The Semantics of Justice in Human Creation with Emphasis on Syntagmatic and Paradigmatic Relations in Surah al-Infiṭār

Document Type : Research Article

Author

Fazeleh Mirghafoorian

Assistant Professor, Department of Islamic Studies, Women's Campus of Imam Sadiq University, Tehran. Iran.

10.22067/jquran.2025.91105.1780

Abstract

This study explores the meaning of the term ʿadl (justice) in human creation by analyzing its syntagmatic and paradigmatic relations, examining how associated and substitutive terms expand or restrict its meaning. Using a descriptive–analytical method, relevant verses across the Qurʾan are collected and analyzed. The findings show that ʿadl as a descriptor of human creation appears only in verse 7 of Surah al-Infiṭār, accompanied by the terms creation (khalq), proportioning (taswiyah), and composition (tarkīb). Analysis of syntagmatic and paradigmatic relations in verses 7–8 of Surah al-Infiṭār and other Qurʾanic occurrences reveals that ʿadl represents the third stage of human creation and conveys two semantic dimensions: first, God’s granting humans the ability to distinguish between good and evil and to choose between them; second, the creation of each human as male or female, establishing balance in gendered creation and arranging spiritual and physical components accordingly. Khalq represents the first stage of creation involving precise measurement (taqdīr), while taswiyah denotes the second stage, signifying the establishment of monotheistic inclination.

Keywords

Surah al-Infiṭār

semantics of justice

human creation

syntagmatic relations

paradigmatic relations

cognitive semantics

Subjects

• Semantics of Qurʾanic/Hadith vocabulary

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