Cumhuriyet İlahiyat Dergisi

Öz

Kalām, whose basic characteristics are shaped by the issues of God, prophethood and meād, has centered on the moral perspective in the way it deals with these issues. In this respect, kalām is related to God in one aspect and to man in another. Therefore, theologians addressed the relationship between God and human beings from both ontic, epistemic and moral perspectives. The concept of God and human beings gain meaning by evaluating all dimensions together. Different approaches to the subject are shaped according to the paradigms of discourse groups or thinkers. It is known that Abū’l-Kāsim Mahmūd b. ‘Umar b. Muhammad al-Khwarazmī ez-Zamakhsharī (d. 538/1144), a Mu‘tazilite scholar and one of the competent names of Arabic language and literature, paid due attention to the relationship between God and man in his works. Zamakhsharī, who belongs to the Hanafī faith in his religious practice, has an understanding of religion that prioritises reason and emphasises the functional aspect of reason. For this reason, according to him, human beings, who are created in a certain nature (fitrah) with reason and will, are responsible for their actions. Zamakhsharī, who conceives man on the basis of taklīf, is dominated by the idea of a just God from the first stage of creation. Therefore, his conception of God and his evaluations on the subject of will in connection with this conception of God indicate the basis on which he approaches the relationship between God and human beings. In this context, our study focuses on how Zamakhsharī deals with this relationship and its moral dimension. The main motive for this study is the existence of strong evidence in Zamakhsharī’s works that he evaluates the relationship between God and human beings morally. Relatedly, the subject covers Zamakhsharī’s approach to divine acts/actions, human acts, reason, knowledge, imitation/taqlīd, husn-kubuh, guidance/hidayah-astray/dalalah, dâî, fâil, evil/qabîh and its agent/fâil, wisdom, benefit/maslahah, and taklîf in a way to include all these. Accordingly, the study will first deal with Zamakhsharī’s conception of God and then the relationship between God and human beings according to Zamakhsharī. The data on the moral dimension, which determines the purpose of the study, will be evaluated. The first stage of the relationship between God and human is the creation (halq), the agreement/covenant (mīsaq) and the providence (taqdīr), and the second stage is the taklīf. The Hereafter, as the place where the offer is rewarded, is the final stage and will be discussed in the section on taklīf and conclusion. The study is shaped by the aforementioned data and the analyses made on it. Kitāb al-Minhāj, which is used as a source, is a work of Zamakhsharī that determines the general framework on the subject. Kashshāf 'an hakāʾik al-ghawāmizi' al-tanzīl wa 'uyūni al-akāwīl fī wujūhi al-ta'wīl, on the other hand, is Zamakhsharī’s commentary that enables us to understand and evaluate his views and depth in many aspects. Therefore, this study aims to draw attention to Zamakhsharī’s moral approach to the relationship between God and human beings and thus to the morality of human responsibility. While our study will be limited to Zamakhsharī, comparative evaluations will be made where necessary.