Islam - Its Meaning for Modern Man — Page 137
137 earlier had been firmly grasped and put into practice. Once this purpose was achieved, it was no longer necessary to have the revelation arranged in that order. It had then to serve the need of an established, though constantly growing, community. The order to be followed henceforth was that which was appropriate to those conditions. In view of the lack of the mass-printing facilities to which mankind has since become accustomed, the method adopted for safe-guarding the revelation was to commit it to memory rather than to preserve it in the form of a book, though the text of each revelation, comprising one or more verses, was also written down as it was received. The Prophet himself was not literate, but others who were competent in that respect were employed for the purpose (29:49). Guidance having been furnished to mankind through a series of revelations vouchsafed to the various Prophets, what is that position of the Quran with respect to those revelations whose truth it affirms? Previous revelations were limited in their scope. Each was designed to meet the needs of the people to whom it was sent during the stage of development upon which that people was about to enter. Each contained fundamental truths, valid through the ages in respect of the whole of mankind, but it also contained guidance, directions,