The Cave 18

3 min read

This thematic 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 Verse Text as Cited

﴿… HAD YOU LOOKED UPON THEM, YOU WOULD HAVE TURNED FROM THEM IN FLIGHT AND WOULD HAVE BEEN FILLED WITH TERROR OF THEM﴾

Reader’s Answer

Question

How does Muhammad Shahrur employ Qur’an 18:18 in explaining the meaning of “terror”?

Shahrur employs the verse as an example of the terror aroused by a frightening sight: the sight of the youths of the Cave in their prolonged sleep, which would cause the observer to flee and be filled with terror. Therefore, in this part of his presentation, he does not restrict the significance of terror to scenes of killing or fighting.

Shahrur reads God’s saying, “HAD YOU LOOKED UPON THEM, YOU WOULD HAVE TURNED FROM THEM IN FLIGHT AND WOULD HAVE BEEN FILLED WITH TERROR OF THEM,” as an example of terror being associated with a frightening sight that makes bodies shudder: the sight of the youths of the Cave in their prolonged sleep.

Evidence and Location

Draining the Sources of Terrorism — p. 42.

Limits of the Reading

  • This explains Shahrur’s way of employing the verse in his book; it is not a comprehensive interpretation of the verse or a sole determination of the meaning of “terror” in the Qur’an.
  • The evidence establishes Shahrur’s connection of the verse to the frightening sight, but the excerpt does not provide a broader linguistic or contextual elaboration of the verse’s meaning.
  • The description of details of the youths’ appearance, such as the length of their hair and nails, occurs in Shahrur’s wording within the cited passage; it does not entail that these details are stated in the verse itself.

Continue From Here

Brief Reading

The verse is used as an example that terror may arise from a frightening sight, not from fighting alone.

Axes

  • Human and ethical
  • Political and social
  • Terror: 2

Its Place in the Conceptual Network

It supports expanding the concept of terror beyond the image of direct violence.

The Verse’s Role in the Argument

  • Example: 1

Instances of Use

  • Draining the Sources of Terrorism, p. 42: He cites it to show that terror may arise from a frightening sight, not only from killing and fighting.
    • Concept: terror
    • Function of the verse here: example
    • Textual evidence: “{… AND YOU WOULD HAVE BEEN FILLED WITH TERROR OF THEM} (The Cave 18).”

This page is presented within the general atlas-building methodology.

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Muhammad Shahrur Atlas