Quran and Tafsir Studies

Quran translation into Western cultures is a high volatility intercultural act. In it many of the translator’s choices are not purely dictated by linguistic necessity alone, but, rather, are due to the Text’s shifting dynamic of reception, they are contextually overdetermined. Here the dialectic of the translator’s invisibility vs agency comes into sharp relief, as the translator’s discursive presence is overtly superimposed. The global context and extra-textual contradictions and fissures between the source and the receptive milieus necessitate that the translator come out of the shadows and heavily intervene, taking on a peacemaker role. Otherwise, his/her translation endeavour is superfluous at best, or aggravating to an already intense cross-cultural engagement at worst. Given the hard facts of today’s world, Quran translations have, out of necessity, become more exegetical in nature. Within this context, translation is literally about creating a new way for putative readership to access a Text that is central to the believer’s identity as well as the outsider’s understanding of a central religious tradition. This chapter sets out to examine English Quran translations that were published in the aftermath of 9/11 and the tension between worldviews that sprang to a global scale thereafter. In particular, it zooms in on recent renditions of the key term Islam and passages of the Original having a bearing on issues that could prove to be contentious and challenging. Against this global backdrop, all recent English Quran translations simply could not run the risk of going about it without intervening to accommodate for the contextual alongside the textual.

This study conducts a literary analysis of the traditions and comments of al-Tabari with regards to Muhammad's Night Journey and Ascension is undertaken within the context of al-Tabari's exegesis of Qur'ān, 17:1. The linguistic particularities of the verse reveal notions of divine agency in the Qur'ān of which the Night Journey is one instance; manifesting the hand of God in the life of Muhammad. The hadith traditions therein as presented by al-Tabari are examined both linguistically and thematically. It becomes apparent, in the case of al-Tabari the Night Journey and Ascension of Muhammad marked a key turning point in his status as a Prophet; requiring a fantastical opening of Muhammad's chest. Motifs of angelic surgery and the removal of " black spots " from the heart of Muhammad shed further light upon the dogmatic debates surrounding the question of infallibility (al-'ismah) or immunity from sin as an indicator of Muhammad's Prophethood. Al-Tabari also, presents traditions rich with imaginative apocalyptic and eschatological motifs which infuse the story of Muhammad's heavenly journey with

This article contrasts techniques from non-narrative, poetic and Qurʾānic texts with the narratives of Qiṣaṣ al-anbiyāʾ (the Stories of the Prophets) in order to interpret passages on Sulaymān/Solomon in pre-and early Arabic-Islamic texts. Beginning with the renowned non-narrative Sulaymān passage in the pre-Islamic poet al-Nābighah al-Dhubyānī's ode of apology to the Lakhmid king al-Nuʿmān ibn al-Mundhir and several Qurʾānic passages concerning Sulaymān, the article compares these to the eminently narrative prose renditions of Solomonic legend that appear in Qurʾānic commentary and the (related) popular Stories of the Prophets (Qiṣaṣ al-anbiyāʾ). I argue that verbal structures and rhetorical techniques characteristic of non-narrative forms such as poetry and the Qurʾān have the effect of preserving and stabilizing the essential panegyric (poetic) or salvific (Qurʾānic) message in a manner that the constantly mutating popular narrative forms neither strive for nor achieve.

Employing the tools of postcolonial studies, this paper examines the manner in which the legacy of colonialism continues to influence the analysis of the Quran in the Euro-American academy. While Muslim lands are no longer directly colonized, intellectual colonialism continues to prevail in the privileging of Eurocentric systems of knowledge production to the detriment and even exclusion of modes of analysis that developed in the Islamic world for over a thousand years. This form of intellectual hegemony results in multifaceted epistemological reductionism that denies efficacy to the analytical tools developed by the classical Islamic tradition. The presumed intellectual superiority of Euro-American analytical modes has become a constitutive and persistent feature of Quranic Studies, influencing all aspects of the field. Its persistence prevents some scholars from encountering, let alone employing, the analytical tools of the classical Islamic tradition and presents obstacles to a broader discourse in the international community of Quranic Studies scholars. Acknowledging the obstacles to which the coloniality of knowledge has given rise in Quranic Studies can help us to develop more inclusive approaches in which multiple modes of analysis are incorporated and scholars from variegated intellectual backgrounds can build a more transnational field of Quranic Studies.

The past few decades have witnessed a proliferation of theories on the origins of Islam which have called into question long-held scholarly axioms. One such axiom is the traditional date of 632 CE for the death of the prophet Muhammad, which some scholars have now sought to redate to after the beginning of the Muslim conquests on the basis of the evidence of non-Muslim sources. The present contribution aims to demonstrate that the prima facie disharmony between these sources and Muslim accounts of Muhammad’s life and the conquests is a product of the reading imposed on both sets of data, which primarily has to do with the fact that, more often than not, modern scholarship unsuspectingly operates within the rigid framework of the classical periodisation of early Islamic history. Therefore, a revision of either the traditional date of Muhammad’s death or the starting date of the conquests based on this evidence is uncalled for.

In his objective study of the texts, Maurice Bucaille clears' away many preconceived ideas about the Old Testament, the Gospels and the Quran. He tries, in this collection of Writings, to separate what belongs to Revelation from what is the product of error or human interpretation.

His study sheds new light on the Holy Scriptures. At the end of a gripping account, he places the Believer before a point of cardinal importance: the continuity of a Revelation emanating from the same God, with modes of expression that differ in the course of time. It leads us to meditate upon those factors which, in our day, should spiritually unite rather than divide-Jews, Christians and Muslims.

As a surgeon, Maurice Bucaille has often been in a situation where he was able to examine not only people's bodies, but their souls. This is how he was struck by the existence of Muslim piety and by aspects of Islam which remain unknown to the vast majority of non-Muslims. In his search for explanations which are otherwise difficult to obtain, he learnt Arabic and studied the Quran. In it, he was surprised to find statements on natural phenomena whose meaning can only be understood through modern scientific knowledge.

He then turned to the question of the authenticity of the writings that constitute the Holy Scriptures of the monotheistic religions. Finally, in the case of the Bible, he proceeded to a confrontation between these writings and scientific data.

The results of his research into the Judeo-Christian Revelation and the Quran are set out in this book.

Lisans tez çalışmasında, proje aşamasından sonuçlanmasına kadarki süreçte bilimsel etiğe ve akademik kurallara özenle riayet ettiğimi, tez içindeki tüm bilgileri, bilimsel ahlak ve gelenek çerçevesinde elde ettiğimi, tez yazım kurallarına uygun olarak hazırladığım bu çalışmamda doğrudan veya dolaylı olarak yaptığım her alıntıya kaynak gösterdiğimi ve yararlandığım eserlerin kaynakçada gösterilenlerden oluştuğunu taahhüt ederim. __ /__/__ Ayşe UZUN iii ÖZET Kur'an tefsirleri genellikle Mushaf tertibini esas almaktadır. Araştırmamıza konu olan eserde çağdaş dönemde revaç bulan bir eğilim olan nüzul tertibi esas alınmıştır. Eser, Faslı akademisyenlerden Muhammed Âbid el-Câbirî tarafından Kur'an'ın kronolojik okunması metoduyla hazırlanmıştır. Müellif bu metot sayesinde tarihsel dinamizme ulaştığı düşüncesindedir. Tezimizde Câbirî'nin Kur'an yorumu tasvirî bir metotla sunulmuştur. Yazarın kronolojiyi tesbit etmede; pasaj bütünlüğünü, konuyu, metnin bağlamını, sebeb-i nüzul rivayetlerini kullandığı tesbit edilmiştir. Siyer ile Kur'an tefsirinin birlikte ele alındığını gördüğümüz eserde tarihsel bağlam çok önemsenmiştir. Siyer ve Kur'an tefsiri birbirinden beslenerek birbirini yazdırmaktadır. Çalışma giriş ve üç bölümden oluşmaktadır. İlk bölümde yazarın biyografisi, tefsirin metodu ve kronolojik tefsir'in kronolojisi hakkında bilgi verilmiştir. İkinci bölümde kronolojiyle sıkı irtibatı münasebetiyle nüzul sebebi rivayetlerine yazarın yaklaşımı sunulmuştur. Bunun yanı sıra Mekkî-Medenî, nesh, mucize ve kıssa konularındaki yorumu incelenmiştir. Üçüncü bölümde ise Kur'an muhtevasına ait konulardan Allah ve peygamber tasavvuru, gaybî varlıkları yorumlayışı, ahkâma bakışı ele alınmıştır. Yine bu başlık altında kadın konusundaki yorumları ve bilimsel tefsire bakışı incelenmiştir.

This thesis (1999) delves into Nasr Hamid Abu Zayd's hermeneutics of the Qur'an, which was, at that time, not yet systematically formulated. It tries to reconstruct his theories of text and interpretation based on his works, and gives some examples in which he implemented his hermeneutics, such as the issues of  evil forces (jinn, shayâtîn, sihr and hasad), ribâ and interest, slavery,  polygamy, and women's Inheritance. Abu Zayd's contribution to Qur'anic hermeneutics is important in developing critical Qur'anic scholarship.

The study of Jesus in the Qur'an might profitably begin with the fact that there he is called not the expected Arabic Yasu' but rather the unaccountable 'Isa. From there the reader of the Qur'an may wonder to what extent the writer of the materials on Jesus was familiar with the canonical Gospel accounts that had circulated widely and extensively in the Middle East during the six centuries preceding the emergence of Islam. The Qur'anic portrait of Jesus is full of mysteries, lacunae, and intriguing questions.

The utterance of “ahl al-kitap” (people of book) as a noun clause, is one of the words that  Quran made it a term and uses for a special meaning. When we analyse the verses that contains  “book” at Quran, we can see, the noun clause “ahl al-kitap” (people of book) ise suitable to be name for every society has a scripture from Allah; but  Quran especially use this noun clause as the name of especially two society : The owns of Torah and the owns of Gospel. When we analyse the informations that Quranic verses give us about duration of going away of the owns of two books, from affirming the unity of God  -the right way that Prophets thought them-; we can meet some belief problems. İn those verses Quran deals with theese problems sometimes in particular events in history of sons of İsrael, and generally in the events lived at the time in Quran revealed. In this thesis we established that Quran uses two words Judaism and Christianity (al-Yahud ve an-Nasara) not for persons that believes affirming to unity of God and saves the original scripture of Torah and Bible and saves the right way of Prophets; but especially uses for only the societies that those belief problems have completely located in. So we think it must be considered the conceptual framework in Quran, If we use the utterance “ahl al-kitap” as a term of Quran. According the outcomes of this thesis it must not be used “Judaism and Chirsitianity” words for describing the peoples that the verses of Quran speak about “ahl al-kitap” in possitive context. We emphasize; in Muslim’s conception “Judaism and Christianity” (al-Yahud ve an-Nasara) words are special terming of Quran’ for the peoples have  negative belief positions against the original  Torah and Gospel and against the affirming to unity of God, the right way that prophets thoght their sincere believers.
Key words: “Ahl al-kitap”(peoplo of book), “Torah”, “Gospel”, “Sons of İsrael”, “Judaism”, “Christianity”.

Özet : “Ehl-i kitap” lafzı bir isim tamlaması olarak, Kur’an’ın nüzul sürecinde kavramsallaştırarak özel bir anlamda kullandığı Kur’an lafızlarındandır. Kur’an ayetlerinde “kitap” kelimesinin geçtiği ayetlerden hareketle “ehl-i kitap” tamlaması kendisine ilahi vahiy verilmiş tüm toplulukları kapsayabilecek bir niteliğe sahip olmakla birlikte, bu kelime özellikle Tevrat ve İncil adlı kutsal kitabı sahiplenen iki gurubu tanımlamak için kullanılır. Bu iki kitabı sahiplenen toplulukların kendilerine bu kitapların vahyedilmesine vesile olan peygamberlerinin getirdiği tevhid yolundan uzaklaşma süreçlerine dair Kur’an’ın bize verdiği bilgilerde yer alan meselelere baktığımızda karşımıza bazı inanç problemleri çıkar. Bu inanç problemlerine temas eden ayetleri Kur’an hem İsrâiloğullarının tarihindeki bazı tikel olaylara atıfla, hem de nüzul sürecinde yaşanmış bazı olaylar üzerinden ele alır. Bu tezimizde Yahudilik ve Hristiyanlık kelimelerini Kur’an’ın Tevrat ve İncil adlı kutsal kitapların tevhide dayanan orijinal halini muhafaza edenler için değil, tespit ettiğimiz inanç problemlerinin yerleşik bir hal aldığı topluluklar için özellikle kullandığını belirledik. Bundan ötürü tezimizde “ehl-i kitap” kavramının itikadî bir terim olarak Kur’an ayetleri referans alınarak kullanılması noktasında, Kur’an’ın ortaya koyduğu kavramsal çerçevenin dikkate alınması gerektiğini düşünüyoruz. Yine bu tezde ulaşılan sonuca göre Yahudilik ve Hristiyanlık kelimeleri de “ehl-i kitap” la ilgili olumlu hususların işaret edildiği ayetlerde anlatılan meselelerde kullanılmamalıdır. Kur’an’ın bu kelimeler için tercih ettiği üzere bu iki kelimenin Müslümanların tasavvurlarında Tevrat ve İncil’e varis olanların inanç açısından olumsuz bir konumda olanlarına yönelik bir özel isimlendirme olduğunu vurguluyoruz.
Anahtar Kelimeler : “Ehl-i kitap”, “Tevrat”, “İncil”, “İsrâiloğulları”, “Yahudilik”, “Hristiyanlık”.

Critical Approach to Some Comments
In The Tafsir Of Rûhu’l Furkân
Abstract
The Qur'an is a guide to life sent by Allah through Muhammad
to mankind. Starting from the seventh century in which it began
to descend, this book, which sets forth the ethical principles
and legal laws that must be followed by humans, until the day of
judgment is valid. The communication between you and God, this
book is provided with the understanding. The correct understanding
of the Qur'an, is vital for correct understanding and implementation
of Islam. If it is interpreted in an incomprehensible, wrong way, it
can cause people to have wrong opinions about Islam.
In this study, with an emphasis on the importance of the correct
understanding of the Quran, we will give examples of misunderstanding
of interpretations available. In particular, today, who
claim that Islam a religion of violence is a form of black propaganda
material in a manner to point out the disadvantages of the interpretations
made. In this context, we will give examples from the problematic
interpretations we have seen in Mahmut Ustaosmanoğlu's
commentary on Rûhu’l-Furkân, which was taken by a delegation of
six people. Our aim is not to disgrace or discredit any person or
group. We would like to refer to such comments and warn readers
and to be instrumental in correcting this commentary that continues
to be written.
Key words: Quran, tafsir, context, sufi comment, violence.

این پژوهش، مروری است بر ارتباط سیاق و اسباب نزول؛ ارتباطی متقابل که گاه به تردید در یکی از این دو قرینه منجر می‌شود. این نوشتار، به بررسی موقعیت سیاق و اسباب نزول و رابطه‌ی این دو در تفسیر آیه‌ی احصار می‌پردازد؛ گرچه معترفیم که بحث سیاق و اسباب نزول را نمی‌توان در پرتو یک آیه به نتیجه‌ی نهایی رساند. 
    در تعارض سیاق و اسباب نزول آیه، گاه سیاق منجر به تردید در سبب نزول منقول برای آیه می‌شود و گاه سبب نزول باعث تردید در برقراری سیاق در آیه می‌گردد. در آیه‌ی احصار، از زاویه‌ای که ما به آیه نگریستیم، در سه مقطع گمان تعارض این دو قرینه وجود داشت که در این موارد، به دلائلی که در متن مورد بحث قرار گرفته است، جانب اسباب نزول ترجیح داده می‌شود.  بدیهی است که پیش فرض این گفتار آنست که هر کدام از این دو قرینه، به تنهایی دارای حجیت هستند.

Kur'an imlası / تهجئة و ترقيم القرآن / Spelling (Punctuation) of the Qur'an.

Lütfen -okuduğunuzda- resmi mushaf ve diğer tercümelerle karşılaştırınız.
Please -when you read- compare with the offical mushaf and other translations.

Mushaf metni ve tercümeler üzerinde sürekli çalışılmaktadır. Bu nedenle son sürümler esas alınmalıdır.
There is constant work on the mushaf text and translations. Therefore, the latest versions should be taken as a basis.

This article analyzed the phrase “baldatun thayyibatun wa rabbun ghafûr”, one of main keywords in Islamic quality of life research, with reference to the interpretations given by tafsir nusantara i.e. Marâh Labîd, Tafsir An Nur, Tafsir Al-Azhar, Al Qur’ân dan Tafsirnya, and Tafsir Al-Mishbâh. The phrase “baldatun thayyibatun wa rabbun ghafûr” was chosen because of its relation with the concept of civilized and sustainable society as UII research orientation, while the selection of tafsir nusantara was driven by the current tendency in research and implementation of local genius both in UII and the Ministry of Religious Affairs. The method used in this article was comparative method (muqârin) aimed to compare the interpretations given by some interpreters on the phrase and then linked to the concept of quality of life that has been widely studied. The results showed that the quality of life, as tafsir nusantara noted, had several aspects such as nature and its resources; fulfillment of basic needs; support and the ability to manage irrigation facilities; advancement in transportation; security in many activities; freedom in economic activities; international trade; religious conditions; commitment to maintain public facilities ; closeness with family etc. A number of aspects of interpretation found in tafsir nusantara has some conformity with the conceptual framework prepared by the Quality of Life Research Unit, University of Toronto. Further research is needed to examine the concepts of quality of life for other terms mentioned in the Koran as the foundation of the development of this study in the future.

تفسیر الفرقان واجد ویژگی‌های کم‌نظیری در تفسیر آیات ادیانی و به‌ویژه آیات مرتبط با یهودیت است. وجه کم‌نظیر بودن این ویژگی‌ها تنها در مقایسهٔ آن با دیگر تفاسیر مهم اسلامی رخ می‌نماید.
در این مقاله با انتخاب المیزان به عنوان نمایندهٔ تفاسیر اسلامی به مقایسهٔ آن با الفرقان در زمینة تفسیر آیات مرتبط با یهودیت می‌پردازیم. از این رهگذر امتیازات الفرقان به‌روشنی هویدا می‌شود. در پایان نوشتار اما نگاهی انتقادی هم به خود الفرقان خواهیم افکند تا علاوه بر اصلاح پاره‌ای اشکالات، گامی هم در راه بهبود این حوزة تخصصی در تفسیر قرآن برداریم.

Paper ini ditulis oleh mahasiswa prodi Perbankan Syariah, Jurusan Syariah dan Ekonomi Islam, Sekolah Tinggi Agama Islam Negeri (STAIN) Curup, semester 4 RK, dalam mata kuliah Tafsir Ayat Ekonomi. Artikel ini ditulis secara berkelompok oleh:
1. Hidayatullah
2. Jaka Purnomo
3. Nike Safitri
4. Susi Ariani

Prema jednoglasnom mišljenju komentatora Kur’ana, sura El-Hudžurat je objavljena u medinskom periodu Objave, tj. u vrijeme kada je ‒ nakon učvršćivanja imana u srcima vjernika ‒ trebalo izgraditi zdravo društvo, tj. uzornu zajednicu, u kojoj će vladati visoki moralni principi pravde, jednakosti, međusobnog poštivanja, rada za opće dobro itd. Iako se najče-
šće naziva El-Hudžurat (Sobe) po riječi koja se spominje u toj
suri, zbog obilja moralnih pouka i principa za izgradnju zdravog
društva, neki komentatori Kur’ana je nazivaju Suretu-l-ahlak što
znači Sura o moralnom ponašanju.

The scholarship of reading has been supposed to be the superlative one among the Islamic sciences due to its investigation of the Koran's wording. The fact that the changes, come into existence in the wordings because of reading differences, cause meaning differences has made the scholarship of reading an indispensable reference guide for the Islamic sciences. Great importance has been given to this scholarship since the era of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH). Besides the fersh subjects by which the whole angles are investigated one by one in interpretation, hadith, and fiqh from Islamic sciences as well as the scholarship of reading, there are method subjects which will help to investigate these subjects. ABSTRACT In general, istiᶜaza, basmalah, and idgham take place in the first three subjects among the subjects in the books compiled in concern with the aforementioned method subjects. The reason based on during the formation of this ordering is the orderings of verses in Koran. Therefore, it's obvious that istiazah and basmalah will take place in the first plan. The subject of idgam is the third subject by the reason of the expression "مَالِكِ الرَّحِيمِ" which is taken place in the second verse of Surah al-Fâtihâ being the first surah by ordering. This study is devoted to examining these three subjects by taking into consideration it's being discussed in different science branches.

لقد كرّست اهتمامي في السنين الأخيرة لمطالعة وتصحيح تفسير الوزير المغربي المسمّى بـ: المصابيح في تفسير القرآن، وكتبت بعض المقالات في هذا الخصوص، وقد تطرّقت في مقالتي هذه إلى وصف النسخ الثلاث الموجودة منه، ومناقشة الأخطاء والنواقص التي وردت في تصحيح نسخ هذا الكتاب والتي جاءت في إطار رسالة الدكتوراه المقدّمة من قبل الدكتور عبدالكريم بن صالح الزهراني والتي تمّ الدفاع عنها في جامعة أمِّ القرى في مكّة المكرّمة سنة (2000 ميلادي)، علماً بأنّ هذه الرسالة موجودة على صفحات الشبكة المعلوماتية (الإنترنيت) بالرغم من أنّه لم يتمّ نشرها رسميّاً ولم تطبع بعد.

ابوعثمان عمرو بن بحر ملقب به جاحظ، ادیب و متکلم معتزلی قرن سوم است، وي در طول عمر 100 ساله خويش قريب 300 كتاب به رشته تحرير درآورده است كه در برخي از اين كتب مستقیم یا غیرمستقیم به بحث اعجاز و برخی از مباحثِ علوم قرآنی و تفاسير برخي از آیات پرداخته است، شیوه كم نظير وی سبب شده وی با بحث‌های کلامی به مباحثِ ادبی توجّه کند و گاه در بحثِ بلاغی و بیانی چون مجاز، ایجاز...آغاز‌گر آن‌ها باشد. هم‌چنین با توجه به مبانی زبانی و بلاغی خويش تصویرِ روشنی از اعجازِ بیانی قرآن را به نسل‌هاي بعد از خود به تصوير بكشد( رجوع شود به مقاله" مباني زباني و بلاغي جاحظ دراعجاز قران" فصلنامه علمي وپژوهشي علوم اسلامی- شماره 15) .
تلاش‌های جاحظ تأثیر بسزایی بر اندیشه‌ی ادیبان و محقّقان وقران پژوهان بعد از وی گذاشته .بايسته است براي شناختِ اندیشه‌های وي پيرامون قرآن به خصوص تفسير آياتي كه با گرايش ادبي و كلامي بدان‌ها پرداخته و نحوه‌ی برخورد وی با شبهاتِ زمانه‌اش با مطالعه در آثار جاحظ مباني و پيش فرض‌هاي تفسيري وي براي قرآن پژوهان روشن گردد .

Nowadays da'wa shows its significance in all of human life. Da'wa experienced a great significance in the spread of Islam and the development of religious conscience, especially in the West. Da'wa observers believe that Islam is the fastest growth in the West. This paper tries to discover the significance of da'wa in the Qur'an. It is a thematic contextual approach in understanding Qur'anic verses of significance. Thematic contextual approach analysis verses of the Qur'an under the topic of significance of da'wa by relating it with contemporary situation. The study shows that da'wa scripturally and historically demonstrated its significance for the messengers of God, preachers (du'ȃt), rulers, the spread of Islam, and community. This study will be a foundation for exploration of da'wa significance for any individual, groups, and institutions.

, it cui generoso contributo ha reso possibile la pubblicazione del presente volume: We gratefully acknowledge the following institutions within the University of British Columbia (UBC Vancouver, Canada), whose generosity has made possible the publication of this volume: E vietata la riproduzione, anche parziale, non autorizzata, con qualsiasi mezzo effettuata, compresa la fotocopia, anche a use interno e didattico. L 'illecito sara penalmente perseguibile a norma dell 'art. 171 della Legge n. 633 del 22.04.41

Çok acıyan, Pek acıyan Allah'ın adıyla.. [1] Övgü-şükür (akıllı) alemlerin rabbi Allah'adır. [2] Çok acıyan'a, Pek acıyan'a.. [3] Din gününün sahibine/kralına.. [4] Yalnız Sana ibadet ederiz ve Senden yardım dileriz sadece! [5] Bizi, dosdoğru/dimdik yola yönelt [6] Kendilerine nimet verdiklerinin yoluna.. kızılmayanların ne de sapanların..

The Qur'ān lies at the heart of Muslim spirituality, and provides the fount and wellspring for its doctrines and practices. To the extent that classical Islam as a whole was animated in both form and spirit by its central Scripture, all the way from law and ritual to theology and the arts, it would only be natural to find its reverberations running throughout its mysticism as well. 1 Indeed, some of the most influential literary expressions of Sufism, ranging from Ghazālī's (d. 1111) Iḥyā' 'ūlum al-dīn (Reviving the Religious Sciences) to Rūmī's (d. 1273) Mathnawī-i ma'nawī (Couplets of Inner Meaning), took on the form of commentaries of the holy text, albeit in a different key, not unlike medieval Jewish works that were often analogously rooted in the Torah. "Everything of which we speak in our meetings and in our writings," Ibn 'Arabī (d. 1240) would write, "comes from the Qur'ān and its treasures." 2 And when Abū Ṭālib al-Makkī (d. 996) declared in his Qūt al-qulūb (Nourishment of Hearts) drawing on an early saying, sometimes ascribed to the Prophet, that "the people of the Qur'ān are the people of God, and His elect," 3 he was expressing a firmly held view in the fledging tradition for which he was giving voice. The polyvocality of Muslim scripture would itself generate many of the debates that would animate the intellectual culture of Sufism, and beyond that, the various competing theologies of Islam.