By Dr. Shamsuddin Sahiron(Lecturer at UIN Sunan Kalijaga)
Historical critical study of the Koran is a study that attempted to show how the Quranic text and its history can be known with the help of rational knowledge. The main objective of this study is to explain the origin of the text and illustrate the forms and functions of the earliest (Kroop 2007:1). Models of this kind of research has been done by Western scholars since the 19th century. Abraham Geiger (1810-1874) is considered as the first scholar to apply the historical-critical approach to the Qur'an. In 1883, he published a book entitled Was hat Mohammed aus dem Judentum aufgenommen? (Dirk Hatwig 2009:241).
In this work, he said that Prophet Muhammad took much part of Jewish tradition in producing the Koran. This view was followed by many other scholars, such as Luling and Christoph Günther Luxemberg. Recent work which gathers some of the results of historical-critical study of Geiger-style this is the book edited by Tilman Nagel, the newspaper Der und sein und religiöses kulturelles Umfeld (2010). These scholars regard the Qur'an as a text 'epigonik' in the sense that the Koran is an imitation of pre-texts of Islam. The view is of course a very controversial among Muslim scholars.
However, not all Western scholars agree with the view of the above. Many other Western scholars, such as Anglika Neuwirth, Nicolai Sinai, Michael Marx, and Dirk Hartwig criticizes the views and findings above. Based on interviews with them on July 2, 2010 and several articles, it is known that they do not agree with the conclusion that the Koran is just a copy of 'pre-texts of Islam'. To support this position, they have been doing some research. One is a project which they called the Corpus Coranicum, which is being conducted in Berlin-Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften in Germany.
In this project, they use the same approach as that of Abraham Geiger, but with a different paradigm. Unlike Geiger, they regard the Qur'an as 'polyphonic text' and not mimesis (imitation) of the earlier texts. Trends in research of this kind can be called a 'new trend of the historical-critical study of the Koran'. This project consists of three main work, as follows.
First, these scholars make a documentary about the early Quran manuscripts qira'at following variations. However, this documentation does not aim to make the text a critical edition of the Koran. In terms of manuscripts of the Koran, they create a data bank about the location, date, and paleografis aspects of each manuscript. Currently, the data bank consists of 250 entries and each entry has a number of photographs of manuscripts. The number of photos that have been digitized in a computer currently 3,500. The variation in the data bank on reading the Qur'an, one can find all means read (qira'at) the Koran, which is considered as a good qira'at qira'at mutawatirah (narrated by a large number of narrators), qira'at masyhurah (narrated by a relatively large narrator), and qira'at syadzdzah (which excludes these two kinds qira'at).
Second, scholars involved in the project also conducts research and studies as well as create a data bank related to what they called the texte aus der Welt des Koran (texts around the Qur'an). In this case, they are seeking similarities Quranic text with other texts on the revelation of the Quran. This kind of study known as 'intertekstualitas' between the verses Aquran and texts from pre-Islamic traditions, like the Bible, post-biblical Jewish texts, and classical Arabic poetry. Intertekstualitas this, they say, is a significant foundation for the reconstruction effort texts that surround the Qur'an (Marx 2008:51; Interview July 2, 2010).
However, it differs from other orientalist orientalist-in the 19th century which holds that the Qur'an is the imitation / replica of the texts pre-Islamic, these scholars have been doing research as objective as possible and they came to the conclusion that the Koran is not a 'text epigonik' which Imitation is the result of some other texts from the pre-Islamic tradition. (Neuwirth 2008:16; Interview July 1, 2010). They assert, that the Qur'an although in some cases have paralelitas and similarities with other texts, but it is a text 'independent' which has its own characteristics and its own dynamics, both in terms of both language and content.
For example, Neuwirth to compare between the letter al-Rahman and the Psalms, and proved that although these two texts have paralelitas / intersection, but the Qur'an has its own style in terms of structure-specific literature and spirit in terms of content and message (Neuwirth 2008:157-189) . The same conclusion is also evidenced by Nicolai Sinai when researching QS. An-Najm. Along with these findings, Dirk Hartwig, when interviewed on July 2, Christoph Luxemberg criticized as saying that the Koran is a text copy of the Christian tradition of the Syro-Aramaic language.
Third, they have been and are producing what they call a historical-der kritische literaturwissenschaftliche Kommentar des Koran (the interpretation of historical and literary-critical of the Koran). This interpretation of the structure consists of four elements. The first element is the text of the Qur'an and its translation in German. Arabic text is based on qiara'at Hafs from 'Asim. Translation of the Qur'an mostly comes from Rudi Paret translation with some specific adjustments. Studies of the chronological order of revelation is the second element of their interpretation.
They want to reconstruct the dynamics of the Quranic text had to do with aspects of the linguistic / literary. Also, what they call "literary criticism" in the sense that they provide an explanation of literary structure of the Qur'an in conveying a particular message.
Source; Republika.online
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