Rajab al-Bursī and Qur’anic Exegesis

This paper studies the exegetical aspects of Mashāriq al-anwār, authored by the erudite Twelver Shi’i writer, al-Ḥāfiẓ Rajab al-Bursī (d. c. 814/1411). This work gained renewed prominence during the Safavid era, and served as a potent tool in the Shi’i imperial arsenal. Although the Mashāriq al-anwār might not conventionally fall under the category of tafsīr, it adopts a wide range of methods through which its author engages with diverse Qur'anic verses and explains them from the perspective of Shi’i imāmology. As we will see, al-Bursī employs four distinct methods to shed light on the hidden and esoteric dimensions of the Qur'anic verses that echo and substantiate the Shi’i tenet of the imāmate. These involve drawing from general Qur'anic principles, creating a specialised Shi’i lexicon within the Qur'an, engaging in theological debates to reconcile God’s transcendence ( tanzīh) with anthropomorphic immanence ( tashbīh) through Shi’i imāmology, and establishing foundational Shi’i doctrines, like the imāms’ knowledge ( ʿilm), as the reference points for select Qur'anic verses. Through his use of these methods, al-Bursī’s work represents a systematic intellectual endeavour that offers a cohesive and structured understanding of the Qur'an, rather than merely stringing its verses together into a random sectarian collage.