This axis gathers 2 places where this verse is used in Muhammad Shahrur’s books, linking it to the concepts and arguments that appear around it.

Verse text as cited

And how many a generation We destroyed before them. Do you perceive any of them or hear from them a sound?

Brief reading

The verse is cited to portray the destruction of civilizations and peoples as a complete disappearance that leaves no trace.

Axes

  • Narrative and historical
  • Political and social
  • Destruction: 2
  • Disappearance: 2
  • Erasure of trace: 1
  • Nations: 1

Its place in the network of concepts

It is connected to the historical law of destruction and the fate of unjust societies.

The verse’s role in the argument

  • Example: 1
  • Support: 1

Uses

  • Drying Up the Sources of Terrorism, p. 291: He cites it to affirm that civilizations and peoples perish without return or trace.
    • Concept: destruction
    • Function of the verse here: example
    • Textual evidence: «because He says: {And how many a generation We destroyed before them …} (Maryam 98).»
  • Drying Up the Sources of Terrorism, p. 291: He uses it as evidence that historical destruction leads to the erasure of traces and the absence of any remaining mark or presence.
    • Concept: disappearance
    • Function of the verse here: support
    • Textual evidence: «For all of them perished without return, because He says: {And how many a generation We destroyed before them …} (Maryam 98).»

This page is presented within the general method of building the atlas.