Référence :
Islamochristiana 39 (2013) 71–91
English
Return, Repentance, Amendment, Reform, Reconversion. A contribution to the study of Tawba in the Context of Islamic Ethics
Abstract
The present essay aims to explore, within the general framework of Islamic ethics, the complex notion of tawba, whose immediate peculiarity lies in its double meaning, being akin to “repentance” in the case of man, and “forgiveness” in the case of God. Our investigation will begin with the Koranic use of the root twb, observing its explicit content as established by the earliest lexicographers (in particular the work of Ibn Manẓūr), and identifying its presence in the Koran itself and in classical, modern and contemporary exegesis, as well as in the principal didactic literature, again including modern contributions.
Titre original : “Return, Repentance, Amendment, Reform, Reconversion. A contribution to the study of Tawba in the Context of Islamic Ethics”
Résumé
Le présent essai vise à explorer, dans le cadre de l’éthique islamique, la notion complexe de tawba, dont la particularité immédiate réside dans son double sens, s’apparentant à la “repentance” dans le cas de l’être humain, et au “pardon” dans le cas de Dieu. Notre enquête commencera par l’utilisation coranique de la racine twb, en observant son contenu explicite tel qu’établi par les premiers lexicographes (en particulier le travail d’Ibn Mansur), et en repérant ses occurences dans le Coran lui-même et dans l’exégèse classique, moderne et contemporaine, ainsi que dans la principale littérature didactique, y compris les contributions modernes.
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