Modernist Readings in Qurʾānic Sciences: A Critical Analysis Asbāb al-Nuzūl as a Case Study

Fathy Kamel Harb., Maryam

doi:10.21608/bfsgm.2025.443580

Modernist Readings in Qurʾānic Sciences: A Critical Analysis Asbāb al-Nuzūl as a Case Study

Author

Maryam Fathy Kamel Harb.

Al-Azhar University

10.21608/bfsgm.2025.443580

Abstract

This study addresses the significance of the science of Asbāb al-Nuzūl (occasions of revelation) as a discipline that supports the interpretation of the Qurʾānic text. It focuses on the methodological standards for the transmission and reception of narrations related to this science, and it critically evaluates modernist approaches that seek to confine the discipline to its socio-historical context in order to justify reinterpreting the Qurʾān in a manner that, from their perspective, reflects contemporary realities and changing historical conditions.
The study adopts an inductive, analytical, and critical approach to examine these claims. It demonstrates that the modernist project lacks epistemological neutrality and draws heavily from secular intellectual frameworks that aim to undermine the sacred foundations of religion. These approaches are part of a broader effort to dismantle established beliefs and displace religious certainty by reinterpreting foundational texts through methods that are not rooted in the Islamic tradition. Their central strategy may be described as “dismantling the source through the source itself,” a hermeneutical technique that relies on esoteric reinterpretation and dismisses traditional notions of authoritative transmission in favor of a purely rationalized form of religiosity.
The study is structured into five main sections: The first outlines the nature and purpose of Asbāb al-Nuzūl and the means by which it is determined; The second examines how this science is approached within modernist discourse; The third analyzes the methodological foundations upon which modernist readings are constructed; The fourth compares definitions of Asbāb al-Nuzūl in classical Qurʾānic scholarship with those proposed by modernist interpreters; The fifth critiques the conceptual framework of modernist thought as it pertains to this field.
The study concludes by cautioning against modernist reformist calls that aim to undermine the intellectual and spiritual continuity of the Muslim community. It recommends a reassessment of how the sciences of the Qurʾān are taught, advocating for pedagogical methods that bring to light the deeper wisdom, structure, and interpretive depth of these disciplines, rather than reducing them to static formulations.

Keywords