In this day and age, we have an abundance of information but seldom wisdom. We often settle for soundbite narratives in favour of arduous learning endeavours for preference of comfort or confirmation bias approval from others.
Take your time with the learning process. You will inevitably have to rethread previously read books, relisten to podcasts, and repeatedly ingest several media simultaneously to achieve a wholistic frame of thought. Learning about your religion is a lifelong journey.
More often than not, a lot of us need to discard our cultural baggage and synthesize our Aqeedah ("Creed") from the ground up to form a solid Islamic Cognitive Frame.
Don't be afraid to be studious when it concerns your religion. We often aspire for PhD levels of knowledge of secular sciences yet we neglect our faith, then feign astonishment as to why we suffer crises of faith or have abysmal "leaders". You as a Muslim need to be a master of several trades if you want to make a real difference in this world and ascend to the next. The previous scholars of yore were polymaths in many fields and held Islam fully intact as the crux of their being, don't be afraid to follow in their footsteps and push yourself to grow. May you live in interesting times.
Quran Translations
Dr Jonathan Brown on the Quran Manuscripts | BBC Radio Scotland Ricky Ross
It is noteworthy to highlight that the Qur'an is an oral document first whereas a mus'haf is just a physical codex. Only through recitation does the mus'haf transform into the Qur'an. It's also not in chronological order but in a unique structure of its own.
The Qur'an is a fusion of prose and poetry with numerous rhythmic devices embedded into aya'ats ("signs/verses"). Each aya'at is dense with multiple "tapestry-like" dimensions that are all cohesively interpreted through linguistics tools provided within the Qur'an (intra-contextual interpretation). The aya'ats are worded in a precise grammatical manner such that context (and by extension adherence to the Seerah ["life of the Prophet ﷺ"] through Hadith ["saying of the Prophet ﷺ"]
always become apparent (extra-contextual interpretation).
The Qur'an's Divine calling plays a vital role in understanding the Prophet's ﷺ Seerah and Muslim life. It is a confirmation of previous scriptures - in their original forms (the Zabur/Psalms, given to David, the Scrolls, given to Abraham, the Torah, given to Moses, and the Injeel/Gospel, given to Jesus, peace be upon them all, to name a few.
It is a scripture that demands the reader's attention with its poetic rhyme and didactic tone, it starts with an inquisitive rational proclamation and then steers to a spiritual calling.
The "end" and "beginning" of the Qur'an are linked in a circular/ring-like manner to denote a continuous never-ending connection. It is a scripture that ripples through the believer's heart, mind and soul.
Further Study
Seerah
Dr Jonathan A.C. Brown
What are hadith? | An Introduction to Hadith | Muhammad's Legacy in the Medieval and Modern World Part 1 | Part 2 | Misquoting Muhammad | The Challenge and Choices of Interpreting the Prophet's Legacy | Commonly Misunderstood Hadith Texts | Diffused Congruence | Critically engaging with Hadith
The Hadith Corpus is a collection of sayings and actions of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and acts a complementary companion to the Qur'an.
You're not expected to learn everything about the Hadith Corpus. Most of the controversies in the media involve the Hadith. A Muslim can only endure so much draining bombardment from the constant rainfall of critics. There's only so much you can respond to and that's assuming the asking party is even interested in getting an answer.
You don't have to believe anything someone tells you unless they provide evidence. Even then, that evidence is subject to scrutiny.
Having a solid foundation on general principles of the Hadith Corpus will grant the tools necessary to handle obstacles thrown your way.
The Hadith Critical Methodology: A brief look at how Hadith are authenticated in the Islamic tradition | The Hadith: Collection & Importance | Studies in Hadith Methodology and Literature | Studies in Early Hadith Literature | ImamWire Ep.20 Texts & Cultural Context - Dr. Jonathan Brown
The Rules of Matn Criticism: There are No Rules | How We Know Early Hadith Critics Did Matn Criticism and Why It's So Hard to Find
Self Help
Misc.
Prerequisites:
Extracted from The Mad Mamluks Podcast EP 113: Wheels of Confusion with Dr Mohamed Ghilan which I highly recommend giving a listen.
Reading List:
Beginning Amateur:Qur'an:
Take your time with the learning process. You will inevitably have to rethread previously read books, relisten to podcasts, and repeatedly ingest several media simultaneously to achieve a wholistic frame of thought. Learning about your religion is a lifelong journey.
More often than not, a lot of us need to discard our cultural baggage and synthesize our Aqeedah ("Creed") from the ground up to form a solid Islamic Cognitive Frame.
Don't be afraid to be studious when it concerns your religion. We often aspire for PhD levels of knowledge of secular sciences yet we neglect our faith, then feign astonishment as to why we suffer crises of faith or have abysmal "leaders". You as a Muslim need to be a master of several trades if you want to make a real difference in this world and ascend to the next. The previous scholars of yore were polymaths in many fields and held Islam fully intact as the crux of their being, don't be afraid to follow in their footsteps and push yourself to grow. May you live in interesting times.
Quran Translations
Why is the Quran in 7th Century Arabic? | Is the Original Quran preserved? | The Collection of the Quran Part I | Part II | What is the Quran According to the Quran? Part I | Part II | Decolonizing Quranic Studies
Dr Jonathan Brown on the Quran Manuscripts | BBC Radio Scotland Ricky Ross
It is noteworthy to highlight that the Qur'an is an oral document first whereas a mus'haf is just a physical codex. Only through recitation does the mus'haf transform into the Qur'an. It's also not in chronological order but in a unique structure of its own.
The Qur'an is a fusion of prose and poetry with numerous rhythmic devices embedded into aya'ats ("signs/verses"). Each aya'at is dense with multiple "tapestry-like" dimensions that are all cohesively interpreted through linguistics tools provided within the Qur'an (intra-contextual interpretation). The aya'ats are worded in a precise grammatical manner such that context (and by extension adherence to the Seerah ["life of the Prophet ﷺ"] through Hadith ["saying of the Prophet ﷺ"]
always become apparent (extra-contextual interpretation).
The Qur'an's Divine calling plays a vital role in understanding the Prophet's ﷺ Seerah and Muslim life. It is a confirmation of previous scriptures - in their original forms (the Zabur/Psalms, given to David, the Scrolls, given to Abraham, the Torah, given to Moses, and the Injeel/Gospel, given to Jesus, peace be upon them all, to name a few.
It is a scripture that demands the reader's attention with its poetic rhyme and didactic tone, it starts with an inquisitive rational proclamation and then steers to a spiritual calling.
The "end" and "beginning" of the Qur'an are linked in a circular/ring-like manner to denote a continuous never-ending connection. It is a scripture that ripples through the believer's heart, mind and soul.
Further Study
Unveiling the Study Quran with Joseph Lumbard | Why was the Study Quran written? How was it prepared? | Ring Composition THEORY | Structure and Quranic Interpretation - Dr. Raymond Farrin
Seerah
Hadith Corpus (Further Reading)
Pending...
What are hadith? | An Introduction to Hadith | Muhammad's Legacy in the Medieval and Modern World Part 1 | Part 2 | Misquoting Muhammad | The Challenge and Choices of Interpreting the Prophet's Legacy | Commonly Misunderstood Hadith Texts | Diffused Congruence | Critically engaging with Hadith
The Hadith Corpus is a collection of sayings and actions of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and acts a complementary companion to the Qur'an.
You're not expected to learn everything about the Hadith Corpus. Most of the controversies in the media involve the Hadith. A Muslim can only endure so much draining bombardment from the constant rainfall of critics. There's only so much you can respond to and that's assuming the asking party is even interested in getting an answer.
You don't have to believe anything someone tells you unless they provide evidence. Even then, that evidence is subject to scrutiny.
Having a solid foundation on general principles of the Hadith Corpus will grant the tools necessary to handle obstacles thrown your way.
The Hadith Critical Methodology: A brief look at how Hadith are authenticated in the Islamic tradition | The Hadith: Collection & Importance | Studies in Hadith Methodology and Literature | Studies in Early Hadith Literature | ImamWire Ep.20 Texts & Cultural Context - Dr. Jonathan Brown
The Rules of Matn Criticism: There are No Rules | How We Know Early Hadith Critics Did Matn Criticism and Why It's So Hard to Find
Self Help
Misc.
Prerequisites:
Extracted from The Mad Mamluks Podcast EP 113: Wheels of Confusion with Dr Mohamed Ghilan which I highly recommend giving a listen.
Reading List:
Beginning Amateur:
- Qur'an (Abdel Haleem)
- Qur'an (Abdul Majid Daryabadi)
- Quran.com
- In the Footsteps of the Prophet
- Muhammad: A Very Short Introduction
- Youtube: Verifying and Understanding Hadith
- Misquoting Muhammad
And build up to:
Advanced Amateur:
Qur'an:Advanced Amateur:
- The Study Qur'an
- Revelation
- Hadith, Muhammad's Legacy in the Medieval and Modern World
- Canonization of al-Bukhari and Muslim
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