The Dominance of Misogynistic Narrations in bi al-Ma’tsur of Q.S. An-Nisa’ Verse 34: A Methodological Critique of the Muhaddisin Interpretive Approach

Abstract

This study examines the reactualization of the interpretive principles of muhaddisin in understanding QS. An-Nisa’ verse 34, particularly regarding the dominance of misogynistic hadiths in tafsir bil ma’tsur. The research focuses on the interpretive methods of muhaddisin such as Ibnu Katsir, Al-Baghawi, and Muhammad al-Amin al-Syinqithi, who tend to interpret the phrase arrijālu qawwāmūna ‘ala an-nisā’ through a patriarchal narrative approach. This research employs a qualitative library research method using historical, sociological, and intertextual analysis approaches toward the tafsir works of muhaddisin. The findings reveal that the dominance of misogynistic hadiths in tafsir bil ma’tsur is influenced by the methodological tendency of muhaddisin to emphasize sanad authority and narration over contextual interpretation. The study also finds that the hadith “lan yufliha qawmun wallaw amrahum imra’ah” should be understood within the socio-political context of Persia at that time rather than as a universal prohibition against female leadership. Therefore, QS. An-Nisa’ verse 34 needs to be reinterpreted through the approaches of maqashid sharia, intertextual integration of Qur’anic verses, and a more proportional historical reading. This study concludes that the tafsir methodology of muhaddisin still possesses significant scholarly authority, yet it requires methodological reactualization to produce interpretations that are more just, contextual, and relevant to modern social developments. The novelty of this research lies in its epistemological critique of muhaddisin interpretive methods concerning women’s leadership while simultaneously offering a reinterpretation model of tafsir bil ma’tsur based on the integration of narrations, historical context, and maqashid sharia.