Jews who were turned into Apes
Mike Ghouse, January 21, 2008
http://www.foundationforpluralism.com/Quraan/Jews-who-were-turned-into-apes.asp
Last night I received an email that listed “Top 10 verses Muslims wish were never revealed”. Item number 5 was this. “Qur’an 2:65 mentions that Jews who broke the Sabbath were turned into Apes.” claiming that Islamic God is anti-Semitic. I will post every one of the 10 items and hope to wrap it up by the end of this month.
As a Muslim, it offends me to read this title, and I certainly understand the pain the Jews must feel when they read this quotation. Every one is busy with their lives, rightfully so and consume the sound bites dished out to them without even wondering the veracity of it. We have seen that everywhere, facts simply don’t matter to our administration even when a Million lives have been annihilated based on wrong facts. Who has the time to find the truth?
9/11 has given a boon to writers around the globe and Islam bashing yields guaranteed returns. There is a percentage of population who are hunkering down to devour any thing anti-Islam and the hawks know where to dive for their fish. You can write anything anti-Islam and people will donate the money. Look it up, every website that writes hate asks for money. It is precisely this ganging up for making money that turned me towards finding the truth several years ago and now, this year, 2008, I have made a commitment to address those 60 or some verses that are routinely misquoted as a part of the propaganda.
I understood the concept of Pluralism. It has been around for thousands of years in India and one of the greatest Kings of India, rightly called Akbar the great, was perhaps the first one in the world to sponsor such an effort. I learned from Bhagvad Gita a verse, that has become a part of my system “finding the truth is one’s own responsibility”. I have written quite extensively on it, but for now I will get back to the verse above.
“Qur’an 2:65 mentions that Jews who broke the Sabbath were turned into Apes.”
I clicked on the link provided just for 2:65 –it took me to the University of Southern California’s website http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/quran/002.qmt.html#002.065
I looked for that sentence, it was not there. By giving the link, people are duped into believing that what is said is authentic. This is not the only one, there are at least 60 of them that are in the propaganda machine.
Islamicity is where I go to check any verse in Qur’aan, it is an authentic Islamic website. You can go to the Qur’aan search and plug in the verse number and out comes the verse in Arabic, followed by transliteration and the English translation by Mohammad Asad, a respected scholar.
The first item to check was the translation by Hilali Khan, the only one who adds words that aren’t there. To my amazement the word Jew was not plugged in his version of the translation either. The Arabic which I can read, does not say that either.
Religions emerged to allay individual fears and bring a balance in one’s life and peace for the society. It is time for us to strip the wrongs people have ascribed to religion, indeed every religion, and find the truth for ourselves. I cannot believe that the Universities and responsible Governments have not undertaken the research to dismantle the false castles of hate from the past.
In the interest of peace and co-existence, it is time for all of us to get together and find the truth. If these hate mongers can spend their time and monies in promoting peace, we would be better off. I have begun a page at www.WorldMuslimCongress.com – on the panel Qur’aan-information to capture every verse that is maligned.. On some, I will go indepth, at least I am going to quote what is out there in the books. I was amazed this website had the gall to point to the right verse number, but misquote the verse.
God bless us all – here is the info.
Propaganda Verse : Qur’an 2:65 mentions that Jews who broke the Sabbath were turned into Apes.
Here is the real verse with seventeen translations.
Al-Baqara (The Cow) 2:65 ولقد علمتم الذين اعتدوا منكم في السبت فقلنا لهم كونوا قردة خاسئين
2:65 for you are well aware of those from among you who profaned the Sabbath, whereupon We said unto them, “Be as apes despicable!”
al-Baqarah 002:065
Transliteration
Walaqad AAalimtumu allatheena iAAtadaw minkum fee alssabti faqulna lahum koonoo qiradatan khasi-eena
Literal: And you had known those who transgressed/violated from you in the Saturday/Sabbath, so We said to them: “Be lowly/ousted out monkeys/apes .”
Yusuf Ali: And well ye knew those amongst you who transgressed in the matter of the Sabbath: We said to them: “Be ye apes, despised and rejected.”
Pickthal: And ye know of those of you who broke the Sabbath, how We said unto them: Be ye apes, despised and hated!
Arberry: And well you know there were those among you that transgressed the Sabbath, and We said to them, ‘Be you apes, miserably slinking!’
Shakir : And certainly you have known those among you who exceeded the limits of the Sabbath, so We said to them: Be (as) apes, despised and hated.
Sarwar : You certainly knew about those among you who were transgressors on the Sabbath. We commanded them, “Become detested apes,”
Khalifa : You have known about those among you who desecrated the Sabbath. We said to them, “Be you as despicable as apes.”
Hilali/Khan : And indeed you knew those amongst you who transgressed in the matter of the Sabbath (i.e. Saturday). We said to them: “Be you monkeys, despised and rejected.”
H/K/Saheeh :And you had already known about those who transgressed among you concerning the sabbath, and We said to them, “Be apes, despised.”
Malik: You very well know the story of those of you who transgressed in the matter of the Sabbath; We ordered them: “Be detested apes”.[65]
QXP :And you are well aware of those of you who broke the Sabbath, whereupon We said unto them, “Be as apes despicable!”
Maulana Ali: And indeed you know those among you who violated the Sabbath, so We said to them: Be (as) apes, despised and hated.
Free Minds: You have come to know who it was amongst you that transgressed the Sabbath, We said to them: “Be despicable apes!”
Qaribullah: You have surely known of those amongst you who transgressed the Sabbath. We said to them: ‘Be apes, despised! ‘
George Sale: Moreover ye know what befall those of your nation who transgressed on the sabbath day; we said unto them, be ye changed into apes, driven away from the society of men.
JM Rodwell: Ye know too those of you who transgressed on the Sabbath, and to whom we said, “Be changed into scouted apes:”
Asad: for you are well aware of those from among you who profaned the Sabbath, whereupon We said unto them, “Be as apes despicable!” –
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