Towards Understanding the Qur'an. Sayyid Abul A'la Mawdudi
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But leaving such people aside, a word may be said to those whose critical comments are motivated by the desire to understand things better. The latter would do well to study the Qur’an carefully, noting down any place where they find that it has propounded either some doctrine or concept, or laid down some rule for practical conduct, relevant for the Arabs alone and exclusively conditioned by the peculiarities of a certain place or time. If, while addressing the people of a particular area at a particular period of time, attempting to refute their polytheistic beliefs and adducing arguments in support of its own doctrine of the unity of God, the Qur’an draws upon facts with which those people were familiar, this does not warrant the conclusion that its message is relevant only for that particular people or for that particular period of time.
What ought to be considered is whether or not the Qur’anic statements in refutation of the polytheistic beliefs of the Arabs of those days apply as well to other forms of polytheism in other parts of the world. Can the arguments advanced by the Qur’an in that connection be used to rectify the beliefs of other polytheists? Is the Qur’anic line of argument for establishing the unity of God, with minor adaptations, valid and persuasive for every age? If the answers are positive, there is no reason why a universal teaching should be dubbed exclusive to a particular people and age merely because it happened to be addressed originally to that people and at that particular period of time. No philosophy, ideology or doctrine consists of mere abstractions and is totally unrelated to the circumstances in which it developed. Even if such an absolute
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abstraction were possible it would remain confined to the scraps of paper on which it was written and would fail totally to have any impact on human life.
Moreover, if one wishes to spread any intellectual, moral and cultural movement on an international scale, it is by no means essential, in fact it is not even useful, for it to start on a global scale. If one wishes to propagate certain ideas, concepts and principles as the right bases for human life, one should begin by propagating them vigorously in the country where the message originates, and to the people whose language, temperament, customs and habits are familiar to its proponents. It will thus be possible to transform the lives of the people into a practical model of the message. Only then will it be able to attract the attention of other nations, and intelligent people living elsewhere will also try to understand it and to spread it in their own lands.
Indeed, what marks out a time-bound from an eternal, and a particularistic national doctrine from a universal one, is the fact that the former either seeks to exalt a people or claims special privileges for it or else comprises ideas and principles so vitally related to that people’s life and traditions as to render it totally inapplicable to the conditions of other peoples. A universal doctrine, on the other hand, is willing to accord equal rights and status to all, and its principles have an international character in that they are equally applicable to other nations. Likewise, the validity of those doctrines which seek to come to grips merely with questions of a transient and superficial nature is time-bound. If one studies the Qur’an with these considerations in mind, can one really conclude that it has only a particularistic national character, and that its validity is therefore time-bound?
[ IX ]
Those who embark upon a study of the Qur’an often proceed with the assumption that this Book is, as it is commonly believed to be, a detailed code of guidance. However, when they actually read it, they fail to find detailed regulations regarding social, political and economic matters. In fact, they notice that the Qur’an
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has not laid down detailed regulations even in respect of such oft-repeated subjects as Prayers and Zakah (Purifying Alms). The reader finds this somewhat disconcerting and wonders in what sense the Qur’an can be considered a code of guidance.
The uneasiness some people feel about this arises because they forget that God did not merely reveal a Book, but that He also designated a Prophet. Suppose some laymen were to be provided with the bare outlines of a construction plan on the understanding that they would carry out the construction as they wished. In such a case, it would be reasonable to expect that they should have very elaborate directives as to how the construction should be carried out. Suppose, however, that along with the broad outline of the plan of construction, they were also provided with a competent engineer to supervise the task. In that case, it would be quite unjustifiable to disregard the work of the engineer, on the expectation that detailed directives would form an integral part of the construction plan, and then to complain of imperfection in the plan itself. (This analogy should elucidate the position of the Prophet vis-à-vis the Qur’an, for he clarified and elaborated the Qur’an, supplementing its broad general principles by giving them precise and detailed forms, and incorporating them into practical life, his own as well as that of his followers. Ed.)
The Qur’an, to put it succinctly, is a Book of broad general principles rather than of legal minutiae. The Book’s main aim is to expound, clearly and adequately, the intellectual and moral foundations of the Islamic programme for life. It seeks to consolidate these by appealing both to man’s mind and to his heart. Its method of guidance for practical Islamic life does not consist of laying down minutely detailed laws and regulations. It prefers to outline the basic framework for each aspect of human activity, and to lay down certain guidelines within which man can order his life in keeping with the Will of God. The mission of the Prophet was to give practical shape to the Islamic vision of the good life, by offering the world a model of an individual character and of a human state and society, as living embodiments of the principles of the Qur’an.
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[ X ]
The Qur’an is strong in its condemnation of those who indulge in schismatic squabbling after the Book of Allah has been revealed, so causing a weakening of faith;8 yet there has been considerable disagreement over the correct interpretations of the Qur’anic injunctions, not only among later scholars, but even among the founders of the legal schools and the Successors.9 Indeed, disagreement can be traced back even to the times of the Companions10 of the Prophet. One can hardly point to a single Qur ’anic verse of legal import which has received complete unanimity as regards its interpretation. One is bound to ask whether the Qur’anic condemnation applies to all who have disagreed in this way. If it does not, then what kind of schism and disagreement does the Qur’an denounce?
This is quite a problem and its ramifications cannot be considered at length here. The reader may rest assured that the Qur’an is not opposed to differences of opinion within the framework of a general agreement on the fundamentals of Islam and the broad unity of the Islamic community. In addition it is not opposed to disagreement arising from an earnest endeavour to arrive at the right conclusions on a particular subject; the only disagreements condemned by the Qur’an are those arising out of egotism and perversity, leading to mutual strife and hostility.
The two sorts of disagreement are different in character and give rise to different results. The first kind is a stimulus to improvement and the very soul of a healthy society. Differences of this kind are found in every society whose members are endowed with intelligence and reason. Their existence is a sign of life, while their absence only serves to demonstrate that a society is not made up of intelligent men and women but of blocks of wood.
8 See Qur’an 2: 7; 6: 159; 42: 14; 3: 105; 8: 46. – Ed.
9 The word “Successors” has been used as the equivalent of Tabi[un, i.e. those who benefited from the Companions of the Prophet. – Ed.
10 The word “Companions” has been used as the equivalent of Sahabah, i.e. those who, in a state of belief, enjoyed the companionship of the Prophet (peace be on him). – Ed.