Salahshoor, Ali

doi:10.22091/ptt.2025.13359.2483

"Representation of Sacred Time in the Qur’an: A Comparative Study of the Views of Quranic Commentators and Mircea Eliade’s Theory"

Document Type : Academicm and Research

Author

ali salahshoor

Associate Professor, Department of Islamic Studies, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Kurdistan, Sanandaj, Iran a.salahshoor@uok.ac.ir

10.22091/ptt.2025.13359.2483

Abstract

One of the fundamental concepts in the Qur’an is time—a notion that, within the framework of revelatory narratives, is at times experienced as absolute and historical, and at other times as qualitative, compressed, and sacred. Verses such as al-Maʿārij 4, al-Sajda 5, and al-Ḥajj 47, among others, clearly demonstrate that the Qur'anic understanding of time is not merely linear and material, but encompasses transcendent and experiential dimensions. Drawing on Mircea Eliade’s theory of sacred time and its distinction from profane time, this article examines the qualitatively experienced structure of time as reflected in selected Qur'anic verses. Eliade contends that sacred time is reversible, meaningful, and fundamentally distinct from historical time. Through a descriptive-analytical approach, this study seeks to provide a deeper understanding of how the Qur’an engages with the notion of time, the experience of the sacred, and the human condition. An analysis of verses concerning resurrection, ascension, creation, and prophetic experiences reveals that the Qur’an portrays a model of time that is qualitative and transcendent—more closely aligned with religious perception than with physical measurability.

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