Intended Meaning
Muhammad Shahrur presents dialectic as a general law that governs the universe. It is not limited to outward conflict, but includes the movement between binaries within a thing and between things. This law also extends to the human brain and the human soul, that is, to the domains of consciousness and inner change as well.
The Atom’s Structure in the Atlas
- Type of argument: historical
- Argument movement: he makes dialectic a cosmic law governing movement and change.
- Key terms: dialectic, general law, universe, evolution.
- Degree of centrality: central.
He presents dialectic as a general explanatory mechanism for binaries and transformations in beings and in consciousness. In doing so, he links understanding the universe to the idea of continuous movement rather than static immobility.
Links that help with reading
- Muhammad Shahrur, the Book and the Qur’an
- History, Evolution, and Sunnas
- Dialectic and duality are two laws for explaining change
Basis
- Supporting text: “Dialectic: the movement of binaries and the internal and external struggles that govern the universe and the human being. Glorification: affirming the law of movement, development, and separation/transformation in beings.”
Its Location in the Book
- Book: the Book and the Qur’an.
- Location: in the middle section of the book, within the discussion of the development of life and legislation
- Type of basis: close witness.
- Verification cue: the development of life and its requirements are the marker
- Reading note: the location links the development of life to the changing of rulings, and makes this development the marker for applying the verses. It is close to the idea that dialectic is a general law governing the universe and life.
Degree of Documentation
- Level: structurally documented
- Meaning of the level: the atom rests on more than one witness or on a clear synthesis of close expressions.
- Reason for classification: the text explicitly states that it is a general law in the universe in closely related terms.
- Limits of reading: the formulation above is an analytical summary and should not be treated as a verbatim quotation unless the witness is quoted verbatim.
Its Function in the Book
Its function here is declarative; it establishes a conclusion on which what follows in the argument depends.
Related to
Editorial note
The atom explains the cosmic law as stated, without additional expansion.