Editing Tafsir (section)

===''Tafsir bi'l-Ma'thur'' (or ''Tafsir bi'r-Riwayah'')===
''Tafsir bi'l-ma'thur'', or commonly known as ''Tafsir bi'r-riwāyah'', is the method of commenting on the Quran using traditional sources. ''Tafsir bi'r-riwāyah'' connotes ''tafsir'' using another portion of the Quran, or sayings of Muhammad, or saying of his companions.<ref name=Yusuf-28>{{cite book|last1=Yusuf|first1=Badmas 'Lanre|title=Sayyid Qutb: A Study of His Tafsir|year=2009|publisher=The Other Press|page=28|isbn=9789675062278|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Gz0_Kw2AlfMC&q=tafsir&pg=PA28|access-date=18 December 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150316180710/https://books.google.com/books?id=Gz0_Kw2AlfMC&pg=PA28&dq=tafsir&hl=en&sa=X&ei=pu6SVNy2AtbdsASLuILoDw&ved=0CEMQ6AEwBTgK#v=onepage&q=tafsir&f=false|archive-date=16 March 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> This classical ''tafsir'' method is agreed upon by all scholars, and is the most used method throughout history, partly because other methods have been criticized. Criticism of non-riwaya method is mostly based on two grounds; for one, Muhammad has condemned those who interpret the Quran from their own point of view,<ref name=":0">Tirmizi, Tafsir, 1</ref> and for two, most companions of Muhammad have refrained from presenting their own ideas.<ref>Taberi, Camiul Beyan, I, 27</ref> Some important examples of ''tafsir bi'r-riwāyah'' are ''[[Tafsir al-Tabari|Jāmiʿ al-Bayān]]'' by [[al-Tabari]] and ''[[Tafsir ibn Kathir|Tafseer al-Qurʾān al-ʿAẓeem]]'' by [[ibn Kathir]]. The sources used for ''tafsir bi'r-riwāyah'' can be ordered by the rank of authority, as the Quran, hadiths, the reports by the [[Companions of the Prophet|''sahabah'']] and [[Tabi'un|''tabi'iun'']], classical Arabic literature, and [[Isra'iliyat]].
[[File:Osmar Schindler David und Goliath.jpg|thumb|''David and Goliath'' (1888) by [[Osmar Schindler]], commentators transferred stories from Jewish history, mixed with legends, to Islamic culture, such as the details of the story of [[Jalut]], briefly touched upon in verses 247-252 of [[Al-Baqara]].]]

The most authoritative source of the interpretation is the Quran itself. Interpretation of the Quran employing other Quranic reference is very common because of the close interrelatedness of the verses of the Quran with one another. The Quranic verses explain and interpret one another, which leads many to believe that it has the highest level of authenticity. Many verses or words in the Quran are explained or further clarified in other verses of the Quran. One example of the hadith which extensively employs this source of method is ''[[Tafsir al-Mizan|Al-Mizan fi Tafsir al-Qur'an]]'' by [[Muhammad Husayn Tabataba'i]]. The authoritative source of method second to the Quran is Hadith, by using [[hadith|narratives]] of Muhammad to interpret the Quran. In this approach the most important external aids used are the collected oral traditions upon which Muslim scholars based Islamic history and law. Authority of this method is considered established by the statement made in the Quran that Muhammad is responsible for explanation and guidance.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.usc.edu/schools/college/crcc/engagement/resources/texts/muslim/quran/016.qmt.html#016.064|title=Cmje|access-date=2010-11-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101022172353/http://www.usc.edu/schools/college/crcc/engagement/resources/texts/muslim/quran/016.qmt.html#016.064|archive-date=2010-10-22|url-status=live}}</ref> While some narratives are of revelation origin, others can be the result of reasonings made by Muhammad.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.icsfp.com/de/Contents.aspx?AID=5596 |title=Sources of Prophet Muhammad's Knowledge |access-date=2010-11-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110713001850/http://www.icsfp.com/de/Contents.aspx?AID=5596 |archive-date=2011-07-13 |url-status=live }}</ref> One important aspect of these narratives is their origin. Narratives used for ''tafsir'', and in general, must be of authentic origin (''[[Hadith terminology|sahih]]''). Narratives of such origin are considered requisite for ''tafsir''.

Other source of the interpretation includes the accounts of ''[[Ṣaḥābah]]'', companions of Muhammad, or ''[[tabi‘un]]'', the generation after sahabah, and ''[[Tabi‘ al-Tabi‘in]]'', the generation after tabi'un. Their authority is based on an account in hadith ''[[Sahih Bukhari]]'', which accordingly, Muhammad said:<ref>{{cite web
 | url=http://www.searchtruth.com/book_display.php?book=48&translator=1&start=10&number=814
 | title=The Hadith Book (48. Witnesses): nr. 819
 | publisher=Search Truth
 | access-date=2013-07-21
 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150414194632/http://searchtruth.com/book_display.php?book=48&translator=1&start=10&number=814
 | archive-date=2015-04-14
 | url-status=live
 }}</ref> <blockquote>The best people are those living in my generation, then those coming after them ([[Tabi‘un|Tābi‘un]]), and then those coming after (the third generation).</blockquote> If nothing is found in the Quran or the Hadīth, the commentator has recourse to what the Ṣaḥābah reported about various verses. These are generally considered above personal opinion, because these people grew up with everyday interaction with Muhammad, and had often asked about the meanings of verses or circumstances of their revelation; and they were very knowledgeable in both Arabic literature and Islamic thought. Another non-scripture based source of the interpretation is classical [[Arabic literature]]. Classical [[Arabic poetry]] and the text of the Quran are two resources which can be used as foundational reference in ascertaining the meaning and signification of the remaining literal and figurative diction of the Quran and its style of expression.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.al-mawrid.org/pages/articles_english_detail.php?rid=17&cid=82|title=Al-Mawrid<!-- Bot generated title -->|access-date=2009-10-07|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100613091103/http://al-mawrid.org/pages/articles_english_detail.php?rid=17&cid=82|archive-date=2010-06-13|url-status=live}}</ref> Using Arabic poetry for defining words is a long used practice, and very few scholars have not used this source.<ref>Muhsin Demirci, Tefsir Tarihi, 128</ref> Less authoritative source of the interpretation is ''[[Isra'iliyat]]'', which is the body of narratives originating from [[Judeo-Christian]] traditions, rather than from other well-accepted sources. The Isra'iliyat are mostly non-[[biblical]] explanatory stories and traditions (Hebrew: ''midrashim'') giving extra information or interpretation about events or individuals recorded in the Hebrew scriptures. Scholars starting with the Sahabah have studied narrative accounts of other [[Abrahamic religion]]s to further explain and clarify verses, especially parables, in the Quran. While some may be accurate, these narratives are not subject to hadith authenticity criteria, and are generally not favored for use.