Survey of The First Verses Revealed to The Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)

There are different opinions about the first verses revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), but traditions mostly focus merely on two: the chapter al-Fatiḥah and the first verses of the chapter 'Alaq. Muslim scholars and exegetes rely only on traditions and scriptural contexts. Rather, the issue raised here is that “is it possible to prove their arguments through the means of reason, as well?” The present research, based on descriptive-analytical method, argues that although according to some traditions the first revealed verses to the Prophet (PBUH) are the first verses of the chapter ‘Alaq, since these verses indicate only to the Lord’s command for “reciting” and to some His descriptions, it is not reasonable to accept them as the first verses in the beginning of revelation. As a result, according to the intellectual and traditional arguments, it seems that the first verses of revelation were the verses of the chapter al-Ḥamd.