MUHKAMÂT – محكمات

 

From the root of حكم which literally is firm, strong, tight. The one that is firm and strong. Muhkamât is the plural of muhkam.

The âyahs that have an explicit and decisive meaning and do not need to be interpreted. The sarîh orders and prohibitions that cannot have another meaning. On the contrary to mutashabihât, they never need to be expounded.

 

The idea expressed as "The mysteries of Al-Qur’an Al-Hakîm are not known; mufassirs have not understood its haqiqah." has two aspects. And those who say it are two groups.

The First is the people of haqq and the meticulous ‘ulamâ. They say: "The Qur'an is an unending and inexhaustible treasury. Together with submitting to its nass and muhkamât and accepting them, each age receives its share from the hidden haqiqahs of the Qur'an, in the form of complements; it does not harm the hidden share of another." Yes, it means that more haqiqahs of Al-Qur’an Al-Hakîm unfold as time passes. It is not — Hâsha and Kallâ! 1 — to cause doubt concerning the explicit haqiqahs of the Qur'an, which the Salaf as-Sâlihîn have expounded. Because having îmân in them is a necessity. They are nass, definite, fundamental and pillars. Through the decree عَرَبِىٌّ مُبِينٌ 2 , the Qur’an informs that its meaning is clear. From beginning to end, the address of Allah revolves around those meanings, corroborates them and causes them to reach the degree of being evident. Not to accept those meanings, which are nass, suggests — Hâsha summa hâsha! —denying Janâb-i Haqq and insulting Hazrat Prophet's understanding. It means that those nass meanings have been taken from the source of Prophethood by continuous links like a chain. Ibn Jarir al-Tabarî, through continuous links like a chain with authentic transmissions, related all the meanings of the Qur'an to the source of Prophethood and wrote his significant and great tafsir in that way.

The Twenty-Ninth Letter-First Section-First Subtle Point

 

If you say: While the whole Qur'an is one of the dharûriyyah of religion, there have been differences of opinion over its meanings?

You would be told: In every word of the Qur'an there are three propositions:

The First: This is Allah's Word.

The Second: The meaning intended by Allah with that word is the haqq. It is kufr to deny these two.

The Third: The meaning intended by Allah is this.

If the word of the Qur’an is muhkamât or its tafsir was made by the Qur’an, it is wâjib to have îmân in it as soon as one is informed about it and to deny it is kufr.

If the word of the Qur’an is an âyah that has another possible meaning, a denial of it, which relies on an interpretation that is not based on personal whims, is not kufr. The disagreement of mufassirîn is in this part of the Qur’an.

Mutawâtir Hadiths are the same as âyahs in this regard. However, where there is a denial of the first proposition in connection with Hadiths, these rules should be considered carefully.

Signs of Miraculousness-Sixth Âyah (137)