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Draft:Ayah 7 of Surah Al-Imran

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Ayah 7 of Surah Al-Imran
Verse's Information
SuraAl 'Imran (Qur'an 3)
Verse7
Juz'3
Content Information
Cause of
Revelation		Yes
Place of
Revelation		Medina
TopicQuranic Sciences
AboutUsage of allegorical verses by the Jews of Najran to calculate the end of the Prophet's (s) Ummah • Use of allegorical verses by the Christians of Najran to introduce Jesus (a) as the Word of God and Spirit of God.


Qur'an 3:7 announces the classification of verses into two categories: clear (muḥkam) and allegorical (mutashābih). The allegorical verses serve as a test to distinguish true scholars from obstinate agitators. Succeeding the verses regarding the revelation of the Quran, this verse addresses the nature and characteristics of the Quranic text. According to Allama Tabataba'i, the majority of deviations within Islamic society and its sects, as well as all seditions involving Islam and Muslims, can be attributed to the pursuit of allegorical verses and their incorrect interpretation.

Regarding the occasion of revelation, exegesis states that the Jews of Najran, relying on allegorical verses such as the Broken Letters (muqatta'at), sought to calculate the duration of the Ummah of the Messenger of God (s). Similarly, the Christians of Najran attempted to exploit allegorical verses to present Jesus (a) as the "Word of God" and "Spirit of God"; it was in this context that Qur'an 3:7 was revealed.

Scholars have noted several points regarding the definition of clear and allegorical verses in this context. A "clear verse" is defined as one whose meaning is evident without the need for external context, whereas "allegorical verses" are those whose intent is not immediately apparent, being complex and subject to multiple interpretations. According to Allama Tabataba'i, the presence of allegorical verses in the Quran is necessary; God adapted divine knowledge to the level of human comprehension in a sensible form so that it could be grasped according to individual capacity, a process that necessitates the existence of allegory. in the view of Naser Makarem Shirazi, the existence of allegorical verses highlights humanity's need for prophets and divine executors (awsiya).

In a narration from a Shia Imam (a), the Quran is described as containing clear and allegorical verses known only to God and the Firmly Rooted in Knowledge; namely, Prophet Muhammad (s) as the superior among them, followed by his executors. al-Tabarsi also cites a lengthy hadith from the Prophet of Islam (s) in the Ghadir Sermon, wherein he categorizes Quranic verses into clear and allegorical types, asserting that their full understanding is possible only for the person whom he designates by raising his hand.

There is disagreement among Shia scholars as to whether the "Firmly Rooted in Knowledge" are fully aware of the hidden meanings of allegorical verses. Some, such as Ali b. Ibrahim al-Qummi and al-Shaykh al-Saduq, citing grammatical context and narrations, argue for their awareness. Others, such as Muqatil b. Sulayman and Allama Tabataba'i, maintain that the Firmly Rooted in Knowledge merely have faith in these verses without knowing their inner meaning. al-Shaykh al-Tusi noted that the second view is the opinion held by the majority of commentators.

Status

Qur'an 3:7 delineates the division of verses into clear and allegorical categories, establishing the latter as a means of testing and separating the true scholar from the obstinate troublemaker.[1] Following the mention of the Quran's revelation in the preceding text, this verse elucidates the quality and characteristics of Quranic verses.[2]

al-Tabarsi, within a lengthy hadith in the book al-Ihtijaj, quotes the Prophet of Islam (s) in the Ghadir Sermon; the Prophet divides Quranic verses into clear and allegorical categories, stating that no one is capable of a complete understanding of the Quran—including the allegorical verses—except the person whom he selects and whose hand he raises.[3] The book Tafsir nur al-thaqalayn also narrates from Imam Ali (a) that God established certain individuals as the people of knowledge and, with reference to Qur'an 3:7—"None knows its interpretation except Allah and those firmly rooted in knowledge"—made it obligatory upon other servants to obey them.[4]

In a narration attributed to Imam al-Baqir (a) or Imam al-Sadiq (a), it is stated that the Quran contains general and specific (amm wa khass), abrogating and abrogated (nasikh wa mansukh), and clear and allegorical (muhkam wa mutashabih) verses, and that only God and the Firmly Rooted in Knowledge are aware of them. According to this narration, Prophet Muhammad (s) is the most superior of those firmly rooted in knowledge, followed by his executors.[5] Imam al-Sadiq (a) also narrates from the Prophet of Islam (s) that a jurist who issues fatwas without knowledge, failing to distinguish between abrogating and abrogated or clear and allegorical verses, leads both himself and others to ruin.[6] Allama Tabataba'i, in al-Mizan, asserts that most deviations in Islamic society and its sects, whether in doctrines or legal rulings, as well as all seditions and hardships faced by Islam and Muslims, stem from following allegorical verses and their incorrect interpretation.[7] In another narration, al-Shaykh al-Saduq quotes Imam al-Rida (a) stating that whoever refers allegorical verses back to the clear ones has been guided toward God. This narration further clarifies that within the traditions (hadiths), there are also clear and allegorical accounts, which must be referred back to the clear ones to avoid leading people astray.[8]

Occasion of Revelation

Some Shia commentators attribute the occasion of revelation for Qur'an 3:7 to the Jews of Najran. It is said that they, accompanied by Huyay b. Akhtab, came to the Prophet (s) seeking to use allegorical verses, such as the Broken Letters, to calculate the duration of the Prophet's (s) Ummah through abjad numerals, whereupon this verse was revealed.[9] Others attribute this verse to the Christians of Najran, who believed that Jesus (a) was the "Word of God" and "Spirit of God"; they engaged in dialogue with the Prophet (s) searching for allegorical verses to support this claim, at which point this verse was revealed.[10]

Sayyid Qutb, a Sunni scholar, agrees with the second view.[11] al-Shaykh al-Tabarsi and Abu l-Futuh al-Razi also believe this verse was revealed regarding the hypocrites,[12] as they sought allegorical verses to advance their false objectives.[13]

Muhkamat and Mutashabihat

Main article: Muhkam and Mutashabih

Various opinions have been proposed regarding the definition of muhkamat (clear verses) and mutashabihat (allegorical verses) in Qur'an 3:7. According to Allama Tabataba'i, these opinions encompass up to sixteen different views.[14] Notable among these are:

  • Allama Tabataba'i and a number of commentators view clear verses as those whose apparent meaning is evident without external context, while allegorical verses are those whose intent is unknown without context, being complex and open to multiple possibilities.[15] al-Ayyashi, in his exegesis, narrates several traditions from Imam al-Sadiq (a) which, while endorsing the first view, define clear verses as those that require both action and belief (faith), whereas allegorical ones require only belief.[16]
  • Clear verses are those that abrogate (nasikh) and allegorical ones are the abrogated (mansukh) verses.[17] al-Kulayni expresses this meaning based on narrations from Imam al-Baqir (a) and Imam al-Sadiq (a).[18]
  • Verses from which only one meaning can be derived are clear, and verses from which two or more meanings can be derived are allegorical.[19]
  • Clear verses are those whose words and phrases are not repeated, whereas allegorical ones contain repetition.[20]
  • Clear verses have a determined interpretation (ta'wil) and exegesis, while the interpretation of allegorical ones is unknown.[21]

Muhammad Jawad Mughniyya in al-Tafsir al-kashif, although agreeing with the first view regarding clear verses,[22] mentions several definitions for allegorical verses, including that the verse's meaning is brief (mujmal) or that the intellect does not accept its literal appearance. He also considers that deriving multiple meanings from the wording of a verse renders it allegorical. Verses containing an abrogated ruling are also allegorical in Mughniyya's view.[23]

al-Kulayni, in a narration within Usul al-Kafi, quotes Imam al-Sadiq (a) stating that the clear verses refer to Imam Ali (a) and the Imams, while the allegorical verses refer to "so-and-so and so-and-so" (referring to opponents).[24]

Existence and Reason for Following Allegorical Verses

According to Allama Tabataba'i, the existence of allegorical verses in the Quran is necessary.[25] In order to express divine knowledge for human comprehension, God necessarily adapted it to the level of human understanding, presenting universal meanings in the form of sensible realities.[26] Because the common understanding cannot grasp that which transcends the sensible,[27] each person inevitably understands the verses of the Quran according to their own capacity; this necessitates the presence of allegorical verses.[28]

Makarem Shirazi, endorsing Tabataba'i's view, states that the presence of allegorical verses highlights humanity's need for prophets and divine executors. Other reasons for their existence include the distance of many supernatural concepts from human minds, the stimulation of thought and intellectual inquiry among people, and the testing of individuals to separate the troublemaker from the believer, as mentioned in the verse.[29]

In the view of al-Shaykh al-Tabarsi, leading people astray, corrupting their religion, confusing the weak, and seeking honor and wealth are among the reasons why certain individuals pursue allegorical verses.[30]

Rasikhun fi l-ilm

Main article: Rasikhun fi l-ilm

Rasikhun fi l-ilm (the Firmly Rooted in Knowledge) is a Quranic expression denoting those who are steadfast in knowledge.[31] This expression appears in Surah Al-Imran[32] and Surah al-Nisa'.[33] Shia scholars, following the traditions,[34] have identified the referents of this expression as the Prophet of Islam (s) and the Ahl al-Bayt (a).[35] Others have interpreted the term broadly to encompass all scholars and thinkers, among whom the Prophet and the Ahl al-Bayt are the preeminent examples.[36]

Rasikhun fi l-ilm and Understanding Allegorical Verses

Shia scholars have disagreed regarding the role and syntactic function of the phrase "Firmly Rooted in Knowledge" in the verse "None knows its interpretation except Allah and those firmly rooted in knowledge." Some, like Ali b. Ibrahim al-Qummi and Naser Makarem Shirazi—relying on grammatical context and narrations from Imam al-Baqir (a)—state that the conjunction wa (and) before "al-rasikhun" is a coordinating conjunction linking this phrase to "Allah"; thus, the verse implies that both God and the Firmly Rooted in Knowledge possess knowledge of the interpretation of allegorical verses.[37]

al-Shaykh al-Saduq mentions a narration through the chain of Muhammad b. Muslim from Imam al-Sadiq (a) in which the Imam, after interpreting Ayah 155 of Surah al-Baqara, recited Qur'an 3:7 and stated that none but God and the Firmly Rooted in Knowledge know the interpretation of the verse.[38] Mughniyya, among Shia commentators, endorses this view and deems it rationally unacceptable (qabih) for God to reveal a verse without anyone knowing its meaning.[39]

Others, such as Muqatil b. Sulayman and Allama Tabataba'i, believe that the wa at the beginning of "wa al-rasikhun" indicates the start of a new sentence (isti'naf), meaning the phrase has no grammatical link to the preceding clause. In this reading, Qur'an 3:7 implies that only God knows the interpretation of allegorical verses, while the Firmly Rooted in Knowledge say "we believe in them" without knowing their inner meaning.[40]

Still others, like Abu l-Futuh al-Razi, present both views without offering a preference.[41] al-Shaykh al-Tabarsi, although presenting both interpretations, supports the first opinion, citing several narrations from Imam al-Baqir (a).[42]

Meaning of Ta'wil, Umm al-Kitab, and Fitna

According to Allama Tabataba'i, the interpretation (ta'wil) of the Quran refers to the objective reality upon which Quranic expressions—whether rulings, sermons, or wisdom—are founded. This reality exists for all Quranic verses, clear and allegorical alike. This interpretation is not a concept indicated merely by words; rather, it belongs to the objective realities that transcend the domain of language, which God restricted to words to make them graspable by the human mind.[43] al-Shaykh al-Tabarsi also interprets ta'wil as synonymous with exegesis (tafsir).[44]

Umm al-Kitab (Mother of the Book) is understood by some Shia scholars—including al-Shaykh al-Tusi, Abu l-Futuh al-Razi, al-Shaykh al-Tabarsi, and Muqatil b. Sulayman—as the "foundation of the Book," by which the allegorical is argued and to which the allegorical must be referred.[45] According to al-Tabarsi, those who believe the motivation for seeking sedition is honor and wealth have interpreted fitna as wealth.[46] al-Shaykh al-Tabarsi also defines the meaning of fitna, based on a narration from Imam al-Sadiq (a), as disbelief.[47]

References

  • Abū l-Futūḥ al-Rāzī, Ḥusayn b. ʿAlī, Rawḍ al-jinān, compiled by Mohammad Mehdi Naseh and Mohammad Jafar Yahaghi, Mashhad, Astan Quds Razavi, 1987-1999.
  • Ibn Sulaymān, Muqātil, Tafsīr Muqātil b. Sulaymān, edited by Abd Allah Mahmud Shahata, Beirut, Dār Iḥyāʾ al-Turāth al-ʿArabī, 1423/2002.
  • Ḥuwayzī, ʿAbd ʿAlī b. Jumʿa, Tafsīr nūr al-thaqalayn, edited by Hashem Rasuli, Qom, Ismāʿīlīān, 1415/1994-95.
  • Sayyid Quṭb, Ibrāhīm Ḥusayn Shādhlī, Fī ẓilāl al-Qurʾān, Beirut, Dār al-Shurūq, 1408/1987-88.
  • al-Shaykh al-Ṣadūq, Muḥammad b. ʿAlī, ʿUyūn akhbār al-Riḍā (a), edited by Mahdi Lajevardi, Tehran, Jahan, n.d.
  • al-Shaykh al-Ṣadūq, Muḥammad b. ʿAlī, Kamāl al-dīn wa tamām al-niʿma, compiled by 'Ali Akbar Ghaffari, Tehran, Dār al-Kutub, 1395/1975.
  • al-Shaykh al-Ṣadūq, Muḥammad b. ʿAlī, Maʿānī al-akhbār, n.p, Dār al-Maʿrifa, n.d.
  • al-Shaykh al-Ṭabarsī, Faḍl b. Ḥasan, Majmaʿ al-bayān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, edited by Hashem Rasuli et al., Beirut, Dār al-Maʿrifa, 1408/1987-88.
  • al-Shaykh al-Ṭūsī, Muḥammad b. Ḥasan, al-Tibyān, compiled by Ahmad Habib Amili, Beirut, Dār Iḥyāʾ al-Turāth al-ʿArabī, n.d.
  • Ṭabāṭabāʾī, Sayyid Muḥammad Ḥusayn, al-Mīzān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, Beirut, Muʾassasat al-Aʿlamī li-l-Maṭbūʿāt, 1350-53/1931-35.
  • al-Ṭabarsī, Aḥmad b. ʿAlī, al-Iḥtijāj, compiled by Muhammad Baqir Musawi Kharsan, Mashhad, Nashr al-Murtada, 1403/1982-83.
  • ʿAyyāshī, Muḥammad b. Masʿūd, Tafsīr al-ʿAyyāshī, edited and corrected by Sayyid Hashim Rasuli Mahallati, Tehran, al-Maṭbaʿat al-ʿIlmiyya, 1st ed., 1380/1960-61.
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  • Kulaynī, Muḥammad b. Yaʿqūb, al-Kāfī, compiled by Muhammad Akhundi and 'Ali Akbar Ghaffari, Tehran, Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmiyya, 1389/1969.
  • Mughniyya, Muḥammad Jawād, al-Tafsīr al-kāshif, Qom, Dār al-Kitāb al-Islāmī, 1424/2003-04.
  • Makārim Shīrāzī, Nāṣir, Tafsīr-i nimūna, Tehran, Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmiyya, 1992-1995.
  • Nahj al-balāgha, with commentary and translation by Ali Naqi Feyz al-Islam Isfahani, Tehran, Faqih Publishing, 1989.
  1. ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, 1371-1374 Sh, vol. 2, pp. 431-432.
  2. ↑ al-Shaykh al-Ṭabarsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1408 AH, vol. 2, p. 699; Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, 1371-1374 Sh, vol. 2, p. 431.
  3. ↑ al-Ṭabarsī, al-Iḥtijāj, 1403 AH, vol. 1, p. 60.
  4. ↑ Ḥuwayzī, Tafsīr nūr al-thaqalayn, 1415 AH, vol. 1, p. 315.
  5. ↑ Kulaynī, al-Kāfī, 1389 AH, vol. 1, p. 213; ʿAyyāshī, Tafsīr al-ʿAyyāshī, 1380 AH, vol. 1, p. 164.
  6. ↑ Kulaynī, al-Kāfī, 1389 AH, vol. 1, p. 43.
  7. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, 1350-1353 AH, vol. 3, pp. 41-42.
  8. ↑ al-Shaykh al-Ṣadūq, ʿUyūn akhbār al-Riḍā (a), Jahan, vol. 1, p. 290.
  9. ↑ al-Shaykh al-Ṣadūq, Maʿānī al-akhbār, Dār al-Maʿrifa, pp. 23-24; Abū l-Futūḥ al-Rāzī, Rawḍ al-jinān, 1366-1378 Sh, vol. 4, p. 179; Ibn Sulaymān, Tafsīr Muqātil b. Sulaymān, 1423 AH, vol. 3, p. 264; al-Shaykh al-Ṭabarsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1408 AH, vol. 2, pp. 700-701.
  10. ↑ al-Shaykh al-Ṭūsī, al-Tibyān, Dār Iḥyāʾ al-Turāth al-ʿArabī, vol. 2, p. 399; Abū l-Futūḥ al-Rāzī, Rawḍ al-jinān, 1366-1378 Sh, vol. 4, p. 178; al-Shaykh al-Ṭabarsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1408 AH, vol. 2, pp. 700-701.
  11. ↑ Quṭb, Fī ẓilāl al-Qurʾān, 1408 AH, vol. 1, pp. 369-370.
  12. ↑ Abū l-Futūḥ al-Rāzī, Rawḍ al-jinān, 1366-1378 Sh, vol. 4, p. 179; al-Shaykh al-Ṭabarsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1408 AH, vol. 2, pp. 700-701.
  13. ↑ al-Shaykh al-Ṭūsī, al-Tibyān, Dār Iḥyāʾ al-Turāth al-ʿArabī, vol. 2, p. 399; al-Shaykh al-Ṭabarsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1408 AH, vol. 2, pp. 700-701.
  14. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, 1350-1353 AH, vol. 3, pp. 32-41.
  15. ↑ al-Shaykh al-Ṭūsī, al-Tibyān, vol. 2, p. 394; al-Shaykh al-Ṭabarsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, vol. 2, pp. 698-699, 701; Abū l-Futūḥ al-Rāzī, Rawḍ al-jinān, vol. 4, pp. 174-175; Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, vol. 3, pp. 20-21, 32-41; Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 2, pp. 431, 433.
  16. ↑ ʿAyyāshī, Tafsīr al-ʿAyyāshī, 1380 AH, vol. 1, pp. 10-11, 162-163.
  17. ↑ al-Shaykh al-Ṭabarsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1408 AH, vol. 2, pp. 701-702.
  18. ↑ Kulaynī, al-Kāfī, 1389 AH, vol. 2, p. 28, vol. 1, p. 415.
  19. ↑ Qummī, Tafsīr al-Qummī, 1404 AH, vol. 1, p. 96; al-Shaykh al-Ṭabarsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1408 AH, vol. 2, pp. 701-702.
  20. ↑ al-Shaykh al-Ṭabarsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1408 AH, vol. 2, pp. 701-702.
  21. ↑ al-Shaykh al-Ṭabarsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1408 AH, vol. 2, pp. 701-702.
  22. ↑ Mughniyya, al-Tafsīr al-kāshif, 1424 AH, vol. 2, p. 10.
  23. ↑ Mughniyya, al-Tafsīr al-kāshif, 1424 AH, vol. 2, pp. 10-11.
  24. ↑ Kulaynī, al-Kāfī, 1389 AH, vol. 1, p. 415.
  25. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, 1350-1353 AH, vol. 3, pp. 57-58.
  26. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, 1350-1353 AH, vol. 3, pp. 62-63.
  27. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, 1350-1353 AH, vol. 3, pp. 60-61.
  28. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, 1350-1353 AH, vol. 3, p. 63.
  29. ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, 1371-1374 Sh, vol. 2, pp. 436-437.
  30. ↑ al-Shaykh al-Ṭabarsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1408 AH, vol. 2, p. 700.
  31. ↑ Ḥusaynī Shīrāzī, Tabyīn al-Qurʾān, 1423 AH, p. 61.
  32. ↑ Qur'an 3:7.
  33. ↑ Qur'an 4:162.
  34. ↑ Qummī, Tafsīr al-Qummī, 1404 AH, vol. 1, pp. 96-97.
  35. ↑ al-Ṭabarsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1372 Sh, vol. 2, p. 700.
  36. ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, 1374 Sh, vol. 2, p. 439.
  37. ↑ Qummī, Tafsīr al-Qummī, 1404 AH, vol. 1, pp. 96-97; Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, 1371-1374 Sh, vol. 2, pp. 441-442.
  38. ↑ al-Shaykh al-Ṣadūq, Kamāl al-dīn, 1395 AH, vol. 2, p. 649.
  39. ↑ Mughniyya, al-Tafsīr al-kāshif, 1424 AH, vol. 2, p. 14.
  40. ↑ Ibn Sulaymān, Tafsīr Muqātil b. Sulaymān, 1423 AH, vol. 3, p. 264; Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, 1350-1353 AH, vol. 3, p. 28.
  41. ↑ Abū l-Futūḥ al-Rāzī, Rawḍ al-jinān, 1366-1378 Sh, vol. 4, pp. 180-181.
  42. ↑ al-Shaykh al-Ṭabarsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1408 AH, vol. 2, p. 700.
  43. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, 1350-1353 AH, vol. 3, p. 49.
  44. ↑ al-Shaykh al-Ṭabarsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1408 AH, vol. 2, pp. 698-699.
  45. ↑ al-Shaykh al-Ṭūsī, al-Tibyān, Dār Iḥyāʾ al-Turāth al-ʿArabī, vol. 2, p. 395; Abū l-Futūḥ al-Rāzī, Rawḍ al-jinān, 1366-1378 Sh, vol. 4, p. 174; al-Shaykh al-Ṭabarsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1408 AH, vol. 2, pp. 698-699; Ibn Sulaymān, Tafsīr Muqātil b. Sulaymān, 1423 AH, vol. 3, pp. 263-264.
  46. ↑ al-Shaykh al-Ṭabarsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1408 AH, vol. 2, p. 700.
  47. ↑ al-Shaykh al-Ṭabarsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1408 AH, vol. 2, p. 700.
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