Alireza Asadi
Abstract
Leiden Encyclopedia of the Quran and Oliver Lyman's Encyclopedia of the Quran are among the most important Quranic studies of Orientalists that have been written with the aim of presenting the teachings of the Holy Quran. This article examines the entries of reward, punishment, heaven and hell in these ...
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Leiden Encyclopedia of the Quran and Oliver Lyman's Encyclopedia of the Quran are among the most important Quranic studies of Orientalists that have been written with the aim of presenting the teachings of the Holy Quran. This article examines the entries of reward, punishment, heaven and hell in these two encyclopedias and explains their methodological and content-related flaws separately. The overlap of some entries with each other, the existence of incomplete entries, citing non-original or invalid sources, incompatibility and inconsistency of the content of articles with each other are among the most important methodological drawbacks, and regarding the teachings of the Quran as an echo of previous religious teachings, considering Satan angelic, depicting heaven and hell with material terms, presenting a harsh and unbalanced image of punishment and reward in the Qur'an, and describing incorrectly the human being's relationship with God's rule and Satan in Hell are among their most important content-related flaws. This article, citing authoritative Islamic sources and referring to solid Quranic arguments, shows that the orientalists who have studied and written on the Quran have not been able to gain an accurate understanding of the religious teachings of the Qur'an, and therefore their encyclopedic works are unreliable.
Ebrahim Ebrahimi; Asghar Tahmasbi Boldaji
Abstract
The Arabic words “Ommi” refers to the illiteracy of Prophet. Ommi or Illiteracy of Prophet Mohammad, which is even mentioned in the holy Quran, is one of the most controversial issues among Islamic Scientists and Orientalists. Most Islamic thinkers considered the Prophet Mohammad as an illiterate ...
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The Arabic words “Ommi” refers to the illiteracy of Prophet. Ommi or Illiteracy of Prophet Mohammad, which is even mentioned in the holy Quran, is one of the most controversial issues among Islamic Scientists and Orientalists. Most Islamic thinkers considered the Prophet Mohammad as an illiterate meaning that he was not able to read and write which this is by itself one of the Quran miraculous aspects. This fact is unanimously agreed by Islamic philosophers. However, orientalists have cast many doubts on this subject till now believing that Prophet was able to read as well as write, and he has read former divine books before being chosen as a prophet. Some Orientalists gave the word Ommi a different meaning and believed that the meaning of the word does not refer to illiteracy of the Prophet but refers to the Prophet of idol worshippers or non-Jewish people. The current inquiry made an attempt not only to criticize and examine Orientalists’ views on the issue but offer the precise meaning of being Ommi or illiteracy of Prophet Mohammad by using the Quranic narrative and historical accounts. It reached the conclusion that the Prophet Mohammad was unable to read and write before being chosen as prophet, and also was not able to do so even till the end of His life leaving no doubt on His Prophecy through which the miracle of the Quran and God is proven.
