God and Logic in Islam : The Caliphate of Reason

This Book Investigates The Central Role Of Reason In Islamic Intellectual Life. Despite Widespread Characterization Of Islam As A System Of Belief Based Only On Revelation, John Walbridge Argues That Rational Methods, Not Fundamentalism, Have Characterized Islamic Law, Philosophy And Education Since The Medieval Period. His Research Demonstrates That This Medieval Islamic Rational Tradition Was Opposed By Both Modernists And Fundamentalists, Resulting In A General Collapse Of Traditional Islamic Intellectual Life And Its Replacement By More Modern But Far Shallower Forms Of Thought. However, The Resources Of This Islamic Scholarly Tradition Remain An Integral Part Of The Islamic Intellectual Tradition And Will Prove Vital To Its Revival. The Future Of Islam, Walbridge Argues, Will Be Marked By A Return To Rationalism--provided By Publisher. Machine Generated Contents Note: 1. Introduction; Part I. The Formation Of The Islamic Tradition Of Reason: 2. The Diversity Of Reason; 3. Empirical Knowledge Of The Mind Of God; 4. The Failure Of The Fārābian Synthesis Of Religion And Philosophy; 5. Mysticism, Post-classical Islamic Philosophy, And The Rise And Fall Of Islamic Science; Part Ii. Logic, Education, And Doubt: 6. Where Is Islamic Logic?: The Triumph Of Scholastic Rationalism In Islamic Education; 7. The Long Afternoon Of Islamic Logic; 8. The Institutionalization Of Disagreement; Part Iii. The Fall And The Future Of Islamic Rationalism: 9. The Decline And Fall Of Scholastic Reason In Islam; 10. A Chaos Of Certitudes: The Future Of Islamic Reason. John Walbridge. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Cover......Page 1 Half-title......Page 3 Title......Page 5 Copyright......Page 6 Dedication......Page 7 Contents......Page 9 Illustrations......Page 13 Preface and Acknowledgements......Page 15 Spelling, Names, and Sources......Page 17 Introduction......Page 19 PART ONE: THE FORMATION OF THE ISLAMIC TRADITION OF REASON......Page 25 1 The Problem of Reason in Islam: Is Islam a Non-Rational Religion and Civilization?......Page 27 2 The Diversity of Reason......Page 33 The definition of reason and rationality......Page 34 Logos and Rationality among the Greeks......Page 36 Scholasticism: Reason as the Tool of Theology......Page 38 Scientific Reason......Page 39 Utilitarian Reason and Practical Rationality......Page 40 Relativism......Page 41 Protestant Textualism......Page 42 The civil war of reason in the west......Page 43 Islam and western conceptions of reason......Page 45 3 Empirical Knowledge of the Mind of God......Page 48 The enterprise of hadith collection......Page 50 The historicity of the hadith......Page 52 The intellectual world of the hadith scholars......Page 56 The Authority of the Hadith......Page 60 Classification as Codification......Page 61 The historical priority of fiqh to hadith......Page 64 Literalist challenge and rationalist cooption......Page 68 4 The Failure of the Farabian Synthesis of Religion and Philosophy......Page 73 Philosophy and religion before islam......Page 75 The first encounter of islam with philosophy: from the syrians to kindi......Page 82 Farabi’s philosophy of religion......Page 85 Religion Subsumed within Philosophy......Page 92 God as Intellect and the Intelligibility of God......Page 94 Prophecy as a Matter of Psychology......Page 96 The Symbolic Interpretation of Scripture......Page 98 The Role of Fiqh and Kal ̄am......Page 99 The failure of the farabian political philosophy of religion......Page 100 5 Mysticism, Postclassical Islamic Philosophy, and the Rise and Fall of Islamic Science......Page 104 The emergence of mysticism......Page 105 Suhrawardi......Page 107 Ibn ‘Arabi......Page 111 Aristotelianism in the Madrasas......Page 113 The “failure” of islamic science......Page 114 PART TWO: LOGIC, EDUCATION, AND DOUBT......Page 123 “Where is islamic logic?”......Page 125 Arabic grammar......Page 129 Arabic rhetoric......Page 131 Usul al-fiqh......Page 132 Kalam......Page 135 Institutions and the boundaries of logic......Page 137 7 The Long Afternoon of Islamic Logic......Page 139 Islamic logic to the thirteenth century......Page 142 The textbooks and their commentaries......Page 144 The educational use of the school logic texts......Page 147 Content of the school logic......Page 153 The modernization of the school logic......Page 157 8 The Institutionalization of Disagreement......Page 160 The classical islamic attitude to disagreement......Page 161 An education of form without content......Page 169 PART THREE: THE FALL AND THE FUTURE OF ISLAMIC RATIONALISM......Page 173 The collapse of traditional education......Page 175 “What went wrong?”......Page 180 10 A Chaos of Certitudes: The Future of Islamic Reason......Page 188 Disagreement in the contemporary islamic world......Page 191 The great issues......Page 193 General references on islam, islamic history, and historiography......Page 205 Classical and early christian thought and literature......Page 206 Qur’an and hadith......Page 207 Islamic law and jurisprudence......Page 208 Islamic theology......Page 209 Islamic philosophy......Page 211 Islamic mysticism......Page 215 Science and islam......Page 216 Logic......Page 217 Islamic and indian education......Page 219 Fundamentalism and issues in contemporary islam......Page 220 Index......Page 221 Cover 1 Half-title 3 Title 5 Copyright 6 Dedication 7 Contents 9 Illustrations 13 Preface and Acknowledgements 15 Spelling, Names, and Sources 17 Introduction 19 PART ONE: THE FORMATION OF THE ISLAMIC TRADITION OF REASON 25 1 The Problem of Reason in Islam: Is Islam a Non-Rational Religion and Civilization? 27 2 The Diversity of Reason 33 The definition of reason and rationality 34 Western conceptions of reason 36 Logos and Rationality among the Greeks 36 Scholasticism: Reason as the Tool of Theology 38 Enlightenment Reason 39 Scientific Reason 39 Utilitarian Reason and Practical Rationality 40 Relativism 41 Protestant Textualism 42 Romanticism 43 The civil war of reason in the west 43 Islam and western conceptions of reason 45 3 Empirical Knowledge of the Mind of God 48 The enterprise of hadith collection 50 The historicity of the hadith 52 The intellectual world of the hadith scholars 56 The Authority of the Hadith 60 Classification as Codification 61 The historical priority of fiqh to hadith 64 Literalist challenge and rationalist cooption 68 4 The Failure of the Farabian Synthesis of Religion and Philosophy 73 Philosophy and religion before islam 75 The first encounter of islam with philosophy: from the syrians to kindi 82 Farabi’s philosophy of religion 85 Religion Subsumed within Philosophy 92 God as Intellect and the Intelligibility of God 94 Prophecy as a Matter of Psychology 96 The Symbolic Interpretation of Scripture 98 The Role of Fiqh and Kal ̄am 99 The failure of the farabian political philosophy of religion 100 5 Mysticism, Postclassical Islamic Philosophy, and the Rise and Fall of Islamic Science 104 The emergence of mysticism 105 Mysticism and philosophy 107 Suhrawardi 107 Ibn ‘Arabi 111 Aristotelianism in the Madrasas 113 The “failure” of islamic science 114 PART TWO: LOGIC, EDUCATION, AND DOUBT 123 6 Where Is Islamic Logic? The Triumph of Scholastic Rationalism in Islamic Education 125 “Where is islamic logic?” 125 Arabic grammar 129 Arabic rhetoric 131 Usul al-fiqh 132 Kalam 135 Institutions and the boundaries of logic 137 7 The Long Afternoon of Islamic Logic 139 Islamic logic to the thirteenth century 142 The textbooks and their commentaries 144 The educational use of the school logic texts 147 Content of the school logic 153 The modernization of the school logic 157 8 The Institutionalization of Disagreement 160 The classical islamic attitude to disagreement 161 An education of form without content 169 PART THREE: THE FALL AND THE FUTURE OF ISLAMIC RATIONALISM 173 9 The Decline and Fall of Scholastic Reason in Islam 175 The collapse of traditional education 175 “What went wrong?” 180 10 A Chaos of Certitudes: The Future of Islamic Reason 188 Disagreement in the contemporary islamic world 191 The great issues 193 Selected Bibliography 205 General references on islam, islamic history, and historiography 205 Classical and early christian thought and literature 206 Qur’an and hadith 207 Islamic law and jurisprudence 208 Islamic theology 209 Arabic grammar and linguistics 211 Islamic philosophy 211 Islamic mysticism 215 Shi‘ism 216 Science and islam 216 Logic 217 Islamic and indian education 219 Fundamentalism and issues in contemporary islam 220 Index 221 "This book investigates the central role of reason in Islamic intellectual life. Despite widespread characterization of Islam as a system of belief based only on revelation, John Walbridge argues that rational methods, not fundamentalism, have characterized Islamic law, philosophy and education since the medieval period. His research demonstrates that this medieval Islamic rational tradition was opposed by both modernists and fundamentalists, resulting in a general collapse of traditional Islamic intellectual life and its replacement by more modern but far shallower forms of thought. However, the resources of this Islamic scholarly tradition remain an integral part of the Islamic intellectual tradition and will prove vital to its revival. The future of Islam, Walbridge argues, will be marked by a return to rationalism"-- Résumé de l'éditeur 1. Introduction Part I. The formation of the Islamic tradition of reason: 1. The problem of reason in Islam: is Islam a non-rational religion and civilization?; 2. The diversity of reason; 3. Empirical knowledge of the mind of God; 4. The failure of the Fārābian synthesis of religion and philosophy; 5. Mysticism, post-classical Islamic philosophy, and the rise and fall of Islamic science Part II. Logic, education, and doubt: 6. Where is Islamic logic?: the triumph of scholastic rationalism in Islamic education; 7. The long afternoon of Islamic logic; 8. The institutionalization of disagreement Part III. The fall and the future of Islamic rationalism: 9. The decline and fall of scholastic reason in Islam; 10. A chaos of certitudes: the future of Islamic reason. This book investigates the central role of reason in Islamic intellectual life, arguing that rational methods, not fundamentalism, have characterized Islamic law, philosophy and education since the medieval period. The future of Islam, John Walbridge argues, will be marked by a revival of the intellectual tradition of rationalism.