Quranic Sciences

1. Ilm-e-Tajweed:

Knowledge of the art of pronunciation. Differences in pronunciation convey different meanings and often one meaning is preferred over the other. This branch is the first and foremost since without being able to read the Quran in Arabic, we cannot gain the rewards associated with it.

2. Ilm-ul-Lughat:

Knowledge of the philology of language. This is the understanding of the appropriate meanings of words. Quite often an Arabic word has several meanings. The science of Lughat determines which meaning applies in the given context. The great scholar Mujahid has stated "One who believes in Allah and the Day of Judgment should not open his lips in respect of the Quran, unless he is thoroughly conversant with the philology of the Arabic language."

3. Ilm-an-Nahv:

This is the study of language syntax, a branch of grammar, which deals with the relation of a sentence with another. Included in this discipline is the study of 'Iraab' (vowel sounds) of the letters of a word. A change, sometimes slight, will change the meaning of the word.

4. Ilm-ul-Sarf:

Etymology is the knowledge of root words and conjugations. The meaning of a word changes with a change in the root or its conjugation.

5. Ilm-ul-Ishtiqaq:

Knowledge of word derivatives. It is necessary to know the correct derivative because if a word is derived from two different root words then its meaning will be different. The word "masih" is derivable from 'masah' which means to touch or to move wet hands over and also from 'masahat' which means measurement.

6. Ilm-ul-Ma'ani:

Semantics is the branch of knowledge which teaches about phrase constructions and how meanings change with changes is phraseology.

7. Ilm-ul-Bayan:

Figures of speech such as similes and metaphors convey shades of meanings. This branch of knowledge is essential to understand the true meaning of the Glorious Quran.

8. Ilm-ul-Badi:

Knowledge of rhetoric. This reveals the beauty of language and its implications.

9. Ilm-ul-Aqa'id:

A knowledge of the fundamentals of faith is necessary to explain certain analogies. The literal meaning of an ayah referring to the Almighty Allah "The hand of Allah is over their hands" is not the correct one. Only by knowing about the article of faith concerning Allah's non-corporeality can the erroneous assumption that Allah has physical hands be prevented.

10. Usul-e-Fiq aah:

Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence. This knowledge is necessary for reasoning out and finding arguments in the basic support of statements.

11. Asbab-unazul:

Circumstance of revelation. Many times the true meaning of an ayah can only be understood if we know the particular events and circumstances when that ayah was revealed.

12. Nasikh-o-mansukh:

Knowledge of commandments that were subsequently repealed or changed. Many orientalists have used repealed commandments in their arguments against Islam.

13. Ilm-ul-Fiq aah:

Knowledge of the present body of Islamic Jurisprudence. It is only through this knowledge that we arrive at a complete understanding of general principles.

14. Hadith-e-Qudsi:

Knowledge of the hadith that are commentaries on certain brief verses of the Majestic Quran.

15. Ilm-e-Wahbi:

The last but most important field of Quranic knowledge is the 'gifted understanding', bestowed by the Almighty upon His selected servants. This is best explained by following hadith. "Whosoever acts upon what he knows, Almighty Allah bestows upon him the knowledge of things not known to him." Allama Suyuti has said that those who think that it is beyond the capacity of a man to acquire 'Ilm-e-Wahbi' or the gifted understanding are not right at all. To get this knowledge one should act on the knowledge they have gained. In the 'Kimia-e-Sa'daat' it has been stated that three persons are not blessed with complete understanding of the Quran. First, one who is not well versed in Arabic, secondly, one who persists in committing a major sin or indulges in act of religious innovation, because these actions blacken his heart, which in turn prevents him from understanding the Quran. Thirdly, one who is a rationalist, even in the matter of faith, and feels embarrassed when he reads an ayah of the Quran which he is not able to fully rationalize.
These branches of knowledge are tools, essential prerequisites for understanding the Quran to the maximum possibility. To understand, promote, disseminate and practice this knowledge is the basic responsibility of every muslim. Let us work together to fulfill this individual and collective responsibility.
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