Cambridge Assessment International Education

Cambridge Ordinary Level

ISLAMIYAT 2058/12
Paper 1 October/November 2017
MARK SCHEME
Maximum Mark: 50

Published

This mark scheme is published as an aid to teachers and candidates, to indicate the requirements of the
examination. It shows the basis on which Examiners were instructed to award marks. It does not indicate the
details of the discussions that took place at an Examiners’ meeting before marking began, which would have
considered the acceptability of alternative answers.

Mark schemes should be read in conjunction with the question paper and the Principal Examiner Report for
Teachers.

Cambridge International will not enter into discussions about these mark schemes.

Cambridge International is publishing the mark schemes for the October/November 2017 series for most
Cambridge IGCSE®, Cambridge International A and AS Level components and some Cambridge O Level
components.

® IGCSE is a registered trademark.

This document consists of 9 printed pages.

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Question Answer Marks

1 Candidates must attempt Question 1, Question 2 and two other Questions. 4

Choose any two of the following passages from the Qur’an, and

(a) briefly describe the main theme(s) in each passage;

(b) briefly explain the importance of these themes in a Muslim’s life today.

(1) Sura 41.37

37. Among His signs are the night and the day, and the sun and the moon. Adore not the sun and the moon, but adore Allah,
who created them, if it is Him you wish to serve.

(2) Sura 1
1. In the name of Allah, most gracious, most merciful. 2. Praise be to Allah, the cherisher and sustainer of the worlds; 3. Most
gracious, most merciful; 4. Master of the day of judgement. 5. You we worship, and your aid we seek. 6. Show us the straight
way, 7. The way of those to whom You have given your grace, not those who earn your anger, nor those who go astray.

(3) Sura 93
1. By the glorious morning light, 2. And by the night when it is still, 3. Your Lord has not forsaken you, nor is He displeased. 4.
And truly the Hereafter will be better for you than the present. 5. And soon your Lord will give you so that you will be pleased.
6. Did He not find you an orphan and give you shelter? 7. And He found you wandering, and He gave you guidance. 8. And
He found you in need, and made you independent. 9. Therefore, do not treat the orphan with harshness, 10. Nor drive the
beggar away; 11. But tell about the bounty of your Lord!

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Question Answer Marks

1(a) What are the main themes?

(1) Sura 41.37

The main themes are: God as Creator; God’s signs; Tawhid/Lord of mankind
Candidates will develop these themes in their own way, e.g., saying God creates and controls everything; the order of the sun
and the moon are God's signs for humankind. They are signs of His power; Only He should be worshipped; no-one is equal to
Him. It is a negation of paganism; the sun and moon are not to be worshipped.

(2) Sura 1
The main themes are that God is the Lord of creation, He is One; Praise is due to Him alone; He gives guidance to humans;
He is the Merciful.
Candidates will develop these themes in their own way, e.g., it is God who presides over judgment and controls the worlds.
God gives guidance to those who seek it. This sura is used as a prayer. He is the one to ask for help, and it is He who can
grant help and guidance for anything. He is Master of all creation, so only He is deserving of worship.

(3) Sura 93
The main themes are: God as companion; He helps His prophets, in this case the Prophet Muhammad; teaches being
grateful to God.
Candidates will develop these themes in their own way, e.g., it is God who helps in need so when distressed, Muslims should
turn to Him; this sura is directed to the Prophet (pbuh) himself showing how God helped him, in this case with shelter,
guidance and independence; gives message of being kind and helpful to others in need, like orphans and beggars, and
realising that a person’s benefits all come from thanking God.

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Question Answer Marks

1(b) The importance of these themes.

(1) Sura 41.37

The importance is that it creates a strong link with God, so Muslims do not look up to anything/anyone else, famous people,
money, etc, and they worship only Him. It stops them from committing shirk. It shows Muslims how God guided His
messengers, in this case Ibrahim.
God's signs invite Muslims to observe their environment. It creates awe and wonder to help get closer to Him, which
strengthens their belief in tawhid. It reminds humankind that He is the creator of all things.

(2) Sura 1
This is recited in every prayer. 'No prayer is accepted without Fatiha'.
It is a conversation with God as He is the Creator, and God is replying to each verse. Through it humans communicate with
God. Muslims use this to ask for guidance (given in the Qur'an and sunna), for mercy and help, even outside the prayer.
Submitting to God brings humbleness into lives, and because Muslims are accountable to God they pray to be guided on the
straight path.

(3) Sura 93
These themes tell Muslims to be steadfast and strong when others mock them; God gave blessings to the Prophet
Muhammad (pbuh), despite people saying that he had been forgotten by God. Muslims should look at their own lives to see
their blessings and not think they have been given nothing; they should not constantly want more than what they have.
They should be grateful to God through prayers, giving charity and helping those less fortunate than themselves and they
should make people aware of the ways in which God helps them.

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Question Answer Marks

2(a) The Qur’an has been preserved in writing for over 1400 years. Give an account of the way in which it was compiled 10
in the written format.

Candidates should give some details on the different stages of compilation, and how it was then brought together into a book.

During the time of the Prophet (pbuh) the Qur’an was written on pieces of animal skin and on parts of bone but mainly was
memorised by the companions; during Abu Bakr’s caliphate, many companions who had memorised the Qur’an died at the Battle
of Yamama; ‘Umar, worried that the words of the Qur’an would be lost due to companions dying of old age/in battle, suggested to
Abu Bakr that the Qur’an should be compiled into one book; Abu Bakr hesitated saying he could not do something the Prophet
(pbuh) had not done; he eventually agreed and called Zayd ibn Thabit to collect all the verses that had been written; Zayd was a
hafiz himself, yet he only included a verse into the master copy once he had verified its authenticity; ‘Umar was part of the
process to get companions to come with any part of the mushaf they had in their possession; the verses were written in the order
that the Prophet (pbuh) had given, but the suras were written on separate sheets; this copy was verified by the committee and
was kept with Abu Bakr during his lifetime, after which it passed to ‘Umar, and then to ‘Umar’s daughter Hafsa.

During ‘Uthman’s time as caliph, Islam had spread to other areas. Hudhaifa reported to ‘Uthman that people were reciting the
Qur’an in a different dialect in different parts. ‘Uthman called Zayd back and they formed a committee, ordering the companions
to compile one book in the Qurayshi dialect, using the mushaf of Hafsa. Zayd ibn Thabit was recalled to check it. ‘Uthman
then checked and approved the final version. This new copy was sent around the various provinces of the expanding Muslim
world. He ordered for any other copies to be collected and burnt. For this he is known as ‘Jami al-Qur’an’.

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Question Answer Marks

2(b) Do you think, for Muslims nowadays, having the Qur’an in a written format outweighs the benefits of having the oral 4
tradition? Give reasons for your answer.

Candidates can offer a variety of answers to this question, but marks should be given for the quality of the reasoning given for
their answer.

Candidates could say that yes it does outweigh the oral tradition because e.g. it gives Muslims around the world access to the
Qur’an that they would not otherwise have if they are not in a position to memorise it. Or that old Qur’anssuch as the one that was
found in Birmingham, allow Muslims to authenticate that the written copies of the early Muslims are the same as the ones now. It
gives a greater sense of connection to the faith when you can see things from that time. As Islam has spread, the written Qur’an
can be read by those whose first language is not Arabic.

Candidates could say that no it does not because the oral tradition was how the Qur’an was revealed and passed on in the
beginning and this is a more authentic way of ensuring accuracy.

Or Candidates could say that both are equally beneficial for Muslims now because e.g. they both have a role to play now that
Islam has spread and covers many different regions and languages. The written tradition gives access to people where they are
no longer able to memorise or prefer to read, and the oral tradition gives access to people in places where education is scarce
and learning orally from a hafiz also gives them a direct connection back to the Prophet (pbuh).

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Question Answer Marks

3(a) The Prophet went to Ta’if to teach the people there about one God. Write about his experience of this event. 10

The Prophet (pbuh) had been preaching to the people of Makka for ten years and they had faced many hardships; the
number of Muslims was relatively small; his greatest supporters Khadija and Abu Talib had passed away; he looked towards
Makka to preach his message and went to Ta’if with Zayd bin Haritha; he thought people would be favourable to his message
but they were hostile towards him; he stayed several days there delivering the message to the people, but he was abused
and jeered; they were chased out by being pelted with stones till blood flowed down the Prophet’s legs; Zayd was injured too;
they took refuge in an orchard a few miles away; seeing his condition, ‘Utbah and Shaybah sent their servant with a tray of
grapes; their servant saw true prophethood in him; Jibril later appeared with another angel and asked the Prophet (pbuh) for
permission to bury the city; the Prophet (pbuh) refused and instead prayed for believers to be born from their progeny.

3(b) The Prophet showed great forgiveness despite the cruelty of the people of Ta’if. Do you think Muslims now can 4
follow this example?

Candidates could say e.g. yes, people can follow his example because they may face rejection for many reasons, whether
they are preaching about Islam to others who mock and ridicule them, or it may be that someone is being bullied at school, or
people are being tormented by those occupying their lands; by remembering the Prophet’s forgiveness and being steadfast in
faith, would help forgive those who are hurting/rejecting you.

Or they could say no, it is not possible, e.g. because this kind of mercy is only for those of a high status or closeness to God,
and for most people they are not able to control their anger or they want to seek revenge if someone has done something
small to them, and so they would not be able to forgive anything as big as this.

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Question Answer Marks

4(a) Write about the battle of the Trench (Khandaq) fought in 627. 10

Khandaq: Banu Nadir had broken their treaty agreements and planned to kill the Prophet (pbuh); they planned an attack with the
Makkans and other Arab tribes, and gathered an army of 10 000; the Muslims gathered 3000 men; Salman al-Farsi suggested the
Muslims dig trenches to keep the army out, wide enough and deep enough not to be crossed; hypocrites in Madina joined the
Makkans; Banu Qurayza did not initially want to break their agreements with the Prophet, but later were convinced to help the
Quraysh; there was little food and water; Jabir invited the Prophet (pbuh) to eat after slaughtering a sheep, and the prophet fed
the whole army with this one animal; the Quraysh tried to cross the trench, a couple of riders managed to cross a part that was
narrower; ‘Ali fought them off; the siege ran into weeks; the Prophet (pbuh) used strategic skills to create mistrust between the
alliances; they eventually gave up after a storm for three days which prevented them from lighting fires, cooking food and keeping
warm; Banu Qurayza were punished for their treachery by their own laws.

4(b) What can Muslims learn from the Prophet’s involvement in the digging of the trench? 4

Candidates can offer a variety of lessons but should give an explanation for their answer.

The Prophet (pbuh) was the leader of the army and yet he took part in digging the trench, despite his severe hunger. This
teaches Muslims that no matter what their position, whether heads of state or community leaders, they should take part in
hard work required for the benefit of the community or others. It also provides a lesson in patience and perseverance, and
that God will help if you don’t give up. It also teaches humility, that you do not think yourself above certain types of work.

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Question Answer Marks

5(a) Khadija bint Khuwaylid was the Prophet’s first wife. Write an account of her life in the period she knew the Prophet. 10

Candidates should write a detailed narrative elaborating on the points mentioned below.

Khadija was a successful businesswoman in her own right; she was twice widowed and had children from her previous
marriages; she employed the Prophet (before prophethood) as a merchant for her; she sent her servant, Maysara, with him;
after hearing of his trading skills and honesty as a merchant, she sent a marriage proposal to him through Nafeesa; he
accepted after consulting his uncle; she was 40 and he was 25; they had six children together, her two sons dying in infancy;
when the Prophet (pbuh) received revelation he came to Khadija trembling; she reassured him that God would not humiliate
him; she took him to see her cousin who told the Prophet (pbuh) about the angel and that he is a messenger of God; she was
the first to publicly accept Islam; she supported the Prophet (pbuh) financially; she died after the boycott to Shib-i-Abi Talib;
the Prophet ‘s love for her caused jealousy among his other wives (A’isha); Jibr’il is said to have sent greetings of peace to
her, through the Prophet (pbuh), from God and himself; Khadija was Muhammad’s first wife and he chose not to marry any
other woman during her lifetime.

5(b) The Prophet’s employer was a woman who was successful in business. What lessons can be derived from this for 4
Muslims now?

Candidates can offer various lessons and should give reasons for their answer.

They could say, e.g. that Muslims can learn that women can and should be allowed to work and can hold positions of stature
in the workplace. That men working for them should not feel that they are inferior in any way, as how well a person does their
job is more important than who employs them. Or that men and women can work together and can, and should, maintain
integrity and respect between each other.

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