Page 106 - History of The Quranic Text | Kalamullah.Com

86 THE HISTORY OF THE QUR'ANIC TEXT

The same method was applied elsewhere. Abu Raja' al-'Ataradl states
that Abu Musa al-Ash'ari separated his students into groups within the
Basra Masjid,29 supervising nearly three hundred."
In the capital, 'Umar sent Yazidb. 'Abdullah b. Qusait to teach the Qur'an
to the outlying Bedouins." and designated Abu Sufyan as an inspector, to
proceed to their tribes and discover the extent to which they had learned. 32
He also appointed three Companions in Madinah to teach the children,
each with a monthly salary of fifteen dirhams," and advised that everyone
(including adults) be taught in easy sets of five verses.t"
Stabbed by Abu Lu'lu'a (a Christian slave from Persia)" towards the
end of 23 A.H., 'Umar refused to nominate a caliph, leaving the decision
to the people and in the meantime entrusting the $u~uJ to Hafsa, the
Prophet's widow.

3. Conclusion

In serving the Qur'an Abu Bakr acquitted himself most admirably, heeding
its mandate of two witnesses for establishing authenticity;" and applying
this rule to the Qur'an's own compilation. The result, though written on
rudimentary parchments of varying size, constituted as sincere an effort
as possibleto preserve the Words of Allah. Decisivevictoriesbeyond Arabia's
desert boundaries pushed the frontiers of Islamic education to Palestine
and Syria; 'Umar's reign witnessed the blossoming of schools for the
memorisation of the Qur'an in both the parched sands of Arabia and the
rich soils of the fertile crescent. But a new concern clouded the horizon
during the 'Uthmani Caliphate, and Zaid bin Thabit's endeavours, as it
turned out, were not to end with the passing of Abu Bakr.

29 Al-Baladhuri, Ansab al-Ashriif, i:llO; Ibn Durais, Fadd'il, p. 36; al-Hakim, al-
Mustadrak, ii:220.
30 Al-Faryahi, Far/a'ii al-Qy.r'iin, p. 129.
31 Ibn al-Kalbi,]amhrat an-Nasab, p. 143; Ibn Hazm, ]amhratal-Ansiib, p. 182.
32 Ibn Hajar, al-Isiiba, i:83, no. 332.
33 Al-Baihaql, Sunan al-Kubra, vi:124.
34 Ibn Kathlr, Far/a'ii, vii:495.
35 William Muir, Annalsqf the Ear[y Caliphate, p. 278.
36 Qur'an 2:282.