The Qur’an’s Miraculousness Lies in Its Freedom from Redundancy and Synonymy
Editorial verification status: This atom has been extracted from an explanatory audiovisual source, and it has now been linked to the nearest books within Shahrur’s project at the book level. For precise academic citation, consult the original book and the original episode together.
Statement of the claim
Shahrur links Qur’anic miraculousness to the text being free of redundancy, excess, and unnecessary synonymy.
Explanation
He rejects the idea that miraculousness should be understood only as traditional rhetoric or verbal beauty. He says that the strength of the Wise Revelation lies in the precision of its structure and the absence of surplus words. For that reason, he holds that every letter in the muṣḥaf has a function, and that any apparent repetition is not redundancy but a semantic necessity. This shifts miraculousness from “ornamentation” to “semantic economy.”
Its place in the episode’s argument
This idea supports Shahrur’s entry into reading “the positions of the stars” as a deliberate structure rather than an arbitrary expression.
Scope of the claim
It does not deny the existence of linguistic beauty, but it does not make that the sole basis of miraculousness.
Brief witness
“There is no redundancy, no synonymy, and no extra letter.”
Related links
- Shahrur - the Qur’an
- Shahrur - jurisprudence
- Book: The Qur’an in Contemporary Thought