
• If it goes against them, we do not accept it.
• If it does neither, we do not say yes or no. We leave it.

This is not about attacking anyone. It is about knowing where our guidance comes from, and speaking about others with fairness and good manners.

The Quran, the final book

The Quran is the last book Allah sent, to the last messenger, for all people until the end of time.

Protected by Allah

The earlier books were left in people's care. The Quran is different. Allah Himself promised: We sent down the Reminder, and We will surely protect it¹². Falsehood cannot come to it from in front or from behind¹³.

Today, millions of Muslims all over the world know the whole Quran by heart, including children. A copy printed in Indonesia, Morocco or America has the same words. That is Allah's promise kept, in front of our eyes.

The speech of Allah

All of Ahl al-Sunnah agree that the Quran is the speech of Allah¹⁴. It is not the words of Jibril or of Muhammad ﷺ, and it is not created. The Sunni schools of creed explain the details in different words. Atharis say Allah speaks when He wills, with words that are truly His, in a way that fits His majesty. Ash'aris and Maturidis say Allah's speech is one eternal attribute, and the Arabic Quran we recite expresses it. All of them say our paper, ink and voices are created, and all of them say Allah is not like His creation. If you want the details, learn them from a teacher you trust.

The challenge

Nabi ﷺ could not read or write¹⁵. Yet he brought a book that the best Arabic speakers of his time could not match. Allah gave them an open challenge: if you are in doubt, then bring one surah like it¹⁶. And: if all humans and jinn came together to bring something like this Quran, they could not, even if they helped each other¹⁷.

Allah also invites us to look closely: do they not think about the Quran? If it were from anyone other than Allah, they would have found many contradictions in it¹⁸.

Nabi ﷺ said every prophet was given signs that made people believe, and what I was given is revelation from Allah¹⁹. Other miracles were seen once. The Quran is a miracle you can open and read today.

How the Quran came down

• In Ramadan. Ramadan is the month in which the Quran was sent down²⁰, on Laylat al-Qadr, the Night of Decree²¹.
• Through Jibril. The trusted spirit, Jibril, brought it down onto your heart, in clear Arabic²².
• In parts, over 23 years. It came bit by bit, as events happened, so people could learn it slowly²³ and to make Nabi ﷺ's heart firm²⁴. Nabi ﷺ received revelation from the age of forty, for thirteen years in Makkah and ten in Madinah²⁵.
• How it felt. Nabi ﷺ said revelation sometimes came like the ringing of a bell, which was the hardest for him, and sometimes the angel came in the form of a man and spoke to him²⁶. Aisha saw sweat on his forehead on a very cold day as revelation ended²⁷.

How the Quran was kept and gathered

In Nabi ﷺ's lifetime

• Written down. When an ayah came, Nabi ﷺ called a writer, like Zayd ibn Thabit, to bring a board and ink and write it³³.
• Memorized. Many Companions learned it by heart and recited it in their prayers.
• Checked every year. Jibril went over the Quran with Nabi ﷺ once every Ramadan, and twice in the year he died³⁴.

Gathered into one book

• Abu Bakr. After a battle where many who knew the Quran by heart were killed, Umar was worried parts could be lost. Abu Bakr asked Zayd ibn Thabit to gather it. Zayd collected it from what was written on palm stalks and flat stones, and from the hearts of the men who had memorized it. That copy stayed with Abu Bakr, then Umar, then Hafsah³⁵.
• Uthman. Later, Muslims in far lands began to argue about how to recite. Uthman had Zayd and others make careful copies from Hafsah's copy, and sent one to each region³⁶. The mushaf in your home today goes back to those copies.

Different recitations. Nabi ﷺ taught the Quran in more than one way of reciting, and said: it was sent down this way about two different readings³⁷. The recitations you hear today, like Hafs and Warsh, are all from Nabi ﷺ. They are not different Qurans.

How a Muslim treats the Quran

• Read it. Every letter you read has a good deed, and each good deed is worth ten. Nabi ﷺ said: I do not say Alif Lam Mim is one letter. Alif is a letter, Lam is a letter, and Mim is a letter³⁸.
• Do not give up if it is hard. The one who reads well is with the noble angels. The one who struggles and stumbles gets two rewards³⁹.
• Learn it and teach it. The best of you are those who learn the Quran and teach it⁴⁰.
• Think about it. Allah sent it so people would think about its ayat⁴¹. Read a translation and a simple tafsir in your own language too.
• Recite it beautifully, in a nice voice, as well as you can⁴².
• Begin with refuge. Say A'udhu billahi min ash-shaytan ir-rajim before you read⁴³.
• Live by it. Aisha was asked about Nabi ﷺ's character. She said: his character was the Quran⁴⁴. Nabi ﷺ said: by this Book, Allah raises some people and lowers others⁴⁵.
• It will speak for you. Read the Quran, for it will come on the Day of Judgement to speak up for its people⁴⁶.

Respect for the mushaf

• All four schools say you need wudu to touch a mushaf (a printed Arabic Quran). Many scholars take this from the ayah: none touch it except the purified⁴⁷. See Wudu.
• You may recite from memory without wudu. Many scholars say a phone app is not a mushaf, so you may read from it without wudu.
• Keep it clean and in a good place. Do not put things on top of it, or take it into the toilet.
• An old, torn mushaf is not thrown in the trash. Scholars say bury it in clean ground, or burn it respectfully, as Uthman did with the extra pages⁴⁸.

Start reading on our Quran page, with the Arabic, a plain translation and audio.

Common questions

I do not understand Arabic. Do I still get reward for reading?

Yes. Every letter is rewarded⁴⁹, and if it is hard for you, you get double⁵⁰. Also read a translation, so the meaning reaches your heart.

Is a translation of the Quran the Quran?

A translation is a meaning of the Quran in another language. It is very useful, but the Quran itself is the Arabic words Allah sent down. That is why we recite Arabic in salah.

Can I read the Quran on my phone without wudu?

Many scholars allow it, since a phone is not a mushaf. Having wudu is still better and more respectful. For a woman on her period, see Periods, bleeding after childbirth and istihadah.

Should I read the Bible or the Torah?

For most people, time is better spent on the Quran and its meanings. Students of knowledge who study other faiths may read them, with the rule Nabi ﷺ gave: do not believe or deny what you cannot check⁵¹.

Is listening to the Quran as good as reading it?

Listening is good and brings peace. Reading yourself is better, because the reward for each letter is for the one who recites. Do both, as you can.

What should I do with an old, torn mushaf?

Do not throw it away. Many masjids collect old copies. Or bury it in clean ground, or burn it respectfully⁵².