Islamic Philosophy, Theology & Msyticism

Course: IS6440: Islamic Philosophy, Theology and Mysticism

Semester: Fall 2007

Time: Tuesday 1:10-4:00 p.m.

Room: NW 240

Professor: Dr. Charles Amjad-Ali

Office: 210F Northwestern Hall

Office Hours: Wednesday 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m.

By Appointment at extension 523 or camjad@luthersem.edu

Course Description:

Philosophy is the oldest academic discipline, and philosophical thought concerns the most fundamental kinds of question there are. Theology and mysticism have the same status but are not treated as either rational or “scientific” knowledge. In the traditional approach there were three ways of knowing, the modern scientific and technological successes have led to the contemporary bias, which has converted all knowledge into, or is at least now measured against, the yardstick of science. Greek thought defined these three ways of knowledge as:

1. Episteme = knowledge of the unchanging things. This was largely philosophy, even the natural scientific inquiry resided within the philosophical premise which after all simply meant the love of wisdom;

2. Phronesis = knowledge of the changing things which in philosophy was directed toward politics and ethics and not virtue;

3. Gnosis = also knowledge but this was knowledge which could not be taught through pedagogia but rather acquired through following the path of the master and being contemplative and meditative.

So while the knowledge in the first two (viz., episteme and phronesis) entailed concreteness and pedagogical transmission through gymnasium and dealt largely with active life in the cosmos and polis; knowledge in the third case entailed contemplative life and demanded as the highest sacrifice the giving up, or letting go, of the cosmos and polis to be submerged in the one who is the source of all and the ultimate concern. These three knowledge games are the closest relations of the themes covered by this course, namely, philosophy (episteme/phronesis); theology (episteme/phronesis) and mysticism (gnosis). These divisions, as must be stated immediately, are heuristic and not total. They are rather there to make the pedagogical task “easier” rather than to be permanently differentiated for the sake of our modern knowledge game and its demand for compartmentalization which soon acquires permanence.

During the course of this semester we shall examine the following issues and see how the Islamic sources of knowledge answer these questions:

· What is philosophy, theology and mysticism? What distinguishes their respective approaches from each other and from the contemporary dominant natural scientific model? How does faith inform this debate and especially Islamic faith in approaching these three ways to knowledge?

· Who are we? Are we completely subject to the laws of science? Or is there something more, a soul, mind or spirit? If so, how does it interact with our bodies and the material world? And ultimately how do we interact with the ultimate source of all things, and what is our ultimate concern, especially as Muslims perceive it both historically and in the contemporary world?

· Is the world roughly the way it looks in the sense of empirical and sensual data? Or is such perception not a reliable guide to how things are in themselves, are they more than what we see and how do we go about fulfilling the lacunae of our perception with projected meaning and knowledge? Is such a projection simply a matter of our mental cognitive activity, or do ordinary objects really possess some meaning in themselves and/or in the world in which they are located?

· What is the difference between knowledge and mere opinion and how does one go about challenging the first and justifying the latter? Is it possible ever to know anything in all its valences and full import? If not, how can we guard against error and projection of either self-serving ends or simply as extension of ourselves? Or is the very distinction itself between truth and error just a convenient fiction which we try to cover up with either over exertion and coercion or through creating proofs?

Since these three areas claim to answer and deal with questions of perennial interest and ultimate concern, even a very brief survey and critical reflection in these areas, I hope, will transform your way of thinking about many things. Although I cannot, and I venture to include others in it, provide you with any definite and ultimate answers, my hope is that we can help to clarify your thinking and show how different ideas relate to one another. If we are curious about the world, God’s creation, and God’s design and our place within it; and how we organize societies and communities so that they meet the simple demands of justice, ethics and rights; and if we have a taste for unusual ideas, supported by interesting arguments; and if one is interested in knowing a little more about the intellectual culture of the modern world and how Islam and the Muslim world contributed to it and interacts with it today, then we should benefit from studying this course.

This course is designed to introduce students to a number of the great themes and during the discussion of these themes some of the relevant personalities of the Islamic intellectual and spiritual traditions and the impact they have made on the western tradition including theological epistemology. Looking at these traditions in the framework of the larger discussion of some of these themes and issue will contextualize the Islamic contribution. We will, I hope, also appreciate and gain a sense of the ways in which these traditions are being challenged and reconstituted or reasserted in the Islamic world today; and thus bring Muslim and Christian perspectives on areas of shared concern into mutually stimulating conversation. My hope is finally, to get the students to respect and appreciate the Islamic traditions for their own sake and the contribution they have made to the larger discussion.

Through each session, we shall try and ensure that the following aspects of knowledge and inquiry take place:

· Why does critical thinking matter?

· What is the difference between good and bad reasoning?

· What is meant by a valid argument?

· How can we tell whether a given argument is fallacious?

· How does our language affect our ability to think clearly?

· How do we learn to be a part of a dialogical, and yes even an argumentative community, which respects well-argued propositions, which are different and at times even threatening of our position on these and other issues?

· How do we disagree without either dismissing the other or negating them?

Requirements:

Students must attend all seminars, complete all reading assignments on time, and contribute substantially to the seminar discussions.
Each student will be in charge of leading one discussion on the assigned readings and prepare 3-5 pages, double spaced, papers for every member of the class. In this paper and in the class presentation the student will:

a) highlight the issue(s) which the author is focusing on and covering;

b) explain the logic and rationale the author follows to explain the problem and look for its resolutions;

c) having accomplished the first two steps, only then should you approach the third step which is to first critique the logic and method applied to deal with the issue(s) and then discuss whether the parameters and various components of the issue(s) have been laid out as you think they should and then your own opinion on this issue(s). If you make such a critique you should give solid reasons for the critique, personal feelings do not lead to good public discourse.

Besides this paper each student will also write up (1-2 double spaced paper) as a response in the class to a discussion paper of their choice.

For assignment 2 and 3 you need to sign up immediately on the reading of your choice below.

There will be a final paper of 12-15 double space pages to be submitted on the day of the final exam as indicated in the catalogue, i.e., December 20. You must discuss the topic of the paper with the professor ahead of time. Please note, as I will be leaving for Pakistan just after Christmas for three months (my health permitting) there is, therefore, no possibility of extension on final papers.

Required Texts:

Daftary, Farhad, ed., Intellectual Traditions in Islam (London: I.B. Tauris Publishers, 2001/New York: Palgrave MacMillan 2001).

Oliver Leaman, An Introduction to Classical Islamic Philosophy (New York: Cambridge University Press, Second Edition 2002).

Watt, W. Montgomery, Islamic Philosophy and Thought: An Extended Survey (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1985).

Fakhry, Majid, A History of Islamic Philosophy (New York: Columbia University Press, Second Edition 1983).

An Interpretation of the Qur’an: English Translation of the Meanings, A Bilingual Edition, translated by Majid Fakhry (New York: New York University Press, 2004)

Week 1: September 11: General Introduction to the seminar, its themes and issues.

Week 2: September 18: General Introduction to the themes and issues continued.

Week 3: September 25: Daftary, 1-42