مجله تحقیقات علوم قرآن و حدیث
سال نوزدهم شماره 1 (پیاپی 53، بهار 1401)

Regarding to the appointment of the Divine caliph, the Holy Qur’an mentions teaching the names to Prophet Adam (AS), namely those names presented to the angels who declared their ignorance: “And He taught Adam the Names, all of them; then presented them to the angels” (Q, 2:31). The quiddity and instances of these names have always been discussed and disputed by exegetes, which may be categorized into two: 1) God taught him the whole realities of the world. 2) God introduced him the souls of the Ahl Al-Bayt (AS), based upon three interpretive narrations. Analyzing the sanads and contents, this study assesses the three aforementioned narrations to be reliable, regarding Qur’anic and narrative evidence. Then, with regards to another group of narrations that are in contrast to these narrations, from among three approaches of the exegetes, the collective view between the two categories of narrations is selected. In order to solve the issues presented by some exegetes, it is concluded that the realities of all beings in the universe were taught to Prophet Adam, the highest instances of which were the souls of the Ahl al-Bayt (AS). However, the names presented to the angels, of which they were not aware due to their lower rank, were only the realities of Ahl al-Bayt (AS). The in-text evidence of the verse, such as the difference in the pronouns, the difference in the usage of the word “teaching” regarding to Prophet Adam (AS), and the word “inform” regarding to the angels, as well as the accuracy in using the words of the three narrations reinforces this idea. Therefore, the verse of “teaching the names” by referring to these three narrations indicates the lightening existence of Ahl al-Bayt (AS) and the precedence of their shining creation over the creation of Adam (AS).

The hadiths of Imams (AS) are the most important source for understanding the meaning and purpose of the verses of the Qur’an. An important part of the hadiths is devoted to the inner expression and interpretation of verses. Undoubtedly, accurate validation of these hadiths is necessary to examine their attribution to the Imams (AS) and to explain the esoteric meaning and interpret the verses. Experts validate this reports in a variety of ways; Some have simply and optimistically criticized, selected and accepted them, while others, based on the phenomenon of forgery and exaggeration, have pessimistically criticized and rejected the interpretive (esoteric) hadiths. This study aims to answer the question of “what matter in the field of critique method dose distort the realism of the evolutional result?” Assuming that the category of validation or critique of interpretive hadiths is a kind of judgment that may be realistic and of scientific value or otherwise described, this article identifies the harms and expresses incorrect methods in evaluating these hadiths to prevent misjudgment of interpretive hadiths. Ignorance of defining exaggeration, failure to measure the data of rijāl scholars, indifference to opposing sayings and reports, incomplete understanding of the text of the interpretive narrations, disregard of the rule of “stopping and rejecting knowledge” in the study of interpretive narrations, citing some principles of difference, supposing the interpretation and commentary as similar, and relying only on “theological-principle interpretation,” are among the methodological defects of the validation of interpretive hadiths that are explained in this article.

There is disagreement among scholars about the relation between the verses of a surah. On the one hand, commentators such as Saʿīd Ḥawwā have used it as the basis of their interpretive work, and on the other, some have rejected this connection and so have joined to those orientalists who consider the verses in a surah disconnected. The latter confirmed the maximum connection between some verses. The present study examines the relation between the verses of Sūrat al-Anʿām to show the relation and coherence between all the verses of this Surah. In this regard, first the topics in each verse are extracted and categorized, by classifying them. Secondly, the main lines of the topic in the surah are shown and thirdly by stating the relation between the lines, the relation of all the verses of the surah is clarified. Thus, in contrary to the opinion of some scholars and orientalists who do not believe in the relation between all the verses of a surah, the relation between verses of Sūrah al-Anʿām can be proved by extracting relation lines (7 main lines) and the coherence of these verses is shown in this study.

One of the verses whose meaning have differently being interpreted is the verse “And We have bestowed upon thee the Seven Oft-repeated (sab'an min al-mathānī) and the Grand Qur’an.” (Ḥijr: 87). An attempt is made here to determine the meaning of this verse through a new method entitled “Strategy of paying attention to the Qur’anic co-coming concepts and topics in interpretation.” In this new method, not the subject of the verse but the subjects before and after this verse are searched in other surahs of the Qur’an, considering that these subjects are connected to what issues. In other words, what are the “Substitute” of the verse in similar continuations in other surahs of the Qur’an? The use of this method for interpreting the verse 87 of Surah Al-Ḥijr shows that the meaning of “sab’an min al-mathānī” is parts of the Qur’an that have existed in other divine books, and the meaning of “the Grand Qur’an” is parts of the Qur’an that are more than those heavenly Books.

Since the beginning of the 21st century, a group of western scholars have written works on the Qur’an, namely Syriac-oriented. Syriacists believe that the Syriac dialect was being spoken in the world of Arab Christianity and so the Arabic Qur’an originated in this world. Therefore, the Qur’an, the first Islamic hadiths and beliefs need to be interpreted in the light of pre-Islamic Syriac sources or simultaneous with the emergence of these texts and beliefs. Accordingly, the Qur’an and Islamic hadiths are better understood and interpreted in the context of Syriac sources than other pre-Islamic and post-Islamic Arabic sources. Referring to the background and trends of Qur’anic scholarship in the West during the last two centuries and the importance of Syriac in understanding and interpreting the Qur’an, four examples of Syriac-oriented researches are introduced here: “The statements of thālitu thalātha (ثالث ثلاثه) and also shubbiha lahum (شبه لهم) in the Qur’an” by Sidney Griffith; “Joseph among the Ishmaelites: Q 12 in light of Syriac sources” by Joseph Witztum; “Condemnation in the Qur’an and the Syriac Gospel of Matthew” by Emran Iqbal El-Badawi; and finally, an article by Ilkka Lindstedt about the apocalyptic events in the first century AH. In conclusion, although it may be admitted that these sources may have provided the oral context for Bible stories, and therefore sometimes provide a better understanding of Qur’anic verses, especially the stories of the prophets, they could not be giving up altogether, as excuses for flaws in Islamic sources, and turned entirely to sources that were themselves controversial.

The way of the wise for explaining and understanding means their way in their conversations, transactions and social relations, regardless of religion, language, geographical area, etc. Using the intra-religious approach along with the analytical-logical method, this study seeks to explain the reasons for the basis of this method in the revelation and the process of understanding the verses of revelation. This issue is of great importance in the way of understanding and determining God’s intention to express the verses of the Qur’an. For this purpose, after getting acquainted with the concept of the construction of reason and its difference from similar concepts such as custom and rational judgment, rational and narrative reasons are stated to prove the claim. The results explain the basics of Qur’anic exegesis and emphasize its correct methods, permitting more accurate evaluation of interpretive schools. Emphasis on determining the meaning in a way that makes the meaning unique or narrows the range of possible meanings of the words and phrases of the Qur’an, is the other result of the research. Any method of interpreting the text that does not adhere to the rational structure is contrary to the autonomous theory, which may be called the unbridled semantic pluralism of landscape-oriented hermeneutics or the lack of attention of the narrators to the authority of the apparent verses of revelation. The commentator’s adherence to the construction of reason can shake the foundations of doubts related to the way of understanding religious texts.

Abdullah Ibn Khidāsh Al-Mahrī (Al-Basrī) was one of the compiler narrators whose narrations have been reflected in Al-Kāfī, Tahzīb Al-Ahkām and other hadith collections. He was accused of exaggeration by Najāshī, while was authenticated by Sheikh Kashī. In addition, he was among hadith masters of Safwān Ibn Yahyā, being consequently subject to common authenticity. Evaluating Ibn Khidāsh’s position among the narrators accused of exaggeration in Najāshī’s Rijāl, this study carefully examined the rijālī scholars’ statements about him and analyzed the sanads and texts of his narrations. It concluded that Ibn Khidāsh belongs to those narrators directly accused of exaggeration by Najāshī. In contrast, in terms of Ibn Khidāsh’s narrations, there is no sentence of exaggeration. So it may conclude that his narrations, if we accept his exaggeration, were not been well selected and refined. In addition, considering the existence of jurisprudential narrations from him, which is against allowance (ibāhi), as well as some of his doctrinal narrations that are in opposition to the beliefs of exaggerators, it may cast doubt on his accusation of exaggeration. Finally, his narrations also have confirmations, i.e. the presence of Ibn Khidāsh in the sanad of these narrations does not cause rejecting such narrations.