Subproject A01

Path and Guidance: Interpretations of Qur’anic Metaphors of Space and Movement in the Tafsīr Literature

In the Islamic religious tradition, metaphors of space and movement hold a prominent place, starting with the “straight path” (al-ṣirāṭ al-mustaqīm) that figures in the opening chapter of the Qur’an. Subproject A01 seeks to understand how metaphorical language in the Tafsir literature contributes to the creation of religious meaning and how it expresses different religious imaginaries. In addition, it studies transfers of space and movement metaphors between Arabic-language Qur’an commentary and other literary genres and languages, asking to what extent metaphors acquire new meaning through such transfers.

A description of the A01 Tafsir corpus is available under the following link.

Publications

Jurczyk, Thomas, Roman Seidel, Adrian Bernhard, Tatjana Scheffler and Johann Büssow. 2025. “Text Mining Tafsir: Compilation and Preliminary Explorations of a Curated Corpus of 80 Qur’anic Commentaries.” Journal of Digital Islamicate Research 3 (2025): 1–72. https://doi.org/10.1163/27732363-bja00010.
Rezania, Kianoosh, Neda Mohtashami, and Roman Seidel, eds. 2025. Conceptualizing CONDUCT OF LIFE through WAY Metaphors. Metaphor Papers 19. https://doi.org/10.46586/mp.430.
Seidel, Roman. Forthcoming. “Qur’anic Lead Metaphors and the Unfolding of their Religious Meaning: Considerations on the Theory of Metaphor and Transtextuality Applied to Qur’an and Tafsīr”. In By the Tongue of the Heart: Role and Development of Metaphors in Sufi Literature, edited by Vicky Ziegler and Roman Seidel. Special Issue of Asiatische Studien.
Seidel, Roman, and Johann Büssow. 2025a. “Mapping the ‘Straight and Solid Road’ Within the Qur’anic Landscape: Development of a Primordial Islamic Way Metaphor.” In Conceptualizing CONDUCT OF LIFE through WAY Metaphors, edited by Kianoosh Rezania, Neda Mohtashami, and Roman Seidel. Metaphor Papers 19. https://doi.org/10.46586/mp.430.507.
Seidel, Roman, and Johann Büssow. 2025b. Annotating Explicative Metaphors: An Annotation Guideline for Qur’anic Lead Metaphors and Explicative Metaphors in Exegetical Texts (Tafsir). Metaphor Papers 31. https://doi.org/10.46586/mp.451.
Seidel, Roman, and Nayerehsadat Mirmousa. Forthcoming. “Mapping the Circular WAY in Jalāl al-Dīn Rūmī’s Masnavī. The Tale of The Parrot and the Merchant and Its Metaphorical Significance" In By the Tongue of the Heart: Role and Development of Metaphors in Sufi Literature, edited by Vicky Ziegler and Roman Seidel. Special Issue of Asiatische Studien.
Seidel, Roman and Vicky Ziegler, eds. Forthcoming. By the Tongue of the Heart: Role and Development of Metaphors in Sufi Literature. Special Issue of Asiatische Studien.