Intended Meaning
The spirit here is understood as the knowledge and legislation associated with the human being. It is not an abstract meaning, but rather one that is bound to what directs the human being and grants him awareness and order.
The Atom’s Structure in the Atlas
- Type of argument: definitional
- Movement of the argument: It redefines spirit as knowledge and legislation linked to the human being.
- Key terms: spirit, knowledge, legislation, human being.
- Degree of centrality: central.
It shifts the spirit from an abstract meaning to a cognitive and regulatory function, making it tied to human awareness and practical guidance.
Links that help with reading
- Muhammad Shahrur: A Guide to the Contemporary Reading of the Wise Revelation
- the contemporary reading method
- spirit
- the human being
- the human being as a conscious rank and spirit as knowledge and legislation
Basis
- Supporting text: “Spirit: the knowledge and legislation associated with the human being.”
Degree of Documentation
- Level: directly documented
- Meaning of the level: The atom rests on an explicit witness close to the wording of the claim.
- Limits of the reading: The formulation above is an analytical summary and should not be treated as a verbatim quotation unless the witness is transmitted word for word.
Its Function in the Book
Its function here is definitional; it fixes a meaning or conceptual distinction that Shahrur relies on in building the idea.
Related to
Editorial note
This definition of spirit affects the construction of his concept of the human being and meaning, so it is not a marginal detail.