The Meaning of the Concept in This Book
Myth, for Arkoun, is not superstition, but a positive symbolic language that reveals original and universal truths and founds meaning. In this book, it is a condition for understanding the Qur’an and religious consciousness, because it links facts to symbols and shapes the social imaginary.
Its Place in the Book’s Argument
The concept of myth is used here to clarify that Qur’anic discourse cannot be reduced to ordinary meaning or to a solely juridical reading. The Qur’an, in this view, establishes a symbolic perception that opens the sphere of the marvelous to the manifestation of God, and belongs to a symbolic knowledge that produces an effective mythical world. Myth therefore becomes part of explaining the relationship between reason, heart, imagination, and memory, rather than an extra element added onto religious meaning.
How It Works Within the Atlas
Within the atlas, myth is connected to a series of interwoven issues: the marvelous, symbolic imagination, historical reading, popular interpretation, and the limits of critique. It helps explain how the Islamic sensibility is formed outside official interpretation, and how Islamic consciousness continues to require a reading that brings together history, imagination, and rationalization. It also shows that critique can turn into a new mythologization if it is not organized within a method that links myth to history and redefines the tools of understanding.
Nearby Pages
- Myth is a positive symbolic language
- Myth and Qur’anic discourse function as a positive foundational expression
- The marvelous is a basic element in religious consciousness
- The Qur’an establishes a symbolic perception that opens the sphere of the marvelous to the manifestation of God
- Islamic consciousness needs a reading that combines history, imagination, and rationalization