نشریه علوم قرآن و حدیث
سال پنجاه و ششم شماره 2 (پیاپی 113، پاییز و زمستان 1403)

The universality and the eternity of the Quran necessitate that its translation be done according to a set of evidence that is effective in the understanding of the verses and reflects its high intentions in the best way. Authentic revelation occasions (Asbāb-e-nuzūl) are among the most important factors that are effective in understanding and translating the Quran. Still, neglecting them has sometimes led to obvious differences and mistakes in the translations of the Quran. So, to illustrate the role of the revelation occasions in understanding and translating the verses, these narrations have been reread in four famous Persian translations. Also, the translations of some verses with revelation occasions were evaluated, and based on this evidence, their correct translations were identified. According to the results, although it is impossible to consider all revelation occasions as valid, those authentic revelation occasions that correspond with the meaning of the verse and have reached us from reliable sources have a significant role in understanding and translating the Quran and clarifying the denotation of the verses and their interpretation. The evidence of the revelation occasion has the least effect on translating the multi-sense words and the most impact on clarifying denotations of the verses and then removing the ambiguity from their exoteric meanings. Out of 30 sample verses that have authentic revelation occasions, the number of the cases that have been translated based on these narrations by selected translations are as follows: Mishkīnī: 16 cases, Ilāhī: 14 cases, Riḍāyī: 7 cases, and Fūlādvand: 4 cases.

Religious literature is a gateway to the world of meanings and educational teachings. Still, over time, reaching its depths has become difficult for modern humanity. So, it is necessary to examine religious-educational statements deeply. In this article, using the "thematic analysis" method, the concept of faḍl (grace) has been studied from an educational perspective. The result of applying this method is extracting those themes of Quranic statements that arrange the "themes network" of faḍl in three theme levels: "basic," "organizing" and "global." Based on the analysis, "God's faḍl"(Allah's grace) is a dynamic act that is given to the human without equation with his deed, based on Allah's great grace. Essential elements of encountering grace are great kindness, forgiveness, protecting, encouraging, creating confidence, purity, and honesty. Therefore, it is possible to identify the psychological-educational type of graceful encounter in a range close to humanist approaches.

Ghiybat (backbiting) is a common social behavior seen in most communities and people commit this sin without considering its negative consequences. Many hadiths have been narrated from the Infallibles (AS) that blame the backbiter. One of them attributed to Amīr Muʾminān (AS)(Imam Alī) conveys that the backbiter is not a legitimate person; it seems contrary to other narrations. This study deals with validating this hadith. So, using a descriptive-analytical method, it tries to evaluate the reliability of hadith transmitters and conceptually analyze the terms backbiting and illegitimacy, and their interrelation. According to the results, as some of the transmitters are anonymous, the Isnad of the narration is weak.  Regarding the denotation, there is proof demonstrating that the intention of "illegitimacy" in the text is not its technical jurisprudential meaning.  Instead, it may have a general concept, namely the participation of Satan in the semen and the mental impurity of the parents at the moment of conception. Also, the effect of unlawful food can be considered as another implied meaning of the hadith; it means that the unlawful food can appear as this moral vice in a person in such a way that he uses backbiting as a tool for mortal pleasure and does not seek forgiveness and compensation of the sin and its consequences.

A few decades after the conquests, Arab Muslims became an overwhelming power worldwide. This issue led to the formation of Arabic identity as the superior identity compared to other nations and ethnic groups, and especially in the Umayyad era, it mixed with an ethnocentric view and gradually resulted in the confrontation of non-Arab Islamic societies with the Arabic religious ethnocentrism model.  By legitimizing tools, the conqueror group tried to give a sacred look to Arab descent. In this process, the Islamic hadiths played a prominent role. Using the sanctity resulting from the Arabic language of the Quran, the performance circle of Arabic literature could also defend Arabic identity and fight against other racial identities. By describing and analyzing library data, the present study deals with the stylistics of hadiths and instrumental use of literature to achieve the process of ethnocentrism. According to the results, during a multi-stage process using legitimizing tools and creating new sacred concepts, Arab ethnocentrism has used the hadith sanctity procedure in different forms to establish the superiority of its ethnic group among the Muslim community. In this regard, literary and linguistic tools such as proverbs, etc. were also used.

Saḥīfat al-Riḍā (AS) (hadith collection of al- Riḍā) is one of the most famous hadith collections attributed to Ahl al-Bayt (AS) (Household of the Prophet) and quoted in the style of Sunni narrations. The best way to assess the validity of this book is Takhrīj (extraction) and comparison of all its hadithss, which is the basis of this article. Most of the book's hadiths have not been transmitted through another valid chain of narrators from Ahl al-Bayt. Also, most of its hadith texts are similar to Sunnites' narrations that usually have time precedence over Saḥīfat al-Riḍā. There are various problems in the hadiths of this collection, such as non-conformity of the text and the Isnad, change in the characters of the narrations, combination of hadiths, error in reading and quoting the text, anachronism, and inconsistency with the Quran and Shia hadiths. These problems not only cast doubt on its narrations' authenticity but also show that the compiler of the collection has used the early written sources and changed their Isnads. Sakkūnī's book is the most important written source identified for Saḥīfat al-Riḍā. Probably, more than ten percent of the narrations of Saḥīfat al-Riḍā have been extracted from Sakkūnī's book.

Reflecting the words and contents of the Quranic verses in different ways has always adorned literary scholars' works. Artistically and rhetorically, these methods are not on the same level; in other words, understanding their valuable contents is sometimes explicit and sometimes implicit. As the Ẓāhirīyyah sect has long been known, it is possible to understand explicit concepts through a superficial familiarity with the verses and narrations. Still, perceiving the implicit intentions is only attainable for those accustomed to the sciences and literature of the Quran and hadith before acquiring expertise in literary devices and figures of speech and have spent their lives on this path. Ḥarīrī's Maqāmāt (collection) is one of the works which deserves attention and investigation from this perspective. The importance of this study is due to the prevalence of the Quranic contents in Maqāmāt from the fifth century, Ḥarīrī's familiarity with religious texts, and his attention to ethical issues.  Ḥarīrī has been affected by the Quran in both literal and semantic ways. This influence in Ḥarīrī's Maqāmāt is mostly in forms of the allusion, comparative effect, the lexical impact through various types of borrowing and outcoming, inspirational-fundamental effect, and report effect.

The Perspective of some modern psychological theories regarding Islam and stories of the Holy Quran can serve as a key tool for a deeper understanding of divine verses for contemporary humanity. Erich Fromm, a German psychologist, has a positive view about religion. In his view, religion, as a formulated intellectual and practical ideology, is a necessary tool for the survival of any culture in the past and future. He believes that the personality is always affected by social, cultural, and historical motives that have cast a shadow over the destiny of humanity throughout time. So, humans are constantly in a struggle between two forces of good and evil, which he calls "growth and decay". These forces play a crucial role in shaping human personality and determining the direction of a person toward elevation or degradation. Using a descriptive-analytical method and based on Erich From's view, this study aims to examine the Quranic verses related to Prophet Abraham (AS) and Nimrod, particularly those mentioned in Surahs al-Baqarah and al-Anbīyā. It also analyses the behavioral manners and internal and external actions of Prophet Abraham (AS) and Nimrod in the Quran which reflect the Prophet's elevated direction in contrast with Nimrod's path of decay and degradation. According to the results, the growth factors in Abraham's personality are particularly reflected in his expression of enthusiasm for life in the path of obedience and devotion to the Creator, independence from the typical mother as self-sacrifice and inner jihad, love for the Creator, and reflective actions. In contrast, decay factors in Nimrod's personality manifest in the forms of necrophilia, dependence on the typical mother as worldly power, extreme narcissism, and vengeful violence.

The prevailing view among Islamic sects regarding the Quranic text is its immunity from any distortion, whether by addition or omission. Still, some have accepted varying levels of textual alteration. Meanwhile, the book " Al-Burhān fī Tafsīr al-Quran, widely utilized by researchers, has been accused of supporting distortion because it includes narrations related to textual alteration. These narrations are divided into different groups, each deserving detailed analysis. This study deals with one of these groups that, at first glance, seems to imply changes to the Quranic text. However, further consideration and a holistic review of related narrations reveal a different result. Accordingly, there is a kind of inconsistency among the hadiths referring to different revelation of the Quran. It suggests that these narrations don't relate to the distortion of the Quranic text. Given such contradiction within these narrations, it is unacceptable that they imply the manner of revealing the Quran.