essentials

Happiness and cheerfulness is one of the natural needs of human beings in life, which has been paid special attention in the statements of the Supreme Leader. The declaration of the second step of the revolution, which can be considered as the 40th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution of Iran, emphasizes the need to develop an Islamic lifestyle, one of the special areas of which is the issue of the style of happiness and cheerfulness. He expressed the criteria and requirements of this human mental state with special delicacy and stated the backgrounds and factors for its realization and believes that material and spiritual factors can be involved in the realization of happiness. Interrogating [istintaq] the Holy Quran and presenting the statements of the Supreme Leader of the Revolution to this divine book shows that he, inspired by verses that consider the divine intention necessary for the perfection of human deeds, recommends the intention of closeness to God and worship in happiness. This Quranic teaching that the events of human life, including joy and sorrow, are the causes of human suffering and trial, and the means of learning, is explicitly reflected in the words of the Leader along with some philosophies of happiness. Avoidance of sin is one of the most important prohibitions of the Holy Quran, which is also mentioned in the Quran while forbidding some forms of happiness. Imam Khamenei, who in the declaration of the second step deals with some functions of behavior with a religious and Islamic approach, and in his other statements, by forbidding some forms of happiness that lead to sin, draws the audience to this important issue. The Supreme Leader of the Revolution emphasizes planning and being moderate in happiness, which is, in fact, paying attention to the comprehensive commands and decrees of the Quran in the field of economics and management. Respecting the divine rites and the companionship and convergence of the believers are among the divine commands in the Holy Quran that Imam Khamenei considers necessary to observe in celebrations and joys.

The question of essentials or principles of Quranic exegesis is among major discussions of Quranic sciences. Essentials of exegesis, i.e., definite beliefs accepted by the commentator, play some role in the process of one’s commentary, as acceptance or otherwise of such principles may cause specific approach to the commentary creating different interpretations of same verses. There are so many hadiths narrated from the fifth Shi‘a Imam as to interpretation of verses as well as Quranic sciences whose consideration can reveal some essentials of Quranic commentary from Imam’s viewpoint some of which to be counted as follows: sacredness of the holy Quran, the Quran not being distorted, the single recitation of the Quran, possibility and lawfulness of its interpretation, multi-meaning structure of the Quran, authority of the holy prophet and Imams in interpreting the holy Quran, and so forth.

Investigation and discovery of influential causes and factors in man’s inner impression and sensation constitutes Quranic aesthetics and presuppositions as well as fundamental views concerning beauty of the Quran composes principles and essentials of that aesthetics. The present essay attempts to indicate that Quranic aesthetics cannot be truly done unless such principles as knowing Quranic status in attracting the audience, spiritual influences, purposefulness of aesthetics, geometric structure of Quranic verses, and verbal and semantic harmony are not correctly known and clarified. Thus, background and significance of the subject is expounded first and then all those principles as well as their influence upon knowing Quranic aesthetics are explained.

Ignoring discussions concerning definition and meaning of context، essentials of its use in the Quranic exegesis، limits and conditions of its use، and its beneficiality in the exegesis compared to other proofs، a very important discussion concerning context is the consideration of its functions and realms of its role-playing in the Quranic exegesis. The present research is an attempt in that field in which functions of context in various realms are expounded، and commentators’ opinions concerning its meaning and theme are taken into consideration through some instantiations and are criticized in some cases.