What is a Tafseer?

The literal meaning of tafseer in the Arabic language is “to open” or to explain, interpret or comment. A tafseer is a human attempt to understand the Quran given the evidence of language, history, context, prophetic sayings, comparative analysis etc. Allah’s knowledge is perfect and human knowledge is not.

Tafseer is a branch of knowledge in which the meaning of the Quran is explained and its injunctions and wisdoms are described openly and clearly to the best of the author’s knowledge and ability. Allah ﷻ addresses the holy prophet ﷺ in the Quran and says in Surah An-Nahl 16:44,

بِالْبَيِّنَاتِ وَالزُّبُرِ ۗ وَأَنزَلْنَا إِلَيْكَ الذِّكْرَ لِتُبَيِّنَ لِلنَّاسِ مَا نُزِّلَ إِلَيْهِمْ وَلَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ
[We sent them] with clear proofs and written ordinances. And We revealed to you the message that you may make clear to the people what was sent down to them and that they might give thought.

Allah ﷻ says in Surah Al-Imran 3:164,

لَقَدْ مَنَّ اللَّهُ عَلَى الْمُؤْمِنِينَ إِذْ بَعَثَ فِيهِمْ رَسُولًا مِّنْ أَنفُسِهِمْ يَتْلُو عَلَيْهِمْ آيَاتِهِ وَيُزَكِّيهِمْ وَيُعَلِّمُهُمُ الْكِتَابَ وَالْحِكْمَةَ وَإِن كَانُوا مِن قَبْلُ لَفِي ضَلَالٍ مُّبِينٍ
Certainly did Allah confer [great] favor upon the believers when He sent among them a Messenger from themselves, reciting to them His verses and purifying them and teaching them the Book and wisdom, although they had been before in manifest error.

The Holy Prophet ﷺ did not just teach the words of the Quran, but he also explained these in detail to us. Today, various sources are utilized in Tafseer of the noble Quran. The tafseer or interpretation of the Quran is studied according to the methodology of the prophet ﷺ which utilizes different sources in the order below. (Studying from the highest source itself is like getting milk from a cow directly as opposed to getting it from the milkman, getting gold directly from the gold mine as opposed to the jeweler):

The Glorious Quran itself: 

First an ayah is understood in the light of other ayaat of the Quran. It happens very often that a certain point which is brief and requires explanation is invariably clarified by some other verse of the Quran itself. For example, when studying “alhamdulillahi rabbil alaameen”, a mufassir (one who writes tafseer) will study if there are any other ayaat in the Quran in which there is a mention of “hamd” towards Allah ﷻ.

Hadith: 

The words and deeds of the Prophet ﷺ are called the hadith. Allah ﷻ sent the Quran to the prophet ﷺ with the purpose of explaining to people explicitly and openly the correct meanings of the noble Quran. The prophet ﷺ discharged this duty with grace and excellence both by his words and actions. In fact, his whole blessed life is a practical tafseer of the Quran.

The reports from Sahabas RA: 

The noble sahabas (companions) of the prophet ﷺ received their education directly from the Holy Prophet ﷺ. They were present at the time of wahy’ and themselves witnesses the circumstances and backgrounds of the revelation of the Quran. Naturally, the recorded statements of these blessed souls are far more authentic and trustworthy in explaining the Quran than those of the later people.

Other sources and researches: 

These include the reports from tabi’in, the nuances of Arabic language and deliberation and deduction.

The reports from Tabi’in (or successors of Sahabas): 

After companions (sahabas) camem their successors – the tabi’in. Tabi’in learnt the tafseer of the Quran from the companions. Although there is a difference of opinion regarding whether or not the statements of tabi’in can be considered decisive evidences in tafseer, but their importance is something that can not be denied.

The Arabic Language: 

In order to explain the Quran, it is necessary to have a mastery over its language – Arabic. If for a certain ayah, there are no recorded circumstances of revelation, sayings of the prophet ﷺ, statements of sahabas RA or the statements of tabi’in, then they are interpreted based on the Arabic language. Linguistics is also used to run a test of veracity in cases where there is a difference of opinion in the tafseer of a certain ayah.

Deliberation and deduction: 

The subtleties and mysteries of the noble Quran are an ocean with no shore, no end. The more a person blessed with insight into Islamic sciences by Allah ﷻ dwells into it, the more he discovers new mysteries and subtleties. These mysteries and subtleties are found acceptable only when they do not go against the other sources mentioned above.