The Mutashabih: Stability of the Text and the Mobility of Content
Editorial verification status: this atom is extracted from an explanatory audiovisual source, and it has now been linked to the closest books within Shahrur’s project at the book level. For precise academic citation, consult the original book and the original episode together.
Formulation of the claim
Shahrur defines the mutashabih as a text whose form is fixed but whose meaning or content is mobile.
That is, the wording remains, while the possibilities of understanding or interpreting it are renewed.
Explanation
He says that the mutashabih combines the stability of the text with the mobility of content.
This means that the linguistic surface does not change, but its meaning interacts with context and knowledge.
In his view, the mutashabih appears as a bridge between the text and changing reality.
He also distinguishes it from the closed muhkam.
Its place in the argument of the episode
This idea explains why the text as a whole is not reduced to rigid rulings.
It supports Shahrur’s view of the Qur’an’s capacity for contemporary reading.
Limits of the claim
This does not mean that all of the text is mutashabih, but rather that a specific layer of it is so.
Brief citation
“The mutashabih is the stability of the text and the mobility of content”
Nearby links
- Shahrur - the Qur’an
- Shahrur - the muhkam
- Book: A Guide to the Contemporary Reading of the Wise Revelation