Nasibi website states:
The Imami Shi’a have not only misinterpreted the Qur’an, but they have made actual alterations in the text itself: The false verse, “And we made ‘Ali your in-law” has been added to Surah Al-Inshirah (Al-Kafi p.289) In 25:74, the verse “And make us a leader (Imam) for the God-fearing” is replaced with “And make for us a leader (Imam) from among the God-fearing.” Of even greater audacity is the addition of an entirely fabricated Surah to the Qur’an, called, “Surah al-Walayah” Translation of this false Surah is as follows: 1) O believers, believe in the Prophet and the guardian (wali), whom We sent to guide you to the straight path. 2) A Prophet and a Guardian, one from the other, and I am the Knower, the Wise. 3) Verily those who fulfil their covenant to Allah will have gardens of pleasure. 4) And for those who deny our signs when they are read to them, 5) Verily they will have a terrible place in Hell when they are called for on the Day of Judgement, ‘Where are the wrong-doers who denied the messengers?’ 6) He only created them in truth and Allah will surely make them victorious until a time in the near future. 7) Glorify the praises of your Lord and ‘Ali is among the witnesses.
With regards to the traditions of Usul al Kafi that Minhajj had quoted, we should point out that these traditions have been deemed by the Ulema to be weak narrations. In addition to this Allah (swt) takes the responsibility of protection of the Qur’an Himself by declaring:
“Certainly We revealed the Reminder and certainly We shall preserve it.” (The Holy Qur’an 15: 9)
When Allah (swt) provides a guarantee that it is protected, any hadith of tahreef automatically has to be rejected. We do not deny that these traditions exist, but the Nasibis should know that there is a difference between tahreef traditions and basing one’s aqeedah on those traditions. The ultimate standard to determine the authenticity of any hadith is the Qur’an, if it conflicts with Allah (swt)’s Book it must be disregarded. This is also confirmed by al-Kulayni, compiler of al-Kafi from where the Nasibis cite the tahreef traditions to their followers. In the introduction to al-Kafi he states:
“Brother, may God lead you to the right road. You ought to know that it is impossible for anyone to distinguish the truth from the untruth when Muslim scholars disagree upon statements attributed to the Imams. There is only one way to separate the true from the untrue reports, through the standard which was declared by the Imam: “Test the various reports by the Book of God; whatever agrees with it take it, whatever disagrees with it reject it”.
Despite this quite logical fact Minhajj al Nasibi and the fellow Nasibi groups have insisted on declaring Shi’as kaffirs on account of traditions that imply that Tahreef might have taken place. They are in effect forcing us to accept that these traditions are a part of our aqeedah. By that logic, if Shi’as are kaffir then so are the Ahl’ul Sunnah for like the Shi’a their texts also contain traditions of tahreef. We will provide a few examples:
According to Umar and Ayesha, there were verses that were called verse of stoning and verse of suckling that have been lost from the Quran we have today in our hands. We read in Sunan Ibn Majah [Arabic], Book of Suckling, Hadith No. 2020:
“When the verse of stoning and verse of suckling descended, they were written on a piece of paper and kept under my pillow. Following the demise of Prophet Muhammad (S) a goat ate the piece of paper whilst we were mourning.”
Let us now read the unequivocal testimony of Umar who believed the verse of stoning was ‘lost’ following the death of Prophet [s]:
“Abd ul Razzak in Al Musannaf from Ibn Abbas said : Umar bin Al Khattab ordered a pesron to gather people for Salat of Jama’at, then he ascended on a pulpit, praised God and said: “O people! Do not get afraid about the verse of Al-Rajm because it is a verse that was revealed in the book of Allah and we recited it, but it was lost [Zahab] with much of the Quran gone with Muhammad and the proof of that is that the prophet [s] has stoned and Abu Bakr has stoned and I have stoned and there will come people from this nation who would deny the stoning”
Tafseer Dur e Manthur, Muqadmah of Surah Ahzab
Al-Muttaqi ‘Ali bin Husam al-Din in his book “Mukhtasar Kanz al-’Ummal” printed on the margin of Imam Ahmad’s Musnad, Volume 2, page 2, in his hadith about chapter 33, said that Ibn Mardawayh reported that Hudhayfah said:
‘Umar said to me ‘How many verses are contained in the chapter of al-Ahzab?’ I said, ’72 or 73 verses.’ He said it was almost as long as the chapter of the Cow, which contains 287 verses, and in it there was the verse of stoning.
Suyuti narrates from Ayesha:
“Ayesha narrated that during the lifetime of the Holy Prophet [s] 200 verses were recited in Surah Ahzab but when Uthman collected the Mushaf, he only succeeded in locating the present number of verses”
Tafseer Durre Manthur Volume 5 page 180, al Itqan Volume 2 page 25
The revered Sunni scholar al Hafidh Jalaladeen as Suyuti writes:
” Umar said at the Saqifa that the Qur’an has 1,027,000 letters”
Tafseer al Itqan” by as Suyuti, page 88
The present Qur’an has 267,033 letters. According to Umar’s research the Qur’an should have approximately 90 parts. What is the Nasibis fatwa here?
Suyuti also records the following words of Abdullah ibn Umar:
‘Verily among you people one would say that he has found the Quran whilst he is unaware of what the total quantity of the Quran was, because most of the Quran has been lost rather one should say that verily he has found the Quran that has appeared.’
Tafseer Durre Manthur, Volume 1 page 104
Prominent Sahaba such Abi bin Ka’ab, Abdullah Ibn Masud, Umar and Ibn Abbas and Tabayeen such as Umaya bin Abdullah believed in two Surah namely Surah Hafd and Surah Khula which we do not find today. For example we read in Tafseer al Itqan (Urdu), Volume 1 page 172-173:
“The sequence of surahs in Ubai bin Ka’ab’s mushaf was in this manner:
[1]Al Hamd, [2]Al Baqrah, [3 ]Aal e Imran, [4]Al-An’am, [5]Al-Ar`af, [6]…[94] At-Takathur, [95]Al-Qadr, [96]Surat al Khul’a, [97] Surat al Haqd, [98]…”
We read in Tafseer Dur al Manthur, Volume 8 page 696:
“Ubaid narrates that he came to know that these two are the surahs from the Quran and are written in the mushaf of Ibn Masud”
Nasibi website states:
The Imami Shi’a have not only misinterpreted the Qur’an, but they have made actual alterations in the text itself: …
The Nasibi had then cited traditions to prove the point. What they fail to point out is the books of Ahl’ul Sunnah also have similar traditions.
We read in Sahih Bukhari, Volume 6, Book 60, Number 468 [English]
Narrated Ibrahim:
The companions of ‘Abdullah (bin Mas’ud) came to Abu Darda’, (and before they arrived at his home), he looked for them and found them. Then he asked them: ‘Who among you can recite (Qur’an) as ‘Abdullah recites it?” They replied, “All of us.” He asked, “Who among you knows it by heart?” They pointed at ‘Alqama. Then he asked Alqama. “How did you hear ‘Abdullah bin Mas’ud reciting Surat Al-Lail (The Night)?” Alqama recited:
‘By the male and the female.’ Abu Ad-Darda said, “I testify that I heard the Prophet reciting it likewise, but these people want me to recite it:–
‘And by Him Who created male and female.’ but by Allah, I will not follow them.”
Unlike the followers of Abdullah Ibn Masud, Alqama and Abu Ad-Darda all Muslims today read in Surat Al-Lail (The Night) verse No. 3:
[Pickthal 92:3] And Him Who hath created male and female.
Compare this recital to that offered by Ibn Masud’s followers, Alqama and the testimony of Abu Ad-Darda whose recital included these words ‘By the male and the female’ (والذكر والأنثى).
The tradition recorded by Imam Bukhari in his ‘Sahih’ indirectly persuades his adherents to erase the extra words ‘Him Who created’ from this verse since the companions heard the Holy Prophet [s] recite it with the words ‘By the male and the female’ . This tradition clearly highlights Nawasib belief in the distortion of the Quran.
Nawasib issue kufr edicts against Shias because their books have traditions suggesting that some texts are additions to the original Quran whilst we assert that the authentic books of Ahle Sunnah like Sahih Bukhari prove that Ahle Sunnah likewise uphold the same belief that likewise places them within the very same Fatwa issued by them.
Nasibi website states:
The false verse, “And we made ‘Ali your in-law” has been added to Surah Al-Inshirah (Al-Kafi p.289)
We would like to make it clear that this is the Nasibi’s own interpretation of the text. Before responding to this lie let us first of all cite some of the texts of the Ahl’ul Sunnah.
We read in Tafseer Ruh al Ma’ani:
“Hafiz Ahmed bin Musa bin Mardawayh has narrated with his isnad from Abdullah Ibn Masud that: “During the lifetime of the Holy Prophet (s) we used to recite this verse as:
“O Apostle! Deliver what has been sent down to you from your Lord; ‘that ‘Ali is the Maula of the Momineen’, if you don’t….“
The same has been recorded in:
1. Tafseer Durre Manthur Volume 2 page 298
2. Tafseer Fatah ul Qadeer, Volume 2 page 87
3. Tafseer Mazhari Volume 3 page 153
Ibn Masud also notes that he would read this verse from Surah Ahzab as follows:
“and enough was Allah for the believers in their fight ‘via Ali ibn Abi Talib’.
1. Tafseer Durre Manthur Volume 5 page 192
2. Tafseer Ruh al Maani, Volume 21 page 157
One should note that Abdullah bin Masud would read these verses with name the Ali. His text contained this, and he himself states that he read a verse in this way in the presence of Rasulullah (s). Perhaps Minhajj al Nasibi could shed light as to why we no longer find the name Ali in the current Qur’an? The answer will of course be that the name here was contained in Ibn Masud’s Tafseer of the Qur’an.
We likewise say exactly the same when explaining our similar texts, we believe that the some Sahaba had the name Ali inside verses in brackets, as an interpolation so that they would know about whom the verse descended. The words Ali (as) were NOT part of any verses, but simply a way of ‘remembering’ that this verse descended in praise of ‘Ali. The Imams of Ahl’ul bayt (as) likewise wanted to remind the people about whom these verses descended.
Nasibi website states:
But perhaps the greatest level of audacity is in the assertion that the Qur’an that we now possess is not the true Qur’an at all, but rather a fabrication: ”Abu Baseer reported that he said to Imam Ja’far, “O Abu Abdullah(Imam Ja’far as-Sadiq) What is Mushaf Fatimah?” He replied “It is a Qur’an containing three times what is found in your copy of the Qur’an; yet by Allah, it does not contain even a single letter from your Qur’an.” (Al-Kafi p.385)
One needs to point out that Arabic word ‘Mushaf’ refers to a collection of ‘Sahifa’ which is singular for ‘book’ hence the literal meaning of Mushaf is “The manuscript bound between two boards”. For example, in the footnote of Sahih Bukhari, Volume 3 page 1033, Sheikh Dr. Mustafa Deeb al-Bagha wrote:
“Mushaf means a book or collection of pages”
Keeping this definition in mind, let us now see the actual wordings of the tradition cited by the anti-Shia website:
I (Abu Baseer) said: ‘What is Mushaf Fatima?’ He (Imam Sadiq) replied: ‘It is a book containing the words triple the size of Quran, by Allah it does not contain any letter from the Quran’.
Just see the deception of Nawasib who substituted the word ‘Mushaf’ [book] with ‘Quran’ in order to give the impression to their adherents that Shias believe in different Quran. Will we be right if we assert that Sunnies believe in a different Quran as they follow the ‘Mushaf of Bukhari’? No Shia in this world believes that there is any Quran called Mushaf Fatima. While explaining the contents of Mushaf Fatima, Shia scholar Ayatollah Mareshi stated in Sharh Ehqaq al-Haq, volume 28 page 387:
“It is not a book like the book of Allah but it is a book which containing the words of (the prophet) peace be upon him”.
We read in Adhwa ala Aqaed al-Shia by Jaffar Subhani, page 583:
“It is a book containingepics and traditions”
We read in Men Wahi al-Quran by Fadhullah, volume 13 page 146:
“It is a book of hadith”
The fact that Imam Jafar [as] just compared the size of this book with the Quran. There is no Qur’an of Fatimah. The Mushaf was a text containing rules and regulations of the Deen that Sayyida Fatima (as) had in her possession.
We should point out to the Deobandi Sect, the fact that you believe Sahih al Bukhari to be one hundred per cent authentic (which is not our aqeedah (belief) about al-Kafi) that means that they have to believe in tahreef on account of the traditions of the Sahaba. The famous Indian Hadith scholar of the Deobandis Anwar Shah Kashmiri in his recognized Ahl’ul Sunnah work Fayz ul Bari, Volume 3 page 395 writes:
“The tahreef of meanings has not taken place in a lesser amount. In my eyes, this is proved by research that the tahreef of words has taken place in this Quran. This tahreef was done either intentionally or by mistake”
Is there any need to comment? On the basis of the opinion of the leading Deobandi scholar can we declare all Deobandi’s kaffir?
Qadhi Thanaullah Pani Patii Uthmani records in his authority work Tafseer Mazhari, Volume 3 pages 215 & 216:
“Baghwi has written the statements of Ayesha [ra] and Aban Bin Uthman [ra] that ‘ALMUQEEMOONA ALSSALAT’ should have been written at this place. Similarly ‘WAALSSABI-OON’ in Surah Maidah’s verse ‘INNA ALLATHEENA AMANOO WAALLATHEENA HADOO WAALSSABI-OON’ and ‘HATHANI’ in the verse ‘IN HATHANI LASAHIRANI’ are the mistakes of writer (It should have been SABI-EEN & HATHAIN respectively). Hadrat Uthman [ra] had also stated that there were some mistakes (of writing) in the Mushaf and Arabs whilst reciting them would make the corrections themselves, through their language. When asked why he did not make the amendments, Uthman asked that it remain the same as it does not alter Halal to Haram and Haram to Halal”
Now Minhajj perhaps you could be so kind as to answer us this, when Uthman had testified that mistakes are present in the Qur’an then why did he not correct them?
The claim is not just an isolated one we also read in Al Itqan fi Uloom al Quran, Volume 1 page 210:
Abu Ubaid stated in Fadhail Quran that Abu Muawiyah narrated from Hisham bin Urwah from his father that Ayesha was asked about the following mistakes in the Quran ‘IN HATHANI LASAHIRANI’ and His [swt] statement ‘WAALMUQEEMEENA ALSSALATA WAALMU/TOONA ALZZAKATA’ and His [swt] statement ‘INNA ALLATHEENA AMANOO WAALLATHEENA HADOO WAALSSABI-OON’. She replied: ‘O son of my nephew, this is due to the act of the scribes of the Quran who committed a mistake whilst transcribing them’. The chain of this tradition is Sahih according to the conditions of the Shaikhain.
Now either:
Ayesha was lying
Or:
The Qur’an has indeed got mistakes in it.
We leave it to Minhajj to pass their fatwa and then declare it on their website.
We Shi’as, believe that the Qur’an is the Divine Revelation (wahy) sent down from Allah, the Exalted, upon his noble Prophet (s), containing an exposition of all things. It is also His everlasting miracle enabling all mankind from keeping pace with it in respect of rhetoric and eloquence, and the realities of sublime knowledge it contains, being guarded against any alteration or changing or mutation (tahreef). The Qur’an we have today is the same exact one revealed to the Prophet (s). Anyone claiming to the contrary is a violator, misguided, mistaken, or ignorant, for it is surly Allah’s Word, and falsehood can never come at it from before it or from behind it.
The Shi’a recite the same Qur’an at their homes and the same Qur’an is taught at their Madrassas (religious schools). Apart from this, Shi’a scholars have written commentaries of the Qur’an in many languages including Arabic, Persian and no one has witnessed the presence of a different Quran in any Shia home or Madrassa. Shi’as believe that this Qur’an is complete and a miracle of the Holy Prophet (S), which is an undoubted fact. Tragically some corrupt, so-called, scholars have accused Shi’as of denying this high status of Qur’an, which is a baseless accusation on us. To prove our point, we shall present some sayings of the holy Imams of Ahl’ul Bayt (as), some commentaries of the Shi’a scholars and will conclude with some sayings of the Scholars of Ahl’ul Sunnah.
There are many sayings of the Imams of Ahl’ul Bayt (as) that clearly vouch for the authenticity of the Qur’an, being the same unaltered text revealed to Prophet Muhammad (S) by Allah (swt). There are numerous traditions from the Imams that prove this point, for the sake of brevity we shall cite a few.
“We did not make humans rulers, but we made the Qur’an the ruler over humans. This Qur’an is free from change but does not speak on its own accord, an interpreter is needed for this task.”
Nahjul Balagha part 6 page 7, Publishers Rehmania Egypt
Ali bin Salam narrates from his father who asked Imam Jafer Sadiq (as) “O descendant of Prophet (S). What are your views on the Qur’an? Imam Jafer (as) replied ‘the Qur’an is Allah’s book; it contains commands of Allah; sent by Allah. It is not subject to alteration, neither can anyone claim that it has been changed, nor has anyone ever made such a claim.
Amali-al-Shaykh Saduq, Page 545, Published Iran
“The whole Ummah agrees on the authenticity of the Qur’an. No sect in the Ummah denies this fact, and this claim is true”.
Ehtijaj-e-Tabrisi, Page 234, Published Iran)
Many copies of the Qur’an, that were hand written by Imam Ali (as), Imam Hasan (as), Imam Hussein (as) and Imam Zain-ul-Abideen (as) can be located at the Imam Raza (as) library in Mashed, Iran. If one examines these copies, one will see that they are identical to the Qur’an in current usage. The claim of the Nasibis that the Shi’a reject the Qur’an is a baseless lie.
Shi’a scholars have written numerous commentaries of the Qur’an in which they have stipulated categorically that the Qur’an has not been altered in any shape or form. Shi’a scholars have in fact written several books on this very issue. Here are just a few of their sayings:
The completeness of Qur’an is so indisputable among Shi’a that the greatest Shi’a scholar of Hadith, Abu Ja’far Muhammad Ibn Ali Ibn al-Husain Ibn Babueyh, known as “Shaykh Saduq” (309/919 – 381/991), wrote:
“Our belief is that the Qur’an which Allah revealed to His Prophet Muhammad is (the same as) the one between the two covers (daffatayn). And it is the one which is in the hands of the people, and is not greater in extent than that. The number of Surah’s as generally accepted is one hundred and fourteen …And he who asserts that we say that it is greater in extent than that, is a liar.”
1. Etikadat Shaykh Saduq 93, Published Iran)
2. Awail-el-Mukalat, Page 55-56, Published Najaf
3. Shi’ite Creed (al-I’tiqadat al-Imamiyyah), by Shaykh Saduq, English version, p77
We have a firm belief that the Qur’an is complete in the same way that we believe in the existence of Kufa, Basra or any other city, or the great events that occurred through history. The reason for this firm belief is (firstly) due to the deep affections Muslims have towards the Qur’an and other reason which keep this book, of Almighty Allah, safe from any alteration. Also the Qur’an is (a sign of) the miracle of Prophet Muhammad’s Apostleship. It is the source and foundation via which we locate our religious edicts and regulations. It is for this reason that Muslim scholars throughout history have taken great care in its compilation to the extent that if they were unsure about the minutest of matters, they would to examine it (the Qur’an) rigorously. Our belief about the compilation being the exact copy (as the original) is as strong as our belief that the Qur’an is the Book of Allah (swt). The present Qur’an is exactly the same Qur’an that was compiled during the life of Prophet Muhammad (S).
Tafseer Majma-ul-Bayan, Edition 1 Page 15, Published Iran
“We believe that the Holy Qur’an is revealed by Allah through the Holy Prophet of Islam dealing with every thing which is necessary for the guidance of mankind. It is an everlasting miracle of the Holy Prophet the like of which cannot be produced by human mind. It excels in its eloquence, clarity, truth and knowledge. This Divine Book has not been tampered with by any one. This Holy Book which we recite today is the same Holy Qur’an which was revealed to the Holy Prophet. Any one who claims it to be otherwise is an evil-doer, a mere sophist, or else he is sadly mistaken. All of those who have this line of thinking have gone astray as Allah in Qur’an said:
“Falsehood can not reach the Qur’an from any direction (41:42)”
The Beliefs of Shi’ite School, by Muhammad Ridha Mudhaffar, English version, p50-51
The main reason behind the compiling of this book is to teach us about the meanings of the words contained in the Qur’an. As far as the question of there being any addition or deletion in the Qur’an, there is no need to debate on this matter as everyone agrees there has been no change made to it the comments of Sayyid Murtaza Alam ul-Huda have been discussed and proved. I have seen many commentaries in the books of Shi’a and Ahl’ul Sunnah suggesting that the Qur’an is incomplete or that a verse has been transferred from its original place to another but these are secluded cases and cannot relied upon. It is best to abandon such texts and let them become extinct….we are sure of Qur’an being true. The Ummah has never objected or rejected Qur’an.
Al Batiyan Fil Tafseer-ul-Qur’an, 1st Edition, Page 3, Published Najaf
The Qur’an that we possess is the same text that Allah (swt) sent as a miracle, to bring fear to the people, to let them know about the commandments and the difference between good and bad. It has never been changed nor has any addition or subtraction ever occurred to it, all the scholars agree to this fact. Moreover these scholars agree to the fact that whoever alleges that Qur’an has been changed is wrong. Also all the claims of Qur’an not being complete, whether made by Shi’as or Ahl’ul Sunnah, are very weak. These claims are not beneficial in any regard whether that be to attain knowledge or perform a good deed. These claims should be disregarded.
Usul al-Shi’a wa Asool-laha, Page 101-102, Published Najaf
There is no doubt about the fact due to the Protection of the Creator of the Deen Allah (swt); the Qur’an is free from any change or harm. Some verses in the Qur’an confirm this point, the scholars, in all languages; have likewise testified to this fact. If there is an opinion that the Qur’an is incomplete, it is an incorrect one, such a view should not be adhered to.
Kashaf-al-Ghatafy Al Fuqa, Page 315, Published Iran
This renowned scholar of the Qur’an writes in his very famous exegesis, Tafseer-ul-Meezan, 12th edition, page 109, Published Iran:
The Qur’an, which Almighty Allah descended on Prophet Muhammad (S), is protected from any change.
In addition to these explicit declarations the Shi’a Ulema have in their commentaries have relied on verses of the Qur’an, saying of Prophet Muhammad (S) and the Imams (as) as evidence that the Qur’an is complete and no changed has ever occurred in it.
Despite the belated efforts of these Nasibis in spreading lies, there are true humble Sunni Ulema that have looked beyond these lies and have confirmed that the Shi’a believe that the Qur’an is the uncorrupted Word of Allah (swt). We cite some of those opinions:
Whilst addressing the allegation that the Shi’a ascribe tahreef to the Qur’an. He said:
In one gathering I heard a man say that Shi’as have a different Qur’an, which is unlike the Qur’an we have. I asked him, “Where is that Qur’an? Islam is being practiced on three continents. Since the demise of the Holy Prophet (S) until today, a passing of fourteen hundred years, the Ummah has known of the existence of only the one Qur’an, we possess knowledge of where the chapters begin and end, end as well as the number of verses that they contain. Where is this other Qur’an? During this long passage of time how is it that any man or jinn have not located this ‘other’ Qur’an? These lies cause dissention between brothers and cause dissention about the Book. There is only one Qur’an, if it is published in Cairo, it is considered holy in Najaf and Tehran as well, they will hold it in their hands and keep it in their homes. They have nothing but respect for the Creator that sent it, and the person through whom it was revealed. Why then are such rumours and lies spread about people and this message?
Wafa an Al aqida wa Al Shariah, Page 265-266, Publishers Al kutub Al hadisia, Egypt, 1985
This Renowned scholar of Ahl’ul Sunnah whilst writing about the Shi’a states:
“According to the scholars of the Shi’a Ithna Ashari (12′ers), the Qur’an has never been changed, and whoever and any individual who claims otherwise, is deemed unacceptable in the eyes of the scholars of the Imamia sect.”
After writing the sayings of Shi’a scholars about the completeness of Qur’an. Allamah Dehlavi further comments:
“This proves that Shi’a Ithna Ashari scholars believe that this is the same Qur’an sent by Almighty Allah upon Prophet Muhammad (S) and this is the only text that the people possess, no other exists. In addition it was compiled during the time of Prophet Muhammad (S) not by only Abdullah bin Masood and Ubay bin Ka’b but by numerous Sahaba who were hadith. [The Shi'a believe] they will become famous again with the coming of 12th Imam, Shi’as emphasize on the fact that Almighty Allah said that, “We descended the Qur’an and we shall protect it”. In “Tafseer Sirat-ul-Mustaqim”, which is an important and valued commentary to the Shi’a, it written that this verse means that Allah would protect the Qur’an from any change”.
Izhar-ul-Haq, 2nd edition, Page 89-90, Publishers Mutabah Amira, Istanbul
To state that the Shi’a Imamia believe that the Qur’an on account of traditions that can be located in their texts, is just the same as reaching the conclusion on the basis of such references in our books – but both Shi’a and Sunni scholars have refuted these claims. None amongst the Imamia Shi’a and Zaidia believe in this lie, in the same way that none of the adherents of Ahl’ul Sunnah do. Whoever accuses the Shi’a of ascribing to tahreef of the Qur’an, should read books such as Allamah Suyuti’s “Tafseer Itqan” and objectively look at the traditions that point to tahreef of the Qur’an. Although we do not accept these sorts of traditions, one Egyptian scholar in 1948 wrote a book titled “Al Furqan” in which he copied many of these traditions from the works of Ahl’ul Sunnah. Should we on this basis conclude that the Ahl’ul Sunnah do not believe that the Qur’an is complete? Or should we on account of these traditions which were copied by someone or written in such and such book by such and such a person, adopt the viewpoint that the Ahl’ul Sunnah believe that the Qur’an is incomplete? The same conclusion could likewise be reached about the Shi’a, as like us they also have similar traditions in their books.
Risalah’thul-Islam, 11th Edition, Pages 382-383, 4th Part
“The Twelver Shi’a do not believe that the Qur’an is incomplete – the popular misconception that the Shi’a Ithna Ashari believe that the Sahaba omitted ten parts of Qur’an and that many Shi’a recite Surah-e- Hassnain, Surah Fatima or Surah-e-Ali are pure lies. No Shi’a Ithna Ashari scholar believes in this. The scholars of the Shi’a Ithna Ashari sect have refuted such claims in their books. Shaykh Abu Ja’far Muhammad bin Ali Babweia wrote in his book that, ‘the Qur’an, that Almighty Allah caused to descend on Prophet Muhammad (S) is the same (Book) that the people now have. There has been no addition or subtraction to it’. In “Tafseer Majma ul Bayan”, that is considered to be an authentic commentary by the Shi’a Ithna Ashari, Syed Murtaza attests that ‘the Qur’an that was present during the times of Prophet Muhammad (S) is the same one that we have’. Qazi Noor Ullah Shostari writes in his book titled “Masaib-ul-Nawasib” that ‘the popular belief, which is associated with Shi’as that they do not believe in the completeness of Qur’an, is a lie. Shi’a researchers do not agree to this fact. And whoever says otherwise, is a liar. Allamah Sadiq Sharah writes in “Kafi-a-Kulayni” that ‘this Qur’an shall continue to remain in this same form till the reappearance of Imam Mahdi (as)’. Muhammad bin al Hasan Amali comments that ‘whoever analyses the traditions objectively will realize that on account of certain factors, the Qur’an can never be subject to alteration’.
1. Mazahib-ul-Islam, Page 447, Publishers Lakishwar Lucknow;
2. Muzayl-al-Ghawashi Sharah Usool Alshashi, Page9, Published Karachi
After narrating the sayings of several Shi’a Scholars attesting to the completeness of the Qur’an Jirajpuri concludes:
These are the sayings of those scholars, that are very famous and recognized authorities of the Shi’a sect. There is opportunity to revise these sayings and it cannot be said that these scholars lied, due to the fact that some of these scholars have written books refuting the claims that had been put forward by the scholars of Ahl’ul Sunnah; to suggest that they were lying is without basis. Moreover, Abu Ja’far Qumi’s book “Al Aitiqad” and Mullah Mohsin’s book ” Tafseer-e-Safi” are books taught as part of the curricula at Shi’a schools. It is somewhat unlikely to suggest that they would teach their students texts that contradicted their beliefs.
Tareekh-ul-Qur’an, Page 62-67, Published Karachi
In his article titled “Shi’a and tahreef of the Qur’an”, Afghani states:
After trying their level best, and failing, to prove that the Qur’an had been altered the non-believers formulated a new strategy alleging that a large sect of Muslims believe that the Qur’an has been altered, the Sect in question being the Shi’a. The non-believers wrote with such confidence as to suggest that belief in the incompleteness of the Qur’an was an established belief amongst the Shi’a. This is a completely incorrect assertion. Shi’as like Sunnis believe that the Qur’an is protected from any type of alteration….
This proves that apart from a few untrustworthy individuals, the Shi’a do NOT ascribe to a belief in the alteration or incompleteness of Qur’an. For more references Numan Alusi’s book titled “Aljawab-un-naseeh lemana fiqh Abdul maseeh” should be read. The Qur’an is protected in its present written form, and is embedded in the minds of people. Moreover, the words and meaning of Qur’an testify that they are miracles.
Taken from Ulum-ul-Qur’an, Page 134-136, Published Lahore
Up until the present time no Shi’a scholar, or for that matter any adherent of the Islamic Faith has held a belief that the Qur’an has ever been altered or changed. The Shi’a scholars have reiterated this point in their texts.
Tafseer-e-Haqani, 1st Edition, Page 63, Published Lahore
Imam of Ahl’ul Sunnah and Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood Allamah Salim Al Banna:
The Qur’an we Ahl’ul Sunnah have is the same Qur’an that is used in Shi’a homes and mosques.
Al-Sita AL-Mufatri Aliha, Page 60, Published Egypt
On page 263 of the same book, he writes
The Ithna Ashari Shi’a deem anyone who believes in the alteration of Qur’an to be a non-believer, this is a known and agreed fact that has been held the inception of Islam.
Shah Abdul Aziz Muhadith Dehlavi, while acknowledging that the Shi’a do not believe that the Qur’an had been altered states:
“It is proven from all the traditions of the Imamia that the Ahlulbayt used to recite this same Qur’an and based their decisions in accordance with it. The commentary of the Qur’an by Imam Hasan Askari is the commentary of this same Qur’an. All his children, relatives and servants studied ‘this’ Qur’an, and he used to order them to recite this Qur’an when praying. It is due to this fact that Shaykh Ibn Babuya in his book “Al Eitiqad” denied that the Qur’an had been altered.”
Tauhfa Ithna Ashari (Urdu), Page 281, Published by Noor Muhammad Kutub khana Karachi
In his article titled “Allah is the protector of the Qur’an – Sequence of Qur’an” published in Akhbar-ul-Zia Lahore’s edition on 9th October 1914 he states:
…The Shi’a traditions about the completeness of Qur’an act as comprehensive proof. Allamah Tabarsi, who is a renowned Shi’a scholar in “Tafseer Majma-ul-Bayan” and in various other writings reiterated the Qur’an’s unchangeable status, stating that it was as obvious as the presence of cities, or historical events, or famous books, for the reason that Qur’an was copied and protected with great care, in a manner that had never happened before. Due to the fact that the Qur’an is a proof of the miracle of Prophethood and a source for extracting the rules of Sharia, the scholars went through great pains to compile and protect it. They perused through even minor details to ensure that the text was compiled perfectly. Syed Murtaza also said that the Qur’an we have is the same that was compiled during the lifetime of Prophet Muhammad (S), proven by the fact that the people used to recite the Qur’an and Prophet Muhammad (S) would listen to them.
On 16th October 1947 in Akhbar-ul-Zia’s page 6, column 1, he wrote:
The fact that Qur’an is complete has been proved by numerous traditions from Muslim scholars. The Shi’a also ascribe to this view, this was proven in a previous edition with a reference to the famous commentary “Tafseer Majma-ul-Bayan”.
Apart from the scholars cited, numerous other Sunni scholars have also confirmed that the Shi’a do not believe that the Qur’an is incomplete.