(7) In the 'Itqan' (on Fada'ilu'l-Qur'an) ibn Durais cites a tradition ascribed to ibn
Aslam to the effect that 'Umar once addressed a large audience and said: 'Doubt not
concerning stoning, for it is lawful. I would have written the Verse of Stoning in the
Qur'an, but Ubai ibn Ka'b said to me, "Dost thou not remember when thou once camest
unto me while I was asking the Prophet to recite the verse to me, and he pushed me in my
chest? And thou saidst unto me, 'Dost thou ask the Prophet to recite the verse to you when
people are committing adultery like beasts?"' 1
(8) 'Ayesha, whose testimony, though a woman's, counts whole, not half, knew of this verse
at and after the death of Muhammad, as we shall see.
Thus it is evident that the witnesses of the Verse of Stoning were the most important
of the Companions, such as 'Ayesha, the wife of the Prophet, 'Umar ibnu'l-Khattab, one of
his successors, Zaid ibn Thabit, his secretary and editor, with othersvery many more
than the quorum of two required to authenticate any verse.
The assumption is that the Verse was caused to be forgotten.
Some Muslims claim that this verse was caused by God to be forgotten, as God has the
right to cancel or abrogate any verse. The Qur'an says: 'And whatever verse we cancel or
cause
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