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Authority - AQARisalah - holy books

Islam means 鈥渟ubmission to God鈥. Muslims believe in one God, Allah, and follow the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad, Allah鈥檚 messenger. Muhammad received the Qur鈥檃n, the Islamic holy book, from Allah.

Part of Religious StudiesIslam

Risalah - holy books

Allah revealed holy books to other prophets before Muhammad.

Together, these are called revealed books, meaning that Muslims believe they originally contained the same message as the Qur鈥檃n. According to Islamic belief, the meaning has gradually changed as Allah鈥檚 word has been mixed with the text created by people. This is why only the Qur鈥檃n is accepted as the true word of Allah.

Image caption,
The Qur'an is the main holy book in Islam

The holy books include:

  • The Suhuf Ibrahim (Scrolls of Abraham) was an early scripture, now lost. It taught Muslims what Allah revealed to the Prophet Ibrahim.
  • The Tawrat () is the Jewish holy book, which was revealed to (known as Musa in Islam). The Tawrat teaches that Allah had messengers before Muhammad. It contains the , and according to the Qur鈥檃n it contains the judgement of Allah.
  • The Zabur are given to Dawud (King David). They are mentioned in the Qur鈥檃n as having being revealed to Dawud and are similar to the psalms found in the Bible.
We have sent you inspiration, as We sent it to Noah and the Messengers after him. We sent inspiration to Abraham, Isma鈥檌l, Isaac, Jacob and the Tribes, to Jesus, Job, Jonah, Aaron, and Solomon, and to David We gave the Psalms.
Qur鈥檃n 4:163
  • The Injil is a book believed to have been given to Isa (Jesus). The meaning of this book has been changed over time. It teaches the revelations that Muslims believe were revealed by Allah to Isa. Muslims think that the Injil reveals the coming of Muhammad.
And in their footsteps, We sent Jesus the son of Mary, confirming the Law that had come before him.
Qur鈥檃n 5:46

The Hadith

The contains the words and actions of Muhammad as recorded by his followers. They give Muslims advice and guidance on how to live today, although they are not believed to be the word of Allah.

Muslims also follow the hadith of the , which are sayings of imams such as Ali.

The Sunnah

The are writings about Muhammad鈥檚 way of life. They give guidance on how to live as a Muslim.

Question

Which of the holy books is believed to contain the true word of Allah?