ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books The Qur'an and Its Translators Chapter 1 Introduction The Qur'an has been without doubt the most influential book in the history of mankind, in the same way as the great Prophet to whom it was revealed has been the most influential of men. Together they have heralded a new and ultimate era in the history of mankind.

This influence is bound to increase with the development of man's awareness of the higher dimensions of human existence and with the removal of the obstacles that bar humanity from its Godward journey.

Neither prose nor poetry, it surpasses all human composition with the celestial music of its rhythms, the profundity of its meanings, its universality of appeal, its wonderful clarity, eloquence, sublime rhetoric, and above all its deep and passionate concern for the good of all human beings, which permeates all its chapters and verses.

The beauty and sublimity of the Qur'anic discourse is something which has to be discovered directly by everyone to the extent of his capacity and effort, for the richness of the Qur'an is inexhaustible. Unlike other masterpieces of world literature and scriptures, whose interest and appeal is limited to an audience with a particular literary taste or some religious creed, the Qur'an is the book of the ordinary human being, and meant for each and every human being.

It addresses every human individual qua human being and creature of God. Since the first century of Hijrah, continuous efforts have been made by Muslims to make the meanings of the Qur'an accessible to nonp-Arab communities. There have also been several unfortunate attempts to translate the Qur'an with a hostile intent or deviant purpose.

In such cases, the great healer, the Qur'an, has only aggravated the sickness of those who approached it with a malicious motive, and this great spring of spiritual life has had the effect of the deadliest of poisons.

Despite the enormous amount of effort that has been made during the past centuries and notwithstanding the numerous translations that have appeared in many languages of the world and the new ones that continue to appear almost every year, an error free translation of the Qur'an in any language p- including Persian and Urdu which have been closest to the Qur'anic culturep-still remains an unfulfilled dream.