to it,”ibn Arabi describes the Quran as always already containing an
infinity of interpretations (Q18:109).^22 By barring human (as opposed to
divine) access to the gap between the definite and the indefinite–in effect
the knowable and the unknowable, or the definable and the ineffable–this
passage undermines the possibility of anyfixed interpretation of Islam.
Understanding the Quran thus requires not simply rational exegesis, but
also deeply subjective perceptual apprehension. Although the imitability of
i’jazis based on the rational qualitative study of literature, the capacity for
perception ofi’jazalso exceeds and precedes any rational standards. The
eleventh-century scholar al-Jurjani emphasizes that the Quran is not per-
ceived through the eyes or ears, but directly penetrates and impresses the
heart. Reflecting on the supreme composition, eloquence, and imagery of
the Quran, he comments on the power of simile to cause pleasure by
bringing forward the unseen through comparison. He holds this true not
only for the Quran, but also for a beautiful face or garden. Through the
virtue or merit (fadila) they evoke, such elements become universal and
thus subject to analysis. Similarly, his contemporary al-Hujwiri describes
traditions of those surrounding the Prophet as weeping and swooning
upon hearing his prayers, of angels dying from hearing the verses, and an
inability to even complete reading the book because of its beauty.^23
Writing within this tradition, the modern Salafithinker Seyyid Qutb
(1906–1966) understands aesthetics as central to Islam:
We realize that the Quranic expression united the aim of religion with the artistic
aim in every scene presented in the Quran. We come to realize that the splendor of
the Quranic style is the influential instrument in the Quran, reforming the human
soul and giving it the Islamic character...Religion and aesthetics are twin in the
human soul.^24
He suggests that the concern over images is not about pictures so much as
the mentality of affiliating representation (tasawwur) with“mere Western
images,”a“translated mentality”from which he seeks to liberate Muslims.
From a more historicist perspective, Arkoun’s recognition of the similarity
between the discourse oni’jazand the oppositions of form/content and
literal/figurative meaning in Aristotelian rhetoric underscore the inward
aspect of mimesis taken as normative in the Quranic description and
cultural understanding ofi’jaz.^25(^22) Almond, 2003 ; Abdel-Haleem, 2004 : 190. (^23) al-Hujwiri, 1959 : 395. (^24) Khatab, 2006 : 95.
(^25) Vilchez, 2017 :53n. 82,51n. 74.
110 Seeing with the Heart