A Treatise on the Grammatical Analysis of the Qur’anic Verse: “And an Appointed Term with Him” by Al-Shihab Al-Khafaji (d. 1069 AH) A Critical Edition and Study

Abstract

This study presents a critical edition of a treatise by Al-Shihab Al-Khafaji (d. 1069 AH), entitled “A Treatise on the Grammatical Analysis of the Qur’anic Verse: ‘And an Appointed Term with Him’.” The treatise was composed to address certain grammatical difficulties encountered by students of knowledge concerning two passages at the beginning of Sūrat al-Anʿām.

The first issue concerns the verse “and an appointed term with Him,” in which the indefinite subject (mubtadaʾ) precedes its adverbial predicate. The second issue relates to the verse “and He is Allah in the heavens and in the earth; He knows your secret and what you declare,” where the verb “He knows” constitutes an independent (resumptive) clause based on an implied subject, according to al-Zamakhsharī. Al-Khafaji examines these issues in light of the views of grammarians and exegetes.

The critical edition is preceded by an introduction and a prefatory section outlining the scholarly context of Al-Khafaji’s era. The study is divided into two main chapters. The first provides a biographical account of Al-Khafaji, including his name, lineage, education, teachers, students, works, and death. The second examines the manuscript, including verification of its title and attribution, the circumstances of its composition, its scholarly content, the sources and evidences employed by Al-Khafaji, and a description of the two manuscript copies upon which the edition is based