This locus brings together 4 instances of the use of this verse in Muhammad Shahrur’s books, linking it to the concepts and arguments that appear around it.
Text of the Verse as Cited
But if they are more than that, then they are partners in one-third
Reader’s Answer
Question
How does Shahrur employ the phrase “then they are partners in one-third” from Al-Nisa’ 12?
In the available citation, Shahrur does not employ this passage to establish the order of bequest and debt or to detail the division of inheritance. Rather, he invokes it as an example of the Qur’anic use of the word “partners” in the sense of sharing in property or a right. He places it alongside the verses from Ta-Ha and Al-An‘am to support his reading of the word mushrik as connected to partnership in a relationship or property, rather than confined solely to a doctrinal meaning.
Shahrur cites the phrase “then they are partners in one-third” among Qur’anic examples of the meaning of partnership and sharing.
Citation and Location
Islam and Faith — p. 53.
Limits of the Reading
- The verse presented here is part of the context of inheritances, but the available citation does not show that Shahrur adduces it to establish that division takes place after bequest and debt. This function should therefore not be attributed to him on the basis of this citation.
- The citation does not explain the meaning of “one-third” or offer a juristic elaboration of inheritance division; it merely includes the phrase in a series of examples for the word “partners.”
- The attached citations from “Toward New Foundations for Islamic Jurisprudence” are not suitable for this locus, because they are not connected to the verse or to its concept of partnership.
Continue from Here
Brief Reading
Shahrur reads the verse within the ordering of rights in inheritance and takes it as evidence that division comes after bequest and debt.
Axes
- Legislative
- Linguistic and semantic
- Methodological
Related Concepts
- Partnership: 2
- Inheritance: 2
- Ordering among rights: 2
- Kalala: 2
Its Place in the Conceptual Network
It is connected to the concept of partnership in property and to the structure of inheritance as an ordering rather than merely a division.
The Verse’s Role in the Argument
- Support: 2
- Foundation: 1
- Context: 1
Instances of Use
- Islam and Faith, p. 53: He cites it for the linguistic meaning of partnership, in support of his interpretation of mushrik as a partner in a relationship or property, not merely in creed.
- Concept: partnership
- Function of the verse here: support
- Textual citation: “{… But if they are more than that, then they are partners in one-third…} (Al-Nisa’ 12).”
- The Qur’an in Contemporary Thought, pp. 30–31: He employs it to show that the division of inheritance is also conditional upon bequest and debt, and that it is not confined to the inherited juristic formulation.
- Concept: inheritance
- Function of the verse here: support
- Textual citation: “- {And for you is one-half of what your wives leave… after any bequest they make or debt} (Al-Nisa’ 12)”
- Toward New Foundations for Islamic Jurisprudence, p. 179: He adduces it to establish that the wife’s share is taken from the net estate after bequest or debt, not before it.
- Concept: ordering among rights
- Function of the verse here: foundation
- Textual citation: “And He said: { … then for them is one-eighth of what you leave, after a bequest you make or debt } (Al-Nisa’ 12)”
- Toward New Foundations for Islamic Jurisprudence, p. 210: He mentions it as background for distinguishing between the first and second kalala, without quoting its text here.
- Concept: kalala
- Function of the verse here: context
- Textual citation: “After He—glorified be He—clarified the shares of the heirs in the case of the first kalala, with the presence of a spouse (female or male), in verse (Al-Nisa’ 12).”
Related Books
This page is presented within the general atlas construction methodology.