Imām Husain nor any other Muslim scholar is able to tell us. One thing however is certain: these discrepancies do exist, and thereby prove incontestably that the boasted Divine protection of the Qurān, as a matter of fact, does not exist.
A study of the Traditions throws considerable light upon this perplexing problem, and shows how many of these differences arose; whilst the total disappearance of whole verses and Sūras is also largely accounted for by a reference to the same authorities. Thus in a tradition preserved by ʿUmr we read,
ʿUmr said, "Hishām read certain verses in Sūra Furqān which the prophet had not taught me. I said, ‘Who taught you this Sūra?’ He said, ‘The Prophet of God.’ I said, ‘Thou liest, the prophet of God never taught it thee thus’.” As a matter of fact Islāmic history contains many references to the various readings of the Qurān. Thus we read that a certain Qurān reader named Ibn-Sanabud was once reading the Qurān in the great Mosque of Bagdad; but his reading not agreeing with the reading of that place, he was severely beaten and cast into prison, and only released upon his renouncing the reading with which he was familiar. These various readings differed not only in pronunciation, but in a number of cases the whole meaning of the Qurānic passage was altered. We now proceed to give a few examples of such passages, which are referred to by Husain, Baizāwi and other learned Muhammadan authorities in their writings.
In the celebrated commentary of Imām Husain we read that in the first rūkū of Sūra Ambiya the current reading is, (
Arabic characters) He (Muhammad) said, My Lord knows;”
