Journal of Contemporary Islamic Studies
Volume:2 Issue: 2, Summer-Autumn 2020

Attributing the accusation of being “shi‘r” (poetry) to the noble Qur’ān and the accusation of being a “shā‘ir” to the noble Prophet (s) were among the accusations made by the polytheists in order to reject the divinity of the Qur’ān and consequently to deny the prophetic mission of the Prophet (s). Although there have been suggested different viewpoints with regard to the intention of the polytheists with the words “shi‘r” and “shā‘ir” and the two viewpoints that favor analyzing “shi‘r” from the “structural” and “imaginative content” dimensions have more adherents among the exegetes, the examination of the culture and beliefs of the people of the revelation era and the analysis of the term “shi‘r” reveals that this accusation was issued by the polytheists due to their belief in “the inspiration of the poet by the jinni world” so as to introduce the Qur’ān as an inspiration of the jinni and to deny the prophetic mission of the noble Prophet (s). In addition to clarifying the origin and purpose of the polytheists’ attribution of this accusation, this study will make clearer the response given by the noble Qur’ān to this accusation.

The human is a creature whose being is filled with instinctive and innate qualities. One of these qualities is the “Halū‘iyyat” which is noted in the Qur’ān 70:19 and discusses the sensitivity of the human to the good and the evil. There is a disagreement among the exegetes with regard to the interpretation of this verse. This article has adopted a descriptive-analytical method to examine the opinions of two contemporary exegetes, i.e. martyr Murtaḍā Muṭahharī and Ayatullāh Jawādī Āmulī in this regard. The results reveal that although the stances of both exegetes is in line with the viewpoint of those exegetes who consider the verse as a description of the human nature, Martyr Muṭahharī takes the human nature based on “Halū‘iyyat” per se as his perfection, while Ayatullāh Jawādī Āmulī believes that the perfection recognized by Islam and its jurisprudence is in the vicinity to God and the manifestation of the most sacred Divine Essence in the human. Nonetheless, the opinions of these two exegetes are not conflicting, because martyr Muṭahharī’s intention of this type of perfection is the primordial and organic perfection, while Āyatullāh Jawādī Āmulī refers to the true perfection.

Some Muslim thinkers have had disagreements over the use of the word “‘ishq” in religious texts since many years ago. The main claim made by those who prohibit the use of this word for the sacred associations such as God, the Prophet (s), and Imāms is that the meaning of this word is appropriate only to the material and carnal issues and so, it has not been used in religious texts and its concept has even been blamed in some traditions, but the philosophers and Sufis have promoted it in the form of poem and prose among Muslims inadvertently or in order to subvert the Muḥammadan Law. On the contrary, some researchers have relied on the literal meaning of the word “‘ishq” and some traditions to consider this term a constant added-nouns similar to ḥubb and bughḍ, which are not blameworthy or praiseworthy per se and are rather praised or blamed due to their associations. Therefore, we observe in the religious texts that the term “‘ishq” has been used in both meanings and it has been actually used more in a praiseworthy manner. The study at hand aims at strengthening the latter viewpoint. To this end, this article is divided into four parts: expressing the root and literal meaning of the word “‘ishq”, narrating and explaining the traditions that approve the use of “‘ishq” about the religious associations, narrating the traditions that blame “‘ishq” and analyzing the incorrect understandings made about suchlike traditions, and investigating and providing the final analysis about the various viewpoints to the associations of the word “‘ishq”.

One of the most important foundations of knowing and interpreting the Qur’ān, the Torah, and the Gospel is the belief in the infallibility and impeccability of the words and propositions of these divine scriptures. If the verses and statements of the noble Qur’ān and the Testaments during the revelation era and the ensuing times have been afflicted with distortion and contradiction, then they cannot be trusted. One of the dimensions of the originality and authoritativeness of the divine scriptures is their freedom from any kind of mistake, disharmony, and disagreement. When a person tries to understand the verses based on such a viewpoint, he will expect nothing but harmony from the verses and will try to figure out this harmony and convergence. In this article, various existing viewpoints in this regard are presented and examined, and it is concluded that the infallibility of the divine scriptures is the stance taken by the majority of Muslims and the Judaist tradition, while there are disagreements among Christians. The main reason is the viewpoints of Muslims, Jews, and Christians toward revelation.

Abū Isḥāq Tha‘labī Nayshābūrī is an outstanding Iranian exegete of the fourth and fifth centuries LH. Tha‘labī has been so skillful in various Islamic sciences such as Arabic linguistics (including morphology, syntax (grammatical inflection), vocabulary, and rhetoric), Ḥadīth, exegesis, and qur’ānic sciences that numerous students from many near and far places attended his classes. Tha‘labī’s commentary is a comprehensive and valuable exegesis of the Qur’ān that entails the utterances and viewpoints of many scholars from various scientific fields. Since Tha‘labī’s commentary is largely comprised of the narrations by the Companions and even Ahl al-Bayt (a), it can be considered a narrative commentary. Tha‘labī’s reality-centered and fair spirit has caused him to present narrations from Ahl al-Bayt (a) throughout his commentary. This has caused some biased critics to target him with their criticisms and reproaches. Tha‘labī’s outstanding scientific personality and position has made the exegetes of the ensuing centuries to use his commentary extensively in their works.

According the qur’ānic verses, God is the first teacher of the Qur’ān. The Prophet (s) used different methods to teach the Qur’ān and recommended others to teach it, especially to one’s children. The question of the permissibility or impermissibility of receiving wage for the teaching of the Qur’ān has brought about some disagreements among Muslim scholars, where each group has relied on some qur’ānic verses to prove its stance. In this article, the verses for the prohibition of receiving wage and the verses for the permissibility of receiving wage are presented and the interpretations of both these two groups of verses are examined and evaluated. At the end, a summary of the verses and the conclusions of the study are provided. Some jurisprudential denominations point out that the present-day Muslims do not have the vigorous faith of the Muslims of the early centuries and so, the impermissibility of receiving wage for the teaching of the Qur’ān and religious issues will lead to the abandonment of the Islamic rules. This way, they assert that receiving wage is permissible for the teaching of the Qur’ān. The adoption of this viewpoint has led to the prevalence of the Qur’ān and its teaching in the Muslim community.

One of the main issues in the Islamic knowledge is the divine revelation made to the Prophet (s). Of particular interest in this regard is the revelation of the Qur’ān to the Prophet (s) and its manner. This is one of the disputed discussions among the exegetes and the scholars of the qur’ānic sciences. The source of this discussion is comprised of numerous narrations that are found in the narration collections and the Qur’ān commentaries. These narrations can be divided into six groups, namely the Prophet’s (s) panic during the revelation of the Qur’ān, the revelation of the Qur’ān to the Prophet (s) when he was asleep, the Prophet’s (s) sweating during the revelation of the Qur’ān, the revelation of the Qur’ān when the Prophet (s) was riding a steed, the sound of a bell during the revelation of the Qur’ān, and the Prophet’s (s) fading when he received the revelation. These narrations are mostly weak based on the Rijāl (evaluation of the transmitters of Islamic traditions) and Dirāya (analysis of Scripture) standards. In addition to the weakness of the chains of transmission, the content of the first group of narrations is against the rational reasons. However, the content of the narrations of the other five groups seems to be sound and face no rational or narrative constraints.

In line with the advancement of science and technology and the achievement of facilities that bring about welfare, the studies done in psychology have also have furthered the boundaries of knowledge in this domain. Psychologists emphasize that for a better life, people should be taught “the life skills.” This international skill has its roots in Islam, with the only difference being in the new wording used in psychology. One of these skills is emotion (anger) control. Due to the universality of anger and the public inability to control it, the article explains this issue from three viewpoints, namely Imām Riḍā‘s traditions, ethics, and psychology and finds out that anger control is rooted in the words of our Imāms. After discussing the nature of anger and its physical-behavioral signs as well as its advantages and disadvantages, the article gives in practical solutions for anger control from the foregoing three viewpoints. Finally, it concludes that the eighth Imām of the Shī‘a, who paid attention to knowing and controlling anger centuries before psychologists, is not only superior to them due to his pioneering position in this regard, but also gives in an important solution, that is, connection to spiritual and metaphysical forces. This way, he surpasses others in this regard.

In the light of the fact that the Qur’ān is connected to the divine knowledge, this article examines the exegetic opinions and the definitive religious realities, and compares and analyzes them in order to decode the mysterious references made by the Qur’ān to the unmatched victoriousness of Dhul-Qarnayn in designing and founding the infrastructure of a magnificent civilization with a highly developed management and technology. The unique management of Dhul-Qarnayn in his crossing over the globe, opposition to oppression, promotion of justice, technological skill in the construction of a dam, domination over enemies, the creation of an enduring security for the citizens, and finally, the processing of a monotheistic cultural system are the goals that are mentioned in the Qur’ān 18:84-98. All these goals are fulfilled outstandingly due to Dhul-Qarnayn’s adherence to a reality called “sabab.” From the viewpoint of the majority of exegetes, the paramount instance of sabab is “knowledge or its instances or results,” based on which this mysterious character could achieve all those successes. Accordingly, this article specifically inspects the story of Dhul-Qarnayn and some other prophets of God who – based on the qur’ānic verses – relied on knowledge to significantly contribute to the excellence of the magnificent civilizations of their own eras. Then, it is concluded that to revive the glory of the civilization of the early centuries of Islam and to achieve a civilization appropriate to the advanced culture of Islam, Muslims have no way other than embarking upon various types of science and producing knowledge. In the light of the foregoing points and the verses and narrations that depict Imām Mahdī‘s government and civilization, we might claim that the multifaceted character of Dhul-Qarnayn is an illustration of the complete, comprehensive, and impeccable character of Imām Mahdī (may God hasten his reappearance) in the End of Days.

Women’s lack of legal veiling, as the non-feasance of a divine obligation in the Islamic society, is a criminal act for which the law has foreseen punishment. This behavior and its instances are called “tabarruj” (bedizenment) in the Islamic narrations. Notwithstanding the viewpoint of those who follow the superficial enlightenments of recent centuries and do not consider bedizenment so reprehensible, this article set out to look for the decree on this behavior in the related qur’ānic verses and Islamic narrations. The exploration of Islamic sources indicated that bedizenment is one of the clear legal prohibitions and is one of the grave sins. Based on the Islamic legal and judicial principles, the perpetrator of this sin is deprived of the right to give testimony in the courts of law. The article at hand revolves around the Qur’ān 33:33, the viewpoints of the past Qur’ān exegetes and philologists, and a novel reflection on the connection of the various parts of other verses related to it.

The examination of the word “‘izza” (honor) in the divine discourse and its attribution to God, the Prophet (s), and the believers is important in determining and directing the personal and social life policies. In this article (which is on the manifestation of the divine honor in Imām Ḥusayn’s heroic act), we aim to illustrate some of the honorable deeds of Imām Ḥusayn on his way from Medina to Karbala up until the ‘Āshūrā evening. These will prove wrong the tales of some people who interpret Imām’s movement in ways far from his high status. We also aim to prove the manifestation of the divine honor in Imām Ḥusayn’s heroic act and the fulfillment of the concept of true honor and the victory of the honorable people and to show the great difference that exists between the true honor and victory and the victory attained by force and brutality. We also aim at reminding a lesson from among the ‘Āshūrā lessons.

One of the challenging issues that has been frequently studied is the way Imām ‘Alī (a) addresses women in Nahj al-balāgha. Amina Inloes, the contemporary American researcher of Islam compares these statements with the qur’ānic discourse and early Shī‘a Kitāb Sulaym b. Qays. She believes that these statements are in conflict with the significations of the Qur’ān and the early books in terms of chain of transmission and content. From her viewpoint, these statements have entered the Muslim books after the Translation Movement under the influence of Greek philosophers such as Aristotle. She deems that as the general content of Nahj al-balāgha contradicts those cases, it can be concluded that those concepts are the cultural-religious reflections of Sayyid Raḍī’s era that have been attributed to Imām ‘Alī (a) after his demise. Although this is an interesting opinion, it suffers from some shortcomings such as limiting its sources to Kitāb Sulaym b. Qays, ignoring other historical and biographical books, and ignoring to explain the process of the entrance of these statements to Shī‘a texts and the way they turned into the dominant paradigm.