The Quran An Eternal Challenge:Al Naba Al Azim
By Muhammad Abdullah Draz
The Islamic Foundation Leicester UK
Translation By Adil Salahi
ISBN: 0-86037-341-X
Paperback 192 Pages
 

A valuable work for gaining a better understanding of the Qur’an. Demonstrates how the Qur’an stands out as a divine work, surpassing all products of the human mind.

This book is unique in its approach to the Qur'an.  It argues the point that only God could author such a book, and that Muhammad could have never produced anything like it.  While this objective has been attempted by several Muslim scholars who highlighted one aspect or another of the topics highlighted in the Qur'an, Dr. Draz's works is perhaps the first that relies totally on the merits of the Qur'anic text for an irrefutable proof.

Dr. Draz discusses the arguments made at the time of the Prophet and later on which suggested that the Qur'an was taught to Muhammad by various teachers, and shows how they all collapse at the first test.

When he has irrefutably established the fact that the Qur'an could only be a divine revelation, Dr. Draz goes on to analyze the Qur'anic style, showing how it combines merits that could never be found together in any human writing.  Equipped with a profound literary sense and a powerful Arabic style, Dr. Draz discusses the main characteristics of the Qur'anic style, as well as the unity of theme that runs through each chapter , or surah.  The work is now presented to English readers as it gives students of the Qur'an valuable insight, enabling them to understand the Qur'an better.

About the Author

Muhammad Abdullah Draz was born in 1894 in northern Egypt. His father was an Islamic scholar educated in Al-Azhar, the oldest university in the world. His work included the editing of a remarkable work, Al-Muwafaqat, by Imam Al-Shatibi, which brought a great treasure of former Islamic scholars into the hands of contemporary readers.

What Muhammad Abdullah Draz wanted to do was to highlight the Islamic approach to morality as might be derived from the Qur’an, and to look at its theoretical basis and practical implementation.

He gained a PHD in France and also  taught the history of religion at the University of Cairo, Qur’anic Commentary in Dar Al-Uloom, a teachers’ college which was, at the time, affiliated to Al-Azhar. He also taught Arabic and moral philosophy at Al-Azhar University. Furthermore, he was elected to the membership of Senior Islamic Scholars, i.e. Jamaat Kibar Al-Ulema’ in 1949. He continued in these positions until his death in January 1958, when he was attending a conference in the city of Lahore, Pakistan.

'But when the Quran was revealed all such fairs came to an end, and literary gatherings were defunct.  From now on, the Quran was the only work to command people's attention.  None of them could challenge or compete with it, or even suggest that a single word be changed, moved, added or omitted from the sentence where it occurs.  Yet the Quran did not close the door to competition.  Indeed, it left it wide open, calling on them, individually and collectively, to take up its challenge and produce anything similar to it.  It repeated the challenge in different forms, berating their inability to do so, and reducing the task for them time after time'
Dr Draz