In recent times, research on the Ibadi tradition by both Muslim
and non-Muslim scholars has increased, but has not yet shed light on the wider
significance of this tradition. While the primary focus of researchers has been
on the Ibadi tradition as a school of thought, its important contribution to
various Islamic disciplines is still neglected. For this reason, there is a
serious need for a comprehensive study of the Ibadi works on Islam, especially
as new manuscripts are continually being discovered.
When we look at Ibadi Islamic literature in general and compare Ibadi
jurisprudence and theology, we realise that the poorest and most unexplored
field of study consists of the Ibadi works on exegesis (tafsir). The
once inaccessible and insufficient amount of Ibadi sources and materials may
have accounted for this lack of interest; however, today, materials related to
Ibadi exegesis and understanding are becoming available. In this article, we
focus on the methodology of Qur’anic exegesis with reference to commentators
from the Ibadi tradition.
As far as we know, this paper is a first in this field of
research, and will discuss the primary features of the Ibadi method, its
similarities to and differences from other exegetical approaches, and its
original contributions.
No comments:
Post a Comment