The Holy Qur’an has been traditionally transmitted orally throughout generations, making it inaccessible to individuals who cannot hear. Although the Qur’an has since been recorded in writing and then translated into several languages, full access for Deaf individuals to God’s Word via sign language has yet to come to fruition.

The language of the Deaf community in the United States, Canada, and dozens of other nations around the world is American Sign Language (ASL). It is a complete language which has its own grammar system, separate from that of English. Many members of the Deaf community rely on ASL as their primary means of communication and at times struggle with English as their second language. In order for the Deaf community to gain in- depth understanding of the message of the Qur’an, it must be translated into American Sign Language. ASL is a visual language that requisites a translation into video form, contrary to former translations of holy revelation into book forms.

In order for this project to occur, competent scholars of both Arabic and English and the exegesis of the Qur’anic scripture must collaborate with a team of American Sign Language interpreters as well as Deaf Muslim signers, in order to secure the translation of the meaning of the Qur’an into American Sign Language. This is a lengthy, meticulous, time-consuming process. Scholars and other ASL team members must take time off from their professions in order to dedicate blocks of time to this project. Materials include the necessary audio-visual equipment to produce high quality videos.

Once the Qur’an is complete, the videos will be shared globally in order to spread the universal message about the purpose of human existence.