Learning from Quran

Thanks for starting this discussion.Our beloved Prophet Muhammad(pbuh)had clearly said that he was leaving two things behind,which must be followed to remain on the desired track.They are only : ..................THE HOLY QURAN..........and.........THE HOLY SUNNAH................ This is the actual "DEEN".So we are not supposed to do blind-following of any Imam,monk or priest at our own.Islam is away from ancestral Imams,which some people have invented to base their false views.The real Touch Stone of Islam is just: ..................THE HOLY QURAN..........and.........THE HOLY SUNNAH................

You are so right. I might sound mean, but I can't really take Imams seriously. I do respect them, but for gaining knowledge about Quran I would not rely on them. There are too many reasons behind this. And one of them is that many of Quran's Ayats are filled with scientific facts. They can be best understood only if we have studied science instead of theology. I would rather refer to a physics or biology text book to have a better understanding of those facts.

The purpose of religion is to attune the individual mind to the absolute truth of life and realisation of divine reality.But all the organised religion are becoming more restrictive and divisive in natere and spirit,speaking of some rituals and rules only,without making any attempt to make a man or woman of realised God consciouness to enjoy the true values of life. I have recently started a blog to share my feelins and views concerning the purpose of religion in serving to help understand truth of life and guide to live a life of fulfillment . You are welcome to visit my blog http://knowyourself.blog.co.in/ and share your views. Have a nice day!!

When learning the Quran it is better for us to have a teacher or guide. They may have opinions which we disagree with but they also have at least some of the knowledge we seek for. The Quran is not like a story book in which the plot travels in a line or in sequence. All the verses were sent down for specific reasons. It was said that whoever learns or study (Quean) without a teacher, then the Devil becomes the teacher. From my observations the majority deviant sects came out due to a shallow understanding of Islam and attempts to interpret things on their own. All the great teachers/ulamas/Imams/Syaikhs learned from others before they embark on their own. May Allah gives us guidance and help us to remain steadfast on the correct path.

Sallams, The prophet Muhammad has said that I am leaving you two things, the Quran and the Ehlul Bait. Keep these things and you will never go astray. The reason he said this is because Allah, in his infinite mercy, will never leave us without guidance. Yes the Quran is there, but at the same time in some places it remains very general, and in others it gets very specific. In addition, we cannot account for the entire Quran at once when we read a couple verses--for instance, I may find a verse that sets conditions on halal or haram meat, and then there is a verse somewhere else that sets more conditions. Or I may find a verse that tells me polygamy is permitted, b , and I do not know about the conditions that resst it, which may lead me to believe that polygamy is permissible with no restrictions. For these reasons, we have those who are the infallible teachers of the Quran after the Prophet Muhammad--the twelve imams of the Ehlul Bait. Similar to how Calculus is difficult to study without a teacher, the Quran is difficult to study without a teacher. Inshallah as your knowledge about Islam grows,, then you will be able to understand a lot more of the Quran on your own, but it is important to start off with the rightly guided knowledge (and I stress rightly guided, since we all know of the "Irshad Manji Infestation" currently trying to corrupt Islam--this is an example of someone who had no teachers.) Ma'a sallamah.