Ya-Sin 20–21

2 min read

This locus 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.

Text of the verse as cited

{And from the farthest part of the city came a man running. He said, “O my people, follow the messengers (20). Follow those who ask of you no payment and who are rightly guided.”}

Reader’s response

Question

How does Shahrur employ Ya-Sin 20–21 in his discussion of the types of guidance?

Shahrur places the two verses within what he calls “guidance by creation,” contrasting it with guidance by coercion and guidance by argument and evidence. However, at this point he does not explain how the details of the man’s story in the verses lead to this classification.

Shahrur cites Ya-Sin 20–21 as an example of “guidance by creation” within his division of guidance into three types.

Evidence and location

The State and Society — p. 297.

Limits of the reading

  • The citation presents the classification directly, but does not explain how “guidance by creation” applies to the verses.
  • This citation should not be expanded into a general theory about animals or innate disposition without other evidence explaining this.

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Brief reading

Shahrur cites them as an example of innate guidance that occurs in beings without conscious choice.

Axes

  • Methodological
  • Faith-based
  • Guidance by creation: 2

Place in the conceptual network

It serves to distinguish between acquired guidance and instinctive guidance.

Role of the verse in the argument

  • Example: 1

Occurrences of use

  • The State and Society, p. 297: He mentions it as an example of a type of innate/created guidance that occurs in beings without conscious choice.
    • Concept: guidance by creation
    • Function of the verse here: example
    • Textual citation: “1—Guidance by creation, such as that of the angels, as in His—exalted be He—saying: {…} (Ya-Sin 20, 21); and God has guided cattle by creation.”

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

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Muhammad Shahrur Atlas