Research Journal on Fiqh and Islamic Sciences

Research Journal on Fiqh and Islamic Sciences

The Status of Semantic Analysis in Ayatollah Khamenei’s Interpretation Method with Emphasis on Surah Al-Mujadalah

Document Type : Original Article

Author
Mona Faridi Khorshidi
Assistant Professor, Department of Islamic Philosophy and Theology, Imam Sadeq University, Women’s Campus
10.22034/rjfis.2025.484128.1099
Abstract
Contemplation on religious texts, particularly the Holy Quran, and the methods employed to understand their various propositions have long been the center of attention for religious scholars. Considerable interpretive efforts made in this field attest to this. Viewing the Quran as an unaltered Divine Scripture presents an opportunity to employ contemporary textual analysis methods. Semantic analysis is one such modern approach that, given its potential, can be applied to the Quran to enhance our understanding of its teachings. This research, grounded in a library-based methodology and textual analysis, specifically utilizes cognitive semantics. One of the recently compiled Quranic exegeses is penned by Ayatollah Khamenei. In this interpretation, to examine specific surahs, the methods of the Quran through the Quran and Aqli interpretation have been employed. The selection of these interpretive methods and the interpreter’s perspective have led to certain semantic considerations: A focus on discovering rather than constructing meaning, attention to intertextual relations, and a consideration of the context, discourse, and the semantic system of the verses. Since semantic discussions were not prevalent during the compilation of this exegesis, and consequently, its application in Quranic interpretation was not common, Ayatollah Khamenei’s interpretation cannot be strictly categorized as a semantic interpretation. However, due to its ijtihadi nature, it does exhibit certain semantic considerations.
Keywords
Ayatollah Khamenei
interpretation
Semantics
Surah Al-Mujadalah

Subjects

  1. Chomsky,N (1957). Syntactic structures. The Hague. Mouton.
  2. Croft, W. & D. Alan Cruse (2004). Cognitive Linguistics. Cambridge university press.
  3. Hans Georg (1994). Truth and method. Continuum New York.