SOURCE: J. J. G. Jansen, "Introduction: The Koran and Its Interpretation" and "Mohammad Abduh's Koran Interpretation," in The Interpretation of the Koran in Modern Egypt, E. J. Brill, 1974, pp. 1-34.

In the following excerpt, Jansen discusses the history of the Koran's composition, the different viewpoints from which it has been interpreted, and issues surrounding its translation.

The Koran and Its Interpretation

Many sayings have been attributed to Mohammed, the Prophet of Islam. After his death these sayings have been included in the famous collections of Traditions on the life of Mohammed and his contemporaries. One of the most important of these collections, the so-called Al-Gâmi' as-Sahîh of Al-Bukhârî, contains several thousands.¹ Already in the days of Mohammed these ordinary sayings were apparently discernible from certain other utterances of Mohammed, utterances that were thought to be divine: not originating from Mohammed himself, but given to...