The Study Quran is a new English translation of and commentary upon Muslims' Holy Book, the Quran. It is the culmination of nearly a decade of conscientious work carried out by a group of Muslim Quranic studies scholars led by Seyyed Hossein Nasr. The book has three main parts. The first consists of technical details about the abbreviations, Arabic transliteration and pronunciation, the commentary's citations, a guide to the commentators, and appendices. The second is the Quran's translation and commentary. The third comprises fifteen analytical and scholarly essays; sixteen essays actually if we include Nasr's comprehensive critical introduction.
The Study Qurʾān has several distinctive features, but two raise it above all other English translations currently on the market. The first is the translation's accompanying coherent commentary which cuts across various Islamic interpretive traditions and schools (e.g. Sunnism, Shīʿism, Sufism, law, linguistics, and theology). It is an impressive effort (nearly a million words in length) that covers over forty classical Arabic and Persian works of Quranic exegesis (tafsīr). The book's goal is not only to clarify for its readers complex passages, but also and more importantly to introduce them to the heterogeneity of the Islamic tradition of tafsīr. The second feature is the work's fifteen scholarly essays by leading Islamic studies specialists on some of the most central themes in the Quran. The Study Quran thus lends itself as an indispensable book for both readers who wish to approach the Quran broadly and those who seek to delve deeper into the intricacies of its meanings.
In the general introduction, Nasr sheds light on a range of key questions relevant to the Quran and its study. On the message of the Quran, for example, he states that it is at the same time sapiential (i.e. reflects the wisdom of God) and practical since it both touches upon the spiritual and intellectual life of Muslims and addresses most aspects of their day-to-day life. Nasr presents the Quran mainly as a book of laws, sacred history, and source of knowledge. As a book of laws, the Quran deals with legal issues pertaining to human beings' relationship with God and with each other. As a book of sacred history, it gives stories of past prophets for moral and spiritual lessons. As source knowledge, the Quran has played a central role in inspiring and originating certain Islamic sciences, including jurisprudence, theology, and finance.
On the language of the Quran, Nasr underlines its miraculousness and reflects on it with respect to three areas: (1) the meaning of revealing the Quran in Arabic and the nature and structure of Quranic Arabic; (2) the history and implications of structuring the Quran into parts (ajzāʾ), chapters (suwar), and verses (āyāt); (3) the recitation of the Quran and its role in Muslims' pursuit of piety. As for the language of the Quran's translation, it is in contemporary English, with a substrate of the majestic “King’s English” commonly used in the King James' Bible. Written in contemporary English, the translation seems fairly accessible to the general reader and, for the most part, has been quite successful in balancing the literal and poetic aspects of the Quranic Arabic. Relying on diverse commentaries seems to have helped the editors pay close attention to the complexity of the Quranic language.
The Study Quran’s meticulous scrutiny of problematic passages and notions in the Quran cannot be denied. However, like every other Quran translation/commentary, it cannot be entirely comprehensive and satisfying. For example, on Q 93:7, “and find you astray and guide” (wa wajadaka ḍāllan fa-hadā), the authors rightly express caution not to read the word “astray” in the sense of being away from the right path. At the same time, however, they make no mention of its meaning as “unaware” (ghāfil), which is more fitting in the context of this verse and other Quranic passages, such as Q 20:52, “He errs not, nor does He forget” (lā yaḍillu wa lā yansā). Another instance where the translation/commentary seems to fall short is with respect to Q 71:4, “grant you reprieve until a term appointed” (yuʾakhirukum ilā ajalin musammā). The authors read this passage as that people are given ample time to repent for their sins, which is a fair reading. However, they do not explain how someone's “appointed term” (ajal) may be extended, especially since the very next phrase in this verse as well as in other verses (e.g. Q 16:61) confirms that when one's ajal arrives, it will not be postponed. By custom, an Arab may say “aṭāla Allāhu ʿumrak” (literally, may God extend your life) to wish for someone a prosperous life, or, inversely, say “qassara Allāhu min ʿumrik” (literally, may God cut short your life), to wish for that person a life of hardship. It is in this sense that some commentators understood Q 71:4 to entail that God grants people enjoyment (of wealth, health, authority, etc.) until their ajal arrives.
Notwithstanding the few but important passages where the editors' exposition seems less successful, and to put it in plain and simple words, The Study Quran hits far more than it misses. A close examination of the commentary will show irrefutably that it is the fruit of painstaking comparative exegetical research. Its seriousness manifests especially in the editors' elaborate interventions on many challenging excerpts which only the most diligent can discern. Reading Q 4:127, for example, The Study Quran recognizes the complexity of the term “targhabūn” (raghiba, to desire) with respect to orphans in “though you desire to marry them” (targhabūna an tankiḥūhunn). The word “targhabūn” is a transitive phrasal verb that is followed by either the proposition “fī” (“raghiba fī,” to desire) or “ʿan” (“raghiba ʿan,” to desire not). The absence of the proposition in this verse has caused confusion about whether the intended meaning is to desire to marry the orphans or not. The impeccable quality of this book’s commentary also appears in its reflection on Q 4:157, “they slew him not for certain” (mā qatalūhu yaqīnan). At stake here is whether the phrase “qatalūhu yaqīnan” refers to the killing of Jesus or to the news that he was killed. According to one interpretation, which The Study Quran cites, it is the news of killing him, for it is customary to say in Arabic “qataltu al-shayʾa ʿilman” (I killed something for certain), to indicate that one is absolutely certain about it.
The essays included in this book function as an extension of many of the issues sketched by Nasr in the general introduction. The opening article, “How to Read the Quran” by Ingrid Matson, talks about the nature of the Quran and what distinguishes it from other scriptures, the harmony of its style, its central themes, how Muslims in Muslim societies read it, how new readers of the Quran should read it, and the ways in which one should show respect to the Quran.
The next three articles address questions of language. Joseph Lumbard's “The Quran in Translation” is a short piece about the intricacies of Quranic Arabic, the key features of its syntax and grammatical structure, its special terms, and the un-translatability of the Quran at the linguistic level. Mohammad al-Azami's “The Islamic View of the Quran” discusses the traditional Islamic view of the revelation and the Prophet's role in transmitting it, including the first attempts at recording and compiling the Quran and its multiple readings. Muhammad Abdel Halim's “Quranic Arabic” is a broad linguistic study of the Quran. It touches on the conceptual, linguistic, and grammatical features of the language of the Quran, as well as the sacred character of Quranic Arabic being God's medium of speech.
The succeeding three articles concern interpretation and exegesis (tafsīr). Walid Saleh’s “Quranic Commentaries” surveys the long tradition of Quran interpretation, the various exegetical methods engaged by classical commentators, as well as the different types of commentaries and their role in Muslim intellectual history. Toby Mayer's “Traditions of Esoteric and Sapiential Quranic Commentary” covers the mystical commentary tradition and highlights such questions as the inner experience of the Quran, divine symbolism, and the sapiential tradition. Muzaffar Iqbal's “Scientific Commentary on the Quran” focuses on “science verses” which have been at the heart of Muslims’ scientific research with respect to issues of cosmology, the human soul, and so on.
The following five articles deal with the question of the Quran as a source of knowledge. Aḥmad al-Ṭayyib's “The Quran as Source of Islamic Law” (trans. Maryam Sharief) talks about the Quranic foundation of Islamic jurisprudence. Muṣṭafā Muhaqqiq Dāmād's “The Quran and Schools of Islamic Theology and Philosophy” (trans. Nasr) surveys the history of the appropriation of the Quran by various intellectual groups including the Mutʿazilites, Ashʿarites, Shīʿīs, theologians, and philosophers. William Chittick's “The Quran and Sufism” looks into the Sufi conception and interpretation of the Quran. The late Jean-Louis Michon’s “The Quran and Islamic Art” examines the different ways in which the Quran has influenced and inspired the first generation of Muslim craftsmen (e.g. the building the Mosque of Medina). Hamza Yusuf's “Death, Dying, and the Afterlife in the Quran” discusses the concept of death and its various derivative meanings in the Quran (sentient, intellectual, psychological, etc.), the various stages of after death (i.e. between death and resurrection or barzakh, the trial in the grave), and the Day of Judgment (i.e. the resurrection, traversing the Bridge, and residing in hell or paradise).
Finally, the last three articles address questions with respect to the Quran's historical and political teachings. Joseph Lumbard's “The Quranic View of Sacred History and Other Religions” presents the Quran as the continuance of the Divine's message and the final climactic stage of the revelation, and sheds light on the covenant made by God with Muhammad and previous prophets. Maria Dakake's “Quranic Ethics, Human Rights, and Society” examines the basic Quranic social ethical principles. Caner Dagli's “Conquest and Conversion, War and Peace in the Quran” looks into the Quranic basis and conception of relevant political matters, such as jihād and the use of coercive power, peace treaties, and the conduct of war and conquest.
Nasr's imprint on The Study Quran, especially for those who are familiar with his larger work, is quite discernible. One area where his intellectual influence manifests the most is the emphasis on the spiritual (and esoteric) meaning of the Quran. Another is the very commentary which cuts across different Islamic schools of interpretation and which may be read as an attempt at underscoring traditionalism's core principles of universality and unity. It is not surprising that this ecumenical interpretive approach would, as it already has, cause discomfort for some. Some Muslim scholars and members of certain Islamic pastoral communities in the West have solely focused on this point. Others have warned against ascribing “authority” to The Study Quran, even though Nasr clearly states in the introduction that “there has never been nor can there be a single ‘official’ or perfect translation of the Quran” (p. xlii). Speaking from within the Islamic tradition, one could say to such critiques: “Verily God will not change the condition of a people until they change that which is in their selves” (Q 13:11). It is time that Muslims expand the boundaries of their understanding of their Book—and why not shake those boundaries a little? Change to their current state of division and inferiority can come only from within and only if there are serious efforts to rediscover their Book. The Study Quran is one solid step in a long way to go.
On the whole, The Study Quran provides a fine English translation of the Quran and a practical commentary on it. It is a useful resource for both those who wish to read it as a whole and those interested in a particular topic. The Study Quran resembles a modern-day Bidāyat al-Mujtahid wa Kifāyat al-Muqtaṣid (the title of Ibn Rushd's book on legal pluralism) of Quranic studies. It has almost everything which the general reader needs to obtain a good understanding of what the Quran is about. And, at the same time, it is an effective primer for a scholar who seeks to dig deep in a certain aspect of the Quran. The Study Qurʾān is without a doubt a must-have for every academic institution and every student of Islamic studies.
