How the Qur’an Spoke to the Common People (IQSA 2025 Keynote Address)

The basic proposition of this article is that the Qur’an was meant to appeal to an audience of “simple believers” in a milieu in which ascetic ideals were widespread. This article focuses on three aspects of the Qur’an’s potential appeal to such an audience: the practical appeal of a householding, spiritually egalitarian religion; the mental appeal of a text that is doctrinally straightforward, and yet that is also layered, structurally complex, and nuanced; and the emotional appeal of a text that presented itself as the word of God, to be internalised, lived, and felt by the believers. In each arena, the Qur’an reflects aspects of ascetic piety and modes of moral instruction but moderates ascetic practices and concepts such that they are accessible to the common householder; while asceticism valorised chastity as an elite virtue, the Qur’an valorised moral striving in the household and community. Ultimately, the Qur’an appealed to its audience with a doctrine and style focused on the acquisition of virtues and on the implementation of a straightforward moral code, while addressing a range of abilities, dispositions and levels of knowledge.