al-Asalib wal-Itlaqat al-Arabiyya
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- al-Maktaba al-Shāmila
al-Asalib wal-Itlaqat al-Arabiyya (Arabic Modes of Expression and Usages) is a treatise compiled by the contemporary Egyptian scholar Abu al-Mundhir al-Minyawi (Mahmud ibn Muhammad ibn Mustafa al-Minyawi), extracting and systematizing the linguistic expressions and stylistic modes recorded by Muhammad al-Amin al-Shinqiti in his exegesis Adwa' al-Bayan to argue against the existence of figurative language (majaz) in Islamic scripture.
Background and Purpose
The full title given by the compiler is Tatimmat Man' Jawaz al-Majaz bi-Bayan al-Asalib wal-Itlaqat al-Arabiyya al-Lati Dhakaraha al-Allama al-Shinqiti Muhammad al-Amin ibn Muhammad al-Mukhtar al-Jakani fi Tafsirihi Adwa' al-Bayan (The Completion of the Prohibition of the Permissibility of Majaz by Clarifying the Arabic Modes and Usages Mentioned by the Erudite Scholar al-Shinqiti in His Exegesis Adwa' al-Bayan). Al-Minyawi conceived the project while reading Adwa' al-Bayan, observing that al-Shinqiti dealt with the question of figurative language far more extensively than he had in his standalone treatise Man' Jawaz al-Majaz fi al-Munazzal li-l-Ta'abbud wal-I'jaz (Preventing the Permissibility of Metaphor in That Which Was Revealed for Devotion and Inimitability).
The compiler gathered instances designated by al-Shinqiti as Arabic stylistic modes (asalib) and added related linguistic designations (itlaqat), submitting his initial collection to specialists in Arabic rhetoric (balagha) for feedback. The primary theological objective of the compilation is to demonstrate that phrases classified by rhetoricians as majaz are in fact established Arabic idioms and literal usages (haqiqah), thereby countering allegorical reinterpretation (ta'wil) and the negation of divine attributes (nafy al-sifat).
Structure and Method
The work begins with an introductory study covering:
- The technical definition and significance of majaz, its classical divisions, and representative examples for each category.
- The historical emergence of the concept of majaz.
- Scholarly positions and arguments regarding majaz, accompanied by critique and weighing of evidence (tarjih).
- An explanation of al-Shinqiti's approach regarding Arabic stylistic modes (asalib) as a means of refuting proponents of majaz.
Following the introduction, the main body comprises 162 numbered entries of Arabic stylistic modes and usages. Al-Minyawi arranged them chronologically according to the order in which they appear across the Surahs in Adwa' al-Bayan. When an expression occurs in multiple passages of the exegesis, it is ordered according to its first occurrence while citing the most comprehensive discussion provided by al-Shinqiti. The compiler placed al-Shinqiti's verbatim text within brackets and added footnotes containing poetic evidentiary lines (shawahid), Quranic cross-references, and rhetorical commentary.
The collection spans from the first entry—explaining the Arabic use of the word khalq (creation) to mean taqdir (apportionment or planning)—to entry 162, discussing the rhetorical usage of mentioning a location (al-mahall) while intending the entity residing within it (al-hal).
Publication
The work was published in its first edition in 1432 AH / 2011 CE through al-Maktaba al-Shamila, registered under legal deposit number 7/2011.
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