Islam Critiqued cannot ask with humility; meaning of ahruf? ibn mujahid's role in Quranic variants?

In answer to the video "Miraculous Preservation of the Quran: Burying the Myth"

The "7 ahruf" which the prophet is reported to have requested from Gabriel is an enigmatic issue upon which very little is known out of all the corpus of reliable hadith. The only description of these 7 ahruf given by the prophet is that it would serve the purpose of accommodating people of different levels of literacy and fluency of the language, in their recital of the Quran. The Muslim scholars did not differ on the purpose of the ahruf but over how they achieved that purpose. 

Most of the early opinions, as alluded to by Al Suyuti in his al Itqan are repetitive and overlap. He speaks of around 40 opinions without quoting them all. What he quotes can be summed up as follows.

- The 7 ahruf are ambiguous due to the word harf having different lexical meanings (a letter of the alphabet, a word, a meaning, or a way).
- Harf means a way of pronunciation.
- The 7 ahruf indicate seven meanings
- others say 7 ways of recitation using synonyms
- or 7 of the most eloquent dialects of the Arabs.
- Finally the view of Ibn Qutayba who said the 7 ahruf allowed a range of flexibility in the reading and sometimes the text itself; vocalizations that may or may not change the meaning of a word, letter alterations that may or may not change the meaning and/or the consonantal outline of a word, variations in word orders.

Anyone arguing for a late invention of the 7 ahruf is ignorant of the reality of 7th century Arabia. Arabs were mostly illiterate, with various pronunciations or dialects. It would have been impossible for them to abandon their own dialects and ways of recitation all at once. This means the phenomenon of various modes must have occured in the prophet's life The 7 revealed ahruf are what allowed the oral tradition to be fluid prior to the fixation of the text under Uthman, but without that fluidity stepping outside the limits of divine revelation.

As appropriately noted by professor Déroche 

"as long as the prophet was present to validate or not a recitation of one of the companions, the fluidity of the revelation could be preserved without difficulty". 

The reported variants attributed to the close companions of the prophet were undoubtedly approved by him.

The scholarly opinions quoted earlier as to the precise nature of the 7 ahruf, all have their strengths and weaknesses, examples and counterexamples. The common denominator is that they are modes, that allow linguistic variations in the manner of reciting the Quran. One mode could allow for more than one recitation. For example if the mode in question is about using synonyms, then one word could be read in more than one way. The recitations resulting from these 7 ahruf are thus generally accepted as 10, going back to the prophet, transmitted through multiple independent channels. If these reciting methods were only reported by a few or single individual on any level of the chain, they were termed shaadh/anomalous. If only a taabi'i would report such readings, they would equally be termed shaadh. Jalal al Din al Bulqini classified the reading of the taabi'i Saeed ibn Jubayr as shaadh. That is why we do not find his reading of 18:79-80 for instance in the canon, nor through any other channel. As a side note in regards to this category of qiraat, they are not completely different qiraat, they in fact overlap with the mutawaatir 10 in the vast majority, just as the mutawaatir overlap among eachother except for a tiny number of words.

Among those that reported the isnad of each reading is ibn Hazm al andalusi. Imam Jazari observed in an-Nashar that: 

"Indeed some of the latter scholars had imposed Tawatir on the condition of authenticity of a Qira'ah, they were not only satisfied with authenticity, but believed that Quran could not be confirmed unless with Tawatir and any narration that falls into Ahaad's category could not be confirmed as Quran". 

These same people, such as al Jazari or al Shaatibi that clearly attest to the mass transmission of every authentic qira'a, they had limited themselves to a chain of single individuals going to the prophet. This was done for brievty's sake, tracing each reading through notable names. 

Recent people with poor knowledge of these well established and extensive scholarly works on the topic, have taken these single reports as proof against the mass transmission of the qiraa'at. This of course is an absurdity. Had it been the case, there would not have been varying levels of authenticity among the qiraa'at, as stated with the shaadh qiraa'at. Also, it is obvious that when people like ibn Masud, who was among the many that learned his reading from the prophet, when he (ibn Masud) moved to Kufa where he taught Aasim who then taught Hafs, the most popular reading today, Aasim in Kufa certainly was not the only one learning from ibn Masud. Ibn Masud had a massive popularity in that city and the people adopted his reading in defiance of the caliphate whose official reading was another authentic one. 

Among sunni jurists, Hanbali al-Tufi (d. 716 H) was the one most skeptical in terms of whether the major qiraat were traceable through tawatur to the prophet. But he never denied the Tawatur of the recitations from their eponymous readers. He even criticized those who thought his position implied non-tawatur of the Quran. He notes that this is not the case, because the Quran is not identical with qiraat, and there is consensus on the tawatur of the Quran.

As a side note, ibn Mujahid compiled a popular book in which he only listed 7 readings, which later led to some thinking that the readings were restricted to only 7. The famous qiraat scholar Abu Shamah (665/1267) said 

"No one thinks that these seven readings are what is meant in the hadith except the ignorant". 

Ibn Mujahid simply wanted to list those he deemed more popular because of the major cities wherein they were most famous, such as Mecca, Medina, Kufa, Basra and Damascus. As noted by ibn Atiyyah, the teachers of these 7 readings used their ijtihad, or religious jurisprudence, to select which among the already existing variants were in conformity with the criteria of authenticity; these being, agreement with the grammar and the Uthmanic recension. The scholars have added 3 other readings on top of those 7, from among the known variants. These 3 additional readings are mutawaatir like the 7, and, similarly, conform to grammar rules and to Uthman's mushaf. Some have counted more than these 10 but their list was disputed by other scholars in light of the aforementioned criteria of authenticity. 

Also, anyone can make recital mistakes due to one's own peculiar way of pronouncing certain words and letters. Then transmit those errors to others. This has no bearing on the issue of Quran authenticity unless one can prove that these errors became widespread until assimilated in the approved readings. Or that there was resistance when these errors were pointed and declared inauthentic. 

Another thing to note is that ibn Mujahid was not the first to write a book on qira'at. The first compiler of qira'at was Abu Ubayy Qasim ibn Salam, who collected 25 in total, including those famous 7. Then Ahmad bn Jubair al-kufi wrote on only five Qira'at, selecting one reader from each city. Then Ismail ibn Ishaq with his 20 authoritative readers, including the 7 famous ones. At-Tabari recorded 20 Qira'at in his Al-Jami'u fil Qira'at. Tabari affirms the divinity of the qiraat. When discussing 2 variant readings of 37:12, he proposes that multiple readings were miraculously dictated to the Prophet simultaneously, just as has been known in the famous hadith from Hisham.

Then al-Dujuni talked about 11 readers. 

Finally came Ibn Mujahid and was the first to restrict his work on the famous 7. We find that the Quran commentators were the ones to report as many readings as they could, regardless of authenticity criteria. Their objective was to give all possible nuances of understanding to certain Quran passages. In addition, several writers of the first two Hijri centuries are mentioned as having produced books on qiraat, though their works did not survive. Among them: Yahia ibn Ya'mur (d. 90 H), Aban ibn Taghlib (d. 141 H), Muqatil ibn Sulayman (d. 150 H), Abu Amr ibn al-'Ala (d. 154 H), Za'idah ibn Qudāmah al-Thaqafī (d. 161 H) and al-Akhfash al-Akbar (d. 177 H). 

Uthman's compilation was thus written, as alluded to earlier, in a particular rasm (orthography) which became known as al-rasm al-Uthmani. That orthography included addition, deletion and substitution of letters to make the text easier to read. That rasm made it possible from the beginning for some words to be read in more than one authenticated qiraat/readings/recitations method, going back with strong certainty to the prophet 

“I heard Hisham ibn Hakim ibn Hizam reciting Surat al-Furqan (Sura 25) differently from me, and it was the Messenger of Allah who had recited it to me. I was about to rush up to him but I granted him a respite until he had finished his prayer. Then I grabbed him by his cloak and took him to the Messenger of Allah and said, ‘Messenger of Allah, I heard this man reciting Surat al-Furqan differently from the way you recited it to me.’ The Messenger of Allah said, ‘Let him go.’ Then he said, ‘Recite, Hisham,’ and Hisham recited as I had heard him recite. The Messenger of Allah said, ‘It was sent down like that.’ Then he said to me, ‘Recite’ and I recited the sura, and he said, ‘It was sent down like that. This Qur’an was sent down in seven ways, so recite from it whatever is easy for you.’ ”. 

This undisputed hadith shows 3 major points; the Quran as we have it today, along with its authentically reported variations is preserved just as it was revealed. The second point is that no companion, including Umar ibn al khattab, the 2nd Caliph, quoted above, mastered all the qiraat/recitation types at once. The final point is that the companions were on the lookout for the slightest unapproved variant in recital. 

What had happened to Umar as he came across a mode of recitation other than his for the first time, had also occurred to Ubayy ibn Kaab 

"I was in the mosque when a man entered and prayed and recited (the Qur'in) in a style to which I objected. Then another man entered (the mosque) and recited in a style different from that of his companion. When we had finished the prayer, we all went to Allah's Messenger and said to him: This man recited in a style to which I objected, and the other entered and recited in a style different from that of his companion. The Messenger of Allah asked them to recite and so they recited, and the Messenger of Allah expressed approval of their affairs (their modes of recitation)". 

We see again the same pattern of the close companions being on high alert at all moments to the matter of the transmission and preservation of the Quran. The matter was so dear to Ubayy that 

"there occurred In my mind a sort of denial which did not occur even during the Days of Ignorance". 

Although Ubayy did not verbally express his thoughts, the prophet felt his unease 

"he struck my chest, whereupon I broke into sweating and felt as though I were looking at Allah with fear". 

The prophet engaged him physically so as to bring him out of his state of confusion and make him focus on what he was about to tell him

 "He (the Holy Prophet) said to me: Ubayy. a message was sent to me to recite the Qur'an in one dialect, and I replied: Make (things) easy for my people. It was conveyed to me for the second time that it should be recited in two dialects. I again replied to him: Make affairs easy for my people. It was again conveyed to me for the third time to recite in seven dialects And (I was further told): You have got a seeking for every reply that I sent you, which you should seek from Me. I said: O Allah! forgive my people, forgive my people, and I have deferred the third one for the day on which the entire creation will turn to me, including even Ibrahim (peace be upon him) (for intercession)". 

This state of momentary doubt is something that might affect any believer of the highest degree, even in the presence of a prophet. It is interesting that Christian critics bring this minor issue up of Ubayy's inner feelings as if it is anything similar to what is depicted in their own books; Peter, the pillar of the church and chief of the apostles forcefully denied Jesus after his arrest. Prior to that, he did Satan's work by being a "stumbling block" to Jesus. Judas explicitly gave Jesus up to the authorities. Eventually all of the close circle "forsook him, and fled".

Another instance involving Umar is when he heard a variant from someone who had studied under Ubay ibn Kaab. He immediately took the man to Ubay for confirmation and even made Ubay testify three times that the variant had come from the prophet, prior to letting the man go. It has also been reported that Ubay read 48:26 with the addition 

"and if you had felt disdain like they felt, the masjid e haram would have been corrupted".  

Umar was unaware of that reading and again objected, showing once more how the companions never felt complacent in the preservation of their sacred scripture. Umar did not simply let that pass based on the precedent of their being variants he did not know that proved to be true. He went and asked for the testimony of Zayd ibn Thabit, who sided with him. But upon Ubay's insistence, Umar let him read as he pleased, based on his virtues and trustworthiness in the transmission of the Quran (Al Haakim, Al Mustadrak alal sahihayn). What is clear however is that Ubay did not transmit this reading to his students, because it was an exegetical variant, as seen earlier, approved by the prophet but aimed at helping the companion personally in his own understanding and assimilation of the text. This is supported by 2 important points; Umar was not aware of that recitation although he heard this sura directly from the Prophet on the occasion of Hudaybiyya. And second Ubay's reading through Abu Jaafar, Ibn Kathir, and Abu Amr, does not report this addition (Kitab al Mabani, Muqaddimatan 91-93). 

There is a reverse case with Umar's reading of 62:9 being dropped in favor of Ubay's. This shows that the rule in regards to readings that changed the structure of a word or verse, was to adopt the consensus reading, and that the companions knew that the permissions the prophet had given them in that regard were meant for their personal use. An explicit example is Bukhari's report of ibn Abbas' reading of 26:214. He is sometimes quoted reciting it with additional words and at other times he recites it exactly as is found in the Uthmanic recension. This is because he was aware the different reading was meant for his personal assimilation and elaboration over the text, and that the consensus was to read it according to what has come down to us, and as massively reported through multiple chains.

And if the companions themselves were not aware of every aspect of all readings approved by the prophet, then it is only natural that their students would sometimes encounter the same problem 

"The companions of `Abdullah (bin Mas`ud) came to Abu Darda', (and before they arrived at his home), he looked for them and found them. Then he asked them,: 'Who among you can recite (Qur'an) as `Abdullah recites it?" They replied, "All of us." He asked, "Who among you knows it by heart?" They pointed at 'Alqama. Then he asked Alqama. "How did you hear `Abdullah bin Mas`ud reciting Surat Al- 

Lail (The Night)?" Alqama recited: 'By the male and the female.' Abu Ad-Darda said, "I testify that I heard me Prophet reciting it likewise, but these people want me to recite it:-- 'And by Him Who created male and female.' but by Allah, I will not follow them." 

Both Alqama and Abu Darda recited 92:3 without "ma khalaqa", as we find in today's Quran. Alqama heard it from his master ibn Masud and Abu Darda confirmed the authenticity of that variant as coming from the prophet. But other readers recited differently, according to what their own masters and companions of the prophet taught them, meaning without those leniencies recited by the prophet to his companions. Since the prophet this time was not present to arbitrate, each side remained on a reading traced to the prophet. However the reading of ibn Mas'ud has reached us today and is called the reading of Shu'ba. Yet we do not find this variant in their recital. This shows that it was eventually dropped in favor of the massive consensus/tawattur, the ultimate criterion of preservation of the Quran. Ibn al Jazari (see his Nashr) was thus completely justified in rejecting that reading of 92:3 based on it being transmitted through ahad/isolated report that contradicts the consensus.

Even Ibn Abbas came across a manuscript thinking the scribe had made an error. These errors, such as 24:27 or 17:23 were simply variants he wasnt aware of. They are all present in today's Quran. When he became aware of the authenticity of these readings, he accepted, them, just as Umar quoted earlier. This is because when ibn Abbas was asked 

"Did the Prophet leave anything (besides the Qur'an)?" He replied. "He did not leave anything except what is between the two bindings (of the Qur'an)". 

This declaration is significant because it shows that even in the extreme case where ibn Abbas stuck to an exegetical reading, as is reported concerning 4:24, he still ultimately agreed with the consensus reading that has come down to us. 

As to 24:27, Al-Tabari reports ibn Abbas' comment on it. Ibn Abbas first quotes the conventional reading, after which he juxtaposes his own reading, showing what is already known about the 2 words tasta'nisu/tasta'dhinu being near synonyms. This also proves that he had approved the conventional reading. The situation is similar with 17:23. At Tabari quotes a report where Nusayr ibn abi Al Ashaab says that a person was given a mushaf by ibn Abbas that read wassa instead of qada as we have today. At Tabari then quotes another report where the same reading was found in a mushaf with Nusayr, who then said that wassa and qada are near-synonyms. This shows again that those companions whose mushaf diverged from the consensus in near-synonyms, ultimately adopted the majority reading.

It would be very far fetched for the different scribes to have copied the same error in all of Uthman's commissioned compilations. Further there are cases of reported scribal errors which were swiftly corrected by Uthman, during his compilation of the mushaf 

"I was with ‘Uthmaan when they were presenting the Mus-hafs to him. He sent me to Ubayy ibn Ka‘b with the shoulder blade of a sheep, on which was written, “lam yatasanna” and “laa tabdeelah lil-khalq” and “fa amhil al-kaafireen”. He called for an ink pot and erased one of the two laams (in the word “lil khalq”) and wrote “li khalq-illah (“in the creation of Allah” – referring to the verse “No change let there be in Khalq¬illâh (i.e. the religion of Allâh)” [ar-Room 30:30]). He erased the word fa amhil and wrote “fa mahhil” (“so give respite” referring to the verse“So give respite to the disbelievers” [at-Taariq 86:17]). And he wrote lam yatasannah (“they show no change”, referring to the verse “they show no change” [al-Baqarah 2:259]); he added the letter haa’ to it".

It was the purpose of Uthman's compilation effort, to integrate as many recitations methods as possible in one universal script. Hence the above cases of correction and discarding any defective script that didnt allow that dynamism. Why would he allow a scribal error in all standardized texts to be disseminated when he went to such length in avoiding precisely that? 

There are so many ahadith about the revelation of the Quran in the seven ahruf that Abu Ubayd al Qasim Ibn Sallam (224/838) considered them mutawatir. He rejected only one of those, referring to the seven ahruf as being revealed in seven different meanings. Al Suyuti counted twenty companions among the transmitters of those ahadith. Some of these companions had sometimes several students reporting the hadith from their master. As is the case with Ubay's students, Asim, Humayd or ibn Abi Layla, all considered trustworthy narrators, and earlier sources than even al Zuhri. Same is the case with ibn Masud's student abu al Ahwas whose own students al Sabi'i or abi al Hudayl narrated the hadith on the ahruf. There is a hadith about Uthman asking those present at the mosque of Medina if any of them heard the prophet say 

"The Qur'an has been revealed to be recited in seven ahruf". 

In response, a huge number of them stood up and testified that they had heard this hadith. Uthman in turn testified with them. That is why the prophet, and the scholars have forbidden to argue on this matter or to favor one harf over another 

"Verily this Qur'an has been revealed to be recited in seven ahruf, in every harf you recite you have done so correctly. So do not argue, since this may lead to kufr".

Those questioning the authenticity of the hadith can only rely on weak and disconnected reports to build a case. For instance the unreliable alternate rendering of the hadith, where Hisham's variant occurs at the beginning of an unspecified chapter. Some recent critics have searched for variant readings at a sura's beginning and found that sura Furqan was recited differently at its beginning, by Abdallah ibn al Zubayr. They thus argue that his brother Urwah, who narrated from al Zuhri, might have initiated the idea of variant readings to vindicate his brother's mushaf. But this variant is attributed to al Zubayr 700 years later by Abu Hayyan, making the connection doubtful, besides the tawaatur of the report as stated earlier. 

And important thing to note is that the very acceptance of the 7 ahruf hadith goes against the natural reaction of a scholar. Reported variations in the text or its reading should be dismissed as human errors, especially when the standard text is overwhelmingly available, spread geographically and accepted by all sects. But all the classical scholars accepted the hadith. They already knew about that pre-existing phenomenon, it didnt spring into existence spontaneously but was progressively transmitted from master to student. And even if they wanted to deny that reality, they could not brush off the undeniable authenticity of the hadith. That is why we find no disagreement as to the reality of the 7 ahruf.

And despite this acceptance the Muslim scholars did not question the perfect preservation of the Quran. Not because of a dogmatic position but because of the traditional and empirical evidence. The Quran we read today is slightly different than the one left by the prophet but this does not mean it is not authentic. This goes back to the issue of approved qiraat/readings going back to the prophet. The prophet himself told the Muslims that the Quran can be recited in different ways. The Uthmanic rasm is different in places than the Quran recited by the prophet because Uthman included more than  1 potential Qiraa in his text. And all these potential qiraat he included go back with absolute certainty to the prophet. The issue of Quranic preservation therefore is not affected by whether the Quran we read today is exactly the same as the last recital of the prophet the year he died. These differences, it is to be kept in mind, affect a tiny fraction of the total words of revelation. They have no bearing on the issues of faith unlike variants we see in the history of the Bible, like a variant reading not containing the resurrection tale (codex sinaiticus), Greek quotes of the HB by Paul that change the original Hebrew, or insertions that imply a trinitarian reading of certain passages.

Further reading:

- Islam critiqued searches in the old libraries; the Sanaa manuscripts?

Islam Critiqued seeks the true canon; 1924 Quran edition corrected variant qurans?

In answer to the video "Miraculous Preservation of the Quran: Burying the Myth"

The "Quran of Cairo" uses an elaborate system of modified vowel-signs and a set of additional symbols for minute details and is based on the Hafs reading. This edition has become the standard for modern printings of the Quran, since 1924 when the printing house was established in Cairo. Before that point, the Quran was printed in Istanbul until it ceased being the capital of the caliphate. Again, this is not a different Quran, but one whose Uthmanic rasm was improved over several years until 1924, so as to minimize scribal errors. Many such errors were detected in Quran copies which the Egyptian government used to import prior to 1924. These errors, in modern copies -not in ancient manuscripts-, are irrelevant in determining the authenticity of the Quranic text since they were pointed, and the copies destroyed by sinking them in the Nile river. 

 There are no differences between the Quran printed in Cairo and the ones printed all over the Muslim world. The Cairo edition is based on the well known hafs reading of the prophet himself. There was never any canonization process and debates, revisions over what the Quran's contents had to be. This is exactly what occured with the Bible with different canons over time. Nothing in the history of the Quranic text, even by the furthest stretch of imaginaton and revisionist fantasies, can be compared to the tumultuous 400 years following Jesus' death, which marked the canonization process of the Bible.

Islam Critiqued accuses the caliph; Uthman destroyed competing manuscripts?

In answer to the video "Miraculous Preservation of the Quran: Burying the Myth"

Uthman was leader when the Muslim lands had already expanded over a third of the known world and the Quranic transmission was an on-going phenomenon mainly through memory. It would have been impossible for him, or anyone more powerful than him, to destroy all personal, private copies had there already existed differing traditions on written Qurans and manuscripts spread throughout the empire, let alone destroy all these "alternate" Qurans from the Muslims' memories and prevent their recitation. It should be easy to provide empirical proof for these claims, like in Christianity, where there is manuscript evidence as well as a whole history of textual revisions, disagreements of what should or shouldnt be canonical.

There is nothing even remotely similar in Islam.

Also it is well known how Uthman's control on his own far regions, including Iraq and Egypt was weak. Hence his inability to control the rebellions and the rulers of the farthest regions of his empire, until he was finally assassinated in Medina. These rebels and their rulers who never accepted Uthman's authority and upon whom he had no control did not need to reach the seat of the caliphate to have and propagate their own Qurans in their own regions upon which they had authority, just as their predecessors who never swore allegiance to the previous caliphs. So despite their hatred for the caliphate, these rebels that the caliphs could not even control, magically followed Abu Bakr then Uthman's Quran in their own prayers, abandoning what they thought was God's word for the person they had actually revolted against and assassinated? Not a single source speaks of dispute between competing texts or of a rejection of Uthman's copy in favor of another.

Similarly the tensions surrounding the succession of the prophet had every reason to incite people to alter the Quran in their favor yet we find that all disputes and arguments between leaders and supporters against the opposite camp were never based on the Quran but on sayings of the prophet and his companions. The authoritative consonantal skeleton of the Quran is unanimously traced back to Uthman, not only by the Sunni tradition but also by eir historical enemies like the Kharijites and the Shia. These groups and even sub groups were willing to go to war for their theological positions. They fabricated ahadith in defence of their views yet none ever tampered with the Quran. Not that they were not tempted, rather the oral and textual dissemination was such that corruption became impossible without being detected and discredited. So how could this pan-Islamic consensus have formed at a time when the Islamic community had spread from Spain to Iran, had split into several hostile groups, unless the Quran had attained the level of mass transmission/tawaatur? How could Uthman or even  Abd al-Malik after him, have coerced their various adversaries to adopt "their" version of scripture, in addition crediting Uthman for it? There were other existing recensions, compiled by the prophet's companions such as that of Ibn Masud which he received from Ali ibn Abi Talib, from the prophet. Why didnt the Shia adopt it in order to demarcate themselves from the sunni? They could have in addition credited Ali for the compilation instead of Uthman. Also, variants are all still attested in many scholarly works throughout the centuries, with their chains of transmission, some authentically attested to the prophet and others of weaker authenticity. There is no widescale conspiracy to hide or suppress anything nor would it have been possible by the wildest stretch of imagination. And burning the defective copies did nothing to erase the knowledge of the variants from the hearts of the people, well after Uthman. Why didnt someone or at least a group of people who had preserved their alternate versions, somewhere in the vast caliphate begin the process of rewriting and propagating their own copies allegedly suppressed by Uthman?

It is obvious Uthman, who could not assert his political power in those lands, would not have been able to control something even more complex and dynamic and far ranging, which is the recitation and transmission of the Quran. And if Uthman had his own enemies to the point they revolted in Iraq and Egypt, and marched to Medina to have him assassinated, why would these people agree to Uthman's Quran? They surely would have kept their own "Qurans" but it didnt happen. So how did these multiple Qurans just disappear out of the collective conscience of the hundreds of thousands, if not millions of Muslims, through the introduction of just 6-9 manuscripts, considering the fact that the vast majority of Muslims was illiterate anyway. And all this through the "force" of a man who was assassinated in his own house, as said earlier, unable to assert his political authority, yet he supposedly and just magically controlled all these various competing traditions of not just manuscripts, but RECITED words? We have over 15 years, including Umar's extensive rule of Africa, Asia and parts of Central Asia, to Persia, meaning one is talking about a deeply embedded culture prior to Uthman even taking the reigns of rule. How did all these millions upon whom he in addition had no control line up in such a short-time to relearn and re-memorize the Quran due to a few manuscripts they couldnt even read, and abandon their differing tradition?

The opposition against Uthman, his growing unpopularity, and for which he was eventually assassinated, was due to divergence from the practice of the two preceding caliphs in handling the public trust of the Muslims, and other such issues. But his work relating to the Quran was appreciated equally by his friends and foes and it was never made a point of stigma on him by his adversaries. Had Uthman altered the Quran, that would have served as the clearest argument for, and major justification of, his public assassination.

Anyone thus claiming alterations in the Quran under Uthman, would be at variance with the most elementary reasoning.

Islam Critiqued seeks but cant find; no early quran manuscripts?

In answer to the video "Miraculous Preservation of the Quran: Burying the Myth"

Authenticity of the Quran isnt contingent on whether we have in our hands manuscripts written or approved by Uthman. The authentification and transmission of the Quran was always, since the time of the prophet, primarily oral. The Quran allows such endeavour because it isnt a text whose meaning and applicability is locked in time. And that is why the Muslims have not attached much importance to transmitting the minute detailed meaning of every passage, from the prophet and his companions, but they have instead focused on transmitting the text of the Quran itself. It was always the purpose of the Quran and its sharia to be adaptable accross time and space.

That is why we have very few reports by the prophet giving his interpretation of the Quran. We are not talking of the core messages which are agreed upon, but of passages with multilayered meanings and implications, whose interpretations are open depending on the socio-cultural background or even the scientific knowledge of its contemporaries. These passages are open to many interpretations so long as they do not contradict the firm and unambiguous verses, which the Quran calls muhkam. It is these supposedly "obscure" parts of the book, that most modern critics of Islam use to build their theories on the origins of the Quran. They begin by discrediting the oral transmission process of the Quran based on the presence of these "blind spots" of Quranic exegisis. They think this constitutes proof that the oral transmission chain was broken, hence the absence of a consensus on the meaning of these passages.

These critics then dismiss centuries of accumulated Muslim scholarship, debates on all levels of the religion, textual, historical, sectarian, juristic, exegetical, theological, that led to the conclusions Muslims hold today as regards the Quran's authenticity, and all this, despite their awareness of various layers of meaning to certain passages. The critics then propose readings based on emendation of the text, changing letters and words so as to prove that "their" reading is more in line with what they individually think the message of a specific passage should be. The effortless cohesive theological structure of the text, the intricate connections between all of its passages and words is irrelevant and not worth considering. What is primordial is that their "improved" reading be violently forced into the text so as to integrate the Quran in the wider socio-religious context in which they suppose it came. The main purpose being the find their holy grail, to reveal the underlying sources that inspired it. The end result is an incoherent new book that has nothing to do with the original, with sometimes theological implications that Muslims of the past and today would never agree with. But in their minds, the purpose has been accomplished.

The uniqueness of the Quran as a religious text orally transmitted, is now a pious legend, regardless of the thousands around the world in our own time doing just that, emulating their predecessors. The reality of the matter is that as a result of that revisionist approach to the Quran, all these critics converge on the same grounds; they do not know how the Quran originated, where it came from, and when it first appeared, how and in what language it was written, what form it first took, who was the first audience, how was it transmitted from one generation to another, especially in its early years, when, how, and by whom it was codified.

These are all basic issues taken for granted by scholars dealing with other texts, much older than the Quran. Muslim tradition has for long resolved all these issues. Recent critical scholarship will eventually go back to the initial, much more constructive approach of pionneers in the field, by considering the historicity of the events agreed upon over the centuries by the Muslim scholars, and then try and build up their claims, whatever these might be. The Quran in many places is like a live transcript of a religious community being established. It reflects the context in which it was revealed and that is why the controversial methodology of stripping it from the historical context that the authentic Muslim sources have described for it results in inability to ascertain its context of revelation.

Another similar helpless situation in which the revisionists have put themselves in, but are now progressively back pedaling from, is due to the dismissal of the near totality of the pre-Islamic poetry corpus as unreliable. This left scholars virtually nothing with which to compare the Quran. Western Islamicists were then left with the limitation of etymological studies in order to derive the original, more proper, and of course extremely biased meaning of its words. They began digging for cognates from common Semitic languages like Hebrew or Syriac, presuming that the vocabulary of the Quran is misused and derivative. Its theology too was seen as defective, due to borrowing from Judaism and Christianity, and was thus similarily in need of reinterpretation.

The strong oral tradition is the reason why we find reports stating that the process of compilation was never a priority until memorizers started dying out in battles. The priority given to oral transmission is a phenomenon ongoing today and will remain so. It is irrelevant to Muslims whether we have many or few manuscripts attesting to our Quran, even if those few are found to be filled with errors and differences in comparison to what we have today.

Neither would the availability of early manuscripts confirming the written text we have today, constitue strong proof for the Quran's authenticity. Someone with enough power and authority could have decided to write the first Quran compilation and disseminate it as the original left by the prophet. This however would have only been possible if the Muslim tradition, like the Judeo-Christian one, had neglected its strong oral tradition.

So what would really challenge the Quran's authenticity is whether we have a variety of conflicting and competing traditions, primarily oral. Assuming for argument's sake that there are textual variations among manuscripts, or that we have no manuscripts belonging to Uthman, who by the way wasnt the first but the second compiler of the Quran into book form, is irrelevant, even laughable to a Muslim audience when trying to undermine the Quran's preservation. Because again, that preservation was, is and always will be, primarily oral. Trying to criticize the Quran from that angle is thus a fruitless effort, especially when the critic is coming from a background whose religious texts have a known history of neglectfulness or total loss of textual tradition. Such criticism only is valid from the view point of these critics because in the transmission process of their own tradition, they have entirely disregarded the oral aspect. Written texts and manuscripts thus become crucial to them in order to validate and authenticate their current scriptures and beliefs, even though such attestation in and of itself isnt strong proof of authenticity.

So, coming from such a poor background in terms of oral tradition, it is thus but natural for these critics to boast of their numerous manuscripts in comparison to the Quran, even though these early manuscripts of theirs contradict one another and sometimes are very damaging to their current pillars of faith. To this we may add the revisions and corruptions of the text, unknown or confused authorship, broken transmission chain, or even loss of the language of the person to whom the text is ascribed.

All these, and other issues are problems that plagued the Biblical traditions, even to the point that the majoritarily accepted canons was different throughout the ages, even today with different Judeo-christian traditions having their own canon as God's word. Nothing even remotely similar happened to the Quran.

Again, we are comparing an oral society that made the progressive transition towards written with its first ever book, the Quran, of which we have abounding 1st and 2nd century Hijra manuscripts, comparing it with a well established written society. This Graeco-Roman written civilization is expected to have abounding written evidence for its central scriptures. Yet its manuscript attestation, the earlier we go back to the source, the more scant, obscure and inconsistent it becomes. The theory of late (post 200AH) composition of the Quran has been discarded even among the most hardened revisionists and orientalists, in light of the substantial and constantly increasing discoveries of 1st century hijri (622-719CE) Quranic manuscripts. The total texts extracted from these early manuscripts amount for over 90% of the current Quranic text. Contrast this with the single credit card size manuscript remnant of the NT whose dating is disputed somewhere along the 1st century CE. The issue of individual scribal errors is natural, to anyone who knows the various difficulties of copying a lengthy text prior to the printing era. The more essential question would be whether these individual errors were reproduced on a large enough scale so as to corrupt the majority of the transmitted text. This of course never occurred with the Quran, due to its dual, oral/written, mode of transmission. Even the variant readings, approved by the prophet, recorded and attested in books of tafsir, even those readings that change the skeletal Uthmanic text (a tiny minority of all variants and which are not contradictory), were never scripturally transmitted on a scale that would alter the majority of manuscripts throughout time. This again, attests to the well known and established phenomenon of mass oral transmission, as is done to this very day. These textual variations were for the most part restricted to companion codices, meant for the companions' personal use, hence their label by the scholars as companios' readings.

Islam critiqued keeps sinking; al Hajjaj changes the Quran?

In answer to the video "Miraculous Preservation of the Quran: Burying the Myth"

There is not a single report saying that al-Hajjaj opposed Uthman's recension. Yet many traditions depict him as disparaging other authoritative compilations in circulations, such as the one of ibn Masud. Also, al-Hajjaj was merely the governor of one county -Iraq- of the huge Islamic land without the ability to do the Quran any harm. In Uthman's time itself, countless copies of his codexes were already disseminated far and wide. The phenomenon was even more amplified by the time of al-Hajjaj.

Supposing that he was still able to change the copies of his county how could he reach the 1000s of other ones in other districts, let alone reform and reset the people's memories to his "major alterations"? This is equivalent to saying that should suddenly the king of Saudi Arabia decide to forcefully change the Quran entirely in his own country today, then it would mean those changes could somehow affect the memories and written Qurans of billions worldwide. In his own lifetime, when al-Hajjaj dispatched one of his codices to Egypt, the local governor Abd al-Aziz ibn Marwan, rejected it, then had his own codex produced. Al-Hajjaj's authority in the matter was thus regional at most. He was not in a position to carry out an empire-wide standardization of scripture.

The bottom line is that even by the furthest stretch of the imagination, if one would accept the claim of corruption of the Quran as true, then how does that really impact the remaining oral and written tradition already disseminated far beyond al-Hajjaj's jurisdiction? It is worth reminding that there exists no parallel reports, contemporary or later, through another chain to substantiate the claim as regards al-Hajjaj. No contradiction is ever mentionned between the Codices of Iraq and the other Codices. The Abbassid dynasty that was built upon the ruins of the Umayyads, of whom al-Hajjaj was the most notable governor, did not waste a single occasion to show the Umayyad's negative aspects and effects on Islam in general. And yet we do not hear or read a word as regards this particular controversy, most significant in discrediting an enemy with whom they were at war. If anything, what the historical reports show is that al Hajjaj was very helpful in consolidating the Uthmanic text, not a new one or his own invented one.

That is why the Abbassid caliphs, that supplanted the Umayyads did not destroy al-Hajjaj's copies but instead would tacitly discredit it, by for example, putting it in a box on the side of the pillar adjacent to the minbar in the mosque (Ibn Zabala). Contrary to some critics' claims, al-Hajjaj was very careful in preserving the Uthmanic recension. He for instance immidiately summoned Yazid al-Farisi, the scribe of his predecessor Ubayd Allah ibn Ziyad because of the introduction of 2 alef in 2 verses 23:87,89. Ibn Ziad had done it simply to agree with his Basran dialect. This shows how alteration or tampering with the Quran from al-Hajjaj, or anyone else for that matter, even if minimal, cannot have taken place without any reaction from the contemporary scholars.

The background of al-Hajjaj's compilation effort is this. His governorship came at a time of great political turmoil in Iraq between the shiite Kufans and the ruling Umayyads. Tension had already started in the time of his predecessor ibn Ziyad. The Kufans, partisans of Ali ibn abi Talib as the rightful successor of the prophet, symbolized their political rejection of the Umayyad by clinging to the recital of ibn Masud from the prophet. Ibn Ziyad, Al-Hajjaj's predecessor, would for example provoke the Kufans by reciting suras 113 and 114 in prayer, as it is known that ibn Masud had not included them in his compilation. Al-Hajjaj was even bolder in his provocations. He would mock and discredit ibn Masud as well as his recital

"How I wonder about Ibn Masud! He claimed to have read the [original] Quran of God. I swear by God that it is just a piece of rajaz poetry of the Bedouins".

Al-Hajjaj also reportedly said

"Ibn Masud is the chief of hypocrites. If I had lived in the same time as his, I would have soaked the ground with his blood ’”.

He would often threaten the Kufans should they not cease following the reading of ibn Masud (Asim ibn Bahdala). His hatred for his Kufan enemies, whose recital according to ibn Masud continuously symbolized the rejection of the Umayyad caliphate, was such that Al-Hajjaj swore that he would erase this reading from the mushaf

"even if it would be with a rib of a swine".

But because he could not do so, as he knew it would be tantamount to rejecting the Quran itself, what he did instead is conducting a major standardization project of the Quranic text. Only then, would he be able to exclude ibn Masud's reading in some instances from the skeletal text.

The initiative was supported by the central government in Damascus. Al-hajjaj selected memorizers, readers, gramarians and scribes from Basra only. Just as Uthman before him used as a blueprint AbuBakr's collection that was in Hafsa's hands, al-Hajjaj used the private mushaf of Uthman, which was then in the possession of the family of Uthman (Al-Baqillani). And, just like his predecessor, as the work of the project approached its end, al-Hajjaj destroyed the texts in circulation that differed from the Uthmanic recension. Of course he did not miss the occasion to destroy ibn Masud's copy so as to progressively make the people forget his reading. This however did not work as his reading, going back to the prophet, is still known today. It is none other than the reading of Aasim through ibn Masud from the prophet. The great reciter Aasim had preserved 2 readings from the prophet. Al-Hajjaj obviously knew he needed to do more to make the people forget the reading of ibn Masud. His standardized text did not allow the reading of ibn Masud, just as today for example one reading the Hafs text does not allow for other authentic readings, because its vowelization and dotting corresponds to strictly one reading. Al-Hajjaj then decreed that in the mosques of the major cities one was only allowed to recite from the new codices. Malik ibn Anas said

"The recitation of the Quran from the mushaf was not an old tradition among the people. The first to introduce it was al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf".

However, even on this point, he was unsuccessful. Especially in the anti-Umayyad city of Kufa where people would not give credit to their enemy by using his text.

In this atmosphere of hatred between the 2 camps, Shiites and Umayyads, al-Hajjaj could have never done the slightest alteration to the text itself and go unnoticed. The rejection of al-Hajjaj's compilation was never due to his changing or corruption of the text. None of his numerous enemies, let alone the other Muslims spread all over the territories on whom he had no jurisdiction, ever accused him of corruption. All that al-Hajjaj did to the Uthmanic text was adding sura titles, sura and paragraph divisions, dotting on certain similar looking consonants. In a tradition going back to Yahya ibn abi Kathir (d 129/747)

"The Quran was bare [of all diacritics] in the masahif. The points on the ya and ta were the first points to have been introduced. They said: ‘It does not go against the Quran. It will make the text of the Quran clearer ’”.

The introduction of diacritical points in the text was an innovation, although dotting was already practiced in pre-Islamic times. The first compilers of the Quran simply chose not to use dots so as to secure the text in a double preservation method. None would be able to correctly read it without being first introduced to the proper recital.

Al-Hajjaj further comissioned the assembly to count the verses, words and consonants. The differences in figures that came to us were due to whether the vowelized script was included in the counting or not. Different readings could also result in a different count, or whether the basmalla was included as part of the suras or not. All the numbers are very close, except in ibn Masud's count. Clearly in that case, a copyist error reported some 40.000 consonants and 500 word differences with the other counts. Had such a Quran been in circulation the Muslim word would have known it, even more so al-Hajjaj and his partisans who had every reason to discredit it.

Islam Critiqued is now a hadith scientist; no isnad for Zayd sources?

In answer to the video "Miraculous Preservation of the Quran: Burying the Myth"

The Quran was transmitted, learned and passed down both verbally and in script form, on a scale never seen for any document, let alone religious. Any unbiased individual can see this is a process which is still continuing today. But the primary source of transmission was always oral. All written texts were dependent on it and it still is the case today as all written texts must be attested by the oral tradition of transmission through a Hafiz. Again, this simply is a statement of fact. Writing down was only meant to consolidate the process of oral preservation.

This is what the novices to Islam, which is the case of most of its self-proclaimed critics, fail to grasp. They approach Quran authenticity with their own scriptural history in mind, thinking that the Quran was put to writing out of thin air. This dual method of control, textual but mainly oral, which was never practiced by the transmitters of the Bible, made it impossible for any tampering as it would immediately be detected by the thousands of memorizers in all corners of the Muslim territories. The number of people having transmitted the Quran is so vast that any error in the transmission, textual or oral, became impossible. This is why the Quran is labelled "mutawattir", a level of authenticity attributed to an oral transmission when it has been related exactly the same way by countless independant sources.

Extremely few ahadith have been labelled as such or reached the level of multiple independant sources as the Quran.

Most ahadith are based ahad reports or singular transmissions.

Further and in contrast to the Quran, the ahadith require isnad (detailed chain of transmission) to be validated, because the earliest communities often disputed and argued about the veracity of these statements. The Quran never required any isnad to gain a sense of credibility and authenticity because the text and veracity of the Quran was agreed to by a consensus of the earliest Islamic communities. Despite the abundance of 1st-2nd century hijra manuscripts, there is zero proof that the Quran was transmitted in anyway other than tawatur. Hence the position of mainstream academia as regards the authenticity of the Islamic narrative of compilation, preservation, transmission of the text and recitals. See further below.

Islam Critiqued investigates deeper; Zayd's job was difficult? His request for multiple witnesses discredits the oral transmission claim?

In answer to the video "Miraculous Preservation of the Quran: Burying the Myth"

Zayd ibn Thabit was the main scribe along with several other prominent Qurayshis tasked by Uthman to compile the Quran in book form. The same Zaid Ibn Thabit was involved with the collection during Abu Bakr's time as well, collecting the revelation in the form of suhuf or loose pages, from both oral as well as written sources that were in the prophet's house. Zayd remembered how

"the prophet was taken from this life while the Quran had not yet been gathered into a book".

The use of "gathered" instead of "written" is significant as it proves its existence in written form, although scattered on different supports. Zaid, after gathering all that was physically available, then demanded two witnesses for each piece, attesting to its oral transmission. Here Zaid was just following the prophet's dual authentication method, oral/textual. It is to be noted, none, not even the prophet himself as attested in the traditions, is able to recite flawlessly from memory each and every time. That is why the Quran was transmitted through massive consensus, with reciters and laymen checking one another for errors, in addition strengthening the transmission process using their physical copies.

To corroborate this great care in performing the task entrusted to him, there are at least 2 recorded incidents where Zayd would not validate a verse despite knowing it by heart from the prophet's mouth, until he found it in written form between the hands of a reliable believer. This was the case concerning the last 2 verses of sura tawba/bara'a, known and cross checked through the memory of several reciters including Zayd, and yet he would not include it in the text unless corroborated by a written copy. Once the unique hard copy of 9:128-129 was found between the hands Abu Khuzaimah al-Ansari it confirmed what the comitee of compilers, including  Umar, Uthman, Zaid and Ubay bin Kaab had already memorized and were looking for in the first place. There has never been any doubt across the spectrum of Islamic sects as to the authenticity of these 2 verses.

Other reports show how this double testimony denied even Umar's claim of the missing verse about stoning, because he was the only one to make the claim.

This authentication process was even more stringent than the one the other religious texts (hadith, tafsir, fiqh etc.) would later be put through, which already is in itself a method unsurpassed in the world for any other document, let alone religious. This is how serious, meticulous and careful Zayd was in accomplishing his mission

"By Allah, if he (Abu Bakr) had ordered me to shift one of the mountains (from its place) it would not have been harder for me than what he had ordered me concerning the collection of the Qur’an".

Zayd is here speaking retrospectively and implying how the succesfully completed task was a heavy duty obviously hard to accomplish considering the level of care he had imposed upon himself. 

This highly noble assignment, entrusted to the young Zayd, did cause resentment among some of the older companions, the most vocal of whom was Abdullah ibn Masud. That resentment was further fueled by the fact ibn Masud had to give up his own personal mushaf. The early Muslims held their Quran writings in high esteem, and ibn Masud compiled his own in greater part based on the recitation learned from the prophet in person. But he now had to give it up in favor of Zayd's approved standardized rasm/orthography. Zayd's compilation was superior to ibn Masud in that its rasm could absorb many potential qiraat while the scripts of the individual copies held by Muslims could not be read in all qiraat. 

It is only natural that he, out of pride, who hold on to his "superior" mushaf and by the same token try and discredit Zayd 

"'O you Muslim people! I am removed from recording the transcription of the Mushaf and it is overseen by a man, by Allah, when I accepted Islam he was but in the loins of a disbelieving man' - meaning Zaid bin Thabit - and it was regarding this that 'Abdullah bin Mas'ud said: 'O people of Al-'Iraq! Keep the Musahif that are with you, and conceal them. For indeed Allah said: And whoever conceals something, he shall come with what he concealed on the Day of Judgement (3:161). So meet Allah with the Musahif.'" Az-Zuhri said: "It was conveyed to me that some men amongst the most virtuous of the Companions of the Messenger of Allah disliked that view of Ibn Mas'ud". 

In this correct rendition of Az-Zuhri's report in Jami' al Tirmidhi, not the misleading translation often used among Islam critics ("Avoid copying the Mushaf and the recitation of this man") several important things transpire. Firstly, the leading companions disapproved of that selfish, prideful stand from ibn Masud. Second, what ibn Masud really resented was not Zayd's capabilities. Rather it was Uthman's decision not to appoint him instead of Zaid as leader of the 2nd committee for the compilation. Al Asqalani discusses that particular point, saying ibn Masud simply was absent from Medina when Uthman urgently appointed the committee. He was in Kufah. Furthermore, because Uthman did nothing more than reproduce the pages compiled under Abu Bakr into one mushaf, and that Zayd Ibn Thabit had already been among the top scribes charged of that compilation, then it was natural to designate him to lead that 2nd compilation. 

The other issue ibn Masud had was in giving up his precious mushaf, which he was emotionally attached to 

"whenever the prophet and Jibril finished reciting to eachother, i would recite to the prophet as well and he would inform me that my recitation was eloquent". 

As already pointed, Zayd was already entrusted with a similar task under Abu Bakr and ibn Masud didnt voice any objection then, as he was now doing under Uthman. Uthman chose Zayd for his experience under Abu Bakr. Despite his initial opposition, ibn Masud eventually understood Uthman's plan and agreed with his effort, surrendering his personal mushaf. As later attested by ibn Qurazi, the mushaf of ibn Masud which he used for recitation and teaching was no different, including in its sura sequence, than the ones of Ubayy and Zaid ibn Thabit. The names of his most illustrious pupils and their transmission of the entire 114 suras of the Quran is also known, names like Alqama, al Aswad, Masruq and many others. 

The spurious reports by the historians, saying Uthman ordered the beating of ibn Masud are "fabrications" according to ibn al Arabi and some of the "most well known lies" according to al Dhahabi. The reality is that despite temporary tensions, Uthman and ibn Masud had high regard for one another, with Uthman even leading the funeral prayer at ibn Masud's death in Medina (ibn Saad/Tabaqat).

Islam critiqued wakes up with the wrong foot; variant readings prove no oral transmission? Different readings by same reciter? No codices of ibn masud?

In answer to the video "Miraculous Preservation of the Quran: Burying the Myth"

Each of the authentic readings is attested all the way to the prophet. So how exactly does an oral phenomenon disprove oral transmission??

It is to be kept in mind that a qiraa is a mode of recitation. A recitation is orally transmitted by one reciter to the next going back to the prophet himself. That is why the fame and spread of a qiraa is in itself testimony of its authenticity and the less it is used the more its legitimacy can be questionned. One cannot create a recital in a vacuum and impose it on the masses, passing it off as authentically received from the prophet. This has never hapenned and never will. The process by which a particular recitation imposed itself was gradual, as it was transmitted from teacher to student. Had there been other mass transmitted qiraat than the 10, it would have been inevitably known. Their spread and use among the Muslims in itself would have provided a major argument for their authenticity, as with the 10.

Sometimes one and the same teacher reciter, taught a different qiraa to a different student. That is nothing new contrary to that youtuber's pompous tone.

Hafs quoted Aasim as saying that the qiraa he taught him was that of as-Sulami, from Ali ibn Abi Talib, from the prophet, while the one that he taught his other main student Shu'ba, was that of Zirr ibn Hubaysh, from ibn Mas’ud, from the prophet. That is why we find that, Shu’ba and Hafs, who studied under the same reciter Aasim, differed from each other in around forty places.

The differences between the 10 readings lie in the manner in which the basic Uthmanic text (absence of vowels and dots) was read. This formidable flexibility of the text allows for people of all cultural-linguistic backgrounds to choose which Quranic Arabic is easier for them to pronounce. As stated earlier, besides the purpose of protecting the text from corruption by locking it with the oral tradition, the defective script allowed the preservation and integration of most authentic readings into the Uthmanic mushaf. Other authentic readings which modified the skeletal text could not be accommodated and thus people progressively ceased reciting them. This is a view shared by al Dani, Ibn al Arabi, Ibn Taymiyya, and Ibn al Jazari.

These readings are preserved till this day, the names of the most prominent teachers, and their illustrous students, eachone reciting exactly as his predecessor taught him. The name given to a particular qira'a/reading was after its most excellent or famous reciter, not necessarily after the one that first transmitted it from the prophet. The various readings, all of which are based on the very same text, are actually an integral part of the Quran's miraculous eloquence, with words carrying multiple but complementary meanings whether in areas of story-telling, beliefs or even divine laws.

What is further remarkable is that there are "only" 10 readings while the basic script allows for many times more reading possibilities, with all of them making sense. This in itself is enough to dispel the notion that the 10 qiraat were due to a defective arabic script, rather than inherited by the oral tradition we already know to exist and is well attested. An evident example to corroborate is that of the skeletal m-l-k in surah fatiha read maalik or malik. The word appears in several other places where both reading could equally be applied yet the only place with divergent readings is sura fatiha. This is because the readers were not free to apply their preferences, they were constrained by the sunna of the qiraat. The Sanaa manuscripts have since confirmed this tradition on the qira'at.

(Nicolai Sinai)"Thus, the Sanaa Palimpsest would appear to provide us with an exciting glimpse at a moment in time at which the hegemony of the Quran’s standard rasm had not yet become fully established. This, it must be said, is in line with the general drift of the Islamic tradition, which reports that during the first decades after Muḥammad’s death a variety of quranic recensions were in circulation. Although none of the exact “companion codices” described by Islamic sources have yet been discovered in manuscript, the general types of textual variants ascribed to them correspond to the types of variants found in the lower layer of the Sanaa Palimpsest. 17 The latter thus lends credence to the idea that there was originally more than one recension of the Quran and that the Islamic literary sources preserve a broadly accurate view of the scale and character of textual variance between these different versions of the Arabic scripture".

Among the aspects of the known variant readings confirmed by the most recent scholarly observations is the phenomenon of qira'at tafsiriyya/exegetical recitation. According to Hilali’s general characterization,

“[m]ost of the variations in the lower text include more lengthy text than the corresponding passages in the Cairo edition”.

This has led the major works of Hilali and Sadeghi to conclude that

"the lower text of the palimpsest is derivative from the standard recension".

Hilali further reflects exactly what the Muslim authorities have stated concerning the shaad qiraat. She opines that the authors of the palimpsest integrated interpretative passages into the text without clearly demarcating the 2 because they did not consider their writings to be transmitted to the general public. Their works were meant for personal use. Ibn al Jazari says that some companions would

“insert exegesis into recitation by way of explanation and clarification because they were endeavoring to ascertain the true meaning of what they received from the Prophet by way of recitation; they were safe from confusion [between the text of scripture and the explanations added to it], but some of them may have written it [the explanations] down together with it [the recitation].”

These Recitations were accomodating to the major dialects of the Arabs, thus leading to unifying the Arabic language, and validating all of its variations and subtleties. This not only allowed a faster spread of Islam but also solidified and preserved the language, as part of the divine pledge to protect the Quran. Had there not been approved recital variations, going back to the prophet's time himself, it would have opened the door to tampering with the text to adapt it to different dialects. It would have corrupted the meaning of the text. As time passed, the phenomenon of fame and spread of one religious, political center instead of another led in the Muslim world, movement of students and teachers led to some qiraat being supplanted by others more popular ones. Today the one most spread is that of Aasim through Hafs.

There are several examples, among them the known case of m-l-k in sura fatiha that can be read maalik/possessor or malik/ruler. It might say in the Hafs reading of

2:271 "If you give alms...yukaffir/this will cover up some of your evil deeds"

while the Doori reading is

"If you give alms...nukaffir/We will cover up some of your evil deeds".

Both readings perfectly complete eachother, with the latter saying Who will provide the covering (God) and the former saying through which action (charity). 9:66 is very similar with Hafs saying

"If we pardon/naafu a group of you we shall punish/nuaadhib another group"

while Doori says

"If a group of you is pardonned/yuaafa another group will get punished/tuaadhab".

Doori explains what the contrasting behaviors spoken of in the passage will result in (a group will be pardonned while another will be punished) and the Hafs says Who will grant forgiveness or inflict punishment. Another similar complementary example is 2:10 in Hafs

"a painful chastisement in what they lied/yakthibun"

while in Doori it is

"a painful chastisement in what yukathibun/they gave the lie/they made a lie".

Both readings come together and reveal that their lie is twofold, consisting in knowingly misrepresenting something that is true. One can give the lie to someone or something by exposing the truth about it, which is commendable. One the other hand one might give the lie to someone/something by inventing a falsehood about him/it, which is a twofold crime deserving punishment. Again in 6:115 Hafs

"And the word/kalimatu of your Lord has been accomplished truly and justly; there is none who can change His words"

while Doori reads

"And the words/kalimaatu of your Lord have been accomplished truly and justly; there is none who can change His words".

The singular kalima refers to God's word in the sense of his promise as amply used in the Quran while the use of the plural kalimaat in the Doori reading reveal that this promise is none other than the words of this book. A last example to corroborate is 43:23 Hafs

"He said/qaala: What! even if I bring to you a better guide than that on which you found your fathers?"

While Doori reads

"Say/qul: What! even if I bring to you a better guide than that on which you found your fathers?".

Hafs is quoting a prophet, but Doori explains that the words of this prophet were directly inspired by God.

It is also to be noted that despite their claims of variant readings due to alleged different texts, a statement and conclusion they attribute to Ibn Masud and Ubayy Ibn Kaab, the critics, namely Arthur Jeffery failed to produce any statement from either these 2 men implying that what was in the Uthmanic recension was not from the prophet.

In fact from the manuscript evidence shown by his collegue Bergstrasser, Jeffery concedes the lack of textual differences in the 'texts' attributed to Ibn Masud and Ubayy Ibn Kaab when compared to the Uthmanic text. The true difference these 2 mushafs had with the universal form was in their arrangement of suras, which in itself has no bearing on the message of the Quran. Each sura works as an independent unit and does not follow a chronological narrative.

That is why the scholars agree that it isnt compulsory to follow this universal order in recitation, memorization or prayer. The prophet himself is reported to have recited during prayer and at once suras 2 then 4 then 3. Ibn Kaab and ibn Masud might simply have grouped the suras in a sequence they found more suited for their needs and likings. Some reports describe the companions as even excluding certain known and well established suras from their codices, or adding extra chapters and words of ritual prayers.

As to the omissions, a known instance is that of ibn Mas'ud who did not write al fatiha in his mushaf. When asked why, he said that if he were to do so, he would write it before every sura. Ibn Mas'ud thus deliberately left the most famous suras -al fatiha and the muawidatayn- out of his mushaf for the sake of brievty. These 3 suras were so widely memorized, including among children, as is the case today, that he deemed it useless to preserve them in writing. We have early manuscripts (DAM 01-25.1 and DAM 20-33.1) testifying to its presence in the Quran in the 1st century of hijra. It is also immediately followed by al-Baqara.

Again, variant readings go back to the prophet, who even encouraged them. There is a report describing the prophet even praying God to allow those differences. A typical case, as shown earlier from both Muslim and non Muslim scholarship, would be the addition of explanatory words or word substitutions. They have been reported in tafsir and fiqh works, whenever the author wanted to present different opinions. For example Tabari mentions a report where ibn Mas'ud, whose recital he learned from the prophet and which is still preserved today, read 20:96 with the addition of the word "faras". This was an explanatory addition, and the prophet allowed his companions to recite the Quran together with these modifications, additions, word replacement with near-synonyms or substractions to simplify the meaning or the pronounciations. His concern was to get the message through. This leniency was however meant for them because they were under the prophet's supervision, as appropriately noted by professor Déroche quoted earlier. That is why we do not find those readings among the students of the companions. We do not find for instance ibn Masud's slight variant of 51:58 although his recital has reached us, through his own students. And if some exceptions "leaked" from the companion to his student, as was the case of 92:3, then they were eventually dropped in light of the consensus reading as we have it today. See further below on that point.

The important notion to keep in mind is that the companions were not free to invent a reading, unless approved by the prophet. The incident detailed further below, of Umar and Hisham wouldnt have occured had there been individual freedom in the Quran's recitation.

The prophet was not only communicating the Quran, but teaching it as he deemed fit according to his companions' linguistic or comprehension sensitivities. When these modifications were meant as a personal side note, the reciter would not instruct his pupils to include them in their recital. But he would keep using them as a method of elaboration on the meaning of the Quran. One of ibn Abbas' pupils, al-Makhzumi for instance noted that had he learned the qiraa'a of ibn Masud, he would not have asked as many questions as to the meaning of the Quran to his teacher ibn Abbas.

The recital of ibn Mas'ud as we have it today, therefore does not include these modifications. This proves that the "irregular recitations" were never intended to be anything other than oral, serving the purpose of assistance in understanding and memorizing the skeletal text. As noted by al-Tabari, this flexibility was a "rukhsa"/leniency by the prophet and it was not an obligation for all Muslims to learn and transmit them. This leniency by the prophet was not an arbitrary decision but stemmed directly from the Quranic principle that 

54:17"We made this Qur'an easy to bear in mind; who, then, is willing to take it to heart?"

The scholars have called these types of variations in the companions' recital qiraa'at tafsiriyya/exegetical recitations. Some of them go back to the prophet, and others dont. For instance 5:89 was discussed by al Ghazzali who argues that this reading, although attributed to ibn Masud is neither part of the Quran, nor going back through tawaatur to the prophet. Consequently, it should be considered as his own legal interpretation/madhab. Al Ghazzali quotes Abu Hanifah as having adopted this madhab although Abu Hanifah too, like al Ghazzali did not accept this addition as part of the Quran. He accepted it as an isolated report that, in his view and because of ibn Masud virtues, was sufficient evidence for practice. Al Ghazzali, contrary to abu Hanifah, argues that this reading cannot even be considered valid for practice because of it being an isolated report. It has not come down to us as a sunnah of the prophet through another chain and in none of the hadith compilations. It is to be noted that None of Abu Hanifah's disciples, including al Shaybani, opposed their teacher's opinion. Neither did any of them argue that this reading had to be part of the canon. The Most of what his successors stated is that the reading did circulate in the prophet's time until its abrogation prior to his passing. But ibn Masud continued using it, not as a canonized reading rather as a legal basis for a specific ruling. As appropriately noted by al Jassas, had this reading of ibn Masud not been abrogated prior to the prophet's passing, then it would not have been an ahad/isolated report. Rather 

"it would have necessarily been transmitted to us in the same manner as the rest of the Qur’an: mass-transmission and profuse narration, such that no-one doubts it being a part of it". 

On the other hand we have cases of attested textual variants going to the prophet in which the reading elaborates on the generality of the text 

"Ibn 'Umar said that Allah's Apostle then recited this verse:" O Apostle, when you divorce women, divorce them at the commencement of their prescribed period". 

In this reading of 65:1, the prophet adds the words "at the commencement". This clearly was an exegetical reading to narrow down the application of the verse to the situation to which ibn Umar was confronted. The same was the case with ibn Abbas' reading of 2:198 which al Suyuti rightly categorized as mudraj reading, ie explanatory reading 

"If you seek of the bounty Of your Lord (during the Hajj season)". 

One should keep in mind, the variant readings whether occuring during or after the prophet have no bearing on the issue of the Quran's authentic transmission. The prophet himself, as already seen, allowed and even prayed Allah to reveal the Quran in different modes/ahruf, of which ibn Masud's reading was part of. The purpose was, as already stated to accomodate each one's eloquence, dialect and understanding of the revelation, which never was supposed to be a rigid text but a multifaceted one. After the prophet's death, when by massive consensus the community agreed upon the Uthmanic recension, whose defective script allowed for many of those readings to be absorbed, either completely or partially, then those readings that did not agree with the Uthmanic recension were marginalized. It is the case of ibn Masud's reading which became obsolete in certain very few instances, such as 5:89 or ibn Umar in 65:1. If such readings were retained by Uthman in the skeletal text, they would have prevented its dynamism, not allowing any other reading in those instances. In ibn Masud's case, even though his reading of 5:89 was generally marginalized by the adoption of the Uthmanic recension, it however kept being used mainly by his students and Kufan partisans, not as part of the canon, but as basis for their legal rulings. None, including ibn Masud, opposed Uthman's consonantal text. Finally, even if a single reading among all those going to the prophet was preserved in the Uthmanic recension, it would still mean that the Quran as we have it today is authentic and approved by the prophet.

Another relevant example is ibn Masud's exegetical reading of 5:38 as aymanihuma/their right hand. That reading narrows down the conventional reading aydiyahuma/their hands which covers a broad range of understandings. It could apply to the left or right hand, not both simultaneously, hence the use of the plural instead of the dual. The prophet applied this penalty and did not cut both hands. The conventional reading could as well apply to any part of the hand from the fingers up to the elbow. 

This type of variants became extinct and the reciters who used them did not teach them to their students as parts of the reading they learned from the prophet, except in some cases by ibn Masud although he never opposed the Uthmanic text. Uthman's compilation does not reproduce these modifications in its skeletal structure and yet it was unanimously accepted as authorative in all corners of the caliphate, even while Uthman's political authority was challenged to the point he was assassinated.

Those who recited the Quran with these modifications, such as ibn Mas'ud or Ubay, were among the comitee in charge of compiling the mushaf of Uthman and never voiced their opposition to it not representing their exegetical recitations. Yet they are known to have argued on different matters relating to the compilation process.

It is to be noted, out of the approximately 500 reported instances of differences with the Uthmanic codex, only 20 are authenticaly traceable to a companion, similar to the case of ibn Mas'ud's recital mentionned earlier. There is a reason why the early bibliographer, ibn an-Nadim reported that among the many codexes attributed to ibn Masud and that sprung up after his death, no 2 were in complete agreement.