I continue from where I previously left off: THE FRAUD THAT IS ALI ATAIE: THE SATANIC VERSES PT. 1.

In this post I will refute Ataie’s assertion that Q. 22:52 was “sent down” eight years after Muhammad recited the verses which Satan caused him to utter.

THE QURAN’S DISJOINTED AND HAPHAZARD COMPOSITION

What Ataie deceitfully withheld from his audience and what he dishonestly failed to mention is that the Islamic sources clearly attest that particular verses would be added later on to specific surahs which were composed or recited separately or independently from the texts in question.

As Christian apologist John Gilchrist noted in his response to this very same objection raised by another Muhammadan:

Zafrulla Khan, in one of his typically bold but completely inaccurate statements, says: “The Holy Quran excludes emphatically any idea of Satan being capable of influencing any righteous person, let alone a prophet or messenger” (Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets, p. 45). This claim is seriously undermined by Surah 22.52 which makes the exact point that the writer is at pains to deny. Another somewhat more credible defence is offered by a Muslim commentator on this verse:

Moreover, it is absolutely inconceivable that such an important incident as the Prophet’s having accepted the intercession of idols should have been mentioned in the Qur’an eight years after it happened. The 53rd chapter, in which the change is said to have taken place, was revealed before the fifth year of the Prophet’s call, while this chapter was revealed on the eve of the Prophet’s departure from Makkah. (Ali, The Holy Qur’an, p. 658).

The argument, however, does not take into account the well-established fact that most of the Surahs of the Qur’an are composite chapters of various passages dating from different periods, often made up of both Meccan and Medinan verses. In an introduction to Surah 22 in his translation of the Qur’an, Richard Bell says:

The surah has in fact become quite disjointed. Vv. 51-53, addressed to the prophet personally, are quite out of connection. (Bell, The Qur’an Translated, Vol. 1, p. 316).

He goes on to give possible occasions for the inclusion of the verses mentioned and allows for an earlier date than the main body of the Surah. It is therefore quite possible that Surah 22.52 dates prior to the rest of the Surah and refers directly to the occasion of the “satanic verses“. W. M. Watt, in another book, comments on the same verse:

This passage is a justification for some previous alteration in the text of the Qur’an; one strand of tradition holds that it applies to verses originally proclaimed as following 53.19,20. (Watt, Companion to the Qur’an, p. 156).

The strand referred to is the Ibn Ishaq/Tabari source aforementioned. We must surely conclude that Surah 22.52 is a Qur’anic reference and clue to the story of the concession to the pagan Meccans when we consider that there is no other occasion suggested in the Islamic tradition literature for the revelation of this verse. Muslim commentators who reject the link identified in the Ibn Ishaq/Tabari strand nevertheless cannot suggest an alternative incident or event which can explain the statements made in the verse.

The other verse which appears to allude to the occasion of the “satanic verses” is this one which helps us in some measure to see the inner workings of Muhammad’s mind:

And their purpose was to tempt thee away from that which We had revealed unto thee, to substitute in Our name something quite different: (In that case), behold! They would certainly have made thee (their) friend! And had We not given thee strength, thou wouldst nearly have inclined to them a little. Surah 17. 73-74.

This verse also appears to refer to the same occasion, in particular the yearnings felt by Muhammad for a reconciliation with his kinsmen which led to the ejaculation in favour of their goddesses. Once again no reasonable alternative suggests itself. There is no other occasion in Muhammad’s life referred to in the sources to which these enlightening verses can relate. Furthermore, as with Surah 22.52, we are not proposing a convenient link between the verses and the story. Ibn Sa’d plainly states that they were revealed in consequence of Muhammad’s concession to the pagan goddesses and his subsequent reversion to his original position (Ibn Sa’d, Kitab at-Tabaqat al-Kabir, Vol. 1, p. 237). (Gilchrist, Muhammad and The Religion of Islam, 3. THE NATURE OF MUHAMMAD’S PROPHETIC EXPERIENCE, C. Satan’s Interjection and its Implications, 4. Support for the Story in the Qur’an.; bold emphasis mine)

The following ahadith and Islamic sources corroborate Gilchrist’s point:

Narrated Ibn ‘Abbas: “I said to ‘Uthman bin ‘Affan:

‘What was your reasoning with Al-Anfal – while it is from the Muthani (Surah with less than one-hundred Ayat), and Bara’ah while it is from the Mi’in (Surah with about one-hundred Ayat), then you put them together, without writing the line Bismillahir-Rahmanir-Rahim between them, and you placed them with the seven long (Surah) – why did you do that?’ So ‘Uthman said: ‘A long time might pass upon the Messenger of Allah without anything being revealed to him, and then sometimes a Surah with numerous (Ayat) might be revealed. So when something was revealed, he would call for someone who could write, and say: “Put these Ayat in the Surah which mentions this and that in it.” When an Ayah was revealed, he would say: “Put this Ayah in the Surah which mentions this and that in it.” Now Al-Anfal was among the first of those revealed in Al-Madinah, and Bara’ah among the last of those revealed of the Qur’an, and its narrations (those of Bara’ah) resembled its narrations (those of Al-Anfal), so we thought that it was part of it. Then the Messenger of Allah died, and it was not made clear to us whether it was part of it. So it is for this reason that we put them together without writing Bismillahir-Rahmanir-Rahim between them, and we put that with the seven long (Surahs).’”

Grade: Hasan (Darussalam)

English reference: Vol. 5, Book 44, Hadith 3086

Arabic reference: Book 47, Hadith 3366 (suunah.com https://sunnah.com/urn/640920; emphasis mine)

Narrated Uthman ibn Affan:

Yazid al-Farisi said: I heard Ibn Abbas say: I asked Uthman ibn Affan: What moved you to put the (Surah) al-Bara’ah which belongs to the mi’in (surahs) (containing one hundred verses) and the (Surah) al-Anfal which belongs to the mathani (Surahs) in the category of as-sab’u at-tiwal (the first long surah or chapters of the Qur’an), and you did not write “In the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful” between them? Uthman replied: When the verses of the Qur’an were revealed to the Prophet, he called someone to write them down for him and said to him: Put this verse in the surah in which such and such has been mentioned; and when one or two verses were revealed, he used to say similarly (regarding them). (Surah) al-Anfal is the first surah that was revealed at Medina, and (Surah) al-Bara’ah was revealed last in the Qur’an, and its contents were similar to those of al-Anfal. I, therefore, thought that it was a part of al-Anfal. Hence I put them in the category of as-sab’u at-tiwal (the seven lengthy surahs), and I did not write “In the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful” between them.

Grade: Da’if (Al-Albani)

Reference: Sunan Abi Dawud 786

In-book reference: Book 2, Hadith 396

English translation: Book 3, Hadith 785 (sunnah.com https://sunnah.com/abudawud/2/396; emphasis mine)

Ahmad narrated in al-Musnad (4/218) with a hasan isnaad from ‘Uthmaan ibn Abi’l-‘Aas that he said: “I was sitting with the Messenger of Allaah when he fixed his gaze on something, then lowered his gaze until he was almost looking at the ground, then he gazed at something. He said, ‘Jibreel came to me and told me to put this aayah in this place in this soorah:

“Verily, Allâh enjoins Al-‘Adl (i.e. justice and worshipping none but Allâh Alone Islâmic Monotheism) and Al-Ihsân [i.e. to be patient in performing your duties to Allâh, totally for Allâh’s sake and in accordance with the Sunnah (legal ways) of the Prophet in a perfect manner], and giving (help) to kith and kin (i.e. all that Allâh has ordered you to give them, e.g., wealth, visiting, looking after them, or any other kind of help), and forbids Al-Fahshâ’ (i.e. all evil deeds, e.g. illegal sexual acts, disobedience of parents, polytheism, to tell lies, to give false witness, to kill a life without right), and Al-Munkar (i.e. all that is prohibited by Islâmic law: polytheism of every kind, disbelief and every kind of evil deeds), and Al-Baghy (i.e. all kinds of oppression). He admonishes you, that you may take heed.” [al-Nahl 16:90 – interpretation of the meaning].’”…

Al-Qaadi Abu Bakr said in al-Intisaar: “The order of the aayahs is something that is obligatory and binding. Jibreel used to say (to the Prophet), ‘Put such and such an aayah in such and such a place.’”…

Al-Baghawi said in Sharh al-Sunnah: “The Messenger of Allaah used to instruct his companions and teach them what was revealed to him of the Qur’aan in the order in which it appears in our Mus-hafs now, the order which Jibreel taught him. When each aayah was revealed, Jibreel would tell him, this aayah is to be written after such and such an aayah in Soorah such and such. Thus it is clear that the efforts of the Sahaabah were limited solely to gathering the Qur’aan in one place, not to arranging its order. The Qur’aan is written on al-Lawh al-Mahfooz in this order, then Allaah sent it down in its entirety to the first heaven, whence it was revealed in stages as it was needed, and the order in which it was revealed is not the order in which it is recited.” (Islamqa, The order of Soorahs and Aayahs in the Qur’aan)

And here are a couple of hadiths that affirm that, despite the ninth chapter being the last surah that Muhammad composed, the last verse he recited was actually Q. 4:176:

Narrated Al-Bara: The last Sura that was revealed was Bara’a, and the last verse that was revealed was: “They ask you for a legal verdict, Say: Allah’s directs (thus) about those who leave no descendants or ascendants as heirs.” (4.176) (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 6, Book 60, Number 129 https://www.searchtruth.com/book_display.php?book=60&translator=1&start=0&number=129)

Narrated Al-Bara: The last verse that was revealed was: ‘They ask you for a legal verdict: Say: Allah directs (thus) about Al-Kalalah (those who leave no descendants or ascendants as heirs).’ And the last Sura which was revealed was Baraatun (9).  (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 6, Book 60, Number 177 https://www.searchtruth.com/book_display.php?book=60&translator=1&start=0&number=177)

Other traditions state that the last verse Muhammad recited was the one on usury (Riba) in Q. 2:275:

Narrated Ibn Abbas: The last Verse (in the Quran) revealed to the Prophet was the Verse dealing with usury (i.e., Riba). (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 6, Book 60, Number 67, https://www.searchtruth.com/book_display.php?book=60&translator=1&start=0&number=67)

11 Business Transactions

(4c) Chapter: Usury – Section 3

‘Umar b. al-Khattab said:

The last verse to be sent down was that on usury (Al-Qur’an 2:275) but God’s Messenger was taken without having expounded it to us; so leave aside usury and whatever is doubtful. Ibn Majah and Darimi transmitted it.

Reference: Mishkat al-Masabih 2830

In-book reference: Book 11, Hadith 69 (sunnah.com https://sunnah.com/mishkat/11/69)

Whatever the case maybe, the fact that Q. 2:275 and 4:176 were only added after these respective surahs were compiled lends support to Q. 17:73-75 and 22:52 being initially composed to address the fact of Satan causing Muhammad to magnify the pagan goddesses, and were therefore originally separate from the surahs which they came to be placed in.

In other words, these verses were only added much later into the surahs that presently contain them.

Moreover, Muhammad would even go so far as to correct and modify certain verses due to his changing circumstances and/or unforeseen problems that caught him by surprise, as we find in the following examples:

Q. 2:284-286

(The messenger believeth in that which hath been revealed unto him from his Lord…) [2:285]. The Imam Abu Mansur ‘Abd al-Qahir ibn Tahir informed us> Muhammad ibn ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Ali ibn Ziyad> Muhammad ibn Ibrahim al-Bushanji> Umayyah ibn Bistam> Yazid ibn Zuray‘> Rawh ibn al-Qasim> al-‘Ala’> his father> Abu Hurayrah who said: “When Allah, exalted is He, revealed to His Messenger the verse (… and whether ye make known what is in your minds or hide, Allah will bring you to account for it…) [2:284], the prophetic Companions found this hard to cope with. They went to the Messenger and said: ‘We have been entrusted with works that we can not bear: the prayer, fasting, Jihad, almsgiving; and now Allah has revealed to you this verse which we are not able to bear’. The Messenger of Allah said to them: ‘Do you want to say as the people of the two Scriptures said before you? — the narrator said: I think he quoted the verse (We hear and we rebel!) [2:93] — Say, rather, (We hear, and we obey. (Grant us) Thy forgiveness, our Lord. Unto Thee is the journeying)’. When they heard this, they did not answer. Allah revealed after this (The messenger believeth in that which hath been revealed unto him from his Lord…) the whole verse, and Allah ABROGATED it by His revelation (Allah tasketh not a soul beyond its scope…) [2:286] to the end of the verse”. This report was narrated by Muslim from Umayyah ibn Bistam. Muhammad ibn Ibrahim ibn Muhammad ibn Yahya informed us> his father> Muhammad ibn Ishaq al-Thaqafi> ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Umar and Yusuf ibn Musa> Waki‘> Sufyan> Adam ibn Sulayman who said: “I heard Sa‘id ibn Jubayr relating from Ibn ‘Abbas who said: ‘When the verse (… and whether ye make known what is in your minds or hide, Allah will bring you to account for it…) was revealed, objection crept into the hearts of the prophetic Companions as it never did before. The Prophet said to them: Say, ‘we hear and we obey’. Allah then revealed (Allah tasketh not a soul beyond its scope), up to His saying (or miss the mark) upon which he said: You did. (Al-Wahidi https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=86&tSoraNo=2&tAyahNo=285&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=2; bold and capital emphasis mine)

He repeated this with each sentence of this verse until the end of it’”. This was narrated Muslim from Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah from Waki‘. The commentators of the Qur’an said: “When the verse (and whether ye make known what is in your minds or hide, Allah will bring you to account for it) was revealed, Abu Bakr, ‘Umar, ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn ‘Awf, Mu‘adh ibn Jabal and a group from the Helpers all went to the Prophet. They kneeled down and then said: ‘O Messenger of Allah! By Allah no other revealed verse of the Qur’an is harder on us than this one. One of us speaks to himself with things that he does not like to remain in his heart even in exchange for the world and all that it contains. And now we are taken to task for the things that we speak to our own selves. By Allah, we are doomed’. The Messenger of Allah said: ‘This is how it was revealed!’ They said: ‘We are ruined; we have been bound by that which we cannot possibly bear’. The Messenger of Allah said: ‘Are you going to say as the Children of Israel said to Moses (We hear and we rebel!); say rather: We hear and we obey’. They said: ‘We hear and we obey’. This was extremely hard on them, and they remained in this situation FOR A YEAR upon which Allah, exalted is He, sent down relief and repose with His saying (Allah tasketh not a soul beyond its scope…) WHICH ABROGATED THE VERSE BEFORE IT. The Prophet said: ‘Allah has pardoned my community for the things with which they speak to themselves as long as they do not act upon them or speak about them to others’ ”. (Ibid. https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=86&tSoraNo=2&tAyahNo=285&tDisplay=yes&Page=2&Size=1&LanguageId=2; bold and capital emphasis mine)

Q. 4:95

Narrated Al-Bara: There was revealed: “Not equal are those believers who sit (at home) and those who strive and fight in the Cause of Allah.” (Q. 4:95) The Prophet said, “Call Zaid for me and let him bring the board, the inkpot and the scapula bone.” Then he said, “Write: Not equal are those Believers who sit …”, and at that time ‘Amr bin Um Maktum, the blind man was sitting behind the Prophet. He said, “O Allah’s Apostle! What is your order for me (as regards the above Verse) as I am a blind man?” So, instead of the above verse, the following verse was revealed: “Not equal are those believers who sit (at home) except those who are disabled and those who strive and fight in the cause of Allah.” (Q. 4:95) (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 6, Book 61, Number 512 https://www.searchtruth.com/book_display.php?book=61&translator=1&start=0&number=512)

Q. 8:65-66

Then He said: ‘O prophet, God is sufficient for thee and the believers who follow thee. O prophet, exhort the believers to fight. If there are twenty steadfast ones among you they will overcome a thousand unbelievers for there are hundred of you they will overcome a thousand unbelievers for they are senseless people,’ i.e. they do not fight with a good intention nor for truth nor have they knowledge of what is good and what is evil. Abdullah b. Abu Najih from ‘Ata’ b. Abu Ribah from ‘Abdullah b. ‘Abbas told me that WHEN THIS VERSE CAME DOWN it came as a shock to the Muslims who took it hard that twenty should have to fight two hundred, and a hundred fight a thousand. So God relieved them AND CANCELED THE VERSE WITH ANOTHER SAYING: ‘Now has God relieved you and He knows that there is weakness amongst you, so if there are a hundred steadfast they shall overcome two hundred, and if there are a thousand of you they shall overcome two thousand by God’s permission, for God is with the steadfast.’ (‘Abdullah) said, ‘When they numbered half of the enemy it was wrong for them to run from them; but if they were less than half they were not bound to fight and it was permissible for them to withdraw.’ (The Life of Muhammad, A Translation of Ibn Ishaq’s Sirat Rasul Allah, with introduction and notes by Alfred Guillaume [Karachi Oxford University Press, Karachi, Tenth Impression 1995], p. 326; bold and capital emphasis mine)

Allah said next, commanding the believers and conveying good news to them…

<If there are twenty steadfast persons among you, they will overcome two hundred, and if there be a hundred steadfast persons, they will overcome a thousand of those who disbelieve.>

The Ayah says, one Muslim should endure ten disbelievers. Allah abrogated this part later on, but the good news remained. `Abdullah bin Al-Mubarak said that Jarir bin Hazim narrated to them that, Az-Zubayr bin Al-Khirrit narrated to him, from `Ikrimah, from Ibn `Abbas, “When this verse was revealed…

<If there are twenty steadfast persons among you, they will overcome two hundred…> it became difficult for the Muslims, when Allah commanded that one Muslim is required to endure ten idolators. Soon after, this matter was made easy…

<Now Allah has lightened your (task)>, until…

<they shall overcome two hundred…>

Allah lowered the number [of adversaries that Muslims are required to endure], and thus, made the required patience less, compatible to the decrease in numbers.” Al-Bukhari recorded a similar narration from Ibn Al-Mubarak. Muhammad bin Ishaq recorded that Ibn `Abbas said, “When this Ayah was revealed, it was difficult for the Muslims, for they thought it was burdensome since twenty should fight two hundred, and a hundred against a thousand. Allah made this ruling easy for them and abrogated this Ayah with another Ayah…

<Now Allah has lightened your (task), for He knows that there is weakness in you…>

Thereafter, if Muslims were half as many as their enemy, they were not allowed to run away from them. If the Muslims were fewer than that, they were not obligated to fight the disbelievers and thus allowed to avoid hostilities.” (Tafsir Ibn Kathir http://www.alim.org/library/quran/AlQuran-tafsir/TIK/8/64; bold emphasis mine)

Q. 25:68-70

Narrated Said bin Jubair: Ibn Abza said to me, “Ask Ibn ‘Abbas regarding the Statement of Allah: ‘And whoever murders a believer intentionally, his recompense is Hell.’ (4.69) And also His Statement: ‘…nor kill such life as Allah has forbidden, except for a just cause …..except those who repent, believe, and do good deeds.’ ” (25.68-70) So I asked Ibn ‘Abbas and he said, “When this (25.68-69) was revealed, the people of Mecca said, “We have invoked other gods with Allah, and we have murdered such lives which Allah has made sacred, and we have committed illegal sexual intercourse. So Allah revealed: ‘Except those who repent, believe, and do good deeds and Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.’ (25.70) (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 6, Book 60, Number 288 https://www.searchtruth.com/book_display.php?book=60&translator=1&start=0&number=288)

It, therefore, makes absolute sense and perfectly fits Muhammad’s pattern that he would immediately correct his glorification of the three chief goddesses of the Meccans, thereby lapsing into idolatry, by expunging his praise of them and replacing that with a strict denunciation of their existence and worship.

With the foregoing in perspective, we are now ready to proceed to the final part of my response: THE FRAUD THAT IS ALI ATAIE: THE SATANIC VERSES PT. 3.  

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