1000000031

MAH

I n the

tCl1th

year Ali w:\s [cut into

Y~:mnn

to pro- duc.:d to thcir

prcrl..'nt

ord..::r,

lhe

vtr(e fr('m \'Jhence fuch

}l:lr..HC

the

~l ohal1lmt.d,ln

(aith

th~rc,

and, as ie is f:.tid,

(¡dc

was takt:n did

nOl

al",'ays happl!n .to bcgin ¡he

eh"p.

convertcd the \Vhole: (libe

(.r

Ihmd.ln

in one

dJy.

T hdr

ter. Sorne chaptcrs h;tve t\t O or m0rt! lides, occ.,rioncd

t:xampl<

w~s

quic!dy

folJowc:d

by ..

lhe

inhotbitants of

lhe

diffc,cncc: o(

lhe C(11)i":5.

th:tt

pro\'incc txcept

only ¡hofe of N ..jran, wllo, bcil1g

Sorne

" f

the chapters

hdving

been rcvealed

EvIecca,

ChriU i.lns.

chúre

rathf.#

p;ty

lril ,ute.

and othcrs

l\1edlna. (he: nOling this dilfcrtnc<:

m~b:s

Thus was 1\1oh.lmml:dirin dlablilhcd, and idolatry pan of (he!

litle :

Llll lhe reader \Vdl o!Jfc:rve that Jneral

Tootld OU t, e\'en in Moh3lllmcd's Jife·time (for he dicd of ,he eh.ptcrs

are

raid

ha\'c bten

re\'c~lcd

partly at

the neXt

ye~r)

thruughoul

~J1

Arahitt, exapt only

Y~ma

Mecea, and pan ly at ivít:din:\

and, ¡:¡s tO others, It i9

ma, where

tlloreil~Il1.t ,

\Vilo fce up alCo (or a pr..,phct as yet a dirpute among lhe commenta.lQrs

which place of

l\1ohalllnled 's compctitor, h:'ld

::t

greal party, .nd was che

1\VO

they belong .

nOl rcduced {iJl lhe K h:tli Cat of Abu Uecr: and the A-

Evuy

chaptcr is fubdivided into fmaller pon ;ons, of

Ttlbs.

b~ing

lhen unitcd in one ftlidl and lloder ooe print:e. very uoequal lengt h

~I fo,

which we cuaomarily c:\1I

v~'rfu:

fOLlod themfch·es in a condition oC

makln~

thoCe conquefis, bUI lhe Ardbic word

A)'ol,

the fame \,vil h lhe

~c:brtw

which exteodc:d lhe 1\1ohammedao faith over fo great a

0/1,;/ /1,

aod fignifies

Jignl.

'WonduJ;

(uch as are tite

palt

Ihe world.

rt:crets of God . his

altribute~,

works, judgments, aod

úf

Ihe

Kl)ran.

T he

\V~rcl

KOrtlfl,

derivcd from die ordin:ilncC's, oelivered in thofe verfes;

m~ny

of which

verb karaa,

rend,

figolfics properly. in Arabie,

Ihe

have their panicular lides alfo, impofl'dirl lhe (ame mao ..

reading,

or, rttther,

11:01

"Which ough/ lo

rt'atl;

by ncr as thofe of (he chapters.

which namethe

Mohammedd.ns

denote OOt only the entire

Be(ides there unequal di\'i(ions of ch:tPler aod verfe,

book or volu me of lhe ICoran, but alfo aoy particul:\r lhe IVfoh:tmmedans have alfo diyided Iheir Koran ioto

chapter or fcél ioo of

il;

jufl as the j ews call either lhe G:<ty equ:il1 portions, which they call Ahzab, in tht:

tin·

whole fcripture, or aoy pan of it, by lhe oame of Karah, glJlar H izb, each rubdivided ioto four equal parts ; which

or Mikra, words of lhe fame origin and importo See !\L- ís alfo an imitation of lhe J cws. who

hav~

ao ;tncient di·

COR AN .

vifion of their M i(hma ioto fixty portioos called

~13 ffic.

Befide this peculiar oame, the Koran is alfo honoured [Qth: bUl lhe Kor:.to is more ufually c!i\'ided ioto tllitt y

with feveral appeJl.u ioos. commoo

other books of (eétioos only, named Ajza, from lhe (jogular Joz. each

fcripture: as,

.Fa,.~anJ

from lhe verb

foraAa, lo di-

of twice lhe length of the former. aod io the like maooer

vide

dijl¡nguiJb;

not, as the Mohammedao doaors fubdivided imo fou r pllU . Thefe divi(joos are for lhe

fay, becaufe ,hofe books are dividcd into ¡;hapters or fee- ufe of (he readas of the Koran in the royal temples, or

tions, or diflioguifh betweeo good and evil

bUI in lhe in [he adjoioiog chapels

wh~re

the emperors anJ great

fame ootioo thal rhe J ews ufe lhe word Perek, or Pírk:il, men are interred, There are thirty of thefe readers be.

from Ihe fame root, tO deoote a fellion or pon ion of longing to every chapel, and each reads his feétion every

fcriplure,

is alfo called al Mofhaf.

Ihe

tJ~/u"It,

and day, fo thín lhe whole Kora n is read pvcr once a-day.

:all Kitab,

/he

b')ol,

by W;ty of eminenee. whieh anfwas

Next arter lile lide,

the hetl:d of e\,'ery chaptcr, exccpt

to the

Biblia

of the G reeks; and al D hikr,

Ihe adllJo-

only the nimh, is prefixed Ihe folJowing folemn formo by

nilion H··whicb

name is alfo given tO [he Pentateuch aod lhe: Mohammedans called the Hifm..llafl, IN TH E NAI'>' E

Gofpel.

THE

MO ST

MERC lrUL

CODí

which form theyconrbnt.

T he Koran is divided into

11 4

Jarger ponions of very ly place ;tt lhe beginning of all their books and writings

une~u:\lleogth,

which we caJl

choPler/,

bUl the Arabians in general, as a peculiar mark or diflinguifhing chara.c.

St)'War,

io the fiogul<ir

Suro,

a word rarely ufed on any teriHic of their religion,

beingcouoled a ron ofiOlpiety

other occafíoo, <ind properly fignifying a row, order, or to omit it. The J ews, for lhe fame pllrpofe, make ure

regular feries

as a courCe of bricks in building. or a of the forOl,

Ihe

l/ame

lile

L OR D,

or,

Ih~

fJome

r::tnk of foJdiers in ao al my ; and is lhe rame io ufe and

of Ihe grcol

GOD : and lhe eanero

Chl'iflia1/J

thttt of,

impon Wilh Ihe Sura, or T ora of lhe J ews, \Vho 4\lfo

I;'e nallu oflht.· Falhrr ,

tJlIJ

o(lh(

S~I1.

ond pllhe 110&

call the 6fty three feaioos of lhe Pentateuch Scddrint, a

Ghojl.

But IvI ohílmmed probably ·(ook lhis form, ;tS he

word

(he fame fi goificatíon.

did m;tny othcr thi ngs, from lhe P erfian

Motgi,

who uft:d

Thefe ch;tpters are OOt io lhe manufcript copies difiin· lO begin thci r books in there \'vorcls.

/J.·nam r (=dnn

guifh cd by thei r

numeric~1

order, but by PílrticuJar tidcs,

bt1~hJbo{ll;ghcr

dadar ;

that ¡s,

/11

¡he

1JalllC

o/ Ihe moji

which are lt1ken foOletimes from

íI;

p;trticular m;ttter trc:al-

11I~rciflll

jujl

Goo.

ed of, or perfon mentioned thereio ; bUl ufllalJy from lhe

T hac are twenty o¡oe chapters of the Koran, which

rira word of notC',

ex::t~l ly

io the fame manncr as the havc this peculi:uit)', thitt lhey bcCio wlth cen;t;o lctters

J cws llave n:lmed their ScditriOl; lhollgh the \\lord from of the alphtlbcl, fome with a fingle onc, others wit h llIore.

which fume chapters are dc:no01iníu ed he very far dinan e,

Thcfe lellcrs lhe Moh ..mlllt:dans bclit've to be the pc,u.

towards tlle middle, or pcrhaps lhe cnd of lhe ch;tptcr ; liar marks of the K"or.m. anu tO conceal fn·eral profocnd

which fc<:Ols ridiculous, But lhe occtlfioo of this feems myrlt rics, the certain nnJedlaoding of whídl, the more

to hae bct:o, tllat the verfe or pitfT:lge whcrtio fu ch word intclligcnt confefs, has

nra

beeo

c0010111ni~.ncd

:lny

ocrurs. was, in point of time, rtH'aled ;\Od eommittcd

mo~t:d.

thci r prcphtt onl.y exccpled. No\\\'i'hlbo.ling

to wliliog before lhe other verfes of the

r., OlC

chaplcr \\·llIch, fomewdl take thchbc'lyof gul'ffing

thei r

me,lI1.

which precede ir in order; and lhe ti tlc bt:inr. givcn tO ing

h)'

tila,.fpccics of

Ci!b,d:t

edllt:t1

the J¡; .....s Notari.

rhe chapter berole ir \Vas complclcd, or t!J1! t.i¡!:lgcs re- kon, ;lnd fuprofc lhe Ic.:ucrs tO H,tnJ for as m,ln)' \\'.)rd ...

VO L.

IJI.

N° 69.

C"f,,¡l¡"g