Are You sure you want to delete Member from list ?
For those of us who study the Qur'an, it’s common to find ourselves in study circles and
debates over the verses and what they mean. In such circles, I have noticed that each
person interprets the verses according to his own circumstances.
For instance, I once came across a lady who interpreted a verse of the Qur'an, one that
clearly spoke against oppressors, as a verse against sinning believers. Her examples
were women who don’t wear the hijab and people who visit the Mazaar. It was evident
that she wasn’t approaching the verse objectively but filtering it through a cultural lens.
When I first began studying the Qur'an, this very question often troubled me: how do we
know whether a verse truly means what we think it does? Over time, I realised that an
objective view is essential if we are to interpret the Qur'an as it is meant to be
understood.
I also understood that these cultural interpretations occur because of certain biases
that we hold, most commonly, the confirmation bias.
In simple terms, the confirmation bias is one where we look for evidence that proves our
ideas right, ignoring other evidence that may prove us wrong, further solidifying that
idea.
In the Qur’an, Allah (swt) says,
"Those who disbelieved – be they from the People of the Book or from those who
associated others with Allah in His Divinity – will not desist from unbelief until the Clear
Proof should come to them;
a messenger from Allah who recites the purified scrolls;
in writings wherein are scriptures, absolutely true and unerring.
And those who were given the Book did not disagree but after the clear proof came to
them." – Surah al Bayyinah 98:1-4
It's clear from this verse that having access to something that offers objective truth is
not enough, but a conscious effort to find that truth is equally important.
The Qur'an itself is the objective authority that helps us make sense of our
circumstances. But to benefit from it, we must first train our minds to accept that
objectivity rather than distort it through cultural interpretations and biases. This may
only be the beginning of our journey to understanding its true meaning, but it is without
doubt the right place to start.
