Q) Give an account of how the Quran was compiled in Hazrat Abu Bakr’s (RA) Caliphate.

(10m)

Ans) No copy of the Quran existed at the time of the Prophet's demise in 632 AD, and it was only
preserved in the memories of the Huffaz. When Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) passed away, Hazrat Abu
Bakr (RA) was selected as the first Caliph. Many enemies of the Ummah saw Prophet Muhammad’s
(PBUH) demise as an opportunity to finish Islam as now they had no leader. Hence, Hazrat Abu Bakr (RA)
had to fight many battles in order to protect Islam.

One of the important battles that Hazrat Abu Bakr (RA) fought was the Battle of Yamamah against the
false Prophet Musailmah, the Liar. In this battle, around 70 Huffaz were martyred which led to the
realisation of Hazrat Umar (RA) that if Huffaz kept dying at the same rate, the Quran would be lost as the
chain of transmission would break and it would not be possible to confirm the authenticity of the written
verses. Therefore, he suggested to Hazrat Abu Bakr (RA) that the Quran should be compiled in the form
of a book. At first, Hazrat Abu Bakr (RA) was reluctant as he said that:
“How shall I do something which the Apostle (Prophet) of Allah (S.A.W) did not do?”
Hazrat Umar (RA) kept convincing Hazrat Abu Bakr (RA) that the Ummah needs the Quran and its
guidance. Hazrat Abu Bakr (RA) finally agreed.

Hazrat Abu Bakr (RA) chose Zaid Bin Thabith (RA), who was Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) most trusted
Companion and secretary, to do this task. Hazrat Abu Bakr (RA) said to Zaid Bin Thabith (RA) that:
“Look for the (Verses of) the Quran and collect it in one manuscript.”
He also praised Zaid Bin Thabith (RA) by reminding him of his truthfulness and good memory. Zaid Bin
Thabth (RA) was a scribe and Hafiz which made him the most suitable for the compilation of Quran.
Although, like Hazrat Abu Bakr (RA), Zaid Bin Thatbit (RA) was also hesitant as he said that:
“It would be far easier to carry a mountain on my head than to shoulder such a great responsibility.”
However, eventually upon the convincing of Hazrat Abu Bakr (RA) , Zaid Bin Thabith (RA) agreed and
commenced with the process of this immense task.

Firstly, Zaid Bin Thabith (RA) made a committee of 75 companions to help him with the compilation.
Then, he made a public announcement asking everyone to bring any Quranic verses that they had
written or memorised. Furthermore, he devised three ways to confirm the authenticity of the Quranic
Verses that were bought by people. First of all, since Zaid Bin Thabith himself was a Hafiz, he would
verify the verse with his own memory. Secondly, he would get it checked by other Huffaz, especially
Hazrat Umar (RA). Thirdly, he asked people to bring two reliable witnesses who would testify that such
and such verse was written in front of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and was approved by him.

All these verses were written of loose sheets called Suhufs by the committee. In the end, these Suhufs
were assembled according to the Surahs and binded together, forming a book which was named as
Mus'haf. Once this book was compiled, it was taken to Hazrat Abu Bakr (RA) as he was the Caliph at the
time.

When Hazrat Abu Bakr (RA) passed away, the book was kept in the custody of the second Caliph Hazrat
Umar (RA). Later, when Hazrat Umar (RA) passed away, the Mus'haf was kept in the safe custody of
Prophet Muhammad's (PBUH) wife, Hazrat Hafsah (RA), who was also Hazrat Umar's (RA) duaghter.
When the copy of the Quran was in Hazrat Hafsah's (RA) custody, it was called as Suhuf-e-Hafsah or
Mus'haf-e-Hafsah.