This axis brings together 1 locus where this verse is used in the books of Muhammad Shahrur, linking it to the concepts and arguments that appear around it.
The Verse Text as Cited
And fruit of whatever they choose, and the meat of birds that they desire
Reader’s Answer
Question
Where do the two verses occur, what distinction does Shahrur draw from them, and what function do they serve in his argument?
The two verses occur in Surat al-Waqi’ah (20–21). Shahrur cites them to distinguish instinct as the satisfaction of hunger from desire as the choice of the type of food and its method of preparation on the basis of human knowledge. The verses support his idea that the mention of desiring bird meat does not negate the instinctual nature of food, because desire, in his view, concerns selection, processing, and preparation.
Shahrur presents verses 20–21 of al-Waqi’ah among examples of human desires connected with food and drink, linking them to human seeking and wanting based on knowledge rather than on involuntary behavior. He distinguishes filling the stomach as an instinct from the type of food and how it is processed and prepared as a domain in which desires associated with human knowledge arise. The function of the verses from al-Waqi’ah in his argument is to address the objection that food is an instinct, by showing that the desire for bird meat refers, in his view, to the aspect of desire involved in selection and preparation, rather than denying the instinctual nature of food.
Citation and Location
The State and Society — p. 179.
Limits of the Reading
- The citation does not provide a complete contextual interpretation of Surat al-Waqi’ah, nor does it determine the significance of the two verses outside their use in this distinction.
- The citation does not establish that the terms “they choose” and “they desire” are synonymous or semantically opposed independently; rather, it cites them as part of his argument concerning desires related to food.
- The explanation is limited to Shahrur’s formulation in the cited passage and does not judge the validity or generality of the distinction.
Continue From Here
Brief Reading
Shahrur treats the verse as evidence that desire is connected to selection and awareness in food, rather than to mere natural eating.
Axes
- Human and ethical
- Methodological
Related Concepts
- Conscious choice: 2
- Desire: 1
- Food: 1
- Selection: 1
Its Place in the Conceptual Network
It serves his distinction between conscious desire and natural behavior.
The Verse’s Role in the Argument
- Example: 1
Loci of Use
- The State and Society, p. 179: He treats it as evidence that desire is connected to selection and awareness in food, rather than to mere unreasoned natural eating.
- Concept: Conscious choice
- Function of the verse here: Example
- Textual citation: “- {And fruit of whatever they choose (20), and the meat of birds that they desire} (al-Waqi’ah 20, 21).”
Related Books
This page is presented within the general atlas construction methodology.