IVCIJP - The Qurʾān as Oracle or Guide? - Fathiyyatunnur Idris

The spread of bibliomancy (specifically the Garpu Tala (Tuning Fork) method of randomly opening the Qurʾān for divinatory guidance) represents one of the most epistemologically significant challenges to Qurʾānic studies in Malaysia. Despite its Islamic surface appearance, this practice fundamentally displaces the authoritative methodology of tafsīr with individually spiritual certainty, corrupts the practitioner’s relationship with the Qurʾān as divine guidance, and reduces the sacred text to a marketable tool for self-help courses. Drawing on qualitative interview data from eight purposively selected Islamic scholars, academics, and practitioners in Malaysia, analysed through ATLAS.ti thematic analysis, this paper investigates three questions: how does bibliomancy achieve legitimacy within the Malaysian Muslim context; what are its specific violations of Qurʾānic epistemological methodology; and what criteria can distinguish authentic Qurʾānic engagement from divinatory misuse? The findings identify five distinct forms of bibliomancy in Malaysia, each exploiting a specific epistemological vulnerability: the pre-existing ambiguity of tafaʿul with the Qurʾān, pseudoscientific framing through the language of Qurʾānic vibration, influencer-mediated commercial amplification, and structural simplicity that bypasses scholarly mediation entirely. The paper argues that bibliomancy represents not merely a devotional irregularity but a fundamental challenge to tafsīr methodology, the epistemological boundary of al-ghayb, and the Qurʾān’s status as Kalāmullāh. It concludes with a two-stage evaluative framework grounded in classical Qurʾānic sciences for distinguishing legitimate Qurʾānic engagement from divinatory misuse.