‏ ‏Allegoricism in the Thought of Nasr Hamed Abu Zayd and Mohammad Hadi Marefat

Allegorical interpretation is one of the significant topics of Quranic sciences and theology, which plays a key and practical role in understanding the Quran and hadiths, particularly some verses related to nouns and attributes. Not accepting allegorical interpretation means ignoring the infinite depth of God's Word and falling into the trap of analogy and embodiment. From the beginning of Islam, Islamic denominations and Muslim scholars have had different views on the interpretation of Islamic scriptures, to the extent that some have caused the distortion of the religion and deviation in people's beliefs by being lenient in interpreting the religion. The first contention concerns the difference between tawil (allegorical interpretation) and tafsir (interpretation). The allegorical interpretation of the texts is not in line with the simple interpretation in a way that if the apparent understanding and explanation are not acceptable in a verse, we can turn to the allegorical interpretation. Rather, it is an independent matter and only within the authority of the most knowledgeable and refined people. Therefore, with a minimal view, some people like Mohammad Hadi Marefat and Nasr Hamed Abu Zayd consider allegorical interpretation as a type of interpretation and deem it permissible for all people through simple rules. After stating the literal and technical meaning of tawil, this research explains, investigates, and evaluates the theory of tawil from the perspective of the two Quranic scholars.