reynolds-the-quran-in-its-historical-context-2

264 Manfred KroppTo conclude this section, here is a synopsis of the religious sloganspro-and anti-Trinitarian- to be shouted, by men andjinn, in the streets andtuary of ancient Mecca:talbiyat ash-shirk Q 112 (reconstructed)(labbayka, allahumma, labbayk)La sharfka lakHuwa l!ah abadilla sharfkan huwa lak lam yalid wa-lam yilladtamlilac-hti wa-ma malak lam yalacn !a-ha kufwan abadAngels, stars, death, the soul,horses, bows - or women?The opening verses ofQur'an 79Munther YounesConclusions: the three supposed historical layers inQur' iinic texts1. Short Arabic religious formulas and pieces, probably of anonymous originthe property of specific religious communities. They are occasionallythe Qur'anic Corpus, as in Ql (al-Fatiba), Q 72:3; and Q 112-114. Theyconfessions of faith and apotropaic prayers. The exceptional nature of theseis attested by the importance of the variant readings, reflecting a vivid oraltion, in contrast to most of the other Qur'anic texts, where philologicalprevails in the variant readings.2. Some of these formulas are used and inserted into individual coJmposJtimas sermons, exhortations, etc. The new context and the changed function(mostly slight) adaptations, but in general respects the original meaning andture, still known and very similar to the intentions of the actual "user." Thefications adopted allow insights into the circumstances of the compositionthese texts. By analysing the linguistic and literary peculiarities one sees anvidual author at work. This is the case for example for Q 85:1-10 and QThese texts are perhaps drafts and well-formulated introductions of sermons;should imagine that longer, perhaps improvised, sermons followed theseductions but were not transmitted.3. The collection of these dispersed text materials into a new corpus hadconsequences. The frequent composition of new textual unities out ofseparate pieces demanded a minimum of standardization (orthography,etc.). Above all, the collection as the fundamental text of a new andreligion definitely had other aims and ambitions than those of the (presumed)missionaries preaching to Arabs in Mecca and Medina. This could havere-interpretation of the texts by means of orthographical standards,and even more radical changes and modifications in certain cases. Perhapsnumber of ambiguous and opaque passages in the Qur'an are so due torecast. It is the painstaking task of textual criticism to trace back and towhat happened to these texts.nrF•m''"~ publication, building on the work of Giinter Liiling 1 and ChristophI proposed a reconstruction of the first five verses of Qur'an 100'adiyat) as follows: 3wa-1- 'iidiyiitir;lab/;ii~ wl;..lWI_,fa-1-m!lriyiiti l.....lS w~_;_yJtaqadl;ziifa-1-mughfriiti ~ wl~iiztbl;ziifa-atharna \..i;ol.)