Document Type : Academicm and Research
Authors
1 1 Ph.D. student, Quran and Hadith, Quran and Hadith University, Qom, Iran .Email: haadi.safari@chmail.ir
2 Associate Professor of Religious Studies and Islamic Theology, Quran and Hadith University, Qom, Iran. Email: ahmad.karimi@gmail.com
Abstract
Highlights
Analyzing the Origins of the Temporal Aspect of the Theory of Impeccability in the Commentaries of Fakr al-Razi and Ibn Sharaf Shah *
Mohammad Hadi Safari1 and Ahmad Karimi2
1 Ph.D. student, Quran and Hadith, Quran and Hadith University, Qom, Iran (corresponding author). Email: haadi.safari@chmail.ir
2 Associate Professor of Religious Studies and Islamic Theology, Quran and Hadith University, Qom, Iran. Email: ahmad.karimi@gmail.com
The temporal aspect of the doctrine of impeccability has been a point of contention between absolutists and opponents. By comparing the views of two commentators, Fakhr al-Razi (606 AH), who considers impeccability to be timeless, and Ibn Sharaf Shah al-Hosseini (810 AH), who considers the scope of impeccability to be unquestionable, this study has tried to examine their point of view about the temporal aspect of impeccability in connection with related Quranic words: “dhanb” [al-Fatḥ: 2], “wezr” [al-Sharḥ: 2] and “ḍalāl” [al-Ḍuha: 7]. The findings showed that both commentators do not consider these words to be in conflict with impeccability, and, as a result, it is not possible to conclude from them the temporality of impeccability. However, Fakhr al-Razi emphasized the concept of impeccability’s temporality, which is based on Ashʿaari biases and incorruptible news. He tries not to deviate from his theological thought in this regard with different interpretations, and therefore, his methodological and semantic positions in this regard are not in harmony with his theological point of view.
Keywords: Ibn Sharaf Shah al-Hosseini, dhanb, the Prophet’s impeccability before his mission, ḍalāl, Fakhr al-Razi, wezr
Clarifying the issue of the temporal aspect of impeccability is effective in redefining the nature of the prophetic mission and answering the doubts surrounding it. The commentators of the Holy Qurʾan addressed the topic of the temporal aspect of the doctrine by referring to verse two of al-Fatḥ, seven of al-Ḍuha, and two of al-Sharḥ. The question of the research is to find the origins of two ranges of interpretation theories between the two semantic methods of interpreting words and the theological foundations of commentators in the issue of the temporal aspect of the theory. The research method is a comparative study of the views of two commentators on the related Quranic words: “dhanb” [Fatḥ: 2], “wezr”, [Sharḥ: 2] and “ḍalāl” [Ḍuha: 7] as the basis of their point of view on the temporal aspect of impeccability, and with the focus of two organized monographs on the subject, which are very similar in terms of subject titles, and can be viewed from the perspective of two topical interpretations: First, ʿIsmat al-Anbiyāʾ written by al‑Razi (606 AH), who considers impeccability to be temporal. And the other is al‑Risālat al‑Sulṭāniyyah al‑Aḥmadiyyah fī Ithbāt al‑ʿIsmat al‑Nabawiyyah al‑Muḥammadiyah, written by Ibn Sharaf Shah al‑Hosseini (810 AH), who considered the extent of impeccability to be absolute and unquestionable.
From the meanings that Fakhr al‑Razi puts forward for the three abovementioned words, he enumerates aspects of sins before the Prophethood only for the word “wezr” which is in contradiction with the absolutist and irreproachability approach. However, in explaining the semantic aspects of other words, he agrees with the commentators who have adopted a censuring approach for the prophets. His documentation to provide such an interpretation is a part of the traditions that can be tampered with and made by false narrators. The genealogy of these traditions considered the era of explanation as the origin of the propagation of these traditions. The lexicographers considered the meaning of sin for the word “wezr” to be figurative, and there is no reason to ignore its true meaning. He, who considers it necessary and essential that the Prophets did not disbelieve and commit adultery before their mission, cites the following of his Ashʿari predecessors in this matter for the non‑obligation of impeccability before the mission.
The meanings that Ibn Sharaf Shah al‑Hosseini puts forward for the three abovementioned words are a mix of implied interpretations in line with literary rules, the context, and the generality of the verses and traditions in the topic of the temporal aspect of the theory of impeccability. As a rhetorician, he has warned against attributing any sin to the Prophet by establishing the dialectical relationship between the text and the audience and has considered his impeccability to be unquestionable. The scope of inclusiveness in Qurʾanic proofs of the impeccability of the prophets leads to the absolutist approach and the idea of the maximal moderation of the prophets. It means that the Prophets are infallible from the beginning of their birth to the end of their life and in all areas of life including matters related to religion and matters related to the world, and they will not suffer any mistakes, errors, or forgetfulness. From this point of view, the idea of the impeccability of the prophets contradicting the Holy Qurʾan is fundamentally rejected.
By comparing the interpretive views of Fakhr al‑Razi and Ibn Sharaf Shah al‑Hosseini, who have two different approaches to the topic of the temporal aspect of the theory of impeccability, the origin of the difference in view cannot be considered the semantic method of Quranic words. Perhaps in most of the semantic aspects of the words that imply the impeccability of the prophets before the coming of the Prophet, the views of the two commentators are very similar to each other. However, the most prominent factor in the conflict between exegetic views on the subject is the influence of exegetic views on theological trends. The general evidence that Fakhr al‑Razi cites in the main issue of impeccability has a broader scope than his claim and also includes impeccability before the mission. For this reason, Fakhr al‑Razi took the path of interpretation in the semantics of the ambiguous words of the impeccability of the Prophets before the mission and, contrary to the methodological and literary principles accepted by him, such as the rule of the validity of the broad scope of words, he took a position to make his exegetic point of view with the principles of Ashʿari theology such as the deterministic view of infallibility, Aligning and harmonizing impeccability and creation of impeccable actions after being appointed to the mission. .
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* Received: 2023 Jul 31 | Received in revised from: 2023 Sep 16 | Accepted: 2023 Dec 12 | published online: 2023 Dec 21
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