Islamic and Arab philosophy Books

Book Synopsis The distinguished Moroccan philosopher Mohammed Abed al-Jabri, in this summary of his own work, examines the status of Arab thought in the late twentieth century. Al-Jabri rejects what he calls the current polarization of Arab thought between an imported modernism that disregards Arab tradition and a fundamentalism that would reconstruct the present in the image of an idealized past. Both past and present intellectual currents are examined. Al-Jabri first questions the current philosophical positions of the liberals, the Marxists, and the fundamentalists. Then he turns to history, exploring Arab philosophy in the tenth and twelfth centuries, a time of political and ideological struggle. In the writings of Ibn Hazm and Averroës, he identifies the beginnings of Arab rationalism, a rationalism he traces through the innovative fourteenth–century work of Ibn Khaldun. Al-Jabri offers both Western readers and his own compatriots a radical new approach to Arab thTable of Contents Introduction by Walid Hamarneh Author's Introduction Part One: A Different Reading of the Tradition Discourse Chapter I: The Present Shortcomings Chapter II: For a Scientific Critique of Arab Reason Part Two: Philosophical Thinking and Ideology Chapter III: Historical Dynamics of the Arab-Islamic Philosophy Chapter IV: The Rise and Fall of Reason Chapter V: The Andalusian Resurgence Conclusion: The Future Can Only Be Averroist

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Book SynopsisThis book argues that the Muslim theologian Abu Hamid al-Ghazali was a popularizer of philosophy more than its critic and that his theory of mystical cognition is based on the theory of prophecy of the philosopher Avicenna.Trade Review"This book deserves the full attention of all specialists in the field."Jules Janssens, Catholic University Leuven, BelgiumJournal of the American Oriental Society 135.2 (2015)Table of ContentsIntroduction: A New Paradigm in Ghazālian Studies 1. Heart, Intelligence, Knowledge 2. The Science of Unveiling 3. Tasting and Witnessing 4. Inspiration and Revelation 5. Al-Ghazālī and the Philosophical Tradition. Conclusion

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Book SynopsisThis is a much needed, concise survey of Arab nationalism both as an historical movement and a doctrine. The author identifies the particular characteristics and development of Arab nationalism and provides a wide-ranging history.Trade Review"[Choueiri] provides a wealth of detail based on the writings of al-Miqdadi, Ghurbal ... and many others. Largely expository in style, his book describes what they have to say about the Arab nation and about the political programmes needed to realize its potential. In doing so, he brings out the differences among them and sympathetically assesses the problems many encountered." Times Literary Supplement "Recommended particularly for university libraries and those interested in political theory and Middle East studies." CHOICE "Arab Nationalism is a well-written, fact-filled book that constitutes a useful single-volume study of the evolution of Arabism. It is well-suited for readers who have in interest in the international nuances and development of nationalism and for those Middle East history enthusiasts who wish to delve into a more specialized topic." History: Reviews of New BooksTable of ContentsPreface. Acknowledgements. Glossary. 1. Nationalism and Its Theories. The World of Unbelief and Negative Approaches. Rousseau's Passion. Kant's Guilt. The World of Positive Belief. A Question of Dignity. The Agnostics or Reluctantly Neutral. 2. Narrating the Nation. Lessons of History. The Rise of Islam. The Modern Age. Darwish al-Miqdadi: The Nation in History. Historical Structures. Lessons of History and Temporal Distances. An Egyptian Perspective. Islam and Arabism. 3. Cultural and Political Arabism. The Ottoman Background and European Rivalry. Cultural Arabism. The Fatherland and Patriotism. The Cultural and the Political. Political Arabism 1900-1945. Articulation of Pan-Arabism. Political Parties. 4. Educating the Nation: Sati' al-Husri. The Arab League. What is Nationalism?. 5. In Search of Theory. Regionalism. An Arab Polity. Al-Arsuzi: Language and Industry. Shahbandar: Leadership and Revolution. Michel 'Aflaq: The Vanguard. Socialism. Nationalism. Religion. New Politics. 6. Socialism and Pan-Arabism. The World of Social Arab Nationalism. Nasserism. Political Orientations. Theory and Practice. The Universal and the Specific. Ba'thism. 7. Epilogue: Civil Society and Democracy. Neo-Arabism. Notes. List of Dynasties. Further Reading. Bibliography. Index.

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Book SynopsisThis highly illustrated publication details the concepts, construction and design of the new Albukhary Foundation Gallery of the Islamic World at the British Museum

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Book SynopsisProvides a broad, comprehensive, and yet concise introduction to Islamic philosophy covering a vast subject area in a relatively short book.Trade ReviewCampanini's book achieves everthing that a good introduction to Islamic Philosophy should achieve, and more. It is commendable for its clarity, sound argumentation, sensible organisation, and brevity. Its treatment of the relationship between philosophy and Islami - which defines this philosophical tradition - truly makes the book shine. The reader will close this short book with a firm understanding of what Islamic philosophy is at its core, a healthy appreciation for the Islamic philosophical tradition, and a desire to explore it further. -- W. Craig Streetman, University of Kentucky in Journal of Shi's Islamic Studies Vol II No. 4 (2009) Campanini's book achieves everthing that a good introduction to Islamic Philosophy should achieve, and more. It is commendable for its clarity, sound argumentation, sensible organisation, and brevity. Its treatment of the relationship between philosophy and Islami - which defines this philosophical tradition - truly makes the book shine. The reader will close this short book with a firm understanding of what Islamic philosophy is at its core, a healthy appreciation for the Islamic philosophical tradition, and a desire to explore it further.Table of ContentsForeword Acknowledgements A Note on the Translation Part One: Finding a Paradigm Chapter 1: History Chapter 2: What is Medieval Islamic Philosophy? Chapter 3: Ways of Philosophising Part Two: Thought and Action: Some Major Themes in Islamic Philosophy Chapter 4: Tawhid, Pillar of Islamic Thought Chapter 5: The Structure of the Cosmos Chapter 6: The Human Intellect Chapter 7: Necessity or Freedom in Divine Action Chapter 8: Ethics and Politics Notes Bibliography

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Book SynopsisA biography of Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406), famous historian, scholar, theologian and statesman.Table of ContentsAcknowledgements; Preface; Map: Ibn Khaldun's Mediterranean; Timeline; 1. Historian meets History; 2. Ibn Khaldun's Early Life; 3. Ibn Khaldun the Statesman; 4. Egypt; 5. Ibn Khaldun's Method; 6. Modernity; 7. On being Ibn Khaldun; Bibliography; Index.

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Book SynopsisSecond edition of the history of Islamic political thought that traces its roots from early Islam to the current age of Fundamentalism (622 AD to 2010 AD).Trade ReviewThis is an outstanding and most welcome book. Since its first publication in 2001, Islam and its corollaries of Islamism and Islamophobia have become household words and everyday currency in Western media. Unfortunately, the upsurge of rhetoric is not equivalent to any substantial knowledge in this area. Fortunately, this revised and updated edition of the text can remedy the pervasive historical and intellectual knowledge gaps. Antony Black, one of the most renowned historians of intellectual and religious ideas, offers us a guide to a complex but crucially important topic in our time. His book deserves the widest possible readership. -- Fred Dallmayr, author of Dialogue Among Civilizations This is an outstanding and most welcome book. Since its first publication in 2001, Islam and its corollaries of Islamism and Islamophobia have become household words and everyday currency in Western media. Unfortunately, the upsurge of rhetoric is not equivalent to any substantial knowledge in this area. Fortunately, this revised and updated edition of the text can remedy the pervasive historical and intellectual knowledge gaps. Antony Black, one of the most renowned historians of intellectual and religious ideas, offers us a guide to a complex but crucially important topic in our time. His book deserves the widest possible readership.Table of ContentsMap; Time Chart; Introduction; Part I: The Messenger and the Law c.622-1000; 1. The Mission of Muhammad; 2. The Idea of Monarchy under the Umayyads and 'Abbasids c.661-850; 3. The Formation of the Shari'a; 4. Shi'ism; 5. The Restoration of Persia c.850-1050; 6. Knowledge and Power: Philosophy without the Polis; Part II: Religion and State Power (din wa dawla): Sunni Doctrine & the State c.900-1220; 7. The Theory of the Caliphate; 8. State and Religion under the Saljuqs; 9. Al-Ghazali: Mysticism and Politics; 10. The Ethics of Power: Advice-to-Kings (nasihat al-muluk); 11. Ibn Rushd; 12. The Politics of Sufism; Part III: The Shari'a and the Sword c.1220-1500; 13. The Rape of Asia; 14. Mamluk Ideology and the Sultan-Caliph; 15. Nasir al-Din Tusi (1201-74): Social Philosophy and Status Groups; 16. Ibn Taymiyya (1263-1328): Shari'a Governance (al-siyasa al-shari'yya); 17. The Delhi Sultanate and al-Barani: Statecraft and Morality; 18. Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406): The Science of Civilization and the Governance of Islam; 19. The Decline of Classical Islamic Political Thought; Part IV: Religious Ideology and Political Control in Early Modern States; 20. A New World Order; 21. The State of the House of Osman (devlet-i al-i Osman); 22. The Safavids; 23. India and the Mughals; 24. The Decline and Reform of the Ottoman Empire; Part V: Islam and the West; 25. Modernism from the Ottoman Reforms to the Turkish Revolution; 26. Conservatism and Modernism in Iran; 27. Islamism; 28. Islamism, Reformism and the Secular State; Conclusion; Glossary; Bibliography; Index.

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Book SynopsisA biography of Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406), famous historian, scholar, theologian and statesman.Trade Review'A superb account of how a historian developed his own historical methodology... Highly recommended.' -- CHOICE Amazon 'A superb account of how a historian developed his own historical methodology... Highly recommended.'Table of ContentsAcknowledgements; Preface; Map: Ibn Khaldun's Mediterranean; Timeline; 1. Historian meets History; 2. Ibn Khaldun's Early Life; 3. Ibn Khaldun the Statesman; 4. Egypt; 5. Ibn Khaldun's Method; 6. Modernity; 7. On being Ibn Khaldun; Bibliography; Index.

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Book SynopsisFârès Gillon is Associate Professor in Islamic Studies and Arabic at Aix-Marseille University, France. He received his PhD from the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes (Paris), and specializes in the intellectual history of early Shiism, with a particular focus on Fatimid Ismailism. He has published several articles on these topics, and has also co-edited with Mathieu Terrier Anthologie de la philosophie en Islam (Paris, 2023). Previously, he was a Research Associate at the Institute of Ismaili Studies. His research interests include Shi'i history and doctrines, Ismailism, Nusayrism and Islamic Philosophy

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Book SynopsisRahim Gholami is Research Associate at The Institute of Ismaili Studies, UK. He received his PhD in Arab and Islamic Studies from the University of Exeter, UK in 2021.

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Book SynopsisButterworth richly deserves to be congratulated for providing advanced students and scholars with authoritative, reliable, and readable translations of Alfarabi''s important political writings. ? ChoiceAlfarabi (ca. 870–950) founded the great tradition of Aristotelian/Platonic political philosophy in medieval Islamic and Arabic culture. In this second volume of political writings, Charles E. Butterworth presents translations of Alfarabi''s Political Regime and Summary of Plato''s Laws, accompanied by introductions that discuss the background for each work and explore its teaching.In addition, the texts are carefully annotated to aid the reader in following Alfarabi''s argument. An Arabic-English/English-Arabic glossary allows interested readers to verify the way particular words are translated. Throughout, Butterworth''s method is to translate consistently the same Arabic word by the same English word, rendering Alfarabi''s style Trade ReviewAccurate and very readable.... [Butterworth] was a student of Muhsin Mahdi, the leading scholar of Alfarabi of our time (and perhaps of all time), whose many editions, translations, and studies of Alfarabi's writings have enriched our understanding of this most influential philosopher. Butterworth is Mahdi's intellectual heir.... We are much indebted to Butterworth, who has undertaken this mission with admirable responsibility. * Speculum *Butterworth brilliantly combines in one volume the theoretical agenda of the Political Regime and the practical concerns of the Summary. This volume is an excellent contribution to Alfarabi scholarship and should be most welcome to anyone interested in Islamic philosophy. * The Review of Politics *Butterworth here offers... a commendable, skilled rendition of the Summary of Plato's Laws. * Journal of the History of Philosophy *Butterworth richly deserves to be congratulated for providing advanced students and scholars with authoritative, reliable, and readable translations of Alfarabi's important political writings. * Choice *Butterworth's splendid introduction to the first of these two texts provides the best introduction to Alfarabi's metaphysics that one is likely to find. In briefly sketching the life of Alfarabi, he also draws attention to the often forgotten major centers of learning in the ancient world. * The Review of Metaphysics *The translation on the whole is clear and very readable.... Readers with neither knowledge of Arabic nor familiarity with al-Farabi's writings will find the text easy to understand and follow, and the book will be useful for students. * Journal of Islamic Studies *Table of ContentsPrefacePolitical RegimeIntroductionThe TextSummary of Plato's LawsIntroductionThe TextAppendix A: Alfarabi, Enumeration of the SciencesAppendix B: Averroes's Defense of the Philosophers as Believing in Happiness and Misery in the HereafterGlossary A: Arabic–EnglishGlossary B: English–ArabicBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisAt the beginning of this volume, Erasmus leaves Louvain to live in Basel. Weary from the many controversies reflected in the letters of the previous volumes, he is also anxious to see the annotations to his third edition of the New Testament through Johann Froben’s press. Above all he fears that pressure from the imperial court in the Netherlands will force him to take a public stand against Luther. Erasmus completes a large number of works in the span of this volume, including the Paraphrases on Matthew and John, two new expanded editions of the Colloquies, an edition of De conscribendis epistolis, two apologiae against his Spanish detractors, and editions of Arnobius Junior and Hilary of Poitiers. But the predominant theme of the volume remains ‘the sorry business of Luther.’ The harder Erasmus persists in trying to adhere to a reasonable course between Catholic and reforming zealots, the more he finds himself ‘a

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Book SynopsisA survey and analysis of what Shari'a, or Islamic law, means for Muslims today.Trade Review"The contributors to this volume present an important antidote, with in-depth analyses of some of the most important trends in legal thought in today's Muslim world."—John O. Voll, Islamic Law & Society"What Shari'a means to contemporary Muslims matters to non-Muslims as well. This volume enlightens everyone. It is at once scholarly and accessible, and informative in a deep and reliable way." —Gene Outka, Yale University"An important and illuminating anthology. This is no dry and pedantic read in the minutiae of arcane legal issues. These essays demonstrate that Shari'a is a living concern to Muslims around the world." —Sohail Hashmi, Mount Holyoke College"This important and timely volume helps bridge the gap between theoretical aspects of the law and its application in the modern world, and breaks new ground by paying close attention to both Shiite and Sunni uses of Islamic law. The authors, all experts in their fields, write with unusual clarity and precision to help us to understand the complex role of Islamic law in the Muslim world today.Itwill be a vital resource." —Jonathan E. Brockopp, Pennsylvania State UniversityTable of ContentsContents Chapter 1 Introduction Frank Griffel Chapter 2 Much Ado About Values: Justice in Modern Islamic Thought Gudrun Kr'mer Chapter 3 The Harmony of Natural Law and Shari'a in Islamist Theology Frank Griffel Chapter 4 Islamic Law and Legal Change: The Concept of Ma_la_a in Classical and Contemporary Legal Theory Felicitas Opwis Chapter 5 _All_l al-F_s_: Shari'a as Blueprint for Righteous Global Citizenship David L. Johnston Chapter 6 Shari'a and Islamic Democracy in the Age of al-Jazeera Noah Feldman Chapter 7 From ijtih_d to wil_yat al-faq_h : The Evolution of the Shi'ite Authority to Political Power Abbas Amanat Chapter 8 Shi'ite Theories of Social Contract Shahrough Akhavi Chapter 9 Shari'a and Constitution in Iran: A Historical Perspective Sa'd Amir Arjomand Chapter 10 The Normativity of the Factual On the Every Day Construction of Shari'a in a Yemeni Family Court Anna W'rth Chapter 11 Afterword Roy Mottahedeh Acknowledgments About the Authors Notes Index

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Book SynopsisA survey and analysis of what Shari'a, or Islamic law, means for Muslims today.Trade Review"The contributors to this volume present an important antidote, with in-depth analyses of some of the most important trends in legal thought in today's Muslim world."—John O. Voll, Islamic Law & Society"What Shari'a means to contemporary Muslims matters to non-Muslims as well. This volume enlightens everyone. It is at once scholarly and accessible, and informative in a deep and reliable way." —Gene Outka, Yale University"An important and illuminating anthology. This is no dry and pedantic read in the minutiae of arcane legal issues. These essays demonstrate that Shari'a is a living concern to Muslims around the world." —Sohail Hashmi, Mount Holyoke College"This important and timely volume helps bridge the gap between theoretical aspects of the law and its application in the modern world, and breaks new ground by paying close attention to both Shiite and Sunni uses of Islamic law. The authors, all experts in their fields, write with unusual clarity and precision to help us to understand the complex role of Islamic law in the Muslim world today.Itwill be a vital resource." —Jonathan E. Brockopp, Pennsylvania State UniversityTable of ContentsContents Chapter 1 Introduction Frank Griffel Chapter 2 Much Ado About Values: Justice in Modern Islamic Thought Gudrun Kr'mer Chapter 3 The Harmony of Natural Law and Shari'a in Islamist Theology Frank Griffel Chapter 4 Islamic Law and Legal Change: The Concept of Ma_la_a in Classical and Contemporary Legal Theory Felicitas Opwis Chapter 5 _All_l al-F_s_: Shari'a as Blueprint for Righteous Global Citizenship David L. Johnston Chapter 6 Shari'a and Islamic Democracy in the Age of al-Jazeera Noah Feldman Chapter 7 From ijtih_d to wil_yat al-faq_h : The Evolution of the Shi'ite Authority to Political Power Abbas Amanat Chapter 8 Shi'ite Theories of Social Contract Shahrough Akhavi Chapter 9 Shari'a and Constitution in Iran: A Historical Perspective Sa'd Amir Arjomand Chapter 10 The Normativity of the Factual On the Every Day Construction of Shari'a in a Yemeni Family Court Anna W'rth Chapter 11 Afterword Roy Mottahedeh Acknowledgments About the Authors Notes Index

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Book SynopsisCopleston, in the second volume of A History of Philosophy, deals with the reconciliation of philosophy and theology of the early Christian period to the thirteenth century.Frederick Copleston was Professor of the History of Philosophy and Dean of the Faculty of Theology at London University. This eleven-volume work is one of the most remarkable single-handed scholarly enterprises of modern times. Volume 2 covers Anselm of Canterbury, Thomas Aquinas, Augustine of Hippo, Averroes, Avicenna, Boethius, Bonaventure, Maimonides and Duns Scotus.The book covers the Patristic period, including the work of Augustine, and then considers the Carolingian renaissance, Islamic and Jewish philosophy, before finally going into extensive detail on the thought of Aquinas and Scotus.Brimming with detail and enthusiasm, A History of Philosophy gives an accessible account of philosophers from all eras and explains their works in relation to other philosophers. Each volume is an ideal guide for students studying specific eras and as a set offers a complete and unrivalled overview of the entire western philosophical tradition.Trade ReviewA monumental history . . . learned, lucid, patient and comprehensive. * New Statesman *We can only applaud at the end of each act and look forward to applauding again at the final curtain. * Times Literary Supplement *Table of ContentsI Introduction PART I: PRE-MEDIEVAL INFLUENCES II The Patristic Period III St. Augustine I IV St. Augustine II: Knowledge V St. Augustine III: God VI St Augustine IV: The World VII St Augustine V: Moral Theory VIII St Augustine VI: The State IX The Psuedo-Dionysus X Boethius, Cassiodorus and Isidore PART II: THE CAROLINGIAN RENAISSANCE XI The Carolingian Renaissance XII John Scotus Eriugena I XIII John Scotus Eriugena II PART III: THE TENTH, ELEVENTH AND TWELFTH CENTURY XIV The Problem of Universals XV St. Anselm of Canterbury XVI The School of Chartres XVII The School of St. Victor XVIII Dualists and Pantheists PART IV: ISLAMIC AND JEWISH PHILOSOPHY: TRANSLATIONS XIX Islamic Philosophy XX Jewish Philosophy XXI The Translations PART V: THE THIRTEENTH CENTURY XXII Introduction XXIII William of Auvergne XXIV Robert Grosseteste and Alexander of Hales XXV St. Bonaventure I XXVI St. Bonaventure II: God's Existence XXVII St. Bonaventure III: Relation of Creatures to God XXVIII St. Bonaventure IV: The Material Creation XXIX St. Bonaventure V: The Human Soul XXX St. Albert the Great XXXI St. Thomas Aquinas I XXXII St. Thomas Aquinas II: Philosophy and Theology XXXIII St. Thomas Aquinas III: Principles of Created Being XXXIV St. Thomas Aquinas IV: Proof of God's Existence XXXV: St. Thomas Aquinas V: God's Nature XXXVI: St. Thomas Aquinas VI: Creation XXXVII: St. Thomas Aquinas VII: Psychology XXXVIII: St. Thomas Aquinas VIII: Knowledge XXXIX: St. Thomas Aquinas IX: Moral Theory XL. St. Thomas Aquinas X: Political Theory XLI. I Introduction PART I: PRE-MEDIEVAL INFLUENCES II The Patristic Period III St. Augustine I IV St. Augustine II: Knowledge V St. Augustine III: God VI St Augustine IV: The World VII St Augustine V: Moral Theory VIII St Augustine VI: The State IX The Psuedo-Dionysus X Boethius, Cassiodorus and Isidore PART II: THE CAROLINGIAN RENAISSANCE XI The Carolingian Renaissance XII John Scotus Eriugena I XIII John Scotus Eriugena II PART III: THE TENTH, ELEVENTH AND TWELFTH CENTURY XIV The Problem of Universals XV St. Anselm of Canterbury XVI The School of Chartres XVII The School of St. Victor XVIII Dualists and Pantheists PART IV: ISLAMIC AND JEWISH PHILOSOPHY: TRANSLATIONS XIX Islamic Philosophy XX Jewish Philosophy XXI The Translations PART V: THE THIRTEENTH CENTURY XXII Introduction XXIII William of Auvergne XXIV Robert Grosseteste and Alexander of Hales XXV St. Bonaventure I XXVI St. Bonaventure II: God's Existence XXVII St. Bonaventure III: Relation of Creatures to God XXVIII St. Bonaventure IV: The Material Creation XXIX St. Bonaventure V: The Human Soul XXX St. Albert the Great XXXI St. Thomas Aquinas I XXXII St. Thomas Aquinas II: Philosophy and Theology XXXIII St. Thomas Aquinas III: Principles of Created Being XXXIV St. Thomas Aquinas IV: Proof of God's Existence XXXV St. Thomas Aquinas V: God's Nature XXXVI St. Thomas Aquinas VI: Creation XXXVII St. Thomas Aquinas VII: Psychology XXXVIII St. Thomas Aquinas VIII: Knowledge XXXIX St. Thomas Aquinas IX: Moral Theory XL St. Thomas Aquinas X: Political Theory XLI St. Thomas and Aristotle: Controversies XLII Latin Averroism; Siger of Brabrant XLIII Franciscan Thinkers XLIV Giles of Rome and Henry the Great XLV Scotus I XLVI Scotus II: Knowledge XLVII Scotus III: Metaphysics XLVIII Scotus IV: Natural Theolgoy XLIX Scotus V: The Soul L Scotus VI: Ethics LI Concluding Review Appendices I Honorific Titles applied in the Middle Ages to Philosophers treated in this volume II A Short Bibliography Index of names Index of subjects

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Book SynopsisShihab al-Din al-Suhrawardi was born around 1154, probably in Northwestern Iran. Spurred by a dream in which Aristotle appeared to him, he rejected the Avicennan Peripatetic philosophy of his youth and undertook the task of reviving the philosophical tradition of the "Ancients."

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Book SynopsisAverroes (1126-1198) was the first and last great Aristotelian of the classical Islamic world; his commentaries influenced Christian thinkers and earned him a mention in Dante's "Divina Commedia". This text, his most important work, acts as a defence of the role of reason in a community of faith.

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Book SynopsisPart of the encyclopedia of science and philosophy, The Healing, this first volume represents arguably the most brilliant mind of late antiquity grappling with and rethinking the entire tradition of natural philosophy inherited from the Greeks as well as the physical thought of Muslim speculative theologians.

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Book SynopsisMulla Sadra is one of the prominent figures of post-Avicennan Islamic philosophy and among the most important philosophers of Safavid Persia. This title represents a paradigm shift from the Aristotelian metaphysics of fixed substances, which had dominated Islamic philosophy, to an analysis of existence as the ground and dynamic source of things.

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Book SynopsisIn this classic study, Herbert A. Davidson examines every medieval Arabic and Hebrew proof for the eternity of the world, the creation of the world and the existence of God which has philosophical character, disregarding only those that rest entirely on religious faith or fall below a minimum threshold of plausibility. Classifying the proofs systematically, he analyses and explains them, and traces their sources in Greek philosophy. He pursues the penetration of some of these Islamic and Jewish arguments into medieval Christian philosophy and, in a few instances, all the way into seventeenth- and eighteenth-century European philosophy. Unique in both its classification of the proofs and its comprehensiveness, this work will once again serve medievalists, historians of philosophy and historians of ideas.Trade Review‘This book is a tour de force of real scholarship, methodical analysis, and painstaking classification… Davidson’s canvas is vast. All the major Islamic and Judaic philosophers are here and the book is thus assured of a ready sale among students and scholars of both.’ * Philosophy East and West *‘Extraordinarily successful… Davidson’s book is an invaluable contribution to the understanding of the history of ideas; it is also a stimulating essay of philosophical analysis.’ * Speculum: A Journal of Medieval Studies *‘A towering achievement. At the height of his powers here, Davidson has gone back to the sources to assemble all the significant medieval Islamic and Jewish proofs for the eternity of the world, for the creation of the world, and for the existence of God… It is most welcome to see the medieval Islamic and Jewish philosophers treated so rigorously in their own right, not merely as precursors to Aquinas, or, even worse, as puppets dangling in a history of medieval thought. This book provides as clear an indication as one could hope to have of the health and vitality of Greek wisdom before its (re)discovery in (Christian) Europe.’ * Journal of the American Oriental Society *Table of ContentsI Introduction 1. Eternity, creation, and the existence of God 2. The present book II Proofs of Eternity from the Nature of the World 1. Proofs of eternity 2. Proofs of eternity from the nature of the physical world 3. Replies to proofs from the nature of the world 4. Summary III Proofs of Eternity from the Nature of God 1. The Proofs 2. Replies to proofs from the nature of the cause of the universe 3. Summary IV John Philoponus’ Proofs of Creation and Their Entry into Medieval Arabic Philosophy 1. Philoponus’ proofs of creation 2. Saadia and Philoponus 3. Kindi and Philoponus 4. Summary V Kalam Proofs for Creation 1. Proofs from the impossibility of an infinite number 2. Responses of the medieval Aristotelians to proofs of creation from the impossibility of an infinite number 3. The standard Kalam proof for creation: the proof from accidents 4. Juwayni’s version of the proof from accidents 5. Proofs from composition VI Arguments from the Concept of Particularization 1. Inferring the existence of God from creation 2. Arguments from the concept of particularization 3. Particularization arguments for the existence of God without the premise of creation; particularization arguments for creation 4. Ghazali and Maimonides 5. Additional arguments for creation in Maimonides and Gersonides VII Arguments from Design 1. Cosmological, teleological, and ontological proofs of the existence of God 2. Teleological arguments 3. Summary VIII The Proof from Motion 1. Aristotle’s proof from motion 2. Maimonides’ version of the proof from motion 3. Hasdai Crescas’ critique of the proof from motion 4. Another proof from motion IX Avicenna’s Proof of the Existence of a Being Necessarily Existent by Virtue of Itself 1. First cause of motion and first cause of existence 2. The existence of God: a problem for metaphysics 3. Necessarily existent being and possibly existent being 4. The attributes of the necessarily existent by virtue of itself 5. Proof of existence of the necessarily existent by virtue of itself 6. Questions raised by Avicenna’s proof 7. The version of Avicenna’s proof in Shahrastani and Crescas 8. Summary X Averroes’ Critique of Avicenna’s Proof 1. The proof of the existence of God as a subject for physics 2. Necessarily existent by virtue of another, possibly existent by virtue of itself 3. The nature of the celestial spheres according to Averroes 4. Averroes’ critique of the body of Avicenna’s proof 5. Summary XI Proofs of the Existence of God from the Impossibility of an Infinite Regress of Efficient Causes 1. The proof from the impossibility of an infinite regress of causes 2. Unity and incorporeality 3. The proof from the impossibility of an infinite regress of efficient causes and the proof from the concepts possibly existent and necessarily existent 4. Resumé 5. Crescas on the impossibility of an infinite regress 6. Ghazali’s critique of Avicenna’s proof 7. Summary XII Subsequent History of Proofs from the Concept of Necessary Existence 1. Maimonides and Aquinas 2. The influence of Avicenna’s proof 3. Proofs of the existence of God as a necessarily existent being in modern European philosophy 4. Summary 5. Concluding remark Appendix A. Two Philosophic Principles 1. The principle that an infinite number is impossible 2. The principle that a finite body contains only finite power Appendix B. Inventory of Proofs Primary Sources Index of Philosophers Index of Terms

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Book SynopsisIf justice is an intrinsic value in Islam, why have women been treated as second-class citizens in Islamic legal tradition?If justice is an intrinsic value in Islam, why have women been treated as second-class citizens in Islamic legal tradition? Today, the idea of gender equality, inherent to contemporary conceptions of justice, presents a challenge to established, patriarchal interpretations of Shari‘a. In thought-provoking discussions with six influential Muslim intellectuals - Abdullahi An-Na’im, Amina Wadud, Asma Lamrabet, Khaled Abou El Fadl, Mohsen Kadivar and Sedigheh Vasmaghi - Ziba Mir-Hosseini explores how egalitarian gender laws might be constructed from within the Islamic legal framework.Trade Review‘Makes leading Muslim reformists’ works and arguments about gender and women’s rights accessible to a wider readership… Besides being an obvious choice for a textbook in Islam and Gender courses, Mir-Hosseini’s latest work will resonate with any readers seeking to reconcile notions like gender equality and women’s rights with outdated, patriarchal interpretations of Islam.’ * The New Arab *‘Ziba Mir-Hosseini offers us an insightful and illuminating meditation on the struggle for justice for women in Islam in recent decades. Essential reading on the subject, her book will surely become a classic.’ -- Leila Ahmed, Victor S. Thomas Research Professor of Divinity, Harvard University‘Among today’s most innovative and influential Islamic thinkers, Ziba Mir-Hosseini has worked for decades to promote gender equality in Muslim family law. The fascinating and engaging dialogues in this volume…reflect her twin commitments to conceptual precision and real-world transformation.’ * Kecia Ali, Professor of Religion, Boston University *‘Long one of our age’s most gifted scholars on Islam, gender, and equality, Ziba Mir-Hosseini has written a new book that takes readers through a conversational journey about gender equality with six leading Muslim intellectuals. Both deeply personal and scholarly, the journey’s narratives offer state-of-the-field commentaries on not just gender equality but Shari‘a law and Muslim ethics in our late-modern age. The result is one of the most important and enjoyable books on Islam and gender that I have ever read.’ * Robert W. Hefner, Professor of Anthropology and Global Affairs, Boston University *‘At once personal and scholarly, diverse yet focused on particular issues, presenting both spiritual and intellectual journeys, this work represents an original way of broaching the ever-elusive subject of gender in Islam.’ * Omaima Abou-Bakr, Professor of English and Comparative Literature, Cairo University *

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Book SynopsisThe objective of the following collected volume is to encourage a critical reflection on the relationship between power and non-power in our contemporary world and, proceeding from various philosophical traditions, to investigate the multifaceted aspects of this relationship. The authorsâ respective investigations proceed from an intercultural perspective and fall predominantly in the domain of political theory and philosophy.This volume takes an intercultural political perspective, which means, on the one hand, involving non-European philosophies in a global debate about power relations and their effects in the world and, on the other hand, confronting local traditions of thought with a global inquiry in order to enter into a philosophical-political dialogue with these traditions. An intercultural approach of this type to political philosophy seeks not only to join others in reflecting upon global problems, but also to decenter of our understanding of the world, drawing atteTable of ContentsForewordSarhan DhouibPart I. Interculturality as the Basis for a Philosophy of Coexistence1. Intercultural Philosophy as Philosophy for Better Human ConvivialityRaúl Fornet-Betancourt2. Responses to Past Injustice in Democratizing Societies and the Universalization of Human RightsSarhan Dhouib3. Negotiating African Identity in Times of Globalization: A Comparative Approach to Afropolitanism and NegritudeAlbert KasandaPart II. Human Being in Times of Displacement4. The Value of Home in a Global World: On Migration and Depopulated Landscapes Bianca Boteva-Richter5. A Genealogy of Displacement in the South African Land QuestionChristopher AllsobrookPart III. Being with Others: Applied Dimensions and Real-World Problems6. The Public Legitimacy of Minority Claims in Eastern EuropePlamen Makariev7. Cultural Impoverishment: The Hidden Dimension of Global Injustice Mongi Serbaji8. "Detention and Torture Centers" in Latin American Dictatorships: Places of Subjective and Social ReconfigurationJosé Santos HercegPart IV. Intercultural Approaches to Reconciliation9. Confucian Remonstrance in the Dialectics of Self-Conscious Identity between the People’s Republic of China and Hong KongJames Garrison10. Politics and Reconciliation: The Issue of Comfort Women in the Dynamics of Political Reconciliation between Japan and South KoreaNaoko Kumagai11. Political Reconciliation in Liberal StatesHenning HahnAfterwordJames Garrison

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Book SynopsisThis volume offers an updated analysis of the use, meaning, and scope of the classical notion of aitia. It clarifies philosophical and philological questions about aitia and offers bold and innovative interpretations of this key concept of ancient philosophy.The numerous meanings and nuances of aitia remain difficult to grasp. Ancient philosophers use aitia to explain the existence and activity of substances, bodies, souls, or gods. Paradoxically, its own definition remains difficult to establish. This book reconstructs some of the most important uses, variants, and scopes of the term aitia within different philosophical perspectives in antiquity, including early Greek philosophy, Plato, Aristotle, Stoicism, and Islamic philosophy. The chapters analyze metaphysical aspects, epistemological issues, and logical implications of aitia. They engage with the most relevant critical literature generated in several modern languages. In doing sTable of ContentsIntroduction Alberto Ross 1. Note on the original meaning of Greek aitios David Lévystone 2. What good is the Form of the Good? Mary Margaret McCabe 3. That’s What Makes the World Go Round: Causation in the Myth in the Statesman Saloni de Souza and Daniel Vázquez 4. Chance, Necessity and Demiurgic Causation in the Timaeus Viktor Ilievski 5. Causality and Explanation in Aristotle: logos, eidos and tropos Alberto Ross 6. Aristotle with prime matter Cristina Viano 7. Aristotle on the efficiency of accidental causes José María Llovet Abascal 8. The Relevance of Environmental Conditions as Causes for Animal Generation in Aristotle María-Elena García-Peláez 9. Aristotle’s causes and the problem of the necessity of our actions Carlo Natali 10. Theories of Causation in Early Stoicism Daniel Vázquez 11. The scientific epistemology of al-Naẓẓām Michael Chase 12. Recovering Causality? Ibn Taymiyya on the Creation of the World Luis Xavier López-Farjeat

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Book SynopsisNonbelievers, Apostates, and Atheists in the Muslim World offers a contemporary, cross-cultural look at nonbelief and nonreligion in Islam. Providing historical, conceptual, statistical, and ethnographic data on nonbelievers from Morocco to Egypt, Turkey, and Bangladesh, it explores the unique nature and challenges of nonreligion for Muslims.It includes 11 chapters by experts on nonbelief, nonreligion, and atheism in an array of Muslim-majority countries. The book features multiple disciplines and offers both ethnographic and statistical information on this important, growing, but neglected population. It explores the unique nature of nonreligion in Islam, illustrating that nonbelief is specific to a particular religious tradition. It also examines how ex-Muslims navigate complexities and dangers of their societiesâespecially for womenâand how nonbelief and nonreligion do not equate to atheism or the total repudiation of religion or of Muslim identity. This book

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Book SynopsisAddressing the rupture between religious and social sciences in Arab universities, this book provides a critical assessment of the curricula of Shariah and Islamic Studies departments across the Arab World, arguing for increased interdisciplinary dialogue.Based on over 250 interviews with university students and teachers, this study is the sum of five years of field research observing the curricula and teaching styles of colleges in the Shariah sciences. The author provides critical insight into these curricula by focusing on case studies in Lebanon and Jordan, Morocco, Kuwait and Qatar, and in Malaysia. In doing so, the book aims to answer the following questions: What is the aim of religious education? Does it aim to create people who specialize solely in religious affairs, or does it aim to form the student according to a comprehensive human framework? What is the nature of the relationship between the social sciences and the Shariah sciences?Trade Review"Typical of Dr. Hanafi’s earlier works, this project is designed around original empirical data, fortified by solid command of religious sciences. In this volume, we find detailed studies of the curricula, theses, sermons, and approaches to religious education across several Muslim-majority countries in different parts of the world. That alone would have been a pioneering accomplishment, but Dr. Hanafi enhances the originality of his contribution by exploring the fruitfulness of a dialogue between the religious sciences he observes and the secular social sciences of which he is a world-renowned expert. There is little in the available literature that rises to the level of this significant book in terms of global scope, depth of knowledge, and cross-breeding of genres of knowledge—all carried out over many years by a key player in global social sciences." Mohammed Bamyeh, University of Pittsburgh, United States "In this book Sari Hanafi explores the state of the art of Islamic studies in different countries, comparing curricula and different learning goals and outcomes. Coming from a sociology background, he realizes the need to reform both social sciences and Islamic studies, and in this book addresses the rupture and its causes. Without necessarily using the notions of post-colonialism, this book is definitely about revisiting the map of sciences as we know it, with all its divisions and complexities. A must read for social scientists and Islamic scholars alike." Heba R. Ezzat, Assistant Professor of Civilization Studies, Ibn Haldun University, Turkey "Sari Hanafi shows how a seasoned social scientist with a personal history of acquaintance with Islamic traditional knowledge can interrogate this traditional knowledge’s current conditions, as represented by three of its globally recognized institutions of learning. Among scholars of Islam, the humanities, and the social sciences, there are instances of overlap, turf-protection, cooperation and competition. This text is an opportunity for all participants in these areas of scholarship to think through, question, and enrich their positions about their academic fields’ palpable and not-so-palpable affinities." Ahmad Atif Ahmad, Professor of Religious Studies, The University of California, United States "Sari Hanafi’s book calls us convincingly to reconsider the existing false binary between Sharia sciences and social sciences. He demonstrates why it is urgently needed and how it can happen. It is a timely call to leave behind the existing pseudo-dichotomies and move forward for a rooted revival through an inclusive multiplex epistemology and methodology which brings together ethical and empirical levels of knowledge." Recep Senturk, Dean of College of Islamic Studies at Hamad Bin Khalifa University, and President of Usūl Academy Table of ContentsIntroduction Part I: Theoretical Approaches and Contexts 1. Shariah Education: Its History, Crisis and Approaches 2. The Arab Religious Field 3. The Islamization of Knowledge: Appraisal and Alternative Part II: Curricula of Shariah Programs in the Arab World 4. Curricula of Shariah Programs in Lebanon: Dominance of the Traditionalist Tendency 5. Shariah Education in Jordan: Traditionalism in a Complicated Religious Field 6. University Shariah Education in Kuwait: Dominance of the Salafi Approach 7. Curricula of Shariah Programs and Islamic Studies in Morocco: Maqasid al-Shariah Approach Part III: Alternative Models 8. Reviving the Ethical in the Shariah Sciences: The Case of the College of Islamic Studies at Hamad Bin Khalifa University 9. From Streamlining to Mainstreaming "Islamization of Knowledge": The Case of the International Islamic University of Malaysia Part IV: Reality, Rupture and Alternative 10. Problems Shared by Shariah Colleges 11. Conclusion: Towards Methodological Alternatives in Connecting the Shariah Sciences to the Social Sciences

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Book SynopsisOriginally published in 1958.Occasionalism is generally associated in the history of philosophy with the name of Malébranche . But long before this time, the Muslim Theologians of the ninth and tenth centuries had developed an occasionalist metaphysics of atoms and accidents. Arguing that a number of distinctively Islamic concepts such as fatalism  and the surrender of personal endeavour cannot be fully understood except in the perspective of the occasionalist world view of Islam, the volume also discusses the attacks on Occasionalism made by Averroes and St. Thomas Aquinas. Table of ContentsChapter 1 The Islamic Metaphysics of Atoms and Accidents; Chapter 2 The Repudiation of Causality by al-Ghaz?l?; Chapter 3 The Averroist Rehabilitation of Causality; Chapter 4 The Causal Dilemma and the Thomist Synthesis;

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Book SynopsisThis book explains what tolerance means to the leaders of the world's largest Islamic organizations. It is based on two years of research in Indonesia - the world's largest Muslim-majority country and a consolidated democracy - including hundreds of archival documents, in-depth interviews, personal observations, and a new survey.Trade Review'The world's largest Muslim-majority country, Indonesia's success at transitioning to democracy has perplexed students of comparative Muslim politics - as has the tendency for Indonesian democracy to show a decidedly non-liberal attitude toward matters of religious pluralism. In this richly researched and elegantly argued book, Jeremy Menchik explains how both phenomena have been possible. In so doing, he also offers a study of great importance, not just to Indonesianists, but to scholars and readers interested in the prospects for democracy in the broader Muslim world.' Robert Hefner, Director of the Institute on Culture, Religion, and World Affairs, Boston University'At a time when calls for tolerance usually impugn religion and imply the secular, political scientist Jeremy Menchik proposes an original vision of democracy that includes and is even grounded in religion - godly nationalism, he calls it. To make his case, he turns to Indonesia, the world's largest Islamic democracy, where he conducted tireless research that he presents here with assertive vivacity and intellectual versatility. Ranging across political theory, sociology, religious studies, and political science, the product is a major contribution to scholarship on religion and politics.' Daniel Philpott, Director, Center for Civil and Human Rights, University of Notre Dame, Indiana'Jeremy Menchik's thought-provoking and carefully crafted study examines the complex and politically productive role of Islamic organizations in the world's largest Muslim-majority democracy. He challenges the notion that liberal modes of tolerance are a sine qua non of democratization. This book opens new possibilities for the study of religion, governance, politics, and power in a world than can be neither dominated nor defined by Euro-American history and experience.' Elizabeth Shakman Hurd, Northwestern University, Illinois'Brilliant! This is by far the best book on the complex relationships between the state and the three major Islamic civil-society organizations in Indonesia. It is a conceptual and empirical tour de force, integrating political science, anthropology and history.' Alfred Stepan, Wallace Sayre Professor of Political Science, Columbia University, New York'Menchik's illumination of an alternative to the Rawlsian vision of secular-liberal democracy operating in Indonesia challenges long held assumptions that place religion on the fringes of political science. He provides a different way of conceptualizing religion and politics that is productive for not only the field of political science, but also religious studies, area studies, Islamic studies, and Indonesian studies. His notions of godly nationalism and communal tolerance deserve further analysis and inclusion in other contexts outside of Indonesia.' James Edmonds, Reading Religion'Jeremy Menchik's wonderful new book takes the challenges of doing constructivist political science theory seriously. That is no simple task, since even the best works in the constructivist tradition often avoid the difficult work of actually defining the approach and its implications. What Menchik achieves is not a replacement for the grand theoretical traditions of religion and politics that he criticizes but something more useful. He provides a careful research design that produces a handful of empirically consequential mechanisms explaining why leading Indonesian Islamic organizations are sometimes more or less tolerant of non-Muslim minorities, a credible account of how these mechanisms might generalize to other times and places, and a clear examination of their normative consequences. … [t]his is a book that deserves to be widely read and debated not only by Indonesia scholars but also by all who study religion and democratic politics.' Brandon Kendhammer, Perspectives on Politics'His revealing research into local history shows how the diverse experiences of different Muslim organizations have produced a wide range of beliefs about religious tolerance and even about what a belief system has to look like in order to be counted as a religion.' Andrew Nathan, Foreign Affairs'This line of argumentation is invigorating, but what makes it convincing - and a joy to read - is the richness of the data Menchik draws from and the unique structure in which the book is arranged. Each chapter describes a new point upon which he builds his main argument, highlighting attitudes towards a different segment of Indonesian society during a given time period by each of the three Islamic organisations he has selected as a case study. … the book provides a significant contribution not only for those concerned with Islam in Indonesia but for political theorists more broadly.' Chris Chaplin, South East Asia Research'Islam and democracy in Indonesia was a co-winner of the International Studies Association Religion and International Relations Best Book award in February 2017 and it is easy to see why. … Menchik has some real insights into the Islamization of Indonesia, and the concept of Godly nationalism offers opportunities to generalize and rethink our understanding of the ways in which religion can operate in the public sphere. His argument is supported by a weight of material and detail, and a careful exposition of the book's methodology.' Katherine Brown, International Affairs'Jeremy Menchik's data rich and insightful book, Islam and Democracy in Indonesia: Tolerance without Liberalism, is a valuable contribution to the political science scholarship on Indonesia's particular brand of democracy and religious pluralism.' Zeynep Atalay, American Journal of SociologyTable of Contents1. After secularization; 2. Explaining tolerance and intolerance; 3. Local genealogies; 4. Godly nationalism; 5. The coevolution of religion and state; 6. Communal tolerance; 7. Religious democracy; Methodological appendices; Bibliography.

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This volume examines the philosophy of Avicenna, the greatest philosopher of the Islamic world. Leading scholars deal with his ideas in areas ranging from medicine to theology and his impact on the Christian, Jewish and Muslim traditions. The book is of interest to graduate students of Arabic and medieval philosophy.

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Book SynopsisIslam and Morality considers how Islam, the Qur'an, and other Islamic texts have approached the ethics of a variety of contemporary and historical issues. Oliver Leaman provides a varied, balanced, and thought-provoking account of how Islamic thinkers discussed medical ethics, wealth, poverty, the environment, and law. He explores the work of a range of Islamic thinkers, including Rumi, Ibn al-Arabi, al-Ghazali, Mutahhari and Barlas, while taking into consideration the different branches of Islam and Islamic theology and law. The book also considers how Islam understands the concept of free will, the relationship between good and evil, and far less abstract topics like what we should eat and drink.Aimed at upper level undergraduates, postgraduates, and researchers working in Islamic Studies and ethics, this is one of the first books to provide a sustained reading of the importance of ethics within Islam.Trade ReviewLeaman’s style of philosophic writing draws readers into discussions of justice, conflict, health, bodies, nature, and choice as moral issues with stimulus from the Koran and rational inquiry. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty and researchers; general readers. * CHOICE *This is a very accessible book, which treats a significant issue relating to Islam and morality. Professor Leaman’s analysis, especially the complex relationship between law and ethics, will surely stimulate further scholarly discussion of the principles of ethics and the theory behind its formulation in Islam and in its foundational scripture. His book will be a welcome contribution to Islamic studies and to ethics. -- Nuha Alshaar, Senior Research Associate at the Institute of Ismaili Studies, London, UK and Associate Professor of Arabic and Islamic Studies at American University of Sharjah, United Arab Emirates.Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction Note on transliteration 1. Justice 2. Conflict 3. Sins 4. Health 5. Bodies 6. Nature 7. Choice 8. Sufis 9. Principles Index

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Book SynopsisSir Richard Sorabji is Honorary Fellow, Wolfson College, Oxford, and Emeritus Professor, King's College, London, UK. He is the world's leading scholar on the commentators on Aristotle and founder and co-editor of the Ancient Commentators on Aristotle series, published by Bloomsbury. He is also the author of the three sourcebooks on the ancient commentators: The Philosophy of the Comentators, 200600 AD, vols 13.Trade ReviewBuilding on the extraordinary achievements of the Ancient Commentators on Aristotle project, [Aristotle Re-Interpreted] is a valuable collection of groundbreaking studies, which, together with [Aristotle Transformed], constitutes a must-read for any scholar and student of philosophy and Classics as well as an indispensable acquisition of any library in these fields. * Bryn Mawr Classical Review *In terms of the amount covered [this book is] certainly good value, and in my view anyone working in this subject area would be strongly advised to buy and read both [this and Aristotle Transformed.] * Classics for All Reviews *Classicists and philosophers are devoting increased attention to ancient commentaries on Aristotle. Much of this work began in earnest in the 1980s with the Duckworth/Bloomsbury "Ancient Commentators on Aristotle" series and the present volume's companion collection of scholarly essays, Aristotle Transformed (1990; 2nd ed., 2016), also edited by Sorabji. Aristotle Re-Interpreted updates earlier work in the wake of roughly three decades of research, discoveries, and advancements. Known for his leadership in founding this fascinating field of research, Sorabji (emer., King's College London, UK) brings together 23 essays—some original, some republished, some newly translated—by a host of esteemed scholars and philosophers from across the globe. The resulting volume is physically massive and massively significant for those whose research and teaching interests focus on ancient Aristotelian and Neoplatonist philosophical schools. In addition to the essays, Sorabji provides a lengthy, detailed introduction, which offers a nice survey of the philosophical figures and topics of interest within the field. Classicists, medievalists, and philosophers—really anyone interested in Aristotle, Neoplatonism, or the development of ideas from the classical age to the Middle Ages and Renaissance—will appreciate this scrupulously researched, intellectually breathtaking book. Summing Up: Essential. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty. * CHOICE *This volume is very interesting for many reasons: it provides new findings and fragments on ancient philosophy, it contains essays that deal with poorly studied philosophers and commentaries, and it is a great tool for scholars who want to deepen their understanding of the main themes of ancient philosophy and to know how the works of the greatest ancient philosophers circulated around the world. At the end of the volume readers can also find an extensive bibliography, an Index Locorum, and an index of names and arguments. * Philosophy in Review *The volume is an excellent product that makes a considerable contribution to the study of the acceptance of Aristotelian thought through its commentators. (Bloomsbury Translation) * Sehepunkte *Table of ContentsAcknowledgements List of Contributors Introduction: Seven Hundred Years of Commentary and the Sixth Century Diffusion to other Cultures Richard Sorabji 1. The Texts of Plato and Aristotle in the First Century BCE: Andronicus’ Canon Myrto Hatzimichali 2. Boethus’ Aristotelian Ontology Marwan Rashed 3. The Inadvertent Conception and Late Birth of the Free Will Problem and the Role of Alexander Susanne Bobzien 4. Alexander of Aphrodisias on Particulars and the Stoic Criterion of Identity Marwan Rashed 5. Themistius and the Problem of Spontaneous Generation Devin Henry 6. Spontaneous Generation and its Metaphysics in Themistius’ Paraphrase of Aristotle’s Metaphysics 12 Yoav Meyrav 7. The Neoplatonic Commentators on ‘Spontaneous’ Generation James Wildberding 8. A Rediscovered Categories Commentary: Porphyry? with Fragments of Boethus Riccardo Chiaradonna, Marwan Rashed, and David Sedley 9. The Purpose of Porphyry’s Rational Animals: A Dialectical Attack on the Stoics in On Abstinence from Animal Food G. Fay Edwards 10. Universals Transformed in the Commentators on Aristotle Richard Sorabji 11. Iamblichus’ Noera Theôria of Aristotle’s Categories John Dillon 12. Proclus’ Defence of the Timaeus against Aristotle: A Reconstruction of a Lost Polemical Treatise Carlos Steel 13. Smoothing over the Differences: Proclus and Ammonius on Plato’s Cratylus and Aristotle’s De Interpretatione R. M. van den Berg 14. Dating of Philoponus’ Commentaries on Aristotle and of his Divergence from his Teacher Ammonius Richard Sorabji 15. John Philoponus’ Commentary on the Third Book of Aristotle’s De Anima, Wrongly Attributed to Stephanus Pantelis Golitsis 16. Mixture in Philoponus: An Encounter with a Third Kind of Potentiality Frans A. J. de Haas 17. Gnôstikôs and/or hulikôs: Philoponus’ Accountof the Material Aspects of Sense-Perception Peter Lautner 18. The Last Philosophers of Late Antiquity in the Arabic Tradition Peter Adamson 19. Alexander of Aphrodisias versus John Philoponus in Arabic: A Case of Mistaken Identity Ahmad Hasnawi 20. New Arabic Fragments of Philoponus and their Reinterpretation: Does the World Lack a Beginning in Time or Take no Time to Begin? Marwan Rashed 21. Simplicius’ Corollary on Place: Method of Philosophising and Doctrines Philippe Hoffmann and Pantelis Golitsis 22. A Philosophical Portrait of Stephanus the Philosopher Mossman Roueché 23. Who Were the Real Authors of the Metaphysics Commentary Ascribed to Alexander and Ps.-Alexander? Pantelis Golitsis The Ancient Commentators on Aristotle Translations Bibliography Index Locorum General Index

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Book SynopsisRahim Acar is Professor of Philosophy of Religion at Marmara University, Turkey.M. Cüneyt Kaya is Professor of Islamic Philosophy at Istanbul University, Turkey.

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Book SynopsisThis deluxe three-volume boxset brings together classic spiritual texts, Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu, The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran and The Egyptian Book of the Dead. Each volume is beautifully bound in silk with gold-foil embossing and features full-colour illustrations inside. The stunning box set cover design is illustrated by Tithi Luadthong.This luxurious presentation makes it a wonderful collectible for anyone wanting to deepen their connection to ancient spiritual practices.ABOUT THE SERIES: The Arcturus Collector''s Classics series are high-quality, hardback box-sets of classic works of literature. With elegant embossed cover-designs and coloured endpapers, these editions make wonderful gifts or collectibles to treasure forever.

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Book SynopsisKahlil Gibran (1887-1931) was a Lebanese-American poet, writer and artist. His work has been translated into more than twenty languages, and his drawings and paintings have been exhibited worldwide.John Baldock is an experienced freelance editor and editorial consultant with an interest in the spiritual core of mainstream religions, including Judaeo-Christian-Islamic teachings. He has given talks throughout Europe and the USA on these and related subjects. His published books include The Essence of Sufism, The Elements of Christian Symbolism and The Alternative Gospel.

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Book SynopsisPhilosophy in the Islamic world from the 9th to 11th centuries was characterized by an engagement with Greek philosophical works in Arabic translation. This volume collects papers on both the Greek philosophers in their new Arabic guise, and on reactions to the translation movement in the period leading up to Avicenna. In a first section, Adamson provides general studies of the 'formative' period of philosophy in the Islamic world, discussing the Arabic reception of Aristotle and of his commentators. He also argues that this formative period was characterized not just by the use of Hellenic materials, but also by a productive exchange of ideas between Greek-inspired 'philosophy (falsafa)' and Islamic theology (kalÄm). A second section considers the underappreciated philosophical impact of Galen, using Arabic sources to understand Galen himself, and exploring the thought of the doctor and philosopher al-RÄzÄ, who drew on Galen as a chief inspiration. A third section looks at al-FÄrÄbÄ aTable of ContentsRECEPTION OF GREEK PHILOSOPHY, I Arabic philosophy and theology before Avicenna II Aristotle in the Arabic commentary tradition III The last philosophers of late antiquity in the Arabic tradition GALEN AND AL-RAZI IV Galen and al-Razi on time V Galen on void VI Platonic pleasures in Epicurus and al-RazT VII Abu Bakr al-Razi on animals THE BAGHDAD SCHOOL VIII The Arabic sea battle: al-Farabi on the problem of future contingents IX Knowledge of universals and particulars in the Baghdad school X Yal;iya ibn 'AdI and Averroes on Metaphysics Alpha Elatton XI On knowledge of particulars XII Avicenna and his commentators on human and divine self-intellection XIII From the necessary existent to God

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Book SynopsisThe 12 essays provide an overview of Balibar's work after his collaboration with Althusser. They explain and expand his framework; in particular, by restoring Arabic and Islamic thought to the conversation on the citizen subject. The collection includes two previously untranslated essays by Balibar himself on Carl Schmitt and Thomas Hobbes.

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