Journal of Interdisciplinary Qur'anic Studies (مطالعات بین رشته ای قرآن)

The study of the dimensions of the Qur’an's miraculous nature has been a central focus of Qur’anic scholars since the time of its revelation. Numerous aspects have been identified as facets of the Qur’an's miraculousness. One such aspect, arguably first significantly claimed by Rashad Khalifa, is the mathematical structure or numerical miraculousness of the Qur’an. Khalifa published his findings in a book titled "Qur’an: Visual Presentation of the Miracle," wherein he outlined 52 examples of the Qur’an's mathematical miracles. These examples include 21 cases of word and letter repetitions, 2 cases of abjad letter calculations, and 29 cases involving the Qur’an's disjointed letters (al-ḥurūf al-muqaṭṭaʿāt), all connected to the number 19, which Khalifa considered a divine code. This study first reflects on the concept of the Qur’an's numerical miracle and outlines criteria for its verification. Subsequently, it examines Khalifa's computational criteria and evaluates all 52 of his claims. Upon thorough review, it was determined that Khalifa's calculations and conclusions are either incorrect or lack at least one necessary condition for establishing a numerical miraculousness.

Since ancient times, human identification has been of paramount importance, and various methods have been employed to achieve this goal. Over time, advancements in science have mathematically and scientifically proven the uniqueness of fingerprints, making them the most common criterion used by identification systems today. The Qur’an, in many verses, addresses the concepts of the afterlife, the resurrection of the dead, and the accounting of human actions. A fundamental requirement for this accounting, whether for reward or punishment, is the accurate identification of individuals. In verses 3 and 4 of Surah al-Qīyāmah, God emphasizes the precision of human recreation, even down to the restoration of banān (often interpreted to mean fingertips). The primary objective of this research is to answer the question of whether the restoration of banān in the afterlife can be interpreted as the restoration of each individual's unique fingerprint. Employing a descriptive-analytical approach and an interdisciplinary perspective, this study examines the correlation between Qur’anic concepts regarding the restoration of banān and scientific findings in the field of biometrics, particularly fingerprints. Historical records indicate that fingerprints have long been of interest to humanity; however, the mathematical and empirical proof of their uniqueness was not established until the 17th century. The findings of this research suggest that by referring to the  restoration of  fingertips, the Qur’an has  drawn attention to a feature that, while its intricacies were apparent to people at the time of its revelation, was not fully understood in its unique nature. In other words, God has alluded to a unique feature whose complexity and difficulty of restoration were comprehensible to the people of that era but have, with scientific advancements, become the most common and accessible biometric method in the world today.

Objective observation is one of the fundamental elements for human beings to understand and learn. By objectifying reality, images convey a variety of meanings and concepts to the audience. With the help of the audience's creative mind, this conveyance is sometimes achieved through the harmonious arrangement of words and phrases depicting spiritual and intangible matters. In some cases, these images embed a line of reasoning, referred to as "argumentative images," to instill certain beliefs or convictions in the audience. These images use tangible objects and meanings to strengthen the individual's belief in the realization and possibility of intangible things. The audience's mind initially seeks connections between the objects presented, and after understanding the logical relationships, embraces a new meaning derived from the images. Using a descriptive-analytical approach, the present paper has attempted to apply this semantic process to the Surahs of al-Tīn, al-Qalam, and al-Ṭūr in order to answer the question of how the argumentative images of these three Surahs affect the beliefs of the audience. The results indicate that the logical connection of the images of objects in each surah affects the audience's certainty and belief in the wisdom and order of creation, the inevitability of divine decree, and the nature of the Day of Judgment. To inspire confidence in the fulfillment of His promises, God employs tangible elements such as the fig, the olive, the ladder, the mountain, and the sky.

According to numerous studies, the Qur’anic surahs exhibit internal structure and organization, with each surah serving a distinct purpose. Although each surah focuses on a specific theme and the Qur’an identifies 114 broad themes, the arrangement of the surahs and the remarkable similarity between adjacent surahs (neighbors) underscores the chain-link and deliberate positioning of the surahs within the Qur’an. To investigate this phenomenon, a multifaceted and compound model was developed, comprising two main parts: embedding and autoencoding. The first part was carried out by preparing the words and roots of the Qur’anic text using the BERT model for meaning-topic representation. In the second part, the data was clustered in a soft labeling mode by the autoencoder. Analysis of the distribution of surahs within clusters revealed that neighboring surahs exhibited an average similarity of 80, while surahs with greater distance showed an average similarity of 20. The findings support the placement of similar surahs in close proximity,  substantiating the organized sequence of Qur’anic surahs. To conclude, the results provide compelling evidence for the structured arrangement of Qur’anic surahs.

After the decline of positivism, the interpretive paradigm (structuralism) gained favor among Qur'anic scholars due to its emphasis on subjectivity, the role of values in cognition, attention to human interactions, and the interconnectedness of the knower and the knowable. However, despite the fact that this paradigm seems to be more compatible with the religious view than the positivist paradigm, there are still significant paradigmatic differences between it and the Islamic paradigm that need to be considered. The purpose of this paper is to examine the challenges of using common qualitative methods in Qur'anic studies, while proposing the method of component analysis as a more appropriate approach. With the help of this method, it is possible to create a comprehensive set of verses that are related to and consistent with any concept of research in the field of humanities. The method consists of four stages: data collection, data coding, summarization, and searching for verses consistent with the extracted components.In this way, it can serve as a valuable tool for Qur'an scholars to overcome the challenges associated with the use of common qualitative methods, and it allows for a systematic and comprehensive approach that enables researchers to bridge the Holy Qur'an and the humanities, preparing the ground for interdisciplinary studies in these fields.

Lexical bundles crucially shape the discourse of specialized registers  such as religious scriptures, yet research on bundles that characterize Islamic sacred texts such as the Qur'an remains scarce. This study conducts a comprehensive corpus analysis to identify prevalent lexical bundles in an English translation of the Qur'an, illuminating their structural forms and functional roles in encoding Islamic theology. A specialized corpus of 166,807 words spanning 114 suras was constructed, with frequent bundles extracted using software and filtering based on predetermined frequency/distribution thresholds. Identified bundles were qualitatively coded for structural realizations and functional types by multiple researchers. Findings revealed a marked predominance of nominal and prepositional phrase bundles systematically lexicalizing and reinforcing core religious concepts and metaphysical tenets. The quantitative prevalence of research-oriented bundles contextualizing theological subject matter over participant-oriented ones projecting stances and experiences, suggests that the Qur’an upholds an epistemological tradition regarding itself as an inviolable corpus encoding divinely revealed spiritual verities. These findings yield profound pedagogical implications since instructional approaches elucidating prevalent bundles as linguistic "building blocks" can foster holistic mastery of authentic Qur’anic expressions among diverse learners while preserving spiritual sanctity. Furthermore, bundle-focused activities cultivate integrated literacies surrounding comprehension, rhetorical articulation, and critical analysis of the linguistic and cultural dimensions of religious texts.

One of the Qur’an's most potent, indirect methods of guiding humanity is the use of the role model method, which provides both cognitive and emotional inspiration to lead individuals to a more elevated life. This approach is one of the cornerstones of both psychological and educational studies. This research delves into the Qur’anic portrayal of Asiya, seeking to identify the specific personality traits that make her a paragon for all believers. By understanding her character and behavioral patterns, we can establish a foundational framework for fostering a deeply rooted, faith-based lifestyle and enrich the corpus of Islamic educational literature. The central question guiding this study is: According to the Qur’an, what defining personality and behavioral traits characterize Asiya as a model of a devout believer? Our findings reveal ten key traits: wisdom; full submission to the truth; sincerity; loving and hating for the sake of God; Spiritual intimacy and prayers with God; high aspirations; independence and personal dignity; patience and perseverance; courage and sacrifice; prohibition of evil and defense of the oppressed. These traits converge, demonstrating a unified personality centered on unwavering faith. Considering the broader socio-cultural and political context of Asiya's life, our analysis positions her as not only a devout believer but also a significant socio-political role model. Her life and actions can provide a compelling model especially for the younger generation.

The Holy Qur’an, in addition to its primary purpose of guiding humanity, contains numerous scientific references that were not fully understood at the time of its revelation. Verse 25 of Surah al-Ḥadīd refers to the sending down of iron. The use of the verb anzala (to send down) instead of more commonly used verbs such as khalaqa (to create) and jaʿala (to make) has led to various interpretations of this verse throughout history. This research employs a descriptive-analytical method to examine the concept of the sending down of iron (inzāl al-ḥadīd) and its strong nature (ba's shadīd), as well as its relation to new scientific findings regarding the origin of iron on Earth. Additionally, it investigates whether people at the time of the Qur’an’s revelation had any knowledge of the extraterrestrial origin of iron.Contrary to some extreme approaches to the scientific interpretation and miracles of the Qur’an in recent centuries, this research advocates a balanced perspective that utilizes scientific findings, without any imposition, to better understand the verses of the Qur’an. Recent scientific discoveries indicate that iron is primarily produced in the cores of massive stars, and it cannot be produced in the solar system. Therefore, the use of the verb anzala may allude to the extraterrestrial origin of iron. The results of this research reveal that, from a scientific standpoint, various phenomena are involved in the process of iron's incorporation into Earth that could embody the concept of "sending down," including the production of iron in massive stars and its transfer to Earth through certain cosmic processes, the collision of iron-rich meteorites and asteroids with Earth, and the sinking of iron towards the Earth's core. Regarding the knowledge of people about the extraterrestrial origin of iron at the time of revelation, although it has been claimed that the term used for iron in ancient Egypt means "metal from heaven," the findings of this research indicate that this claim is merely a possibility and, despite extensive research, has not been definitively verified.

Given the large population of non-Arabic speaking Muslims in the world, the translations of the Qur’an are of crucial importance. While there has recently been a surge of interest in reader response to translations of various genres, less attention has been given to the readers' reception of the Qur’an translations. The aim of the current study was to examine whether attitudes towards the source and target languages in translation (i.e. Arabic and Farsi) constitute distinct factors in the reception of Qur’an translations by readers in a multilingual setting. To achieve this aim the first step was to construct a questionnaire to measure the three key constructs of the study, namely, attitudes towards Arabic, attitudes toward Farsi, and translation reception. To collect the required data, in-depth interviews were first conducted, which led to the generation of an item pool for the noted questionnaire. The questionnaire was then administered to 96 native speakers of Arabic and Farsi for a detailed statistical analysis. Data analysis was conducted using FACTOR software and Smart PLS3. Specifically, exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted. Results attested that translation reception, and attitudes towardsource and target languages constitute three distinctive factors. In addition, findings pointed to the moderating role of language attitudes in the reception of the Qur’an translations, with favourable attitudes towards Farsi being associated with more favourable reception of the translations.

In the realm of marital relations, the terms tamkīn (submission) and nushūz (disobedience) are frequently used in Islamic jurisprudence and law. While nushūz is explicitly mentioned in the Qur’an, tamkīn, meaning the opposite state of nushūz, is not. Although nushūz is used in the Qur’an for both men and women, in Islamic jurisprudence, and particularly in Iranian law, both tamkīn and nushūz are predominantly ascribed to wives. The concept of nushūz and tamkīn in husbands has not been adequately addressed, nor has there been commensurate legislation on the matter. Qur’anic commentaries have also predominantly focused on the nushūz of wives, rather than husbands, which may explain the neglect of husbands' nushūz in jurisprudence and the lack of corresponding legislation.This study, grounded in an analysis of three Qur’anic verses, Q. 4:34, Q. 4:128, and Q. 9:71, and their interpretation in several prominent Shia and Sunni commentaries across different periods, adopts a Qur’an-by-Qur’an exegetical approach to explore the concepts of nushūz and tamkīn for both spouses. Using linguistic, semantic, and hermeneutic methods, the findings of this research indicate that the concept of mutual tamkīn between spouses can be articulated based on the principle of mutual guardianship (wilāyah) of believers as outlined in verse Q.9:71. In this framework, reciprocal tamkīn between spouses is understood as a commitment to fulfilling religious and ethical responsibilities and a mutual acceptance of enjoining good and forbidding evil in their relationship.

This study explores the emotional landscape of the Qur’an through the lens of Plutchik's psychological model of emotions, which categorizes emotions into eight primary types: joy, sadness, trust, anticipation, surprise, disgust, anger, and fear. It identifies how various types of emotions are represented and utilized in different contexts. By applying a comparative and interdisciplinary approach, the study demonstrates the Qur’an’s unique perspective on emotions, offering insights into its approach to emotional expression, regulation, and guidance. The analysis reveals that while Plutchik’s primary emotions are present in the Qur’an, their subcategories differ significantly, reflecting the Qur’an’s divine origin and guidance-oriented objectives. The findings highlight the Qur’an's distinctive emotional framework, which not only confirms but also extends beyond human-centered psychological models, reflecting its divine purpose and focus on holistic human development.