Wisdom in the Qur'an

Thesis

This dissertation is an attempt to understand what the Qur’an means by the term ḥikmah. I argue that the Qur’an, when it uses the term, is engaging with biblical wisdom discourse, as it had been interpreted and understood in late antiquity. Wisdom texts are a category of books in the Hebrew Bible and Apocrypha, such as Proverbs and Sirach, that emphasize the importance of acquiring wisdom through contemplating the natural world and one’s own life experience. The presence of this wisdom genre in the Bible encouraged Hellenistic Jews and early Christians to embrace the Greek philosophical notion of natural law, the idea that what is morally right and wrong is known innately, and confirmed through divine revelation. Over subsequent centuries, church fathers and rabbis continued to debate what the relationship between divine revelation and natural law / wisdom ought to be. I argue that when the Qur’an invokes ḥikmah, it engages in that debate, and ultimately presents a relationship between scripture and natural law that is close to the Christian conception.

Authors: Hussain, MS

• DOI: 10.5287/ora-rv7g9jz7x
• Type of award: DPhil
• Level of award: Doctoral
• Awarding institution: University of Oxford
• Language: English
• Keywords: Agelomorphic Christology; Decalogue; rabbinic Judaism; Syriac Christianity; quran; apocalyticism; islam; Golden Rule; late antiquity; patristics
• Subjects: Qurʼan and reason; Wisdom literature; Islam