The
Praise is for Allah, the one who has honored us with the Quraan, and
chosen for us the noblest of languages, and the peace and the blessings
be upon the best one of the ones who articulated themselves in Arabic,
and the most-preferred from the servants of Allah, Our Prophet Muhammad
(Peace be upon him), and his family and his distinguished companions.
The
Arabic language is the language of the Noble Quraan, and with it, the
Quraan was revealed upon the seal of the Messengers (sallallahu ‘alaihi
wa sallam), so attention to the Arabic language is to have attention to
the Book of Allah the Most High and the studying and the practicing of
it helps in the understanding of the Noble Book of Allah and the
narration of the master of the Prophets, Muhammad (sallallahu ‘alaihi
wa sallam). It is also the language of our esteemed Islamic law
(As-Shariah), so when we defend it we are not proceeding on a path of
nationalism or racism or culturalism, but in fact we are defending the
language of our religion (way of life) and it is the cloak of our
Islamic Civilization.
As such, Sheikh-ul-Islam Ibn Taymiyah said:
“The
Arabic Language is from the Religion, and the knowledge of it is an
obligation. For surely the understanding of the Quraan and the Sunnah
is an obligation, and these two are not understood except with the
understanding of the Arabic Language, and whatever obligation is not
fulfilled except by certain steps then those steps themselves become
obligatory (to fulfil the initial obligation)”[1]
So
then the knowledge of the Arabic language is essential for every Muslim
so that he can perform his religious acts of worship and he can be
proficient in the recitation of the Noble Quraan. Allah says in His
Book (which means):
“Verily we have sent it down as an Arabic Quraan in order that you may understand” (Surah Yusuf:2)
And likewise, the Most-Glorious said (which means):
“And
thus We have inspired unto you (O Muhammad) an Arabic Quraan that you
may warn the mother of the towns (Makkah) and all around it.” (Surah
ash-Shura:7)
And The Exalted said (which means):
“And
truly this (the Quraan) is a revelation from the Lord of the ‘Alamin
(mankind, jinns and all that exists), which the trustworthy Ruh
(Jibreel) has brought down upon your heart (O Muhammad) that you may be
(one) of the warners, in the plain Arabic language” (Surah ash-Shura:192-195)
And He the Most High also said (which means):
“A Book whereof the verses are explained in detail, a Quraan in Arabic for people who know” (Surah Fussilat:3)
The Most Merciful said (which means):
“Verily! It is We who have sent down the Reminder (i.e. the Quraan) and surely We will guard it (from corruption)” (Surah Hijr:9)
Despite
this, many of the Muslims are content by spending their whole lives
reading a translation of the Quraan and so depriving themselves of the
miracle of the Speech Of Allah. Also, a translation implies a human
factor, which goes against the very essence of the Book of Allah. Also,
the person who does not know Arabic, will have added difficulty in his
concentration during his prayers and in his understanding of the
Sunnah. This is because a language is just not a collection of words
which can readily be translated into another language but is a whole
way of thinking.
Dr. Muhammad Taqi-ud-Din Al-Hilali (Translator of the Noble Quraan) writes:
“It is aPITYthat
many nations are only satisfied in the translated meaning of the Quraan
and Prophet’s Sunnah instead of studying the (true) Arabic text of the
Quraan and Prophet’s Sunnah.
For this reason, they are divided into various sects (due to the lack
of knowledge about the religion of Islam) e.g. as regards to the ways
of religious education, etc. so they are plunged in differences, which
was prohibited by Allah.If the translation of the meaning of the Quraan is meant for the above said purpose thenit is a real mischief-doing,
and an evil action and is against what was brought by Allah’s Messenger
(Peace be upon him) and against the opinions of the early present day
religious scholars. All the religious scholars unanimously agree that
the Quraan and the Sunnah should be taught in the language of the
Quraan (i.e. Arabic Language). So did the early religious scholars of
the Muslim nation when they conquered different countries.
Translations
are mainly meant for informing the people who have not yet embraced
Islam to make clear to them the principles of Islam and the teachings
of Muhammad (Peace be upon him) and to know its exact facts.
When they reach this state and Allah has blessed them with Islam, they
must take the Quraanic and the Messenger’s Language (i.e. Arabic) as
the only language to understand Islam. May Allah’s mercy be onSheikh ‘Umar Uzbak, a great Turkish man,
who strove for Islam in Uzbakistan under the Russian government, after
his long fight against the enemies of Islam with fire (iron) and tongue
(speech), he took refuge in Afghanistan at Kabul, where the government
honoured him. I met him there in1352A.H. (approx.1932CE),
and he had vowed to Allah that he will never speak to a relative or
anybody else except in the Quraanic and Messenger’s (Arabic) language.
His wife sent a man for me to intercede for her to him that he should
speak with her and her children in the Turkish language even for an
hour every day. So when I spoke to him about it, he said:
‘Russians had compelled us to learn perfectly the Russian language (by force), so we learnt it.
And unless they knew that the learning of the Russian language will
make the person who learns it, follow their ways of thinking,
characters, and their traditions, they would not have forced anybody to
learn it.’
He (Sheikh ‘Umar Uzbak) further said to me, ‘I
have vowed to Allah long ago not to speak except in the language of the
Qur’aan and Sunnah (i.e. Arabic) and I do that only for Allah’s sake.
If my wife and children desire to enjoy speaking with me, they should
learn the language of the Quraan and of the Prophet (Peace be upon him)
(i.e. Arabic) and I am ready to teach them the Quraanic language
whenever they desire that”[2]
Footnotes:
1.The Necessity Of The Straight Path by Ibn Taimiyyah (1/470) 2.The Noble Quran in the English language by Dr. Muhammad Taqi-ud-Din Al- Hilali & Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan, page xxiv (1994edition)
[This
is based on an Arabic booklet written by Shaikh Ahmed ibn ‘Abdullah
al-Baatilee with the foreword of Shaikh ‘Aaid ibn ‘Abdullah al-Qarnee]