Islam in World Cultures: Comparative Perspectives - Islamic Books ...

H i s to r i cal Introduction and Overv i e w 3created” nature of the Qur’an, many Muslims have acknowledged some aspectsof the historicity of their sacred text. One of the major arenas for thisdiscussion was the traditional practice of Qur’anic interpretation that examinedindividual verses in relation to specific events recorded in the biographyof Muhammad (asbab al-nuzul). Traditional Muslim scholars have also maintainedthat the current written text of the Qur’an was not set before the deathof the Prophet. Muslim tradition maintains that the verses recited by Muhammadwere written down only after his death by his companion Zayd ibnThabit and that they were not arranged into what became their standard orderuntil the caliphate of Uthman (644–656). Even after that, variant readingspersisted and have been regarded as acceptable by the communitythroughout the subsequent centuries of Muslim history. Thus, throughoutthe ages, Muslims have not been averse to an acknowledgment of changewithin the tradition, even at its very core. In fact, it could be argued that untilthe modern period, such issues have been less problematic for Islam than forsome other religions, including Christianity. In the twentieth century, a numberof Muslim scholars began revisiting these traditional models of contextualQur’anic interpretation using modern historical methodology to developreadings of the Qur’an resonant with the needs of Muslims living in contemporarysocieties.Moslems believe that the complete text of the Qur’an that we have today ismade up of collected materials revealed piecemeal over twenty-two years ofM u h a m m a d ’s life (610–632). Its verses deal with law and salvation history, andthey contain narrative material, apocalyptic imagery, and passages of great poeticbeauty, all strung together in a way that has tended to seem jumbled, confused,and even unreadable to many Western readers—but not to Muslims oreven to many non-Muslims undergoing processes of Islamization. In fact, inmany conversion narratives preserved in the classical texts of the Arabic traditionas well as in a myriad of local cultures of Africa and Asia that have embracedIslam, the sublime beauty of the Qur’anic text in Arabic has been citedas a primary motivation to conversion.In Muhammad’s day, however, not everyone in Mecca was instantly wonover to the new faith by the beauty of the revealed verses. Muhammad’sprophetic challenge to the prevailing norms of polytheistic Arabian society wasviewed as threatening by many, including the Quraysh tribe, who were custodiansof the polytheistic shrine that made Mecca a widely recognized religiouss a n c t u a ry. As Muhammad continued to preach and to call for the abandonmentof this traditional cult, he faced increasing pressure from the QurayshiMeccan establishment. In 622, Muhammad moved from Mecca to the agriculturaloasis of Yathrib, later to be renamed Medina, “city [of the Prophet].”There he was welcomed as the new leader of the community for his ability tomediate in disputes between feuding tribes. This move, called the h i j r a in Ara-