Nawasikh al-Quran = Nasikh al-Quran wa Mansukhuhu
- Author died
- 597 AH
- Editions
- tahqiq al-Malibari · tahqiq Al Zuhawi
Nawasikh al-Quran (also known as Nasikh al-Quran wa-Mansukhuhu and ‘Umdat al-Rasikh fi Ma‘rifat al-Mansukh wa-l-Nasikh) is a specialized treatise on Quranic abrogation (naskh) by the Hanbali polymath and preacher Ibn al-Jawzi (d. 597 AH / 1201 CE) .
Purpose and Scope
Ibn al-Jawzi stated in his preface that previous authors on the subject had diverged in their methods: some prolonged their treatments with unnecessary material, others blindly followed earlier claims without determining the correct position, and some omitted essential discussions . He composed this intermediate, balanced work to critically examine and evaluate disputed verses, upholding the principle that the baseline for every Quranic verse is that its ruling remains legally binding and unabrogated (muhkam) unless established otherwise by valid evidence .
Structure and Method
The book opens with an introductory section divided into eight chapters, culminating in an eighth chapter reviewing the surahs alleged to contain abrogating and abrogated verses, where the author rejects unsubstantiated claims of abrogation as groundless .
Following the introduction, the author analyzes approximately 247 specific cases of claimed abrogation across 62 surahs, assigning an individual chapter to each surah except Surah al-Kahf, Surah ‘Abasa, and Surah al-Takwir; he omitted separate chapters for these three because the claim of abrogation regarding al-Kahf was exceedingly weak, while the claims in ‘Abasa and al-Takwir mirrored the discussion in Surah al-Dahr . Methodologically, Ibn al-Jawzi is distinguished by quoting multiple chains of transmission (asānīd) and structuring the chapters by surah headings without enumerating the total verse counts at the beginning of each chapter . He cross-references detailed discussions to his own major Quranic commentary, Zad al-Masir fi ‘Ilm al-Tafsir .
Of the roughly 247 claimed cases of abrogation examined in the work, Ibn al-Jawzi refutes the claim and establishes that the verse is unabrogated (muhkam) in approximately 205 instances, accepts abrogation in only about 22 cases, and remains uncommitted between the competing arguments in about 20 cases . Consequently, while he addressed one of the highest numbers of alleged instances among early and medieval authors on the subject, he accepted among the fewest as genuinely abrogated .
Abridgment, Transmission, and Editions
Ibn al-Jawzi prepared an abridgment of the work titled al-Musaffa bi-Akuff Ahl al-Rusukh min ‘Ilm al-Nasikh wa-l-Mansukh (also titled Mukhtasar ‘Umdat al-Rasikh or Mukhtasar Nasikh al-Qur'an wa-Mansukhuhu), noting in its preface that students seeking full chains of transmission or extensive proofs should refer back to the parent book .
The work continued to be transmitted by scholars down to later centuries, including the Yemeni scholar al-Shawkani (d. 1250 AH), who recorded a continuous chain of transmission back to Ibn al-Jawzi in his Ithaf al-Akabir . A critical edition of Nawasikh al-Quran by Muhammad Ashraf ‘Ali al-Malibari was published by the Islamic University of Madinah in 1404 AH / 1984 CE .
Answer updated