Formulation of the Claim
Arkoun holds that Ibn Mujahid’s reform represented a turning point in the history of the Qur’anic text, because it reorganized the readings within a single horizon.
Explanation
This claim links the regulation of the readings to the way the text came to be received and understood within Islamic culture. The issue is not a technical arrangement of the readings, but a transformation in Muslims’ relationship to the text and in the conditions under which it was examined.
In this sense, Ibn Mujahid’s reform becomes part of the history of the text’s formation as an object of regulation and normativity, not merely a series of adjacent recitations. It therefore acquires a dimension that extends beyond the science of readings to the history of reception and interpretation.
Its Place in the Book’s Argument
This atom falls within Arkoun’s broader thesis, which traces the stages through which the Qur’anic text passed in history, from the time of revelation to moments of codification and reform. It is connected to his insistence that understanding the text requires examining the conditions of its formation and circulation, rather than being satisfied with its final form.
Limits of the Claim
This atom should not be burdened with a final judgment on the value of Ibn Mujahid’s reform, nor should it be reduced to a single cause for all the developments that followed it. It points to a turning point in the history of the text, not to a comprehensive explanation of the entire history of interpretation or readings.