Naskh (نسخ) is an Arabic word usually translated as "abrogation". In tafsir, or Islamic legal exegesis, naskh recognizes that one rule might not always be suitable for every situation. In the widely recognizedBurton, "Those Are the High-Flying Cranes", JSS, 15, 1970, p. 250. and "classic" form of naskh,Hazimi, Abu Bakr. Al-I'tbar, 5-6.Burton, Islamic Theories of Abrogation, 1990, p. 56. one ḥukm "ruling" is abrogated to introduce an exception to the general rule, but the text the ḥukm is based on is not repealed.Burton, "The Exegesis of Q.2:106", BSOAS, 48, 1985, p. 456.
Some examples of Islamic rulings based on naskh include a gradual ban on consumption of alcohol (originally alcohol was not banned, but Muslims were told that the bad outweighed the good in drinking) and a change in the direction of the qibla, the direction that should be faced when praying salat (originally Muslims faced Jerusalem, but this was changed to face the Kaaba in Mecca).
With few exceptions, Islamic revelations do not state which Quranic verses or hadith have been abrogated, and Muslim exegetes and jurists have disagreed over which and how many hadith and verses of the Quran are recognized as abrogated, with estimates varying from less than ten to over 500.Burton, Islamic Theories of Abrogation, 1990, p. 184.
Other issues of disagreement include whether the Quran, the central religious text of Islam, can be abrogated by the Sunnah, the body of traditional social and legal custom and practice of the Islamic community, or vice versa – a disagreement in Sunni Islam between the Shafiʽi and Hanafi schools of fiqh;Burton, Islamic Theories of Abrogation, 1990, p. 37. and whether verses of the Quran may be abrogated at all, instead of reinterpreted and more narrowly defined – an approach favored by a minority of scholars.
Several ayat (Quranic verses) state that some revelations have been abrogated and superseded by later revelations, and narrations from Muhammad's companions mention abrogated verses or rulings of the religion. The principle of abrogation of an older verse by a new verse in the Quran, or within the hadiths is an accepted principle of all four Sunni madhāhib, or schools of fiqh, and was an established principle in Sharia by at least the 9th century.Burton, Islamic Theories of Abrogation, 1990, pp. 43–44, 56–59, 122–124. Starting in the 19th century, modernist and Islamist scholars have argued against the concept of naskh, defending the absolute validity of the Quran.Johanna Pink (11 November 2010). Sunnitischer Tafsīr in der modernen islamischen Welt: Akademische Traditionen, Popularisierung und nationalstaatliche Interessen. Brill. , pp. 114–115.
An abrogated text or ruling is called mansūkh, and the text or ruling which abrogates it is called nāsikh.Roslan Abdul-Rahim (2011). Naskh al-Qur'an: A Theological and Juridical Reconsideration of the Theory of Abrogation and Its Impact on Qur'anic Exegesis. PhD thesis. Temple University.
Definition and etymology
In the Arabic language, naskh () can be defined as abolition, abrogation, cancellation, invalidation, copying, or transcription, according to the Hans Wehr Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic.
As an Islamic term, there is a lack of agreement among scholars on what exactly al-Naskh is (according to several sources). According to Louay Fatoohi, "the term naskh never appears in the Qur'an in the meaning it acquired in Islamic law". A detailed examination of the two Quranic verses "seen by scholars as providing support to the principle of abrogation", shows that neither actually refers to "the concept of abrogation". Israr Ahmad Khan states that those who have read "the works of Abu Ubayd, al-Nahhas, Makki, Ibn al-Arabi, Ibn al-Jawzi, al-Zarkashi, al-Suyuti, and al-Dehlawi on the issue of abrogation will be confused regarding its definition". John Burton complains that the "greatest imaginable confusion reigns as to the definition of the term naskh", and that "an appalling degree of muddle" surrounds the meaning of verse Q.2:106Burton, "The Exegesis of Q.2:106", 1985: p. 452 – "the Abrogation verse"; and that "the constant confusion of 'suppression' with 'supersession causes the reader "endless difficulty".Burton, "The Exegesis of Q.2:106", BSOAS, 48, 1985: p. 468 Ahmad Ali Al-Imam states "most scholars ... differ on many points" of naskh, "particularly on its meaning, modes, and examples".
Disputes over what defines naskh include whether the wording of the Quran can be abrogated while the ruling based on it is not (most scholars believe the ruling must be abrogated also), whether a verse in the Qur'an can abrogate a ruling in the Sunnah, and whether any Islamic revelation may be abrogated at all, or whether when God talks about replacing revelation (in "the abrogation verses" of the Qur'an: Q.2:106 and Q.16:101, see below) He is referring only to revelation which came before the Quran.Hasan, "The Theory of Naskh", Islamic Studies, 1(1), 1965: p. 188
Another issue was how broadly naskh should be defined, with early Muslim scholars having including things that later scholars did not consider naskh, such as:Hasan (1965), "The Theory of Naskh", Islamic Studies, p. 185 exceptions to earlier verses,Ibn Qayyim, I'lam al-Musaqq'in, Delhi, 1313 A.H., I:12
particularization of the meaning of a verse (known as taksees, see below), and clarifications of earlier verses.
Definitions of naskh given by Islamic scholars include: "abrogation, revocation, repeal. Theoretical tool used to resolve contradictions in Quranic verses, hadith literature, tafsir (Quranic exegesis), and usul al-fiqh (roots of law), whereby later verses (or reports or decisions) abrogate earlier ones" (Oxford Dictionary of Islam); an exegetical (explaining) theory of the repeal or abolition of a law for divine commands in the Quran and the Hadith, wherein the contradictory verses, within or between these Islamic scriptures, are analyzed (David S. Powers); through naskh, the superseding verse as well as the superseded verse(s) are determined for the purposes of formulating Sharia;Hossein Modarressi (1993), "Early Debates on the Integrity of the Qur'ān: A Brief Survey", Studia Islamica, Vol. 77, pp. 7–8Suiçmez, Yusuf (2006), "Abrogation in Hadith", American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences, Vol. 23, No 4, pp. 33–35 "obliteration, cancellation, transfer, suppression, suspension" depending on the context, (Badshah, Naeem, et al.);Badshah, Naeem, et al. (2011), "Perceptions of different schools of thoughts regarding abrogation in the Quran", Interdisciplinary Journal of Contemporary Research In Business, 3(3), pp. 494–498Burton (1985), "The Exegesis of Q.2:106", pp. 452–469Liaquat Ali Khan (2008), "Jurodynamics of Islamic Law", Rutgers Law Review, Vol. 61, No. 2, p. 255 suspension or replacement of one Sharia ruling by another with the conditions that the ruling that suspends/replaces is of a subsequent origin, and that the two rulings are enacted separately from one another, (Recep Dogan);Ahmad Hassan (1965), "The theory of Naskh", Islamic Studies 4(2), removal of an Islamic command by a legally valid argument (raf al-hukm al-Shar'i bi dalil shar'i) (Al-Zurqani).
Scriptural basis Quran According to non-Muslim scholar of Islam John Burton, "no single verse" in the Quran "unequivocally points to the naskh of any other verse", (nor does any "irreproachable" hadith identify "any one verse as having either undergone or effected naskh").Burton, Islamic Theories of Abrogation, 1990: p. 19 Islamic Modernist mufti Muhammad Abduh (1849–1905) also stated "the Quran nowhere announced that verse so-and-so is naskh, or that verse such-and-such is mansukh."[Muhammad Abduh, Tafsir al-Manar, Cairo, 1912, 150ffBurton, Islamic Theories of Abrogation, 1990: p. 31
Many of the verses believed to indicate the principle of naskh do not contain any form of the word naskh, i.e. any word with the triconsonantal root n-s-kh. Instead, they use "in place of" (baddal), "efface" (yamhua), "withdraw" (nadhhabanna لَنَذْهَبَنَّ), or "forget" (tansha تَنسَىٰٓ) which are all interpreted to refer to the process of naskh:
John Burton (1990), Islamic Theories of Abrogation, pp. 54-68, Edinburgh University Press,
Of the four verses within the Qur'an that do contain some form of the word naskh — verses Q.7:154, Q.45:29, Q.22:52, and Q.2:106 — in two cases the word has nothing to do with abrogation of divine revelation, but is used in the context of texts and scribal activity: —and
The two verse that do involve abrogation are , a verse allegedly referring to the Satanic Verse(s), (see below) and , which is called a "Verse of abrogation".
Verses of abrogation Q2:106 and Q16:101 are the two "verses of abrogation" contained in the Quran.Harald Motzki (2006), in The Cambridge Companion to the Qur'ān, Editor: Jane Dammen McAuliffe, Cambridge University Press, , pp. 59-67.Wael B. Hallaq (2009), Sharī'a: Theory, Practice, Transformations, Cambridge University Press, , pp. 96-97.A Rippin (1984), Al-Zuhrī Naskh al-Qur'ān and the problem of early Tafsīr texts, Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, Volume 47, Issue 01, pp. 22-43Rippin, "Al-Zuhrī, Naskh al-Qur'ān", BSOAS, 47, 1984: pp. 22-43
They establish the principle in Islam that an older divine revelation may be abrogated and substituted with another one,Mohammad Akram (1987), The Principles of Abrogation, PhD Thesis awarded by University of St Andrews, Advisor: John Burton, United Kingdom, pp. 213-214 a principle that has been historically accepted and applied by vast majority of Islamic jurists of both the Quran and the Sunnah.John Burton (1990), Islamic Theories of Abrogation, pp. 55, 205, Edinburgh University Press,
Only Q.2:106 uses a form of the word naskh (specifically "nanskh" meaning "we abrogate"). Although there "are no less than a dozen" readings/interpretations of verse Q.2:106 (according to Khaleel Mohammed citing John Burton),Burton, John. The Collection Of The Qur'an, Cambridge: University Press, 1977, p. 48 the "majority of exegetes" (scholars of the interpretation of the Quran), find 2:106 indicative of two varieties of abrogation (see below): "supersession", i.e. the "suspension" and replacement of the old verse without its elimination (process known as naskh al-hukm duna al-tilawa, or ibdāl in Arabic)" or "suppression", i.e. the nullification/elimination of the old verse from the Mus'haf (the written Quran compiled after Muhammad's death) (process known as naskh al-hukm wa-'l-tilawa, or ibtāl in Arabic).
Two verse also suggest abrogation can refer to either these two meanings, —suggests naskh is supersession/substitution (tabdīl, related to ibdāl).Burton, "The Exegesis of Q.2:106", BSOAS, 48, 1985: p. 453 —refers "solely to eradication or nullification" according to scholar Al-Fakhr al-Razi.7 al-Fakhr al-Razi, al-Tafsir al-Kabir, 32 pts., in 16 vols., Tehran, [n.d.], II, 226.Burton, "The Exegesis of Q.2:106", BSOAS, 48, 1985: p. 455 In addition, traditional non-religious Arabic sayings, poetry, etc. used to determine the meaning of Quranic terms also suggest abrogation means either suppression or supersession.
The verse Q.16:101 was employed by the founder of the Shafi'i school of Sunni Islamic jurisprudence — Imam Shafi'i — as proof that a Qur'anic verse can only be abrogated by another Qur'anic verse. (see below)
Dissenting views
Orthodox/pro-naskh scholars (like Ali b. Muhammad b. Ibrahim 'Ala al-Din, known as al-Khazin) argues that Abrogation Verse 2:106 was revealed in response to allegations by unbelievers in Mecca "that Muhammad decides a ruling, then abrogates it!". However, according to Mohammed al-Ghazali this explanation cannot be true because the verse was revealed in Mecca where at the time "no such laws" were being abrogated.al-Ghazli, Muhammad. "Kayfa Nata'amal Ma' Al-Qur'an." Herndon, VA: International Institute of Islamic Thought, 1992, pp. 80-84.