Nothing Wrong with Teaching Quran in Local Languages: Mahathir Mohamad

TEHRAN (IQNA) – Former Malaysian premier Mahathir Mohamad advocated for the Quran to be taught in the vernacular so that non-Arabic speakers can understand the Islamic Holy Book.

He also urged Muslims to rely on the Quran instead of favoring other sources like the opinions of religious leaders.

"I’m told that translations from the Quran to other languages like Malay and English are not the Quran, but the Quran doesn’t change,” Dr Mahathir said in a speech at Anas Zubedy’s "Let’s Read the Quran” campaign in Kuala Lumpur.

"If the Quran has in Arabic, ‘you may not kill’, you cannot say in Malay, ‘you can kill’,” he added.

Mahathir Mohamad also said translations of the Quran, which is generally taught in the original Arabic in religious schools in Malaysia with students told to memorize the verses in Arabic, "may not be exact, but it’s near perfect”.

Source: The Malay Online