15

METHODOLOGY OF Al-IMM Al-SHFIIN TAFSR:

TOWARDS A RESOLUTION OF THE CONTEMPORARY CONFLICTS
IN TAFSR LITERATURE

Muhammad Mokhter Ahmad
*


ABSTRACT

Al-Imm Al-Shfi'is one of the greatest architects of Islamic thought in general and the
Qur'nic interpretation in particular. He is the founder of one of the largest denominations
based on Islamic J urisprudence which is followed largely by an increasingly greater
segment of the Muslim community across the world including, chiefly, Turkey, North
Africa, and Middle East, and Far East Asia. He also made, quite naturally and expectedly,
substantial contribution towards formulating an epistemological methodology for a proper
understanding of the Qur'n, especially the Qur'nic verses related to rulings (yt al-
a km) which left a permanent imprint on and legacy for the later Muslim scholars
dealing with Qur'anic tafsr and/or tafsr of yt al-a km. The Imm devised and
developed this methodology at such a juncture of Muslim intellectual exercise when some
alien philosophies and doctrines infiltrated into almost all branches of Islamic knowledge.
The tafsr literature was no exception. Besides, the emergence of some deviated
intellectual outfits from among the Ummah itself virtually challenged and threatened the
very fabric, purity, uniqueness and even existence of a distinct Islamic intellectual identity.
For the sake of developing their own principles of thought, these deviant groups heavily
relied on the primary normative sources of Islam (i.e., the Qur'n and the Sunnah) and
subsequently deducted policies from those sources for running their intellectual
denominations. Some of these policies and principles developed thereof were also related
to the interpretation of the Qur'n itself. At this time, Al-Imm Al-Shfi'along with others
came forward, developed epistemological methodologies for governing almost all
branches of Islamic knowledge including the Qur'nic interpretation, and thus set the
course of Islamic thought on right track. The same scenario is again seen everywhere
around the globe where the felid of tafsr is further intruded by some obviously alien and
un-Islamic philosophical underpinnings. Scores of denominations have already emerged in
the Ummah itself which offer such grotesque interpretations for the Qur'n or some of its
verses that fall squarely contradictory to the spirit of Islam, the basic shar'ah principles,
and the vivid Prophetic guidelines. Thus the need of the hour is to reassert the
methodologies of Al-Imm Al-Shfi'for the tafsr of the Qur'an with an avowed objective
of evaluating his contribution in this field and investigating into his epistemological
principles so that the current deviation in the Qur'nic tafsr may be corrected and a
worthwhile methodology for the contemporary interpretation of the Qur'n may be
developed.

*
Associate Professor & Coordinator, Center for University Requirement Courses (CENURC), International Islamic
University Chittagong, Dhaka Campus, Dhaka, Bangladesh, mahmad@teacher.com, mokhterahmad@gmail.com,
+8801712540089


16


Keywords: Tafsir methodology, Tafsr literature, Contemporary conflicts


INTRODUCTION

As Islam is the only surviving way of life approved and appointed by Allah and as the Quran is
the only uncorrupted divine scripture revealed by Him, Islams superstructure is inevitably rested
upon the Quran. This is why the Quran has been declared by Allah to be sole guidance for all
human affairs, public and private, individual and collective, and religious and secular. This
unparalleled position of the Quran propelled the Muslim scholars, right from the period of the
ahbah (r), the Prophets Companions, unto the present time, to relentlessly investing their time
and energy for the study, interpretation, and exploration of the Quran. Over the centuries, this
phenomenon developed into a tremendous movement when Islam was spread over the then three
continents (i.e., Asia, Europe and Africa) bringing a large number of reverts under its fold who
had their insatiable desire and religious obligation for the understanding of the Qur'an and this
resulted into the emergence of a section of scholars devoting themselves for the Qur'anic studies.
The development of tafsr literature was the need of the hour and is of huge importance because:
firstly, Allah, though, uses the most clear, eloquent and concise language, and in doing so the
meaning is clear to those who are well-grounded in the Arabic language, but not so clear to those
who are not; secondly, the Quran itself does not always mention the events or references for
which each particular verse was revealed, and these must be known in order for the verse to be
fully and totally understood; and lastly, some words may have multiple meanings, and it is the
job of the person that does tafsr to explain what is meant by the word. Besides, the science of
tafsr is the most honorable of all sciences for three reasons. The first reason is with respect to its
topic. It deals with the Speech of Allah, which contains every kind of wisdom and virtue. It
contains pronouncements about what has passed and reports of what will happen and judgments
concerning what happens between the people. Its wonders never cease. The second reason is
with respect to its goal. Its goal is to lead mankind to the firm handhold of Allah, and to the true
happiness, one that does not end. The third reason is with respect to the great need for this
science. Every aspect of this religion and this world, in the near or distant future, is in need of the
sciences of the Shari' ah and knowledge of the religion, and this knowledge can only be obtained
through the understanding of the Book of Allah.
1

The Qur'anic scholars, the Mufassirn, followed and maintained a well-structured format
for the exegesis of the Qur'an despite some vicissitudes during the later Umayyad and early
Abbsid periods where the penetration of alien thoughts and philosophies took place in it. Al-
Imm Al-Shfi'put the course of Qur'anic exegesis on the right track which had a lasting effect
on the latter generations of Qur'anic exegetes. But the colonial occupation of the Muslim lands,
the intellectual bankruptcy of the scholars of the Ummah, the overwhelming challenge from the
orientalists and/or western-educated new generations, and the seeming superiority of the secular

1
Al-Suyt, Abdur Ra mn, Al-Itqn flm al-Qurn, Al-Halabi Press, Cairo, 4
th
ed., 1978, p. 224; Zarabozo,
Jamaal al-Din M., How to Approach and Understand the Quran, Al-Basheer Publications, Denver, 1999, p. 12

17

western education and its worldview encouraged a group of scholars to come with new brand of
Qur'anic exegesis which is away either from traditionally held methodologies or from treating
the Qur'an as an integrated whole. The methodology followed by al-Shfi'is the panacea for
correcting this sort of deficiency and deviation.
For the sake of collecting data, I studied the books written by al-Shfi', especially the
books containing the tafsr of the Qur'an
2
. I also consulted, chiefly, a recent compilation of all the
verses of the Qur'an explained by al-Shfi'(like the one compiled by Dr. A mad ibn Muaf al-
Farrn tiled 'Tafsr al-Imm al-Shfi' which was done as a Ph. D thesis) and another thesis done
for the fulfillment of M.A degree titled 'Manhaj al-Imm al-ShfifTafsr yt al-A km' by
Mu ib al-Dn Abd al-Sub n.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Al-Shfi'has written many books but none of those is known to be an absolute collection of the
Qur'anic exegesis though he is known to have a particular compilation on his commentary of the
legal verses of the Qur'an but the work has not reached us. The commentaries of al-Shfi'for the
Qur'anic verses have been recorded in his the books by like Al-Umm, Al-Rislah, Kitb Jimal-
Ilm, Ikhtilf al-adth, A km al-Qurn and others where his primary concern was explaining
the legal rulings out of the relevant verses. Besides, he has not mentioned anything significant
there, so far we know, about the methodology he maintained there for explaining the Qur'an.
The first work done centering the approach of al-Shfi'to the Qur'an was the collection by al-
Bayhaq(384-458 AH) of the legal verses of the Qur'an explained by al-Shfi'in a book named
'Kitb A km al-Qur'n' and the work has recently been published by Dr al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah,
Beirut, in 1980 CE in two volumes where 475 verses of 76 srahs of the Qur'an explained by al-
Shfi' were collected. This book has been arranged and chapterized according to the
chapterization of Islamic Jurisprudence (al-Fiqh). It does not contain much regarding the
methodology maintained by al-Shfi'for the Qur'anic hermeneutics.
The second work on the approach of al-Shfi'to the Qur'anic exegesis is found at work
of Majd Manr ibn Sayyid al-Shr, which is, according to him, the first attempt and
foundational work for the collection of the full tafsr of al-Shfi'. This compilation has also been
published by Dr al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, in 1995 CE in one volume where the compiler
relied upon three books of al-Shfi'(namely Al-Umm, Al-Rislah, and A km al-Qurn by al-
Bayhaq) and the number yt and srahs he mentioned there are 274 and 37 respectively. He has
not mentioned anything of the methodology maintained by al-Shfi' for the Qur'anic
explanation.
The ground-breaking work in this regard was a thesis submitted by Mu ib al-Dn Abd
al-Sub n, a student of Umm al-Qur University of Makkah for the fulfillment of his M. A
Degree and the title of the thesis is 'Manhaj al-Imm al-ShfifTafsr yt al-A km' (The
Methodology of al-Imm al-Shfiin the Tafsr yt al-A km) and the thesis was done in
1407 AH/1987 CE and was approved in the following year. The thesis was in 565 pages and 215
pages were devoted for the biography of al-Shfi', 272 pages were devoted for the exploration of

2
For example: A km al-Qurn, Al-Umm, Al-Rislah, Kitb Jimal-Ilm, Ikhtilf al-adth and others.

18

al-Shfi''s methodology for tafsr of the Qur'an, and the rest of the pages were for bibliography
and references. But the problem with the book is that it dealt with the methodology applied by al-
Shfifor explaining the yt al-A km (legal verses) and he did not mention an overall
methodological structure of al-Shfi'for the Qur'anic exegesis.
A real and relevant work in this regard was done by Dr. A mad ibn Muaf al-Farrn
tiled 'Tafsr al-Imm al-Shfi' which he submitted as a Ph. D thesis under the faculty of Islamic
Studies and Academic Research at University of Khartoum. He was awarded in Summer, 2004
and the work was published by Dr al-Tadmoria, KSA in 2006 CE/1427 AH. The book is of
1529 pages where he devoted the first 30 pages for introductory remarks (1
st
part), the next 148
pages for exploring the methodology of al-Shfi'for the tafsr of the Qur'an (2
nd
part), the next
1303 pages for mentioning the commentaries of al-Shfi'for the Qur'an (3
rd
part) and the rest for
list of the yt and srahs of the Qur'an, the references and subjects which he cited in his work
(4
th
part). The second part of his work is the real area where he explored the methodology of al-
Shfi'. He divided the second part into four chapters and in the first chapter he mentioned the
sources maintained by al-Shfi' for his exegesis of the Qur'an, in the second chapter he
mentioned the stances of al-Shfi'in his Qur'anic tafsr regarding some specific issues, in the
third chapter he discussed the impacts of al-Shfi'in tafsr of the Qur'an and the characteristics
of his Qur'anic tafsr and in the last chapter he talked about the position of al-Shfi'and his
founding many important principles in the field of tafsr literature. But Dr. al-Farrn did not
mention the deviations, past and present, made in the field of tafsr literature and the
contributions made and/or may be made by al-Shfi'for correcting those deviations. He also did
not make any comparative study between the methodologies maintained by deferent groups,
right or wrong, and has not suggested any measures may/might be taken in this respect. Here
does stand the necessity of the present work and this work is aimed at fulfilling that gap.

HISTORY OF THE GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT OF TAFSR AL-QURN

i. The growth and Development of Tafsr unto the era of al-Shfi

The movement of tafsr started during the lifetime of the Prophet (saas) when he would sit
among his Companions to explain the injunctions of the Quran and to instruct them in the
teachings of Islam. It was so because the Prophet (saas) was commissioned chiefly, among
others, to explain the Quran to the followers, sometimes upon their appeal and sometimes on his
own, through his statements, actions, and tacit approvals
3
. Though, the Prophet (saas) had the
knowledge to give tafsr (exegesis) of every yah he did not do so. It is narrated that isha (r)
said: The Prophet of Allah (saas) only gave interpretations of a few yt from the Quran which
were taught to him by Jibrl. These yt deal with matters related to al-ghayb (the Unseen),
together with some other questions that can only be understood through Revelation. The first
serious necessity for a complete canonical and institutional interpretation of the Quran was
strongly felt when the Quran was collected during the ear of Abu Bakr (r) and when Islam
spread like wildfire later on during the era of Umar and Uthmn pulling an unprecedented

3
Al-Quran: 16:44

19

number of converts under its fold. Thus many centers of tafsr evolved at Makkah, Madinah,
Irq, Syria and Egypt during this era centering the most notable Quranic commentators from
among the Companions like the four Righteous Caliphs, ishah bint AbBakr, Abdullah ibn
bbs, Abdullah ibn Masd, Ubayy ibn Kab, Zayd ibn Thbit, Abu Msa al-Ashar,
Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr, Anas ibn Mlik, Abdullah ibn Umar, Abdullah ibn Amr ibn as-,
and Jbir ibn Abdullah.
4
The Prophetic Companions who scattered over different distant regions
bearing the torch of Islam felt the sure necessity of a codified compendium for the Quranic
exegesis while confronting an issue not experienced earlier or encountering a question not raised
previously
5
. Notwithstanding, many Companions did not venture fearing stumble and/or not
reaching the truth. For example, when Abu Bakr (r) was asked about the interpretation of a
certain verse he said, which earth would carry me and which sky would shelter me if I talk
about the Quran according to my own opinion
6
. Still many of them, especially the four rightly-
guided caliphs applied their personal analogical reasoning for the interpretation of the Quran.
Umars (r) decision not to distribute the cultivable lands of Iraq to the fighters which was just
away from the Quranic prescription in sra al-Anfl and his interpretation of the 7
th
verse of
sra al-ashr in an uncommon and unfamiliar way are just a few examples of this kind.
7

Consequently schools of tafsr proliferated and over the centuries Muslim intellects roamed
through the Quran along many different routes. Some were successful, others were not.
Concerning the Prophets Companions who witnessed the Revelation while it was being sent
down and knew the reasons for revealing, abrogating and abrogated yt as well as the factors
linking the yt to real events
8
, so much has been said that al-Ghazland al-Qutbremarked:
It would be incorrect to assume that everything said about tafsr by the Companions actually came
from the Prophet (SAAS) for two reasons. One is that it is only established that the Prophet
(SAAS) gave tafsr of a few ytThis was also ishas view. The other is that they themselves
differ in their tafsr on various points that can not be reconciled and can not all have come from
the Prophet of Allah (SAAS) even though some may have done so
9
.
As tafsr from the Prophet (saas) and the Companions did not cover all the verses in the Quran
requiring explanation, the Tbin
10
and their followers tried their best to fill up this gap by
relying on the Quran, exegetic traditions of the Prophet (saas), commentary of the Companions,
information from at-Tawrt and al-Injl and their own individual judgments
11
. This attempt was
championed by those Successors who flocked to the study circles of tafsr at various cities and
townships and this overwhelming enthusiasm on their part saw the first-ever attempt and the

4
Al-Suyt, Al-Itqn, p. 239; Philips, Dr. Abu Ameenah Bilal, Usool at-Tafseer: The Methodology of Quranic
Interpretation, International Islamic Publishing House, Riyad, 2005, p. 22
5
See for details: Al-Dhahabi, Muhammad usayn, Al-Tafsr wa al-Mufassirn, Maktabah Wahbah, Cairo, 6
th
ed.,
1975; Al-Suyt, Al-Itqn; Bilal Philips, Usool at-Tafseer pp. 19-34; Amin, Dr. Ruhul, Tafsir: Its Growth and
Development in Muslim Spain, University Grants Commission of Bangladesh, Dhaka, October 2006, pp. 1-33
6
) \ ( This statement is found at the beginning of any tafsr book.
7
Al-Farrn, Dr. Ahmad Ibn Mustafa, Tafsr al-Imm al-Shfi, Dr al-Tadmoria, KSA, 2006, p. 10-11
8
See Al-Alwn, Th Jbir & Imd al-Dn Khald, The Quran and the Sunnah: The Time-Space Factor,
International Institute of Islamic Thought, 1991, P. 13
9
Ben Ashr, Shaikh Muhammad al-Thar, Tafsr al-Tahrr wa al Tanwr, al Dr al Tnisiyyah, Tunis, 1984, p. 28-
29, See Al-Alwn, Th Jbir & Imd al-Dn Khald, The Quran and the Sunnah: The Time-Space Factor,
International Institute of Islamic Thought, 1991, P. 13
10
Tbin: the Successors of the Companions of the Prophet (saas)
11
Al-Dhahab, at-tafsr wal mufassirn, 2
nd
ed., Cairo: Drul Kutubil Hadtha, 1396 A. H. Vol. 01, p. 100

20

earliest enterprise for the compilation of tafsr. The most noteworthy example is that of Mujjid
ibn Jabr (642-722 CE/40-103 AH), a student of Ibn Abbs, which, however, is extinct now. The
remark of Mujjid is noteworthy:
I read the whole Quran to Ibn Abbs three times. During each reading, I stopped at the end of
every verse and asked him about whom and why it was revealed.
12

Ibn Abbs, the Tarjumn al-Qurn
13
(Translator of the Quran), produced a flock of
erudite in the Quranic hermeneutics who advanced the movement for a more systematic
Quranic exegesis and its codification. The most famous among them were Sad ibn Zubayr (d.
95 AH), Mujjid ibn Jabr (d. 103 AH), Ikrimah (d. 104 AH), s ibn Ksn al-Yamn(d. 106
AH), and A ibn Abi Rab (d. 114/115AH).
14
The famous study circles of tafsr, especially the
Syrian and Egyptian ones, were under the control of these students of Ibn Abbs. In line with
the will of Abd al-Mlik ibn Marwn, the mighty Umayyad Caliph, Sad ibn Zubayr, the
famous student of Ibn Abbs, wrote a complete tafsr for the Caliph and presented that to him
15
.
Before that, he also wrote another exegesis comprising the gharib al-Qurn (the oddities of
the Quran) for the Caliph at his request.
16
Mujjid, another famous student of Ibn Abbs, also
compiled a tafsr at the behest of Ibn Abbs. Al-abarreported from Ibn AbMalkah that he
said, I saw Mujjid asking Ibn Abbs about tafsr of the Quran while he had tablets with him
and Ibn Abbs asking him to commit to those to writing until he asked him about the whole
tafsr
17
.
The most significant and systematic attempt in this regard was initiated with an edict of
Umar ibn Abd al-Azz to his Governors to collect and codify all a dth of the Prophet which
at that time would include theology, ethics and exegesis. It triggered an unprecedented fillip
initiating an era of structured movement for collecting the Quranic exegesis and the scholars of
adth maintained and devoted a separate and special chapter, from among other chapters into
which they put the a dth of the Prophet according to their subject-matter, for the Quranic
exegesis referred to the Prophet, his Companions and their Successors.
18
This is why it is seen
that a few books on tafsr came into existence after the first Hijrah century till the middle of the
second Hijrah century
19
. This includes the books of al-Dha ak, Qatdah, At, Dd ibn Ab
Hind, Abd al-Mlik ibn Abd al-Azz, Muqtil ibn Sulaimn, and others. This was followed by
a more measured and matured approach to the Quranic exegesis which made it into an

12
Al-Dhahab, Siyar Alm al-Nubal, Muassasah al-Rislah, Beirut, 3
rd
ed., 1985, vol. 04, p. 450
13
This is the title given to Abdullah ibn Abbs by the Prophet (saas), or by Abdullah ibn Masd (r) according to
another opinion, because of his expertise for the Quranic hermeneutics. See: Husayn, Siyar Alm al-Nubal,
vol. 03, p. 347
14
Al-Suyt, Al-Itqn; vol. 02, p. 242, See: Bilal Philips, Usool at-Tafseer p. 23
15
Al-Rz(Razes), Mu ammad ibn Abd al-Ra mn, Al-Jar wa al-Tadl, V. 6, pp. 332; Ibn ajr, A mad ibn Ali
al-Asqalni, Tahdhb al-Tahdhb, Dr al-Fikr, Beirut, Lebanon, vol. 7, p. 879
16
Al-Suyt, Al-urr al-Manthr, vol. 01, p. 607
17
Al-abar, Mu ammad ibn Jarr, Jmial-Bayn ftawl al-Qurn, Dr al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1
st
ed.
1992, vol. 01, p. 31
18
Al-Qattn, Mann, Mab ith fUlm al-Qurn, Maktabah al-Marif, Riyadh, 8
th
ed., 1981, pp. 340-41; See:
Bilal Philips, Usool at-Tafseer, pp. 25-27; Ruhul Amin, Tafsir: Its Growth and Development in Muslim Spain, pp.
11-13. A few examples of this type are the collections of Yazd ibn Hrn al-Salmi (d. 118 AH/737 CE),
Shubah ibn al-ajjj (d. 160 AH/777 CE), Sufyn ibn Uyaynah (d. 198 AH/814 CE), and Abd al-Razzq ibn al-
Hammm (d. 211 Ah/864 CE).
19
See for details: Al-Fihrist, Ibn al-Nadm, Dr al-Marifah Beirut, p. 51

21

independent Islamic science where the tafsrs of the Quranic verses were compiled according to
the order of the written text. The first of this kind is the tafsr of Ibn Jarr al-abar.
Al-Shfiwas born in Gaza of Palestine in 150 AH/767 CE (and died in Fustat, Egypt
in 204 AH/820 CE) and then moved to Makkah at the age of two where he got his education. He
got his orientation towards the Quranic hermeneutics and exegesis at the hands of the students
of Abdullah ibn Abbs and their students. Besides, when al-Shfimoved towards Egypt, he
availed out of the exegetic collection of Sad ibn Zubayr, the famous student of Ibn Abbs who
wrote a complete tafsr at the behest of the mighty Umayyad Caliph Abd al-Mlik ibn Marwn,
which was available there at that time. This is why one can see the influences and references of
Sad ibn Zubayr over al-Shfis commentaries of the Quran found in his books like al-Umm.
20

From the era of the Companions and their Successors unto the era of al-Shfi, a few trends
developed among the people regarding tafsr. Firstly, as the knowledge of Arabic and her idioms
of the time of the Prophet (saas) was needed for the correct understanding of the Quran, the
scholars directed a great deal of time in collecting Arabic lexicography, phonology, grammar,
great Arabic poetry, and classical usages. Secondly, the circumstances surrounding the
revelations of the Quran known as asbb al-Nuzl were collected, studied, and developed into a
separate subject. Thirdly, the traditions referring to the understanding and interpretation of the
Quran by the Prophet and the Companions were studied with great enthusiasm and were
preserved black and white. Fourthly, philological and linguistic study of the Quran started and
few famous works were composed on this basis. The majz al-Qurn by Ab Ubayda (d. 210
AH), manal-Qurn by both al-Kis(179 AH) and al-Farr(207 AH) individually, gharb
al-Qurn by Ab Sad al-Bq(d. 141 AH) are a few examples of this class. Fifthly, a large
number of scholars devoted themselves to the legal study of the Quran to deduce legal rulings
from its selected number of verses. Scores of legal deductions from the Quran are known from
al-Imm Mlik ibn Anas (r) in this regard. Al-fiz Ya y ibn dam ibn Sulaimn al-Quraysh
(d. 203 AH) is known to have composed a book for interpretation of the legal verses of the
Quran styled mujarrad a km al-Qurn and the book written by al-Shfihimself in the same
field has been titled a km al-Qurn
21
.
The tafsr of al-Shfiis predominantly associated with the legal verses of the Quran
though he made a few commentaries over some other verses of the Quran but in a very brief
way. Though al-Shfiis the pioneer in terms of a systematic care and compilation for tafsr of
the legal verses of the Quran, he was preceded by many in this field like Ab al-Nadhr al-Kalb
(d. 146 AH) who had a tafsr book about a km al-Qurn (the Quranic rulings) which he
narrated from Ibn Abbs, al-Imm Mlik ibn Anas (d. 179 AH), Imm dr al-Hijrah and the
founder of the Mlikschool of thought, had a tafsr for a km al-Qurn which he did not
compose in an independent book, but those were compiled by Makkibn Ablib later on in ten
volumes with the title al-Mathr an Mlik fA km al-Qurn wa Tafsruh, and the book of
al-fiz Ya y ibn dam ibn Sulaimn styled Mujarrad A km al-Qurn.
22


20
Majallah al-Sharah wa al-Dirsah al-Islmiyyah, number: 27, Shaban 1416 AH, Year: 10
th
, pp. 42-85
21
Abd al-Sub n, Mu i Uddin, Manhaj al-Imm al-Shfifyt al-A km (A thesis submitted to the Umm al-
Qur University to fulfill the requirement of M. A. degree), Ruhul Amin, Tafsir: Its Growth, pp. 14-15.
22
See for details: Al-Fihrist, Ibn al-Nadm, pp. 56-57

22


ii. The growth and Development of Tafsr beyond the era of al-Shfi

This trend for tafsr continued unabated till the era of al-Shfi. During this period people relied
for the Quranic exegesis preferably on the Quran, Sunnah and commentary of the Prophetic
Companions and their Successors and sometimes on their personal reasoning while on some
other occasions many took recourse to some controvertible sources.
Towards the end of the ninth century CE, the field of tafsr evolved into an independent
science where many world famous tafsr books were authored by, among others, Ibn Jarr al-
abar(d. 310 AH), Ibn Mjah (d. 272 AH), Ibn Abtim (d. 327 AH), Ibn ibbn (d. 369
AH), al-kim (d. 404 AH), and Ibn Mardawayh (d. 410 AH), and these anthologies were
according to the order of the written text of the Quran. Near the end of the tenth and the
beginning of the eleventh century CE, a new phenomenon emerged in tafsr literature. Although
the next generation, somewhat, maintained the general format of the predecessors, they deleted
the chains of narration from their tafsrs while keeping the names of the Companions or their
Successors, and their next generation put more stress on the literary forms, grammatical
constructions, variant readings of the Quran where they mentioned many unreferenced and
anonymous statements to authenticate their points. By the eleventh and twelfth centuries CE, the
door of tafsr according to personal opinion (tafsr bi al-Ray) was opened and Greek philosophy
and science and other heretical thoughts started to exert influences in the body of tafsr literature.
Though a large number of theological heresies emerged among the Muslims during the Umayyad
period, like the Khrijites, the Mutazilites, the Shites, and other sects, their endeavor for
sectarian exegesis of the Quran succeeded in this period. Al-Kash-shf of al-Zamakhshr(d.
538 AH), Mafti al-Ghayb of Fakhr al-Dn al-Rz(d. 606 AH), the Twelver Shah tafsrs of
Mullah Mu sin al-Ksh, and the f tafsr of Ibn al-Arab (d. 638 AH) are few such
examples.
23

These phenomena also resulted into another comprehensive trend i.e., specialization
among the Islamic scholars triggering a multiplicity of disciplines on the basis of Quranic study.
Al-Jasss (d. 369 AH) and al-Qurub(d. 671 AH) concentrated on the deduction of fiqh (Islamic
law) from the Quranic passages according to their respective schools of fiqh, al-Thalab(d. 427
AH), a specialized in tales of ancient history, authored al-Jawhir al-isn fTafsr al-Qurn
where he gathered all ancient narrations regardless of their authenticity, and others on the basis
of their legal school of thoughts (ma hhib) authored tafsr books. This new trend and other
heretical and sectarian trends for the Quranic exegesis brought an admixture of truth and
falsehood in the latter tafsr books. But those were never left unchecked and unchallenged. A
potent example is the Tafsr al-Qurn al-Adhm by al-fidh ibn Kathr (d. 774 AH).
On the other hand, among the modern-day people some other forms of tendencies are
found for the exegesis of the Quran. Some venture to explain the Quran from pure scientific
perspective, some from intellectual perspective, while others from rational or political
perspective. Whereas science is changeable, human intellect or reason is limited, not perfect, and
the political institutions are ever-changing, not-static. Besides, those who come to interpret the

23
See: Bilal Philips, Usool at-Tafseer, pp. 26-28; Ruhul Amin, Tafsir: Its Growth and Development, pp. 15-17.

23

Quran on the basis of their scientific background, intellectual or rational perspective do not have
enough knowledge of other branches of Islamic knowledge, i.e. Islamic Aqdah, the nuances of
Arabic Language etc... These may be categorized as Scientific/Political/Rational/
IntellectualApproach. For example, some people who are deeply influenced by the natural
and social sciences followed the materialists of Europe or the pragmatists. According to them,
what the religion claims to exist, but which the sciences reject -like The Throne, The Chair, The
Tablet and The Pen - should be interpreted in a way that conforms with the science; as for those
things which the science is silent about, like the resurrection etc., they should be brought within
the purview of the laws of matter...
24
Thus under this approach the Quran is [mis]interpreted or
explained away to adapt to the particular theory.
Recently, another phenomenon for the Quranic exegesis developed among people called
Feminist Approach to the Quran.
25
The movement/approach is led by Amina Wadud, Asma
Barlas, Leila Ahmed, Fatima Mernissi, and others. For example, Amina Wadud, a [retired]
Professor of Islamic Studies at Virginia Commonwealth University, Virginia, USA, called for a
rereading and reinterpretation of the Quran from a feminist perspective. According to her, this is
not the religion that has kept the women suppressed; it is in fact the patriarchal interpretation and
implementation of the Quran which is responsible for this sorry state. Wadud breaks down
specific texts and key words which have been used, she argues, to marginalize and limit public
and private role of any woman, and even to justify violence against her. She contends that close
examination of the original meanings and contexts of those words defy such interpretations.
26

Barlas, another feminist Quranic interpreter who is also associate professor and Director of the
Center for the Study of Culture, Race, and Ethnicity of the department of politics at Ithaca
College, New York, argues, quoting many Quranic verses, offers a fresh comprehensive
revisionist treatment of the Qur'anic hermeneutics, and contends that the Quran actually views
women as equal and even superior to men. Barlas says that misogyny and patriarchy have seeped
into Islamic practice through "traditions", or the Sunnah, or the adths; and the sharah.
According to her, a military-scholarly complex manipulated the Qur'an to establish these
traditions in a successful effort to preserve the position of the military rulers and clerics of early
Islamic history with women's status being the victim. She says that though the Quran speaks
contrary, some flawed traditions coupled with the misinterpretations of the Quran were
exploited to instill misogynistic patriarchy in the Qurans exegesis.
27


iii. Epistemological Critique of the Previously-Applied Methodologies for Tafsr

A deep and insightful analysis of the previously-applied methodologies, other than the ones
applied by the Companions, their Successors, and the likes of al-Shfi, for the Quranic tafsr

24
Al-Tabataba, Muhammad Husayn, Tafsr al-Mzan, See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tafsir#cite_note-3
25
McAuliffe, Jane (ed.), Womens and Feminist Readings of the Quran, Cambridge Companion to the Quran,
Cambridge University Press, 2006
26
See for details: Wadud, Amina, Qur'an and Woman: Rereading the Sacred Text from a Woman's Perspective,
Oxford University Press, USA, 1999
27
Barlas, Asma, Believing Women" in Islam: Unreading Patriarchal Interpretations of the Qur'an, University of
Texas Press; 1
st
ed., 2002

24

demonstrates that due to the absence of any uniform, integrated, and convincingly clear-cut
methodology, many problems and un-Islamic trends developed in and crept into the tafsr
literature in which the following drawbacks are illustrious:
28

1. Penetration of alien cultures, traditions, superstitions, and philosophies in the tafsr literature
like the Isrliyt (Talmudic traditions) and Greek philosophy. Those who applied these have
been seen to explain away the Quran to suit their philosophical underpinnings.
2. Selective reading of the Quran without dealing with its totality and as an integrated whole
where the exegesis of the Quran was from pure lexical, philological, grammatical and/or
other singular perspective/s. The earlier generations were almost concerned at and
concentrated on painstakingly establishing the miraculous quality of the Quran as being the
inimitability of its poetic language, style, and literary elegance representing the highest
possible peak unknown in Arabic style.
3. During the Umayyad period there began the emergence of a large number of theological
heresies and early sects among the Muslims while during the first century of the Abbssid
rule, there took place an outburst of intellectual activities and these two periods saw the
production of either heretical and sectarian tafsrs or deeply conflicting juristic and fistic
tafsrs. Despite various puritan attempts, during these periods an admixture of truth and
falsehood in the tafsr literature took deep-rooted place which set the latter trend of
composing more narrowly approached tafsr books and opened the door to talking on the
Quran on ones own (al-Tafsr bi al-Ray). All these produced the modern phenomena of
Scientific/Political/Rational/ Intellectual/Socialist/FeministApproach to the Quranic
exegesis.


IMM AL-SHFIS CONTRIBUTION TO TAFSR AL-QURN

i. al-Shfis Contribution to Tafsr Literature

Al-Shfis contribution to the Quranic exegesis is tremendous. His passion for al-Quran
became evident from his very childhood. He memorized the Quran when he was seven and
started teaching people the Quran in the masjid al-harm when he was only thirteen
29
. He was so
much attached with the Quran that he would finish its recitation outside alt everyday twice-
once at night and once at day
30
. He also knew all the meanings of the Quran and the implications
of all its words except two, as is reported from him
31
. His teacher and the scholar of Makkah

28
See for details: BJIT (Bangladesh Journal of Islamic Thought), Muhammad Mokhter Ahmad, The Exegesis of the
Quran: In Search of a new Epistemological Methodology, vol. 5, no. 6, Jan-June 2009
29
Ibn al- Jawz, ifat al-afwah, Vol. 02, P. 141, Al-Baihaq, Manqib al-Shfi, Vol. 01, P. 279
30
Al-Baihaq, Manqib al-Shfi, Vol. 01, P. 279
31
Ibid, Al-Baihaq, Vol. 01, P. 190-91. It is reported that he said: )
:( - ) (
I memorized the Quran, and I knew not if any of its words passed me but I did not know its meaning and its
intended implication except two words. The reporter said: I remembered one and forgot the other. The one which
I remembered is: ) (

25

Sufyn ibn Uainah said about him, I do not know anyone more knowledgeable in the tafsr than
him (al-Shfi)
32
.
Imm al-Shfitalked about 95 sra of the Quran and interpreted its 745 verses only
which comprise 11.26% of the total Quran according to the counting of Ibn Abbs (r) who
counted the Quranic verses as 6616. His Quranic exegesis and interpretation is mostly related
to the yt al-A km (verses related to ruling) as those are pertinent with fiqh and ijtihd.
33

According To Allmah al-Zaraksh, Imm al-Shfiwas the first who singled out the yt al-
A km (verses related to ruling) of the Quran for collection and interpretation
34
. This opinion is
supported by al-Suyt
35
and al-Dd
36
. Though this is not a unanimous and uncontested
opinion, still it does indicate to his pioneering position and epoch-making contribution to the
development of this distinct branch of Quranic exegesis.
The depth of his knowledge of tafsr al-Qurn is duly acknowledged by many including his own
teachers. Whenever Ibn Uyainah, one of al-Shfi's front-ranking teachers, was approached by
anyone about tafsr and fatw (religious verdict), he would refer the matter to al-Shfiand
would say, 'ask this man'.
37
The same is attested by no less a person than A mad ibn anbal: 'I
have not seen anyone more knowledgeable for the book of Allah that this young Quraishite'.
38


ii. Methodology of al-Immal-Shfiin Quranic Exegesis

Everyone intending to go for Quranic exegesis should follow a well-defined source of reference.
Al-Imm al-Shfialso followed a distinct and well-structured source of reference. Abu Jahrah
says, al- Shfifollowed this sound methodology. For inferring from the Quran, he would take
help of the Sunnah. If there was no relevant Sunnah, he took help of the statements of the
Prophetic Companions in their agreements and disagreements. In case of no statement of any
Companion, he took help of the Arabic style, reasoning and analogy (qiys)
39
. On the basis of
this, Al-Farrn said that al-Shfirelied on the following seven sources for his exegesis:
40

1) The Quranic exegesis in the light of Quran
2) The Quranic exegesis in the light of mutawtir Sunnah and authentic a d a adth.
3) The Quranic exegesis in the light of consensus and was preferred over analogy.
4) The Quranic exegesis in the light of analogy on the basis of what preceded.
5) The Quranic exegesis in the light of the statements of the Companions
6) The Quranic exegesis in the light of the statements of the Successors to the Companions
and other scholars

32
Al-hahab, Ta hkirat al-uffz, Vol. 01, P. 263
33
Al-Farrn, Dr. Ahmad Ibn Mustafa, Tafsr al-Imm al-Shfi, Dr al-Tadmoria, KSA, p. 12
34
al-Zaraksh, al-Burhn fulm al-Qurn, Edited: Mu ammad Ab Fadl Ibrhm, Dr al-Fikr, Beirut, 2
nd
Ed.,
1413 AH, vol. 02, p. 03
35
al-Suyt, al-Wasil fmarifat al-Awil, Dr NfiPublishing House, P. 114
36
al-Dd, Shamsuddin Muhammad ibn Alibn A mad, Vol. 02, P. 103
37
Ibn ajr, Tawli al-Ta'ss li-ManMu mmad ibn Idrs, Edited by: Abdullah al-Qdh, Dr al-Kutub al-
Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1
st
Ed., 1986, p. 76
38
Al-Rz(Razes), Al-Jar wa al-Tadl, v. 7, pp. 203-204
39
Abu Juhrah, Al- Shfi, ayth wa asuh, Dr al-Fikr al-Arab, Cairo, 2
nd
ed., 1948, p. 185
40
Al-Farrn, Tafsr al-Imm al-Shfi, P. 40

26

7) The Quranic exegesis in the light of Arabic language and employing the language
(Arabic) and its different styles.

Al-Shfimaintained this style while remaining stick to its sequential order. It is because,
according to al-Shfi, knowledge is of five sequential stages
41
: the Quran and authentic
Suunah; the consensus of the specialized scholars (in case of non-availability of the Quran and
Sunnah); the statement of the Prophetic Companions; the disagreement of the Companions
concerning any issue and one opinion of them was preferred which was thought to be closer to
the spirit of the Quran and Sunnah and supported by analogy; and analogy in light of a matter
whose ruling was known in the previous four stages.
Al-Imm al-Shficommented well over 745 verses out of 95
42
sras of the Holy Quran. His
commentary on the Quran though mostly related to the verses of ruling (yt al-A km)
43
, he
also commented on verses relating to itiqd (Islamic belief-system). His stance on verses
relating to abrogation (naskh) and verses ostensibly referring to choosing the best (isti sn) is
also obvious in his Quranic exegetical methodology.

Exegesis in the light of the Quran: Al-Shfiis found to explain the Quranic verses in the
light of other relevant and similar verses, sometimes citing those merely to stress the points
made by any verse at hand while other times mentioning those to press any intended
meaning home.
44
For example, while explaining verse 105 of srah l-i-Imrn Al-Shfi
adduced a very similar verse, verse 4 of sra al-Baiyinah and said Allah condemned the
disagreement of the people of the Book in that situation where the evidence was against
them and they were also not permitted to do so. But for explaining verse 282 of sra al-
Baqarah he took support of verse 2 of sra al-alq to press his intended meaning home. It
was because to al-Shfi, adlah (probity) of the witness is a fundamental requirement for
his/her testimony to be granted. As verse 282 of sra al-Baqarah does not stipulate any such
condition, he adduced verse 2 of sra al-alq to press his opinion home.
Thus, al-Shfis use of the Quran for the explanation of the Quran is of four methods:
explaining the ambiguous (mujmal) in the light of more self-explained (mufassar); explaining
any verse by the implications of the previous verse/s; specifying the meaning of any verse by
virtue of another verse; and explaining the absolute (mulaq) by the qualified (muqayyad).
45


Exegesis in the light and with the help of al-Sunnah al-Nabawiyyah: Al-Shfiwould
understand the Quran from the Quran and with the Quran. He would rely on the Quran
only when any ruling is mentioned in one place or many places and that ruling is self-

41
Abu Juhrah, Al- Shfi, pp. 162-63 (with adjustment); Al-Shfi, Al-Umm, v. 7, p. 279
42
The Sra which have not been explained by Al- Shfiare 19 in number and these are: Saba, Al-Dukhn, Al-
Ra man, Al-add, Al-qqah, Al-Naba, Al-Infiar, Al-Fajr, Al-uh, Al-Tn, Al-diyt, Al-Qriyah, Al-
Takthur, Al-Humazah, Al-Fl, Al-Kawthar, Al-Nar, and Al-Masad.
43
Out of 745 verses of 95 Sra of the Quran explained by Al- Shfi452 are related to yt al-A km and these
verses are spread across 16 Sra (Al-Baqarah, Al-Nis, Al-Tawbah, Al-Midah, Al-Anm, l-e-Imrn, Al-Nr,
Al-A zb, Al-Arf, Al-Na l, Al-Isr, Al-Shuar, Hd, Al-Anfl, Al-Anbiy, Al-ajj).
44
See: Kitb Jimal-ilm, p. 69-70, no.: 434-437, 441-443,
45
See for details along with examples: Manhaj al-Imm al-Shfifyt al-A km, Mu i Uddin, pp. 226-252

27

evident requiring no further explanation. For example: the Quranic ruling on awm and
lin. But if and when any Quranic ruling required further explanation, al-Shfiemployed
the Sunnah as the Quran frequently provides general guidelines on matters of law and
religion, which are often specified or elaborated by the Sunnah.
46


To al-Shfi, the relationship of the Sunnah to the Quran is either of three capacities: (a) the
Sunnah may consist of rules that merely confirm and reiterate the Quran (like a adth pertaining
to the five pillars of the faith and rights of the parents, respect for others property, homicide,
theft and false testimony, etc.); (b) the Sunnah may consist of an explanation or clarification to
the Quran, clarifying the ambivalent (mujmal), qualifying the absolute, or specifying the general
terms of the Qur'an (like the a adth explaining the Qur'anic expressions like alh, zakh, ajj
and rib, etc.); and (c) the Sunnah may consist of rulings on which the Qur'an is silent and the
Sunnah introduces independent rulings there (like the prohibition regarding simultaneous
marriage to the maternal and paternal aunt of one's wife, the right of pre-emption (shufa), the
grandmother's entitlement to a share in inheritance, the punishment of rajm, all originate in the
Sunnah as the Qur'an itself is silent on these matters).
47

For explaining verse 103 of sra al-Nis pertaining to alh, verse 43/83/110 of sra al-
Baqarah pertaining to zakh, verse 97 of sra l-i-Imrn pertaining to ajj for example, al-
Shfiadduced many a dth as to the timing of alh, number of obligatory prayers, their units,
status, and other relevant rulings. As for zakt he cited a dth to elaborate on the zakatable and
non-zakatable items, their conditions, rates, who to give and whom to give and other relevant
issues. For ajj, al-Shfimentioned many a dth to discuss the meaning of sabl (path) that it
is al-zd wa al-markab (provision and transport) and then he explained the prophetic
performances of ajj.
Consequently, it is clearly seen that al-Shfis use of Sunnah for the Quranic tafsr is of
five basic categories: merely mentioning the Sunnah along with the explanation of the Quran;
mentioning the Sunnah for clarifying the ambiguity of the Quran; specifying the meaning of the
Quran by virtue of the Sunnah; preferring one of different possible meanings in the light of
Sunnah; and mentioning Sunnah for augmenting his policy regarding abrogation.
48



Exegesis based on al-ijm: Al-ijm(general consensus) ensures the correct interpretation
of the Qur'an, the faithful understanding and transmission of the Sunnah, and the legitimate
use of ijtihd. The question as to whether the law, as contained in the divine sources, has
been properly interpreted is always open to a measure of uncertainty and doubt, especially in
regard to the deduction of new rules by way of analogy and ijtihd. Only ijmcan put an
end to doubt, and when it throws its weight behind a ruling, this becomes decisive and
infallible.
49


46
Abu Juhrah, Al- Shfi, p. 184-85
47
See for details: Al-Shfi, Muhammad ibn Idrs, Al-Rislah Paragraph: 97-103, pp.: 32-33, Kaml, Muhammad
Hashim, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, Revised Edition, Ilmiyah Publishers, Malaysia, pp.: 62-63
48
See for details along with examples: Manhaj al-Imm al-Shfifyt al-A km, Mu i Uddin, pp. 256-319
49
See: Kaml, Dr. Muhammad Hshim, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, p. 158

28


To al-Shfi, al-ijmis one of the fundamental sources of Islamic sharah. He would take into
consideration the ijmof the Prophet's Companions and the ijmof all scholars of the towns at
a given time. But the ijmof the people of a particular town which is opposed by people of
other town/s and a silent ijm(an ijmwhich has not been reported to be opposed by anyone)
are not accepted to al-Shfi. Al-Shfiused al-ijmfor the interpretation of the Qur'an,
especially the a km verses, but his use of al-ijmwas rather a bit implicit. It was sometimes in
the form of giving preference to the opinion of the majority. Sometimes he would report the
opinions of other without any judgment. For example, he would say, 'I heard from the people of
knowledge', or 'I heard the people of tafsr', or 'the general scholars opined', or 'a group of
scholars are of the opinion', etc.
50


Exegesis based on al-qiys: To al-Shfi, al-qiys (analogical deduction) is another
fundamental source of Islamic sharah. He would use qiys in case of non-availability of the
Qur'an and Sunnah. For applying qiys in interpreting the Qur'an, al-Shficlassified it into
three types:
51


Firstly, the new case (far) is better in terms of ruling ( ukm) than that of the original case (al)
because of the effective cause ('illah) which is in common to both. For example, while
interpreting verse 23 of sra al-Isrhe said beating the parents is prohibited because
when saying 'Fie' (Arabic uff) is prohibited then prohibiting 'striking them' is a better
ruling. He interpreted verses 7-8 of sra al-zilzalah in the same way. He said as the
person would see his/her good and bad deeds to the weight of an atom, then his/her virtue
and/or sinfulness for something better or worse is more rewarding or punishable.
52

Secondly, the new case (far) is similar to the original case (al) in terms of ruling ( ukm): On
the basis of verse 25 of sra al-Nishe deduced that a male slave (like a female salve), if
accused of illegal sexual intercourse, would be punished with 50 stripes.
53

Thirdly, the new case (far) is weaker than the original case (al) in terms of effective cause
(illah) of ruling ( ukm): On the basis of verse 233 of sra al-Baqarah al-Shfideduced
that the earning children should spend for their ageing fathers in light of the illah
(effective cause) that the fathers spend for them when they are unable to earn, so the
earning children should spend for them when they are be unable to earn.
54

Exegesis based on statements of the Companions of the Prophet: Al-Shficould not ignore
the positions of the Prophetic Companions for the understanding of the Qur'an as they
witnessed the Qur'anic revelation, lived its first-hand philosophy and were brought up by the
directions of the prophet which were quite necessarily based on the Qur'an. But he would
only subscribe to and/or prefer those opinions which agreed most with the Qur'an and
Sunnah. And if there was nothing in the Qur'an and Sunnah identical to their differed

50
See the tafsr of the following verses in Al-Farrn, Tafsr al-Imm al-Shfi: 5:5, 4:129, 56:79, 22:33 etc.
51
See: Abu Juhrah, Al- Shfi, his life and period, pp. 242-43
52
Al-Farrn, Tafsr al-Imm al-Shfi, pp. 73-74
53
Al-Farrn, Tafsr al-Imm al-Shfi, p. 74
54
Al-Farrn, Tafsr al-Imm al-Shfi, pp. 74-75

29

opinions then he would subscribe to and/or prefer the ones which were supported by the
qiys (analogical deduction) provided that the preferred opinion is not conflicting with a
clear text of the Qur'an and Sunnah.

Al-Shfiapplied the first policy while interpreting the meaning of the word 'al-quru' (monthly
course for women) in 2:228. The Companions differed on the meaning of this terminology as a
group of them opined that its meaning is three 'menstrual period' (hay ) while others opined that
the word meant three 'period of cleanliness' (tuhr) and al-Shfipreferred the first one which is
suggested by isha, Ibn Umar, Zayd ibn Thbit as that is the position of the Qur'an and the
clear text of the Sunnah. It is reported that the prophet said to Umar, 'Ask him (meaning Ibn
Umar) to divorce her in the period of cleanliness (tuhr) in which he touched her not, as that is
the period in which Allah commanded to divorce the women'.
55

Al-Shfiapplied the first policy while resolving the dispute between Aland Umar
about three juridical problems and he favored the opinion of Alas that is, according to him, is
supported by qiys. The first juridical problem is regarding the wife of a lost man. According to
Umar, the wife should wait four years for the return of her husband and if he does not come
back then she must observe a waiting period (iddah) of four months and ten days and then may
marry. But Alopined that a forgetful woman should never marry until the death or divorce of
her husband is confirmed. The second disputed issue is about a man who divorces his wife while
he is on a journey and then he retreats from divorce and takes her back (rajah). But the woman
is informed of the divorce, not of the take back (rajah), so she marries. According to Umar she
should remain with the second husband provided he intimated with her while Alopined that
she should remain with the first husband. The third issue is the matter of a man who married a
woman in her waiting period (iddah) and intimated with her. Umar opined they should be
separated and the man would never marry her whereas Alsuggested that he should marry her
latter.
56

Resultantly, al-Shfis policy for applying the statements of the Companions in
explaining the Quran stands at: his accepting their opinions in totality on any issue when are
found agreed; or preferring one of the opinions when they are disagreed and the preference is
based on the basis of the relevant indications of the Quran, Sunnah, Consensus, and Rational
Analogy; and accepting the opinion of even one Companion when he is not found opposed by
any other Companion/s.
57



Exegesis based on statements of the Successors to the Companions and their contemporary
scholars: Al-Shfiwould also consult the opinions of the Successors to the Companions
and his contemporary scholars for interpreting any Quranic word and/or verse. It was if and
when he would not find anything from the Companions of the Prophet (saas). But while

55
See the tafsr of 2: 228 by al-Shfiin Al-Farrn, Tafsr al-Imm al-Shfi
56
See for details: Al-Rz, db al- Shfiwa Manqibuh, Edited by: Abd al-GanAbd al-Khliq, Dr al-Kutub
al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1953, pp. 232-35
57
See for details along with examples: Manhaj al-Imm al-Shfifyt al-A km, Mu i Uddin, pp. 326-355

30

mentioning any opinion of the Successors, he would quite invariably make his comments
and evaluation of their statements.
58
Sometimes he would cite the opinion of At and
Mujid and would say that was Ats or Mujids opinion and he accepted that opinion.
Though there is a bit of controversy as to whether al-Shfidid that imitating (taqld) the
Successors and whether he considered their imitation permissible, it is obvious that he was
always on the lookout to augment his interpretation with a similar interpretation by any
Successor and/or his contemporary.
59


Exegesis based on linguistic study of Arabic: Al-Shfiwas from among the first who
focused on the linguistic study of the Quranic words and applied rules of language for
determining their proper implications. He classified the Quranic words into m (general)
and khs (specific); mutlaq (absolute) and muqayyad (the qualified) and classified those
further into different classifications. Thus it is seen that sometimes he interpreted the
apparent general into specific and vice-versa. For example: while he interpreted the words
shai (thing) and dbbah (living creature) respectively in 39:62 and 11:06in their general and
absolute meanings, but he interpreted the word ahl (people) of ahlah in 18:77 to indicate to
qualified general, not absolute general (meaning a section of the people of that town); and
the Quranic obligatory rulings regarding alt and awm in 02:183-84 and 04:103
respectively not as absolute general but as combining general at times and specific at other
times; and the word al-ns (the people) in 03:173, 22:73, 02: 199 and 02: 24 despite being of
apparent specificity to generality which would not incorporate all the people indicated.

Al-Shfialso extensively drew upon the Arabic language for extracting the exact meaning of
any given Quranic word. Abu Hassn al-Jundsays, I never saw anyone better able to extract
the meanings of the Quran and citing from the language in favor of that meaning than al-
Shfi
60
. For example, he interpreted the word shara in 2:150 (fa walli wajhaka sharal masjidil
arm) to mean towards and cited the poems of four renowned Arabic poets in support of his
opinion: Khiff ibn Nadbah, Sidah ibn Juaiyyah, Laqt al-Ayd, and Qays ibn Khuwaylid al-
Hu alrespectively.

:


Similarly, for the sake of determining the original meanings of the words 'wajh' (face) and 'kab'
(ankle) in 05:06, and the word mass (touch) in 56:79, he cited different poems to vindicate his
philological analysis. He said, while producing the related poetry verses, that the term 'wajh'
(face) in the verse of ablution indicate to a space between chicks, two ear-lings and the place in
forehead where hair grows and the word 'kab' (ankle) in the same verse for area exposed joint of
leg and foot.

58
Al-Rz, db al- Shfiwa Manqibuh, p. 202
59
See for further details with examples: Manhaj al-Imm al-Shfifyt al-A km, Mu i Uddin, pp. 356-368
60
Ibn ajr, Tawli al-Ta'ss, p. 89

31

It is transpired from the foregone, al-Shfis use of Arabic language for the interpretation of the
Quran was either his search for the original meanings of the words in Arabic and his employing
ancient Arabic poetry for determining the original use of those words.
61


Use of the Occasions of Revelations: Al-Shfiheavily relied on the Reasons/Occasions of
Revelations (Shn al-Nuzl) for interpreting the Quran. It was because the Quran was not
revealed to the Prophet (saas) once and at a time as a complete book, rather it was revealed
over a vast span of twenty three years, fulfilling the needs of the ongoing Islamic Movement
and facilitating the circumstances encountered by the Prophet and the Muslim Ummah. Thus
the Quranic viewpoints are to be understood on the basis of the backgrounds behind the
revelation of a particular verse. Otherwise, one is bound to commit mistake while
interpreting the Quran. Al-Shfis policy for mentioning and taking support of Shn al-
Nuzl is that he would mention the source and reference in most of the cases and would
lump together all the relevant narrations and then make preference. He would define and
determine the exact date and period of the revelations of those verse and on this basis would
decide whether anything of those was abrogated. Examples of this are abundant in his
books.
62


CHARACTERISTICS OF THE TAFSR AL- SHAFI

i. General Characteristics

Al-Shfiis the pioneer in terms of systematic approach to the exegesis of the Quran. He is the
first to deal independently with the yt al-a km. His Quranic hermeneutics is unique in many
senses. His is the earliest tafsr closer to the period of the Successors to the Companions and
their Successors. This is why he has a lasting impression on the latter Quranic exegetes
including al-Tabar, al-Rz, Ibn Kathr, al-Suytand others to the extent that it is nearly
impossible to find any book of tafsr which does not contain the opinions of al-Shfi,
especially with relation to tafsr yt al-a km. His hermeneutics is in clear contrast to the
hermeneutics of those who based their exegesis on personal opinion. He introduced a new trend
and established a new school of thought for tafsr with the formulation of new principles and
setting new rules for personal reasoning (ijtihd). His tafsr is free from biblical narratives while
remaining committed to the school of thought of ahl Sunnah wa al-Jamat. He is the first to lay
down rules for ascertaining abrogation in the Quran and his hermeneutics is the first to apply
Rules of Interpretation (mm, Kh, Mutlaq, Muqayyad etc.) for the Quranic exegesis. His
one is an invaluable and comprehensive wealth and reference at a stretch for tafsr, fiqh, ul,
adth, lughah, and other areas of scholastic knowledge.
63

The tafsr of al-Shfiis characterized by some unique distinctions like clarity and
understandability of language, simplicity yet brevity of sentences, inference of new judicial

61
See for further details with examples: Manhaj al-Imm al-Shfifyt al-A km, Mu i Uddin, pp. 356-368
62
See for more details with examples: Manhaj al-Imm al-Shfifyt al-A km, Mu i Uddin, pp. 375-393
63
See for details: Al-Farrn, Tafsr al-Imm al-Shfi, pp. 162-165

32

issues from yt al-a km, framing his school of thought and its fundamental principles in light
of the Qur'anic verses, relying on the school of thought of the pious predecessors (salf lihn)
for aqid issues, following the basic sources for Qur'anic exegesis in perfect sequential order (as
stated above), direct or indirect quotation from the opinions of others, lumping together the
opinions of others under certain verse, evaluating their opinions and giving preference to one of
those by either explicit implication of the Qur'anic text or by the Sunnah or by the implication of
Arabic language, and sometimes offering and substantiating his own opinion refuting all other
opinions. Al-Shfiwould always prefer the right opinion with any prejudice against anyone and
would mostly refer the correctness and perfection of knowledge to Allah.
64

He would also gather and lump together all relevant verses pertinent to a particular topic
and weave a central and consolidated theme out of all those verses while supporting that theme
and central point through the relatable Sunnah. For example, in chapter ilm (knowledge) of his
book al-Rislah, for answering a particular question al-Shfiput together all Quranic verses
65

related to Jihd and weaved his point out of those that Jihd is fardh (obligatory) but it is fardh
al-Kifyah.

ii. Al-Shfis Stance on Some Specific Issues

Al-Shfion the Aqid Issues: Al-Shfipointed out the issues of Islamic aqdah, especially
the controvertible ones, while interpreting the Quran. His stance on the issues of aqdah was
pure, obvious, and necessarily based on the Quranic perspective. For example, while
interpreting 5:98 and 2:143 he vindicated his position that mn is the combination of
confession and application (qawl wa amal) and while interpreting 9: 124-125, 18: 13 and
other related verses he deduced that mn actually increases and decreases. His stance on the
attributive names of Allah made clear when he interpreted 2:143. He dismissed the argument
of the ultra-rationalist mutazilite about the creation of the Quran in light of the 4: 162 and
9:6 of the Quran. He also made clear his position on other important but contested issues like
the Will of Allah and the difference between His Will (mashyat Allah) and the will of the
human beings under 76:30, the issue of Pre-destination (al-qa a wa al-qadr) and the creation
of activities (khalq al-afl), the issue of the Sight of Allah (ruiyat Allah) in light of 83: 15,
the sight of the jinn community in light of 7:27, that the Prophet (saas) is the best and above
all in light of 9: 128, 94: 4 and others, and the status of the Prophetic Companions, especially
the four rightly-guided caliphs and the civil wars during the reign of Albetween him and
Muwiyah.
66


Al-Shfiand the yt al- km: Al-Shfis Quranic exegesis is basically based on his
interpretation of yt al-a km (verses of rulings) which was collected first by al-Bayhaq
from different books of al-Shfilike Al-Rislah, Al-Umm, Ikhtilf al-adth, Jimal-ilm,
Al-Sunnah al-Mathrah, Al-Musnad, Al-Manqib, and Tawli al-Tass etc. Al-Shfis

64
See for details: Al-Farrn, Tafsr al-Imm al-Shfi, pp. 152-156
65
The verses are: 9: 111, 36, 5, 29, 38-39, 41, 122, and 4: 95, 86
66
See all relevant places in Al-Farrn, Tafsr al-Imm al-Shfi

33

exegesis of yt al-a km was based on a few policies: (1) he deduced some fundamental
principles and basic juridical rulings and some secondary rulings based on those from those
verses; (2) he inferred variegated rulings from a particular verse; (3) he supported his juridical
deductions from the particular verses by the Sunnah if found, otherwise, he used his personal
reasoning (ijtihd) for the new cases.

Al-Shfiand Abrogation: Al-Shfis stance on al-Naskh (Abrogation) is quite evidently
based on the perspective of the Quran. He said the Quran may be abrogated by the Quran
only, not by the Sunnah and the Sunnah can not abrogate the Quran as it follows the Quran
in conformity to its revealed text and explains what is ambiguous there.
67
He established his
opinion on abrogation while interpreting 10:15, 13:39, 2:106, and 16:101. For example, in the
light of 2:106 al-Shfisaid, So Allah informed us that abrogating the Quran and deferring
its revelation is not except through a similar verse of the Quran.
Similarly, the Sunnah may be abrogated by the Sunnah only, not by anything else. When asked
whether the Quran may abrogate the Sunnah, al-Shfisaid if and when Allah abrogates
anything of the Sunnah the Prophet brings about a new Sunnah replacing the previous one as if
the new Sunnah abrogated the previous one. He went further to elaborate his position on the
Sunnah being an abrogator of the Quran.
Upon examination, al-Shfi's opinion vis-a-vis the position of Sunnah for abrogation in
the Qur'an may well be classified into three:
68
firstly, for anything abrogating or abrogated in the
Qur'an the issue is substantiated partially by the Qur'an and the rest is established by the Sunnah.
For example, according to al-Shfi, 17:79 gives the impression that night-vigil prayer (alt al-
Tahajjud) was obligatory which is subsequently reduced through 73:20 and the matter is
ultimately settled by the Sunnah which proves right-away that the number of obligatory prayers
is five times a day. Secondly, both the Qur'an and the Sunnah indicate to the abrogation of
something in the Qur'an. He proved this formula right while interpreting 2:142-144 where the
qiblah was shifted to al-Kabah by the Qur'an and the Sunnah as the Prophet (saas) immediately
announced and applied that. Thirdly, the abrogation in the Qur'an is sometimes done by the
Sunnah and ijm(scholarly consensus) in case no such indication is found in the Qur'an. To al-
Shfi, 2:180 of the Qur'an is suggestive of the obligation of making a bequest for the parents
and the near relatives which is subsequently abrogated by the Sunnah as the Prophet has
reportedly prohibited it during the Liberation of Makkah
69
and the scholars have been found
unanimous on this prohibition.

Al-Shfiand l-Isti sn: Whether al-Shfiemployed al-isti sn while interpreting the
Quranic texts is a debated issue. Some argued that he used al-isti sn while others denied it
saying that he used al-isti sn but extremely rarely in some jurisprudential branch issues and
would refer those to the analogical reasoning. While studying the books of al-Shfi, one will

67
See for details: Al-Shfi, Al-Rislah Paragraph: 314, p.: 106
68
See for details: Al-Farrn, Tafsr al-Imm al-Shfi, pp. 122-128
69
This is according to a Mursal adth where the Prophet declared, 'no bequest for relatives and no Muslim is should
be killed for a non-Muslim'.

34

observe that al-Shfihas raised serious objections against isti sn, which he considers to be
a form of pleasure-seeking (taladhdhudh wa-haw) and 'arbitrary law-making in religion'
Anyone who rules or gives a fatwa on the basis of a na or on the basis of ijtihd which
relies on an analogy to the na has fulfilled his duty and has complied with the command of
the Lawgiver. But anyone who prefers that which neither God nor His Messenger has
commanded or approved, his preference will be acceptable neither to God nor to the Prophet.
Isti sn involves, according to al-Shfi, personal opinion, discretion and the inclination of
the individual jurist, an exercise which is not in harmony with the Quranic ayh which reads:
'Does man think that he will be left without guidance [an yutraka sud]? (al-Qiymah,
75:36).
Al-Ghazlhas criticized isti sn on different grounds. He has observed that the jurists of the
ShfiSchool have recognized the validity of isti sn which is based on an indication (dall)
from the Qur'an or Sunnah. When there exists a dall of this kind, then the case at hand would be
governed not by isti sn but directly by the provision of the Qur'an or Sunnah itself.
70
Al-Isti sn
is, in fact, of two categories to al-Shfi; one is permissible and praiseworthy and the other is
prohibited and blameworthy. The permissible one is which is based on the analogical reasoning
on a past precedent. If it is not based on a past precedent then it is blameworthy and prohibited.
Because al-Isti sn is the departure of a mujtahid from an identical ruling in an issue which does
have a precedent to a different ruling for an evidence more powerful than the previous one.
71

An example of his use of al-isti sn in tafsr is his opinion regarding not cutting the right hand
off of a thief if and when the thief advanced his left hand and that was cut off
72
.
To the A nf, al-isti sn is in fact a preferred analogical reasoning based on hidden
analogy (al-qiys al-Khafi). According to the majority of jurists, isti sn consists of a departure
from qiys jalto qiys khafi. When the jurist is faced with a problem for which no ruling can be
found in the definitive text (na), he may search for a precedent and try to find a solution by
means of analogy. His search for alternatives may reveal two different solutions, one of which is
based on an obvious analogy and the other on a hidden analogy. If there is a conflict between the
two, then the former must be rejected in favor of the latter.
73

For the hidden analogy is considered to be more effective and therefore preferable to the
obvious analogy. This is one form of isti sn. But there is another type of isti sn which mainly
consists of making an exception to a general rule of the existing law when the jurist is convinced
that justice and equity will be better served by making such an exception. The jurist might have
reached this decision as a result of his personal ijtihd, or the exception may have already been
authorized by any of the following: na, ijm, approved custom, necessity (darrah), or
considerations of public interest (mala ah).
74


Al-Shfiand Tolerance to Others: Al-Shfifollowed a very tolerant and moderate policy to
deal with the opinions of his opposition in tafsr as most of those were based on his personal

70
See: Kaml, Dr. Muhammad Hshim, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, p. 229
71
Al-Jund, Abdul alm, Al-Imm al-Shfi: Nir al-Sunnah, Dr-Al-Marif, 2
nd
edi, Cairo 1982, p. 243-44
72
Madkr, Dr. Mu ammad Salm, Majallah al-Fayal, Al-Shfi: Nir al-Sunnah, Issue: 23, p. 54, Year: 1979
73
Kaml, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, p. 224
74
Shabn, Ul, p. 100, See for details: Kaml, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, p. 224

35

juridical reasoning. Thus he would never excessively criticize those oppositions and would
not often mention their names. His only concern was to present his own position and make a
comparative study between his and his opponents opinion.


RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSION

i. Recommendations on the Basis of al-Shfis Methodology

Al-Shfiis the pioneer in terms of introducing and establishing some distinct policies for the
exegesis of the Quran. Al-Imm Al-Rz(Razes) said, Al-Shfis relation with the science of
Principles.. The Principles which Al-Shfifollowed across his works are essentially taken
from the Quran and Sunnah, the basis sources of Islam. He said, I wrote these books and I have
not talked on my whims there. Still mistakes are bound to be found there, as Allah said: [If it was
from anyone rather than Allah then they would have surely gotten there many disagreements
(04:82).] So if and when you would get in my books anything that would contradict the Quran
and Sunnah, then know that I retreated from that.
The principles Al-Shfimaintained while making his Quranic exegesis may be summarized
and on the basis of that I make the following propositions to be adopted by the contemporary
commentators of the Quran:
1) The Book of Allah should be given priority while interpreting the Quran, because that
contains guidance for all happenings.
2) The Sunnah of the Prophet (saas) should be given second priority, only next to the
Quran, because the Quran was revealed in the language of the Arabs and the Prophet
(saas) was the best knowledgeable in Arabic plus the recipient of that Quran, thus there
was none to understand the Quran more than the Prophet (saas).
3) The exegesis should be based on the apparent and manifest reading of its verses until or
unless it is qualified by other verses of the Quran, or Sunnah, or textual implication of
Arabic language.
4) The Quran and Sunnah should not be left conflicting between each other, rather both
should be conciliated and reconciled.
5) The Quran should not be abrogated except by the Quran, not by the Sunnah because the
Sunnah is the clarification, explanation and qualification of the Quran.
6) There should be no Biblical narrative for the explanation of the Quran, as Al-Shfihas
not mentioned anything from the biblical narratives in his Quranic exegesis, which
abound in other books of tafsr.
7) One will have to take extensively from the Arabic literature for the sake of authenticating
the meanings and implications he extracts for any word or verse of the Quran. But in this
case one will have to maintain the sequence for the basis sharah sources (i.e., the

36

Quran, the Sunnah, the Consensus, the Analogy, etc.) which has been quite invariably
followed by Al-Shfi.
75

8) The Quranic tafsr should be an integrated whole which will comprise everything from
among the issues related to interpretation, jurisprudence, principles, stories, prophetic
statements, and language etc.
9) One should lump together all relevant documents for any particular issue from the Quran
and Sunnah and discuss the issue with an open mindedness, tolerant attitude and deep
impartial investigation.

ii. Some Additional Recommendations

Beside all these, the following policies may also be adopted by an exegete while making any
new enterprise for the interpretation of the Quran, and these policies are also implicitly found in
the methodologies adopted by al-Shfi:
a) The verses of the Quran should be arranged by order of subjects/topics for the proper and
complete understanding of any particular topic. Because, many of the questions which may
arise out of a certain passage of the Quran may have their explanation in other parts of the
very same book, and often there may not any need to any sources other than the Quran.
b) The objectives of the Sharah (Maqsid al-Sharah) should be taken into consideration for
the interpretation of the Quran. These Maqsid are in fact to be found out in and taken
from the Quran.
c) The meanings of any particular srah or yah should be related to the stories/ examples
mentioned in the Quran which will resultantly give a live account of the usage of a law or
how to act in a specific situation. Allah says:
Verily, We have sent it down as an Arabic Quran in order that you may understand. We
relate to you the best of stories through Our revelations to you, of this Quran. And before
this, you were among those who were unaware (12:3).
d) The Quran and its tafsr should be related to the modern contexts, taking into consideration
the time-space factors, so that the intricate problems of the modern world, methodological
and otherwise, may be solved on the basis of the Quran.
e) The constant and unchangeable components of the Quran should be separated from the
variable and changeable components. The laws of Allah (sunan Allah) and the laws of
civilization should be kept in mind before going for any explanation of the Quran.
Because the universe as well the fall and rise of civilizations are governed by certain laws
of Allah, some of which are fix while others are general.
f) The theory of naskh (abrogation) should be reviews afresh so that the whole perspective of
the Quran may be applied in space-time consideration.
g) Experts from all branches of knowledge should be mobilized to undertake a collective
effort for formulating comprehensive and universal tafsr so that all branches of human
knowledge maybe reconstructed in light of directives and guidelines contained in the text.
76


75
See for details about this order in sharah sources by al-Shfi: Al-Farrn, Tafsr al-Imm al-Shfi, p. 40

37

h) There should be the combined and integrated reading of the Quran and the universe. These
two readings are interconnected and must occur simultaneously. It will help us use the
Quran for rectifying the prevailing methodologies of knowledge on one hand, and then the
rectified methodologies of knowledge themselves will provide a means of delving deeper
into and engendering a better understanding of the universe of the Quran
77
. This will again
help us to over-come such impasses found in the classical books centering tension and
conflict between reason and revelation
78
.


iii. Conclusion

All honest attempts at tafsr must begin with the tafsr of the Quran by Quran itself. What
remain unexplained must then be sought in the Sunnah. If the tafsr still can not be found, the
explanation of the a bah (Companions of the Prophet) and their students must then be turned
to. That which is left after the preceding steps can be found in the language of the Quran. Such
an approach to tafsr takes into account Allahs role as the revealer and explainer of His
revelation, the Prophets role as the practical interpreter of Allahs revelation, the a bah and
their students roles as the conveyers of Allahs revelation, and the Prophets interpretation and
application of it, and the role of classical Arabic as the vehicle in which the revelation and its
explanation were transmitted.
79
Besides, more innovative methods, in compliance with the
mandates of the Quran and Sunnah, may also be applied, like al-Shfis innovation of
concentrating on the legal verses of the Quran or lumping together the relevant verses to forge
an integrated Quranic perspective on a particular issue rather than a myopic, parochial, and
partial understanding of the Quranic concepts, because this will ensure the roles of the Quran
as an ever-green solutions to all problems, past, present and future.
Any other approach negates one or more of the afore-mentioned vital roles and implies either a
claim of direct revelation from God or an understanding superior to that of the Prophet (saas) and
his Companions. A brief glace at the tafsr of those ignoring these steps will expose their claims
to divine revelation cloaked in terms like ilhm (inspiration) and kashf (illumination).
80










76
Al-Alwn, Missing Dimensions in Contemporary Islamic Movements, IIIT, Herndon, VA, USA, 1996, pp. 20-
21
77
Ibid, Missing Dimensions, Al-Alwn, pp. 16-19
78
Ibid, Missing Dimensions, Al-Alwn, pp. 17
79
Bilal Philips, Usool at-Tafseer, p. 52
80
Ibid, p. 52

38

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nd
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Abd al-Sub n, Mu i Uddin, Manhaj al-Imm al-Shfifyt al-A km (A thesis submitted
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Al-Alwn, Th Jbir & Imd al-Dn Khald, The Quran and the Sunnah: The Time-Space
Factor, International Institute of Islamic Thought, 1991
Al-Alwn, Missing Dimensions in Contemporary Islamic Movements, IIIT, Herndon, VA,
1996
Al-Baihaq, A km al-Qur'n li al-Shfi, Edited by: Abd al-GanAbd al-Khliq, Dr al-
Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1980
Al-Baihaq, Manqib al-Shfi, Edited by: Al-Syyid A mad aqr
Al-Dhahabi, Muhammad usayn, Al-Tafsr wa al-Mufassirn, Maktabah Wahbah, Cairo, 1975
Al-Dhahab, Siyar Alm al-Nubal, Muassasah al-Rislah, Beirut, 3
rd
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Al-Farrn, Dr. Ahmad Ibn Mustafa, Tafsr al-Imm al-Shfi, Dr al-Tadmoria, KSA
Al-Jund, Abdul alm, Al-Imm al-Shfi: Nir al-Sunnah, Dr-Al-Marif, 2
nd
ed., Cairo
1982
Al-Qattn, Mann, Mab ith fUlm al-Qurn, Maktabah al-Marif, Riyadh, 8
th
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Al-Rz(Razes), Mu ammad ibn Abd al-Ra mn, Al-Jar wa al-Tadl
Al-Rz, db al- Shfiwa Manqibuh, Edited by: Abd al-GanAbd al-Khliq, Dr al-Kutub
al-Ilmiyyah, Beirut, 1953
Al-Shfi, Mu ammad ibn Idrs, Al-Umm, Dr al-Waf, Egypt, 1
st
ed., 2001; Al-Rislah, Dr
al-Waf, Egypt, 1
st
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st
ed.,
1985
Al-Suyt, Abdur Ra mn, Al-Itqn flm al-Qurn, Al-Halabi Press, Cairo, 4
th
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Al-abar, Mu ammad ibn Jarr, Jmial-Bayn ftawl al-Qurn, Dr al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah,
Beirut, 1
st
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Al-Zaraksh, al-Burhn fulm al-Qurn, Edited: Mu ammad Ab Fadl Ibrhm, Dr al-Fikr,
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nd
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Ibn ajr, A mad ibn Ali al-Asqalni, Tahdhb al-Tahdhb, Dr al-Fikr, Beirut, Lebanon
Ibn al-Nadm, Al-Fihrist, Dr al-Marifah Beirut

39

Kaml, Muhammad Hashim, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, Revised Edition, Ilmiyah
Publishers, Malaysia

Mokhter Ahmad, Muhammad, The Exegesis of the Quran: In Search of a new Epistemological
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2009
Madkr, Dr. Mu ammad Salm, Majallah al-Fayal, Al-Shfi: Nir al-Sunnah, Issue: 23
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International Islamic Publishing House, Riyad, 2005
































40

APPENDIX

This chart depicts the name and number of sra and verses of the Quran explained by al-Shfi. The sra
are arranged according to relatively maximum number of verses explained of each sra.

SL Names of the sra Number of verses
explained by al- Shfi
1 Al-Baqarah 83
2 Al-Nis 64
3 Al-Tawbah 50
4 Al-Midah 38
5 Al-Anm 26
6 l-i-Imrn 25
7 Al-Nr 25
8 Al-A zb 22
9 Al-Arf 18
10 Al-Na l 18
11 Al-Isr 18
12 Al-Shuar 15
13 Hd 14
14 Al-Anfl 12
15 Al-Anbiyh 12
16 Al-ajj 12
17 Al-Rad 09
18 Al-Zukhruf 09
19 Al-Muminn 08
20 Fuilat 08
21 Al-ujurt 08
22 Al-Najm 08
23 Al-ijr 07
24 Al-Furqn 07
25 Al-Zumar 07
26 Al-Fat 07
27 Al-Mujdalah 07
28 N 07
29 Al-Takwr 07
30 Ysuf 06
31 Mayram 06
32 h 06
33 Al-Rm 06
34 Al-Shr 06
35 Al-ashr 06
36 Al-Mursalt 06
37 Al-Balad 06
38 Al-Wqiah 05
39 Al-alq 05
40 Al-Muzzammil 05
41 Al-Insn 05
42 Ynus 04
43 Ibrhm 04
44 Al-Kahf 04
45 Al-Qaa 04
46 Al-Ankabt 04
47 Ysn 04
48 Al-fft 04
49 Mu ammad 04
50 Qf 04
SL Names of the sra Number of verses
explained by al- Shfi
51 Al-Jumah 04
52 Al-Munfiqn 04
53 Al-Triq 04
54 Al-Mn 04
55 Al-Fat a 03
56 03
57 Al-Mumta ina 03
58 Al-Taghbun 03
59 Al-Ta rm 03
60 Al-Marij 03
61 Al-Nzit 03
62 Al-Al 03
63 Al-Bayyinah 03
64 Al-Zilzalah 03
65 Al-Ar 03
66 Luqmn 02
67 Al-Sajdah 02
68 Ftir 02
69 Al-Jthiyah 02
70 Al-riyt 02
71 Al-Qamar 02
72 Al-aff 02
73 Al-Mulk 02
74 Al-Layl 02
75 Al-Kfirn 02
76 Al-Falaq 02
77 Al-Naml 01
78 Ghfir 01
79 Al-A qf 01
80 Al-Tr 01
81 Al-Qalam 01
82 Al-Jinn 01

41

83 Al-Muddaththir 01
84 Al-Qiymah 01
85 Al-Mutaffifn 01
86 Al-Inshiqq 01
87 Al-Burj 01
88 Al-Ghthiyah 01
89 Al-Shams 01
90 Al-Shar 01
91 Al-Alaq 01
92 Al-Qadr 01
93 Quraysh 01
94 Al-Ikhl 01
95 Al-Ns 01
Total Number of Sra
explained by al-Shfi:
95
Total Number of verses
explained by al-Shfi:
745
(Source: Al-Farrn, Tafsr al-Imm al-Shfi,
pp. 173-1