Al-Baqarah 35

5 min read

For Shahrur, this verse appears as an early entry point for understanding human error in terms of will, rather than ignorance alone. It therefore recurs in contexts linking the approach to what is forbidden with the onset of wrongdoing in the personal sphere.

Text of the Verse as Cited

{And We said, “O Adam, dwell—you and your wife—in the Garden, and eat from it freely wherever you both wish; but do not approach this tree, lest you both become among the wrongdoers.”}

Reader’s Answer

Question

How does Muhammad Shahrur employ Qur’an 2:35 in interpreting the relationship of command and prohibition to awareness, will, and wrongdoing?

Shahrur uses the verse as an initial example of teaching Adam and his wife a specific command and prohibition: the prohibition is against approaching the tree, and the consequence of violating it after becoming aware of the command is that they become among the wrongdoers. In this context, he links wrongdoing to knowledge of the error and freedom of will, and describes it as wrongdoing committed against oneself. The evidence does not establish that the verse advances a general theory according to which every prohibition against approaching always encompasses all preliminaries and means.

Shahrur reads the prohibition against approaching the tree as an early, concrete example of teaching command and prohibition to Adam and his wife. He connects the description of wrongdoing in the verse with violating the command after it has been received and understood, and with the presence of free will that enables a person to choose violation. In his presentation of the verse, Shahrur describes Adam’s violation of the prohibition as wrongdoing he committed against himself.

Evidence and Location

The State and Society — p. 107.

Limits of the Reading

  • This presentation is limited to Shahrur’s use of the verse on page 107 of The State and Society and does not offer a comparative interpretation of the verse in other exegetical works.
  • The evidence links wrongdoing to awareness of the violation and free will in the context of Adam’s example; by itself, it is insufficient to establish a comprehensive and definitive definition of wrongdoing in all Qur’anic usages.
  • The evidence does not support an independent claim that “do not approach” signifies a general theory of blocking preliminaries or means; if mentioned, it should therefore be presented as a possibility requiring additional evidence, not as an established conclusion.

Continue From Here

Brief Reading

For Shahrur, the verse is read as evidence that violation begins when a choice is made after knowledge, and that wrongdoing here is directed first toward oneself. It is also used to clarify that the prohibition of “approaching” precedes the act and encompasses its preliminaries, rather than only its outcome.

Axes

  • Narrative and historical
  • Human and ethical
  • Approaching: 3
  • Wrongdoing: 2
  • Will and wrongdoing: 2
  • The Garden: 2

Its Place in the Network of Concepts

It occupies a central place in the Adam narrative and in the construction of the meaning of wrongdoing as a volitional act. It also enters the network distinguishing approaching from direct commission, and linking the story of humanity’s beginning to the meaning of individual responsibility.

The Verse’s Role in the Argument

  • Foundational: 4
  • Example: 1

Summary of Its Presence in the Atlas

  • Foundational for the meaning of volitional wrongdoing
  • An example of the meaning of the prohibition against approaching
  • Present in the story of Adam and the Garden

Contexts of Use

  • The State and Society, p. 107: He makes it an early example showing that wrongdoing is the deliberate violation of the divine command after awareness of it.
    • Concept: wrongdoing
    • Function of the verse here: foundational
    • Textual evidence: “From His—exalted be He—words: {And We said, ‘O Adam … lest you both become among the wrongdoers.’}”
  • The State and Society, p. 107: He uses it to establish that wrongdoing begins with the human being when he chooses violation knowingly and through free will, and that Adam’s wrongdoing was against himself rather than against others.
    • Concept: will and wrongdoing
    • Function of the verse here: foundational
    • Textual evidence: “So that we may understand the relationship between will and wrongdoing, we must begin from His—exalted be He—words: {And We said, ‘O Adam … lest you both become among the wrongdoers.’} (al-Baqarah 35) … Adam deliberately violated the divine command when he approached the tree; this was the first error committed by the human being with premeditation, and he was thus called a wrongdoer.”
  • Qur’anic Narratives, vol. 2, p. 7: He cites the verse to support his reading of the meaning of the Garden in Adam’s story within his interpretation of Qur’anic narratives.
    • Concept: the Garden
    • Function of the verse here: foundational
    • Textual evidence: “Such as the Garden in His—exalted be He—words: {… O Adam, dwell—you and your wife—in the Garden …} (al-Baqarah 35, al-A‘raf 19).”
  • Toward New Foundations for Islamic Jurisprudence, p. 109: He makes it an example of the meaning of the prohibition against approaching as barring direct commission and becoming entangled in the prohibited act.
    • Concept: approaching
    • Function of the verse here: example
    • Textual evidence: “— {And eat from it freely wherever you both wish; but do not approach this tree} (al-Baqarah 35).”
  • Toward New Foundations for Islamic Jurisprudence, p. 110: He cites it to show that “do not approach” means a prohibition against merely approaching something.
    • Concept: approaching
    • Function of the verse here: foundational
    • Textual evidence: “As in His—exalted be He—words: — {And eat from it freely wherever you both wish; but do not approach this tree} (al-Baqarah 35).”

This page is presented within the general methodology for constructing the atlas.

Graph View

Muhammad Shahrur Atlas