In Sunni Islamic tradition, the Isrāʾ wal-Miʿrāj (الإسراء والمعراج) refers to two separate but interconnected miraculous events that are said to have occurred in a single night — the Night Journey (al-Isrāʾ) and the Ascension (al-Miʿrāj). According to Sunni accounts, this journey began in Mecca, when Muhammad is said to have been visited by the … Continue reading The Night Journey and Ascension: How Jewish Folklore Became Sunni Doctrine
The Quran’s Anomalous Emergence: A Monument Without Scaffolding
Abstract Human civilization advances through gradual cultural evolution: simple forms mature into complex ones through iterative refinement, failure, and learning. Every masterwork—from the Great Pyramid to the Divine Comedy—rests upon centuries of predecessors and prototypes. Yet the Quran appears to violate this iron law. Emerging from seventh-century Arabia, a culture with no tradition of written … Continue reading The Quran’s Anomalous Emergence: A Monument Without Scaffolding
Cultivate Your Garden: Lessons from Voltaire and the Quran
In 1759, at the height of the Enlightenment—when European philosophers preached that reason would perfect humanity and history marched inevitably toward paradise—Voltaire published a novel called Candide to serve as a scathing critique of this naive optimism. In this book, the hero is dragged through every conceivable horror—war, plague, earthquakes, and executions—yet ends not with … Continue reading Cultivate Your Garden: Lessons from Voltaire and the Quran
Mass Hadith Forgery: The Foundations of Sunni Islam
The foundations of Sunni Islam were built upon a sea of forged traditions. By the mid-9th century CE, the compilers of the Kutub al-Sittah (Six Books) sifted through millions of reports attributed to the Prophet. What they found was damning: nearly ninety-nine percent of these reports were rejected as fabrications, exposing a religious culture flooded … Continue reading Mass Hadith Forgery: The Foundations of Sunni Islam
Companion Hypocrisy and the Hadith & Sunnah House of Cards
For centuries, Hadith has been the bedrock of Sunni Islamic law and theology. But what happens when one of Sunni Islam’s most prominent voices admits that this foundation doesn’t stand up to scrutiny? In a recent interview on the Sképsislamica podcast, promoting his new book “Understanding Salafism,” Yasir Qadhi made a startling admission: “Nobody in the academy affirms … Continue reading Companion Hypocrisy and the Hadith & Sunnah House of Cards
Abu Bakr’s Stance on Hadith and the Problem with Anti-Quran-Alone Hadith Narration
A common maxim about the Hadith corpus is: for every Hadith, there is an equal and opposite Hadith. This reflects the reality that many individuals fabricated Hadith to support conflicting political or theological positions. The result is a vast, often contradictory body of literature—pro-Aisha Hadith, anti-Aisha Hadith; pro-Umayyad, anti-Umayyad; pro-Ali, anti-Ali—and this extends to core … Continue reading Abu Bakr’s Stance on Hadith and the Problem with Anti-Quran-Alone Hadith Narration
From Refuge to Responsibility: A Symbolic Map of The Cave
Sura 18 of the Quran, The Cave (Al-Kahf), is one of the Quran’s most unique chapters, particularly for the layered stories it presents and the historical narratives it subtly invokes. It features three major episodes: the account of the youth who sought shelter in a cave, the journey of Moses with a mysterious teacher, and … Continue reading From Refuge to Responsibility: A Symbolic Map of The Cave
Which Paradigm Better Aligns With Jesus’s Teachings?
In a previous article, we addressed the popular Christian argument known as the Islamic Dilemma, which goes as follows: The Quran instructs Christians to follow the Gospel (Injeel). Therefore, Christians must adhere to the New Testament as it exists today. But the New Testament contradicts the Quran. Therefore, the Quran is false. This line of … Continue reading Which Paradigm Better Aligns With Jesus’s Teachings?
Fidelity to God Alone
What does guarding your chastity have to do with guarding your prayers? At first glance, these might seem like separate aspects of personal conduct—one physical, the other spiritual. Yet twice in the Quran, God places them side by side in His portrait of the ideal believer. In both Surah 23 and Surah 70, we are … Continue reading Fidelity to God Alone
God’s Ayat Through Nature (Natural Theology)
In modern Arabic, the term "āyah" (plural: "āyāt") is often understood as “verse,” referring to the Quranic text. However, in the Quran, the word carries a much broader and deeper meaning, signifying a sign, miracle, proof, or evidence. While many occurrences in the Quran pertain directly to written revelation or the miracles of the past … Continue reading God’s Ayat Through Nature (Natural Theology)
Quran Talk Blog 