Social and Moral Values

- Stage One Module Three
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Previously we have discussed our duties towards Allah. Now we deal with our duties towards our fellow human beings. All of these rules of conduct are based on the following sources:

The Holy Qur’an, which is the revealed word of God and contains broad principles and guidance.
The Sunnah, which is the practical example of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, to demonstrate Qur’anic principles.
The Ahadith, which is the spoken word of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and serves as a supporting witness for Sunnah.

The Holy Quran

The Muslims believe that God speaks to His chosen servants through the process of revelation. It is through this process that spiritual knowledge and wisdom is given to man by God. The knowledge received through revelation is considered to be the truest form of learning.

The Holy Qur’an is the record of the verbal revelations in Arabic from God Almighty to the Holy Prophet Muhammad, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, over a period of twenty-two years (610-632 A.D.). The word Qur’an means that which is often read, recited or rehearsed.

The Holy Qur’an is the Holy Book of the Muslims. It lays down for them the law and commandments, codes for their social and moral behaviour and contains a comprehensive religious philosophy. It is the ultimate source of the Islamic law and a complete guidance for the Muslims.

The Divine revelations were committed to memory and also written down by scribes appointed by the Holy Prophet Muhammad, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him. He himself, through Divine guidance, indicated the arrangement of verses and chapters in the Holy Qur’an as we find it today. He, and many of his followers, memorised the whole Holy Qur’an, in the arrangement that he instructed them. A person who has memorised the whole of the Holy Qur’an is known as a Hafiz. However, the compilation of the whole Holy Qur’an in written form of one volume was undertaken after his death.

The Holy Qur’an is divided into one hundred and fourteen Surahs or chapters. This division is based upon their subject matter and has the authority of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him. Each Surah has been given a name, and is further divided into Aayaats or verses. There are in total 6,348 Aayaats or verses in the Holy Qur’an. The Surahs are of varying lengths, some consisting of a few lines, while others run for many pages. Furthermore, the Holy Qur’an has been divided into thirty Siparahs or parts.

A very distinctive feature of the Holy Qur’an is that it contains a Divine guarantee for its perpetual preservation. “We sent down this book and verily We shall safeguard it.” (Ch 15, verse 10). As a result of this guarantee, the text of the Holy Qur’an has remained unchanged over the past fourteen hundred years.

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The Sunnah

After the Holy Qur’an, the greatest blessing the Muslims have received is the Sunnah. The responsibilities towards Allah and the Holy Prophet Muhammad, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, are hinged on two things:

1. Allah revealed the Holy Qur’an informing mankind what He expected of them.

2. It was the duty of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, to demonstrate it to them by his example,

Hence, the Holy Prophet Muhammad, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, transformed into action the spoken words of Allah, and by his Sunnah simplified the difficult and complicated problems. For instance, the Holy Qur’an informs mankind to pray, but it does not inform us how, what to say, what is the best way, etc. Hence the need of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, to demonstrate to us how to do the prayers.

The Hadith

The third means of guidance is the Hadith, because many points in regard to history, ethics and jurisprudence are to be found fully explained in it. And the great utility of the Hadith lies in the fact that it is a servant of the Holy Qur’an and Sunnah.

The Holy Qur’an is the spoken word of Allah, while the Sunnah is the practical example of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and the Hadith, a supporting witness for the Sunnah.

 
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