TEFSIR-I MEVAKIB | A COMMENTARY TRANSLATION OF THE HOLY QURAN

The only sacred book whose original has been preserved: The Holy Quran

The Holy Quran has maintained its youth and freshness from the time it was revealed to the present day. This is because it is under Divine protection. Since the very first day, Muslims have strived to understand the Quran. They learned it first by asking the Prophet (pbuh), and subsequent generations learned from the Sahaba, and those who came after them learned from those who had learned from the Sahaba, always seeking to comprehend it. Through this, centuries of accumulation and tradition of the science of tafsir (exegesis) have been passed down to our day.

The Quran is a guide and mercy for the believers.

A Muslim learns the meaning and purpose of life from the Quran and shapes their words and actions under its guidance. For this, it must be understood correctly. The science of tafsir, which seeks to interpret the Quran—the word of Almighty Allah—in accordance with His intent, aims to fulfill this need.

The Science of Tafsir-Meal and Tefsir-i Mevakib

Tafsir (exegesis) was one of the primary sciences emphasized and taught in Ottoman madrasas. As a result of this special interest in the science of tafsir, many exegetes were trained and numerous tafsir works were produced during that period. Tefsir-i Mevakib | A Commentary Translation of the Holy Quran is a tafsir-translation work prepared by Ismail Ferruh Efendi (d. 1840), who translated and partially supplemented/abridged the Persian tafsir titled Mevahib-i Aliyye by the Khorasani exegete, mystic, and poet Hussein Waiz Kashifi (d. 910/1504-1505).

Tefsir-i Mevakib | A Commentary Translation of the Holy Quran and Sultan Abdülhamid Han

This tafsir by Ismail Ferruh Efendi was reviewed by a committee of thirteen, including the Kazaskers of Rumelia and Anatolia, the Shaykh al-Islam, and the Naqib al-Ashraf during the reign of Sultan Abdülhamid Han. Tefsir-i Mevakib | A Commentary Translation of the Holy Quran was printed multiple times during the reign of Sultan Abdülhamid II.

What are the distinguishing features of Tefsir-i Mevakib | A Commentary Translation of the Holy Quran?

Its content is simple, understandable, and fluent. Tefsir-i Mevakib | A Commentary Translation of the Holy Quran contains extensive information regarding Quranic sciences such as stories (qisas), abrogation (nasih-mansukh), disjointed letters (huruf-i muqatta), and the definitive (muhkam) and allegorical (mutashabih) verses. Tefsir-i Mevakib holds great importance both as a concise commentary preferred during the period it was written and as an example of the translation/meal (meaning) genre. The language of Tefsir-i Mevakib | A Commentary Translation of the Holy Quran possesses a simple and fluent style that the public could understand, serving as a witness to the era in which it was written. Having undergone many printings, it became one of the most preferred translations of that period.

Why is Semerkand Publications publishing a meal-tafsir work?

Following the recommendation of the great saint, the late Sheikh Sayyid Abdulbaki al-Husayni [quddisa sirruhu], for the work to be rendered into modern Turkish, it was prepared and presented to the public by a scholarly committee as a result of three years of work.