This axis gathers 2 instances of the use of this verse in Muhammad Shahrur’s books, linking it to the concepts and arguments that appear around it.
The verse as it appears
O people, eat of what is in the earth, lawful and wholesome
Brief reading
Shahrur cites it as evidence that the vocative form alone is not sufficient to determine Meccan or Medinan, and that the classification requires a more precise criterion.
Axes
- Linguistic and semantic
- Methodological
Related concepts
- Meccan and Medinan: 2
- Critique of the Meccan/Medinan division: 2
Its place in the network of concepts
It is connected to the critique of ready-made classificatory criteria in reading the Qur’anic text.
The role of the verse in the argument
- Distinction: 2
Instances of use
- The Qur’anic Narrative vol. 1, p. 83: He cites it to show that the address “O people” is not restricted to Meccan verses, since there are Medinan verses in this form.
- Concept: Meccan and Medinan
- Function of the verse here: Distinction
- Textual evidence: “In the Wise Revelation there are verses that address people and yet are Medinan, such as His saying, {O people, eat of what is in the earth, lawful and wholesome} (al-Baqara: 168)”
- The corresponding traditional reading: al-Wāḥidī’s saying: “Whatever was revealed containing ‘O people’ is Meccan.”
- The Qur’anic Narrative vol. 2, p. 83: He uses it as a counterexample to prove that the address “O people” does not necessarily imply Meccan provenance.
- Concept: Critique of the Meccan/Medinan division
- Function of the verse here: Distinction
- Textual evidence: “In the Wise Revelation there are verses that address people and yet are Medinan, such as His saying, {O people, eat of what is in the earth, lawful and wholesome} (al-Baqara: 168)”
- The corresponding traditional reading: the rule attributed to al-Wāḥidī that “whatever contains ‘O people’ is Meccan.”
Related books
This page is presented within the general method of building the atlas.