Published in: Mohammedanism, A Historical Survey H.A.R. Gibb, London: Oxford University Press, [1950] (pages 36-47).

The Koran

H.A.R. Gibb

THE KORAN is the record of those formal utterances and discourses which Mohammed and his followers accepted as directly inspired. Muslim orthodoxy therefore regards them as the literal Word of God mediated through the angel Gabriel. They are quoted with the prefix ‘God has said’, the phrase ‘The Prophet said’ is applied only to the sayings of Mohammed preserved in the Traditions. Mohammed’s own belief, which is still held without question by his followers, was that these discourses were portions of a ‘Heavenly Book’ sent down to or upon him in an Arabic version, not as a whole, but in sections of manageable length and in relation to the circumstances of the moment. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Allah, Arabia, ayat, jewish, language, Prophet, Quran, religion, Scripture, sura