Study-Islam.org

THE MIZANU'L HAQQ

The Balance of Truth

ميزان الحق

(THE MOHAMMEDAN CONTROVERSY)

Carl Gottlieb Pfander, D. D.

Thoroughly Revised and Enlarged
by
William St. Clair Tisdall, M. A. D. D.

INDO-ASIATIC PUBLISHERS
B-57. Amar Colony New Delhi 24 (India)

INDO-ASIATIC PUBLISHERS
B-57 Amar Colony
Lajpat Nagar
New Delhi-110024 (INDIA)

First Published in 1910
First Indian Edn. 1976

Published by Mrs Swaran Malhotra for Indo-Asiatic Publishers &
Printed at Taj Offset Press, Urdu Bazar, Jama Masjid Delhi-6

TO TRANSLATORS

BY the desire of the Committee of the C.M.S., and in accordance with the recommendation of Missionaries of experience, this Revision of the Mizanu'l Haqq has been drawn up in English, from which language it was held that it might be more readily translated into various Oriental tongues than had it been composed in any one of them.

In order to facilitate translation, though writing in English I have endeavoured to preserve an Oriental tinge of style and argument. Oriental scholars will notice this not least in the Introduction, and to them it will not be necessary to apologise for the number of quotations from Eastern poets which the latter contains.

Dr. Pfander's Mizanu'l Haqq was composed in Persian and published ¹ in 1835. Numerous reprints and versions into other languages have since appeared, and some minor alterations have been made in the text, but this most valuable work has never been fully revised until now, in spite of the large number of attempted answers to it written by Muslims in Arabic, Persian, Urdu, and Turkish. Its revision was urgently needed, partly to bring it thoroughly up to date in reference to such matters as ancient MSS. of the Bible, partly to correct slight errors and ambiguities of language, and partly to remove all apparent ground for the attacks made upon the book. To deal fully with these attacks was impossible in the space at my disposal.

It may be advisable in some countries (Persia and the Turkish Empire for instance) to adopt a new name for this Revised Edition. This may not be necessary in India. The matter should be decided by Missionaries in each country.

I have tried everywhere to adopt a conciliatory tone towards Muslims, and to avoid the use of any expressions that might give needless offence. Hence I have expressed no opinion about and no direct condemnation of Muhammad himself, leaving the Muslim reader to form his own opinion from the facts stated. These facts are quoted from Muslim authors of repute, and from them alone, no reference being made to any Christian writer on that subject, Eastern or Western, except casually to Al Kindi

Full references are given to Muslim historians, biographers of Muhammad, theologians, commentators, etc., whether they wrote in Arabic, Persian, or Turkish, the edition and the page being generally mentioned. The object of this is, (1) to enable the reader to verify the quotations, and (2) to make it easy for the translator of the book into any Oriental language to quote these passages in the original as well as to translate them.

The verses quoted from the Qur'an are numbered as in the Concordance appended to the edition of the Qur'an printed in Isfahan in A. H. 1312, and in Flugel's Concordantiae Corani Arabicae, Leipzig, 1842. Quotations from the Bible are according to the Revised Version.

When writing in English, it is unnecessary to give any title of honour to Muhammad, or to the Old Testament Prophets, etc. But in an Oriental translation this is absolutely necessary. Muslims are deeply offended at such an omission. To Muhammad we should apply in Persian the title حضرت, in Turkish حضرتلرى, in Urdu Sahib, and so on in other tongues. To our Lord also one of His titles (Sayyiduna, Munji, Khudawand, etc.) should always be given, wherever His Name occurs.

It will be noticed that I have translated as literally as possible, for obvious reasons, any quotations from Oriental tongues. In such matters accuracy is more important than elegance, especially as the book is intended to be rendered into Eastern languages.

Passages in the Notes put in square brackets will probably be omitted by translators, as being intended mostly for the English reader.

In the first portion of the book, I have mentioned the Surahs by name as well as by number. Further on I have deemed this unnecessary in English, but it should always be done in an Oriental version. Passages from the Qur'an should always be given in the original Arabic. If translated, it might be well to take the versions published by Muslims themselves in interlineary editions of the Qur'an.

In English the expression “The Word of God” may mean (1) the Bible, or (2) Christ. In Arabic these are carefully distinguished, as shown in the text, the former being Kalamu'llah, the latter Kalimatu'llah.

W. St. C. Tisdall
BEDFORD
July, 1910.