Al-Qurtubî
and some other scholars of Qur’ânic
commentary mention an interesting story
regarding the preservation of the Qur’ân:
The Caliph al-Ma`mûn used to convene intellectual
gatherings. One of these meetings
was attended by a man wearing beautiful clothing,
possessing a handsome face, and
followed by a sweet fragrance. He spoke in a most
eloquent manner. When the meeting was adjourned,
al-Ma’mûn summoned this man and asked him: “Are you
from the Israelites?” He replied that he was. Al-Ma’mûn said:
“Accept Islam and I shall arrange
good things for you.” Al-Ma’mûn made him a number of
promises.
The man merely replied “My religion and the religion
of my forefathers” and went away.
A year later, he returned as a Muslim. He spoke about
matters of Islamic Law in a most
proficient manner. When the meeting was adjourned,
al-Ma’mûn again summoned him
and said: “Are you not the man who was with us
before?” He replied that he was. Al-
Ma’mûn then asked him what had prompted him to accept
Islam.
He replied: “When I left your presence, I wished to
put these religions to the test. And
you indeed regard me a man of keen intellect. So I
turned my attention to the Torah. I
produced three copies of it, each time adding and
deleting some things from it. Then I
took these copies to the place of prayer and they were
purchased from me.
“I then turned my attention to the Gospel and drafted
three copies of it, each time adding
and deleting some things from it. Then I took these
copies to the church and they were
purchased from me.
“I then turned my attention to the Qur’ân and drafted
three copies of it, each time adding
and deleting some things from it. Then I took these
copies to the copyists and they
skimmed through them. When they found the additions
and deletions that I had made,
they threw them aside and did not purchase them. So I
came to know that this is a
protected book, and this is the reason that I accepted
Islam.
Tafsîr al-Qurtubî (10/5-6)
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