Quranic Stories A Contemporary Reading Part Two From Noah to Joseph

“Quranic Stories” is a new and scientific analysis of the stories of the prophets. In Part Two, the author continues the path of prophethood to see how the sciences and knowledge of prophecy accumulated, how humans discovered fire and burying the dead, how they learned, at the hands of Noah, how to cross water barriers, at the hands of Shu’aib, how to fulfill the obligation of measuring and weighing, and at the hands of Joseph how to store the harvest of bounty seasons for days of famine. He continues the path of the messages to see how religious laws diversified and evolved from strict religious laws to strict religious laws, with a clear tendency toward facilitation and mitigation; and how rituals differed in form and devotion. Fasting, which began as abstaining from speech altogether, later became abstaining from food, drink, and contact with women, as well as avoiding obscene and vulgar language. Prayer, which began as supplication and remembrance, then took on a ritual form, including standing, sitting, bowing, and prostrating, requiring humility.