This axis gathers 3 places where this verse is used in Muhammad Shahrur’s books, linking it to the concepts and arguments that appear around it.
The verse text as cited
God has sent down the best discourse: a Book, consistent in its mutual resemblance, repeated in pairs
Brief reading
The verse is taken as an entry point for understanding the structure of the Qur’an as a Book of mutual resemblance and paired repetition, and for determining the place of the Seven Oft-Repeated within it.
Axes
- Methodological
- Linguistic and semantic
Related concepts
- The Seven Oft-Repeated: 3
- The Mutashābih: 2
Its place in the network of concepts
It serves the construction of the general conception of the Qur’anic text’s structure and its relation to repeated pairs and mutual resemblance.
The verse’s role in the argument
- Foundational: 2
- Supportive: 1
Places of use
- The Book and the Qur’an, p. 145: He relies on it to see that revelation relates to the Seven Oft-Repeated as a Book of mutual resemblance and paired repetition, not merely as a separate revealed text.
- Concept: The Seven Oft-Repeated
- Role of the verse here: Supportive
- Textual citation: «{God has sent down the best discourse: a Book, consistent in its mutual resemblance, repeated in pairs} (al-Zumar 23).»
- A Guide to the Contemporary Reading of the Wise Revelation, p. 34: He uses it to argue that the Seven Oft-Repeated are part of the Book of prophethood, and that the Qur’an as a whole falls within the structure of mutual resemblance and repeated pairs.
- Concept: The Seven Oft-Repeated
- Role of the verse here: Foundational
- Textual citation: «{ God has sent down the best discourse: a Book, consistent in its mutual resemblance, repeated in pairs } (al-Zumar 23).»
- A Guide to the Contemporary Reading of the Wise Revelation, p. 42: He makes the verse evidence that the Qur’an belongs to the mutashābihāt, with the Seven Oft-Repeated appended to it within this classification.
- Concept: The Mutashābih
- Role of the verse here: Foundational
- Textual citation: «So the Qur’an is among the mutashābihāt, with the Seven Oft-Repeated added to it, which are the best discourse: { God has sent down the best discourse: a Book, consistent in its mutual resemblance, repeated in pairs… } (al-Zumar 23).»
Related books
This page is presented within the general methodology of building the atlas.