Artikel ini membahas tentang pemikiran M. Dawam Rahardjo tentang al-Fatihah sebagai paradigma dalam penafsiran al-Qur`an.

Thought on the methodology of interpreting the Qur'an in Indonesia cannot
be separated from several contemporary Muslim scholars. Some of them gave a new
explanation that developed from the treasures of classical concepts. This paper
discusses the thoughts of M. Dawam Rahardjo, one of the contemporary Muslim
scholars, on al-Fātiḥah as a paradigm of interpretation of the Qur'an. This surah, based
on the explanation of the Prophet Muhammad, is only referred to as "the mother of the
Qur'ān” (umm al-Qur`ān) because it summarizes the central teachings of the Qur'an.
However, the Prophet's explanation was not explored in more depth, so that it was only
believed to have no methodological implications in the interpretation of the Qur'an.
Using the historical-philosophical approach, the author will examine Dawam's thoughts
from the perspective of originality, in terms of continuity-change and epistemology, in
terms of the rationality of thought. This paper concludes that, firstly, this idea, although
initially based on the Prophet's statement, is further developed by saying that alFātiḥah is a surah whose verses are muhkam and whose content is universal. So that in
interpretation, it must be referred to as a paradigm when interpreting verses in other
surahs which explain the details. Second, in the context of the study of thought, by its
nature, Dawam's thought tends to be monolithic-rationalism. Although he draws this
thought from traditional sources (nash, hadīts), this method of interpretation has a
rational character and makes these traditional sources the primary source, which he
developed.