Research Article

REFERENCES TO AL-QUSHAYRI IN ET-TEYSÎR Fİ’T-TEFSÎR BY UMAR AL-NASAFI

Volume: 14 Number: 1 June 30, 2023
EN TR

REFERENCES TO AL-QUSHAYRI IN ET-TEYSÎR Fİ’T-TEFSÎR BY UMAR AL-NASAFI

Abstract

Since their inception, every discipline has had a point of emphasis in their tafsir of the Qur'an. While faqihs, Kalam scholars, and Islamic philosophers interpreted the Qur'an intellectually, representa-tives of Sufism chose to interpret the Qur'an intuitively and emotionally. According to the mutasawwif, the ayahs of the Qur'an possess meanings that may be comprehended by anybody, as well as secrets that are revealed only to those whose nafs is disciplined and soul purified. These interpretations, which provide a secondary meaning aside from the apparent meanings of Qur'anic ayahs, are referred to as ishari tafsir. Al-Qushayri, who followed in the footsteps of his mentor al-Sulami, is among those who produced tafsir in this script. The aim of al-Qushayri, who wrote the tafsir titled Lata'if al-isharat, was to situate the interpretations of the Sufis, which seemed to be contradictory to the Shari'ah, within the framework of the Ahl as-Sunnah. The fact that the large majority of these interpretations did not conflict with the aspects of sharia placed privilege on his tafsir and caused it to receive more good reception and popularity compared to its equals. The objective of individuals with this comprehension is to purify themselves from everything in existence other than Allah, as they are a mere shadow, and to succumb into Allah, the true entity. Through this method he introduced, al-Qushayri set an example for certain scholars who followed the same path after him. Umar al-Nasafi, one of the interpreters, jurists and narrators of the Qarakhanid period, wrote the work titled at-Taysir fi't-Tafsir by combining the methods of riwaya and diraya. Al-Nasafi enriched his tafsir with quotations from mufassirs such as Muqatil, Tabari, al-Farra, Zajjaj, and Sa'labi. He made ishari references originating from Māturīdī, who followed a Hanafist direction, in apostrophic sub-jects, and from al-Qushayri on subjects related to sufism. It is observed that these narrations are focused on the acts of Allah, His dispositions over His servants, the characteristics of individuals and mumins in the Qur'an, and ayahs related to iman, ikhlas, ihsan and Istiqamah. Furthermore, commands and parables on ibadah and ahkam, ayahs concerning the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), and praised and condemned behaviors are among the other topics that are narrated. Al-Nasafi mostly excluded his personal views from the interpretations he conveyed from al-Qushayri. He must have transmitted these ishari interpretations in his tafsir in order to promote Islam, which had recently begun to spread, to the locals within the framework of the Hanafi-Māturīdī creed and the tolerance of Sufism. In the present study, Lata’if al-isharat and at-Taysir fi’t-Tafsir are discussed in general terms, examples of ayahs related to the acts of Allah, His commands to people, and the ayahs related to iman, İslam, ikhlas, ihsan and Istiqamah emphasized by the Sufis are compiled and the ishari tafsir approach in the two works is analyzed. Additionally, al-Nasafi's comments on the parables narrated in the Qur'an as examples for people, especially the prophets, and the commen-taries of al-Qushayri on the ishari tafsir of certain muqatta letters are discussed. The ishari quotes that Nesefî systematically made mostly from Kuseyrî's Letâifu'l-işârât constitute the subject of this study. Our aim is to reveal the ishari dimension of Nasafî tafsir, which has been handled from other angles, as far as we can see, and to bring the Kuseyri influence in the work to the attention of scientific circles. One of the motives that guided us here was to turn to the verses about the concepts that the Qur'an uses to build a believer. At the same time, since the main purpose of the discipline of Sufism is to raise virtuous individuals who have good morals and are aware of their responsibility to both their creator and the beings around them, we have preferred the verses in this manner more. Since the tafsir of Nasafi contains very intense ishari transfers, we generally have had to be content with a few sample sentences in order to reduce the repetitions in the interpretations we identified. It has been concluded that al-Qushayri, who approached the ayahs in his tafsir with the idea of fana fillah, influenced al-Nasafi to a great extent with his interpretations.

Keywords

Sufism , Ishari tafsir , al-Qushayri , Umar al-Nasafi , at-Taysir fi’t-Tafsir.

References

  1. Akpınar, Ali. “İşari Tefsir ve Kuşeyri'nin Besmele Tefsiri”. Tasavvuf İlmî ve Akademik Araştırma Dergisi. Ankara: 3/9 (2002), 53-92.
  2. Aslantürk, Ayşe Hümeyra. “Nesefi, Necmeddîn”. Türkiye Diyanet Vakfı İslam Ansiklopedisi. 32/571-573. İstanbul: TDV Yayınları, 2006.
  3. Aslantürk, Ayşe Hümeyra. Ebû Hafs Ömer en-Nesefî (öl. 537/1142) “et-Teysîr fi’t-Tefsîr” Adlı Eserinin Tahlîli ve el-Bakara Sûresi’nin Tenkidli Neşri. İstanbul: Marmara Üniversitesi, Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü, Doktora Tezi, 1989.
  4. Ateş, Süleyman. “Hakâiku’t-tefsîr”. Türkiye Diyanet Vakfı İslam Ansiklopedisi. 15/163-165. İstanbul: TDV Yayınla-rı, 1997.
  5. Ateş, Süleyman. İşârî Tefsir Okulu. İstanbul: Ankara Üniversitesi İlahiyat Fakültesi Yayınları, 1998.
  6. Bekiroğlu, Haydar. “Kuşeyrî’nin Letâif’inde İşârî Anlam Dünyası”. Gümüşhane Üniversitesi İlahiyat Fakültesi Der-gisi. 6/12 (2017), 89-119.
  7. Can, Melike. Ömer Nesefi Tefsirinde Hacc sûresi'nin Tahkik ve Değerlendirmesi. İzmir: Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi, Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü, Yüksek Lisans Tezi, 2020.
  8. Çetin, Mustafa. “Havâtimü’s-süver”. Türkiye Diyanet Vakfı İslâm Ansiklopedisi, 16/526. İstanbul: TDV Yayınları, 1997.
  9. Demirci, Muhsin. Konulu Tefsire Giriş. İstanbul: MÜİFAV Yayınları, (2.Basım, 2013.)
  10. Ebû Ubeyd Kasım b. Sellâm Abdillah el-Herevî, en-Nâsih ve’l-mensûh fi’l-Kur’âni’l-Azîz, thk. Muhammed b. Salih el-Müdeyfir, Riyâd: Mektebetü’r-Rüşd/Şeriketü’r-Riyâd, 1997.
ISNAD
Nair, Ahmet. “Ömer Nesefî’nin Et-Teysîr Fi’t-Tefsîr’inde Kuşeyrî’ye Yapılan Atıflar”. Mesned İlahiyat Araştırmaları Dergisi 14/1 (June 1, 2023): 21-41. https://doi.org/10.51605/mesned.1285887.