The
language of the Qur’an is Arabic. However, Qur’an has been sent as a guide to
each person who knows or does not know Arabic. Therefore, people who do not
know Arabic will either learn Arabic for understanding or try to comprehend
Qur’an via translation and commentary studies in their own language. This
necessity set the stage for translation activities in the way of rendering the
Qur’an into other languages in the first period. As a matter of fact, Selmân-ı
Fârisî who was the one of the companions of the Prophet Muhammad translated the
surah Al-Fatiha into Persian for his fellow countrymen.
The
most difficult work conducted was certainly the translation of Qur’an into
other language. The basic reason for this is that Qur’an is the word of Allah.
This situation requires the translator to take a special responsibility,
because it is neither poetry nor prose; Qur’an is itself and has its own
features. Therefore, it is
necessary
to comprehend and comment by paying attention to psychosocial characteristics
of people and obeying all rules of Arabic. Hence it is compulsory to understand
all parts of the Arabic and get to know people well for people who would like
to perceive the Qur’an.
There has
been accumulation on Qur’an translation studies from the republic day of Turkey
until today in Turkey. One of these commentaries is the book entitled “Kur’an
Meâli” written by Prof. Hüseyin Peker.
The
subject of this article is the book entitled “Kur’an Meâli” written by Prof.
Hüseyin Peker. The purpose of the study is to analyze Peker’s opinions which
differ from opinions of other translators about some verses or word and
concepts in verses in the book “Kur’an Meâli”. The scope of the study has been
confined to Peker’s book entitled “Kur’an Meâli” and other translations done in
Turkey as part of topic. The method of the study is based on literature review
and Peker’s opinions about related issues. His opinions have been evaluated by
comparing the other opinions in the translations of Qur’an in Turkish which have
been written out in republic period.
In the article the following six words, concepts and expressions are
examined.
1. The Meaning of Basmalah
The Basmalah, in the Holy Qur’an, existing all of the surahs
except for surah al-Tawbah in the form of “Bismillahirrahmanirrahim”. In the
30th ayah of surah al-Naml a Basmalah exists in the same form. The Basmalah
is translated in general sense: “In the name of Allah who merciful and
forgiving”, “In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful”, “With the
name of Allah,
who rule everything with love”, “In the name of Allah, who is the spring of
compassion and mercy”. Peker translates the Basmalah like this: “In the
name of Allah, compassion of whom is infinite, mercy of whom unlimited”. So
translation of Peker emphasize the wideness, immensity, depth, continuity,
eternity and infinity of Allah’s compassion and mercy.
2. The Notion of Muttakî
The translators translated the notion of muttakî generally like
this manner “protecting servants, respectful servants, devotees, pure devotees,
those who fear Allah, fear of deviating from evil, those who are aware of their
responsibilities towards Allah, those who want to be purified”. Peker
translates the notion of muttaki like this: “sensitive servants to God's
commandments”. In this translation, Peker emphasize that the Holy Qur’an is a
pathfinder just for servants who are sensitive to the stimulating effects of
Qur'anic verses and Muhammad (pbuh).
3. The Word of Birr
The word birr, in the 177th ayah of surah al-Baqara, is
translated generally with the word goodness. Peker translated birr with
the word devoutness by justifying the context of the ayah.
4. The Word of Nafs
The Word of nafs is generally means that “God’s entity, spirit,
soul, person, essence, spirit of man, heart, type, oneself”. But Peker
translate the nafs which is 30th ayah of the surah al-Maidah with
the words “jealousy and sense of inferiority”; and 53th ayah of the surah
Joseph -the second usage- with the words “libidinal wishes and desires”; and
the expression states in 14th ayah of surah al-Hadid with the words “you are
being a troublemaker in your mind”.
5. The Verb of Istawa
The verb of istawa is generally means that “shape, order,
correct, equate, being equal, subjugate to one’s provision and order”. But
Peker translates the word in 5th ayah of surah al-Taha “He is the Rahman, who
organized the whole universe”; and the expression states in the 3rd ayah of
surah Yunus with the words “Then he made the whole universe regular”.
6. The Expression of Watruq al-Bahr Rahwan states in the 24th ayah of
Surah al-Duhan
Peker translates this expression like this: “Cross the sea in a
relaxed/calm manner”.
Bilindiği üzere Kur’ân’ın
dili Arapça’dır. Ancak Kur’ân, Arapça bilen-bilmeyen her insana rehberlik etmek
üzere gönderilmiştir. Dolayısıyla Arapça bilmeyenler, Kur’ân’ı anlamak için ya
Arapça’yı öğrenecekler ya da kendi dillerindeki tercüme ve tefsir
çalışmalarından faydalanarak Kur’ân’ı anlamaya çalışacaklardır. Bu kapsamda,
Türkiye’de cumhuriyetin ilanından günümüze kadar, Kur’ân meâli çalışmaları konusunda
oldukça bereketli bir birikim söz konusudur. Bu meâllerden birisi de Prof. Dr.
Hüseyin Peker tarafından kaleme alınan “Kur’an Meâli” adlı eserdir.
Bu makalede araştırmanın
konusu, Hüseyin Peker tarafından kaleme alınan “Kur’an Meâli” adlı eserin
değerlendirilmesidir. Araştırmanın amacı, Peker’in “Kur’an Meâli” adlı
eserinde, bazı ayetler veya ayetler içerisindeki bazı kelime ve kavramlar
hakkında, diğer mütercimlerin kanaatlerinden farklılık arz eden görüşlerini
incelemektir. Araştırmanın kapsamı, ele alınan konular çerçevesinde Peker’in
“Kur’an Meâli” adlı eseri ve Türkiye’de yapılan diğer Kur’ân tercümeleriyle
sınırlı tutulmuştur. Araştırmanın yöntemi, literatür çalışmasına dayanmakta
olup, Peker’in ilgili konulardaki kanaatleri ile Cumhuriyet döneminde kaleme
alınan Kur’ân’ın Türkçe çevirilerindeki görüşler kıyaslanarak
değerlendirilmektedir. Bu çerçevede, araştırmada toplam altı kelime, kavram ve
ifade incelenmektedir. Bunlar; Besmele’nin anlamı, muttakî
kavramı, birr kelimesi, nefs kelimesi, istevâ fiili ve
Duhân suresi 24. ayetteki vetruki’l-bahra rahven ifadesinin anlamı
konularından oluşmaktadır.
Primary Language | Turkish |
---|---|
Subjects | Religious Studies |
Journal Section | Research Articles |
Authors | |
Publication Date | June 20, 2019 |
Published in Issue | Year 2019 Issue: 12 |
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