Islam - The Summit of Religious Evolution — Page 119
119 Muhammad, peace be on him (i. e. Quran) thirteen centuries after the birth of Muhammad does not appear to be a mere coincidence. The revival of the Quranic teaching does not imply that the Quranic text has, in any sense, been changed over time. That is not possible because God had Himself taken the responsibility to safeguard His message. As has been demonstrated in the previous chapters, the process of human spiritual evolution was evident from the earlier scriptures that foretold the advent of Islam. Quran, the Islamic scripture, claims to be the complete and final message from God. Unlike previous scriptures, which addressed themselves to specific groups; the Quran proclaims itself to be the guidance for all mankind. Consistent with its claim and the trends about prophecies for the future established by the earlier scriptures one has to refer back to the Quran and to seek guidance for the future to gain insight into the culmination of the process of human spiritual evolution. It will only be at the zenith of this evolutionary process that the Muslims can satisfy Quranic claims about Islam being the perfect religion. Any trends emerging from the study of the Quran should be reflected in the Prophet’s traditions and in various Quranic commentaries by respected Islamic scholars. A review based on this principle follows: 19 "We Ourself have sent down the Exhortation and WE Ourself are its Protector". God's promise to protect Quranic text has been fulfilled and today Quran is the only scripture with absolute integrity and is beyond any controversy. Its text has been preserved exactly as it was originally revealed to the Holy Prophet by Divine design. The Divine promise of safeguarding the Quran does not limit itself to mere words; it also guarantees to preserve its proper interpretation in accordance with the changing human needs. Thus the Quran is a true living book, which provides guidance for all possible aspects of human needs, including spiritual, science, commerce, politics, international relations etc. Thus there exists from God, a promise of both outer and inner protection of the Quran. The inner protection of the Holy Quran at least means that when the followers deviate very far from the Holy Quran, so that the Book becomes reduced to mere words, God will then restore the original power and influence of the Holy Book, make its meaning plain once again and restore to His book all its life and freshness. As explained earlier, the Quran has differentiated its message into two categories, absolute commandments and allegoric. It cautions its readers against the multitude of possible interpretations in the latter category. It also asserts that the correct interpretation will only be revealed through God's chosen individuals. God's promise of inner protection is again corroborated elsewhere in the Holy Quran: 20 ". . . and He reveals not His secrets to anyone except him whom He chooses, namely a Messenger of His". This position is further reinforced in the Traditions of the Holy Prophet: 21 "Verily God will continue for ever to raise for this Ummat in the beginning of every century one who will restore for it its faith".