Comprehensiveness of the Qur an from the Viewpoint of Allameh Tabataba i

Comprehensiveness of the Qur’an is one of the most important topics in tafsīr (exegesis of the Qur’an). Allameh Tabataba’i's views, as one of the most prominent tafsīr figures, are of crucial importance and can be used to solve a number of important problems raised under this topic. For Allameh, comprehensiveness of the Qur’an refers to the book’s completeness. He believes that comprehensiveness of the Qur’an, in all its types and forms, is based on its zāhir (exterior—apparent meaning) and bātin (interior—hidden meaning) together. In the zāhir, virtue ethics can be found to have been discussed in details, but other guidance, rules and instructions are only discussed in general, and the details of them are found either in rivāyāt (Islamic narrations) or through other ways. Two types of comprehensiveness are addressed in Allameh’s works on the Qur’an:1.The Qur’an’s comprehensiveness in terms of completeness of its teachings compared to other books of revelation2.The Qur’an’s comprehensiveness in terms of completeness of its teachings regardless of other books of revelation