Foundations of Islam Series: How the Qur’an Was Revealed and Compiled

The commencement of a two-week, five lecture series within a comprehensive institute dedicated to educating non-Muslim school teachers about Islam. Hamza Yusuf introduces the Islamic experience by first looking at the foundational book of Islam, the Holy Qur’an, its revelation event over a span of 23 years, and the mechanism by which it was compiled and preserved. After first analyzing the meaning of the “Qur’an” through its Arabic roots, Sheikh Hamza discusses the dominant themes in the Qur’an during the Meccan and Medinan periods. He then proceeds to explain the significant events taking place immediately following the death of the Prophet Muhammad (P), and how his companions were deeply concerned with preserving the Qur’an for future generations. These series of lectures have proven to be extremely useful for non-Muslims, new Muslims, life-long Muslims, and young Muslims. (Recorded at the Dar al Islam Teachers’ Institute seminar). Other topics discussed: tri-literal roots in Arabic, inherited world views without reflection, tawheed (monotheism) in Islam, the hereafter, the end of time, the Battle of Yamama, standardizing the writing of the Qur’an, original Qur’anic texts in existence today, the royal “We” used in the Qur’an, the pleasures of Paradise, the Qur’an as the “divine” word of God, and the dialectical variants of the Qur’an.