my fellow brothers and sisters,

i think it is important to call our attension to this.

The translation of the Qur'an we are using in the world today, i want you all to no that, that is not the original meaning of the Qur'an. For one to get the original meaning of The Qur'an, we must know arabic language since that is the language of the qur'an.

The translation we are all using is meant to just to pass the ordinary meaning of the Qur'an but not the Original Meaning.

No language match the arabic language in its letters,and for this reason, we can not get the exact meaning of the Qur'an by translating it to another language.

So when u re reading a translation, u should have it at the back of ur mind that u re only reading something to pass u little information about the qur'an but not exactly as what the qur'an is saying.

In this case some meaning cant be expressed the way it should, but since there is no other way to express it, they just use it.

cheers

Brother

We have to careful in saying this. Yes Arabic language is beautiful and deep and It is difficult to translate some things into English but the English translation we have today like “Noble quran” by muhsin kahn is a wonderful piece of work and is a near interpretation of the meanings. I beg to disagree with you when you say it passes little information about the quran and I think that is not strictly correct.

Arabic should be learnt and I am a student of Arabic but the English translation of the quran is fantastic. You should note that not all arabs undertand some rhetoric of the classical Arabic Fus’ha and they need the tafseer to understand.

Most verses translated pass the actual meaning across but in some instance its a language like yoruba or hausa that would be able to capture the deep meaning where english is not rich enough to capture it.

Like Lagosboy said, we should be careful in saying this, lest some people use it as an excuse to totally abandon reading the 'Noble Qur'an(Translation)'.

For those that are not yet versed in arabic, reading and digesting the translated version is not bad, while trying to learn the original arabic text.

I support Jarus but disagree with Bilms. Please do not try to scare people from reading and we should be mindful of what we say. Reading the Translated version is not bad please.

Well said, baba787.

please u have to understand me.

i am not saying it is bad to study the tranlstion. I am a student of USOOL AT-TAFSEER and i get to realise these in my studies.

some of u who find it hard to read all these should just scrool down to the last paragraph to read and understand me.

INTRODUCTION
he title of this book, Usool at-Tafseer (lit. The Fundamental Principles of
Qur’aanic Interpretation), essentially refers to the branches of knowledge
which are necessary to provide an accurate interpretation of the Qur’aanic
texts, such as Arabic grammar and syntax, Arabic literature and Qur’aanic
sciences (‘uloom al-Qur’aan).

TAFSEER OF THE QUR’AAN
he Qur’aan, God’s final book of revelation to man, represents the primary
source of the principles which constitute the way of life known as Islaam.
The passages of the Qur’aan contain advice and guidance in the form of laws,
parables, stories, and arguments for those who choose to believe in God and the
Day of Judgment. Hence, a believer’s success and happiness in this life and the
next largely depend on his understanding.



TRANSLATION OF THE QUR’AAN
he Qur’aan, the final discourse between God and man, was revealed in the
language of the final Prophet (r), the language of the people among whom
he was raised and by whom the last message was destined to be carried to the
ends of the world. Allaah created man in a variety of colors and taught man
diverse languages. Allaah, Most Wise, sent each of His messengers speaking the
language of his people in order to facilitate the transmission of the divine
message. This was clearly stated in the verse:

“I never sent a messenger with other than his people’s language.”1
Consequently, all prophets were raised up from among their own people, even
though they all carried the same basic message:

“Verily, I have raised up in every nation a messenger saying:
‘Worship Allaah and avoid false gods.’ ”2
1 Soorah Ibraaheem (14):4.
2 Soorah an-Nahl (16):36.


Thus, in spite of the final message’s universality, echoed in the verse,

“Say: ‘O mankind verily, I am Allaah’s messenger (r) sent to all of
you,’ ”3
and the verse,

“I have only sent you as a bringer of glad tidings and a warner for all
mankind,”4
this message was revealed in the Arabic language.
The Islaamic state arose in the Arabian peninsula, engulfed it, and quickly
spread to the neighboring lands of Africa, Asia Minor, India, and Asia. Arabic
soon became not only the language of the final revelation of Islaam, but also the
official language of a vast Islaamic empire encompassing diverse cultures and
languages. Some of the people already spoke Arabic, while most did not.
However, within a very short period, Islaam and Arabic spread rapidly among the
people. Some foreign languages absorbed Arabic-Islaamic terms and those who
spoke them began to write them in the Arabic script. Eventually, many of these
languages were overshadowed or replaced by Arabic. The Coptic language of the
Egyptians and Berber of the North Africans are some examples of the
replacement of national languages by Arabic, while Hausa, Persian and Malay are
examples of languages which absorbed large amounts of Arabic words and were
written in Arabic script. In other areas, trading languages developed, made up of a
mixture of local languages and large amounts of Arabic, but even these languages
were written in Arabic script. However, when the ‘Abbaasid caliphate weakened,
Persian and Turkish warlords carved the state into a number of competing
sultanates. Persian was the language of government of many of these states.

Eventually leadership of the Muslim state fell into the hands of Mongols and,
subsequently the Turks, a form of cultural nationalism arose in which the Turkish
language became the official language of the state, and Arabic was deemphasized,
except in religious ceremonies and religious schools.6 The famous
hadeeth of the Prophet (r),

“Whoever reads a letter from Allaah’s book earns a blessing,” 7 took on new
meaning. This statement was made to Arabic-speaking Muslims to encourage
them to read as much of the Qur’aan as possible. The goal behind this
encouragement was increased exposure to Allaah’s message, and it was never
intended to be the mere parroting of the vehicle in which it was brought.
However, with the rise of Turkish cultural nationalism, there arose the concept of
reading the letters and words of the Qur’aan simply for the blessing. Many
students began memorizing the whole Qur’aan without understanding a word of
what they had memorized. Parroting the Qur’aan became an accepted and highly
regarded practice.
With the decline and break up of the Muslim state and the rise of European
colonialism, the transitional process by which Muslim people’s languages were
evolving into Arabic was totally halted. Colonialists divided Muslim territories
and required languages that had not completed the transition to Arabic to be
written in Latin script. Examples of this attempt at reversal can be seen in the
forced adoption of the Latin script by African languages, such as Hausa and
Swahili; Middle Eastern languages, such as Turkish; and Asian languages, such as
Malay.8 Many of the Qur’aanic schools in which Arabic was taught were closed
down or replaced by Christian schools, and the few schools which remained
taught only the pronunciation of Arabic.
Consequently, the vast majority of Muslims remained unable to understand
Arabic, even though many of them continued to read and pronounce its script.

Types of Translation
The Qur’aan is more than the sum total of its words, grammatical
constructions, figures of speech, rhythms, and rhymes. It is a message, a direct
communication between God and man, and it is a permanent inimitable literary
miracle. Neither the Arabs of the past nor the present were able to meet the open
challenge concisely expressed in the verse:

“And if you all are in doubt about what I have revealed to My servant,
produce a single soorah like it.”23
and the verse:

“Or do they say that he has invented it? Say to them, ‘Produce a single
soorah like it.’ ”24
The Qur’aan cannot be translated; any attempt to do so is folly. Arabic
grammatical constructions, figures of speech, rhyme, and rhythm cannot be
expressed in other than Arabic. Besides, in translation the Qur’aan’s inimitable
quality is lost and its challenge becomes meaningless, for no translator, no matter
how great his literary skills are, can claim inimitability. The Qur’aan cannot be

literally translated because Arabic words often have more than one literal
meaning, not to mention their figurative meanings. And, many Arabic
constructions contain subtle shades of meanings which cannot be expressed in
another language. No translation can be called or considered to be God’s word.
God’s word is the Arabic Qur’aan, as He Himself said,

“Verily, I revealed it as an Arabic Qur’aan.”25
Attempts to catch the charm of the Qur’aan in loose or free translations are also
presumptuous, misleading, and doomed to failure. “The inimitable symphony, the
very sounds of which move men to tears and ecstasy”26 exists only in the Arabic.
Any degree of success will only dupe readers into thinking that they are
experiencing the Qur’aan, whereas in reality, they are experiencing the feelings of
the translator and his literary skills. Even claims to translations of the Qur’aan’s
meanings are false because the author of such translations chooses meanings
which he feels are appropriate in the case of Arabic words which have more than
one meaning and words which have no non-Arabic equivalent. He also chooses
between literal and figurative meanings and translates the one which he considers
appropriate. All translations are in fact tafseers, some more accurate than others.
Most translations list in their forewords the names of the classical tafseers and
lexicons on which they relied. This may seem to be a very fine point, but if it
were put in another way perhaps the difference would be more obvious. The
mufassir speaks in an explanatory way as if to say: “This is what I understand
from the verse.” The translator speaks as if he has completely understood the
verse’s meaning and translated it as if to say: “This is what the verse means.” The
difference between the two approaches is quite vast. Hence, translators should
emphasize in their prefaces and titles the fact that this is their personal
understanding of the Qur’aan. Perhaps the best approach for a translator would be
to simply translate the basic text of the classical tafseers using footnotes to
explain other possible meanings and the context of the passages where necessary.
This is not to say that existing “translations” are of no value whatsoever and that
those who do not understand the Arabic should stop reading them.

Existing“translations” serve to convey the basic message of the Qur’aan to those who
cannot get it from the Qur’aan themselves. However, the reader should bear in
mind that what he or she is reading is not a translation of the Qur’aan or all of its
meaning, but only an explanation in another language. Learning Arabic to
whatever degree possible should be among the goals of all Muslims in order that
they may hear Allaah’s words exactly as they were revealed.

Existing“translations” serve to convey the basic message of the Qur’aan to those who
cannot get it from the Qur’aan themselves.

No disagreement brother. What we are saying is summarized by that sentence. That is, even the English translation can still pass an idea of the basic message.

And that basic message is moving enough to make millions accept Islam by reading the translated version only.

cheers

The whole point is even the arabs have to sit in d class room to study usool tafseer because the quranic arabic fus'ha is advanced. They get the basic message as well that the non arabic speakers get from the translated quran.

To make a tafseer by language (there are 4 fundamentals or types to tafseer) is what you mean blims and doing that u definately need to have a grasp of arabic and cannot do that with a translated quran. However the general message of the quran is more than explitary in the english version especially "the Noble Quran" and Yusuf Alis translation ignoring the commentary.

lagosboy.

cheers.

Consider this:

"Gbenu e soun"

how do you translate this?

the generally accepted term is 'shut up'

a more literal translation is take your moth to the side

an interpretation would be a contemptuous - you have no business in this conversation go away and talk with your mates

so as Lagos boy said - you have to understand arabic to get a true grasp of what is in the Quran

once I read about the Bible being translated into Inuit. Inuit do not have sheep so 'lamb of God' was translated into 'God's special creature that looks like a caribou calf'

So when u re reading a translation, u should have it at the back of ur mind that u re only reading something to pass u little information about the qur'an but not exactly as what the qur'an is saying.

I strongly disagree.

So when u re reading a translation, u should have it at the back of ur mind that u re only reading something to pass u little information about the qur'an but not exactly as what the qur'an is saying.

In what way does it pass little information please?

Can someone translate this into the english language, Wasa warun aleihim amlam tun sirun la yuminum