The Quran is the last holy book that Allah sent down to people. The Quran was sent down to the Prophet Hz. Muhammad (pbuh) through Gabriel (Jibril) and then it reached today through being written down and reported.

 The Quran is a material and spiritual guide for individuals and the community, all classes of people living in any place or time and for the whole life of man. Everybody, from the president to the man in the street, finds the things that are about them in the Quran. They take the knowledge and lessons that are necessary for peace and tranquility both in the world and the hereafter.

The virtues and characteristics of the Quran are stated as follows in verses and hadiths:

* “And this is a Book which We have revealed as a blessing: so follow it and be righteous, that ye may receive mercy.”(al-Anam, 6/155).

* “And this is a Book which We have sent down, bringing blessings and confirming (the revelations) which came before it: that thou mayest warn the Mother of Cities and all around her. Those who believe in the Hereafter believe in this (Book), and they are constant in guarding their prayers.”(al-Anam, 6/92).

* “Do they not ponder on the Qur’an (with care)? Had it been from other than Allah, they would surely have found therein much discrepancy.” (an-Nisa, 4/82).

* “The Qur’an as a guide to mankind also clear (Signs) for guidance and judgment (between right and wrong)…”(al-Baqara, 2/185).

* “The Quran is guidance and glad tidings for those who believe.”(al-Baqara, 2/97).

* “This Quran is a guidance and glad tidings for those who believe.”(Sad, 38/29).

* The following is reported from Harith bin Awar: Once, Hz. Ali said:

“I heard the Messenger of Allah say:

‘Behold! A dissension will come.’ Thereupon, I asked,

‘O Messenger of Allah! What is the way out of it?’ He said,

‘It is to obey the Book of Allah.'(Then Hz. Prophet explained the characteristics of the Quran as follows:

‘It contains all information about what has happened to those communities before you, news of dissensions and tumults that will happen after you and signs of Doomsday. It is the distinguisher between the truth and the falsehood. If anyone seeks guidance elsewhere Allah will lead him astray. It is the strong rope of Allah. It is the reminder with wisdom, and it is the straightest path. It protects souls who obey it from being ruined and misguidance and tongues that recite it from ambiguity.

Scholars of the Qur’an always crave more from it. Reading it again and again never bores its reader; neither does the reader lose any taste by reading it over and over again. Its magnificent wonders that astonish the mankind never end, “They said `We have really heard a wonderful Recital.” (al-Jinn 1). He who utters it, speaks the truth. He who acts according to it, will be rewarded. He who pronounces judgment according to it, will be just. He who invites people to it, will guide them to a straight path.’” (Tirmidhi, Thawabu”l-Qur’an 14, 2908)

* “The Quran is a clear light, wise dhikr and the true way.”

* “The Quran is a rope of Allah extended onto the earth from the sky.”

* “The superiority of the Quran to other words is like the superiority of ar-Rahman to His creatures.”

* “If a person reads a verse from the Book of Allah, it will be a luminous light for him on the Day of Judgment.”

* “Make your houses luminous by performing prayers and reading the Quran.”

The Quran was revealed into the heart of the Prophet (pbuh) in terms of not only its meaning but also its words. That is why, the Quran is called wahy al-matluww (the recited revelation). Therefore, the Quran is the whole of not only meaning but also words. The Quran was not sent down to the Prophet (pbuh) as a whole; it was sent down verse by verse and chapter by chapter.

The Miracle of the Quran

The Quran contains all kinds of principles of creed, deeds and ethics that will make man attain real bliss. It is a great literary miracle in terms of its words and meaning. The Prophet (pbuh) stated the following regarding the issue:

“Every Prophet was given miracles because of which people believed, but what I have been given, is Divine Inspiration which Allah has revealed to me. So I hope that my followers will outnumber the followers of the other Prophets on the Day of Resurrection.”(Bukhari, Fadailu’l-Qur’an, 1)

In fact, the miracles of the other prophets ended as their time passed. The miracle of the Quran will exist until Doomsday. In various verses of the Quran, it is insistently stated that the Quran is a miracle:

 “Say: “If the whole of mankind and Jinn were to gather together to produce the like of this Qur’an, they could not produce the like thereof, even if they backed up each other with help and support….”(al-Isra, 17/88).