Meaning
The text explains that kalālah does not have a single meaning; rather, it is understood in two distinct forms. There is a first form of kalālah, in which a spouse is present but there are no children or ascendants; and a second form, in which the spouse is absent along with the absence of ascendants and descendants.
Structure of the Atom in the Atlas
- Type of argument: Interpretive.
- Argument movement: It divides kalālah into two distinct forms.
- Central terms: kalālah, two forms, spouse.
- Degree of centrality: Secondary.
It prevents kalālah from being unified under a single meaning and proposes an internal distinction that helps determine the ruling according to the presence or absence of a spouse.
Links That Aid Reading
- Muhammad Shahrur, Towards New Foundations for Islamic Jurisprudence
- the Book, the Qur’an, and the Mother of the Book
- The Verse of Light Establishes a Minimum Limit for Dress and Leaves the Rest to Custom
Evidence
- Supporting text: “He interprets kalālah in two ways: a first kalālah with a spouse present and no children or ascendants, and a second kalālah with the spouse absent and with no ascendants or descendants.”
Location of the Evidence in the Book
- Book: Towards New Foundations for Islamic Jurisprudence.
- Location: At the beginning of the book, in its discussion of inheritance and bequest and its reading of the relevant verses.
- Type of evidence: Close textual witness.
- Verification marker: Restricting the meaning of walad in the verse.
- Reading note: This passage serves as evidence because it shows his reliance on a precise distinction between forms of kinship and exclusion in inheritance.
Degree of Documentation
- Level: Directly documented.
- Meaning of the level: The atom relies on an explicit witness close to the formulation 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 cited word for word.
Its Function in the Book
Its function here is definitional: it specifies a meaning or conceptual distinction on which Shahrur relies in constructing the idea.
Related To
Note for the Reader
The atom establishes a division that reduces ambiguity.