This axis brings together 1 instance of the use of this verse in the books of Muhammad Shahrur, linking it to the concepts and arguments that appear around it.
The Text of the Verse as Cited
“Had there been gods in them other than God, they would both have been corrupted”
Reader’s Answer
Question
Where does Shahrur cite The Prophets 22, what distinction does he connect it to, and what function does it serve in his argument?
The citation appears in the Book and the Qur’an, p. 369, as he moves to defining democracy. The function of the verse in this context is to support his distinction between God’s freedom and democracy, which he defines as the exercise of freedom among a group within a frame of reference.
Shahrur cites The Prophets 22 in the context of defining democracy, after discussing freedom and progressivism. He distinguishes between God’s being free and His being democratic; for democracy, in his definition, presupposes the exercise of freedom among a group within a frame of reference. He cites the verse to explain why this description does not apply to God.
Citation and Location
the Book and the Qur’an — p. 369.
Limits of the Reading
- The citation establishes the location of the verse in The Prophets 22 and its occurrence in the Book and the Qur’an, p. 369; it does not provide a detailed interpretation of the phrase “they would both have been corrupted.”
- The citation does not explicitly state that the verse establishes the concept of “the one divine frame of reference” in these terms; what is explicitly stated is its connection to the definition of democracy and its requirement of multiple parties exercising freedom by agreement within a frame of reference.
- The interpretation of the adjacent verse from The Night Journey is not transferred to The Prophets verse or made evidence for its meaning.
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Brief Reading
Shahrur uses the verse to establish that a plurality of gods or supreme frames of reference leads to corruption, and that the divine frame of reference is one.
Axes
- Faith-related
- Methodological
Related Concepts
- Plurality and corruption: 2
- Unity of the divine frame of reference: 1
Its Place in the Network of Concepts
It belongs to the network of unifying the frame of reference and denying associationism in judgment and meaning.
The Verse’s Role in the Argument
- Support: 1
Instances of Use
- the Book and the Qur’an, p. 369: He cites it to establish that a plurality of divine frames of reference leads to corruption; therefore, God is one, with no partner in authority.
- Concept: Plurality and corruption
- Function of the verse here: Support
- Textual citation: “God is free, but He is not democratic… In this regard, the Exalted said: {Had there been gods in them other than God, they would both have been corrupted} (The Prophets 22).”
Related Books
This page is presented within the general atlas-building methodology.