A Statistical Study of the Concepts of Mercy and Violence in the Meccan and Medinan Surahs: An Analysis of a Fallacy(مقاله علمی وزارت علوم)
حوزههای تخصصی:
One of the fallacies raised by some critics, especially orientalists, is that the Prophet of Islam's behavior underwent a fundamental change from the Meccan to the Medinan period. They claim that his messages in the Meccan period were peaceful and mercy-oriented, but in the Medinan period, upon gaining power, he adopted a violent approach, and this is evident in the Meccan and Medinan surahs. To investigate this issue, a statistical study was conducted comparing the frequency of concepts related to violence and mercy in the Meccan and Medinan surahs of the Quran. The phrases related to mercy and violence were scored, and then the obtained values were normalized for analysis. The results show that the values for violence-based concepts are (0.20) in the Meccan surahs and (0.19) in the Medinan surahs. Furthermore, the concepts related to mercy are (0.24) in the Medinan surahs and (0.21) in the Meccan surahs. These findings indicate that the raised claim is not only unverifiable but that during the Medinan period, which was a time of establishing and expanding the government, a greater emphasis on mercy is observed. The content differences between the Meccan and Medinan surahs are attributed to the historical and social circumstances of each period. These results highlight the need for a re-evaluation of such interpretations and for attention to statistical methods for the analysis of religious and historical concepts.
