Kashf al-Maani fi al-Mutashabih min al-Mathani
- Author died
- 733 AH
- Editions
- Dār al-Wafāʾ
Kashf al-Maani fi al-Mutashabih min al-Mathani (Unveiling the Meanings in the Similar Verses of the Oft-Repeated) is a treatise on the sciences of the Quran by the Shafi'i jurist and scholar Badr al-Din Ibn Jama'ah (639–733 AH / 1241–1333 CE), dedicated to explaining and reconciling verbally similar Quranic verses (tawjih al-mutashabih al-lafzi) .
Subject and Methodology
The work focuses on verbal similarity (al-mutashabih al-lafzi) across the Quranic text, addressing instances where verses or narratives share identical or near-identical phrasing, yet differ in word choices, grammatical structures, addition, omission, or word order . Ibn Jama'ah examines the rhetorical and contextual justifications (tawjih) for these variations to clarify why a particular phrasing is employed in each specific context .
In providing these explanations, Ibn Jama'ah drew upon established exegetical literature; among his sources, he was notably influenced in several instances by Fakhr al-Din al-Razi's commentary Mafatih al-Ghayb (Keys to the Unknown) .
Scholarly Standing and Reception
The book is recognized among the key historical contributions dedicated to the analysis of verbal similarities in the Quran, alongside works such as Durrat al-Tanzil wa-Ghurrat al-Ta'wil by al-Khatib al-Iskafi (d. 420 AH), al-Burhan fi Tawjih Mutashabih al-Quran by Burhan al-Din al-Kirmani (d. c. 500 AH), and Milak al-Ta'wil by Ibn al-Zubayr al-Gharnati (d. 708 AH) . In al-Itqan fi Ulum al-Quran, Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti described it as a concise, fine work (kitab latif) on the subject .
The book has also been cited in bibliographical sources under the slight title variant Kashf al-Maani an Mutashabih al-Mathani . A modern critical edition was prepared by Abd al-Jawad Khalaf and published by Dar al-Wafa .
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