"Tafsir" means informing and discovering. It is the process of informing and explaining. "Tawil"
means pulling back or escaping. "Tafsir " comes to mean giving a meaning. "Tawil" is selection
of one of the meaning among many meanings. It is not permissible (Jaiz) to make "Tafsir"
according to one's own opinion. "Tafsir" is performed according to the rules of transmission
("Riwayat" or "Nakl"). On the other hand, "Tawil" is done according to one's knowledge and
capabilities. In one hadith, Rasulullah, peace be upon him, said, "A person who interprets the
Qur'an according to his own opinion is in clear error even if he is right." It is not correct tosay such and such is the meaning of the speech (Kalam) of Allahu ta’ala without investigating
first whether that such and such is in any way commented by Rasulullah, peace be upon him, or
by his companions or that whether it conforms to the interpretations (Tafsirs) of the previous
scholars or to the methodology of the knowledge of interpretation, or without knowing the
Arabic language that was spoken at the time of Rasulullah, peace be upon him, i.e., the "Quraish"
dialect, or without thinking about reality (Haqiqat) and metaphoric (Majaz) aspects of it, or
without being able to differentiate whether it is general, personal, concise (Mujmal), or detailed
(Mufassal), and without investigating the reason of why that such and such verse (Ayat) was
revealed, or whether it is "Nasih" or "Mansuh." "Tafsir" means one's being able to understand
from the sayings of Allahu ta’ala what Allahu ta’ala meant with that saying. Even if one's
interpretation according to his own opinion is correct, since it is not derived by following the
proper methodology, it is a mistake. If one's interpretation according to his own opinion is not
correct then, it would cause disbelief. Similarly, transmitting hadiths without knowing whether
they are correct (Sahih) or corrupt, whether it be they are correct (Sahih) or not, would be a sin.
It is not permissible (Jaiz) for such a person to read hadiths. It is necessary to get a diploma
(Ijazat) from hadith scholars in order to make hadith-transmission from the hadith books. In one
hadith, Rasulullah, peace be upon him, said, "A person who invents a phrase and says that it
is hadith, will be punished in hell." It is permissible (Jaiz) for those who do not have diplomas
(Ijazat) from the interpretation (Tafsir) scholars to talk or write about verses of the Qur'an by
looking at the interpretation books written by interpretation scholars. The people who possess
above written conditions can make transmission (Nakl) of interpretation and hadith without
having a written diploma. It is not permissible (Jaiz) to receive money in order to give diplomas.
It is necessary (Wajib) to give the diploma to a person who demonstrates the necessary
qualifications. It is forbidden to give the diploma to those who do not possess the necessary
qualifications.
In the following hadiths Rasulullah, peace be upon him, said, "Those who give meaning to the
Qur'an without having the necessary qualifications will be punished in hell," and "Those
who say something as hadith without knowing it, will be punished in hell," and "Those who
give meaning to the Qur'an according to their own opinion will be punished in hell." The
corrupt persons (Ahl al-bidat) who recite or quote hadiths or verses of the Qur'an in order to
prove their corrupt paths are of this kind.
[Shiis, Wahhabis, followers of the Tablig al-Jamaat, Mawdudi, and Sayyid Qutb are of this kind.
Yusuf an-Nabhani, may Allahu ta’ala be pleased with him, expalins these corrupt tafsirs at length
in his book Shawahid-ul-hak. Those who assert that Qur'an has an inner meaning as well as a
literal meaning in order to give meanings according to their own opinions are also of the type
which are mentioned in above hadiths. Those who make interpretations by using the meaning of
the words that are prevalent in their current time are also among the above-mentioned types.
One of the Ottoman scholars Nuh bin Mustafa Konawi, may Allahu ta’ala be pleased with him,
who passed away in 1070 Hijri, 1660 A.D. at Cairo, Egypt says the following in his translation
of the book Milal wa Nihal which is written by Muhammad Shihristani, may Allahu ta’ala be
pleased with him: the people who are in "Isma'iliyya" group are called as such because they say
that they are the followers of Isma'il, may Allahu ta’ala be well pleased with him, who was the
elder son of the Ja'far as-Sadik, may Allahu ta’ala be well pleased with him. They are also called
"Batiniyya" group. Because they said that Qur'an has an inner meaning (Batin) as well as a
literal meaning. They said that the literal meanings of the Qur'an are the limited meanings which
are cast by the "Fiqh" scholars and the inner meaning of the Qur'an is like an endless ocean.They believed in the inner meanings that are fabricated by themselves instead of following the
literal meanings of the Qur'an. Rasulullah, peace be upon him, transmitted the literal meanings of
the Qur’an to his companions, may Allahu ta’ala be well pleased with them. Leaving the literal
meanings aside and following fabricated inner meanings causes disbelief. They tried to destroy
Islam from within by this kind of tricks. Fire worshipers (Majusi), especially, their leader
Hamdan Kurmut, in order to stop the spreading of Islam, invented these tricks and established
Karamuta State. He killed the persons who were making pilgrimage (Hajj) to "Ka'ba" and
moved the "Hajar al-aswad" from "Ka'ba" to the Basra. They fabricated such sayings as, "Jannat
is following the worldly pleasures and hell is following the rules of the religion." They named
prohibited actions (Harams) as fine arts. They lead the youngsters to hedonistic, pleasure-filled
life style by deceiving them and saying to them that those things that are decreed as prohibited
actions and sins (Fuhush) by Islam are moral-exercises. Their state perpetrated much harm to
Islam. They were destroyed in 372 Hijri 983 A.D. by the Divine wrath.]
Interpretation (Tafsir) should be done according to the principles of transmission (Nakl). In
order to perform interpretation, one should be knowledgeable about the following fifteen kinds
of knowledge (Ilm): language, dialect or words (Lugat), syntax (Nahv), grammar (Sarf),
etymology (Ishtikak), meaning (Ma'ani), explanation (Bayan), ornament of speech (Badi'),
reading (Kira'at), methodology of religion or bases of religion (Usul-i din), Islamic jurisprudence
(Fiqh), reason or cause of the revelation of the verses of the Qur’an (Asbab-i nuzul), the one
which cancels a previous verse (Nasih) and canceled verse (Mansuh), methodology of Islamic
jurisprudence (Usul-i fiqh), Hadith, and knowldege of spiritual heart (Ilm al-qalb.) It is not
permissible (Jaiz) for one who does not know these subjects to make interpretation of the
Qur'an. The knowledge of spiritual heart (Qalb)" or "Mawhiba" is a kind of knowledge which
Allahu ta’ala sends without an intermediary to pious scholars who follow Islam minutely. In one
hadith, Rasulullah, peace be upon him, said, "Allahu ta’ala teaches the secret things if one
practices the things one knows." It is not permissible (Jaiz) for anyone who does not know
above-mentioned fifteen subjects to make interpretation. If one performs interpretation without
knowing them then one will be doing it according to one's own opinion and will be deserving to
be punished in hell. In one hadith, Rasulullah, peace be upon him, said, "A person's heart will
be filled with wisdom (Hikmat) by Allahu ta’ala and he will start to tell them if he practices
Islam with sincerity 'Ikhlas' for forty days." Anyone who gives meanings to the metaphoric
(Mutashabih) verses of the Qur'an will be considered as one of those who performed
interpretation according to his own opinion. The interpretation of corrupt persons (Ahl al-bidat)
who deviated from the right path is of this kind.
There are three types of knowledge (Ilm) in the Qur'an. Allahu ta’ala did not inform anyone
about the first type. The reality of His Person (Zat) and His attributes and telling about unknown
are in this category. The second type is the secret knowledge He revealed to His prophets.
Prophets may reveal these to those whom Allahu ta’ala chooses. He taught the third type of
knowledge to His prophets, peace be upon them, and ordered them to teach this knowledge to all
of their followers (Ummat). The third type is also divided into two sections. The first one is
learned only by hearing. Knowledge about the Doomsday (Qiyamat) is of this kind. The second
one is learned by observing, examining, reading and understanding its meaning. Knowledge
which pertains to belief and Islam is in this category. Even, "Mujtahid" Imams could not be able
to understand with certainty Islamic knowledge which are not informed through the "Nass"
clearly and had different opinions. Thus, various schools of thought (Madhhabs) came into
being with respect to practice (Amal). The activity of those who derive meanings by followingthe fifteen subjects mentioned above is not called interpretation (Tafsir) but instead it is called
"Tawil" because, these meanings include his own understanding. In other words, he selects one
among the many meanings that are apparent to him. If the one he selects does not conform to the
literal and clear meanings of the verses of the Qur'an and hadiths or to the unanimity (Ijma),
then, it is invalid (Fasid). The book Barika, while explaining that the dancing is forbidden
(Haram), includes the following, "We are not ordered to practice our religion according to the
interpretation books. We are ordered to follow the Fiqh books."
means pulling back or escaping. "Tafsir " comes to mean giving a meaning. "Tawil" is selection
of one of the meaning among many meanings. It is not permissible (Jaiz) to make "Tafsir"
according to one's own opinion. "Tafsir" is performed according to the rules of transmission
("Riwayat" or "Nakl"). On the other hand, "Tawil" is done according to one's knowledge and
capabilities. In one hadith, Rasulullah, peace be upon him, said, "A person who interprets the
Qur'an according to his own opinion is in clear error even if he is right." It is not correct tosay such and such is the meaning of the speech (Kalam) of Allahu ta’ala without investigating
first whether that such and such is in any way commented by Rasulullah, peace be upon him, or
by his companions or that whether it conforms to the interpretations (Tafsirs) of the previous
scholars or to the methodology of the knowledge of interpretation, or without knowing the
Arabic language that was spoken at the time of Rasulullah, peace be upon him, i.e., the "Quraish"
dialect, or without thinking about reality (Haqiqat) and metaphoric (Majaz) aspects of it, or
without being able to differentiate whether it is general, personal, concise (Mujmal), or detailed
(Mufassal), and without investigating the reason of why that such and such verse (Ayat) was
revealed, or whether it is "Nasih" or "Mansuh." "Tafsir" means one's being able to understand
from the sayings of Allahu ta’ala what Allahu ta’ala meant with that saying. Even if one's
interpretation according to his own opinion is correct, since it is not derived by following the
proper methodology, it is a mistake. If one's interpretation according to his own opinion is not
correct then, it would cause disbelief. Similarly, transmitting hadiths without knowing whether
they are correct (Sahih) or corrupt, whether it be they are correct (Sahih) or not, would be a sin.
It is not permissible (Jaiz) for such a person to read hadiths. It is necessary to get a diploma
(Ijazat) from hadith scholars in order to make hadith-transmission from the hadith books. In one
hadith, Rasulullah, peace be upon him, said, "A person who invents a phrase and says that it
is hadith, will be punished in hell." It is permissible (Jaiz) for those who do not have diplomas
(Ijazat) from the interpretation (Tafsir) scholars to talk or write about verses of the Qur'an by
looking at the interpretation books written by interpretation scholars. The people who possess
above written conditions can make transmission (Nakl) of interpretation and hadith without
having a written diploma. It is not permissible (Jaiz) to receive money in order to give diplomas.
It is necessary (Wajib) to give the diploma to a person who demonstrates the necessary
qualifications. It is forbidden to give the diploma to those who do not possess the necessary
qualifications.
In the following hadiths Rasulullah, peace be upon him, said, "Those who give meaning to the
Qur'an without having the necessary qualifications will be punished in hell," and "Those
who say something as hadith without knowing it, will be punished in hell," and "Those who
give meaning to the Qur'an according to their own opinion will be punished in hell." The
corrupt persons (Ahl al-bidat) who recite or quote hadiths or verses of the Qur'an in order to
prove their corrupt paths are of this kind.
[Shiis, Wahhabis, followers of the Tablig al-Jamaat, Mawdudi, and Sayyid Qutb are of this kind.
Yusuf an-Nabhani, may Allahu ta’ala be pleased with him, expalins these corrupt tafsirs at length
in his book Shawahid-ul-hak. Those who assert that Qur'an has an inner meaning as well as a
literal meaning in order to give meanings according to their own opinions are also of the type
which are mentioned in above hadiths. Those who make interpretations by using the meaning of
the words that are prevalent in their current time are also among the above-mentioned types.
One of the Ottoman scholars Nuh bin Mustafa Konawi, may Allahu ta’ala be pleased with him,
who passed away in 1070 Hijri, 1660 A.D. at Cairo, Egypt says the following in his translation
of the book Milal wa Nihal which is written by Muhammad Shihristani, may Allahu ta’ala be
pleased with him: the people who are in "Isma'iliyya" group are called as such because they say
that they are the followers of Isma'il, may Allahu ta’ala be well pleased with him, who was the
elder son of the Ja'far as-Sadik, may Allahu ta’ala be well pleased with him. They are also called
"Batiniyya" group. Because they said that Qur'an has an inner meaning (Batin) as well as a
literal meaning. They said that the literal meanings of the Qur'an are the limited meanings which
are cast by the "Fiqh" scholars and the inner meaning of the Qur'an is like an endless ocean.They believed in the inner meanings that are fabricated by themselves instead of following the
literal meanings of the Qur'an. Rasulullah, peace be upon him, transmitted the literal meanings of
the Qur’an to his companions, may Allahu ta’ala be well pleased with them. Leaving the literal
meanings aside and following fabricated inner meanings causes disbelief. They tried to destroy
Islam from within by this kind of tricks. Fire worshipers (Majusi), especially, their leader
Hamdan Kurmut, in order to stop the spreading of Islam, invented these tricks and established
Karamuta State. He killed the persons who were making pilgrimage (Hajj) to "Ka'ba" and
moved the "Hajar al-aswad" from "Ka'ba" to the Basra. They fabricated such sayings as, "Jannat
is following the worldly pleasures and hell is following the rules of the religion." They named
prohibited actions (Harams) as fine arts. They lead the youngsters to hedonistic, pleasure-filled
life style by deceiving them and saying to them that those things that are decreed as prohibited
actions and sins (Fuhush) by Islam are moral-exercises. Their state perpetrated much harm to
Islam. They were destroyed in 372 Hijri 983 A.D. by the Divine wrath.]
Interpretation (Tafsir) should be done according to the principles of transmission (Nakl). In
order to perform interpretation, one should be knowledgeable about the following fifteen kinds
of knowledge (Ilm): language, dialect or words (Lugat), syntax (Nahv), grammar (Sarf),
etymology (Ishtikak), meaning (Ma'ani), explanation (Bayan), ornament of speech (Badi'),
reading (Kira'at), methodology of religion or bases of religion (Usul-i din), Islamic jurisprudence
(Fiqh), reason or cause of the revelation of the verses of the Qur’an (Asbab-i nuzul), the one
which cancels a previous verse (Nasih) and canceled verse (Mansuh), methodology of Islamic
jurisprudence (Usul-i fiqh), Hadith, and knowldege of spiritual heart (Ilm al-qalb.) It is not
permissible (Jaiz) for one who does not know these subjects to make interpretation of the
Qur'an. The knowledge of spiritual heart (Qalb)" or "Mawhiba" is a kind of knowledge which
Allahu ta’ala sends without an intermediary to pious scholars who follow Islam minutely. In one
hadith, Rasulullah, peace be upon him, said, "Allahu ta’ala teaches the secret things if one
practices the things one knows." It is not permissible (Jaiz) for anyone who does not know
above-mentioned fifteen subjects to make interpretation. If one performs interpretation without
knowing them then one will be doing it according to one's own opinion and will be deserving to
be punished in hell. In one hadith, Rasulullah, peace be upon him, said, "A person's heart will
be filled with wisdom (Hikmat) by Allahu ta’ala and he will start to tell them if he practices
Islam with sincerity 'Ikhlas' for forty days." Anyone who gives meanings to the metaphoric
(Mutashabih) verses of the Qur'an will be considered as one of those who performed
interpretation according to his own opinion. The interpretation of corrupt persons (Ahl al-bidat)
who deviated from the right path is of this kind.
There are three types of knowledge (Ilm) in the Qur'an. Allahu ta’ala did not inform anyone
about the first type. The reality of His Person (Zat) and His attributes and telling about unknown
are in this category. The second type is the secret knowledge He revealed to His prophets.
Prophets may reveal these to those whom Allahu ta’ala chooses. He taught the third type of
knowledge to His prophets, peace be upon them, and ordered them to teach this knowledge to all
of their followers (Ummat). The third type is also divided into two sections. The first one is
learned only by hearing. Knowledge about the Doomsday (Qiyamat) is of this kind. The second
one is learned by observing, examining, reading and understanding its meaning. Knowledge
which pertains to belief and Islam is in this category. Even, "Mujtahid" Imams could not be able
to understand with certainty Islamic knowledge which are not informed through the "Nass"
clearly and had different opinions. Thus, various schools of thought (Madhhabs) came into
being with respect to practice (Amal). The activity of those who derive meanings by followingthe fifteen subjects mentioned above is not called interpretation (Tafsir) but instead it is called
"Tawil" because, these meanings include his own understanding. In other words, he selects one
among the many meanings that are apparent to him. If the one he selects does not conform to the
literal and clear meanings of the verses of the Qur'an and hadiths or to the unanimity (Ijma),
then, it is invalid (Fasid). The book Barika, while explaining that the dancing is forbidden
(Haram), includes the following, "We are not ordered to practice our religion according to the
interpretation books. We are ordered to follow the Fiqh books."
