The Influence of Classical Islamic Modernism on the Qur’an Comments: The Example of Elmalılı Muhammed Hamdi Yazır

Year 2019, Issue: 13, 259 - 295, 30.12.2019

Resul Ersöz

https://doi.org/10.18498/amailad.601373

Abstract

Classical
Islamic Modernism is a movement that seeks solutions to problems of religious,
political, scientific, economic, social, cultural, etc. It does this by
activating the internal dynamics. In other words, it is a new model of interpretation
of the Qur'an that aims to ensure that Muslims in particular and the entire
humanity in general benefit from the Qur'an to the maximum extent. This
movement corresponds to the first modernization efforts in the Islamic world.

Based on the
opinion, The Classical Islamic Modernism can be defined as follows: It is a
civilization project that in order to ensure the correction and renewal of
Muslims aims to return to essential resources (Qur'an and Sunnah) and to purify
the Islamic faith from bid’at and superstition and to give the role to mind in
the interpretation of holy texts and to be careful of tradition and to put
distance to isrâiliyât and Islamizing the knowledge produced by the West and to
restore the Ummah consciousness which has been damaged and to combat imperialism
all together.

Classical Islam Modernism, in addition to the
reformist character who it take over from the pre-modernism reform movements
with its features such as respect for reason and science and not being content
with rumour and to make an consult to te'vil, to activite ictihâd has
influenced many educateds and thinkers and intellectuals in the Islamic world.
One of these intellectuals is Elmalılı Hamdi Yazır too.

Elmalılı Hamdi
Yazır (1878-1942), firstly, with his identity of constitutionalist he was one
of the theological scholarly class of Ottoman Islamists, both as an active
political figure, a thinker, a writer/translator, a hodja/teacher. However, after the opening of the second parliament on August 11, 1923, and the
proclamation of the Republic is a historical character that was tried in the
courts of Independence ostracized and forced into seclusion yet commissioned by parliament to write commentary (tafseer). Elmalılı Hamdi
is not against the caliphate (hilâfet) institution. Even so, -in Abdulhamid II
period- he advocated constitutionalism which was a modern style of administration
as an alternative to the Caliphate system, and even tried to put it on an
Islamic ground by overlapping with the principle of shura (Şûrâ) of Islam. On the other side, after the
proclamation of the Republic, He has experienced a number of intellectual
transformations with the abolition of the caliphate and with the revolutions.

According to us, in order to understand that he is a
modern commentator of Islam, with his exegesis (tafseer) book Hak Dini Kur’ân
Dili it is necessary to evaluate his lectures, translations, articles and other
works together. His tendency to question past
scientific accumulation and the cultural acquis and, at times, to ignore them;
it is only one of the things that bring it in parallel with Classical Islamic
Modernism. But his attitude, -perhaps consciously- was not
reflected in his exegesis book (Hak Dini Kur’ân Dili) enough. In some subjects,
he criticized some of the Qur'anic interpretations of Classical Islamic
Modernism. Muhammad Abduh's (1849-1905) commentary on Surah Al-Fil is one of
them. Elmalılı's efforts to explain some events from the scientific
understanding of modern age with the principle of causality, and cause-effect
relationship are another aspect that puts him at the same level with Classical
Islamic Modernism. For example, He made an explanation about the scepter of
Moses (pbuh) that turned into a snake/dragon: “The real transformation is not
admissible.” In other words, it is not admissible to transform literally one
thing into another. Furthermore, this (the scepter's turned into a
snake/dragon), according to the “Law of Contradictions” which means “it is not
possible to literally to drive anything away itself" is not a genuine
transformation. On the other hand, it may be possible for the scepter to turn
into snake or dragon in the mind, physically or spiritually. Another example is a matter of the creation of Jesus
(pbuh) or the coming of fatherless to the world. Elmalılı has taken a modernist approach in this matter too. According to
Elmalılı, a creature's creation from a mother and a father is a general law,
not an absolute law. This is so. Because according
to imperative there are exceptions in this law. Consequently, the creation of
Jesus (İsa) is an exception and this is “atavism (Jeddâniyet)= to resemble to
the original ancestor” that is to say, it's something like to resemble an
uppermost ancestor. On the other hand, life owners are divided into two as
monomer or diyamer (just to be his mother or to be his mother and his father). Therefore, Hz. Jesus is an example of life with a
mother only. The third aspect of the subject can be male and female as well as
two sexes from human beings. In time, one
of them may prevail over another. Therefore, it
is also possible to have two kinds of seeds in a body. What is the obstacle to explaining the situation of Mary in this way?

It is possible to summarize some of Elmalılı's other
views which coincide with Classical Islamic Modernism as follows: The ictihâd, which means that Fakih’s use all his
power to remove the sharia's practical provisions from the detailed evidences,
in Elmalılı, it corresponds to understanding and exploring the divine law. According to
him, the theologians (ulemâ) is the obliged with ictihâd for the discovery of
the divine provisions.

According to Elmalılı, should be used the science of
the West, not the values of the West. We should not
be afraid to read Western philosophy. Because that, means arming against them. In this context, he said: While the
Western world translated our most important books until they reached our
religion and Quranic sciences and added them to their own treasury of information
and even studied the “Mizân-i Kubra” of Şa’rânî, trying
to draw conclusions that could falsify Islam, why should we be deprived of
their scientific accumulation and why should
we tend to be like them rather than being ourselves to avoid such deprivation? If the Christians who translate and read the Qur'an
and armed with it against Islam do not become Muslims, a Muslim who
would read and understand their philosophy and be armed with it against them,
why get Christian?

According to
Elmalılı, Islam doesn't obstruct progression. Contrarily, it's the guarantee of
progression. According to him, the progress is a general name given to the
increasing and continuing movement of humanity towards an absolute purpose.
According to Elmalılı, all sciences are respected. However, it is convenient
for to use for goodness and for evil.  On
the other hand, it is possible to see the traces of the “scholarly exegesis”
which is popular in the modern era in the book of exegesis of Elmalılı Hamdi.
He is cautious towards “İsrâîliyyât”. According to Elmalılı, “nesh” (to
abrogate of) is a necessity of the universality of the Qur'an together with the
change and development in social life. According to him, “nash” is both a truth
and a law. He thinks parallel with Classical Islamic Modernism in the opposite
of bid'at and superstition. According to Elmalılı the Prophet (pbuh) has many
miracles. But his greatest miracle is the Quran.

Keywords

Tafseer (Exegesis), Islamic Modernism, Qur’an commentary, Reform-Innovation, Guidance

Klasik İslâm Modernizmi’nin Kur’ân Yorumlarına Etkisi: Elmalılı Muhammed Hamdi Yazır Örneği

Abstract

Klasik İslâm Modernizmi, Müslümanların
ıslahını, silkinmesini ve medeniyet yarışında tekrar sahne almasını sağlamak
amacıyla, dini/Kur’ân’ı ve buna bağlı müktesebâtı yeniden yorumlama çabalarına
tekabül eden bir akımdır. Modern çağda Cemaleddin Afgânî ve Muhammed Abduh
tarafından başlatılan bu hareket ile Osmanlı İslâmcılığı arasında zamanlama,
metot ve çözüm önerileri bakımından bir takım benzerlik ve paralellikler bulunmaktadır.
Söz konusu etkileşim Cumhuriyet Türkiye’sinde de sürmüş, Kur’ân, bu dönemde
hidâyet ve sosyolojik fayda ekseninde tefsire konu olmuştur.

Elmalılı Hamdi Yazır, Meşrutiyet
öncesi, Meşrutiyet ve Cumhuriyet dönemlerinde Klasik İslâm Modernizmi’nin
Kur’ân yorumlarından etkilenen âlim ve mütefekkirlerden biridir. O, müellifi
olduğu “Hak Dini Kur’ân Dili” adlı tefsir kitabını, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti
Devleti’nin talebi üzerine hazırlamıştır. Bu durum, Elmalılı’nın çalışmamıza
konu olmasında etkili olmuştur. Bununla birlikte o, Meşrutiyet öncesi ve
sonrasıyla Osmanlı’nın son dönemine ve Cumhuriyet dönemine de şahit olmuştur.
Diğer taraftan, Cumhuriyet Türkiyesi’nde birçok müfessir ve Kur’ân
araştırmacısının Klasik İslâm Modernizmi’nden etkilemiş olduğunu söylemek
mümkündür. Bu haliyle konu bir makale boyutunu aşacağından dolayı, çalışmamızda
tefsir konusunda Cumhuriyet döneminin sembol ismi olan Elmalılı Hamdi Yazır ile
yetinmeyi uygun gördük.

Klasik İslâm Modernizmi’nin en olumlu
yönü, Müslümanların problemleriyle Kur’ân ayetleri arasında bağlantı kurmaları
ve âyetlerin manalarını güncelleyerek toplumsal sorunlara Kur’ân eksenli çözüm
arayışına girmeleridir. İşin diğer olumlu yönü, söz konusu âyetlerin, bu
konularla sınırlandırılıp dondurulmamış olmasıdır.

Keywords

Tefsir, İslâm Modernizmi, Kur’ân Yorumları, Islah-Tecdîd, Hidâyet

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