Inter-textual Unity in Quranic Hermeneutics: Naẓm/Munāsaba, al-Ǧišumī’s Philological Theory and Its Influence on Qurʾanic Exegesis

Abstract

Abstract The recent publication of a new edition of the Qurʾanic exegesis al-Tahḏīb fī ʾl-Tafsīr by al-Ḥākim al-Ǧišumī (d. 494/1101) highlights the topic of naẓm (coherence/consistency/order/ correspondence) as a subject essential to understanding the concept of iʿǧāz al-Qurʾān, the uniqueness of the Qurʾanic text, which is central to conceiving its early exegesis. The present article investigates al-Ǧišumī’s theory of naẓm in the Qur’ ān, while attempting to distinguish his theory from that of his contemporary al-Ǧurǧānī (d. 471/1074). In this article, we compile evidence of al-Ǧišumī’s novel philological theory and offer a broader historical evaluation of the concept of naẓm among Qurʾanic exegetes. Finally, this article examines for the first time how to take account of al-Ǧišumī’s methodology in our understanding of the conceptual structure of the Qurʾanic corpus. While the main focus of this article is on al-Ǧišumī’s approach to the theory of naẓm, it also considers the theory in a wider context. Moreover, although it touches on al-Ǧurǧānī’s views on naẓm, it does not discuss him in any detail, particularly since his ideas have already been examined extensively in numerous other books and academic papers.