Ma`rifat

Within the ḥadīth compilations of both major Islamic schools (Shi'a and Sunni), narrations exist that condemn the practice of "Ḍarb al-Qur'an bi al-Qur'an". A conceptual analysis of this term and an assessment of the validity of these narrations are necessary, particularly regarding their potential to impede the interpretation of the Qur'an by the Qur'an (tafsīr al-Qur'an bi al-Qur'an) and the thematic interpretation of the Holy Qur'an (al-tafsīr al-mawḍūʿī), which are among the most important tools for discerning the intents of the Lawgiver within the Divine Book. This research seeks to examine the chains of transmission and the textual meanings of the "Ḍarb" narrations found in both Shi'a and Sunni sources, and to analyze the relationship between these narrations and the evidence supporting the authority of interpreting the Qur'an by the Qur'an and thematic interpretation, utilizing a jurisprudential and principles-based ijtihādī methodology. The most significant findings of this study are as follows: 1.These narrations are considered authentic from a transmission (sanad) perspective. 2. The condemned "Ḍarb" in these narrations means the failure to observe the established principles of interpretation, such as considering the general and the specific (al-ʿāmm wa al-khāṣṣ), the abrogating and the abrogated (al-nāsikh wa al-mansūkh), and the ambiguous and the clarifying (al-mujmal wa al-mubayyin), when extracting divine intents. The primary cause of this is separation from the Ahl al-Bayt (AS), who are the complete authorities on the Holy Qur'an . 3.These narrations do not impede the authority of interpreting the Qur'an by the Qur'an and thematic interpretation, provided that the complete principles of interpretation are observed and the perspectives of the Ahl al-Bayt (AS) are considered to the extent possible, based on the validity and content of the interpretive narrations. The most important innovation of this research is its methodological approach, which involves a jurisprudential and principles-based ijtihādī examination of these narrations- an approach not observed in previous studies.