The Meaning of the Concept in this Book
“Principles of Religion” appears as the field that grounds belief, and it parallels principles of jurisprudence in the construction of the Islamic worldview. However, Mohammed Arkoun sees it as a field that remained theologically incomplete, and one governed more by defensive and political polemics than by a fully developed critical system.
Its Place in the Book’s Argument
The concept enters the book’s argument through the relationship between the grounding of belief and the grounding of law. Here, the meaning is not merely a doctrinal heading, but part of a broader structure that links principles of jurisprudence and principles of religion as complementary, and shows that viewing either one in isolation weakens our understanding of the formation of fundamentalist thought.
How It Functions within the Atlas
Within the atlas, the concept functions as a point of connection between the question of theology and the question of method. It is related to the claim that kalam was not completed theologically, and it sits alongside the idea that modern Islamic theology needs critique and common ground. In this sense, “Principles of Religion” is not presented as an isolated concept, but as part of a network that explains the limits of doctrinal construction within modern Islamic thought.