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Scripture and Exegesis in Early ImÄmÄ« Shiism
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Since the publication in 1921 of Ignaz Goldziher's Die Richtungen der islamischen Koransauslegung, which includes a discussion of ImÄmÄ« exegesis, no comprehensive work on this topic has appeared. In the intervening years, important ImÄmÄ« commentaries on the QurâÄn have become available, making possible a reappraisal of the subject. The present study aims to contribute to this task, primarily by examining the features and methods of ImÄmÄ« exegesis. Principally, it offers a description and analysis of the major tenets of ImÄmÄ« doctrine, as reflected in the earliest ImÄmÄ« works of exegesis and related sources, up to the Major Occultation of the twelfth Imam in 329/941. These include, among others, the belief in a primordial covenant between God and the ShÄ«âa, and the superhuman and mystical qualities with which the Imams were graced, such as their God-given, infinite knowledge, their intercession on behalf of their community, their immunity from sin and error, etc. Other tenets relate to the attitude of ImÄmÄ« ShÄ«âism to its enemies, e.g. the duty to denigrate and dissociate from them. These and similar ideas are constant motifs in ImÄmÄ« exegesis, and are linked time and again with various QurâÄnic verses.
Relying on classical and modern Arabic sources, SunnÄ« and ShÄ«âÄ« alike, as well as on a wide range of western research, Meir Bar-Asher sheds new light on the ImÄmÄ« methods of exegesis and on the principal ImÄmÄ« doctrines as reflected in the early ImÄmÄ« exegetical corpus.
Relying on classical and modern Arabic sources, SunnÄ« and ShÄ«âÄ« alike, as well as on a wide range of western research, Meir Bar-Asher sheds new light on the ImÄmÄ« methods of exegesis and on the principal ImÄmÄ« doctrines as reflected in the early ImÄmÄ« exegetical corpus.
Meir M. Bar-Asher, Ph.D. (1991) in ShÄ«âÄ« studies, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, is a senior lecturer at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He has published on Muslim philosophy, ShÄ«âÄ« exegesis and NusayrÄ« religion.
'This study is very thorough in its scope and very deep in its analytical treatment of textsâ¦It is a very difficult project that is carried out quite well. Bar-Asher's book is a must for anyone interested in the early development of the ShÄ«'Ä« tradition.'
Kamran S. Aghaie, Islamic Studies, 2000.
Kamran S. Aghaie, Islamic Studies, 2000.
All those interested in intellectual history of Islam, the history and early development of ShÄ«âÄ«sm and QurâÄn exegesis, and specialists in Muslim theology.