Chapter 1 - Revelation Besides the Qur'an
The Qur'an is the word of God which was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad, may the peace and blessings of God be upon him, and preserved both verbally and in writing by his Companions. Apart from the Qur'an, whatever the Prophet uttered or did was also preserved by the Companions. Thus the Sunnah includes the sayings of the Prophet, peace be upon him, known commonly as hadiths (i.e. sayings), his practices, and actions which gained his approval. Both the Qur'an and the Sunnah fall under a common title "wahy" (i.e. revelation or inspiration); the difference between the two is that the Qur'an is a revelation which is recited (matalu) in the formal prayer (salat) while the Sunnah is not recited in the formal prayers. The importance of the Sunnah as the second source of Islam is covered in Chapter 2.