Rushdie Haunted by his unholy Ghosts — Page 46
46 Mohamed Arshad Ahmedi his diligent discharge of them, his preoccupation with the teachings of the faith to his followers, ministering to them as their spiritual preceptor, leading the five daily Prayer services, administering the affairs of the heterogeneous population of Medina, spending the greater part of his night in voluntary Prayer; and would wonder how much of his time was spent in the company of his wives, and how that time was employed by him. . . . the Holy Prophet’s own life was a model not only of simplicity, but even of rigorous asceticism. He permitted no indulgence of any kind to himself or to his wives. . . . . Aisha is reported to have said that the Holy Prophet (sa) was more modest than a virgin. Would that be the description of a person who was consumed with carnal passion and sought every opportunity for the satisfaction of his sensual desires through marrying a large number of women?’ (p. 280). AT TAC K S ON T H E HOLY QU R’A N Maxime Rodinson continues his assault on Islam by casting doubts on the purity of the Holy Qur’an. He gives more regard to the work of the European Orientalists rather than the Muslim commentators of the Holy Qur’an. He seems to be an ardent fan of Theodor Noldeke, the German Semitic scholar, who ‘has written at length about the stylistic defects of the Koran. ’ (p. 93). He further implies that the Qur’an had been revised under the direction of Muhammad(sa) and gives the view of the Christian rationalists that ‘Muhammad was guilty of falsification, by delib- erately attributing to Allah his own thoughts and instructions’, (p. 218), and ‘nudging the truth a little. ’ (p. 78). This then allegedly gave rise to the satanic influences in some of the verses, as Rodinson writes : ‘It is obvious to non-Muslims that the words which Muhammad heard, by which his experiences (in themselves almost inexpress- ible) were translated in so miraculously perfect a fashion, were dictated to him by his unconscious. He himself suspected it; he had doubted their source, he was afraid that human inspiration might