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Since the 1960s, the Syrian theologian Jawdat Saʿīd's (1931–2022) anthropocentric and social perspective on Qur'anic hermeneutics has played a major role in the ongoing epistemological debates that are emblematic of progressive trends in Islamic thought. By approaching history as the main source of the holy book of Islam, Saʿīd developed a particular understanding of jihād, leading him to the theorisation of radical nonviolence. This paper aims to analyse how this epistemic approach is employed in relation to another pivotal doctrinal notion, namely tawḥīd, which Saʿīd translates in social terms as the accomplishment of global justice and equality. His shift from a theological to a social interpretation of tawḥīd reveals a process of de-dogmatisation of the doctrine. This same shift also occurs in his interpretation of sacred history, which is intended as a paradigm to help mankind to cope with societal challenges through the continuous renewal of the meaning(s) of the Qur'an. A comparative exploration of the thought of a selection of other modern-day intellectuals in the second half of the article then helps to situate Saʿīd's effort in the wider context of contemporary Islamic exegetical trends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent scholarship on the classical tafsīr tradition has shown it to be characterised by, first, an interest in the polyvalent readings of the Qur'an and, second, methodological variegation. It is widely held that these features first appeared in exegetical works of the fourth/tenth century, particularly those of al-Ṭabarī (d. 310/923) and al-Thaʿlabī (d. 427/1035). However, in the following paper I argue that it is rather in Abū Zakariyyā al-Farrāʾ's (d. 207/824) Maʿānī al-Qurʾān, a linguistic-oriented tafsīr from nearly a century earlier, that we first find the features of mature classical tafsīr. In this article, I focus on al-Farrāʾ's citation of ḥadīths to illuminate his methodological variegation, which is scattered throughout his dense discussions of the Qur'an. His use of ḥadīths proves to be a good measure of his methodological variegation, given their wide reception and application in nearly all the disciplines of Arabo-Islamic scholarship utilised by exegetes. These observations provide a missing link that furthers our understanding of how the tafsīr tradition grew from the simpler, more concise forms of the second/eighth century to the exhaustive, encyclopaedic works of the fourth/tenth century onward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the creation of the first human, Adam (pbuh), humanity received revelation from the prophets. The revelation experience that began with Adam (peace be upon him) continued until the last prophet, Hz. Muhammad (peace be upon him), and this chain of revelation concluded with the Qur'an. The process of writing the verbal revelation along with the revelation of the Quran was carried out by the Prophet himself. The Qur'an, which was expanded into a book during the caliphate of Hz. Abu Bakr following the passing of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), was duplicated during the caliphate of Hz. Uthman and has remained unchanged to this day. It is seen that there are some differences between the writing and recitation of the Quran, which was carried in book form, throughout the historical process. These differences manifest themselves as authentic recitations as recitation seba/seven recitations and recitation ashare/ten recitations. In addition to these recitations, there are also shaz recitations. There is another type of recitation that is controversial whether it is included in the sahih and shaz recitations or whether it is a recitation, and this is Mudrec Recitation. Whether Mudraj Qiraat is a form of reading among seven or ten recitations has been a matter of debate among scholars working on this subject. While some of the scholars who study the differences in recitation argue that mudraj recitation is a form of recitation, others claim that it is an explanation between verses in tafsir Mushafs. While there was no clear statement that Mudraj Qiraat was a form of recitation until Suyûtî, with Suyûtî, Mudraj recitation took place among the concepts of recitation. However, there is still uncertainty as to whether mudraj recitation is a form of reading. Clarifying this opacity is an important problem that awaits an answer. It is considered essential to clarify the aforementioned opacity by making a synthesis of the previous studies on this subject. Because the differences in recitation in some verses regarding the provisions also lead to changes in the provisions. This work called 'The Concept of Mudraj in Readings', which we have criticized, is a kind of answer to the questions waiting to be answered on this subject. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This article explores the ways a number of exegetes deal with ideas of authorial intent and textual (mis)understanding, on the basis that the Qur'anic discourse is a set of intentions, or rather an 'intentional discourse' (al-khiṭāba al-qaṣadiyya). In their view, the Qur'an is a discourse, rather than a monologic, linear text. As a speech act that uses the power of the spoken utterance, it is able to use language in a ways that allow it to convey its intended meanings fully, thereby guiding the recipient to a complete understanding of the speaker's intention. Qur'anic Arabic is a specialised language that can be understood primarily through an appreciation of authorial intention (mabdaʾ al-qaṣad). This is the most significant element in intentional discourses, in contrast to other genres such as literature, in which the reader's understanding of the text is guided by both linguistic and semantic conventions and personal reader reception. In the case of the Qur'an, a failure to confine oneself to seeking to understand the speaker's intended meaning leads to misunderstandings, and thus represents the most prominent threat to an accurate understanding of its message. Misunderstandings can arise from issues such as the recipient's lack of linguistic and rhetorical competence, or their lack of sufficient knowledge of the characteristics and qualities of the author of the discourse, not to mention the effect of personal assumptions. Exegetes have therefore attempted to arrive at a taxonomy of the degrees of textual understanding and misunderstanding of authorial intent in the Qur'an, and the range and scope of their analysis will be addressed in this article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyses the commentaries of three contemporary Pakistani scholars – Dr Israr Ahmad, Javed Ahmed Ghamidi, and Engineer Muhammad Ali Mirza – on three Qur'anic themes as addressed in three specific verses: the creation story (Q. 4:1), women and legal testimony (Q. 2:282), and marital relationships (Q. 4:34). It emerges that the approaches taken by all three scholars differs considerably to those of earlier, premodern interpreters. For example, none of the three quote earlier authoritative opinions or engage in grammatical discussion, while only one uses ḥadīths to make his point. All three selectively bring in modern ideas to reinforce existing exegetical opinions and interpretations, and only rarely challenge these. While the three scholars deviate from the wider, inherited exegetical tradition in maintaining that women are not spiritually inferior or secondary to men, they do not challenge any other inherited concepts. In their discourse, they propagate the idea that men (i.e. husbands and fathers) are in charge of the family unit, the fundamental building block of society, because of their innate psychological and physiological features, and hence have greater responsibilities towards their households and society, while women, although spiritually equal, have different roles. None of the three scholars seem to consider the impact of changing socio-economic realities in Pakistan in their exegeses on the three themes addressed here, giving the impression that the normative values and customs of an Islamic society are independent of these changes. Finally, Ghamidi takes a more flexible approach in his question-and-answer sessions as compared to his tafsīr musalsal, giving the impression that the genre is more about conserving the meaning of the scripture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hitherto, the field of tafsīr studies has been beset by several challenges that have hindered its ability to produce a reliable historical outline of the genre. These challenges include: (1) the voluminous nature of our sources, both in terms of the sheer number of works and their individual length; (2) the fact that the overwhelming majority of works continue to be available only in manuscript form; (3) the tendency of previous scholarship to focus on the 'classical' period, leaving the post-classical tafsīr tradition largely unexplored, especially the ḥawāshī; and (4) our limited knowledge about which works were historically popular, when, where, and for whom. This article shares the findings of a multi-year project to convert the most important union catalogue of Arabic tafsīr manuscripts, al-Fihris al-shāmil, into a searchable database and to use this database to pose and answer questions that were hitherto difficult to explore. These questions include: (1) What were the most longitudinally popular commentaries on the Qur'an as suggested by counts of extant manuscripts and their geographic distribution today? (2) To what extent have academic scholars studied these works? It is hoped that these findings will assist the field in planning future scholarly projects and in ultimately developing a more reliable outline of the tafsīr tradition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the compilation of hadiths, which are considered the second source of Islam after the Quran, started in an early period, it took centuries to complete the process. This service is of paramount importance, especially for mujtahid scholars. Because the scholar who will engage in ijtihad first looks for the answer to the problem he encounters in the Quran and the Prophetic Sunnah, and if he cannot find the answer he is looking for in these two sources, he resorts to ijtihad. It was not difficult for the mujtahid to reach the Quran. However, it was not easy to reach the Prophetic Sunnah, which had spread over the wide Islamic geography and whose codification had not yet been completed, under the conditions of that period, and therefore no mujtahid, including the Rightly-Guided Caliphs and the imams of major sects, was fully versed in the Prophetic Sunnah. In the research, it was determined by giving examples of important names from every layer that not every mujtahid, including the companions, was aware of some prophetic sunnah during the process of tadween and before. It was emphasized that the tadween is especially important for mujtahids and it was pointed out that the tadween positively contributed to the knowledge of the sunnah of the mujtahid scholars. As a result, it has been observed that a mujtahid, regardless of his rank, once a sound sunnah reaches him, he reverts from his old view and makes his judgment in accordance with the sunnah. It was only possible for the sunnah to reach the Islamic geography with the codification of hadiths. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The contemporary Qur'anic studies have been marked by amazing development. Various methods and approaches to understand the Qur'an are offered by the scholars. One of the prominent figures in this field is Nashr Hamid Abu Zayd. Nasr Hamid Abu Zayd (1943-2010 M) is a highly controversial contemporary thinker. He is an Egyptian scholar who is accused of being apostate, because of his theory of qur'anic hermeneutic (the textual of Qur'an). This is reflected in his stances towards contemporary religious discourse and the approach to reading religious texts, especially the Quran, which requires reading according to a hermeneutic mechanism. His books 'Naqd al-Khitab al-Dini (Criticism of Religious Discourse)' and 'Al-Takfir fi Zaman al-Takfir (Thinking in the Time of Atonement)' caused a great uproar in the early nineties of the last century. Abu Zayd was accused of criticising atheists because of their stances on the text. Therefore, this study aimed to discuss Abu Zayd's position on contemporary religious discourse and his new approach to reading religious texts, and also aims to discuss why Abu Zayd's theory has been string up Islamic world and ending by his expulsive from his native country. To deal with this problem, this article discusses Abd Zayd's biography and some cultural framework of his people. The methodology of Qur'anic hermeneutic is the least his. Having examined the topic, the author finds that Abu Zayd believes that modem literary theory and criticism denote the way to understand and interpret the Qur'an 'objectively'. The contribution of this research is discussing Abu Zayd's contemporary religious discourse and his new approach to reading religious texts. Contribution: The contribution of this research is discussing Abu Zayd's contemporary religious discourse and his new approach to reading religious texts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the discussion on Arabic lexicographical tradition has deep roots in history, with its origins traced back to the elucidation of Quranic lexemes. Topics include efforts to interpret rare words in the Quran are regarded as the genesis of lexical studies among Muslims; and fundamental rules defining morphological and phonetic structures, as well as permutation processes.

The holistic approach to the Qur'ān is a phrase used under different headings in the field of tafsīr. The article assumes that a comparative analysis of the usage areas will provide more clear and understandable data on the scope of this phrase. The aim of the article is to bring out the scope of the expressions such as the holistic approach to the Qur'ān and the unity of the Qur'ānic text, thus to reveal the difference among these uses. Based on this background, the article presents and analyzes five different topics in which the aforementioned phrases are used in the field of tafsīr. These are the interpretation of the Qur'ān by the Qur'ān (tafsīr al-Qur'ān bi'l-Qur'ān), the relationship between verses and sūras (munāsabāt al-āyāt wa'l-suwar), thematic tafsīr (al-tafsīr al-mawdū'ī), sūrah-based tafsīr, and structural studies based on Semitic rhetoric. Tafsīr al-Qur'ān bi'l-Qur'ān means the explanation of a verse with other verses of the Qur'ān, thus refering to the understanding of the text in its inner unity. Munāsabāt al-āyāt wa'l-suwar contains the thesis that the verse and sūra units should have a successive relationship, so it has the concept of unity that is expected to emerge from this relationship. Thematic tafsīr proposes to consider the verses related to a particular subject of the Qur'ān as a whole. Sūra-based tafsīr claims that the Qur'ānic sūras are whole units with certain main themes. As for the structural studies based on Semitic rhetoric defended by some scholars in recent Western studies, the Qur'ān is a text that has some symmetrical structures and therefore has structural unity. In each of these headings, we come across holistic approaches that differ from each other at certain points. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article provides an introduction to Tajrīd al-Kashshāf, a Qur'an commentary written by the Yemeni Zaydī scholar Ibn Abī'l-Qāsim (d. 837/1433–1434) that remains unpublished. Despite his reputation as a partisan Zaydī, Ibn Abī'l-Qāsim's Qur'an commentary draws exclusively upon Sunni tafsīr works, especially al-Zamakhsharī's al-Kashshāf, al-Wāḥidī's al-Wasīṭ, and Ibn al-Jawzī's Zād al-masīr. Through a careful analysis of his commentary on the Sūrat al-Najm (Q. 53) and Q. 5:55, this article illuminates Ibn Abī'l-Qāsim's sources and exegetical techniques. It contains a critical edition of Ibn Abī'l-Qāsim's commentary on Sūrat al-Najm and highlights the intimate relationship between Zaydī and Sunni Qur'anic exegesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aḥmad Ibn ʿAjība (d. 1224/1809) was a prominent Sufi mystic who lived in Morocco during the thirteenth/seventeenth century. He stood out as an intellectual theoretician in the field of Qur'anic esoteric hermeneutics as he was one of the few scholars who managed to convey theoretical concepts and esoteric theories of Qur'anic interpretation in a language that is accessible to those who are not well versed in Sufism. In this paper Ibn ʿAjība's famous Qur'an commentary al-Baḥr al-madīd fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān al-majīd ('The Oceanic Exegesis of the Qur'an') will be thoroughly examined, with an emphasis on the key features and the methodological approaches used in the composition of both its exoteric and esoteric aspects. The first section of this paper will examine the historical development of esoteric and Sufi Qur'an exegesis, so as to situate Ibn ʿAjība's commentary within this genre. A thorough analysis will be given to the key features, guiding principles, and different methodologies adopted by various esoteric Qur'an commentaries. The second section will explore the most influential sources utilised by Ibn ʿAjība to inform the exoteric and esoteric dimensions of al-Baḥr al-madīd. In order to evaluate the extent to which these sources impacted upon the composition of al-Baḥr al-madīd, an analysis of their salient features and the main methodological approaches of these sources will be conducted. It is also important to analyse why Ibn ʿAjība chose certain sources over others, and to clarify the extent to which he depended upon these sources in composing al-Baḥr al-madīd. The third section of this paper will outline the methodology which Ibn ʿAjība adopted when he composed the esoteric dimension of his Qur'an commentary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Studia Islamika is the property of Center for the Study of Islam & Society of UIN Jakarta and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Esensia: Jurnal Ilmu-Ilmu Ushuluddin is the property of Esensia: Jurnal Ilmu-Ilmu Ushuluddin and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This research deals with MuÍammad al-ÙÉhir Ibn Ashur's (1879-1973 C.E.) views of Objectives (Maqasid) of the Quran. As one of the pioneers of the theory of maqasid al-Shariah, he pays a significant attention to this subject. Unlike other contributors to this subject, he identifies eight basic objectives of the Quran and implicates them to the Quranic exegesis. According to him, bringing objectives of the Quran perspective to the interpretation of the Quran is extremely necessary. This study is a library research in which the data were collected from Ibn Ashur's writings as well as some other relevant literature. Dealing with the collected materials, the researcher made a discourse analysis of Ibn Ashur's views on the mater. After each 'objective' is discussed, a brief focus is made on the methodological basis of his identification of Objectives of (Maqasid) the Quran instead of outlining the issues that he has identified as the main objectives (Maqasid). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the advent of the Islamic revolution in Iran in 1979, radical changes have taken place in the views of many Iranian scholars regarding the nature of religious belief. In particular, the issue of the compatibility or incompatibility of Islam's socio-legal precepts and the challenges of time and space have become a crucial matter for numerous Iranian intellectuals. This paper discusses how three prominent Iranian intellectuals of the post-revolutionary era, namely Mostafa Malekian, Mohsen Kadivar and Hasan Yousefi-Eshkevari, have put forward arguments in favor of the contingent nature of the Quran's socio-legal passages. The paper argues that these scholars challenge the notion of the immutability of the Quran's socio-legal texts, claiming that they could be applied differently depending on the specific time and place. In this sense, the paper establishes the groundwork for showing how these scholars have re-examined traditional understandings of religion in light of the new challenges that are arising in the modern world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the very beginning of Islamic Law there was a need to solve legal problems in accordance with Qur'an and Sunna. Thus, one of the most important methodological problems was to discover the meanings of the authoritative texts (nuṣūṣ), Qur'an and the prophetic Sunna, for deriving rules from them. We can see in the usūl al-fiqh literature that the scope of research concerning the language and its role in the process of interpretation is apparently the most important and the largest one. This also implies a specific epistemological approach and a special method to understand the authoritative texts. In this article, I will focus on the methods of interpretation of the authoritative texts and the concept of bayān, which allows to present a communication model of the usūl al-fiqh to understand, how these methods of interpretation are justified, used in the process of deriving rules, and on which epistemological preconditions they are based on. This article covers mainly the time between the fourth/10th and the ninth/15th centuries. By analysing bayān, the main question is whether really Qur'an and Sunna show us, what can be regarded as a valid rule or is it the scholar, who creates rules. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Qur'anic exegetes (mufassirūn) have engaged in a serious debate over the disposition of the Prophet Yūsuf at the time of great temptation as related in the Qur'an 12:24. Against this background, a traditional exegetical research method was adopted to study the opinions of some scholars regarding the infallibility or otherwise of the Prophet Yūsuf with a view to identifying the appropriate interpretation of the verse in question. Findings of the work revealed that, whilst some scholars considered only the divine protection enjoyed by the Prophet Yusūf in a narrow sense, others underscored the person of Yūsuf as a prophet of Allah and placed him above all human tendencies. Another group maintained the middle course between the two groups. This paper concludes that Yūsuf was a prophet of Allah who enjoyed divine protection against committing sins but, at the same time, was a human being who could have had an inclination towards evil thoughts without having a determination to commit sinful acts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Çukurova Üniversitesi İlahiyat Fakültesi Dergisi (CUIFD) is the property of Cukurova Universitesi Ilahiyat Fakültesi Dergisi (CUIFD) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The article presents the author's views on the patriarchal tradition of men's supremacy on women. Also included are author's views on inequality between men and women, Islamic feminism, and the religious text of Islam Qur'an's sexist verses against women. Particular focus is given to the exegesis done on the Qur'an and the concept of Islamic feminism by Ebrahim Moosa, Kecia Ali, and Raja Rhouni.

Within the broader discipline of Qur'anic exegesis, the sub-genre of the mutashābihāt al-Qurʾān (the ambiguous verses of the Qur'an) is comprised of works dedicated to the identification and explication of those verses that present theological or linguistic challenges. Yet, the approach, style, and objective of the scholars who have written commentaries on the ambiguous verses are far from monolithic. This essay brings into focus the internal diversity of this important exegetical tradition by focusing on the Qur'an commentaries of two major scholars in fourth/eleventh-century Baghdad, al-Sharīf al-Raḍī (d. 406/1016) and Qāḍī ʿAbd al-Jabbār (d. 415/1025). Al-Raḍī was a prominent Twelver Shīʿī theologian and poet while ʿAbd al-Jabbār was a leading Muʿtazilī theologian during this period; al-Raḍī was also ʿAbd al-Jabbār's student and disciple. Through a close reading of their respective commentaries on two Qur'anic verses, I explore possible interconnections and interactions between Shīʿī and Muʿtazilī traditions of exegesis, and demonstrate that while ʿAbd al-Jabbār mobilised the language of Islamic jurisprudence, al-Raḍī primarily relied on early Islamic poetry and the etymology of the Arabic language. Methodologically, I argue against a conceptual approach that valorises sectarian and theological identity as the primary determinant of hermeneutical desires and sensibilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses "Communities of the Qur'an," a conference, public talk, and forthcoming book that will examine the Qur'an's "communities of interpretation." They are represented by ten world-renowned academics and leaders from the Sunni, Shi'i, and Ahmadi communities; reformist LGBT, feminist, African American, and Qur'an-only groups; as well as non-Muslims like the Bahais. In this brief paper, I discuss their nature, engagements with the Qur'an as a text or an experience, and the challenges they face in the twenty-first century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article focuses on professional ethics for engineers and engineering students at the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM). Due to the phenomenological interest in the theory of value and its realization within the framework of the professional ethics of engineers in a particular educational institution, this research applies a methodic strategy to address two levels of discourse equally. Thus, the theoretical aspect utilizes the tools of textual strategies and content analysis, whereas the specific case of the IIUM's engineering faculty serves as a source of my phenomenological reflections on professional ethics for engineers. Despite being based on a limited source of data, some of the phenomenological remarks might be useful for other institutions of higher learning, for the stand on the theory of value used here is for both the values' universality and relationality to human beings or, more directly, both the universality and rationality of an ethical discourse. Although largely an Islamic interpretation, this article's main contributions are how to overcome this predicament in ethical sensibility, ward off dismissive gestures, and distinguish between values and their realization in the everyday world. By this process, the human agent discovers, rather than makes, values and comes to understand that ethical sensibility is not about truth and falsehood, but about the person's degree of realization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article jointly explores the various dimensions of fatwa and ijtihad, notwithstanding the former being our main theme. The two are explored together as there are many commonalities between them, the source evidence concerning the one often also relating to the other. The discussion begins with a comparative note on fatwa and ijtihad (independent reasoning), which is then followed by an expounding of the characteristic features of fatwa and its relevant procedures. Modern developments concerning fatwa issuance procedures are the subject of another section. These developments have led to a certain amount of bureaucratisation of fatwa, which has both its advantages and disadvantages. These are also explored and then followed by an overview of fatwa-related developments in Malaysia. The remainder of the article discusses the importance of observing moderation (wasatiyyah) in fatwa and ijtihad, which tends in many ways to characterise the typical Islamic advice and approach on these subjects. The article concludes with a set of actionable recommendations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the context and the doctrine of democracy and salafis, who are believed to be the opposers of political modernity. Topics include the collaborative effort to translate Quran, the religious text of Islam, translators Abdel Haleem and S. H. Nasr, and the distinction between verse addresses.

It is known that throughout the history of exegesis of Qur'an there have been different approaches and echoless. These differences in making commentaries are mainly due to the different approaches by commentators in giving meaning and explaining the Qur'an verses (ayah) and sentences (alfaz). These differences, already seen even in the approaches of Tafsir studies focussing on the apparent meanings of Qur'an (zahiri), are inevitable in Ishari commentaries of Qur'an which is called Sufi Tafsir. In addition to this, Sufis declare that the comments and meanings they give to the verses are the comments and meanings that rise into their hearts (qalb).While there are differences in transferring a meaning into real or metaphorical usage of any word, which its dictionary meaning is known by everyone literally, it is not possible and fair to expect to be same or really parallel to each other of such commentaries that based on personal experiences, inspiration and revelations. On the other hand, that the taking care of Sufis about considering the apparent meanings of Qur'an while they give Ishari meanings to verses in terms of not causing any contradiction and endeavours to establish similarities between apparent (zâhir) and esoteric (batin) meanings, provide Sufis to give same or similar meanings to some Qur'an words and bring such interpretations. In order to explain the current situation, this study analyses some words of verses that commonly used as ruh (spirit) qalb (heart) and nafs (self) in different Ishari interpretations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Feminism movement has played such an important role in bringing about change in different areas of life, i.e. science, psychology, literature, law and so far. Deep rooted effects of feminism can be seen in all these mentioned spheres of life. Similarly, Islamic scholars generally and Pakistani Islamic scholars particularly have also accepted influence of these movements and they presented different interpretations of Quranic verses related to women's rights. They also described men on equal status with women while explaining the meaning of different verses which are apparently related to superiority of men. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many researches today are using modern methods to understand the relationship between the mind and text, to understand this link they have put forward many beneficial research in the following areas; linguistics, structuralism and semantic in The Holy Quran. Modern trends have emerged in order to understand religious texts using various methods and techniques. One of these researchers include Muhammed Şahrûr who looks into this matter in his book written in 1990 entitled " Books and The Holy Quran: A Contemporary Read ". A few other books published by Şahrûr include " State and Society "-1994, " Islam and Fatih "-1996, " Path to New Foundations in Islamic Law "- 2001. The piece " Contemporary Reads on the Stories of The Holy Quran " was rewritten in the year 2010. All these pieces are based on the linguistic structure methods in The Holy Kuran. On the other hand the primary structure of these pieces is to look up relevant words from the modern dictionary in order to understand The Holy Quran. This article is going to cover some of the ideas in the Quranic works of M.Şahrûr. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a hermeneutic re-reading of the Quranic Verses 43: 15-19 in the Chapter of Ornament (Surah al-Zukhruf), aiming to excavate the original interrogative nature of the Quranic approach to woman's positioning, and to expose the accumulative narratives that collapse the ontological into the cultural, reflecting negatively on the community. The paper argues against the assumption that the verses' telos is to describe and prescribe; evidencing instead their critical and reproving tone. The tripartite methodology followed comprises a morphological analysis; a historical investigation that uncovers the regressive stance of authoritative exegetical texts; and a comparative overture, juxtaposing the Quranic pronouncements with parallel modern concepts, revealing that the problems confronting women are of a persistent nature. Ultimately, the paper questions the authenticity of the self-image engrained in the consciousness of a majority of Muslim women and based on inherited parochialisms rather than rigorous application of critical thinking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the ways male medieval Muslim writers portrayed Ḥafṣa bt. ʿUmar b. al-Khaṭṭāb (d. 45/665) and other seventh-century women and their roles as authorities and authenticators of the written word of God. By tracing Ḥafṣa’s ownership of the first complete written copy of the Muslim scripture, I identify the late third/ninth and fourth/tenth centuries as a period of conflict over the chain of transmission of the first Qurʾān. I argue that late third/ninth and fourth/tenth-century accounts of the collection and codification of the Qurʾān illustrate a conscious rewriting of Ḥafṣa’s role in those projects. I suggest that Ḥafṣa’s literacy may have been deemed a threat to the authenticity of the Qurʾān collected by Abū Bakr, resulting in a scholarly attempt to sever her from the codification project. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article introduces the work of the French imam-theologian Tareq Oubrou as a prominent voice of the emerging “European Islamic thought”. It argues that the imam uses Islamic classical jurisprudential devices (such as fatwas), contemporary hermeneutics and critical thought, and personal communion with the divine (spirituality) to renew the understanding of God, Man, and the Qura'n in the European context. In so doing, he (1) “relativizes” shari'ah law by emphasizing the questions of ethics and meaning, (2) “minoritizes” Islam as a religion in a pluralist liberal milieu, and (3) “localizes” its norms, “nationalizes” religious authority, and “institutionalizes” its manifestations. His work is synthesized in this article in three concepts: (1) “geotheology,” (2) “shari'ah of the minority” which are Oubrou's own terms/concepts, and (3) “European Islam”. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This essay examines the various meanings and efficacies attributed to the Muslim prayer (ṣalāt) by its practitioners as well as by observers. The key questions that form the main concern of this article are: How is the ritual of prayer brought to life by its practitioners? What constitutes an efficacious prayer? What meanings do observers draw from the practice of prayer among Muslims in diverse localities as well as from their interpretive discourses? The essay brings together ethnographic studies on Muslim practices of prayer and exegetical discourses on what prayer should contribute to the ethical conduct of Muslims in public spheres. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the reinterpretation project of an Islamic feminist movement in Malaysia, Sisters In Islam (SIS), by analysing some of its book projects on the issues of equality, women judges in the Shariah Courts, and Islam and polygamy. The article examines the attempts by SIS to reinterpret some Qur'anic verses and the Hadith and to reform Islamic family laws to suit its view of the way that contemporary Muslim society should relate to its women with respect to equality between Muslim men and women, appointing female Muslims as Shariah judges, and eradicating polygamy in Muslim societies. Utilising analytical and critical methods, this research analyses some books written by SIS members on these issues, identifying some plausible points and pointing out misreadings because SIS members did not consider holistic perspectives and situations of contemporary times. Finally, while acknowledging the usefulness of this effort in certain areas, this article rejects the extremism and impracticality in some aspects of works by SIS and calls for a rethinking of the areas in which this movement has erred in its mission to reinterpret verses of the Qur'an and the Hadith and to reform Islamic family law. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The subject of understanding and interpreting the Qur'an, has maintained and will maintain it's place of being one of the ongoing tafseer problems among scholars. The questions of: "How should I understand the Qur'an?" or "How we should understand?" have always been main concerns. Even the existence of such questions shows us that there are some main problems in understanding the Qur'an. Existing issues in terms of understanding and interpreting the Qur'an are concerned in general about language problems, methodical problems and knowledge problems. Unless one takes each problem quantitively and qualitatively and produce some solutions for them, true understanding of the Qur'an will not be the case. For this reason, the first thing to do is to grasp such problems and put some appropriate recommendations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on the use of the antonymous pair of terms known from Arabic Qur'an exegesis as muhkam and mutashabih, two kinds of formulation of God's word in medieval Karaite Bible commentaries. It informs that the tenth-eleventh-century Karaite exegete Yefet ben 'Eli was generally influenced by Muslim exegesis in which he used the same set of terms to describe similar scriptural phenomena.

The article discusses professor Abdulla Saeed's speech in Herndon, Virginia on the contextualist reading of the Qur'an and its popularity among progressive Muslims. Topics include the textualist and contextualist approaches to understanding the Qur'an, the key features that interpreters of the Qur'an have to consider and how the contextualist approach is a principled one according to Saeed.

This article discusses the Centrist (Wassatiyya) position regarding Sunni–Shi‛a relations, as articulated by the head of this stream, Yusuf al-Qaradawi. Because Centrists deem themselves the ideological heirs of Hasan al-Banna, founder of the Muslim Brotherhood in 1928, analysis of their position is also instructive of the Brotherhood's view on this important issue. The discussion is founded on al-Qaradawi's ‘Principles for Sunni–Shi‛i Dialogue’, which derive historically from the Society for Reconciliation (Jama‛at al-Taqrib) that was active in Egypt during the late 1940s. Centrists hold Shi‛ites to be religious innovators (mubtadi‛un), but not infidels, from which it follows in their view that Sunna and Shi‛a divide over ‘branches of religion’, but not over ‘roots of faith’. In this the Centrists are completely opposed by the Salafi Jihadi ideology, the ideological underpinning of the modern Global Jihad. With the desire to reconcile Sunna and Shi‛a and unite them against a common global enemy, the Centrists must resolve the inevitable sectarian tensions as they crop up, e.g. the Sunni accusation that the Shi‛a seek to actively proselytize the Sunni faithful in Sunni majority countries. In the Centrist view, Sunni–Shi‛i reconciliation and dialogue are of practical necessity as regional politics diverge dangerously into a definite Shi‛a bloc led by Iran, and a clear-cut Sunni bloc led by Saudi Arabia. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article discusses the nature and current understanding by Sunni Muslims of Islamic exegeses, i.e., Muslim Arabic literature about the end of the world or Doomsday. The author refers to the expectation of an end of the world as millennialism, and describes its prevalence within the context of Sunni Islam.

This article examines the attitudes of the Quranic mushrikūn to the resurrection and the afterlife, focusing on those who doubted or denied the reality of both. The first part of the article, published in a previous issue of BSOAS, argued that the doubters and deniers had grown up in a monotheist environment familiar with both concepts and that it was from within the monotheist tradition that they rejected them. This second part relates their thought to intellectual currents in Arabia and the Near East in general, arguing that the role of their pagan heritage in their denial is less direct than normally assumed. It is also noted that mutakallims such as Abū 'Īsā al-Warrāq and al-Māturīdī anticipated the main conclusions reached in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper commences with an analysis of Qur'an 17:1, the Prophet's alleged night journey from Mecca to Jerusalem, which it interprets as an allegory of Islamic ritual prayer. By way of this interpretation, the paper subsequently reviews Islam as a particularly spatially oriented religion and proposes a spatial reading of the word ‘Islam’ itself. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Context plays a major role in indicating the meaning of words and grammatical structures. This is especially true for terms to which the Qur'an designated new meanings. Furthermore, over the passing of time meanings change, for example from the general to the specific or vice versa. On this basis the author attempts to apply the theory of semantic fields to specific terms in al-Ṭabrisī's Majmaʿ al-bayān. He then highlights the usefulness of this theory in composing in comprehensive dictionaries which include semantic fields as applied in other tafāsīr. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]