Written Down and Memorised in the Prophet's Lifetime

Preserved in two ways: From the very first revelation, the Quran was preserved in two ways at once — in writing, and in memory.

• It was written down. When a verse came, the Prophet (SAW) would call his scribes, and they would write it down at once — on parchment, on bone, on stone, on whatever was at hand.
• It was memorised. The Prophet (SAW) recited it, his companions memorised it, and they recited it back to him. The Quran was heard and repeated every day, in prayer and in teaching.

Double protection matters: This double protection matters. A written text alone can be lost or changed. A memory alone can fade. But when thousands of people memorise the same words, and the same words are also written down, the text stays safe.

Still true today: That is still true today. Every year, thousands of people — huffaz — memorise the whole Quran by heart, in every country of the world.

Key Terms

• Katib al-Wahy (کاتب الوحی) — a scribe of the revelation
• Hafiz (حافظ) — a person who has memorised the whole Quran
• Hifz (الحفظ) — memorisation

Quran or Hadith

Quran 15:9 — "Indeed, We have sent down the Reminder, and indeed, We will guard it." — to be checked. (Repeated from Topic 1.1, because it is the key verse on preservation.)

A short explanation, in a small box in the app: Allah promises to guard the Quran. The writing and the memorisation are the human means by which that promise has been fulfilled.

Fresh diagram to be drawn

Diagram to be drawn: two arrows meeting — "Written down" and "Memorised by heart" — both pointing to "The Quran, preserved". In Project Desk colours.

Example

A song everyone knows: Think of a song everyone in a village knows by heart. If one person's copy of the words is lost, a hundred others can still sing it correctly.

Protected by memory and writing: The Quran was protected in the same way — by the memory of the whole community, and by writing, together.