Lost in Translation

[feotakahari]

 To be clear, I’m not a Muslim, and I’ve never discussed religion with any of the Muslims I’ve met. I apologize if I’m misunderstanding something here.

There are verses in the Quran that claim the Torah has been misinterpreted and misused. Many Muslims go a step farther: the Torah has been mistranslated. While it still holds truth, that truth has been diluted by retranslation over the centuries. This is one of the reasons so many Muslim thinkers emphasize reading the Quran in the original Arabic, so as to avoid mistranslations that distort the meaning.

For complicated and stupid reasons relating to an X-Men comic, I’m seeing text flying back and forth across Tumblr about Surah 5, Verse 51 of the Quran. Some people think it means that Muslims shouldn’t be friends with people who aren’t Muslims. Other people think it means that Muslims shouldn’t have non-Muslims as leaders. Meanwhile, G. Willow Wilson, who actually knows Arabic, points out (dead link) that the word being used means “legal advisor.”

Courtesy of Lamya H, a verse from the Quran. I can’t vouch for the accuracy of the translation:

It is He who has sent down to you the Book; in it are verses precise – they are the foundation of the Book – and others unspecific. As for those in whose hearts is deviation [from truth], they will follow that of it which is unspecific, seeking discord and seeking an interpretation [suitable to them]. And no one knows its [true] interpretation except Allah. But those firm in knowledge say, “We believe in it. All [of it] is from our Lord.” And no one will be reminded except those of understanding. 

If anything, it seems a little rosy. Even the parts that are specific can be misused if you can’t keep track of what the words mean!

P.S. I tried looking up Muslim views on the Bible, but I got a lot of conflicting responses. I’ll leave that discussion to actual Muslims.