The Relationship of God to the Cosmos as the Relationship of the Speaker to Speech
Editorial verification status: This atom is extracted from an explanatory audio-visual source, and has now been linked to the nearest books within the Shahrur project at the book level. For exact academic citation, consult the original book and the original episode together.
Formulation of the claim
Shahrur describes God’s relationship to the cosmos as resembling the relationship of the speaker to speech, not the relationship of a part to a whole.
Explanation
By this he means to establish that the cosmos is created by God’s command, issuing from Him, but is not a part of His essence. He draws on the concept of “the words of God” in the Revelation, considering existence itself to be understood as words and laws issued by the divine speaker. In this way, he rejects any conception that merges the Creator with the created or makes the cosmos a purely self-manifestation.
Its place in the episode’s argument
This idea establishes the distinction between the Creator and creation, and between the divine law and cosmic reality, and serves as an entry point for interpreting words, verses, and messages.
Limits of the claim
Here he does not fully explain the metaphysical how; rather, he offers an explanatory analogy.
Brief witness
“The relationship of the cosmos to God is the relationship of speech to the speaker.”
Related links
- Shahrur - the Qur’an
- Shahrur - the testimony
- Shahrur - shirk