Critical Studies on the Quranic Exegesis

Critical Studies on the Quranic Exegesis

Nushūz and Ḍarb in Q. 4:34; A Critique of Saqib Hussain's Interpretation

Document Type : Original article

Authors
Assistant Professor, Department of Islamic Teachings, Egh. C., Islamic Azad University, Eghlid, Iran.
10.22034/naghdeara.2026.583131.1394
Abstract
This article evaluates Saqib Hussain's comparative-historical reading of Qurʾān 4:34, which interprets nushūz as adultery and ḍarb as the ḥadd punishment of lashes. Through contextual analysis at intra-verse, intra-surah, and intra-Quranic levels, and by examining the narrations of both Sunnī and Shīʿī traditions, the study argues that nushūz denotes the initial stages of marital infidelity rather than the proven crime of adultery, and that ḍarb refers to symbolic, non-injurious discipline within the framework of family taʾdīb, not to the penal ḥadd. The address is to husbands, not to a judge; the qualifications in the narrations (ghayr mubarriḥ, restricted instruments) distinguish taʾdīb from ḥadd; and the sotah parallel fails due to fundamental differences in purpose, agency, and outcome. Hussain's reading conflates conjecture with certainty, taʾdīb with ḥadd, and neglects the contextual and narrational evidence that distinguishes these institutions.
Keywords
Subjects

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Volume 7, Issue 1 - Serial Number 13
September 2026
Pages 101-122

  • Receive Date 25 May 2026
  • Revise Date 01 July 2026
  • Accept Date 02 July 2026