the middle, and a short one at the end, arranged all well and handed them over to men;
but the Qur'ans which they had I collected and burnt.' 1 The probability is
that 'Uthman made the best recension then possible, but there are traditions regarding
other forms of the book, for they did not all become extinct at once. Of these the most
important are those of Ubai ibn Ka'b and of Ibn Mas'ud. Ubai is said to have brought
together Suras (cv) and (cvi), contrary to the sense. He varies the order of the Suras and
is said to have added two new ones, called Sura al-Khala' and Sura al-Hafd, or, as it is
also called, Sura al-Qanut. These are:
'In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate.
'O God we pray Thee for help and forgiveness. we praise Thee and are not unthankful
towards Thee, and we let go and forsake every one who trespasses against Thee.'
'In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate.
'O God we serve Thee, and to Thee do we pray, and Thee do we worship; we hasten to
Thee; we strive after Thee; we hope for Thy pity, and we fear Thy punishment. Truly, Thy
punishment overcomes the unbelievers.'
These may have been simple prayers, written on the margin of a Qur'an, but it is not
clear whether this is the case or not. The oldest book in which Noldeke found them is one
written in the fifth century of the Hijra. They are taken from the codex of Ubai. Noldeke
considers them to be authentic.2 The second Sura of these two, it is said,
should be placed in the Qur'an after the words of Sura Yunus (x) 10, 'Glory be to Thee,
O God, and their salutation therein "Peace."' There are expressions in these
Suras not found in the authorized Qur'an, e.g.,
in the sense of trespass does not take the
accusative.
The objection is taken to these Suras that in them man addresses God and not God man;
but Sura al-Fatiha (i) is similar in style, and in any case the word