What Is the Quran?

ٱقۡرَأۡ بِٱسۡمِ رَبِّكَ ٱلَّذِي خَلَقَ ﴿١﴾ خَلَقَ ٱلۡإِنسَٰنَ مِنۡ عَلَقٍ ﴿٢﴾ ٱقۡرَأۡ وَرَبُّكَ ٱلۡأَكۡرَمُ ﴿٣﴾ ٱلَّذِي عَلَّمَ بِٱلۡقَلَمِ ﴿٤﴾ عَلَّمَ ٱلۡإِنسَٰنَ مَا لَمۡ يَعۡلَمۡ ﴿٥﴾

Recite in the name of your Lord who created - Created man from a clinging substance. Recite, and your Lord is the most Generous - Who taught by the pen - Taught man that which he knew not.

Context Revealed in the cave of Hira, near Makkah, around 610 CE.

The first command is to read, in the name of the Lord who creates and teaches. Knowledge and worship begin together.

That these were the very first verses comes from hadith reports in al-Bukhari and Muslim; the verses themselves do not say so.

The month of Ramadhan [is that] in which was revealed the Qur'an, a guidance for the people and clear proofs of guidance and criterion. …

Context From the verses on fasting. Surah al-Qadr (97:1) adds that it came down on the Night of Decree.

The Quran names its own purpose: guidance, clear proofs, and a criterion to tell right from wrong.

وَقُرۡءَانٗا فَرَقۡنَٰهُ لِتَقۡرَأَهُۥ عَلَى ٱلنَّاسِ عَلَىٰ مُكۡثٖ وَنَزَّلۡنَٰهُ تَنزِيلٗا ﴿١٠٦﴾

And [it is] a Qur'an which We have separated [by intervals] that you might recite it to the people over a prolonged period. And We have sent it down progressively.

Context Answers the objection that a real revelation would arrive all at once (see also 25:32).

It was sent down in stages over many years, so it could be recited, absorbed and lived step by step.

إِنَّا نَحۡنُ نَزَّلۡنَا ٱلذِّكۡرَ وَإِنَّا لَهُۥ لَحَٰفِظُونَ ﴿٩﴾

Indeed, it is We who sent down the Qur'an and indeed, We will be its guardian.

Context A Makkan surah, revealed while the message was still mocked and its believers were few.

Allah takes the preservation of the Quran upon Himself. Muslims see this in its unbroken memorisation and its written copies.