The First Refutations in the History of Tafsīr: On Shārimsāḥī’s al-Maʾākhidh ʿalā Mafātīḥ al-Ghayb
Öz
Written with a view to revealing opposing ideas and evidence, refutations (raddiyya) are among the most popular works in the history of Islamic thought. This genre, predominant in theology, fiqh and linguistic disciplines during the formation period of Islamic thought, has in time come to be also visible in other fields, such as tafsīr. This occurred as continuation of the critical approaches towards different views in tafsīr, which had existed since the early periods and manifested itself more with the emergence of sects pertaining to the religious practices and dogmas. In particular, the exegetical position based heavily on personal opinion (raʾy) and reasoning has brought along opposing ideas in tafsīr as well as refutations as a new genre.
However, while the occurrence of the first refutations in Islamic culture dates back to the second century of Hijrah, the earliest known refutations in tafsīr seem to have appeared in the seventh century. The most famous work of the genre is al-Intiṣāf authored by Ibn al-Munayyir (d. 683/1284) to refute Muʿtazilite ideas held in the renowned exegesis al-Kashshāf by Jār Allāh al-Zamahksharī (d. 538/1144), to be prominent particularly after seventh Islamic century. This work was followed by al-Inṣāf written by ʿAlam al-Dīn al-ʿIrāqī (d. 704/1304) as a critique to Ibn al-Munayyir and yet another refutation against Zamahksharī, al-Tamyīz by ʿUmar al-Sakūnī (d. 717/1317). Among the refutations against al-Kashshāf is Taqī al-Dīn al-Subkī’s (d. 756/1355) Sabab al-inkifāf, in which he explains the reason why he stopped using al-Kashshāf in his classes after having taught it for many years in madrasas. A refutation of al-Bayḍāwī, al-Itḥāf by Muḥammad b. Yūsuf al-Dimashqī (d. 942/1536), which was modelled on the glosses on al-Bayḍāwī by Jalāl al-Dīn al-Suyūṭī (d. 911/1505), is also one of the well-known works of this literature.
In his Mafātīḥ al-ghayb, arguably one of the most remarkable works of the tafsīr history, Fakhr al-Dīn al-Rāzī (d. 606/1210) creates an exegesis that draws attention because of his interpretations heavily based on his personal opinion and ijtihād, as well as collecting, verifying and critically evaluating the legacy of tafsīr before him. The Mafātīḥ al-ghayb, which is rich in the author’s theological-philosophical-juridical ideas and ijtihāds, has been the target of criticisms on the grounds that it exceeds the boundaries of the tafsīr discipline and raises doubts about the fundamental articles of the religion. It is highly probable to come across criticisms against Rāzī in the biographical sources describing his life and works as well as in the tafsīr works and the literature written on them. Incidentally, between the lines of Najm al-Dīn al-Ṭūfī’s (d. 716/1316) al-Iksīr fī qawāʿid ʿilm al-tafsīr occurs that a critique of Rāzī’s exegesis was written by Shams al-Dīn al-Shārimsāḥī (d. 669/1271) and titled as al-Maʾākhidh ʿalā Mafātīḥ al-ghayb. However, this work of Shārimsāḥī’s has been given almost no attention with no study carried out on it.
ʿAbdAllah b. ʿAbd al-Raḥmān al-Shārimsāḥī, a Mālikī jurist by profession who moved to Baghdad during the reign of the Abbasid caliph al-Mustanṣir billāh (r. 1226-1242) is so unknown to us that even the exact spelling of his attributive is far from clear. Different sources give various spellings for his attributive and no work has been carried out on his life and works. Therefore, in this study, the necessity of first determining the name and biography of the author has shown itself. Secondly, based on the data obtained, it has been revealed that the afore-mentioned work by Shārimsāḥī was written before all the refutations mentioned above, thus it is one of the earliest refutations in the history of tafsīr. Based on the excerpts from the work, this paper examines its content and the factors affecting its writing as well as discussing the landmarks of the criticisms against Rāzī after Shārimsāḥī. By doing so, it aims to reveal the importance of the work in the history of tafsīr. The paper also deals with the reasons of the fact that little information has come down to us of the book in question and that very probably it is not extant although it is of historical importance. This article aims also to be an introduction to the refutations in the history of tafsīr, which have not been sufficiently studied yet, as well as a first step to bring to the light the afore-mentioned work by Shārimsāḥī as one of the earliest examples of the refutation literature.
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Tefsir Tarihinde İlk Reddiyeler: Şârimsâhî’nin El-Me’âhiz ‘Alâ Mefâtîhı’l-Gayb’ı Üzerine
Öz
Karşıt fikirlerin ve delillerin ortaya konulması esasına dayalı olarak yazılmış reddiyeler, İslâm düşünce tarihinin en gözde eserleri arasında yer alır. İslâm düşüncesinin teşekkül döneminde daha çok kelam, fıkıh ve dilbilim ağırlıklı olan bu tür, zamanla tefsir gibi diğer alanlarda da görülür. Fahreddîn er-Râzî’nin tefsirler içinde daha çok dirayet ağırlıklı bir konuma sahip olan ve müfessirin kelamî-felsefî-fıkhî pek çok re’y ve içtihadını içeren Mefâtihu’l-gayb’ı, tefsir ilminin sınırlarını aştığı ve dinin temel konularında şüpheler uyandırdığı gerekçesiyle eleştiri oklarının hedefi olmuştur. Şemseddin eş-Şârimsâhî bu esere yönelik, tefsirde reddiye türünün de ilk örneklerinden birini oluşturan el-Me’âhiz alâ Mefâtîhı’l-gayb adında bir reddiye yazmıştır. Bu makalede, kaynaklarda mevcut olan sınırlı sayıdaki verilerden hareketle söz konusu eserin yazılmasına etki eden dönemsel koşullar, eserin içeriği, tefsir tarihindeki yeri ve etkileri gibi hususlar ele alınıp incelenmiştir.
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