Preserved in the language of Arabic, the Qur'an is Islam's sacred text. It is believed that the Qur'an enshrines the literal word of God and that it was revealed to Muhammad by the Archangel Gabriel.
Muslims believe that Gabriel brought the word of God to Muhammad verbatim, and the Quran was divinely protected from any alteration or change. The Quran emphasizes that Muhammad was required only to receive the sacred text and that he had no authority to change it.
For more than 14 centuries the Quran has been preserved from change and will be preserved in the future till the Day of judgement. Not only are its words preserved but the meanings, implications, interpretations and how they are applied in daily life are all diligently preserved by Muslims.
The Rigveda, a scripture of Hinduism, is dated 1500 BCE. It is one of the oldest known complete religious texts that has survived into the modern age.
Of course, the Bible is going to be number one on our list. Its religious history dates back thousands of years and is one of the most popular religious books in the world for a reason.
Christianity. The world's largest religion, Christianity, is practiced by about 2.4 billion people.
Some scholars state that the Quran contains scientific information that agrees with modern science. The doctrine of the miraculousness of the Quran is further emphasized by Muhammad's illiteracy since the unlettered prophet could not have been suspected of composing the Quran.
A Buddhist holy text, the Diamond Sūtra is considered to be the oldest surviving dated printed book in the world. Found in a walled up cave in China along with other printed materials, the book is made up of Chinese characters printed on a scroll of grey printed paper, wrapped along a wooden pole.
Unlike Judaism, Islam, or Christianity, Buddhism has no single authoritative book; there are multiple Buddhist canons in multiple languages.
Despite the contents of the Torah not changing in millennia, the reception of the text and the way that people have interpreted it has never stopped shifting and evolving.
Knowing that versions written in the Hebrew Bible and the Christian New Testament does predate the Quran, scholars recognize the borrowing from Persian, Jewish and Christian texts.
The Quran mentions the Torah, Psalms, and Gospel as being revealed by God in the same way the Quran was revealed to Muhammad, the final prophet and messenger of God according to Muslims.
As their command module floated above the lunar surface, the astronauts beamed back images of the moon and Earth and took turns reading from the book of Genesis, closing with a wish for everyone "on the good Earth."
The Epic of Gilgamesh. What, When and Where: An epic poem concerning or (very) loosely based on the historical King Gilgamesh, who ruled Sumerian Uruk (modern day Iraq) in 2700 BC. This is the oldest written story, period, anywhere, known to exist.
The oldest extant complete text survives in a Greek translation called the Septuagint, dating to the 4th century CE (Codex Sinaiticus). The oldest extant manuscripts of the vocalized Masoretic Text (the basis of modern editions), date to the 9th century CE.
The earliest portion of the Bible was written over 3,500 years ago. The first five books of the Bible are attributed to Moses and are commonly called the Pentateuch (literally meaning “five scrolls”).
Studies in the 21st century suggest that, in terms of percentage and worldwide spread, Islam is the fastest-growing major religion in the world.
The sacred book sheds information on the Theory of Relativity, Big Bang Theory, Genetics, Black Holes, and more. Evidently, the holy Quran and science are not alienated from each other. In fact, the scientific discoveries in the Quran are described in the form of Surahs.
The Bible. Easily the most read book in the world is the Bible for obvious reasons. It is estimated to have sold over 40 million copies in the last 60 years.
Muslims believe that there is no falseness or contradictions in Islam because "falseness or contradiction in one matter of the religion proves the falsity of the religion as a whole, since we would then doubt the integrity of its texts."
Christianity developed out of Second Temple Judaism in the 1st century CE. It is founded on the life, teachings, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and those who follow it are called Christians. Islam developed in the 7th century CE.
In short, James tells us that true religion is a devotion to God, demonstrated by love and compassion for fellowmen, coupled with unworldliness. Such a statement seems too simple to be sufficient, but in its simplicity it speaks an important truth.