Studying Islam

Post Reply

Username

Invalid Username or Password

Password

Format

Message Icon

Message

- Forum Code is ON
- HTML is OFF

Smilies

[quote]Regarding the verses 16:44 and 16:64, I had the following discussion with Mr. Tariq Hashmi on email. My questions are in [red]red[/red], and Mr. Hashmi's reply is in [blue]blue[/blue]. I am posting it here for your interest.

[red]According to the contemporary view in Module-3, 
“As far as the verses which say that the Prophet (sws) was bestowed with the status of explaining the Qur’an, no doubt that the authority of the Prophet (sws) is unquestionable; however, since the explanations of the Qur’an by the Prophet (sws) have not reached us with tawatur, therefore each one of them will only be accepted after it is found in accordance with the Qur’an”

I have following questions in this regard:

If the Prophet (sws) was bestowed with the status of explaining the Quran according to verses like 16:44 and 16:64, was this status applicable only in his lifetime, or is it also applicable on us (the muslims of present times)? [/red]

[blue]Reply: I would add to the above extract that no doubt the Prophet was to be obeyed by all the believers and he had the most sound knowledge of the book of God but the Book itself was claimed to be and was in fact  easy to understand for its direct addressees. Great many verses say that the Book of God was revealed in clear lucid Arabic of the day. That is why you would not find the Prophet (Sws) explaining the Quran to the Muslim followers or to the non believers. He would simply recite the Quran before say for example the people coming to him from far off places of Arabia. They never asked him what is this he uttered.

You will find very little in this regard. In fact the most authentic statements ascribed to the Prophet (Sws) are found in the Book of Ahadith. The early works of Ahadith contained sections dealing with the prophetic explanation of the Quran. If you go through the book of Qurnaic exegesis in Bukhari you will not find anything explained in strict sense of the word explanation.

The most important fact explained in the quote (above) is that the Prophet\s sayings of all kinds (including the worldly matters) were binding for all. But these alleged explanations have not reached us through tawatur (that is through generation to generation mode of transfer which provides absolutely authentic knowledge). That is why we need to examine these in the light of more authentic sources.[/blue]

[red]If his status is still applicable on us and because of some historical accident, his explanations did not reach us through tawatur—why wasn’t an arrangment made in the divine scheme of things (the way it was done in case of Quran) to ensure that those explanations reach us safely to maintain that status of the Prophet? Can one deduce from this fact that it was never intended (by Allah and the Prophet) to preserve those explanations, despite 16:44 and 16:64? if yes then why? [/red]

[blue]What has been deemed the basic need of human beings for all times to come and which forms part of the Shari’ah has been passed on through tawatur and is sure to last forever. As for these verses they do not strictly say that the Qur’an was in need of explanation and the Prophet (sws) was bound to explain it. They in fact state that it was the Prophet’s duty to make it clear to the addressees. For if we take it to mean otherwise it would contradict the Quranic claim of being a clear Book. I think the material needs to be adapted for there have been a development in the view point of the authors.[/blue]

[red]If the Ahadith explaining the Quran just serve the purpose of confirming what 
Quran has already said, then what epistemological advantage do they have?[/red]

[blue]Reply: They would add to the justification of one’s understanding. They also tell us how the Prophet applied the Quranic injunctions and understood them. However, the number of such ahadith which are relatively authentic is very small.[/blue][/quote]

Mode

Check here to be notified by email whenever someone replies to your topic

Show Preview