Preface

Andrew Rippin

The publication of a volume devoted to the Qur?an in the "companion" genre marks the emergence of the text of Muslim scripture within the canon of world literature in a manner particularly appropriate to the twenty-first century. This companion is explicitly designed to guide the reader who may have little exposure to the Qur?an beyond a curiosity evoked by the popular media. It aims to provide such a person with the starting point of a general orientation and take him or her to a well-advanced state of understanding regarding the complexities of the text and its associated traditions. However, a "companion" volume such as this is also an opportunity for scholars to extend the boundaries of what might be deemed to be the "accepted" approaches to the text of the Qur?an because such a volume provides, it is to be hoped, the material which will inspire future generations of scholars who first encounter the Qur?an in the classroom and for whom new avenues of exploration provide the excitement of research and discovery.

Organization

This companion has been organized in order to facilitate its usefulness for the groups of readers who may wish to embark on a deeper understanding of the Qur?an in its historical context and as an object of scholarly study. Part I functions as an introduction to the text but its three chapters are oriented in different, yet complementary ways. All readers, but especially those who are coming to the Qur?an with little foreknowledge of the text and/or the scholarly study of it, will find these chapters the place to start. "Introducing" the Qur?an (chapter 1) means orienting the reader to the basic facts, themselves coming from a variety of perspectives both internal and external to the text. "Discovering" the Qur?an (chapter 2) speaks to the experience of a student and considers how one might integrate the Qur?an within a framework of religious studies. "Contextualizing" the Qur?an (chapter 3) orients the reader to a Muslim scholarly perspective, putting the emphasis on the historical context in which the facts about the Qur?an are to be understood. Each chapter thus adds a level of complexity to the task of approaching the Qur?an, although each chapter recognizes certain common elements which pose a challenge to the reader, especially the question of the choice of "lens" through which one should read the text.

Part II addresses the text of the Qur?an on both the structural and the historical level, two dimensions which have always been seen in scholarly study as fully intertwined. Issues of origin and composition lie deeply embedded in all of these concerns because, it is argued, the structure of the text - which is what makes the book a challenge to read - must be accounted for through the process of history. However, the final aim of these attempts at explaining the Qur?an is directed towards a single end, that of coming to an understanding of the text. The internal structure of the Qur?an is the focus of chapter 4. These observations are complemented by an intricate series of observations about the nature of the text and its language, including the patterns of address used in the text (chapter 5), language - especially its use of literary figures - in chapter 6, the relationship between poetry and language as it affects the Qur?an (chapter 7), and the range of the vocabulary of the text that is thought to come from non-Arabic sources in chapter 8. All of these factors - structure, language, and vocabulary - combine and become manifested in the emergence of a text of the scripture within the context of a community of Muslims (chapter 9), creating the text which emerges as sacred through the complex passage of history (chapter 10), which is then transmitted through the generations of Muslims, the focus of chapter 11. All of this happens in a historical context of the early community which is shown to be foundational to the understanding of the text in both the person of Mu?ammad and his life (chapter 12) and that of the early leader ?Umar b. al-Kha??ab (chapter 13).

Such details provide an understanding of the text on a linguistic and historical level, but the overall nature of its message is fundamentally ignored in such considerations. Part III thus turns to consider some of the major topics which characterize that message. Muslims have, in fact, seen the Qur?an as all-encompassing in its treatment of human existence and an inventory of themes can really only provide examples of ways of analyzing and categorizing the contents of the scripture: there is little substitute for a rigorous study of the text itself if one wishes to gain a clear sense of what it is really about as a whole. However, certain aspects do provide key ideas and provide the opportunity to illustrate methods of approach. Dominating all of the message of the Qur?an is, of course, the figure of Allah, the all-powerful, one God revealed in the Qur?an just as He is in the biblical tradition (chapter 14), through a process of revelation brought by prophets (chapter 15), three important ones of whom in the Qur?an are Moses (chapter 16), Abraham (chapter 17), and Jesus (chapter 18). The inclusion of such prophets in the Qur?an highlights the importance of understanding the biblical background in the Qur?an (chapter 19) and its references to other religions in general (chapter 20). The message those prophets (including Mu?ammad in the Qur?an) bring argues for belief in God (chapter 21) among reflective, thinking human beings (chapter 22). However, the prophets also bring a message of how life should be lived in both love (chapter 23) and war (chapter 24).

This text of the Qur?an, as all of the preceding material has made clear, is a complex one that Muslims have always known needed interpretation. This might be said to be the nature of divine revelation, which poses the problem of how the infinity and absoluteness of God can be expressed in the limited and ambiguous format of human language. Such a situation calls for a hermeneutics that is elaborated within the framework of Islam (chapter 25) which can also draw its inspiration from a multitude of sources, always filtered through Islamic eyes and needs (chapter 26). Differing approaches to Islam developed in the Muslim world, variations which the Qur?an facilitated through its conduciveness to interpretation: thus ?ufis (chapter 27), two of the most influential of whom were Rumi (chapter 28) and Ibn al-?Arabi (chapter 29), Twelver Shi?ites (chapter 30), and Isma?ilis (chapter 31) all sought strength and support for their ideas in the text of the Qur?an and developed their own principles by which to understand the scripture. Modernity has posed its own distinct challenges that can be seen reflected in changes in the interpretation of the Qur?an (chapter 32).

However, the Qur?an has far more significance within Muslim life than as an object functioning as a ground for exegesis. The world of the Qur?an extends much further, becoming the basis of scholastic consideration and development of learning within the context of exegetical elaboration (chapter 33), theology (chapter 34), and jurisprudence (chapter 35). It is a touchstone for every discussion of ethical issues in the modern world (chapter 36), just as it was the basis for literary development in the classical world (chapter 37). Underlying all of that, however, is the status of the Qur?an not so much as a rational launching pad for further thought but as a text of devotion, as displayed in the attention to its orality and manifestation in recitation (chapter 38). The application of the Qur?an thus extends through the many aspects of Muslim day-to-day life.

Technical Considerations

A work such as this depends upon a significant number of scholars interested in making their academic work accessible to a broad reading public and a new generation of students. As editors of the volume, we would like to express our appreciation to all of the contributors - a truly international gathering of scholars - for their efforts. There is a delicate balance in a work such as this between documenting and annotating every thought and being mindful of the variety of readers who are the potential audience; thus, the number of references and endnotes has been drastically reduced but not totally eliminated, for it is in such supporting apparatus that there lies one of the sources of research directions for future generations of scholars. As well, it is notable that there clearly continues to be a need to justify many points of discussion with reference to original and secondary sources; it is perhaps indicative of the still-developing nature of Qur?anic studies that it is not possible to assume an agreed-upon core of basic data and interpretation that would simplify much of the documentation in a volume such as this.

In an attempt to eliminate some of the...