The Exegetical Principle of " Generality of the Singular Commands of the Qur an"

The exegetical principle is applied to the interpreters’ general principles in elucidation of the verses, as predicating the singular commands of the Qur’an to the general public instead of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) himself is regarded as one of these principles. As one of the most frequently used exegetical principles of all the interpreters throughout history, this principle has been more used under the verses that in view of the interpreters are in contrast to the dignity of the Prophet in such a way that although this principle is not exclusive to the admonition verses, its maximal use under the admonition verses has turned this principle to a hideaway for solving the interpreters’ theological problems to the extent that the farther we distanced from the ancients over time and approached the present era, there has been more reliance on this principle in the interpretation of admonition verses. Nevertheless, despite frequent reliance on this exegetical principle, the interpreters have not only failed to clarify their criteria for using it; they have also used it in a disorderly, or rather contrasting and sometimes contrary to the absolute context of the verses. Furthermore, the Prophet’s being addressed in many of the singular commands and the Muslims’ conjectures about this issue show that the principle in the Qur’an’s commands has been the Prophet’s being addressed rather than the general public and any inference other than that would require serious evidences.