foreword
over a quarter of a century has passed since this book was
written by `allamah tabataba'i in persian - with the
express purpose of being translated into english, as part of a
trilogy whose aim was to make shi'ism better known in the
western world.' 1
commissioned originally by professor
kenneth morgan of colgate university in new york, who
came to iran with the aim of launching the project, this trilogy
was written and assembled in a short period by
`allamah
tabataba'i in persian and - in the case of the sayings of
the imams - arabic. but it is only now, with the appearance of
this translation, that the goal of the project is finally
achieved,
long after the author has left this abode of transience.
it was our task to collaborate with the `allamah, to achieve
the completion of the two works of this trilogy which he had set
out to write himself, namely
shi'ah dar islam and qur'an dar
islam. our role was to point out to this venerable master the
questions which a western audience needed to have treated
and the types of discussion that such works needed to consider,
while he himself set out to compose these books in his masterly
and at the same time unassuming style. only after the
composition of these works did he begin to select the sayings of
the imams which were to be collected and translated in the
anthology.
the completion of shi'ah dar islam - after many journeys
made by us between Tehran and Qum, where the
`allamah
resided, as well as meetings in the cool mountain retreats
surrounding tehran - turned out to be a major event for the
study of Shi'ism, not only in the West but also within Iran
itself.
even before we completed the edition and translation of the
work in English, the Persian edition with our humble
introduction appeared in iran, and soon became one of the most widely
read works on shi'ism. it seems that a work written with a
western audience in mind also bore a message of great
significance for shi'ites themselves.
While we were translating and editing Shi'ite Islam,
`Allmah
Tabataba'i terminated Qur'an dar Islam; on his advice,it was decided to
have this also published in Persian as soon as possible. This work, likewise,
became instantly popular and, like Shi'ah dar Islam, has gone into
numerous editions besides being translated into other Islamic languages.
Meanwhile, we began the translation of. Qur'an dar Islam as soon as the
publication of Shi'ite Islam: in both its English and American editions was accomplished. Many sessions were spent with the `Allamah over
various questions of translation, and the work progressed slowly because
of both the `Allamah's busy programme and our own crowded schedule.
Over half of the work was translated when our library - and with it the manuscript of the translation - was lost during the events
of 1979. It is, therefore, particularly gratifying finally to see the
appearance
of the translation of this work in English and the realization
of
the goal which was intended from the beginning.
the author of this book, `allamah sayyid muhammad husayn
tabataba'i - may god shower his blessings upon his soul - was
one of the great masters of the traditional sciences in iran
during
this century. 2 he was born in 1903 into a distinguished
family of scholars in Tabriz, where he also carried out his earliest religious studies. Like many Shi'ite scholars, he pursued more
advanced studies in Najaf and then returned to Tabriz. But in
1945, following the Soviet occupation of Azerbaijan, he came to Qum, where he
settled until his death in 1982. From this centre of Shi'ite learning
the light of his knowledge and presence began to disseminate, and
continued to spread, among students not only of that city but also
throughout iran, and
even beyond.
from the 1950s onward, his journeys to tehran became a
weekly or bi-weekly event, and he taught and conducted
intellectual discussions with a small group
of students, of which
we had the honour of being one. this activity complemented
his teaching activities in Qum. The circle in
tehran, which
included not only such well-known shi'ite scholars as
murtada mutahhari, but also (during the fall season)
henry corbin, and occasionally other western scholars of
Islam, helped to spread the influence of the
`allamah's
teachings further, and soon he became recognized as one of
the major intellectual figures of shi'ism, at once master of the
religious sciences
(especially qur'anic commentary), islamic
philosophy and gnosis (`irfan).
Despite eye-problems which continued
to hamper his activities
to the very end, `allamah tabataba'i was an extremely prolific
author. In additon to teaching
throughout he week and training
countless students, he wrote nearly every
day, and important
books and articles continued to flow from his pen. after writing
such major philosophical works as usul-i falsafay-i ri'alism
in five volumes, he edited the
Asfar of Sadr al-Din Shirazi with
his own commentary, and a selection of commentaries on other masters
prior to Shirazi in seven volumes. Later, at our request, he composed two masterly summaries of Islamic philosophy: the
badayi' al-hikam and the nahayat al-hikam.
meanwhile, parallel with all this activity in the
domain of traditional
philosophy and gnosis (about which he
wrote less in a direct manner but alluded to frequently in his philosophical works and certain shorter treatises), `Allamah
Tabataba'i continued to work indefatigably on his Qur'anic commentary, Tafsir
al-Mizan,
which he finally Completed in his mid-seventies. This monumental
commentary, consisting of some twenty-seven volumes (written in Arabic, but
also translated into Persian), is one of the most important Qur'anic commentaries of this century and is a blinding witness to the
remarkable mastery of its author in the domain of Qur'anic
sciences. This commentary, based on the principle of having one part of
the Qur'an interpret other parts (al-Qur'an yufassiru ba'dahu
ba'dan),is a summa of Islamic religious thought, in which the sciences
of the Qur'an, theology, philosophy, gnosis, sacred history and the
social teachings of islam are all brought together.
The present volume
is in a sense the synthesis of the
venerable master's life-long study
of the noble qur'an.
Although the book is written in a simple
language
and may appear to be introductory, it is a work of great depth
and synthetic quality. It treats many questions concerning the
sacred text which have rarely been discussed together in a single work. The book, although short,
distils many volumes into its pages
and is like the synopsis of a major commentary. It brings out the
significances of the Qur'an for the life of Muslims, the features of the
sacred text which seem enigmatic, the inner and outer levels
0f meaning of the Text and the sciences of Qur'anic exegesis. It also treats in a clear and direct manner the Shi'ite understanding of the
Qur'an and the role of the Imams in its interpretation. It is a veritable prolegomenon to the study of the Sacred Book, and
is perhaps the most accessible introduction available in English to the study of the Qur'an as traditionally understood by the
mainstream of Shi'ite thought, in fact Islamic exegetical
thought in general.
this book reflects, moreover, not only the learning
of the author but also his spiritual qualities `Allamah
tabataba'i
was not only an outstanding scholar but also a person
of great
spiritual realization who lived constantly in the remembrance
of god. during the twenty years during which we had the honour
of being his student, and
observing him in all kinds of
circumstances - from being alone with him in a room, to
sitting at his feet in a mosque filled with hundreds of
students - never did he cease to remember God and invoke Him.
His countenance always reflected a light which seemed to shine from the world beyond, while his gentle voice seemed to issue
from the other shore of existence. in his presence, one could not but think of god and the world of the spirit. the reality
of the qur'an, which he had studied and written about for so
many years, seemed to have penetrated into his very being,
enabling him to speak of a knowledge that was always wed to
spirituality and rooted in the sacred.
`allamah tabataba'i was at once one of the greatest
of qur'anic commentators, a leading contemporary islamic
philosopher in the tradition of Ibn Sina, Suhrawardi and Mulla Sadra and a gnostic who was at home in
both the metaphysical works of lbn `Arabi and the inebriating poetry of Ruumi and Hafiz. In him, intelligence, scholarship,
piety and the love 0f God met in a union which is encountered rarely in any age, and especially this period
of the eclipse of
the Spirit. His soul was embellished with the virtues extolled by
the Qur'an and the prophetic sunnah, while his mind explored like a soaring eagle the vast expanses of Islamic thought. To have met
him was to have met the veritable Islamic scholar (or `alim), and to gain a taste of what traditional
Islamic learning must have been when the whole of the Islamic intellectual tradition was fully
alive.
the qur'an in islam, as well as the other works by the
`Allamah, should be read now more than ever before, because the
current aberrations propagated in the name of Islam in general,
and Shi'ism in particular, necessitate an uncompromising and clear statement of the traditional Islamic perspective, as expounded
by such masters as `Allamah Tabataba'i. Moreover, the present
book marks an important addition to literature in English on the
central theophany of Islam, the Noble Qur'an. May all those interested
in the understanding of Islam be able to benefit from this book,
and also come to gain some insight into the mind and soul of a great
contemporary
Muslim scholar who lived and died in constant awareness of God,
and who saw in His Word as contained in the Noble Book at once a guide for life, the basic source of all knowledge, the sword
of discernment between truth and falsehood and a
presence whose experience makes possible here a taste of the realities of
paradise.
seyyed hossein nasr
bethesda, maryland
december, 1986
1 the other two volumes in the trilogy, shi`ite islam, edited and
translated by Seyyed Hossein Nasr, London, Allen Unwin,
and Albany, New York, SUNY Press, 1975; and A Shi`ite Anthology, selected and
with a foreword by `Allamah Tabataba'i, translated with explanatory
note by William Chittick and introduction by S.H. Nasr, London,
Muhammadi Trust, and Albany, New York, SUNY Press, 1981, have already
become well known as important sources in english for the study of shi'ism
2
We have already dealt with his life in our preface to Shi`ite
islam, pp.22-5.