Muslims and non-Muslims have for a long time studied and written extensively on the Quran (Watt, 2014). The organization of the Quran in terms of structure and usage of particular phrases is a subject that has interested religious scholars and revisionists. Muslim commentaries on the Holy Book often take the text verse by verse and explain it. Away from the fact that most of these project tendentious points of view, at great length, by the very nature of their procedure they cannot yield insight into the cohesive outlook on the universe and life which the Quran undoubtedly possesses. Accordingly, studies into the structure of the Quran based on form and content has highlighted interesting points that serve to guide Muslims’ understanding of the book with divine commands. In line with the scholars’ analysis of the structure of the Quran, the usage of particular wordings and expressions is given necessary attention. In this light, Wansbrough, a renowned scholar and revisionist elaborately studied how the expression “Say” which appears over 250 times, has been used in the Quran. It suffices to reiterate that the expression “say” occurs mostly at the beginning of verses which are characteristically followed by a form of what is considered a prayer (Saeed, 2005). Wansbrough hypothesized that such parts of the Quran were used to form independent liturgical units, which were joined together with various other prophetic logiato forms the Quran we now possess. Furthermore, he posits that the expression was attached to these verses in the process of the formation of the canonized Quran, so that they may sound as if a divine voice is commanding a human to say the prayer (Reynolds, 2007). The purpose of this paper is to test Wansbrough’s above hypothesis through a review of how the command “Say” is used across the Quran. Based on the review of relevant literature, the usage of the expression “Say” in the Quran was not entirely haphazard and was intended to imbue statements by human authors in writing the divine commands in the Quran while pointing aspects of the history of the Quranic text.
Discussion
The usage of the expression “say” in the Quran shows the divinity of God and the need for total human dependence on Him for help. In his hypothesis, Wansbrough has stated that the addition of the expression “Say” during the formation of the canonized Quran was intended to show that a divine voice was commanding Muslims to say a prayer. For instance, in 114:1 the Quran reads “Say! I seek refuge in the Lord of humans, the king of humans” while in 23:97 it reads “Say! Oh, my Lord! I seek refuge in Thee from the evil suggestions of the devil. Based on the common belief among those who profess the Islam faith that the Quran was orally revealed to Prophet Muhammad by God through Angel Jibril, Wansbrough’s hypothesis is plausible. As such, the inclusion of the expression “say” denotes God revealing to the readers that they should say the prayers in the verses while referring to God. Arguably from the findings of other scholars, had the expression not been included, the 1st person statement of the verses would have been ambiguous to the readers concerning who was speaking (Reynolds, 2007). Evidently, although the addition of the expression “say” is not clearly discernible as having been added during the formation of the canonized Quran, its inclusion has been useful as per the hypothesis in enabling readers to use the verses as recitation prayers to God, their ultimate helper indicating the non-haphazard usage of the expression. .
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Revisionists such as Wansbrough have challenged the traditional theories with regards to the origin of the Quran. He argues that the usage of some expressions such as “say” before particular verses were attached in the process of the formation of the canonized Quran to meet a certain level of spirituality expected of humans ( Reynolds, 2007) . Albeit the author does not entirely dismiss the content of the traditional Quran together with its divine narrative, he utterly disagrees with the insertion of such expressions. Notably, the concern is related to the fact that such expressions merely introduce perspectives that is not directly linked to the original version of God’s message for humanity. In essence, the revisionist aimed at a situation where more precise or rather accurate understanding is derived from the Quran. As he asserted, “Sensibly, it seems to me quite impossible that canonization should have preceded, not succeeded, recognition of the authority of scripture within the Muslim community” (Reynolds, 2007). As such, Wansbrough hypothesis is conceivable as it challenges the traditional theories with regards to origin of the Quran. In this respect, analysis of the origin and relevance of the expression “say” has offered different points of view to readers, which expand the understanding of the history of the Quranic text and changes to date.
A pertinent question is to be addressed relating to the placement of the word “say” before some verses in the Quran so as either justify or disprove Wansbrough’s hypothesis. The said question is, why do particular verses starts with the command “say”? For instance Surah Kafirun, Chapter 109, verses 1-5, “ Say: O you disbelievers, worship not what you worship, nor do you worship whom I worship, neither shall I worship what you worship, nor will you worship whom I worship...” Would it make a difference to start the surah without the expression “say” or would the sentence sound better without it? In essence, the command of God should be carried out by the Prophet(s) without the repetition of the expression “say” along with the command. If the expression “say” didn’t precede the surah, then it would reflect Allah’s own words and not that of Muhammad (Rahman & Moosa, 2009). Clearly, this is not the case since the context of the scripture refers to when the Holy Prophet was invited by pagans to cooperate with them in idolatry, a fact of which he repelled in not engaging in idol worship. In this context the expression is categorically used to allude to history of the Quranic text which condemns idol worship (Rahman & Moosa, 2009). Furthermore, the expression “say” is evident in the ordinances brought from Allah by Gabriel. In other words, the holy Prophet(s) had to reproduce Allah’s message as it is without causing variations in the intended meaning. By this, the expression “say” was meant to ensure preservation of the Holy Quran authenticity (Nassimi, 2008). Therefore, there was no alteration in the intended divine revelation, and the holy Prophet(s) were considered obedient messengers with respect to Allah’s command as recorded in Surah Yunus, number 10, verse 15 ,“...Say: It is not for me, of my own accord to change it: I follow naught but what is revealed unto me...” . Evidently, the usage of the expression “say” is not haphazard with each time the phrase was used, it bore important meaning in context, leading to better understanding of the Quran by its readers.
Further insights about the use of “say!” can be gained through an analysis of the organization of the Quran. In essence, the Quran is separated into Suras that are loosely termed chapters although a better interpretation would be “scriptures” (Ali, 2011). The fact that “say!” appears in hundreds of verses in different Suras suggest that its usage is not unintentional. Instead, this command has been used deliberately and with the intention of ensuring coherence and unity of thought (Hilgendorf, 2003). Essentially, by inserting the command, the authors of the Quran needed to establish that the Quran is a single unified text that integrates a style defined by direct instructions from Allah as hypothesized. The importance of the expression “say” as used in the Quran would have been arguable had it just appeared in a few random verses. Instead, its occurrence in over 250 verses suggests that its usage was not entirely haphazard, but rather targeted and justifiable to imbue statements by human authors in writing the divine commands in the Quran while pointing aspects of the history of the Quranic text.
The Quran reprimands any carnal additions and modifications to the Holy text. In line with abrogation, the Quran says that “… and if the messenger were to invent any sayings in our name, we should certainly seize him by his right hand and we should certainly then cut off the artery of his heart (surah 69:44-45).” Accordingly, Muhammad or any other author cannot revise revelation by his own will, but Allah can cause revisions to be made (surah 87:6; surah 2:106). Secondly, Allah will cause his prophets to forget that which may hinder His purposes. Except if Allah so wills. The Quran reads, “I hope that my Lord will guide me ever closer (even) than this to the right course” (surah 18:24). In the process of Allah causing his prophets to forget things that may hinder differences, he can also delete words (surah 13:39). Additionally, Allah can change words (surah 17:41) and he can also be a Good example (surah 73). Thirdly, there are important words in abrogation that are obtainable from surah 75:16-19 where it says, “Move not your tongue concerning the (Quran) to make haste therewith. It is for us to collect it and to recite it: But when we have recited it, you follow its recital (as promulgated): Nay more, it is for us to explain it (and make it clear).” The message that these verses reveal is that Allah has empowered his servants to make some revisions to the Quran provided the revisions do not distract from the original message (El Shamsy, 2013). It suffices to reiterate that Wansbrough hypothesizes that the expression “Say!” was attached to these verses in the process of the formation of the canonized Quran, so that they may sound as if a divine voice is commanding a human to say the prayer (Weiss, 2010). From the foregoing discussion, therefore, those who added the command “Say!” were acting properly and were essentially exercising Allah’s authority. This point of view justifies the hypothesis by Wansbrough that canonization saw the addition of the expression “say” before some verses in the Quran. As such, the use of this command does not erode the authority, credibility or accuracy of the Quran. If anything, it makes the Quran much clearer and more authoritative in line with the theory of abrogation.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the Quran remains the main religious text for Muslims across the globe. The history of the Quranic text since its initial revelation to the Prophet Muhammad is a subject that has been studied in depth by scholars and revisionists. The organization of the Holy book in terms of content and structure has attracted the interest of several scholars and revisionists as such. An analysis of the expression “Say”, which has been used in the Quran over 250 times against the hypothesis posed by the revisionist scholar Wansbrough reveals important highlights. Such scholars have raised questions about the revisions that the Quran has undergone. These scholars suggest that these revisions are improper and have a distorting effect on the Quran. An examination of the dozens of instances where the command “Say!” appears in the Quran was conducted based on relevant literature. The results of this examination show that the insertion of this command is not necessarily improper or haphazard. In fact, by adding this command, the authors of the Quran allowed for God’s instructions to be heard with greater clarity. Therefore, the Quran’s credibility or accuracy is not in doubt. Moreover, the expression has served to equip readers with more information regarding the history of the Quranic text. As such, Wansbrough hypothesis concerning the usage and relevance of the expression “say” at the beginning of some verses in Quran is plausible.
References
Ali, M. M. (2011). Holy Quran. Ahmadiyya Anjuman Ishaat Islam Lahore USA.
El Shamsy, A. (2013). The Canonization of Islamic Law: A Social and Intellectual History. Cambridge University Press.
Hilgendorf, E. (2003). Islamic education: History and tendency. Peabody Journal of Education , 78 (2), 63-75.
Nassimi, D. M. (2008). A thematic comparative review of some English translations of the Quran (Doctoral dissertation, University of Birmingham).
Rahman, F., & Moosa, E. (2009). Major Themes of the Quran . University of Chicago Press.
Reynolds, G. S. (Ed.). (2007). The Quran in its historical context . Routledge.
Saeed, A. (2005). Interpreting the Quran: towards a contemporary approach . Routledge.
Watt, W. M. (2014). Introduction to the Quran (Vol. 8). Edinburgh University Press.
Weiss, B. G. (2010). The search for God's law: Islamic jurisprudence in the writings of Sayf al-Din al-Amidi . University of Utah Press.
