1- PhD Candidate in Islamic Theology, University of Qom, Qom, Iran. , abolfazl.mohammadi@stu.qom.ac.ir 2- Associate Professor, Department of Philosophy and Theology, University of Qom, Qom, Iran.
Abstract: (62 Views)
This article presents a comparative examination of the concept and interpretation of metamorphosis (maskh) in the exegetical thought of two prominent contemporary Shi’i commentators, Allama Tabatabaei and his student Ayatollah Javadi Amoli. maskhas one of the Qur’anic and theological concepts that has consistently attracted the attention of Muslim exegetes and scholars, is described in several Qur’anic verses as a form of divine punishment. Using a descriptive–analytical method and relying on library-based sources, the study aims to clarify the similarities and differences between the views of these two exegetes regarding the nature of maskh, the causes and contexts that lead to it, and the educational and social implications of this phenomenon. The findings indicate that both commentators agree on the actual occurrence of physical metamorphosis as well as on the contemporary examples of metamorphosis, such as moral degeneration and excessive materialism. They interpret maskh as an existential transformation and a divine punishment resulting from the spiritual downfall of human beings within rebellious and tyrannical societies. Nevertheless, certain differences emerge in some related details and interpretations, including the possibility of the recurrence of maskh in the present age and the identification of its external manifestations.