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156-615: The term akhi , derived from the Arabic word for brother, carries a particular religious connotation derived from the Quran , which instructs “the believers are but brothers.” Specifically, the brother was the leader of the organization, as chosen by his fellow members, who were known as fityan (youths). Ibn Battuta , in his travels through Anatolia, identifies the Akhiya and Futuwwa (Order of Youth, Chivalry) as interchangeable terms, both of which described

312-469: A revelation directly from God ( Allāh ). It is organized in 114 chapters ( surah , pl. suwer ) which consist of individual verses ( āyah ). Besides its religious significance, it is widely regarded as the finest work in Arabic literature , and has significantly influenced the Arabic language . It is the object of a modern field of academic research known as Quranic studies . Muslims believe

468-472: A Janissary revolt deposed Sultan Selim III , who had tried to modernize the army along Western European lines. This modern army that Selim III created was called Nizam-ı Cedid . His supporters failed to recapture power before Mustafa IV had him killed, but elevated Mahmud II to the throne in 1808. When the Janissaries threatened to oust Mahmud II, he had the captured Mustafa executed and eventually came to

624-473: A Young Brother or Akhi who was chosen by all the other men of the brotherhood to be the leader. This man was typically unmarried, but could also be a married man or even a city elite. In some cases, the Akhi could even be someone who already held a high government position himself. The Akhi was responsible for building and furnishing the city hospice. He was also the one to entertain guests when they visited and stayed at

780-588: A bell" and A'isha reported, "I saw the Prophet being inspired Divinely on a very cold day and noticed the sweat dropping from his forehead (as the Inspiration was over)." Muhammad's first revelation, according to the Quran, was accompanied with a vision. The agent of revelation is mentioned as the "one mighty in power," the one who "grew clear to view when he was on the uppermost horizon. Then he drew nigh and came down till he

936-494: A bodily resurrection . In the Quran belief in the afterlife is often referred in conjunction with belief in God: "Believe in God and the last day" emphasizing what is considered impossible is easy in the sight of God. A number of suras such as 44, 56, 75, 78, 81 and 101 are directly related to the afterlife and warn people to be prepared for the "imminent" day referred to in various ways. It

1092-404: A compromise with the Janissaries. Ever mindful of the threat that the Janissaries posed, the sultan spent the next years discreetly securing his position. The Janissaries' abuse of power, military ineffectiveness, resistance to reform, and the cost of salaries to 135,000 men, many of whom were not actually serving soldiers, had all become intolerable. By 1826, the sultan was ready to move against

1248-530: A guesthouse for travellers, with hospitality being perhaps the most important virtue to the members. It would be nearly impossible to overstate the extent of the influence these lodges had on the region during the Beylikate Period in Anatolia. Ibn Battuta observed during his travels in the region that “in every district, town, and village, there are to be found members of the organization". G.G. Arnakis identifies

1404-421: A method of recruitment. The prescribed daily rate of pay for entry-level Janissaries in the time of Ahmet I was three Akçes . Promotion to a cavalry regiment implied a minimum salary of 10 Akçes. Janissaries received a sum of 12 Akçes every three months for clothing incidentals and 30 Akçes for weaponry, with an additional allowance for ammunition as well. For all practical purposes, Janissaries belonged to

1560-598: A moustache. These rules were obeyed by Janissaries, at least until the 18th century when they also began to engage in other crafts and trades, breaking another of the original rules. In the late 16th century a sultan gave in to the pressures of the Janissary Corps and permitted Janissary children to become members of the Corps, a practice strictly forbidden for 200 years. Consequently, succession rules, formerly strict, became open to interpretation. They gained their own power but kept

1716-678: A move known as the Slaughter of the Knezes . According to historical sources of the city of Valjevo , the heads of the murdered men were put on public display in the central square to serve as an example to those who might plot against the rule of the Janissaries. The event triggered the start of the Serbian Revolution with the First Serbian Uprising aimed at putting an end to the 370 years of Ottoman occupation of modern Serbia . In 1807,

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1872-451: A number of ways. They wore unique uniforms , were paid regular salaries (including bonuses) for their service, marched to music (the mehter ), lived in barracks and were the first corps to make extensive use of firearms. A Janissary battalion was a close-knit community, effectively the soldier's family. By tradition, the Sultan himself, after authorizing the payments to the Janissaries, visited

2028-409: A possessed man, a soothsayer , or a magician since his experiences were similar to those claimed by such figures well known in ancient Arabia . Welch additionally states that it remains uncertain whether these experiences occurred before or after Muhammad's initial claim of prophethood. The Quran describes Muhammad as " ummi ", which is traditionally interpreted as 'illiterate', but the meaning

2184-602: A process that has been described as "civilianization". The janissaries were a formidable military unit in the early centuries, but as Western Europe modernized its military organization and technology, the janissaries became a reactionary force that resisted all change within the Ottoman army. Steadily the Ottoman military power became outdated, but when the janissaries felt their privileges were being threatened, or outsiders wanted to modernize them, or they might be superseded by their cavalry rivals , they would rise in rebellion. By

2340-458: A result of the sultan taking his traditional one-fifth share of his army's plunder in kind rather than monetarily; however, the continuing enslaving of dhimmi constituted a continuing abuse of a subject population. For a while, the Ottoman government supplied the Janissary corps with recruits from the devşirme system. Children were drafted at a young age and turned into soldiers in an attempt to make

2496-475: A result, the Janissaries were extremely well-disciplined troops and became members of the askeri class, the first-class citizens or military class. Most were of non-Muslim origin because it was not permissible to enslave a Muslim. It was a similar system to the Iranian Safavid , Afsharid , and Qajar era ghilmans , who were drawn from converted Circassians , Georgians , and Armenians , and in

2652-725: A series of wars with the Safavid Empire and, after 1593, with the Habsburg monarchy . By 1609, the size of the corps had stabilized at approximately 40,000 men, but increased again later in the century, during the period of the Cretan War (1645–1669) and particularly the War of the Holy League (1683–1699). During the initial period of formation, Janissaries were expert archers , but they began adopting firearms as soon as such became available during

2808-603: A single folio of a very early Quran , dating back to 1370 years earlier, was discovered in the library of the University of Birmingham , England. According to the tests carried out by the Oxford University Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit, "with a probability of more than 95%, the parchment was from between 568 and 645". The manuscript is written in Hijazi script , an early form of written Arabic. This possibly

2964-400: A special kind of prosody reserved for this purpose called tajwid . During the month of Ramadan, Muslims typically complete the recitation of the whole Quran during tarawih prayers. In order to extrapolate the meaning of a particular Quranic verse, Muslims rely on exegesis , or commentary rather than a direct translation of the text. The word qur'ān appears about 70 times in

3120-522: A square is set up and the king or lord of the day ;( māliki yawmi-d-dīn ) comes and shows his shin; looks are fearful, are invited to prostration; but those invited in the past but stayed away, cannot do this.( Al-Qalam 42-43) Some researchers have no hesitation that many doomsday concepts, some of which are also used in the Quran, such as firdaws , kawthar , jahannam , maalik have come from foreign cultures through historical evolution . According to M. Shamsher Ali , there are around 750 verses in

3276-508: A surah dedicated to his mother Mary in the Quran. According to As-Saff 6, while he is a harbinger of Muhammad, Sunnis understand that Jesus continues to live in a sky layer , as in the stories of ascension , preaches that he will return to the earth near apocalypse , join the Mahdi , will pray behind him and then kill the False Messiah ( Dajjal ). While belief in God and obedience to

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3432-467: A traveler in town, he would be housed at the hospice and the food bought would go to him every day until he left to continue his travels. The brotherhoods were set up in newly conquered Ottoman towns and could be found throughout Anatolia in every town and village. In some cases, such as in Bursa , the brotherhood could fully set up within a town in around five years. but it took time to develop influence amongst

3588-575: Is "a sign of the hour." Despite the uncertainty of the time is emphasized with the statement that it is only in the presence of God,(43:61) there is a rich eschatological literature in the Islamic world and doomsday prophecies in the Islamic world are heavily associated with "round" numbers. Said Nursi interpreted the expressions in the Quran and hadiths as metaphorical or allegorical symbolizations and benefited from numerological methods applied to some ayah/hadith fragments in his own prophecies. In

3744-618: Is "widespread and well-funded". Individuals connected with the movement include Abdul Majeed al-Zindani , who established the Commission on Scientific Signs in the Quran and Sunnah ; Zakir Naik , the Indian televangelist; and Adnan Oktar , the Turkish creationist. Ismail al-Faruqi and Taha Jabir Alalwani are of the view that any reawakening of the Muslim civilization must start with the Quran; however,

3900-706: Is 'the Day of Judgment,' 'the Last Day,' 'the Day of Resurrection,' or simply 'the Hour.' Less frequently it is 'the Day of Distinction', 'the Day of the Gathering' or 'the Day of the Meeting'. "Signs of the hour" in the Quran are a " Beast of the Earth " will arise (27:82); the nations Gog and Magog will break through their ancient barrier wall and sweep down to scourge the earth (21:96-97); and Jesus

4056-400: Is a great deal of Islamic pseudoscience attempting to reconcile this respect with religious beliefs. This is because, according to Edis, true criticism of the Quran is almost non-existent in the Muslim world. While Christianity is less prone to see its Holy Book as the direct word of God, fewer Muslims will compromise on this idea – causing them to believe that scientific truths must appear in

4212-413: Is a prominent prophet and messenger of God and the most frequently mentioned individual in the Quran, with his name being mentioned 136 times and his life being narrated and recounted more than that of any other prophet. Jesus is considered another important prophet with his fatherless birth,( 66:12 , 21:89 ) special with the expressions used for him, such as the "word" and "spirit" from God and

4368-460: Is a way and method of reciting the Qur'an was developed sometime afterwards. There are ten canonical recitations and they are not to be confused with ahruf. Shias recite the Quran according to the qira'at of Hafs on authority of ‘Asim , which is the prevalent qira'at in the Islamic world and believe that the Quran was gathered and compiled by Muhammad during his lifetime. It is claimed that

4524-622: Is also used in the Arabic language for other scriptures, such as the Torah and the Gospels. The term mus'haf ('written work') is often used to refer to particular Quranic manuscripts but is also used in the Quran to identify earlier revealed books. Islamic tradition relates that Muhammad received his first revelation in 610 CE in the Cave of Hira on the Night of Power during one of his isolated retreats to

4680-453: Is approved because of its familiarity for a certain society and its antithesis munkar means what is disapproved because it is unknown and extraneous. It also affirms family life by legislating on matters of marriage, divorce, and inheritance. A number of practices, such as usury and gambling, are prohibited. The Quran is one of the fundamental sources of Islamic law ( sharia ). Some formal religious practices receive significant attention in

4836-406: Is claimed that the provisions and contents in sources such as the Quran and hadith, apart from general purposes , are contents that reflect the general understanding and practices of that period, and it is brought up to replace the sharia practices that pose problems in terms of today's ethic values with new interpretations . The doctrine of the last day and eschatology (the final fate of

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4992-535: Is rather more complex. Medieval commentators such as al-Tabari ( d.  923 ) maintained that the term induced two meanings: first, the inability to read or write in general; second, the inexperience or ignorance of the previous books or scriptures (but they gave priority to the first meaning). Muhammad's illiteracy was taken as a sign of the genuineness of his prophethood. For example, according to Fakhr al-Din al-Razi , if Muhammad had mastered writing and reading he possibly would have been suspected of having studied

5148-524: Is recited, listen to it and keep silent." The word may also assume the meaning of a codified scripture when mentioned with other scriptures such as the Torah and Gospel . The term also has closely related synonyms that are employed throughout the Quran. Each synonym possesses its own distinct meaning, but its use may converge with that of qur'ān in certain contexts. Such terms include kitāb ('book'), āyah ('sign'), and sūrah ('scripture');

5304-502: Is said to you that was not said to the messengers before you, that your lord has at his Command forgiveness as well as a most Grievous Penalty." Islam regards Abraham as a link in the chain of prophets that begins with Adam and culminates in Muhammad via Ishmael and mentioned in 35 chapters of the Quran , more often than any other biblical personage apart from Moses . Muslims regard him as an idol smasher, hanif , an archetype of

5460-590: The Balkans (predominantly Albanians , Bulgarians , Croats , Greeks , Romanians , Serbs , and Ukrainians ) were taken, levied, subjected to forced circumcision and forced conversion to Islam (in contradiction to traditional Islamic law, which forbids forced conversion), and incorporated into the Ottoman army . They became famed for internal cohesion cemented by strict discipline and order. Unlike typical slaves , they were paid regular salaries. Forbidden to marry before

5616-476: The Ottoman sultan 's household troops. They were the first modern standing army , and perhaps the first infantry force in the world to be equipped with firearms , adopted during the reign of Murad II . The corps was established under either Sultans Orhan or Murad I , and dismantled by Mahmud II in 1826. Janissaries began as elite corps made up through the devşirme system of child levy enslavement, by which indigenous European Christian boys from

5772-668: The Quraysh who were taken prisoners at the Battle of Badr regained their freedom after they had taught some of the Muslims the simple writing of the time. Thus a group of Muslims gradually became literate . As it was initially spoken, the Quran was recorded on tablets, bones, and the wide, flat ends of date palm fronds. Most suras (also usually transliterated as Surah) were in use amongst early Muslims since they are mentioned in numerous sayings by both Sunni and Shia sources, relating Muhammad's use of

5928-517: The Turkish style . Examples include Mozart's Piano Sonata No. 11 (c. 1783), Beethoven's incidental music for The Ruins of Athens (1811), and the final movement of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 , although the Beethoven example is now considered a march rather than Alla turca. Sultan Mahmud II abolished the mehter band in 1826 along with the Janissary corps. Mahmud replaced the mehter band in 1828 with

6084-453: The Uthmanic codex . That text became the model from which copies were made and promulgated throughout the urban centers of the Muslim world, and other versions are believed to have been destroyed. and the six other ahruf of the Qur'an fell out of use. The present form of the Quran text is accepted by Muslim scholars to be the original version compiled by Abu Bakr. Qira'at which

6240-526: The acemi oğlan , as well as avoiding the physical selection, thereby reducing their military value. When Janissaries could practically extort money from the Sultan and business and family life replaced martial fervour, their effectiveness as combat troops decreased. The northern borders of the Ottoman Empire slowly began to shrink southwards after the second Battle of Vienna in 1683. In 1449, they revolted for

6396-402: The bismillahs are counted separately. According to one estimate the Quran consists of 77,430 words, 18,994 unique words, 12,183 stems , 3,382 lemmas and 1,685 roots . Janissaries A janissary ( Ottoman Turkish : یڭیچری , romanized :  yeŋiçeri , [je.ˈŋi.t͡ʃe.ɾ̞i] , lit.   ' new soldier ' ) was a member of the elite infantry units that formed

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6552-554: The culture of Arabs and many nations in their historical neighbourhoods, especially Judeo-Christian stories , are included in the Quran with small allusions, references or sometimes small narratives such as jannāt ʿadn , jahannam , Seven sleepers , Queen of Sheba etc. However, some philosophers and scholars such as Mohammed Arkoun , who emphasize the mythological content of the Quran, are met with rejectionist attitudes in Islamic circles. The stories of Yusuf and Zulaikha , Moses , Family of Amram (parents of Mary according to

6708-474: The dervish saint Haji Bektash Veli , disciples of whom had blessed the first troops. Bektashi Order served as a kind of chaplain for Janissaries. In this and in their secluded life, Janissaries resembled Christian military orders like the Knights Hospitaller . As a symbol of their devotion to the order, Janissaries wore special hats called "börk". These hats also had a holding place in front, called

6864-412: The devşirme because it offered a possibility of social advancement. Conscripts could one day become Janissary colonels, statesmen who might one day return to their home region as governors, or even Grand Viziers or Beylerbeys (governor generals). Some of the most famous Janissaries include George Kastrioti Skanderbeg , an Albanian feudal lord who defected and led a 25‑year Albanian revolt against

7020-404: The devşirme was extended to include Armenians , Bulgarians , Croats , Hungarians , Serbs and later Bosniaks , and, in rare instances, Romanians , Georgians , Circassians , Ukrainians and southern Russians . This "child levy" system was regularly implemented during the 15th-16th centuries, the first two centuries of its existence. Some historians argue this system contributed to

7176-418: The "kaşıklık", for a spoon. This symbolized the "kaşık kardeşliği", or the "brotherhood of the spoon", which reflected a sense of comradeship among the Janissaries who ate, slept, fought and died together. When a non-Muslim boy was recruited under the devşirme system, he would first be sent to selected Turkish families in the provinces to learn Turkish , the rules of Islam (i.e. to be converted to Islam) and

7332-472: The 1440s. The siege of Vienna in 1529 confirmed the reputation of their engineers, e.g. sappers , and miners . In melee combat, they used axes and kilijs . Originally in peacetime, they could carry only clubs or daggers , unless they served as border troops. Turkish yatagan swords were the signature weapon of the Janissaries, almost a symbol of the corps. Janissaries who guarded the palace (Zülüflü Baltacılar) carried long-shafted axes and halberds . By

7488-477: The 1453 capture of Constantinople , the defeat of the Mamluk Sultanate of Cairo and wars against Hungary and Austria . Janissary troops were always led to the battle by the Sultan himself, and always had a share of the loot . The Janissary corps was the only infantry division of the Ottoman army. In battle the Janissaries' main mission was to protect the Sultan, using cannon and smaller firearms, and holding

7644-540: The 17th century. In response to foreign threats, the Ottoman government chose to rapidly expand the size of the corps after the 1570s. Janissaries spent shorter periods of time in training as acemi oğlan s, as the average age of recruitment increased from 13.5 in the 1490s to 16.6 in 1603. This reflected not only the Ottomans' greater need for manpower but also the shorter training time necessary to produce skilled musketeers in comparison with archers. However, this change alone

7800-510: The Akhiya served to protect their communities and faith at a time when the boundaries between principalities were loose at best. As the Ottomans under Orhan began to consolidate power, they began to absorb many of the functions of the brotherhoods, leaving them intact while the empire remained nascent. The brotherhoods would form the core of Ottoman communities, afforded an elite status and respect by

7956-458: The Bible conveyed from any source are called Israʼiliyyat and are met with suspicion. The provisions that might arise from them, (such as the consumption of wine ) could only be "abrogated provisions" ( naskh ). The guidance of the Quran and Muhammad is considered absolute, universal and will continue until the end of time . However, today, this understanding is questioned in certain circles, it

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8112-770: The Flood , struggle of Abraham with Nimrod , sacrifice of his son occupy a wide place in the Quran. The central theme of the Quran is monotheism . God is depicted as living, eternal, omniscient and omnipotent (see, e.g., Quran 2:20 , 2:29 , 2:255 ). God's omnipotence appears above all in his power to create. He is the creator of everything, of the heavens and the earth and what is between them (see, e.g., Quran 13:16 , 2:253 , 50:38 , etc.). All human beings are equal in their utter dependence upon God, and their well-being depends upon their acknowledging that fact and living accordingly. The Quran uses cosmological and contingency arguments in various verses without referring to

8268-460: The Janissaries in favour of a more modern military. The sultan informed them, through a fatwa , that he was forming a new army, organised and trained along modern European lines. As predicted, they mutinied, advancing on the sultan's palace. In the ensuing fight, the Janissaries' barracks were set aflame by artillery fire, resulting in 4,000 Janissary fatalities. The survivors were either exiled or executed, and their possessions were confiscated by

8424-466: The Janissary corps in 15th century. The Janissaries were kapıkulları (sing. kapıkulu ), "door servants" or "slaves of the Porte ", neither freemen nor ordinary slaves ( köle ). They were subjected to strict discipline, but were paid salaries and pensions upon retirement and formed their own distinctive social class. As such, they became one of the ruling classes of the Ottoman Empire, rivalling

8580-519: The London music scene. The Military and Mystic Orders of Akhis is a masonic progressive order established in the United Kingdom. Membership is by invitation, and members must be subscribing of a regular Craft Lodge and subscribing a Mark Master Masons Lodge. Quran The Quran , also romanized Qur'an or Koran , is the central religious text of Islam , believed by Muslims to be

8736-416: The Ottoman military. In the classical period, Janissaries were only one-tenth of the overall Ottoman army, while the traditional Turkish cavalry made up the rest of the main battle force. According to David Nicolle , the number of Janissaries in the 14th century was 1,000 and about 6,000 in 1475. The same source estimates the number of Timarli Sipahi , the provincial cavalry which constituted the main force of

8892-403: The Ottoman states efforts at conversion and "Islamization" of its non-Muslim populations. Radushev states this recruitment system can be bisected into two periods, its first, or classical period, encompassing those first two centuries of regular execution and utilization to supply recruits; and a second period which more focuses on its gradual change, decline, and ultimate abandonment, beginning in

9048-598: The Ottomans . Another was Sokollu Mehmed Paşa , a Bosnian Serb who became a grand vizier, served three sultans, and was the de facto ruler of the Ottoman Empire for more than 14 years. The Janissaries were no exception to the weakening of central imperial authority in the 18th century. Trade and commercial activity replaced the disciplined military service of earlier centuries, and the Janissaries were willing to engage in violent acts of rebellion to protect their private interests in an increasingly decentralized and chaotic Ottoman Empire. The Janissary corps were distinctive in

9204-477: The Ottomans “clean up force” as they would move into a town and settle it. They held such tremendous power in some places that local Christian guilds were often forced to merge with the brotherhoods for their own livelihoods. This allowed the brotherhoods to quickly take control of the areas urban areas. Eventually, the Akhi Brotherhoods became trade guilds and lost their autonomy as they became elements of

9360-435: The Qur'an as a crime of apostasy punishable by death under sharia , it seemed impossible to conduct studies on the Qur'an that went beyond textual criticism . Until the early 1970s, non-Muslim scholars of Islam —while not accepting traditional explanations for divine intervention— accepted the above-mentioned traditional origin story in most details. University of Chicago professor Fred Donner states that: [T]here

9516-407: The Qur'an was revealed to Muhammad in seven different ahruf (meaning letters; however, it could mean dialects, forms, styles or modes). Most Islamic scholars agree that these different ahruf are the same Qur'an revealed in seven different Arabic dialects and that they do not change the meaning of the Qur'an, the purpose of which was to make the Qur'an easy for recitation and memorization among

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9672-500: The Quran and is an important part of Islamist / jihadist indoctrination today, as well as Shiite teachings, hence ma'ruf and munkar should be the key words in understanding the Quran in moral terms as a duty that the Quran imposes on believers. Although a common translation of the phrase is " Enjoining good and forbidding evil ", the words used by Islamic philosophy determining good and evil in discourses are " husn " and "qubh". The word ma’ruf literally means "known" or what

9828-400: The Quran as a call to Islam, the making of prayer and the manner of recitation. However, the Quran did not exist in book form at the time of Muhammad's death in 632 at age 61–62. There is agreement among scholars that Muhammad himself did not write down the revelation. Sahih al-Bukhari narrates Muhammad describing the revelations as, "Sometimes it is (revealed) like the ringing of

9984-511: The Quran became popularized as ijaz (miracle) literature, also called " Bucailleism ", and began to be distributed through Muslim bookstores and websites. The movement contends that the Quran abounds with "scientific facts" that appeared centuries before their discovery and promotes Islamic creationism . According to author Ziauddin Sardar , the ijaz movement has created a "global craze in Muslim societies", and has developed into an industry that

10140-522: The Quran dealing with natural phenomena and many verses of the Quran ask mankind to study nature, and this has been interpreted to mean an encouragement for scientific inquiry, and of the truth. Some include, "Travel throughout the earth and see how He brings life into being" ( Q29:20 ), "Behold in the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the alternation of night and day, there are indeed signs for men of understanding ..." ( Q3:190 ) The astrophysicist Nidhal Guessoum writes: "The Qur'an draws attention to

10296-407: The Quran including the salat and fasting in the month of Ramadan . As for the manner in which the prayer is to be conducted, the Quran refers to prostration . The term chosen for charity, zakat , literally means purification implies that it is a self-purification. In fiqh , the term fard is used for clear imperative provisions based on the Quran. However, it is not possible to say that

10452-452: The Quran itself, assuming various meanings. It is a verbal noun ( maṣdar ) of the Arabic verb qara'a ( قرأ ‎ ) meaning 'he read' or 'he recited'. The Syriac equivalent is qeryānā ( ܩܪܝܢܐ ), which refers to 'scripture reading' or 'lesson'. While some Western scholars consider the word to be derived from the Syriac, the majority of Muslim authorities hold the origin of

10608-435: The Quran was orally revealed by God to the final Islamic prophet Muhammad through the angel Gabriel incrementally over a period of some 23 years, beginning on the Night of Power , when Muhammad was 40, and concluding in 632, the year of his death. Muslims regard the Quran as Muhammad's most important miracle , a proof of his prophethood , and the culmination of a series of divine messages starting with those revealed to

10764-505: The Quran were considered mutashabihat -"no one knows its interpretation except God" (Quran 3:7 )- by later scholars stating that God was free from resemblance to humans in any way. In Islam, God speaks to people called prophets through a kind of revelation called wahy , or through angels .( 42:51 ) nubuwwah ( Arabic : نبوة 'prophethood') is seen as a duty imposed by God on individuals who have some characteristics such as intelligence, honesty, fortitude and justice: "Nothing

10920-405: The Quran with explanations for some cryptic Quranic narratives, and rulings that also provide the basis for Islamic law in most denominations of Islam, are hadiths —oral and written traditions believed to describe words and actions of Muhammad. During prayers , the Quran is recited only in Arabic. Someone who has memorized the entire Quran is called a hafiz . Ideally, verses are recited with

11076-580: The Quran) and mysterious hero Dhul-Qarnayn ("the man with two horns") who built a barrier against Gog and Magog that will remain until the end of time are more detailed and longer stories. Apart from semi-historical events and characters such as King Solomon and David , about Jewish history as well as the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt , tales of the hebrew prophets accepted in Islam , such as Creation ,

11232-414: The Quran. The Quran consists of 114 chapters of varying lengths, known as a sūrah . Each sūrah consists of verses, known as āyāt , which originally means a 'sign' or 'evidence' sent by God. The number of verses differs from sūrah to sūrah. An individual verse may be just a few letters or several lines. The total number of verses in the most popular Hafs Quran is 6,236; however, the number varies if

11388-457: The Quran. Muslim critics of the movement include Indian Islamic theologian Maulana Ashraf ‘Ali Thanvi , Muslim historian Syed Nomanul Haq , Muzaffar Iqbal , president of Center for Islam and Science in Alberta, Canada, and Egyptian Muslim scholar Khaled Montaser. Taner Edis wrote many Muslims appreciate technology and respect the role that science plays in its creation. As a result, he says there

11544-547: The Shia had more than 1,000 hadiths ascribed to the Shia Imams which indicate the distortion of the Quran and according to Etan Kohlberg, this belief about Quran was common among Shiites in the early centuries of Islam. In his view, Ibn Babawayh was the first major Twelver author "to adopt a position identical to that of the Sunnis " and the change was a result of the "rise to power of

11700-406: The Sultan and they were regarded as the protectors of the throne and the Sultan. Janissaries were taught to consider the corps their home and family, and the Sultan as their father. Only those who proved strong enough earned the rank of true Janissary at the age of 24 or 25. The Odjak inherited the property of dead Janissaries, thus acquiring wealth. Janissaries also learned to follow the dictates of

11856-716: The Sultan. This event is now called the Auspicious Incident . The last of the Janissaries were then put to death by decapitation in what was later called the Tower of Blood , in Thessaloniki . After the Janissaries were disbanded by Mahmud II, he then created a new army soon after recruiting 12,000 troops. This new army was formally named the Trained Victorious Soldiers of Muhammad, the Mansure Army for short. By 1830,

12012-605: The Sunni ' Abbasid caliphate ," whence belief in the corruption of the Quran became untenable vis-a-vis the position of Sunni "orthodoxy". Alleged distortions have been carried out to remove any references to the rights of Ali, the Imams and their supporters and the disapproval of enemies, such as Umayyads and Abbasids. Other personal copies of the Quran might have existed including Ibn Mas'ud 's and Ubay ibn Ka'b 's codex, none of which exist today. Since Muslims could regard criticism of

12168-523: The Topkapi court received a pay raise as well). Sultan Selim II gave Janissaries permission to marry in 1566, undermining the exclusivity of loyalty to the dynasty. By 1622, the Janissaries were a "serious threat" to the stability of the Empire. Through their "greed and indiscipline", they were now a law unto themselves and, against modern European armies, ineffective on the battlefield as a fighting force. In 1622,

12324-432: The Turkish aristocracy. The brightest of the Janissaries were sent to the palace institution, Enderun . Through a system of meritocracy , the Janissaries held enormous power, stopping all efforts to reform the military. According to military historian Michael Antonucci and economic historians Glenn Hubbard and Tim Kane, the Turkish administrators would scour their regions (but especially the Balkans ) every five years for

12480-445: The age of 40 or engage in trade, their complete loyalty to the Ottoman sultan was expected. By the seventeenth century, due to a dramatic increase in the size of the Ottoman standing army, the corps' initially strict recruitment policy was relaxed. Civilians bought their way into it in order to benefit from the improved socio-economic status it conferred upon them. Consequently, the corps gradually lost its military character, undergoing

12636-561: The apocalyptic scenes, clues are included regarding the nature, structure and dimensions of the celestial bodies as perceived in the Quran: While the stars are lamps illuminating the sky in ordinary cases, turns into stones ( Al-Mulk 1-5) or (shahap; meteor, burning fire) ( al-Jinn 9) thrown at demons that illegally ascend to the sky; When the time of judgment comes, they spill onto the earth, but this does not mean that life on earth ends; People run left and right in fear.( At-Takwir 1-7) Then

12792-413: The army at 40,000. Beginning in the 1530s, the size of the Janissary corps began to dramatically expand, a result of the rapid conquests the Ottomans were carrying out during those years. Janissaries were used extensively to garrison fortresses and for siege warfare, which was becoming increasingly important for the Ottoman military. The pace of expansion increased after the 1570s, due to the initiation of

12948-799: The army expanded to 27,000 troops and included the Sipahi cavalry. By 1838, all Ottoman fighting corps were included and the army changed its name to the Ordered troops. This military corps lasted until the end of the empire's history. The military music of the Janissaries was noted for its powerful percussion and shrill winds combining kös (giant timpani ), davul (bass drum), zurna (a loud shawm ), naffir , or boru (natural trumpet), çevgan bells , triangle (a borrowing from Europe), and cymbals ( zil ), among others. Janissary music influenced European classical musicians such as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig van Beethoven , both of whom composed music in

13104-479: The barracks dressed as a janissary trooper, and received his pay alongside the other men of the First Division. They also served as policemen, palace guards, and firefighters during peacetime. The Janissaries also enjoyed far better support on campaign than other armies of the time. They were part of a well-organized military machine, in which one support corps prepared the roads while others pitched tents and baked

13260-592: The biggest obstacle on this route is the "centuries old heritage of tafseer and other disciplines which inhibit a "universal conception" of the Quran's message. Author Rodney Stark argues that Islam's lag behind the West in scientific advancement after (roughly) 1500 AD was due to opposition by traditional ulema to efforts to formulate systematic explanation of natural phenomenon with " natural laws ." He claims that they believed such laws were blasphemous because they limit "God's freedom to act" as He wishes. Enthusiasts of

13416-480: The book in one volume so that it could be preserved. Zayd ibn Thabit ( d.  655 ) was the person to collect the Quran since "he used to write the Divine Inspiration for Allah's Apostle". Thus, a group of scribes, most importantly Zayd, collected the verses and produced a hand-written manuscript of the complete book. The manuscript according to Zayd remained with Abu Bakr until he died. Zayd's reaction to

13572-479: The books of the ancestors. Some scholars such as W. Montgomery Watt prefer the second meaning of ummi —they take it to indicate unfamiliarity with earlier sacred texts. The final verse of the Quran was revealed on the 18th of the Islamic month of Dhu al-Hijjah in the year 10 A.H. , a date that roughly corresponds to February or March 632. The verse was revealed after the Prophet finished delivering his sermon at Ghadir Khumm . According to Islamic tradition,

13728-436: The bread. Their weapons and ammunition were transported and re-supplied by the cebeci corps. They campaigned with their own medical teams of Muslim and Jewish surgeons and their sick and wounded were evacuated to dedicated mobile hospitals set up behind the lines. These differences, along with an impressive war-record, made the Janissaries a subject of interest and study by foreigners during their own time. Although eventually

13884-465: The central state. As trade became more international or at least under a larger scope, the brotherhoods were no longer able to control the economy of a particular town or region. The system worked till roughly the end of the 16th century. In the United Kingdom Akhi is slang for “brother” or “my brother” being a loanword from Arabic. The word has also been adopted by rap and drill artists in

14040-470: The centre of the army against enemy attack during the strategic fake forfeit of Turkish cavalry. The Janissary corps also included smaller expert teams: explosive experts, engineers and technicians, sharpshooters (with arrow and rifle) and sappers who dug tunnels under fortresses, etc. As Janissaries became aware of their own importance, they began to desire a better life. By the early 17th century, Janissaries had such prestige and influence that they dominated

14196-644: The concept of a modern army incorporated and surpassed most of the distinctions of the Janissaries and the corps was eventually dissolved, the image of the Janissary has remained as one of the symbols of the Ottomans in the western psyche. By the mid-18th century, they had taken up many trades and gained the right to marry and enroll their children in the corps and very few continued to live in the barracks. Many of them became administrators and scholars. Retired or discharged Janissaries received pensions, and their children were also looked after. The first Janissary units were formed from prisoners of war and slaves, probably as

14352-624: The corps was organized and led by a commander, the ağa . The corps was divided into three sub-corps: In addition there were also 34 orta s of the ajemi (cadets). A semi-autonomous Janissary corps was permanently based in Algiers , called the Odjak of Algiers . Originally Janissaries could be promoted only through seniority and within their own orta . They could leave the unit only to assume command of another. Only Janissaries' own commanding officers could punish them. The rank names were based on positions in

14508-664: The customs and cultures of Ottoman society. After completing this period, acemi (new recruit) boys were gathered for training at the Enderun "acemi oğlan" school in the capital city. There, young cadets would be selected for their talents in different areas to train as engineers, artisans, riflemen, clerics, archers, artillery, and so forth. Janissaries trained under strict discipline with hard labour and in practically monastic conditions in acemi oğlan ("rookie" or "cadet") schools, where they were expected to remain celibate . Unlike other Muslims, they were expressly forbidden to wear beards, only

14664-433: The danger of conjecturing without evidence ( And follow not that of which you have not the knowledge of... 17:36 ) and in several different verses asks Muslims to require proofs ( Say: Bring your proof if you are truthful 2:111 )." He associates some scientific contradictions that can be seen in the Quran with a superficial reading of the Quran. Starting in the 1970s and 80s, the idea of presence of scientific evidence in

14820-487: The date of writing of the text. For example, sources based on some archaeological data give the construction date of Masjid al-Haram , an architectural work mentioned 16 times in the Quran, as 78 AH an additional finding that sheds light on the evolutionary history of the Quran mentioned, which is known to continue even during the time of Hajjaj , in a similar situation that can be seen with al-Aksa , though different suggestions have been put forward to explain. In 2015,

14976-496: The different Arab tribes . While Sunni Muslims believe in the seven ahruf , some Shia reject the idea of seven Qur'anic variants. A common misconception is that The seven ahruf and the Qira'at are the same. Following Muhammad's death in 632, a number of his companions who memorized the Quran were killed in the Battle of al-Yamama by Musaylima . The first caliph, Abu Bakr ( r.  632–634 ), subsequently decided to collect

15132-429: The dominant tradition over the lifetime of Muhammad c.  570 to 632 CE and used as evidence to support conventional wisdom and to refute the revisionists' views that expresses findings and views different from the traditional approach to the early history of the Quran and Islam . The Quranic content is concerned with basic Islamic beliefs including the existence of God and the resurrection . Narratives of

15288-635: The early prophets , ethical and legal subjects, historical events of Muhammad's time, charity and prayer also appear in the Quran. The Quranic verses contain general exhortations regarding right and wrong and historical events are related to outline general moral lessons. The style of the Quran has been called " allusive ", with commentaries needed to explain what is being referred to—"events are referred to, but not narrated; disagreements are debated without being explained; people and places are mentioned, but rarely named." While tafsir in Islamic sciences expresses

15444-494: The early 16th century, the Janissaries were equipped with and were skilled with muskets . In particular, they used a massive "trench gun", firing an 80-millimetre (3.1 in) ball, which was "feared by their enemies". Janissaries also made extensive use of early grenades and hand cannons , such as the abus gun . Pistols were not initially popular, but they became so after the Cretan War (1645–1669) . The Ottoman Empire used Janissaries in all its major campaigns, including

15600-488: The effort to understand the implied and implicit expressions of the Quran, fiqh refers to the efforts to expand the meaning of expressions , especially in the verses related to the provisions , as well as understanding it. Quranic studies state that, in the historical context, the content of the Quran is related to Rabbinic , Jewish-Christian , Syriac Christian and Hellenic literature, as well as pre-Islamic Arabia . Many places, subjects and mythological figures in

15756-529: The existence and unity of God , they may have adopted different attitudes that have changed and developed throughout history regarding his nature (attributes) , names and relationship with creation. Rabb is an Arabic word to refers to God meaning Lord and the Quran cites in several places as in the Al-Fatiha ; "All Praise and Gratitude is due to God, Lord of all the Universe". Mustafa Öztürk points out that

15912-428: The first Islamic prophet Adam , including the Islamic holy books of the Torah , Psalms , and Gospel . The Quran is believed by Muslims to be God's own divine speech providing a complete code of conduct across all facets of life. This has led Muslim theologians to fiercely debate whether the Quran was " created or uncreated ." According to tradition, several of Muhammad's companions served as scribes, recording

16068-502: The first Muslims believed that this god lived in the sky with the following words of Ahmad Ibn Hanbal : "Whoever says that Allah is everywhere is a heretic, an infidel. He should be invited to repent, but if he does not, be killed." This understanding changes later and gives way to the understanding that "God cannot be assigned a place and He is everywhere." Also actions and attributes suh as coming, going, sitting, satisfaction, anger and sadness etc. similar to humans used for this God in

16224-542: The first time, demanding higher wages, which they obtained. The stage was set for a decadent evolution, like that of the Streltsy of Tsar Peter 's Russia or that of the Praetorian Guard which proved the greatest threat to Roman emperors, rather than effective protection. After 1451, every new Sultan felt obligated to pay each Janissary a reward and raise his pay rank (although since early Ottoman times, every other member of

16380-404: The formation of early Ottoman society and in the creation of the janissaries . During times of transition in the central government, the Akhi would take control of their city and try to avoid too much damage as the power transitioned to the next regime. They would also control much of the trade and production in the town, thus having a solid control on the economic regulation. They were essentially

16536-401: The government. They could mutiny, dictate policy, and hinder efforts to modernize the army structure. Additionally, the Janissaries found they could change Sultans as they wished through palace coups . New rules allowed them to own land and establish businesses. They would also limit the enlistment of new Janissaries to their own sons who did not have to go through the original training period in

16692-451: The holy book. In 1983, Keith L. Moore , had a special edition published of his widely used textbook on Embryology ( The Developing Human: Clinically Oriented Embryology ), co-authored by Abdul Majeed al-Zindani with Islamic Additions, interspersed pages of "embryology-related Quranic verse and hadith" by al-Zindani into Moore's original work. Ali A. Rizvi studying the textbook of Moore and al-Zindani found himself "confused" by "why Moore

16848-402: The hospice. The members of the brotherhood were called Fityán (youths) and would work during the day and bring their money back to the Akhi once they had finished in the afternoon. This money was then used to further stock the hospice with food and other necessities. If there were no travelers, the members would eat in the evening and then repeat the same process the next day. However, if there was

17004-550: The ideas of chivalry and virtue put forth in the Futuuwa. Ibn Battuta described them as “men so eager to welcome strangers, so prompt to serve food and to satisfy the wants of others, and so ready to suppress injustice and kill tyrannical agents of police and the miscreants who join with them.” Many of the brotherhoods formed their fellowship through documents similar to a “futuwwatnames” which preached virtues like modesty, self-control and denial. The brotherhoods had an important role in

17160-497: The imperial court in exchange for their irreplaceable position in the social fabric. While later Sultans would seek to crush the political power of the Akhiya, their communal influence would remain for essentially the entire length of the Ottoman Period, taking on a role identified by some observers as resembling European Freemasonry , with a focus turning to social bonds and cooperation between workers. The brotherhoods were led by

17316-413: The kitchen staff or Sultan's royal hunters; 64th and 65th Orta 'Greyhound Keepers' comprised as the only Janissary cavalry, perhaps to emphasise that Janissaries were servants of the Sultan. Local Janissaries, stationed in a town or city for a long time, were known as yerliyyas . Even though the Janissaries were part of the royal army and personal guards of the sultan, the corps was not the main force of

17472-436: The latter two terms also denote units of revelation. In the large majority of contexts, usually with a definite article ( al- ), the word is referred to as the waḥy ('revelation'), that which has been "sent down" ( tanzīl ) at intervals. Other related words include: dhikr ('remembrance'), used to refer to the Quran in the sense of a reminder and warning; and ḥikmah ('wisdom'), sometimes referring to

17628-464: The levy of the winter of 1603-1604 from Bosnia and Albania wrote to draw attention to some children as possibly being Jewish ( şekine-i arz-ı yahudi ). According to the Encyclopedia Britannica , "in early days, all Christians were enrolled indiscriminately. Later, those from what is now Albania , Bosnia , Greece and Bulgaria were preferred." Bektashism became the official order of

17784-418: The manuscripts, which he dated to the early part of the 8th century. Puin has noted unconventional verse orderings, minor textual variations, and rare styles of orthography, and suggested that some of the parchments were palimpsests which had been reused. Puin believed that this implied an evolving text as opposed to a fixed one. It is also possible that the content of the Quran itself may provides data regarding

17940-530: The material" Abu Bakr worked with "had already been assembled", which since he was the first caliph, would mean they were collected when Muhammad was still alive. Around the 650s, the Islamic expansion beyond the Arabian Peninsula and into Perisa , the Levant and North Africa , as well as the use of the seven ahruf , had caused some confusion and differences in the pronunciation of the Qur'an, and conflict

18096-402: The mountains. Thereafter, he received revelations over a period of 23 years. According to hadith (traditions ascribed to Muhammad) and Muslim history , after Muhammad and his followers immigrated to Medina and formed an independent Muslim community, he ordered many of his companions to recite the Quran and to learn and teach the laws, which were revealed daily. It is related that some of

18252-416: The movement argue that among the miracles found in the Quran are "everything, from relativity , quantum mechanics , Big Bang theory , black holes and pulsars , genetics , embryology , modern geology , thermodynamics , even the laser and hydrogen fuel cells ". Zafar Ishaq Ansari terms the modern trend of claiming the identification of "scientific truths" in the Quran as the "scientific exegesis" of

18408-605: The notorious Seven Towers : he was murdered shortly afterward. The extravagant parties of the Ottoman ruling classes during the Tulip Period caused a lot of unrest among the Ottoman population. In September 1730, janissaries headed by Patrona Halil backed in Istanbul a rebellion by 12,000 Albanian troops which caused the abdication of Sultan Ahmed III and the death of the Grand Vizier Damad Ibrahim . The rebellion

18564-542: The organizations as being at least partially responsible for the relative peace that broke out after the Seljuk conquest. In areas where imperial power, be it of the Ottomans, other beyliks, or the Seljuks, barely radiated beyond the court, these groups provided stability and organization to towns that would otherwise be unimaginable. As apt to kill off corrupt and tyrannical police as they were to debate captured Christian archbishops ,

18720-408: The people and recruit members. Even in situations where the city that had been conquered was not previously Muslim, the Akhi Brotherhoods were still able to gain influence, Bursa once again being an example of this. The brotherhoods supported the working class, but also many Akhi’s had the influence of elites. The men of the brotherhood were generally very well-mannered and generous as they ascribed to

18876-535: The perfect Muslim, and revered prophet and builder of the Kaaba in Mecca. The Quran consistently refers to Islam as 'the religion of Abraham' ( millat Ibrahim ). Besides Isaac and Jacob , Abraham is commonly considered an ideal father by Muslims. In Islam, Eid-al-Adha is celebrated to commemorate Abraham's attempt to sacrifice his son by surrendering in line with his dream,( As-Saaffat ; 100–107) which he accepted as

19032-588: The previous 300 years. According to paintings of the era, they were also permitted to grow beards. Consequently, the formerly strict rules of succession became open to interpretation. While they advanced their own power, the Janissaries also helped to keep the system from changing in other progressive ways, and according to some scholars the corps shared responsibility for the political stagnation of Istanbul. Greek historian Dimitri Kitsikis in his book Türk Yunan İmparatorluğu ("Turco-Greek Empire") states that many Bosnian Christian families were willing to comply with

19188-502: The prophets (Khidr-Moses story Quran 18:65–82 ) and even employ jinn (Dhulqarnayn). Those who "spend their wealth" on people who are in need because they devoted their lives to the way of Allah and whose situation is unknown because they are ashamed to ask, will be rewarded by Allah. ( Al Baqara ; 272-274) In the story of Qārūn , the person who avoids searching for the afterlife with his wealth and becomes arrogant will be punished, arrogance befits only God. ( Al Mutakabbir ) Characters of

19344-427: The prophets are the main emphasis in the prophetic stories, there are also non-prophetic stories in the Quran that emphasize the importance of humility and having profound-inner knowledge ( hikmah ) besides trusting in God. This is the main theme in the stories of Khidr , Luqman and Dhulqarnayn. According to the later ascriptions to these stories, it is possible for those with this knowledge and divine support to teach

19500-529: The reader's familiarity with major narratives recounted in the Biblical and apocryphal texts . It summarizes some, dwells at length on others and, in some cases, presents alternative accounts and interpretations of events. The Quran describes itself as a book of guidance for humankind ( 2:185 ). It sometimes offers detailed accounts of specific historical events, and it often emphasizes the moral significance of an event over its narrative sequence. Supplementing

19656-404: The relevant verses are understood in the same way by all segments of Islamic commentators; For example, Hanafis accept 5 daily prayers as fard. However, some religious groups such as Quranists and Shiites , who do not doubt that the Quran existing today is a religious source, infer from the same verses that it is clearly ordered to pray 2 or 3 times, not 5 times. About six verses adress to

19812-409: The revelation or part of it. The Quran describes itself as 'the discernment' ( al-furqān ), 'the mother book' ( umm al-kitāb ), 'the guide' ( huda ), 'the wisdom' ( hikmah ), 'the remembrance' ( dhikr ), and 'the revelation' ( tanzīl ; 'something sent down', signifying the descent of an object from a higher place to lower place). Another term is al-kitāb ('The Book'), though it

19968-476: The revelations. Shortly after Muhammad's death, the Quran was compiled on the order of the first caliph Abu Bakr ( r.  632–634 ) by the companions, who had written down or memorized parts of it. Caliph Uthman ( r.  644–656 ) established a standard version, now known as the Uthmanic codex , which is generally considered the archetype of the Quran known today. There are, however, variant readings , with some differences in meaning. The Quran assumes

20124-464: The same way as with the Ottoman's Janissaries who had to replace the unreliable ghazis . They were initially created as a counterbalance to the tribal, ethnic and favoured interests the Qizilbash gave, which make a system imbalanced. In the late 16th century, a sultan gave in to the pressures of the Corps and permitted Janissary children to become members of the Corps, a practice strictly forbidden for

20280-558: The same work being done. Akhi groups in what would become Ottoman lands were centred around a lodge or hospice, where the members of the group would reside and partake in communal living and rituals. These rituals would have a distinctly religious element, with the Sufi traditions that distinguished Anatolia from much of the orthodox Sunni world at the time in full presence as the power of the Sultanate of Rum receded. The hospice would also serve as

20436-424: The soldiers faithful to the sultan. The social status of devşirme recruits took on an immediate positive change, acquiring a greater guarantee of governmental rights and financial opportunities. In poor areas officials were bribed by parents to make them take their sons, thus they would have better chances in life. Initially the recruiters favoured Greeks and Albanians . As borders of the Ottoman Empire expanded,

20592-406: The standard copy from her. According to historian Michael Cook , early Muslim narratives about the collection and compilation of the Quran sometimes contradict themselves: "Most ... make Uthman little more than an editor, but there are some in which he appears very much a collector, appealing to people to bring him any bit of the Quran they happen to possess." Some accounts also "suggest that in fact

20748-472: The stories can be closed-mythical, (khidr) demi-mythologic or combined characters, and it can also be seen that they are Islamized. While some believe he was a prophet, some researchers equate Luqman with the Alcmaeon of Croton or Aesop . Commanding ma’ruf and forbidding munkar (Ar. ٱلْأَمْرُ بِٱلْمَعْرُوفِ وَٱلنَّهْيُ عَنِ ٱلْمُنْكَرِ) is repeated or referred to in nearly 30 verses in different contexts in

20904-441: The strongest sons of the sultan's Christian subjects. These boys (usually between the ages of 10 and 20) were then taken from their parents, circumcised , and sent to Turkish families in the provinces to be raised as Muslims and learn Turkish language and customs. Once their military training began, they were subjected to severe discipline, being prohibited from growing a beard, taking up a skill other than soldiering, and marrying. As

21060-453: The system from changing in other progressive ways. Even after the rapid expansion of the size of the corps at the end of the sixteenth century, the Janissaries continued to undergo strict training and discipline. The Janissaries experimented with new forms of battlefield tactics, and in 1605 became one of the first armies in Europe to implement rotating lines of volley fire in battle. The corps

21216-458: The task and the difficulties in collecting the Quranic material from parchments, palm-leaf stalks, thin stones (collectively known as suhuf , any written work containing divine teachings) and from men who knew it by heart is recorded in earlier narratives. In 644, Muhammad's widow Hafsa bint Umar was entrusted with the manuscript until the third caliph, Uthman ( r.  644–656 ), requested

21372-462: The teenage Sultan Osman II , after a defeat during war against Poland, determined to curb Janissaries' excesses. Outraged at becoming "subject to his own slaves", he tried to disband the Janissary corps, blaming it for the disaster during the Polish war. In the spring, hearing rumours that the Sultan was preparing to move against them, the Janissaries revolted and took the Sultan captive, imprisoning him in

21528-447: The terms to prove the existence of God . Therefore, the universe is originated and needs an originator, and whatever exists must have a sufficient cause for its existence. Besides, the design of the universe is frequently referred to as a point of contemplation: "It is He who has created seven heavens in harmony. You cannot see any fault in God's creation; then look again: Can you see any flaw?" Even though Muslims do not doubt about

21684-530: The text has been washed off to make the parchment reusable again—a practice which was common in ancient times due to the scarcity of writing material. However, the faint washed-off underlying text ( scriptio inferior ) is still barely visible. Studies using radiocarbon dating indicate that the parchments are dated to the period before 671 CE with a 99 percent probability. The German scholar Gerd R. Puin has been investigating these Quran fragments for years. His research team made 35,000 microfilm photographs of

21840-458: The text of the Quran have ceased to be transmitted, some still are. There has been no critical text produced on which a scholarly reconstruction of the Quranic text could be based. In 1972, in a mosque in the city of Sana'a , Yemen , manuscripts "consisting of 12,000 pieces" were discovered that were later proven to be the oldest Quranic text known to exist at the time. The Sana'a manuscripts contain palimpsests , manuscript pages from which

21996-412: The time of Murad's father, Sultan Orhan ( r.   c.  1324  – 1362 ). The Ottoman Turks instituted a tax of one-fifth on all slaves taken in war , and from this pool of manpower the sultans first constructed the Janissary corps as a personal army loyal only to the Ottoman sultan . From the 1380s to 1648, the Janissaries were gathered through the devşirme system, which

22152-460: The time the janissaries were suppressed, it was too late for Ottoman military power to catch up with the West. The corps was abolished by Mahmud II in 1826 in the Auspicious Incident , in which 6,000 or more were executed. The Janissary force was formed in the fourteenth century, either during the rule of Murad I ( r.  1362–1389 ), the third sultan of the Ottoman Empire , or during

22308-457: The universe) may be considered the second great doctrine of the Quran. It is estimated that approximately one-third of the Quran is eschatological, dealing with the afterlife in the next world and with the day of judgment at the end of time. The Quran does not assert a natural immortality of the human soul , since man's existence is dependent on the will of God: when he wills, he causes man to die; and when he wills, he raises him to life again in

22464-638: The way a woman should dress when walk in public; Muslim scholars have differed as how to understand these verses, with some stating that a Hijab is a command ( fard ) to be fulfilled and others say simply not. Research shows that the rituals in the Quran, along with laws such as qisas and tax ( zakat ), developed as an evolution of pre-Islamic Arabian rituals. Arabic words meaning pilgrimage ( hajj ), prayer ( salāt ) and charity (zakāt) can be seen in pre-Islamic Safaitic-Arabic inscriptions, and this continuity can be observed in many details, especially in hajj and umrah . Whether temporary marriage , which

22620-481: The will of God. In Judaism, the story is perceived as a narrative designed to replace child sacrifice with animal sacrifice in general or as a metaphor describing "sacrific[ing one's] animalistic nature", Orthodox Islamic understanding considers animal sacrifice as a mandatory or strong sunnah for Muslims who meet certain conditions, on a certain date determined by the Hijri calendar every year. In Islam, Moses

22776-442: The word is qara'a itself. Regardless, it had become an Arabic term by Muhammad's lifetime. An important meaning of the word is the 'act of reciting', as reflected in an early Quranic passage: "It is for Us to collect it and to recite it ( qur'ānahu )." In other verses, the word refers to 'an individual passage recited [by Muhammad]'. Its liturgical context is seen in a number of passages, for example: "So when al-qur'ān

22932-550: Was (distant) two bows' length or even nearer." The Islamic studies scholar Welch states in the Encyclopaedia of Islam that he believes the graphic descriptions of Muhammad's condition at these moments may be regarded as genuine, because he was severely disturbed after these revelations. According to Welch, these seizures would have been seen by those around him as convincing evidence for the superhuman origin of Muhammad's inspirations. However, Muhammad's critics accused him of being

23088-520: Was a pre-Islamic Arabic tradition and was widely practiced among Muslims during the lifetime of Muhammad, was abolished in Islam is also an area where Sunni and Shiite understandings conflict as well as the translation / interpretation of the related verse Quran 4:24 and ethical - religious problems regarding it. Although it is believed in Islam that the pre-Islamic prophets provided general guidance and that some books were sent down to them, their stories such as Lot and story with his daughters in

23244-497: Was a very early attempt to establish a uniform consonantal text of the Qurʾān from what was probably a wider and more varied group of related texts in early transmission.… After the creation of this standardized canonical text, earlier authoritative texts were suppressed, and all extant manuscripts—despite their numerous variants —seem to date to a time after this standard consonantal text was established. Although most variant readings of

23400-464: Was abolished in 1648. This was the taking (enslaving) of non-Muslim boys, notably Anatolian and Balkan Christians; Jews were never subject to devşirme . There is however evidence that Jews tried to enroll into the system. Jews were not allowed in the janissary army, and so in suspected cases, the entire batch would be sent to the Imperial Arsenal as indentured laborers. Ottoman documents from

23556-416: Was arising between different Arab tribes due to some claiming to be more superior to other Arab tribes and non-Arabs based on dialect, which Uthman noticed. In order to preserve the sanctity of the text, he ordered a committee headed by Zayd to use Abu Bakr's copy and prepare a standard text of the Quran. Thus, within 20 years of Muhammad's death in 632, the complete Quran was committed to written form as

23712-603: Was crushed in three weeks with the massacre of 7,000 rebels, but it marked the end of the Tulip Era and the beginning of Sultan Mahmud I 's reign. In 1804, the Dahias, the Janissary junta that ruled Serbia at the time, having taken power in the 'l Sanjak of Smederevo in defiance of the Sultan, feared that the Sultan would make use of the Serbs to oust them. To forestall this they decided to execute all prominent nobles throughout Central Serbia,

23868-425: Was not enough to produce the necessary manpower, and consequently the traditional limitation of recruitment to boys conscripted in the devşirme was lifted. Membership was opened up to free-born Muslims, both recruits hand-picked by the commander of the Janissaries, as well as the sons of current members of the Ottoman standing army. By the middle of the seventeenth century, the devşirme had largely been abandoned as

24024-456: Was one of the earliest extant exemplars of the Quran, but as the tests allow a range of possible dates, it cannot be said with certainty which of the existing versions is the oldest. Saudi scholar Saud al-Sarhan has expressed doubt over the age of the fragments as they contain dots and chapter separators that are believed to have originated later. The Birmingham manuscript caused excitement amongst believers because of its potential overlapping with

24180-464: Was organized into ortas (literally, "centers"). An orta (equivalent to a battalion ) was headed by a çorbaci . All orta s together comprised the Janissary corps proper and its organization, named ocak (literally, "hearth"). Suleiman I had 165 orta s and the number increased over time to 196. While the Sultan was the supreme commander of the Ottoman Army and of the Janissaries in particular,

24336-598: Was so 'astonished by'" the Quranic references, which Rizvi found "vague", and insofar as they were specific, preceded by the observations of Aristotle and the Ayr-veda , or easily explained by "common sense". Critics argue, verses that proponents say explain modern scientific facts, about subjects such as biology , the origin and history of the Earth, and the evolution of human life , contain fallacies and are unscientific. As of 2008, both Muslims and non-Muslims have disputed whether there actually are "scientific miracles" in

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