The Examination of the Absence of the Statement “In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful” at the Beginning of the Repentance Chapter

Authors

1 PhD student, Department of the Qur’ān and Ḥadīth Sciences, Faculty of Theology, Alzahra University, Tehran

2 Associate Professor, Department of the Qur’ān and Ḥadīth Sciences, Faculty of Theology, Alzahra University, Tehran

Abstract

The Repentance chapter is the only chapter of the Qur’ān that is not started with the Basmala phrase “In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful.” Different reasons have been suggested for the absence of the Basmala phrase at the beginning of this chapter. After examining every stance in this regard, the study at hand takes into account the external indications affecting the Repentance chapter – such as the atmosphere of the revelation and the conditions of the revelation – to investigate the absence of the Basmala phrase at the beginning of the Repentance chapter. The various behaviors of the Companions of the Prophet (s) at the Expedition of Tabūk (as the main event of the year 9 LH) revealed the existence of various groups of believers and hypocrites. The year 9 LH was a historical turning point in the history of the Arabian Peninsula, and the majority of new conversions to Islam were due to political, security, and economic concerns. These new converts’ approach to Islam was defined by their interests, and their behavior was mainly “the disbelief disguised under faith” (i.e. hypocrisy), a conduct the existence of which is confirmed by the Repentance chapter content, too. The mentioning of Basmala by the Glorified God at the beginning of every chapter is an invitation to use His general and specific Grace. The hypocrites have deprived themselves from the Divine Grace because they turn disbelief to an obstacle against the Divine Grace. In other words, the conduct of the hypocrites and their inward urge in a way is breaking ties with God and the Islamic nation. Therefore, God have responded to their conduct with depriving them from His Grace.

Keywords

References

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Classical and Contemporary Islamic Studies (formerly known as Journal of Contemporary Islamic Studies)
Volume 1, Issue 2
July 2019
Pages 375-392

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