This axis brings together 1 occurrence of the use of this verse in the books of Muhammad Shahrur, linking it to the concepts and arguments that appear around it.
Text of the Verse as Cited
… He creates you in the wombs of your mothers, creation after creation…
Reader’s Answer
Question
How does Muhammad Shahrur employ the Almighty’s statement, “He creates you in the wombs of your mothers, creation after creation,” in interpreting the term “mother”?
Shahrur employs the verse to connect the description “mother” to pregnancy: in his view, the woman who carries the fetus in her womb, nourishes it from her blood, and cares for it during pregnancy is called a “mother.” He adds that this woman is also a “woman who gives birth,” since the qualities of motherhood and giving birth are combined in her. His citation of the verse is not limited to establishing the gradual nature of creation; rather, he treats the phrase “in the wombs of your mothers” as support for defining motherhood in terms of pregnancy and the fetus’s bodily care.
Shahrur holds that the use of the term “mother” in the verse pertains to the woman who carries the fetus, nourishes it from her blood, and cares for it in her womb during pregnancy. Shahrur maintains that, in this context, the pregnant woman combines the qualities of “mother” and “woman who gives birth.”
Citation and Location
Islam and Faith — p. 181.
Limits of the Reading
- The citation is from a single page in Shahrur’s book, and establishes his way of employing Qur’an 39:6, not the validity of this linguistic or exegetical distinction beyond his presentation.
- His statement should not be reduced to the claim that the “mother” is merely a vessel of creation; the quoted text mentions pregnancy, nourishment from the blood, and care in the womb, then describes the pregnant woman as both mother and woman who gives birth.
- His citation of Qur’an 19:15 and 90:3 appears in the passage to define giving birth as delivery and emergence from the womb, but it is not sufficient here to establish a broader relationship between all occurrences of “mother” and “parent” in the Qur’an.
Continue from Here
Brief Reading
It is cited to establish that the mother is the vessel of gradual creation in the womb, not merely a name for the biological woman who gives birth.
Axes
- Human and Ethical
- Faith-Based
Related Concepts
- Motherhood: 2
Its Place in the Conceptual Network
It is connected to motherhood as a meaning that goes beyond direct biological signification.
Role of the Verse in the Argument
- Support: 1
Occurrences of Use
- Islam and Faith, p. 181: It is cited to establish that the mother is the vessel of gradual creation in the womb, not merely a name for the biological woman who gives birth.
- Concept: Motherhood
- Function of the verse here: Support
- Textual citation: “{… He creates you in the wombs of your mothers, creation after creation…} (Al-Zumar 6).”
Related Books
This page is presented within the general methodology for building the atlas.