For most of us, meeting the Qur'an through a translation (meal) is the first and most sincere step; trying to understand God's word in our own language is a beautiful effort. Yet one honest realization sets us at ease from the start: the translation in our hands is not the text itself, but a reading of it. This article is not meant to accuse or to belittle reading translations; on the contrary, it is an invitation to read what we read more consciously, more peacefully, and more deeply.
What does the Qur'an say?
The Qur'an itself, in several places, emphasizes that its language is Arabic and ties this to the aim of understanding:
Indeed, We sent it down as an Arabic Qur'an so that you may use your reason. (12:2)
Thus We sent it down as an Arabic judgement (a wise word). (13:37)
Where the question of language comes up, the claim that a human taught it the Prophet receives this answer:
We surely know that they say, "It is only a human who teaches him!" The language of the one they point to is foreign, whereas this (Qur'an) is clear Arabic. (16:103)
And on why the language is Arabic:
Had We made it a Qur'an in a foreign tongue, they would have said, "Should its verses not have been made clear? A foreign tongue for an Arab?" Say, "It is, for those who believe, a guidance and a healing..." (41:44)
Key word / root
Two words recur in the text of these verses: عَرَبِيّ (arabī), meaning "Arabic" (12:2, 13:37, 16:103), and لِسَان (lisān), meaning "tongue/language," in 16:103. This is a certain observation at the level of the text: the Qur'an explicitly describes the language of its revelation as "Arabic."
What do we learn?
(What follows is an interpretation/opinion drawn from the verses, not the literal wording of the text.)
Since the text stresses that its own language is Arabic, any text carried into another language is no longer "the Qur'an in that language" but the verses as understood by a translator. The translator chooses words, opens brackets, foregrounds one of a root's several meanings. This is not a flaw but the nature of translation: every meal is at the same time an interpretation. The description in 41:44 of the Qur'an as "a guidance and a healing for those who believe" suggests, too (an opinion), that understanding is not merely a grammatical transfer but a relationship formed with the heart.
A practical subtlety follows: a translation gives us a great deal, but it does not say "this is the verse's single, definitive meaning"; it only says "the translator understood it this way."
Different readings
- "Only the Arabic original is binding" reading: The text itself is Arabic; translations are aids, but rulings and nuance are sought in the original.
- "A translation is a sufficient door" reading: Since the verses were sent down so their purpose would be grasped and lived (12:2, "so that you may use your reason"), a good translation is a sufficient starting point and guide for a sincere servant.
These two readings do not exclude each other; for most people they walk together: begin with the translation, draw ever closer to the original.
The honest boundary
- Certain in the text: The Qur'an explicitly describes its own language as "Arabic" (12:2, 13:37, 16:103) and ties this to the aim of understanding and reasoning.
- Debated in interpretation: Questions like "which translation is most accurate," "how binding is a translation," "which meaning of a root takes priority" belong to the realm of interpretation; no single answer can be imposed. In this article we took the translation texts from M. Okuyan's reading, which is itself one reading.
Conclusion: Reading a translation is a door that opens with love; do not hesitate to step through it. Just remember this: what you hold is the Qur'an as understood through one translator's sincere effort. Placing several translations side by side, refusing to imprison meaning in a single sentence, and drawing a little closer to the original where you can will bring you nearer still to what God intends. This is precisely why this site always tries to keep text and interpretation apart. May your path be open.
Source: Qur'anic verses (M. Okuyan meal). Presented with a text/interpretation distinction; not a fiqh fatwa.