The Qur’anic Interpretation That Still Shapes Islamic Thought

Date: 16 November 2025 - 21:40

News ID: ۱۴۵۸۸۱

TEHRAN -- For over seven decades, the monumental work of Allameh Seyyed Muhammad Hussein Tabataba’i, Tafsir al-Mizan, has stood as a beacon of Qur’anic scholarship.
Its enduring relevance is rooted not merely in its size—twenty volumes in Arabic, roughly eight thousand pages, with Persian translations spanning forty volumes—but in the extraordinary vision and dedication of its author.
Muhammad Fakhr Meybodi, a scholar Al-Mustafa International University, points to two central factors that explain the lasting impact of al-Mizan: the sincere devotion of Allameh Tabataba’i and the depth of his intellectual vision.
“Allameh composed this work solely for God,” Meybodi explains, noting that Allameh Tabataba’i carefully studied the needs of contemporary society and the religious seminary in Qom.
Recognizing a profound need for a comprehensive, accessible interpretation of the Qur’an, he sought to illuminate the divine text with clarity and precision, ensuring that the wisdom of the Qur’an could reach scholars and laypeople alike.
Beyond devotion, al-Mizan reflects Allameh Tabataba’i’s remarkable thinking. The interpretation is unmistakably social in orientation, addressing the practical dimensions of Islam: governance, justice, individual freedom, women’s rights, social order, and the obstacles facing the Muslim world.
It engages with both internal theological debates and external critiques—from materialist philosophers to Western Orientalists—while also confronting emerging questions of the modern era, including science, human rights, and political structures.
Scholars have long hailed al-Mizan as an encyclopedic resource. As the late Morteza Motahhari noted, “Few issues in Islamic studies arise that cannot be unlocked through al-Mizan.”
Similarly, Allameh Abdollah Javadi Amoli likens it to a Qur’anic encyclopedia, indispensable to interpreters in the same way that classical works of jurisprudence guide legal scholars.
Despite not being initially recognized as a specialist in Qur’anic exegesis, Allameh Tabataba’i produced a work now considered among the most authoritative in the Islamic world. The text’s intellectual rigor, coupled with its ethical and spiritual sincerity, has inspired generations of scholars and guided discourse in Iran and beyond.
Al-Mizan has also reached a global audience through translations into English, Urdu, Turkish, and Spanish, extending its influence across cultures and communities. As the Islamic world continues to confront modernity, Allameh Tabataba’i’s masterpiece remains a vital, living guide—a testament to a scholar’s lifelong commitment to understanding and conveying the divine.