Monotheism and Polytheism in Religious Texts: A Cognitive-Semantic Analysis

This study presents a cognitive-semantic analysis of the concepts of monotheism and polytheism in the Glorious Qur'an and the Holy Bible. As fundamental religious concepts, monotheism and polytheism play a central role in shaping religious identity and belief systems. Although previous studies primarily examined these concepts from religious, historical, and linguistic perspectives, their cognitive-semantic dimensions remain underexplored. Accordingly, this study aims to investigate the cognitive-semantic conceptualisations of these concepts in selected Qur'anic and Biblical texts through the application of Image Schema Theory, Mental Space Theory, and the Classification of Lexical Relations. It also aims to examine the role of linguistic expressions, together with social and political factors, in shaping religious cognition, and identify the similarities and differences between the Qur'anic and Biblical representations of these concepts. The study employs a qualitative research design and analyses sixteen representative religious texts, comprising eight texts from the Glorious Qur'an and eight texts from the Holy Bible. It adopts three models, namely Johnson's Image Schema Theory (1987), Fauconnier's Mental Space Theory (1985), and Palmer's Classification of Lexical Relations (1981). The findings reveal that linguistic choices, alongside social and political factors, significantly influence the cognitive construction of religious beliefs. Furthermore, both the Qur'anic and Biblical texts affirm the oneness of God and reject polytheistic practices; however, they differ in their doctrinal representations of monotheism. While the selected texts describe various forms of polytheism, their causes, and consequences, the Qur'anic discourse is predominantly direct, argumentative, and critical, whereas the Biblical discourse is generally narrative and descriptive.