Jonathan A.C. Brown is Professor and Alwaleed bin Talal Chair of Islamic Civilization in the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. He is the author of Slavery & Islam, Misquoting Muhammad and Hadith: Muhammad’s Legacy in the Medieval and Modern World.

The book Misquoting Muhammad came out in 2014 by OneWorld Publications.

The book takes the reader back in time through Islamic civilization and traces how and why such controversies developed, offering an inside view into how key and controversial aspects of Islam took shape. From the protests of the Arab Spring to Istanbul at the fall of the Ottoman Empire, and from the ochre red walls of Delhi’s great mosques to the trade routes of the Indian Ocean world, Misquoting Muhammad lays out how Muslim intellectuals have sought to balance reason and revelation, weigh science and religion, and negotiate the eternal truths of scripture amid shifting values. (credit: Amazon)

The book delves into the history of Islamic scriptural interpretation, focusing on textual variations in the Quran and Hadith and their implications for the understanding of Islam.

Chapter Titles or Main Sections

Introduction: Setting the stage for the exploration of textual variations in Islamic scripture.

Orality and Memory: Examining the role of oral tradition in the transmission of religious texts.

The Authority of the Text: Discussing the significance of textual authority in Islamic tradition.

The Creation of Hadith: Exploring the process of Hadith compilation and its reliability.

The Isnad System: Delving into the Isnad (chain of narrators) system used to authenticate Hadith.

The Successors: Analyzing the contributions of early Islamic scholars and their influence on scriptural interpretation.

From Sunnah to Shari'ah: Connecting the development of Sunnah to the formation of Islamic jurisprudence.

The Gatekeepers: Discussing the role of scholars as gatekeepers of Islamic tradition and interpretation.

The Crisis of Authority: Addressing the challenges posed by textual variations and differing interpretations.

Critical Qur'anic Studies: Exploring contemporary critical approaches to the Quran.

Key Concepts

Textual Variations: Brown discusses the existence of textual variations in early Islamic texts, including the Quran and Hadith, and explores how these variations arose.

Oral Tradition: The book emphasizes the significance of oral transmission in early Islam and how this oral tradition impacted the preservation and interpretation of religious texts.

Hadith and Sunnah: Brown delves into the role of Hadith (sayings and actions of Prophet Muhammad) and Sunnah (his practices) in shaping Islamic jurisprudence and theology. He also addresses the reliability of Hadith collections.

Historical Context: The author provides historical context, examining how the early Muslim community dealt with differing interpretations and textual variations in their religious texts.

Scholars and Schools of Thought: Brown explores the contributions of Islamic scholars and the formation of various schools of thought (Madhabs) in Islamic jurisprudence. He highlights how these schools differ in their approach to interpreting Islamic texts.

Critical Approaches: The book discusses the emergence of critical and revisionist approaches to Islamic texts, particularly in the modern era, challenging traditional interpretations and advocating for historical and contextual analysis.

Theological Implications: Brown addresses the theological implications of textual variations and the diversity of interpretations within Islam. He explores how this diversity has led to differing theological stances.

Implementable Takeaways:

Understanding the historical context and the role of oral tradition is essential for appreciating the complexity of Islamic scripture.

Acknowledging the existence of textual variations and differing interpretations within Islam can lead to more nuanced and informed discussions about the religion.

Review of the Book

‘Lucid, learned and engaging’ ― Karen Armstrong, Sunday Times

'Brown possesses formidable knowledge of premodern Muslim scholars who sought to preserve accounts of Muhammad’s teachings and practices … Misquoting Muhammad sheds light on the considerable dynamism and sophistication within the Sunni tradition.' -- Washington Post

‘Exhilarating … Brown is among the most talented and productive scholars in the field of Islamic Studies today … He is also a practicing Muslim who has the rare ability to sit at the feet of traditional scholars from Egypt to Malaysia for hours on end and translate that knowledge into something beneficial for his American audiences.’ ― Los Angeles Review of Books

'Identifies and contextualizes the larger interpretive issues at stake in the global competition between diverse traditional and Salafi Sunni voices, and is written in such an engaging manner that the reader may find it difficult to put it down.' ― Journal of Shi'a Islamic Studies

‘Superb… an essential read for anyone seeking to understand Islam and the Muslim world… fascinating’ ― Tribune

‘Brown ably navigates the cutting edge of Hadith studies while offering his able insight, encyclopedic knowledge of Muslim textual traditions, and awareness of the political contentiousness of scholarship in Islamic studies… highly recommended’ ― ALA CHOICE Magazine

‘Misquoting Muhammadis a book I wish I had the money to buy for all my friends and colleagues, because he presents readers with a guide to Islamic thought that portrays it not as a fixed entity but as a complex product of utterly human machinations… Ultimately, Brown teaches a simple, if vital, lesson: Authenticity is elusive in religion, and those who claim it tend not to be searching for the truth but grasping for power.’ ― Pacific Standard magazine

'Misquoting Muhammad makes the important point that what many Muslims believe to be essential tenets of their faith are often nothing of the sort' ― Independent, best books of the year

‘There aren't many books on Islam where the Prophet Muhammad and Martin Scorsese appear together… helpful for the lay reader’ ― Independent

‘an inside view into how key controversial aspects of how Islam took shape’ ― Asian Art Newspaper

‘Erudite and provocative… compelling’ ― Literary Review

'Eminently qualified… Brown eloquently parses Islam's rich interpretive tradition.' -- Kirkus Reviews

‘An accessible yet erudite intellectual history of how the sayings and teachings of the Prophet Muhammad have been preserved and interpreted in Islamic history… This book is one of the best places to start with when seeking to understand the Islamic intellectual tradition.’ -- Chicago Review of Books