Paradosis and monotheism

A late antique approach to the meaning ofislāmin the Quran

Datos Bibliográficos

ID2818255
AutoresJuan Cole (0000-0002-0540-1474, University of Michigan, autor de correspondencia)
Año2019
Volumen82
Número3
Páginas405-425
Fecha de publicación2019-10-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaBulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0041-977X • E-ISSN: 1474-0699
EditorialCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/s0041977x19000685
OpenAlexW2998609608
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas6
Referencias citadas47

Both the Muslim exegetical tradition and most Western scholarship have posited that the termislāmin the Quran means "submission", i.e. to God, and that it refers to the religion brought by the prophet Muhammad. This paper argues that neither of these assertions is correct. Rather, the abstract nounislāmas used in the Quran means "tradition". It is underlain by the Aramaicmashlmānūtā, which in turn was the term generally used to translate the Greekparadosis. That the Greek usage had a direct impact on Arabic is also considered. The wide range of meanings givenparadosisby Greek and Syriac authors is surveyed. A close reading of Quran verses in which the wordislāmappears shows that it refers to the prophetic tradition of monotheism rather than the surrender of an individual to God. It is synonymous with the Logos of Abraham, in which all the monotheistic religions participate

Ancient history · Antique · Art · Epistemology · Islam · Linguistics · Literature · Logos Bible Software · Meaning (existential) · Monotheism · Reading (process) · Surrender · Term (time) · Theology · Archaeology and Historical Studies · Historical and Linguistic Studies · History · Islamic Studies and History · Philosophy