Qur'anic Answers

The Qur'an sets simple, clear rules for what parts of the body should be covered. Modesty in the Qur'an is an ethical guardrail designed to protect marriage, preserve dignity, and prevent sexual misconduct. Yet over the centuries, men have decided the modesty rules of the Qur'an are not enough and have decided to create numerous strict dress rules that go far beyond what Allah has mandated.

An issue when examining the Qur'anic instructions on modesty is the precise definition of the term 'zinah' (commonly translated as "adornment" or "beauty"). Traditional interpretations often define zinah as referring to biological body parts of a woman. But what does the Qur'an actually mean when it uses this word? The meaning of zinah determines what the Qur'an actually requires women to conceal so precision here is essential.

A major difference between Muslims and Christians is what happened to Jesus at the end of his earthly life. For Christians, Jesus was crucified and then resurrected, which forms the central pillar of their faith. On the other hand, mainstream Islam teaches Jesus was never crucified but was instead raised alive by Allah. From afar, it seems difficult to reconcile how both communities can hold such unanimous and yet contradictory beliefs. So, does the Qur'an address this issue, and how does it actually present the death of Jesus?

Leaving Islam is one of the most serious actions a Muslim can commit, and in traditional circles, can even warrant the death penalty. Others believe in complete freedom of religion. But how does the Qur'an actually address this, and does it provide a clear answer on the matter.

A debatable issue within the Muslim community is with regards to the destiny of the parents of Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him). Some claim they were from among a tiny group of people called the Hanifs who practised a form of monotheism, so will be in paradise. Others claim they were polytheists and therefore will be in hell, and back this up with evidence from the hadith. But what does the Qur'an actually say on the matter and does it provide a clear answer to this question.

Each year as Ramadan begins, a familiar and sometimes heated debate resurfaces within the Muslim community. This is usually centered on the correct way to perform the night salat known as 'taraweeh' - a term we will now use for the remainder of this article. The arguments usually revolve around the number of rakats and whether taraweeh can be performed in congregation. This article investigates how the Qur'an has addressed this issue and established the real requirements of offering the night salat.

An issue of dispute among Muslim scholars past and present is about whether a person must perform wudhu before they can touch the Qur'an. The rulings for wudhu have always been derived on inference from a particular verse in the Qur'an as well as other materials from outside the Qur'an. In this article, we look at how the Qur'an addresses this issue.

Muslims claim to honour Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him) by sending salutations on him, dressing like him, growing a beard and adopting a hairstyle to imitate his appearance, copying his sleeping and eating habits and many more aspects of his personal life.  This always originates from sincere devotion but is often based on questionable reports. Is this really what it means to honour Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him), or does the Qur'an provide the real method of honouring him.

During the nights of Ramadan, many people, particularly from the Sunni denomination, attend the night prayers in congregation, known as 'taraweeh'.  During these prayer sessions, some members of the congregation use a copy of the Qur'an to follow along with the recitation of the imam. The Arabic word for the Qur'anic text is mushaf and this is what we will use in this article. When referring to the mushaf, we are referring to the text in all its formats including digital formats like mobile phone devices. This issue leads to debates about whether it is permissible to use a mushaf and questions are even raised about the validity of the salat itself. This article looks at how the Qur'an addresses this matter.

Was there a reason Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him) was sent " ...as a mercy to the world " (21:107)  in the sixth-seventh century or was it just a random event in history.  This article looks at the evidences from the Qur'an, together with the historical events leading up to the revelation to explain the timing for sending Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him) at this precise moment.

For the vast majority of Muslims today, zakat is treated as a simple 2.5% calculation on certain types of wealth, once a year, above a minimum threshold defined in grams of gold or silver.  Yet when we return to the Qur'an itself, a very different understanding appears on the types of wealth subject to zakat and the rate itself. The Qur'an presents zakat as a tool designed to prevent wealth becoming the private property of the elite and it legislates a perfect system to achieve this.

A statement that is often made is 'we cannot pray the salat without the hadith'.  The claim is usually made as though the hadith provides all the details. But this understanding rests on the assumption that the hadith does indeed contains the rituals in detail, step-by-step. However, a closer look at the history of salat shows a very different story.

Many Muslims today think that all religious information is preserved with the same care as the Qur'an.  So when they hear or read something - usually on the internet - they take it to be the truth. This article is focussing on the preachers and how they have played a major part in diverting the Muslims away from the Qur'an and into the realms of fantasy. 

When people claim that you cannot follow Islam without hadith, they always forget the one man who did exactly this: Abu Hanifa.  Today, the largest school in the Muslim world, the Hanafi school, keeps the name of its founder, but no longer follows his methodology. It has become 'hadithified' to the extent that modern Hanafi followers often use the methods of the people of hadith (hadith-first) instead of Abu Hanifa's methods.  We must note that our research has relied on reports which themselves have come through later hadith compilations. The hadith numbers are as referenced in the book 'Kitab-As-Sunnah' by Abu-Abdir-Rahman Abdullah ibn Ahmad ibn Hanbal - the son of Ahmed ibn Hanbal, the founder of the Hanbali school. We only use the reports to analyse the attitudes and cultures of the time and not as unquestionable historical truth in every detail.

To demonstrate that certain Qur'anic verses have been abrogated by other verses, some people show the example of the early Muslims facing Jerusalem before changing direction towards Mecca as abrogation.  They show that this is proof that a later verse instructing to face Mecca was revealed which abrogated the previous verse instructing to face Jerusalem. They usually  cite the verse " ...We did not make the focal point that you came on except that We may know who is following the messenger from those who will turn on their heels... " (2:143) to support their position.  We cover the concept of abrogation in detail in the Qur'an  here .

It is often argued that we must trust the hadith because the same companions who gave us the Qur'an also gave us the hadith.  This appears to make complete sense on the surface level. However, when studied even a little, the historical and logical facts show that this claim is not only misleading but actually false. Some of the people most responsible for the Qur'an's preservation were the same ones who actively suppressed and discouraged the narration of hadith.

What does it mean to follow the sunnah of Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him)?  The question for today is are we really following the sunnah of Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him) or has his sunnah been reduced to only following the culture of the 7th century Arabs? For clarity, the use of the word sunnah in this article is referring to the sayings, teachings, actions, appearances, habits and silent approvals of Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him) as understood in classical Sunni tradition, and not to be confused with the 'sunnat-Allah' mentioned in the Qur'an.