Storytelling as Philosophical Pedagogy:The Case of Suhrawardī – Mohammed Rustom

Abstract:

“Amongt the writings of Shihābal-Dīn Suhrawardī(d.587/1191),the founder of the School of Illumination and a key figure in post-Avicennan Islamic philosophy, are a series of visionary tales. In the context of each of these narratives, Suhrawardī employs numerous symbolic images in order to convey several key ideas that punctuate his philosophy. Given their concrete language, these tales add a dimension of depth not easily discernible in Suhrawardī’s strictly speaking philosophical works, given the latter’s reliance upon abstract language.”

The Ocean of Nonexistence – Mohammed Rustom

Abstract:

In this article, I would like to offer some remarks on what Rumi has to say about love. What, in other words, is it? From his perspective,inquiring into the nature of love can only give one partial answers,since the very inquiry into what love is entails a partial question. The easiest way for Rumi to explain what love is, is by saying that we will know what it is when we get there. Consider these lines:

The End of Islamic Philosophy – Mohammed Rustom

Abstract:

Islamic traditional teachings are couched in a language which is not easily understood by many contemporary men, especially those with a modern education. The old treatises were usually written in a syllogistic language which is no longer prevalent today. What must be done is to disengage the content of Islamic philosophy from the language which is now not well received and to present it in terms more conformable to the intellectual horizon of our contemporaries. What is needed essentially is a re-presentation of the whole body of Islamic wisdom in a contemporary language. Thus those who seek for various problems the solution offered by this form of wisdom will find it without the barrier of unfamiliar language or thought structure…..

KNOWLEDGE IN LATER ISLAMIC PHILOSOPHY – Mulla Sadra on Existence, Intellect and Intuition

Abstract

“Muhammad ibn Ibrahim ibn Yahya al-Qawami al-Shirazi (1571–1640),1 known as Sadr al-Din al-Shirazi and more popularly as Mulla Sadra, is one of the most prominent figures of post Avicennan Islamic philosophy. His school of thought called‘ transcendent wisdom’(al-hikmatal-muta‘aliyah) has made”
(link below)

In Search of the Lost Heart: Explorations in Islamic Thought

Abstract:

Arabic and Persian terms have been transliterated in accordance with the system employed by the (), with the following major exceptions: (1) no distinction is made in transliterating consonants shared between Arabic and Persian; (2) complete transliterations of book and article titles have been retained throughout; (3) in contexts where transliteration is not an absolute necessity (i.e., book/article titles and technical expressions), certain terms that appear on the word list, namely hajj, imam……

Rumi’s View of Imam Husayn – William C. Chittick

Abstract:

The martyrdom of the Imam Husayn can hardly be called a major theme of Rumi’s works; in over 50,000 couplets he refers to it less than twenty times. Nevertheless, these few lines are sufficient to suggest how the events of Karbala’ were viewed not only by Rumi’s, this great representative of the………….

Avicenna’s Theodicy and al-Rāzī’s Anti-Theodicy

Abstract:
Avicenna’s Neoplatonic account of divine providence and theodicy was hugely influential
on later philosophical and religious thought in the Islamic world. However, it
was severely criticised by one of his earlier commentators, the theologian-philosopher
Faḫr al-Dīn al-Rāzī (d. 606/1210). While Avicenna champions an optimist theodicean
thesis of a plenitude of good to support the theory of providence integrated into his
cosmogony, his commentator counters by arguing for a plenitude of evil and an overall……

The Worldview of Islamic Philosophy

Abstract:

Philosophy’s relation to the Islamic tradition has often been debated In modern stud­-
ies. A good number of the experts consider the relation tenuous, and others disagree.
The difference of opinion has much to do with differing understandings of the key
terms of the debate. No one seems to have doubted that at least some of the philoso-­
phers are in fact doing “philosophy” in the Greek tradition…………..

The Dialectic of Gratitude (Shukr) in the Non-dualism of Ibn al-ʿArabī

The role and function of gratitude or shukr in Islam has been a
topic that, until recently, has been the subject of little extensive
analysis. This is despite the central place of gratitude within the…………….

(link below)

Gratitude In IA – Khalil Final Nov 24 2018

Neo-Orientalism and the Study of Islamic Philosophy: An Interview with Professor Mohammed Rustom

Abstract:

After attending Professor Rustom’s advanced seminar on Ibn Sina at Carleton University in winter 2017, doctoral candidate Soroosh Shahriari of McGill University, Canada, “brought up the possibility of . . [posing] some ‘hard’ questions concerning the contemporary study of Islamic philosophy.” Rustom’s in-depth knowledge of the method and spirit of traditional Islamic education and Islamic metaphysics helps us navigate the complexities inherent in the study of Islamic philosophy in the modern academy. What follows is an edited version of this interview, which took place in Ottawa, Canada, February 2017.

Our “Share” in this World By Mohammed Rustom

We often hear people speak of the need to balance our religion (din) and our worldly lives (dunya). This is a rather uncustomary formulation in traditional Islamic parlance, especially because the Qur’an juxtaposes the akhira (afterlife), not din, with dunya. Needless to say the Muslims in the past had their priorities straight. They understood what the demands of living the life Islam entailed, and they knew whatthe demands of living in the world entailed. Thus, they did not need………………..

Our Share In This World (SW 34, 2014)

Mulla Rajab, On the Necessary Being and The Fundamental Principle

Abstract:

Translated for this volume by Mohammed Rustom from Mullā Rajab ʿAlī Tabrīzī,
Ithbāt-i wājib in Sayyid Jalāl al-Dīn Āshtiyānī and Henry Corbin, ed., Anthologie des philosophes
iraniens depuis le XVII siècle jusqu’à nos jours (Tehran, 1972–1975),
vol. 1, pp. 220–243.e