Metaphor and Its Lexical Semantic Significance in Qāḍī ʿIyāḍ’s Mashāriq al-Anwār

Abstract

This study examines metaphor as one of the prominent rhetorical and semantic phenomena in Qāḍī ʿIyāḍ’s Mashāriq al-Anwār ʿalā Ṣiḥāḥ al-Āthār. It focuses on the relationship between metaphor and the lexical meanings of words occurring in Prophetic Hadith texts. The study is based on the idea that Arabic words are not limited to their original lexical meanings; rather, they may shift to figurative meanings through context and rhetorical usage. Metaphor is considered one of the most significant mechanisms that contribute to this semantic shift.

The research aims to reveal Qāḍī ʿIyāḍ’s method in employing metaphor to explain difficult and uncommon expressions in Hadith, and to clarify its role in expanding, specifying, or redirecting meaning from a direct sensory sense to a figurative meaning appropriate to the context. The study adopts a descriptive analytical approach by presenting the theoretical concepts of metaphor and lexical semantics, then applying them to selected examples from Mashāriq al-Anwār.

The study concludes that Qāḍī ʿIyāḍ was clearly aware of the close relationship between lexical meaning and rhetorical meaning. His treatment of metaphor was not merely a rhetorical observation, but a semantic tool for understanding Prophetic texts and interpreting their intended meanings accurately. The study also shows that metaphor plays an important role in clarifying meaning, preventing literal misinterpretation of religious texts, and linking figurative meanings to their linguistic and lexical origins.