Some Christian writers allege Qur’an to be a devilish inspiration instead of divine revelation. According to them, Muhammad composed such a book in order to deny the crucification of Jesus Christ thus retaining the whole humanity in the whirlpool of offences, Henry smith, William Muir, Margoliouth, Montgomery Watt, Pfander…..are the megaphones of this scandal.
Henry smith, in his ‘God’s arrow against Atheists’ said that Muhammad was ‘thoroughly instructed in Satan’s Schools, and as well scene in magic’(Bauben, Image P. 11, quoted from Attitudes to other religions – comparative religion in Seventeenth and Eighteenth century Britain 1984, P.311).
The story regarding this satanic business is mainly concerned with the two verses ascribed to have been included in Sura: Al-Najm. According to the legend, Prophet sitting in one of the clubs of Quraysh (1), near Ka’ba, recited the Sura. “Would you consider Al Latha and Al-Uzza! As well as the Manatha, the third goddess’ (Qur’an 53: 19-21). As per the fable he recited two verses more in order to make reconciliation with the enemies. It reads: “they are the Goddess on high. Their intercession is worthy of being sought”. Haykal remarks: ‘this story arrested the attention of the western Orientalists who took it as true and repeated it and nauseam”(Hykel, The life P. 105).
Both Montgomery Watt and Samuel Margoliouth take the story to be real and ridiculously or otherwise calling it a ‘wise treaty’. This incident is said to have occurred when some followers of Prophet migrated to Abyssinia due to the persections of enemies. They were protected by king Negus who was to invade Makkah. But according to the forgery of Margouliouth Muhammad could foresaw, it would not be profitable for him so that he reconciled with the enemies praising their Goddess. He writes: “….the Prophet was probably aware that such an invasion would be a doubtful advantage to himself, since the Abyssinians would conquer, if at all, for themselves. Let Muhammad make some reasonable concession to Al-Latta and Al-Uzza, and Allah’s Prophet would be recognized. This was in effect what happened (Margoliouth, Muhammad P.170).
Margoliouth is happy in having occurred such an event, and so he praises Prophet to be wise while despises those biographers who neglected the forgery. ‘The compromise, which to us appears wise and states-manly, was regarded as the most discreditable episode in the Prophet’s career, and in the chief edition of his biography it is suppressed. In the edition, which presumes it, Muhammad is represented as returning to monotheism the same day’ (Margoliouth, Muhammad P.171).
Salman Rushdie (2) cunningly made use of the incident. Putting ‘the satanic verses on platform, he abused prophet, his family and his followers as well. But some try to belittle the seriousness of ‘Satanic Verses’ speaking of lavish freedom of expression. But more than all the abuses the work hardly hits to the root of Qur’an. So we cannot neglect it as an imaginative creation. ‘The name satanic versus however innocent it may seem is itself a great blasphemy. A sacrilege asserting that the Qur’an is not immune from external manipulation and interpolation, as God has proclaimed that it was influenced and manipulated by Satan. The accusation cuts at the very root of Muslim belief that the Qur’an is the Unique revelation of God preserved in the same language and diction as was revealed to the prophet through the agency of the angel Gabriel 1400 years ago, unalloyed by any interpolation, change or editing’ (Sacrilege Versus Civility, Edited by M. M. Ahsan, A,R, Kidwai, 1997, P. 28).
The sum total of these allegations is that Qur’an is induced by Satan. To detect the truthfulness or falsity of this claim, we can scrutinize the content of Qur’an; of course it should be devilish ideals provided that the claim is true.
The tone and the flow of the verses, in which Satanic verses are said to have infiltrated, deny the claim for they are meant for criticizing the pagan Goddesses. Qur’an condemns them to be mere imaginative figures. ‘They are nothing but names which ye have devised,-ye and your fathers, -for which Allah has sent down no authority. (whatever) They follow nothing but conjecture and what the souls desire!(Holy Qur’an 53 :23).
Further, verses ‘induced’ by Satan speak against all the devilish activities! Oddly enough, they praise all the ‘angelic’ deeds. A disinterested researcher should go through the suggestions of holy Qur’an. It bans drinking, prostitution, killing, lottery, blackmails, cheating, fraud, egoism, jealousy, necromancy, occultism….The same Qur’an encourages helping orphans, supporting the homeless and widows, telling truth, offering prayers, feeding animals honoring the elders, loving neighbors…but, what a Satan would do is known to everybody. A disinterested reading of Qur’an never allows anybody to conclude that it is invoked by Satan.
(1)Quraysh: was the dominant tribe of Makkah upon the appearance of the religion of Islam. It was the tribe to which the prophet Muhammad (PBH) belonged, as well as the tribe that led the initial opposition to his message.
(2) Salman Rushdie: Ahmed Salman Rushdie (born 19 June 1947) is a British Indian novelist and essayist.
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