The Application of the Root Salima in the Qur'an – The Parable of the Monotheist and the Polytheist
In the following Qur'anic verse, the word “salam” is used, which carries the meaning of the root salima49:
﴿ضَرَبَ اللَّهُ مَثَلًا رَجُلًا فِيهِ شُرَكَاءُ مُتَشَاكِسُونَ وَرَجُلًا سَلَمًا لِرَجُلٍ هَلْ يَسْتَوِيَانِ مَثَلًا الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ بَلْ أَكْثَرُهُمْ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ﴾
Allah presents an example: a slave owned by quarrelling50 partners and a man who belongs exclusively to a single master - are they equal in comparison? Praise be to Allah! But most of them do not know.
[sura az-Zumar, 39:29]
Chapters in this Section
- The Linguists on This Verse
- At-Tabari on This Verse
- What Should Follow from the Previously Described Misunderstanding of This Verse
Notes
- The following will also show at-Tabari's view that salam is likewise a masdar of salima, just like salam and salamah. However, for our purposes, it is entirely irrelevant to which specific word category the scholars have assigned the word salam, since the meaning of the word – and thus of the verse – is clear in any case. ↩
- In Arabic: mutashakisuna, which, in addition to mere disagreement, also expresses their bad nature. See, for example, Tafsir at-Tabari on this verse. ↩