Soteriological Semiotics within the Qur’an

Allah states within the Qur'an "We will show them Our signs on the horizons and within themselves, until verily they know that this is the Truth" (41: 53). This paper will take a twofold and interrelated approach to this verse, providing a commentary on this verse and, in doing so, draw out a hermeneutic tool that can be applied to the Qur'an as a whole. In order to understand this verse and highlight one particular hermeneutical approach, key elements within the verse will need to examined, such as "Our," the "signs," "the horizons," "within themselves," and “the Truth.” The aim of exploring these elements is to show how a particular understanding of their combination highlights the correlation between the showing of the signs and the individual knowing the relationship between the signs and the Truth. It is suggested that the process of showing, coupled with the subsequent knowing, makes possible the elucidation of a hermeneutic tool that will here be called soteriological semiotics. Through a tentative description of soteriologial semiotics, it will be shown that, in taking account of the signs and the individual’s reception of them, this hermeneutic tool can provide a framework for examining the method of communication from the Creator to the creation.

Keywords:

Soteriological semiotics, tawhid, soteriology, hermeneutics Qur’an,

PDF

___

al-‘Alawi, Ahmad. Knowledge of God. Translated by ‘Abd al-Kabir al-Munawarra and ‘Abd as-Sabur al-Ustadh. Norwich: Diwan Press, 1981.
Ali, Amer. “A Brief Review of Classical and Modern Tafsir Trends and the Role of Modern Tafsir in Contemporary Islamic Thought,” Australian Journal of Islamic Studies 3 (2018): 39 – 52.
Ansari, Muhammad A. H. “The Doctrine of One Actor: Junayd’s View of Tawhid,” The Muslim World 73 (1983): 33 – 56.
Arif, Syamsuddin. “Ibn ‘Arabi and the Ambiguous Verses of the Quran: Beyond the Letter and Pure Reason,” Dinika 4 (2019): 225 – 248.
al-Badawi, Mostafa. Man & the Universe: An Islamic Perspective. Swansea: Awakening Publications, 2010.
al-Badawi, Mostafa. Higher Reality: Manifestations of the Unseen. United Kingdom: Islamic Village Publishing, 2016.
el-Bizri, Nader. “God: Essence and Attributes” in The Cambridge Companion to Classical Islamic Theology, edited by Tim Winter, 121 - 140. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008.
Chittick, William C. The Sufi Path of Knowledge. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1989.
Cook, Abu Bakr Sirajuddin. Ibn ‘Ata’ Allah, Muslim Sufi Saint and Gift of Heaven. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2017.
Danner, Victor. “Shahadah” in The Inner Journey: Views from the Islamic Tradition. Edited by William C. Chittick, 207 – 214. Sandpoint: Morning Light Press, 2007.
Denffer, Ahmad Von. Ulum al-Qur’an: An Introduction to the Sciences of the Qur’an. Kuala Lumpur: A. S. Noordeen, 1983.
Dogan, Recep. Usul al-Tafsir: The Sciences and Methodology of the Qur’an. Clifton: Tughra Books, 2014.
Eaton, Gai. “Perfecting the Mirror” in The Inner Journey: Views from the Islamic Tradition. Edited by William C. Chittick, 191 – 198. Sandpoint: Morning Light Press, 2007.
Habil, Abdurrahman. “Traditional Esoteric Commentaries on the Quran” in Islamic Spirituality: Foundations, edited by Seyyed Hossein Nasr, 24 – 47. New York: Crossroad Publishing, 1987.
Ibn Abbas. Tafsir Ibn Abbas. Translated by Mokrane Guezzou. Louisville: Fons Vitae, 2008.
Ibn ‘Arabi. Mysteries of Charity. Translated by Eric Winkel. Create Space, 2016.
Ibn ‘Arabi. Mysteries of the Fast. Translated by Eric Winkel. Create Space, 2016.
Ibn ‘Arabi. Species and Kinds in the Universe. Translated by Eric Winkel. Create Space, 2016.
Ibn ‘Ata’ Allah. Sufi Aphorisms. Translated by Victor Danner. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1973.
Ibn ‘Ata’ Allah. The Subtle Blesssings in the Lives of Abu al-Abbas al-Mursi & His Master Abu al-Hasan. Translated by Nancy Roberts. Lousiville: Fons Vitae, 2005.
Ibn Kathir, Tafsir Ibn Kathir. Riyadh: Darussalam, 2003.
Lory, Pierre. “Al-Shadhili,” in The Encyclopedia of Islam, New Edition. Volume IX, 170 – 172. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1997.
al-Jilani, Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani. The Secret of Secrets. Translated by Tosun Bayrak al-Jerrahi al-Halveti. Delhi: Muslim Media.
al-Jili, ‘Abd al-Karim. Universal Man. Translated by Titus Burckhardt. Lahore: Suhail Academy, 2000.
Mongabadi, Berman Ali Dehghan, Naderi, Sara, and Zeinali, Ahmad. “Symbolism in Tafsir Attributed to Ibn Arabi,” Journal of Islamic Studies and Culture 4 (2016): 155 – 165.
Musharraf, Maryam. “A Study of the Sufi Interpretation of Qur’an and the Theory of Hermenutic,” al-Bayan Journal 11 (2013): 33 – 47.
Schimmel, Annemarie. Deciphering the Signs of God: A Phenomenological Approach to Islam. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1994.
Silvers, Laury. A Soaring Minaret: Abu Bakr al-Wasiti and the Rise of Baghdadi Sufism. Albany: State University of New York Press, 2010.
Solihu, Abdul Kabir Hussain. “An Axiological Dimension of Qur’anic Epistemology,” Ilorin Journal of Religious Studies 4 (2014): 21 – 38.
al-Suyuti, Jalal al-Din and al-Mahalli, Jalal al-Din. Tafsir Al-Jalalayn. Translated by Feras Hamza. Louisville: Fons Vitae, 2008.
al-Tijani, Ibrahim Niasse al-Kawlakhi. In the Meadows of Tafsir for the Noble Qur’an. Translated by Moctar Boubakar. Atlanta: Fayda Books, 2014.
al-Tirmithi, Hakim. Treatise on the Heart. Translated by Nicholas Heer in Three Early Sufi Texts, 11 – 68. Louisville: Fons Vitae, 2003.
al-Tustari, Sahl b. ‘Abd Allah. Tafsir al-Tustari. Translated by Annabel Keeler. Lousville: Fons Vitae, 2011.
Versteegh, Kees. “Early Qur’anic Exegesis: From Textual Interpretation to Linguistic Analysis” in The Oxford Handbook of Qur’anic Studies, edited by Mustafa Shah and Muhammad Abdel Haleem, 634 – 650. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2020.