Expofi-
lion of
Vho whipt, imprifoned, and put to death thofe of the contrary opinion.
But at length al Motawakkel', who fucceeded ak Wathek, put
an end to thefe perfections, by revoking the former edicts, releafing
thofe that were imprifoned on that account, and leaving every man at
liberty as to his belief in this point g
A l Ghazali feems to have tolerahly reconciled both opinions, faying,
that the Koran is read and pronounced with the tongue, written in
books, and kept in memory; and is yet eternal, fubfifting in G o d’s
efience, and not poflibie to be feparated thence by any tranfmiffion
into mens memories or the leaves of books 3; by which he feems to
mean no more than that the original idea of the Koran only is really
in G od, and confequently co-efiential and co-eternal with him, but
that the copies are created and the work of man.
The opinion of al Jahedh, chief of a fedt bearing his name, touching
the Koran is too remarkable to be omitted: he ufed to fay it was a
body, which might fometimes be turned into a man 4, and fometimes
into a beaft s ; which feems to agree with the notion of thole who
afiert the Koran to have two faces, one of a man, the other of a
beaft 6 ■ thereby, as I conceive, intimating the double interpretation
it will admit of,’ according to the letter or the fpirit.
As feme have held the Koran to be created, fo there have not been
wanting thofe who have aflerted that there is nothing miraculous in
that book in refpedt to ftyle or compofition, excepting only the prophetical
relations of things paft, and predictions of things to come;
and that had G od left men to their natural liberty, and not reftrain-
ed them in that particular, the Arabians could have compofed fome-
thin<* not only equal, but fuperior to the Koran in eloquence, method”
and purity of language. This was another opinion of the Mota-
zalites, and in particular of al Mozdar above-mentioned and alNodbam \
The Koran being the Mohammedans rule of faith and practice, it is
it. n0 wonder its expofitors and commentators are fo very numerous.
And it may not be amifs to take notice of the rules they obferve in expounding
it.
■ Anno Hej 242. * Abulfarag. p. 26a. 3 Al Ghazali, in prof. fid. 4 The Khali/ al Ward
Ebn Tazid who was the eleventh of the race of Ommeya, and is. looked on by the Mohammedans
as a reprobate* and one of no religion, feems to have treated this book as a rational creature. For
dipping into it one day, the firft words he met with were thefe; Every rebellious perverfe perfon Jball
not prefper. Whereupon he ftuck it on a lance and ihot it to pieces with arrows, repeating thefe
Ve>Dw? thou rebuke every rebellious perverft pcrfen f behold, I am that rebellious pefverfe perfon.
When thou amare/l before thy Lori on the day of refurreaion,Jay, O Lord, al Walid has torn me thus.
Ebn Shohnah. v. Pod. Spec. p. 223. ! Poc. Spec. p. 222. « Herbelot. p. 87. S Abulfeda,
Shahrefiani, &c. apudPoc. Spec. p. 222. & Marracc. de Kor. p. 44.
One
One of the moft learned commentators1 diftinguifhes the contents
of the Koran into allegorical and literal. The former comprehends
the more obfeure, parabolical, and aenigmatical paflages, and fuch as
are repealed or abrogated; the latter thofe which are plain, perfpicuous,
liable to no doubt, and in full force.
To explain thefe feverally in a right manner, it is neceflary from
tradition and ftudy to know the time when each paflage was revealed,
its circumftances, ftate, and hiftory, and the reafons or particular
emergencies for the fake of which it was revealed \ Or, more
explicitly, whether the paflage was revealed at Mecca, or at Medina-,
whether it be abrogated, or does itfelf abrogate any other paflage ;
whether it be anticipated in order of time, or poftponed; whether it
be diftindt from the context, or depends thereon; whether it be particular
or general -, and laftly whether it be implicit by intention, or
explicit in words3. :' _
By what has been faid the reader may eafily believe this book is in Theho-
the greateft reverence and efteem among the Mohammedans. They to.
dare not fo much as touch it without being firft wafhed or legally it.
purified 4; which left they fhould do by inadvertence, they write thefe
words on the cover or label, “ Let none touch it, but they who are
1 clean'.' They read it with great care and refpedt, never holding
it below their girdles. They fwear by it, confult it in their weighty
occafions s, carry it with them to war, write fentences of it in their
banners, adorn it with gold and precious ftones, and knowingly fuffer
it not to be in the pofleflion of any of a different perfuafion.
The Mohammedans far from thinking the Koran to be profaned by TranfR-
a tranflation, as feme authors have written 6, have taken care to havetlons-
their feriptures tranflated not only into the Ferfian tongue, but into
feveral others, particularly the ’Javan and Malayan i, tho’ out of
refpedt to the original Arabic, thefe verfions arc generally (if not always)
interlineary.
1 Al Zamakhlhari. V. Koran, chap. 3. p. j f . * Ahmed Ebn Moh. al: Thalebi, in princip. ex-
pof. Ale. 3 Yahya Ebn al Salifii al Bafri, in princip. expof. Ale. 4 The jfeas have the fame ve-
neration for their law; not daring to.touch it with unwafted hands, nor then neither without a cover.
V. Millium, de Mohammedifmo ante Moh. p. 366. ^This theydo by dipping into it, and
taking an omen from the words which they firft light on: which practice they alio learned of the
Jews, who do the fame with the feripture. V. Millium, ubi fup, 6 Sionita, de urb. orient, p. 41 >
& Marracc. de Ale. p. 33. 7 Reland, de Rel. Moh. p. 265.