Hud 102

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This axis brings together 2 instances of this verse’s use in the books of Muhammad Shahrur, linking it to the concepts and arguments that appear around it.

Text of the verse as cited

Such is the seizure of your Lord when He seizes the towns while they are wrongdoing. Indeed, His seizure is painful and severe.

Reader’s answer

Question

Where does the verse occur, what does wrongdoing mean for Shahrur, and what function does it serve in his argument?

The verse occurs in Surat Hud, verse 102. In the attached passage, Shahrur defines wrongdoing as an act arising from will, with prior knowledge of its error and consequences; he then invokes Hud 102 among verses through which he links the destruction of towns to their being wrongdoing. The evidence alone does not establish that the verse posits conscious collective conduct or denies that wrongdoing may pertain to an individual.

Shahrur presents wrongdoing as a voluntary act committed with prior knowledge of its error and consequences. He invokes Hud 102 in the context of returning to the verses that link the destruction of towns to their being wrongdoing.

Evidence and location

The State and Society — p. 109.

Limits of the reading

  • The evidence does not state that wrongdoing here is “conscious collective conduct.”
  • The evidence does not establish that the destruction of a town can relate only to collective action, nor does it contrast individual wrongdoing with collective wrongdoing in interpreting Hud 102.
  • The evidence does not establish an independent elaboration of the meaning of the term “towns” or of the mechanism by which wrongdoing occurs within them.

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Brief reading

The verse serves as a basis for linking the destruction of towns to the prevalence of wrongdoing within them—that is, to collective conduct rather than a single individual.

Axes

  • Political and social
  • Human and ethical
  • Destruction of towns: 2
  • Wrongdoing: 2
  • Collective conduct: 1

Its place in the network of concepts

It is connected to the concept of wrongdoing when it becomes a general condition in society.

Role of the verse in the argument

  • Foundational: 1
  • Supporting: 1

Atlas pages that refer to this verse

These links gather the pages that rely on the verse or make it part of the argument within the atlas.

Contexts of use

  • The State and Society, p. 109: He uses it to establish that a town is seized when wrongdoing prevails in it, as a prelude to linking destruction to conscious collective conduct.
    • Concept: Destruction of towns
    • Function of the verse here: Foundational
    • Textual evidence: “Here we need to return to the verses that linked the destruction of towns to wrongdoing, in His—Exalted is He—saying: {Such is the seizure of your Lord … while they are wrongdoing} (Hud 102).”
  • The Qur’an in Contemporary Thought, p. 20: He employs it to reinforce his idea that unjust unilateral societies reject criticism and thereby enter into destruction.
    • Concept: Wrongdoing
    • Function of the verse here: Supporting
    • Textual evidence: “He—Exalted is He—says: {Such is the seizure of your Lord when He seizes the towns while they are wrongdoing…} (Hud 102).”

This page is presented within the general atlas construction methodology.

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Backlinks2

Muhammad Shahrur Atlas