Document Type : Research Article / Original Article

Authors

• moslem taheri ¹
• zahrasadat keshavarz ²

¹ university of tehran

² Ph.D Shiite history, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran.

Abstract

The current article aims to investigate "the position of the Arabic language in the literary approach to the interpretation of the Holy Qur'an in contemporary Islamic thought" focusing on three prominent thinkers Amin Al-Khouli, Nasr Hamed Abu Zaid and Mohammad Arkoon in this field. The research method will be descriptive-analytical. The literary approach to the interpretation of the Qur'an is one of the most influential currents of thought in contemporary Arabic thought, pioneered by thinkers such as Muhammad Abdo, Taha Hossein, Amin Khouli, Shukri Muhammad Ayad, Bint Al Shati and their students such as Muhammad Ahmad Khalafullah, Mehdi Allam and Nasr Hamed Abu Zaid. The most important claim of this movement is that the Quran is the greatest literary work that made the Arabic language eternal, therefore the first and most important purpose of interpreting the Quran should not be considered to be the understanding of God's guidance and mercy towards mankind, rather the Quran should be considered as a cultural thing (the cultural) knowledge. This approach reduced the Holy Qur'an from a book of revelation, which was always known in Islamic civilization as an active guide in realizing the divine capacities of man, to an object for studying the cultural characteristics of a civilization such as Arab-Islamic civilization. It showed that the study of this holy book is a problem. It is not a faith, and every Arab speaker or interested in the Arabic language should turn to the literary study of this great Arabic book, and after that, everyone can refer to the Qur'an for whatever purpose they have and follow their purpose. The main issue in the article is to reflect on the place of the cultural characteristics of "Arabia" in the interpretation of the Holy Qur'an and to examine the consequences of such an approach by applying a critical evaluation.

Keywords

• Arabic language
• literary approach
• Qur'an interpretation
• contemporary thought
• Amin Al-Khouli
• Nasr Hamed Abu Zaid
• Mohammad Arkoon

Main Subjects

• Rereading and interpreting the ideas of leading Muslim thinkers