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The Classics of Islam

The Great Tafsīrs of Islam


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Omar Qureshi
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Journey through fourteen centuries of Qurʾānic interpretation by reading the greatest tafsīrs of Islamic civilization in the original Arabic. Study the masterpieces of al-Ṭabarī, al-Māturīdī, al-Qushayrī, al-Zamakhsharī, al-Rāzī, al-Qurṭubī, al-Biqāʿī, al-Ālūsī, al-Manār, and Ibn ʿĀshūr while exploring the major interpretive traditions that shaped the Muslim understanding of the Qurʾān.

Instructor: Dr. Shaykh Omar Qureshi
Date: July 1 - August 26, 2026
 
Schedule: Wednesdays, 6:00–7:30 PM (Pacific Time)
 
Course Duration: 9 Sessions
Location: Online via Zoom
Primary Text:
 
Shāh Walī Allāh al-Dihlawī (d. 1176 AH / 1762 CE)
Ḥujjat Allāh al-Bālighah
 
Course Description
A Journey Through Fourteen Centuries of Qurʾānic Interpretation: Major Works and Methods
For more than fourteen centuries, Muslim scholars have devoted their lives to understanding and explaining the Book of God. The result is a vast and sophisticated tradition of Qurʾānic interpretation that stands among the greatest intellectual achievements of Islamic civilization.
 
This advanced Arabic seminar takes students on a journey through the most influential tafsīrs ever written. Through close reading of selections from the masterpieces of the tradition, students will encounter the scholars, methods, debates, and intellectual movements that shaped the Muslim understanding of the Qurʾān across the centuries.
 
The course is built around a central question:
 
How have Muslims understood the Qurʾān throughout history?
 
Rather than studying a single commentary, students will explore the major interpretive traditions that emerged within Islamic civilization. Each tafsīr reflects a distinct intellectual lens through which scholars approached revelation. Some emphasized transmitted reports from the earliest generations, others theology, law, spirituality, language, rhetoric, philosophy, literary coherence, or civilizational reform.
 
By studying these works side by side, students will gain insight not only into the meanings of the Qurʾān but also into the broader development of Islamic intellectual history.
 
Why Study the Great Tafsīrs?
 
The history of tafsīr is, in many ways, the history of Islamic thought itself.
 
Every major commentary on the Qurʾān represents a conversation between revelation and a particular intellectual tradition. Through these works students will witness how theologians, jurists, mystics, linguists, philosophers, and reformers approached the same divine text while employing different methods and intellectual commitments.
 
Together, these masterpieces reveal the richness, diversity, and sophistication of the Islamic exegetical tradition.
 
Course Structure
 
Rather than offering a brief overview of many commentaries, this seminar is designed to provide sustained engagement with each major work. Students will spend multiple weeks studying selections from each tafsīr, allowing sufficient time to become familiar with the author’s methodology, intellectual context, interpretive principles, and distinctive contribution to the tradition.The goal is not merely to introduce students to famous books, but to cultivate genuine familiarity with the greatest tafsīrs of Islamic civilization through sustained reading, discussion, and analysis in the original Arabic.
 
The Great Tafsīrs of Islamic Civilization
 
Transmitted Tafsīr
  • Al-Ṭabarī — Early Sunnī narrative exegesis
Theological Tafsīr
  • Al-Māturīdī — Sunnī kalām
  • Al-Zamakhsharī — Muʿtazilī theology and rhetoric
  • Al-Rāzī — Philosophy and theology
Spiritual Tafsīr
  • Al-Qushayrī — Sufi exegesis
Legal Tafsīr
  • Al-Qurṭubī — Qurʾānic law
Literary Tafsīr
  • Al-Biqāʿī — Coherence and structure (naẓm)
 
Synthetic Tafsīr
  • Al-Ālūsī — Encyclopedic synthesis
Modern Tafsīr
  • Al-Manār (ʿAbduh & Riḍā) — Reformist exegesis
  • Ibn ʿĀshūr — Maqāṣid and renewal
Seminar Format
 
This course is structured as an advanced reading seminar rather than a lecture.
 
Students are expected to prepare assigned readings before class. During each session, students will have opportunities to read passages aloud, translate the text, analyze grammar and vocabulary, and discuss the interpretive methods employed by each commentator.
 
Readings will be corrected and discussed in real time, allowing students to strengthen both their Arabic reading skills and their ability to engage classical scholarly literature.
 
Because the seminar is discussion-based, students should expect active participation and regular preparation throughout the semester.
 
Learning Outcomes
 
By the end of the course, students will:
  • Read substantial selections from major tafsīr works in Arabic.
  • Strengthen their ability to engage advanced classical Arabic prose.
  • Understand the major schools and methodologies of Qurʾānic interpretation.
  • Compare how different commentators interpret the same verses.
  • Analyze the relationship between tafsīr, theology, law, spirituality, philosophy, and intellectual history.
  • Gain familiarity with the most influential commentaries in Islamic history.
  • Develop a deeper appreciation for the richness and diversity of the Islamic exegetical tradition.
Who Should Enroll?
 
This course is intended for:
  • Seminary students
  • Graduates of Islamic studies programs
  • Imams and community leaders
  • Advanced students of Qurʾānic studies
  • Students interested in Islamic intellectual history
  • Students seeking to strengthen their Arabic through engagement with major classical texts
Prerequisites:

Ability to read classical Arabic.

Classes will involve reading the texts in Arabic, translating them, and discussing their meanings, arguments, and historical significance. Students with Arabic proficiency will benefit most from the readings.

Those without Arabic are also welcome to attend and participate in the discussions. While some portions of the course will be more accessible to readers of Arabic, the lectures and conversations will remain beneficial to all interested students.

 
Please note that this course is NON-REFUNDABLE and will close 2 weeks after the course ends.

Here is the class outline:

1. RESOURCES

2. Lesson #1

Jul 1 6pm .. 7:30pm

3. Lesson #2

Jul 8 6pm .. 7:30pm

4. Lesson #3

Jul 15 6pm .. 7:30pm

5. Lesson #4

Jul 22 6pm .. 7:30pm

6. Lesson #5

Jul 29 6pm .. 7:30pm

7. Lesson #6

Aug 5 6pm .. 7:30pm

8. Lesson #7

Aug 12 6pm .. 7:30pm

9. Lesson #8

Aug 19 6pm .. 7:30pm

10. Lesson #9

Aug 26 6pm .. 7:30pm
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