Paragraphs and Periods explained

The Paragraphs and Periods (Full name: Paragraphs and Periods on the Glorification of God and Admonitions; ar|الفصول و الغايات في تمجيد الله و المواعظ|al-Fuṣūl wa-l-ghāyāt fī tamjīd Allāh wa-l-mawā'iẓ) is a collection of homilies in Arabic rhymed prose, authored by al-Ma'arri (d. 1058). The book is noted for being a deliberate imitation of the Quran.

There is no indication that al-Ma'arri intended his work to be viewed as a genuine competitor to the Quran or to assert any claims of divine revelation. Many Muslim contemporaries of al-Maʿarrī believed that his book ridiculed the Quran and condemned it. However, in subsequent centuries, many supporters argued that it represented genuine piety and true glorification of God. Modern scholars hold differing opinions; while some view it as a parody, others see it as a critique of conventional literature.

References

• Book: Lawson . Todd . Gnostic Apocalypse and Islam: Qur'an, Exegesis, Messianism, and the Literary Origins of the Babi Religion . 2012. 9781136622885 . Routledge.
• Book: Grigoryan. Sona . Neither Belief nor Unbelief: Intentional Ambivalence in al-Maʿarrī’s Luzūm. 2023. 9783110773644. 10.1515/9783110773644. De Gruyter.

Further reading

• Smoor. Pieter. A Flash of Understanding the Book al-Fuṣūl wa-l-ghāyāt fī tamjīd Allāh wa-l-mawā'iẓ by Abū l-'Alā' al-Ma'arrī. 2014. 71. 5-6. Bibliotheca Orientalis. The Netherlands Institute for the Near East. 10.2143/BIOR.71.5.3073485.
• Diez. Martino. Der Koran des Abū l-ʿAlāʾ. Teil 1: Materialien und Überlegungen zum K. al-Fuṣūl wa-l-ġāyāt des al-Maʿarrī. Teil 2. Glossar. . 2014. 16 . 2. Journal of Qur'anic Studies. The Netherlands Institute for the Near East. 10.3366/jqs.2014.0153.
• Blankinship. Kevin. Der Koran des Abū l-ʿAlāʾ. By Christian Peltz. 2017. 76. 1. Journal of Near Eastern Studies. Edinburgh University Press. 10.1086/690634.