What is meant
What is meant is that motherhood is not limited to biological birth; it also includes the one who raises the child, cares for them, and contributes to forming their consciousness. Therefore, the mother may be the one who performs the role of upbringing and care, not only the one who gave birth.
The atom’s structure in the atlas
- Type of argument: definitional
- Movement of the argument: expands the meaning of motherhood to include care and formation, not birth alone.
- Key terms: motherhood, birth, care, formation of consciousness.
- Degree of centrality: central.
It reconstructs motherhood as an educational and social role, not merely a biological event, so it also includes the one who provides care and formation.
Links that help with reading
- Muhammad Shahrur Islam and Faith
- Women, the Family, and Clothing
- Family distinction in the Qur’an redefines fatherhood, motherhood, and adoption
Basis
- Supporting text: «Expands the concept of motherhood and fatherhood to include the one who raises, cares, and forms consciousness, not only the one who gives birth.»
Degree of documentation
- Level: directly documented
- Meaning of the level: the atom relies on an explicit witness close to the wording of the claim.
- Limits of reading: the wording above is an analytical summary and should not be treated as a verbatim quotation unless the witness is quoted 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
Motherhood is a nurturing function before it is a bodily description.