The Polysemous Relationship of the Qur’anic Verses with Outward and Inward Based on Ayatollah Fazel Lankarani’s Views

One of the significant questions that has been followed by different answers on the part of jurists and commentators is whether a Qur’anic term can carry several meanings simultaneously. The theory of “the possibility and occurrence of polysemy in the Qur’an” is among the available views on this issue. One of the reasons for agreeing with this theory is the narratives concerning “outward and inward “. The inward of the Qur’an has been the subject of debate since the time of the Prophet (PBUH) and then among the Qur’anic intellectuals, but the focus of this research is the theory that has been put forward among the words of Ayatollah Fazel Lankarani about the relationship between “polysemy” and “outward and inward”. Using verses and narratives, this article explores the “polysemous relationship between the verses of the Qur’an” and the narratives on “inward and outward” and by examining Ayatollah Fazel Lankarani’s theory, it considers the narratives regarding the inward and esoteric interpretation to be in direct connection with the polysemy of the Qur’an and different from narratives on aspects of the Qur’an. Nevertheless, Ayatollah Fazel has considered the “inward” the same as “aspects and meanings” and has interpreted it according to the multiplicity of understandings of the audience and the commentators of the Qur’an.