Tafseer and Quranic Sciences

The Advanced Course in Tafseer & Quranic Sciences is a comprehensive, structured, and research-oriented program aimed at cultivating scholarly expertise in the interpretation of the Qur’an. Spanning 18 months across five in-depth modules, the course provides students with a rigorous grounding in the historical development of Tafseer, foundational principles of Qur’anic interpretation, and the essential sciences related to the Qur’an. Learners are guided through both classical and contemporary methodologies, enabling them to approach the Qur’an with intellectual depth, methodological precision, and academic responsibility.

The program begins with a systematic study of the history of Tafseer and the methodologies of major Mufassireen, establishing a strong conceptual foundation. Students then explore the Qur’anic sciences and formal rules of Tafseer, including linguistic, theological, and jurisprudential dimensions essential for accurate interpretation. Special emphasis is placed on understanding how context, revelation circumstances, and scholarly principles shape Qur’anic meaning.

In its advanced stages, the course critically examines Tafseer traditions of the Indian Subcontinent, along with modern interpretive trends, addressing contemporary intellectual challenges such as modernism, contextualism, and ideological readings of the Qur’an. Students are trained in analytical Tafseer, learning to evaluate interpretations with scholarly rigor while identifying unreliable or fabricated elements within Tafseer literature. The final phase focuses on an independent research project, equipping learners with academic writing, research methodology, and documentation skills necessary for higher-level Islamic scholarship.

Supplemented by monthly specialized sessions in Islamic jurisprudence, Orientalism, the inimitability of the Qur’an, and research methodologies, this course prepares students to engage confidently with both classical texts and modern academic discourse. Graduates of the program emerge with the intellectual clarity, critical insight, and research competence required to contribute meaningfully to Qur’anic studies in academic, educational, and intellectual spheres.