Tafsir

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Tafsir (

Arabic: مفسّرون, romanized: mufassirūn). A Quranic tafsir attempts to provide elucidation, explanation, interpretation, context or commentary for clear understanding and conviction of God's will.[2]

Principally, a tafsir deals with the issues of

companions, and tafsir bi-al-ra'y (lit. tafsir by opinion), which is arrived through personal reflection or independent rational thinking.[2]

There are different characteristics and traditions for each of the tafsirs representing respective

formative ages of Islam, and modern tafsir which seeks to address a wider audience, including the common people.[2]

Etymology

The word tafsīr is derived from the

Arabic language and one's own knowledge.[4]

History

The first examples of tafsir can be traced back to Muhammad. According to Islamic belief, as the Quran was revealed to him, he recited the

ibn Taymiyyah claim that Muhammad has commented on the whole of the Quran, others including Ghazali cite the limited amount of narratives (hadith), thus indicating that he has commented only on a portion of the Quran.[2]

After the death of Muhammad, his companions (

sahabah) undertook the task of interpretation, thus starting a new age in tafsir. Most of the sahabah, including Abu Bakr, refrained from commenting based on their personal views, and only narrated comments by Muhammad. Others including ibn Abbas used their own knowledge from the Arabic language to interpret the Quran. At this stage, tafsir was selective and concise regarding its coverage, and only certain words, phrases and verses were explained.[2]
The Quran was still not fully interpreted, and commentaries were not separated from the hadith collection nor written separately, mainly due to other occupations such as the collection of the Quran.

By the time of the next generations ensuing the sahabah, scholars in the age of the successors (

tabi'in) started using a wide range of sources for tafsir. The whole of the Quran is interpreted, and narrations are separated from tafsir into separate books and literature. Grammatical explanations and historical data are preserved within these books; personal opinions are recorded, whether accepted or rejected. During this time, a whole range of schools of tafsir came into existence in different scholastic centers, including Mecca, Medina and Iraq. Iraqi schools of tafsir came to be known for an approach relied on personal judgment aside from the transmitted reports, and Jewish apocryphal reports were also widely employed.[2] Notable compilers on this age including Sufyan al-Thawri.[2]

Until this age, tafsir had been transmitted orally and had not been collected independently in a book, rather, they had been gathered by

muhaddithun (lit. scholars of hadith) in their hadith books, under the topic of tafsir, along with other narrations of Muhammad.[7] This indicates that tafsir, in its formative age, used to be a special domain within hadith. Widening of the scope of tafsir and emergence of mufassirun in the age of the successors lead to the development of an independent discipline of tafsir.[2]

Conditions

Part of a series on Islam
Usul al-Fiqh
Fiqh
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Legal vocations and titles

An author of tafsir is a mufassir (

Arabic. It is important because any change in the diacritical marks affects the meaning, and understanding the diacritical marks depends on the science of Arabic philology. Morphology of Arabic language is also important because changes in the configuration of verb and noun forms change the meaning. Ibn Faris said, "A person who misses out on Arabic morphology has missed out on a lot." Lastly, Al-Ishtiqaaq is the science of etymology which explains the reciprocal relation and radical composition between the root and derived word. It should be learned because sometimes one word derives from two root words, the meaning of each root word being different. For example, a word masih derives from the root word massah (مَسَّة) which means "to feel something and to touch something with a wet hand," but also derives from the root word masaahat which means "to measure."[8]

Another relevant discipline is the science of interpreting the Arabic sentence. Ilm al-Ma'ani is the science by which one figures the syntax through the meaning of a sentence. Ilm al-Bayaan is the science by which one learns the similes, metaphors, metonymies, zuhoor (evident meanings) and khafa (hidden meanings) of the Arabic language. Ilm al-Badi' is the science by which one learns to interpret sentences in which the beauty and eloquence of the spoken and written word are considered hidden. The above-mentioned three sciences are categorized as Ilm-ul-Balagha (science of rhetoric). It is one of the most principal sciences to a mufassir as it is deemed by Muslims that there are literal and non-literal meanings of the Quran, and one is able to reveal the miraculous nature of the Quran through these three sciences.[2] A field from Quranic teaching is called Ilm al-Qira'at. This is a system of dialecticism of the different readings of the Quran. This science is important because one qira'at (way of reading) of the Quran may differ in meaning from another, and one learns to favor one reading over another based on the difference in the meanings.[8]

General sciences of Islamic theology and Islamic study are also imperative.

prophets.[2] Comprehension of Fiqh, Islamic jurisprudence, is important because one cannot gain an overview of any issue until he has understood its particulars. Usul al-Fiqh, principles of Islamic jurisprudence, is also required so one understands the methodology of legal derivation and interpretation.[8]

Other distinctive systems linked with tafsir study including

Asbaab al-Nuzul, which is the field by which one learns the circumstances in which an ayah is revealed. It is important because the meaning of the ayah is more clearly understood once the circumstances in which it was revealed are known. Sometimes, the meaning of an ayah is wholly dependent on its historical background. Another is Ilm-ul-Naskh, which is knowledge of the abrogated ayah. In general, due to the Quran made up of revelations that revealed to Muhammad in the course of more than twenty years, certain verses are considered meant to be temporary and subsequently repealed by the following ones. Ilm-ul-Naskh is a science of identifying the abrogations, and it is important because abrogated rulings must be separated from the applied rulings.[2] Ilm al-Hadith is knowledge of the hadith which explain mujmal (general) ayah, and Ilm al-Ladunni (علم اللدّني) is the endowed knowledge which is considered granted by God to his closest servants. This is for example a knowledge obtained directly from Allah through inspiration. They are the servants indicated in the hadith: "Allah will grant one who acts upon whatever he knows from a knowledge he never knew."[8]

Principles

There are several frames of reference in which tafsir can be categorized. The main issue of framing constitutes its methodology. Tafsir can be broadly divided into two categories from the viewpoint of methodology employed in order to approach the interpretation. These categories are called tafsīr bi'l-ma'thūr (

Arabic: تفسير بالدراية).[2]

Tafsir bi'l-Ma'thur (or Tafsir bi'r-Riwayah)

Tafsir bi'l-ma'thur, or commonly known as Tafsir bi'r-riwāyah, is the method of commenting on the Quran using traditional sources. Tafsir bi'r-riwāyah connotes tafsir using another portion of the Quran, or sayings of Muhammad, or saying of his companions.

Isra'iliyat
.

The most authoritative source of the interpretation is the Quran itself. Interpretation of the Quran employing other Quranic reference is very common because of the close interrelatedness of the verses of the Quran with one another. The Quranic verses explain and interpret one another, which leads many to believe that it has the highest level of authenticity. Many verses or words in the Quran are explained or further clarified in other verses of the Quran. One example of the hadith which extensively employs this source of method is Al-Mizan fi Tafsir al-Qur'an by Muhammad Husayn Tabataba'i. The authoritative source of method second to the Quran is Hadith, by using narratives of Muhammad to interpret the Quran. In this approach the most important external aids used are the collected oral traditions upon which Muslim scholars based Islamic history and law. Authority of this method is considered established by the statement made in the Quran that Muhammad is responsible for explanation and guidance.[12] While some narratives are of revelation origin, others can be the result of reasonings made by Muhammad.[13] One important aspect of these narratives is their origin. Narratives used for tafsir, and in general, must be of authentic origin (sahih). Narratives of such origin are considered requisite for tafsir.

Other source of the interpretation includes the accounts of

Abrahamic religions
to further explain and clarify verses, especially parables, in the Quran. While some may be accurate, these narratives are not subject to hadith authenticity criteria, and are generally not favored for use.

Tafsir bi'r-Ra'y (or Tafsir bi'd-dirayah)

Tafsir bi'r-ra'y, or commonly known as tafsir bi-al-diraya, is the method of using one's independent rational reasoning and mind (

Mafatih al-Ghayb by Fakhr al-Din al-Razi
. Some parameters used by these scholars including linguistic resources, historical sources, methodological concepts such as maqasid or socio-cultural environment taken into consideration.

In terms of linguistic resources, literary elements of the

iman (loosely translated as faith) nature that includes believing in Allah, Muhammad, and the day of judgment, whether it be theological foundations or basic faith principles. On the other hand, Medinan verses
constitute legislation, social obligations, and constitution of a state.

On the more conceptual level, the idea of

shariah, which may be considered simply as bringing happiness to a person in this life and the hereafter. That way, any interpretation that threatens to compromise the preservation of religion, life, lineage, intellect or property may be discarded or ruled otherwise in order to secure these goals. Further, the socio-cultural environment may also taken into consideration. This includes understanding and interpreting the Quran while taking into account the cultural and social environment to which it has been revealed; or according to the scholars' own time. Often than not, the distinction can be made between the 'amm (general) verses that aimed at universal conditions for Muslims, and khass (specific) verses that applied to specific conditions, time or need.[2] This is considered an integral part of analyzing the universality of the Quran. Scholars usually do not favor to confine verses to a single time interval, but rather interpret according to the needs of their time.[17]

Sects

See also: List of tafsir works

Islamic theology is divided into myriad of schools and branches, and each of the schools' comments on the Quran with their own point of view.

Sunni

Mir Sayyid Ali writing a Tafsir on the Quran, self-portrait 1555-1556.

The time of

Tafsir al-Thalabi, Tafsir of Al-Zamakhshari and Tafsir al-Tabari. Tafsir al-Tabari is one of the most important tafsir works in Sunni Islam.[18] This work provides exegetical material for the whole Quran, also contains conflicting information, which Tabari tries either to harmonize or argues in support of the one he feels more correct. Further he includes different readings, which according to him, both might be correct and gives his own opinion after each argumentation. Both linguistical and theological subjects are discussed throughout his work.[19]

The period of

Ibn Taimiyya is sometimes seen as a transition point between the Classical and post-Classical exegesis, due to his unique hermeneutic method.[20] Tafsirs are geneaological, they rely on the core of previous tafsirs. Ibn Taimiyya challenged this core tradition by asserting that the Quran should only be interpreted by the Quran alone or the sunnah.[21] Ibn Kathir was the first who tried to use the hermeneutic method of his teacher ibn Taimiyya.[22][23] By that, it is much more selective and critical compared to earlier Quranic exegesis and features only a few personal remarks.[24][25][26] Al-Suyuti's (1445–1505) tafsir (Al-Dur al-Manthur) uses a similar hermeneutic. Unlike ibn Kathir, his work is one of a few completely devoid of any personal comments. Yet, following the approach of ibn Taimiyya, he is selective about the inclusion of hadiths. However, contrarily to ibn Taimiyya and ibn Kathir, his tafsir is without any personal comment. Further, despite using a similar methodology to ibn Taimiyya and ibn Kathir, he includes a wider range of hadiths.[27]

Not earlier than the mid-nineteenth century, the modern period of tafsir started.[28][29] The modern approach is marked by a generally critical attitude towards much of the intellectual heritage of Islam, a declared intention to imitate the salaf, and an emphasis on the unity of believers and a unified understanding of Islam.[30] Other features may include, attempts to proof the rationality of the Quranic worldview, compatibility with modern sciences, liberalism, literary criticism, and making the message of the Quran emotional relevant for the believer.[31] Although such modern approaches became a standard only late, their ideas were much earlier present in the Islamicate world.[32][33] Kadizadeli (Qādīzādali), a seventeenth-century puritanical reformist religious movement in the Ottoman Empire, shared a lot of ideas with modern Islamic interpretations.[34] Al-Shawkānī (1759–1834) has been understood retroperspective by many Muslim scholars as a salafi.[35]

A rationalistic approach, as proposed by Syed Ahmad Khan and Muhammad Abduh attempts to proof that the Quran and modern sciences do not contradict each other.[36] This is close to the tafsir 'ilmi (scientific interpretation of the Quran), which claims that the Quran miraculously predicted scientific discoveries. Although this trend has existed prior to the modern era, its popularity is new. Nontheless, this approach still faces a lot of opposition among Muslims.[37] Yet another approach, represented by scholars such as Amin al-Khuli, aims to decodifies the Quran to understand its impact on the first audience. Accordingly, the focus is not about historical or scientific truths, but about conveying a message through the means of the Quran.[38] Similarly, according to yet another trend, the Quran should not only be understood as for the first Muslims, but also executed as the first Muslims did. Famous adherences to this approach include Sayyid Qutb and Abul A'la Maududi. This approach often goes in hand with an attempt to establish a state based on an idealized Muslim society.[39]

Among Salafis, the hermeneutics of ibn Taimiyya prevail. In the English language, an abridged version of Tafsīr al-Qurʾān al-ʿAẓīm (Tafsir Ibn Kathir), under the editorship of Muhammad Saed Abdul-Rahman, gained widespread popularity, probably due to its salafistic approach but also a lack of alternative translations of traditional tafsirs.[24][40] Similarly, a translation of Tabari's exegetical work has been published only as an abridged version, by Pierre Godé appeared in 1983.[41]

Shi'ite

Tafsirs by Shia Muslims similarly deals with the issues concerned by Sunnis, and employs similar methodology as well, except for the adherence toward certain beliefs and creeds Shiism espouses. Distinctive features of Shia tafsirs include expounding of the concept of

Mu'tazili thoughts as well, specifically on the theological issues. Some of the important examples of Shia mufassirs and their tafsir are Al-Tibbyan Fi Tafsir al-Quran by Shaykh Tusi (460/1067) and Majma al-Bayan lif'ulum al-Quran by Shaykh Tabarsi (d. 548/1153).[2]

On the other hand, tafsir by

Zaidi school of jurisprudence, which espouses the doctrine closest with Sunnis of all Shia sects, produces tafsir resembling Sunni tafsir in its quality. Some Zaidi tafsirs are considered popular among Sunnis as well as shia.[42]

Mu'tazila

The

Mu'tazila tradition of tafsir has received little attention in modern scholarship, owing to several reasons[citation needed]. First, several exegetical works by Mu'tazila scholars have been studied as books on theology rather than as works of tafsir. Secondly, the large Mu'tazilite tafsir at-Tahdib fi tafsir al-Qur'an by al-Hakim al-Jishumi has not been edited, and there is no complete copy of it available at any single location, which limits its accessibility to scholars.[43]

Sufi

It is an interpretation of the Quran which includes attribution of esoteric or mystic meanings to the text by the interpreter. In this respect, its method is different from the conventional exegesis. Esoteric interpretations do not usually contradict the conventional (in this context called exoteric) interpretations; instead, they discuss the inner levels of meaning of the Quran. A hadith from Muhammad which states that the Quran has an inner meaning, and that this inner meaning conceals a yet deeper inner meaning, and so on (up to seven levels of meaning), has sometimes been used in support of this view. Islamic opinion imposes strict limitations on esoteric interpretations especially when interior meaning is against exterior one. Esoteric interpretations are found mainly in

Isma'ili sect. But Muhammad and the imams gave importance to its exterior as much as to its interior; they were as much concerned with its revelation as they were with its interpretation. These are generally not independently written, however, they are found in the books of Sufis.[citation needed
]

Among the most significant Sunni Sufi tafsirs are:

Quranist

Quranists merely believe in the Qur'an and reject other oral traditions. Turkish Islamic theologian Yaşar Nuri Öztürk denounced contemporary Islamic practices as altered. He distinguished between what he defined as true Islam and what he saw as customs and traditions introduced in the Umayyad period. In 1992, he published a 760-page, tafsir-like exegetical work called Kur'an'daki Islam. Each chapter, which deals with one surah, is structured around certain verses of the surah, or words occurring in the text, which need to be explained.[45]

Edip Yüksel, Layth Saleh al-Shaiban, and Martha Schulte-Nafeh wrote Quran: A Reformist Translation, an English translation and commentary of the Qur'an.[46] Yüksel is a follower of Rashad Khalifa.[47]

Ghulam Ahmed Perwez wrote Mafhoom-ul-Quran, translated into English as Exposition of the Holy Qur'an.[48]

Methodologies

Scientific approach

Scholars deeply influenced by the natural and social sciences followed the materialists of Europe or the pragmatists. Under the influence of those secular theories, they declared that the religion's realities cannot go against scientific knowledge.

Fakhruddin al-Razi
.

Legal approach

Legal tafsir deals mainly with verses that have a legislative meaning (see

Hanbali Madhhab.[50]

Linguistic

A newer work which incorporates and quotes the work of a multitude of previous scholars and analyzes the relevant Arabic root words (based on all available classic Arabic meanings), and references all relevant passages of the Quran, was done by Abdul Mannan Omar.[51][52]

Comprehensive

Some works included numerous methodologies e.g. the very detailed tafsirs of Imam Razi's Tafsir Kabir in Arabic and Mufti Ahmad Yar Khan Naeemi's Tafsir Naeemi in Urdu.

See also

References

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  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Mir, Mustansir. (1995). "Tafsīr". In John L. Esposito. The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
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  4. ^ Al-Zehebi, Al-Tafsir vel Mufassirun
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