The Intellectual Schools and Various Interpretations of Islam (week 8)

Question 1

What is ‘kalam’?

Answer 1

it is speech - dogmatic theology

Question 2

What does it aim to do?

Answer 2

systematise Muslims understanding go God and the world on the basis of the Quran and the Hadith

Question 3

How can this approach be described

Answer 3

a rationalist approach to the interoperation of the Quran

Question 4

Where else is it involved

Answer 4

in theological debates with non-Muslims

Question 5

What are the questions that come up in early Muslim theological debate?

Answer 5

• who is a muslim?
  
  • is a grave sinner still Muslim?
• what are the limits of human reason?
• free will or predestination?

Question 6

Give examples of some famous dogmatic theologians:

Answer 6

al-Ash‘ari (d. 935)
al-Maturidi (d. 944)
al-Juwayni (d. 1085)
Fakhr al-Din al-Razi (d. 1209

Question 7

What is falsafa?

Answer 7

The Arabic word for Greek philosophia

Question 8

What are some areas of philosophical inquiry?

Answer 8

Logic, Mathematics, Physics, Metaphysics, Politics and Ethics

Question 9

What was the impact of Muslim Philosophy on Western Thought?

Answer 9

Greek was translated to Arabic and then into Latin

Without falsafa, medieval wester thought would have. taken a different course

Question 10

which philosopher can ibn sina (avicenna) work be compared to?

Answer 10

Descartes - I think therefore I am

Question 11

What is interesting about this?

Answer 11

Despite their broad differences of historical and cultural context there are still similarities

Question 12

What are the four key similarities between both of their works?

Answer 12

1. foundational self-awareness
2. independence from sensory experience
3. immediate self-knowledge
4. philosophical skepticism

Question 13

foundational awareness - Descates pov

Answer 13

cogito - statement emphasising our self awareness on the basis of knowledge - through doubting everything he concluded that he MUST exist as a thinking being.

Question 14

foundational awareness - ibn sinna

Answer 14

flying man thought experiment - starts with a radical doubt as well - asks us to imagine someone who comes suddenly into existence - with no sensory experiences in an empty space.
Despite the absence of sensory input he still knows he exists

Question 15

independence from sensory experience - Descartes

Answer 15

even if all sensory experiences were illusions - he could not doubt the existence of himself as a thinking being.

Question 16

independence from sensory experience - ibn sina

Answer 16

flying man - immediate and certain knowledge of self-awareness - without relying on the external world or sensory perception

Question 17

immediate self knowledge - Descartes

Answer 17

awareness of existence is direct and does not rely on interference or external evidence

Question 18

immediate self knowledge - ibn sina

Answer 18

knowledge of existence without sensory experience or external verification

Question 19

philosophical skepticism - descartes

Answer 19

Descartes uses radical doubt to clear all uncertainties and arrive at a foundation of certainty in self-awareness

Question 20

philosophical skepticism - ibn sina

Answer 20

flying man scenario - skeptical scenario where sensory experiences are eliminated to show immediate nature of self awareness.

Question 21

What are the key differences between the two of them?

Answer 21

descartes is associated with cartesian dualism and the mind-body problem

ibn sina is a prominent figure in islamic philosophy and contributed to various fields including metaphysics and medicine.

Question 22

in philosophical terminology how is God understood - Aristotle

Answer 22

unmoved mover, the first cause

there must be a single source of all being because infinite regress is impossible

Question 23

in philosophical terminology how is God understood - Plotinus

Answer 23

the one from which all ‘emanates’

Question 24

in both philosophical and Islamic perspective how is God generally viewed?

Answer 24

one and eternal

Question 25

What are some famous Muslim philosophers?

Answer 25

al-Kindi - the first teacher
al-Farabi - the second teacher
ibn sina - most influential
ibn rushd - major Aristotelian and commenter on Aristotles works.

Question 26

What is al-Kindi known as

Answer 26

the philosopher of the Arabs

Question 27

What did he contribute to metaphysics and philosophy?

Answer 27

he wanted to reconcile greek philosophy - Aristotle and Plato in particular with islamic thought.

emphasised the existence of God as the ultimate cause of reality.

philosophy as a tool for understanding and reinforcing religious beliefs.

Question 28

What did he contribute to science and maths?

Answer 28

translated greek scientific texts to arabic

introduced Indian numerals to islamic world helping the understanding of algebra

Question 29

What did he contribute to knowledge and education?

Answer 29

promoted ideas that reason and intellect should be used to gain deeper understanding of intellect and the divine

Question 30

Who was al-Farabi?

Answer 30

second teacher in Islamic philosophical tradition who built upon the works of particularly Aristotle

Question 31

What did he contribute to political philosophy?

Answer 31

believed that he ideal ruler should be a philosopher kind covering on wisdom ensuring virtue

Question 32

what did he comment about the integration of philosophy and religion?

Answer 32

sought to harmonize Greek philosophy with Islamic thought.

Question 33

what did he contribute to ethics and virtue?

Answer 33

expanded on Aristotle’s ethics, believed that a just society could only be achieved through the moral development of its citizens.

Question 34

what did he contribute to music and aesthetics?

Answer 34

explored the relationship between music, emotions, and ethics, considering the impact of different musical modes on the soul.

Question 35

Who is ibn sina?

Answer 35

aka avicenna - prominent philosopher of the Islamic Golden Age.

Question 36

What did he contribute to metaphysics?

Answer 36

hierarchical structure of reality - God emanates as source of all existence, flowing through various levels

Question 37

What did he say about epistemology?

Answer 37

nature of knwoelsge and the process of acquiring it - emphasised importance of reason in acquiring true knowledge through distinguisihing between gaining knowledge through sense perception and intellectual intuition.

Question 38

What did he say about philosophical anthropology

Answer 38

nature of soul and relationship with body - rational and animal soul - and the immortality of the sou.

Question 39

Who was Ibn Rushd?

Answer 39

aka Averroes, made contributions with his interpretations of Aristotles works.

Question 40

What did he comment about Aristotles works

Answer 40

he commentated on a range of subjects including metaphysics, ethics, politics, logic and natural sciences.

Question 41

Who were the famous critics of Falsafa?

Answer 41

al-Ghazali (d.1111)
- rational criticism of specific philosophical arguments; but he was critical of certain aspects of Kalam and others

Ibn Taymiyya (d.1326) - anti rationalism

Question 42

What were the key sources of knowledge?

Answer 42

Dogmatic theologians - revelation and reason
Philosohpers - reason
Sufis - revelation, reason and unveiling