An Esoteric Interpretation of Qur’an is an interpretation of Qur’an which includes attribution of esoteric or mystic meanings to the text by the person involved in interpretation and as such its method is different from the conventional exegesis on Qur’an called Tafsir. Esoteric interpretations usually do not contradict the conventional , in this context called exoteric interpretations, instead , they discuss the inner levels of meaning of Qur’an. A hadith from Mohammad which states that Qur’an has an inner meaning and that inner meaning conceals a yet deeper inner meaning up to seven levels of meaning , has often been used in support of this view. Islamic opinion imposes strict conditions on esoteric interpretations.
Esoteric interpretations are found mainly in Sufism and hadiths of Shi'a Imams.
Islamic legitimacy
There is almost no dispute among muslims that Qur’an being the word of God has concealed meanings.The existence of the Qur'anic initial letters is often mentioned as a proof .
So it is the right of the person who explains these meanings for doing so which is the matter of debate.
There is a verse in Qur’an related to such interpretations:
He it is who has sent down to thee the Book: In it are verses basic (of established meaning); they are the foundation of the Book: others are allegorical.But those in whose hearts is perversity follow the part thereof that is allegorical, seeking discord, and searching for its hidden meanings, but no one knows its hidden meanings except God. And those who are firmly grounded in knowledge say: "We believe in the Book; the whole of it is from our Lord:" and none will grasp the Message except men of understanding.(3/7)
In the verse quoted above there is a stop between …except Allah and And those who.. and reading this way the verse attributes the knowledge of Qur’an’s hidden meanings to God alone.By removing the stop it becomes :" ...no one knows its hidden meaning except Allah and those who are firmly grounded in knowledge , say…" which suggests that those firmly grounded in knowledge can extract these hidden meanings.
Both forms are valid in Arabic language , Sunni muslims usually read the verse with stop , while Shi'a muslims usually read it without stop and consider their Imams , which according to Shi'a belief are the heirs of Mohammad’s knowledge , to be authorized to explain these hidden meanings.
In Sufi tradition , it is beleived that the esoteric meanings of Qur'an can be extracted through mystic experiences and as such esoteric interpretation presented by Sufi Shaykhs are considered authentic.
Sufi interpretations are often rejected by Islamic scholars and are not considered a form of authentic exegesis , tafsir.In some cases these interpretation were considered innovation bid'ah.
Sufism
Throughout its history , Sufism has widely used esoteric interpretation of Qur’an.Sufi writings make frequent references to Qur’an and present esoteric interpretations either explicitly or implicitly.Implicit forms being quoting a verse in a certain context which suggests that the meaning of the verse is related to the ideas presented.
There are some verses in Qur’an whose conventional interpretations suggest mystic ideas and Sufis have commented extensively on them.
While all Sufi interpretations are basically mystic ,three major trends in Sufi interpretations can be recognized , mystic , philosophic and esoteric.
The distinction is not always clear and sometimes these coexist in works of a particular Sufi author.
Historically the mystic interpretations were the first to appear in Sufi writings , the second and third being philosophic and esoteric interpretations.
A famous Sufi commentary on Qur’an , the Persian book Kashf Al Asrar(The unveiling of the mysteries) by Meybodi , mentions conventional interpretations as the first level of meaning and esoteric interpretations as a deeper level.
It is common in Sufi writings to explain three or four levels of meaning of a Qur’anic concept.
Mystic Sufi interpretations
These are purely mystical interpretations of the text and at times have a poetic nature , no attempt is made for justification of these interpretations and they are often found in a scattered form in poems and prose.
Some examples include:
- Interpreting religious terms as describing inner qualities:
These interpretations are sometimes mystic comments on religious concepts. For example in " Say: O unbelievers! I worship not that which you worship"(109/1-2) unbelievers is taken to mean individual self , or the women of paradise , houri , are interpreted as divine visions.
- Interpreting Qur’anic stories from a mystic perspective :
These interpretations are aimed at explanation of the mystic meaning of the stories and are found frequently in Sufi poems and prose , for example in The Conference of the Birds , Attar , in reference to Qur’anic story of descent of Adam and Eve to Earth, writes that "Adam was too lofty to be satisfied with paradise and an unseen messenger cried to him to leave his attachments to everything that hampers his journey towards God , be it paradise".
- Poetic interpretations :
These interpretations view Qur’an from a poetic perspective and seek to find subtle meanings related to divine love in the verses , an example which is found frequently in Sufi writings , specially poems , being the interpretation of "By the glorious morning light, And by the night when it is still" (93/1-2) as God’s reference to the face and hair of Mohammad.
- Interpreting a verse in a sense very different from its conventional meaning :
For example in his book Tamheedat , Ayn-al-Qudat Hamadani interprets "The fire of God kindled ablaze , which doth mount to the hearts"(104/6-7) which conventionally refers to the punishment in hell , as passion of divine love and interprets "the day Earth becomes that which is not Earth" which conventionally describes the day of judgment as a description of the moment of spiritual awakening.
- Comments on Qur'anic initial letters:
Sometimes only a vague comment and sometimes a comment on each letter is given .Although Sufis insist that these initial letters conceal mysteries that can not be fully expressed in words and should be understood by means of mystic experiences.
- Mystic remarks concerning Qur’anic verses like the famous saying "I am the dot of B ب of Bismillah" attributed to various Sufis including Shibili.Many Sufis have commented on it.
Philosophic Sufi Interpretations
These interpretations have a philosophical structure and sometimes serve as the basis of a mystical philosophy.
Hallaj was one of the early Sufis who presented such interpretations .For example he deeply speculated on Qur’anic idea of creation by the word Be! , which appears frequently in Qur’an e.g. : "...When He determines a matter, only says to it, "Be", and it is."(19/35)
The most extensive works in this area are done by Ibn Arabi.Each chapter of his book The Bezels of Wisdom , is dedicated to a prophet mentioned in Qur’an which he attributes to a particular divine manifestation which is the subject of the chapter.
Many similiar Sufi interpretations are inspired by Ibn Arabi' works.
Esoteric Sufi Interpretations
These are bodies of esoteric knowledge associated with Qur’anic concepts which have practical importance for some Sufis, an example being the theories concerning lataif-e-sitta.
Hadiths of Shi’a Imams
One on the essential characteristics of Imams in Shi'a belief is possession of knowledge of hidden meanings of Qur’an.Although it is believed that they revealed only a very small portion of their knowledge.These interpretations are considered one of the sources of interpretation of Qur'an , tafsir , in Shi'a Islam.
Shi’a muslims sometimes refer to the twelfth Shi'a Imam , Mahdi , as Baqiyyat Allah (Arabic: بقیه الله ) literary meaning that which God has preserved , the term is originally derived from a Qur’anic verse according to an esoteric interpretation.
There are many esoteric interpretations presented by Shi'a Imams , most of them by Ja'far al-Sadiq and Mohammad Baqir.These hadiths usually interpret certain verses in connection with Mohammad’s family , Ahlul Bayt.
A Shi'a hadith attributed to Ja'far al-Sadiq, which is an esoteric comment on sura Al-Qadr
- One who understands the true meaning of the night of fate , has understood the mystery concealed in Fatima.