The Quran code is a proposed mathematical structure within the text of the Quran, mostly using the number 19 as a common denominator. The study and results from this cipher have been popularized by the book The Quran: Final Testament by Rashad Khalifa. The code is said to be so vast, intricate, and complex that proponents say it shows that the Quran was not written by humans. Because of this, those who believe in the code refer to it as the Mathematical Miracle of the Quran.
Contents
Overview
In 1968, Egyptian biochemist Rashad Khalifa began his translation of the Quran because he was not satisfied with any of the other translations at the time. He vowed to never move past a verse without understanding it. After completing chapter 1 within a week, He arrived at chapter 2:1 with the letters Alif-Lâm-Mîm. His lack of understanding of this verse caused him to statistically analyze the Quran with a computer. Over the course of several years this continued until January 1974 when he claimed he had discovered an intricate mathematical pattern when he placed the original Arabic text of the Quran into a computer. The intricate pattern was found to be divisible by a common denominator of the number 19, hence "code-19" is sometimes used to popularly describe Khalifa's work or the community of Qur'an alone Muslims who go by the name of the Submitters.
The foundation of the code is the Quran's first verse, "In the Name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful" (بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم) known as Bismillah ArRahman ArRahim, which consists of 19 Arabic letters.
Its constituent words occur in the Quran consistently in multiples of 19:
The Quran's 19 code, however, is not limited to the first verse only. Historically, the first chapter ever revealed to Muhammed was chapter 96, The Embryo. This chapter contains 19 verses. The first portion revealed consisted of what is now the first 5 verses. These include 19 words that comprise 76 letters (19×4). The whole chapter contains 304 letters, or 19×16. If you do not include the Basmalah, it is 285 letters that is 19×15.
Additionally, 29 chapters in the Quran are initialed by letters that prefix the chapters in which they occur. The letters in these chapters also conform to the mathematical system based on the number 19. For example, the total frequency of the letter "Q" in Chapter 50 is 57 or 19×3.
List of the Quranic Initials and their chapters:
There is also interlocking relationships between the initialed chapters and their letters. For example, the letter S prefixes chapters 7, 19, and 38. The total frequency of this letter in these chapters is 152 or 19×8. This is in addition to, for example, this letter being part of the initialed set of KHYAS prefixing chapter 19 and the total occurrence of those letters within chapter 19 a total of 798 times, which is 19×42.
Organizational structure
The Quran is said to have a complex overarching mathematical structure based on the number 19. Some examples include the following:
The total number of verses in the Quran is 6346. [6234 numbered verses & 112 un-numbered verses (Basmalahs) 6234 + 112 = 6346] Note that 6 + 3 + 4 + 6 = 19. The Basmalah occurs 114 times, despite its conspicuous absence from Sura 9 (it occurs twice in Sura 27) & 114 = 19×6. From the missing Basmalah of Sura 9 to the extra Basmalah of Sura 27, there are precisely 19 suras. It follows that the total of the sura numbers from 9 to 27 (9 + 10 + 11 + 12 + ... + 26 + 27) is 342, or 19×18. This total (342) also equals the number of words between the two Basmalahs of Sura 27, and 342 = 19×18. The famous first revelation (96:1-5) consists of 19 words. This 19-worded first revelation consists of 76 letters 19×4. Sura 96, first in the chronological sequence, consists of 19 verses. This first chronological sura is placed atop the last 19 suras. Sura 96 consists of 304 Arabic letters, and 304 equals 19×16. The last revelation (Sura 110) consists of 19 words. The first verse of the last revelation (110:1) consists of 19 letters. 14 different Arabic letters, form 14 different sets of “Quranic Initials” (such as A.L.M. of 2:1), and prefix 29 suras. These numbers add up to 14 + 14 + 29 = 57 = 19×3. The total of the 29 sura numbers where the Quranic Initials occur is 2 + 3 + 7 + ... + 50 + 68 = 822, and 822 + 14 (14 sets of initials) equals 836, or 19×44. Between the first initialed sura (Sura 2) and the last initialed sura (Sura 68) there are 38 un-initialed suras 19×2. Between the first and last initialed sura there are 19 sets of alternating “initialed” and “uninitialed” suras. The Quran mentions 30 different numbers: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 19, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 99, 100, 200, 300, 1000, 2000, 3000, 5000, 50,000, & 100,000. The sum of these numbers is 162146, which equals 19×8534.
In addition to Mathematical aspects of the literary aspects of the Quran. There are also allegedly other dimensions to this system. It is said, for example, that when recited, the first chapter of the Quran known as "The Key", results in the lips touching a total of 19 times on the letters B and M. 15 letter M's occur and 4 letter B's. Additionally, it has been observed that based on gematrical values used during the time of the Quran and prior, B has a value of 2 and M has a value of 40. The total sum of these 19 occurrences thus comes out to 608 or 19×32.
Khalifa stated the Quran's mathematical system serves to guard and authenticate every element in it, which led to the discovery of two false verses which were injected into the Quran after the prophet Muhammad's death: "A superhuman mathematical system pervades the Quran and serves to guard and authenticate every element in it. Nineteen years after the Prophet's death, some scribes injected two false verses at the end of Sura 9, the last sura revealed in Medina."
Mathematical structure
Traditionally, five pillars have been identified.
They include:
- Proclamation of Faith (Shahada)
- Contact Prayer (Salat)
- Fasting (Seyyawm)
- Obligatory Charity (Zakat)
- Pilgrimage to Mecca (Hajj)
Each of these five is said to be supported by the mathematical code in the Quran:
History
This discovery received wide publicity throughout the Islamic world. By the end of 1973, Rashad Khalifa had become well known in circles, commanding full-house audiences as he lectured at universities, mosques, organizations, and even royal and presidential palaces.
In Appendix 1 of his book, Rashad mentioned that the 19-based code is seen intact in some Jewish tradition such as Jewish morning prayers as discovered by Rabbi Judah the Pious and gave more details of this in his August 1985 article. Verse 46:10 is understood to be in reference to the Rabbi. Some claim Rashad Khalifa made mistakes in his counting of the letters. They say this was human error and he revised his calculations numerous times. This idea was initially brought forth by Rashad's brother, Atef Khalifa. Since Atef's death due to cancer in the early 2000s, his wife Basmah has continued with this understanding at Submission.org. Other groups, such as those still operating MasjidTucson.org for the masjid in Tucson, Arizona that Rashad personally lead, dispute claims of him miscounting. Regardless, Rashad opened up a field for discussion and there are now many websites exploring numerical aspects of the Quran.
However, his claims led to conclusions that unavoidably run contrary to the beliefs of mainstream Islam. Khalifa also presented findings that