To guide humanity onto the path of righteousness, Allah the Almighty sent His Messengers and revealed divine wisdom and scriptures through them.
The commands of Allah reached Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) as divine revelation (Wahy) through the Archangel Jibreel (Gabriel). Whenever a revelation was sent down, the Prophet (ﷺ) would immediately instruct his companions to write the verses down to preserve them.
The Scribes of Divine Revelation
Among the prominent companions appointed by the Prophet (ﷺ) to write down the divine messages were:
- Abu Bakr (RadhiAllahu Anhu – RA)
- Umar (RA)
- Uthman (RA)
- Ali (RA)
- Muawiyah (RA)
- Aban bin Sa’id (RA)
- Khalid bin Walid (RA)
- Ubayy bin Ka’b (RA)
- Zayd bin Thabit (RA)
- Thabit bin Qays (RA)
Preservation Materials in the Prophet’s Era
During the lifetime of the Prophet (ﷺ), the verses of the Quran were written and preserved on various scattered materials, including:
- Pieces of leather and parchment
- Palm stalks and tree barks
- Animal bones (such as shoulder blades)
- White stone tablets
These written records were carefully stored and preserved in the house of the Prophet (ﷺ).
The Compilation Under Caliph Abu Bakr (RA)
During the caliphate of Abu Bakr (RA), the monumental task of gathering these scattered writings into a single, comprehensive manuscript was entrusted to Zayd bin Thabit (RA), a master scribe who had memorized the entire Quran. He executed this responsibility flawlessly.
The Catalyst: The Battle of Yamama
This turning point occurred in the 12th year of the Hijra calendar during the reign of Abu Bakr (RA) as Amir al-Mu’minin (Leader of the Believers). A fierce battle took place in Yamama, during which a large number of companions who had memorized the Quran (Huffaz) were martyred.
Among the fallen was Salim, the freed slave of Abu Hudhaifah (RA)—a companion whom the Prophet (ﷺ) had explicitly endorsed as an authority from whom the Quran should be learned. Fearing that vital parts of the Quran might be lost with the passing of these memorizers, Abu Bakr (RA) resolved to compile the text into a single, official manuscript.
The Narration of Zayd ibn Thabit (RA)
The companion Zayd ibn Thabit (RA) recounts the historic event as follows:
“Abu Bakr sent for me after the heavy casualties among the warriors of the Battle of Yamama. When I arrived, I found Umar ibn al-Khattab sitting with him.
Abu Bakr said to me: ‘Umar has come to me and said, “Casualties were heavy among the memorizers of the Quran at the Battle of Yamama, and I am deeply afraid that more heavy casualties may take place in other battlefields, causing a large part of the Quran to be lost. Therefore, I advise that you (as the Caliph) give orders to collect and compile the Quran.”‘
I said to Umar, ‘How can I do something that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) himself did not do?’
Umar replied, ‘By Allah, this is a good and noble project!’ Umar kept pressing and returning to me with this proposal until Allah opened my heart to it, and I came to realize the immense value of what Umar had envisioned.’
Abu Bakr (RA) then turned to Zayd and said:
‘You are a wise young man and we do not suspect you of any shortcomings. Furthermore, you used to write down the Divine Inspiration for the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). Therefore, search for the scattered verses of the Quran and collect them into a single manuscript.’
By Allah! If they had ordered me to shift one of the mountains, it would not have felt heavier to me than the task of compiling the Quran.
I asked them, ‘How can you two do something that the Messenger of Allah did not do?’
Abu Bakr insisted, ‘By Allah, it is a good project.’ He continued to urge me until Allah opened my heart to the task, just as He had opened the hearts of Abu Bakr and Umar.
Consequently, I started locating and gathering the Quranic verses from various materials—from wide date-palm leaves, pieces of leather, flat white stones, and from the chests of men who had memorized it. I found the final verses of Surah At-Tawbah (Chapter 9) exclusively with Abu Khuzaimah al-Ansari (RA) and added them to their proper place at the end of the chapter:
‘Verily, there has come unto you a Messenger from among yourselves…’ (Quran 9:128).”
Custody of the Master Manuscript
The single master manuscript compiled by Zayd bin Thabit (RA) remained safely in the custody of Caliph Abu Bakr (RA) until his death.
- Following his passing, it was transferred to the custody of the second Caliph, Umar (RA), where it stayed until his martyrdom.
- After Umar’s passing, the manuscript was entrusted to his daughter, Hafsah (RA), who was a widow of the Prophet (ﷺ) and a guardian of the text.
The Universal Consensus of the Muslims
This monumental initiative undertaken by Abu Bakr (RA) was universally accepted and praised by the entire Muslim community. It remains celebrated as one of his greatest achievements.
Regarding this, Ali ibn Abi Talib (RA) beautifully remarked:
“The person who deserves the greatest reward concerning the physical compilation of the Quranic manuscripts is Abu Bakr. May Allah’s mercy be upon Abu Bakr; he was the very first person to gather and unify the Book of Allah. The Quranic manuscript we hold in our hands today is the fruit of his righteous efforts! May Allah grant him the highest ranks in Paradise. Ameen!”
