Abstract

The Holy Quran articulates lofty concepts through the provision of a perceptible depiction, with the divine names and attributes constituting prominent examples, situated within the realm of ambiguous verses (āyāt mutashābihāt). These divine qualities have been clarified, explicated, and detailed through the pronouncements of the Imams. In his compilation of Al-Tawhid, Al-Shaykh al-Saduq has systematically assembled a considerable body of these traditions. The present study endeavors to ascertain the methodology adopted by Al-Shaykh al-Saduq in his selection of narrations for Al-Tawhid and to delineate the roles these narrations fulfill in elucidating ambiguous verses. To this end, the interrelationship between Quranic verses and narrations, along with their specific functions and textual effects, has been examined through a functional typology informed by Brémond’s analytical approach. Additionally, a meticulous description and evaluation of 245 interpretive narrations contained within Al-Tawhid have been undertaken, emphasizing a functional typological perspective, resulting in their classification into semantic, linguistic, explanatory-interpretive, esoteric, and legislative domains. Within this framework, narrations with an explanatory-interpretive purpose demonstrate the greatest prevalence, whereas those with cognitive, foundational, and legislative roles exhibit successively diminishing frequencies. Consequently, the hermeneutical strategies employed by Al-Shaykh al-Saduq in Al-Tawhid can be identified as encompassing ijtihādī (jurisprudential reasoning), literary, Quran-to-Quran, and esoteric approaches, characterized by a narrational-theological orientation.