This axis brings together 1 locus where this verse is used in Muhammad Shahrur’s books, linking it to the concepts and arguments that appear around it.
Text of the verse as cited
So woe to those who perform ṣalāh—those who are heedless of their ṣalāh.
Reader’s answer
Question
Where does the verse occur, and what does the evidence establish about its reading and function in Shahrur’s argument?
The verse occurs in Sūrat al-Māʿūn (4–5). Shahrur presents the exegetical reading that makes the warning concern one who is lax in performing ṣalāh at its appointed times, then makes it one side of a problem in which he compares this warning with the warning addressed to deniers and criminals in Sūrat al-Mursalāt. The evidence does not establish a semantic distinction between “ṣalāh” and “ṣalawh.”
Shahrur presents an inherited interpretation that understands the verses of al-Māʿūn as a warning to one who is lax in performing ṣalāh at its appointed times. He employs the verses of al-Māʿūn in a comparison with the warning addressed to deniers and criminals in Sūrat al-Mursalāt, and holds that equating the remiss believer with the criminal denier in punishment is incompatible with divine justice as he formulates it in this passage.
Evidence and location
Islam and Faith — p. 253.
Limits of the reading
- The evidence establishes the location of the verse in Sūrat al-Māʿūn (4–5), as well as Shahrur’s presentation of the exegetical reading and his comparison with the verses of al-Mursalāt.
- The evidence does not explicitly distinguish between “ṣalāh” and “ṣalawh”; this distinction therefore cannot be presented here as an established conclusion derived from it.
- The evidence does not establish the alternative meaning Shahrur ultimately reaches for the verse; rather, it establishes the problem with which he opens the inquiry.
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Brief reading
He uses it to discuss the traditional reading that restricts the meaning to one who is lax in ṣalāh, as a prelude to distinguishing ṣalāh from ṣalawh.
Axes
- Faith-related
- Human and ethical
Related concepts
- ṣalāh: 2
- ṣalawh: 1
- Laxity: 1
Place in the conceptual network
It is connected to a semantic distinction that leads to a reunderstanding of religious action.
Role of the verse in the argument
- Critique of tradition: 1
Usage loci
- Islam and Faith, p. 253: He uses it to discuss the traditional interpretation that regards it as concerning only one who is lax in ṣalāh, as a prelude to distinguishing the meaning of ṣalāh from ṣalawh.
- Concept: ṣalāh
- Function of the verse here: Critique of tradition
- Textual evidence: “And he removes the ambiguity surrounding God’s saying in Sūrat al-Māʿūn (4–5): {So woe to those who perform ṣalāh—those who are heedless of their ṣalāh}, and the consideration of this statement as directed at one who is lax in performing ṣalāh at its appointed times, as the books of exegesis maintain.”
- Corresponding traditional reading: Exegetical works that regard it as directed at one who is lax in ṣalāh at its appointed times
Related books
This page is presented within the general atlas construction methodology.