Abstract

In this paper, the writer has dealt with hermeneutics from the viewpoints of two contemporary philosophers, Allamah Tabataba'i and Martin Heidegger. Both of them follow completely new and innovative approaches to this problem. The common characteristic of these two philosophers is going beyond the epistemology of hermeneutics and emphasizing its ontological dimension.Allamah Tabataba'i believes that hermeneutical interpretation pertains to the reality of the Qur'an and maintains that the essence of this Holy Book is not basically of the type of words, meanings, and concepts; rather, it is of the type of objective and external existence.Martin Heidegger, does not limit interpretation necessarily to texts, either. He ignores the exoteric concepts and meanings of the Holy Book and believes that the key to its reality is paying attention to the truth of human existence.