Citation location: Episode 07: Epistemology: Existence, Truth, and the Words of God, at 05:11–05:12. Audible quotation: “Nonexistence—nonexistence—is the existence of the signifier without a signified.”
Nonexistence as a Signifier Without a Signified
Source note: This page summarizes explanatory audiovisual material. References to books provide nearby context and are not literal evidence; for precise citation, consult the original episode and book.
Formulation of the claim
Shahrur defines nonexistence as “a signifier without a signified,” that is, a cognitive or symbolic form that remains without external realization. Before actual existence, things exist in God’s knowledge as signifiers without signifieds in the world.
Explanation
He uses the example of a mathematical equation to explain that a symbol may exist before its signified exists in reality. In this way, he links nonexistence not to absolute nothingness, but to a mental or epistemic presence that has not yet been embodied. This allows him to say that the universe, before creation, existed in God’s knowledge in the form of signifiers. Creation, then, is the transition from cognitive determination to existential realization.
Its place in the argument of the episode
This unit paves the way for explaining the relationship between divine knowledge and the universe, and supports the idea that creation is not from “emptiness” in the sense of meaninglessness.
Limits of the claim
This does not mean that nonexistence is a material thing existing in its own right.
Brief witness
“Nonexistence is the existence of the signifier without a signified.”
Related links
- Shahrur - the Qur’an
- Shahrur - the Decisive Text
- Shahrur - Islam and Faith