Quran and Hadith Studies
The Foundations of the Interpretation of Tradition Texts according to Mulla Sadra
Abstract
The theosopher, Sadr al-Mutaallihin Muhammad Shirazi– Known as Mulla Sadra (d.1050 A.H) is among the few philosophers paying due attention to textual proofs i.e. the verses of the holy Quran and the traditions of the infallible Imams (p.b.u.t) in addition to their scholarly application of intellectual principles and proofs. He set the fundations of his transcendental wisdom and philosophical system on the combination of these proofs and their scholarly comparison. Thus, he succeeded to open a new chapter in Isamic philosophy and a new approach to theological, exegetical, and traditional thoughts of shi<a through his novel ideas and initiatives. The present article deals with the study and explanation of the principles and methods of Mulla Sadra in dealing with, criticizing, commenting, and explaining the meanings of tradition texts in Mulla Sadra’s various valuable works including al-Afsar al-Arba<a, Tafsir al-Kuran al-Karim, Risaleh if Si Asl,etc. particularly his commentary of Usul al-Kafi. If it had not been for his reliance on the sayings of the infallible Imams, and his benefiting from them as idenpendent proofs, or confirmatory to intellectual ones, Mulla Sadra would not have succeeded in presenting his sublime thoughts.
Perception of this point is the major distinction between Mulla Sadra and his predecessors. Of course Mulla Sadra– through his critical thought– Knew quite well that weakness in the chain of transmission, fabriccation, alteration, and change in Hadith texts, narration of isolated parts of hadith, paraphrase, etc. made the Hadith quite difficult to reason and argue with. The first and foremost point is that understanding and explanation of Hadith texts require a deep insight and mastery of Islamic studies, and scientific, intellectual, as well as logical foundations.
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