List of Articles افلاطون

• Open Access Article
  • Abstract Page
  • Full-Text
  
  1 - A Comparative Analysis of Heraclitus’ Flux, Parmenides’ Stability, and Plato’s Ideas
  Reza Bazeli Mahdi  Monfared
  The issue of ontology and the problem of authentic and unauthentic types of being have always been debated by philosophers since the time of ancient Greece until now. Among Greek philosophers, Heraclitus, Parmenides, and Plato enjoy particular significance because of th More

  The issue of ontology and the problem of authentic and unauthentic types of being have always been debated by philosophers since the time of ancient Greece until now. Among Greek philosophers, Heraclitus, Parmenides, and Plato enjoy particular significance because of their particular theories. Heraclitus believed in flux and everlasting change of things and denied stability in being. By contrast, Parmenides denied change and believed in stability and unchangability in being. These two opposite theories were later reformulated in Plato’s theory of Ideas. He developed his particular theory by benefitting from these two theories and employed Heraclitus’ continuous flux in the world of sensibles and Parmenides’ stability of being in the world of Ideas. The present paper comparatively examines the problem of existence from the viewpoint of these three philosophers in order to clarify Plato’s agreement with his two predecessors. A comparison of the ontological views of these three Greek philosophers revealed that Parmenides’ theory of stability (way of truth) and Heraclitus’ theory of unity can be matched with Plato’s world of Ideas. Moreover, the writers conclude that Heraclitus’ theory of flux and Parmenides’ ways of inquiry are compatible with Plato’s world of sensibles. Manuscript profile
• Open Access Article
  • Abstract Page
  • Full-Text
  
  2 - The Relationship between Gods and Man in Greek Philosophy
  Abdulrasul  Hasanifar Sajjad  Chitforush
  Man’s behaviors and acts in each period are directly influenced by the ontological views and philosophical and religious principles of that period. Therefore, in order to understand the nature of such behaviors and acts, one might initially learn about the dominant onto More

  Man’s behaviors and acts in each period are directly influenced by the ontological views and philosophical and religious principles of that period. Therefore, in order to understand the nature of such behaviors and acts, one might initially learn about the dominant ontological and epistemological principles of the time. One of such principles which is necessary for understanding human behavior and acts in each period pertains to the prevailing view of being and God, which directly affects one’s conduct in society. Given the necessity of cross-cultural knowledge in the contemporary era, the profound relationship between the Greeks and Iranians, and its effects on different aspects of their thoughts, the knowledge of the Greeks’ philosophical and behavioral principles could play a key role in the study of this cultural relationship. Accordingly, the present paper investigates the ontological views of the Greeks, their philosophical principles and, particularly, their views of God and the soul and the effect of such views on their behaviors and acts. In doing so, the authors have examined the ideas of three thinkers of the Greek era, namely, Homer, Socrates, and Plato, following an interpretive method. The results of this study indicate that the Greeks’ view of God in each period changed under the influence of the views of the thinkers of the time. In fact, Homer, Socrates, and Plato held distinct ideas in this regard. In Homer’s mythical view, Gods are like human heroes with human attributes and in transaction with human beings. However, in Socrates’s eye, God is a being who guides human beings and communicates with them through demons. Finally, in Plato’s philosophy, where polytheism moves toward monotheism, God, as the Idea of Good, is a transcendent Being who determines Man’s destiny and promulgates laws for their individual and social lives. Manuscript profile
• Open Access Article
  • Abstract Page
  • Full-Text
  
  3 - Plato’s Mathematical Ontology in Islamic and Western Interpretations
  Mohammad Saket Nalkiashari Ali Naqi  Baqershahi
  Mathematics has always been considered to be among certain sciences; however, the objects of mathematical knowledge have continually occupied the minds of mathematicians and philosophers of mathematics. The theory stating that the objects of mathematics consist of a num More

  Mathematics has always been considered to be among certain sciences; however, the objects of mathematical knowledge have continually occupied the minds of mathematicians and philosophers of mathematics. The theory stating that the objects of mathematics consist of a number of certain immaterial and separate affairs which are independent of the world of the human mind and thought has been attributed to Plato, and several realist philosophers who, in spite of all their differences, have been called neo-Platonists. Commentators of Plato have failed in providing any clear and consistent interpretation, whether in terms of ontology or semantics, of his philosophy of mathematics, which has resulted in some misunderstandings in this regard and some ambiguity in his whole philosophy. When completing his PhD dissertation at the University of Bristol, Paul Pritchard presented an interpretation of Plato’s ontology, according to which the objects of mathematics are the same sensible things. Here, the allegory of the divided line has been interpreted differently, and the existing ambiguities have been removed. In this paper, the authors have examined this interpretation and compared it with other interpretations of Plato’s ontology of mathematics. They also refer to its effects on Plato’s philosophy of mathematics in general and reveal that, unlike its traditional interpretation, his philosophy of mathematics does not conflict with Benacerraf’s identification problem. Moreover, the authors demonstrate that, based on Mulla Sadra’s arguments, the theory of Ideas is a completely consistent theory in terms of ontology and, thus, Plato’s philosophy of mathematics is a consistent body of philosophy. Manuscript profile
• Open Access Article
  • Abstract Page
  • Full-Text
  
  4 - A Critical Analysis of Henry Corbin’s Thoughts on the Comparison of Suhrawardī’s Philosophy with Greek Philosophy
  Hasan Seyedarab seyedali Alamolhoda Alireza parsa Akhlaghi Marzie
  Henry Corbin is a western commentator of Suhrawardī’s Illuminationist philosophy. His thoughts in relation to interpreting this philosophy are based on t’awīl (hermeneutics), phenomenology, metahistory, and comparative philosophy. The present paper is the first attempt More

  Henry Corbin is a western commentator of Suhrawardī’s Illuminationist philosophy. His thoughts in relation to interpreting this philosophy are based on t’awīl (hermeneutics), phenomenology, metahistory, and comparative philosophy. The present paper is the first attempt at addressing this subject, and it is intended to critically investigate Corbin’s thoughts regarding the comparison of Suhrawardī’s philosophy with those of Plato, Aristotle, and neo-Platonists. Here, the authors have explored Suhrawardī’s innovative ideas so that the differences between them and the thoughts of the above-mentioned philosophers are disclosed. They have also presented a general critique of Corbin’s methodology and its defects in the conclusion. Comparative philosophy, which is sometimes called intercultural philosophy, requires philosophers to deal with various cultural, linguistic, and philosophical trends with an emphasis on the fundamental principles underlying the philosophers’ thoughts and to study the differences and similarities among their views. In Corbin’s view, comparative philosophy has functioned as the gateway of the correct perception of philosophical thoughts in the history of philosophy, and that is why he has compared Illuminationist philosophy with the philosophical views of Plato and Aristotle. He believes that Suhrawardī’s philosophy has been derived from Plato’s views, which seems to have its roots in his idea that the origin of philosophy is Greece. Corbin considers him as the Plato of the world of Islam; however, he ignores Suhrawardī’s innovations, the differences between his philosophy and that of Plato, and his criticism of Aristotle. Manuscript profile
• Open Access Article
  • Abstract Page
  • Full-Text
  
  5 - Impact of Zoroastrian Wisdom on Pre-Socratic Philosophers and Plato
  Reza  Amiri
  There are several similarities among the philosophical thoughts of pre-Socratic sages and the preceding Zoroaster’s teachings. Such similarities indicate the familiarity of Greek philosophers with Zoroaster’s teachings through their contacts with eastern nations, partic More

  There are several similarities among the philosophical thoughts of pre-Socratic sages and the preceding Zoroaster’s teachings. Such similarities indicate the familiarity of Greek philosophers with Zoroaster’s teachings through their contacts with eastern nations, particularly Iranians. In this paper, following a comparative method, the author intends to provide an answer to the question of how Zoroaster’s teachings influenced pre-Socratic philosophies. The findings of this study demonstrate that some thinkers such as Thales, Pythagoras, Empedocles, and, particularly, Plato developed their views under the influence of Iranian philosophical thoughts. In this regard, reference can be made to some concepts including partnership, duality, Plato’s king-sage, and Pythagoras’ views regarding spirit and numbers. Manuscript profile
• Open Access Article
  • Abstract Page
  • Full-Text
  
  6 - A Study of the Philosophical Elements of Platonic-Plotinian Tradition in Khwājah Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī’s Philosophy
  Seyed Morteza  Honarmand
  After the rise of Islam, philosophy and wisdom in Iran and in other corners of the world of Islam were united with Greek philosophy and interacted with it through the Translation Movement. Khwājah Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī was of the prominent thinkers of the world of Islam who More

  After the rise of Islam, philosophy and wisdom in Iran and in other corners of the world of Islam were united with Greek philosophy and interacted with it through the Translation Movement. Khwājah Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī was of the prominent thinkers of the world of Islam who became familiar with Greek philosophy and enriched it in the light of his innovations through the Peripatetic Philosophy and the works of Fārābī and Ibn Sīnā. Now, the question is which of the philosophical elements of Greek wisdom, particularly the Platonic-Plotinian tradition, is more visible in Ṭūsī’s philosophical-kalāmī thoughts. This study, which was carried out following a descriptive-analytic method and through exploring Ṭūsī’s works, concludes that this presence and similarity have emerged in different forms, including: 1) complete acceptance of Greek views without any change though with some displacement of Greek views, such as the most logical problems, the discussion of the ten-fold categories, the four-fold causes, and classifications of sciences; 2) completion, change, and addition of some arguments for demonstrating the previous views, such as the problem of impossibility of endless chain, immateriality of the soul, proving the Necessary, oneness of the Necessary, impossibility of the emanation of many from the one, union of the intellect and intelligible, and the substantial nature of archetypes, and 3) the change of the content and nature of Greek views while preserving their old names, such as Platonic Ideas. Manuscript profile
• Open Access Article
  • Abstract Page
  • Full-Text
  
  7 - Nature in the Views of Greek and Muslim Philosophers
  داود محمدیانی
  20.1001.1.20089589.1400.12.2.7.5
  Undoubtedly, nature has always attracted the attention of scientists and philosophers as the loci of the genesis and growth of natural existents and its current. Scientists working in the field of empirical sciences mainly seek the knowledge of natural existents and law More

  Undoubtedly, nature has always attracted the attention of scientists and philosophers as the loci of the genesis and growth of natural existents and its current. Scientists working in the field of empirical sciences mainly seek the knowledge of natural existents and laws of nature, while philosophers basically deal with the knowledge of nature itself and its structure and try to provide an answer to the questions of what the meaning of nature is, what its structure is, what relationship exists between existents and nature, whether nature is the primary source of the appearance of existents in the world, and whether nature, as matter and form, is a cradle for the appearance of various forms of existents. Greek philosophers and, later, Muslim philosophers have provided various responses to these questions. In ancient Greek philosophy, physis or nature means growth, living, and life. This meaning, which had provided the basis for pre-Socratic philosophy, changed into the “content of the world” and “maker of things” in Stoic philosophy. Plato also defined physis as the origin of the appearance of all things. He used the words technē (art) and archē (origin) to explain the emergence of the world and considered the creation of the world as an artistic innovation. Aristotle, who viewed the world synonymous with the whole nature, believed that nature is the source of motion and change in things; however, Muslim thinkers have provided various ideas about nature. Ikhwān al-Ṣafā maintained that nature is the fifth level of the levels of being and the “active” aspect of the world, with matter as its passive aspect. Ibn Sīnā considered nature and the interactions therein as God’s act and believed that nature is the cause of the appearance of corporeal substance by synthesizing matter and form. Unlike the Peripatetics, who believed that archetypes are the same as the nature of things, Suhrawardī rejected archetypes and replaced them with luminary nature. Finally, Mullā Ṣadrā viewed the world of nature identical with renewal and change and maintained that the nature of substance enjoys permanent motion and flow. Manuscript profile
• Open Access Article
  • Abstract Page
  • Full-Text
  
  8 - Middle Platonism: Introduction and Analysis of Religious and Philosophical Theorems
  Mahbobeh  Hadina
  20.1001.1.20089589.1400.12.2.8.6
  Middle Platonism is one of the most important philosophical-religious schools of the first century BC. While claiming to revive the original Platonic school, it is rooted in the fundamental epistemological and philosophical theorems of that time including the essence of More

  Middle Platonism is one of the most important philosophical-religious schools of the first century BC. While claiming to revive the original Platonic school, it is rooted in the fundamental epistemological and philosophical theorems of that time including the essence of the One, God as Creator, descent of the soul, rational knowledge, and salvation. A study of middle Platonists’ works reveals that the philosophical principles of this school are mainly based on a reinterpretation of certain religious-philosophical theorems of Platonic, Stoic, Pythagorean, and gnostic schools. In fact, a clear trace of the concern for explaining the problem of the oneness and transcendence of the essence of Almighty, the quality of the creation of the world, and the presence of evil therein can be witnesses in the works of the philosophers that advocate the mentioned schools. The fundamental principles of middle Platonism are basically religious, and this school is mainly concerned with such topics as the duality of the essence of divinity in two concepts, God as the Maker or Creator of the world, the duality of the spiritual and material origin of Man and the descent of the soul, cosmology and the material structure and fate of the world, eschatology with an emphasis on the theorem of Man’s salvation through rational knowledge, and finally the discussion of ethics and the definition of its practical frameworks for attaining rational perfection, which is necessary for salvation. The present paper aims to explain and provide a comparative analysis of the principles and quality of the formation of the philosophical theorems of Middle Platonism as a philosophical-religious school. Manuscript profile
• Open Access Article
  • Abstract Page
  • Full-Text
  
  9 - Philanthropia in Ancient Greece and its Relationship with Paideia
  Majid Mollayousefi Maryam Samadieh
  20.1001.1.20089589.1401.13.1.1.4
  The present paper investigates the relationship between philanthropia and paideia based on the texts of classical Greece. The term “philanthropia” was first used in a play called Prometheus Bound by Aeschylus and was later used repeatedly in some of the literary and phi More

  The present paper investigates the relationship between philanthropia and paideia based on the texts of classical Greece. The term “philanthropia” was first used in a play called Prometheus Bound by Aeschylus and was later used repeatedly in some of the literary and philosophical works of the Classical Greece. In this play, philanthropy has been attributed to Prometheus because he stole fire from Zeus to give it to human beings and save them from destruction. In the comedy Peace by Aristophanes, the god Hermes has been introduced as philanthropist because he makes it possible for the humankind to access peace. In Isocrates’ speech, the term philanthropist is applied to political leaders and people who posses the highest level of virtues and share such gifts as knowledge with others. Moreover, in the fourth book of Laws, Plato introduces Cronos a philanthropist because, during his reign, he tried to consolidate the pillars of culture and civilization in society. In the dialogue Euthyphro, Socrates considers himself to be a philanthropist because he shares his knowledge with others. As attested by Aristotle, philanthropia is an essential and intrinsic quality; however, it develops a knowledge-based form through paideia. On the other hand, those existents who are called philanthropists try to develop paideia and spread it in their society. Manuscript profile
• Open Access Article
  • Abstract Page
  • Full-Text
  
  10 - The Relationships Among Eros, Techne, and Philosophy in Plato’s Symposium and Phaedrus (With a Critical Emphasis on the Views of Vlastos and Nussbaum)
  Javid  Kazemi Seyyed Mohammad  Hakak Ali Naqi  Baqershahi Mohammad Raayat Jahromi
  20.1001.1.20089589.1401.13.1.3.6
  Eros, the Greek god of love, in addition to its different meanings in the pre-Socratic mythological and philosophical history, has been used in Plato’s philosophy in different senses. This diversity has misled its interpreters in translating it into erroneous meanings s More

  Eros, the Greek god of love, in addition to its different meanings in the pre-Socratic mythological and philosophical history, has been used in Plato’s philosophy in different senses. This diversity has misled its interpreters in translating it into erroneous meanings such as love. The present paper examines the meaning of eros in Plato’s two Dialogs of Symposium and Phaedrus and then explores its relationship with philosophy and techne. In the dialog of Symposium, after being used in some different meanings, Eros is used in the sense of the longing and desire for observing absolute beauty, which is the same philosophy. This is because in Plato’s philosophy, the difference between the Idea of the good (philosophy is a motive for viewing it) and the Idea of beauty is mentally-posited. In other words, the Ideas of the good and absolute beauty are the same truth that is viewed from two points of view. Now that dialectics – an activity in which multiple details are recognized from the one and the one from multiple details – is introduced in the dialog of Phaedrus as an instrument of techne, it can be concluded that the Platonic lover, and the philosopher cannot perceive the Idea of beauty (or the good) unless through techne. The major problems in this paper are discussed based on the views of two interpreters of Plato, Gregory Velastos and Martha Nussbaum. Manuscript profile
• Open Access Article
  • Abstract Page
  • Full-Text
  
  11 - Platonic and Aristotelean Roots of the Concept of Time in Islamic Philosophy
  Seyed Mohammad  Moosavi Baygi Mohammad Amin  Afzalzadeh
  20.1001.1.20089589.1402.13.4.3.6
  Time is one of the most important features of the world of matter, and the knowledge of which has always attracted the attention of philosophers. The simplicity of perception of time and the difficulty of its explanation have resulted in some disagreements among philoso More

  Time is one of the most important features of the world of matter, and the knowledge of which has always attracted the attention of philosophers. The simplicity of perception of time and the difficulty of its explanation have resulted in some disagreements among philosophers concerning its definition. Islamic philosophers are no exception in this regard, and the roots of their disagreements go back to Plato’s and Aristotle’s different definitions of time. Plato defined time as a self-subsistent and essentially independent substance that is a differentiated form of the world of Ideas. In Aristotle’s view, time represents the number of motion from its priority and posteriority aspects, which cannot be gathered with each other. While acknowledging the difference between these two definitions, Islamic philosophers have usually chosen one of these definitions and tried to respond to the suspicions about their selected definition and reject the arguments in favor of the opposing one. Some philosophers such as Ibn Rushd, Ibn Sīnā, and Suhrawardī adopted Aristotle’s definition, while Zakarīyyā Rāzī and Fakhr al-Dīn Rāzī advocated Plato’s definition. Nevertheless, no effort as to demonstrating the contrast between Aristotelean and Platonic definitions of time is justified because both philosophers believe that although time is different from motion, their existences are inseparable from each other. In other words, the perception of one depends on the perception of the other. accordingly, the present paper, while clarifying Plato’s view, initially intends to explain that it is not in contrast to Aristotle’s view and, secondly, aims to demonstrate the effects of their view on those of Muslim philosophers. Manuscript profile
• Open Access Article
  • Abstract Page
  • Full-Text
  
  12 - A Study of the Historical Development of the Notion of Platonic-Aristotelean Agape and Love in Fārābī and Ṭūsī (In the Realm of Human Relationships)
  Fereshteh Abolhassani Niaraki
  20.1001.1.20089589.1402.13.4.4.7
  The present study provides a description and analysis of the historical development of the notion of Aristotelean-Platonic agape (love) in the philosophical thoughts of Fārābī and Khwājah Nasīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī. Following a historical method, the author deals with the reason More

  The present study provides a description and analysis of the historical development of the notion of Aristotelean-Platonic agape (love) in the philosophical thoughts of Fārābī and Khwājah Nasīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī. Following a historical method, the author deals with the reasons behind this development in addition to describing it. The discussion of friendship (agape) in Aristotle’s philosophy is propounded in his Nichomachean Ethics, where some traces of Platonic notion are also observable. This discussion was transformed in Islamic Philosophy in certain respects, including the variety of the beloved (and the most beloved), individualistic or socialist aspect, and selfishness or selflessness aspect. Regarding the variety of the beloved, the discussion has moved from virtue-based friendship (agape) to the love of the Wise (God). As to its range, one can observe a change of dialog form social-political friendship to agape as an internal characteristic with individual and social effects. Moreover, it has moved beyond selfishness and selflessness and, in conformity with the principle of congruence, reached the love from Him (Godly). The influential views of such thinkers as Plotinus; the role of religion, culture, and gnosis, and the ideas of Ibn Sīnā, Ibn Miskawayh, and Suhrawardī are of great importance in explaining this development. The particular philosophical and Kalāmī principles of Fārābī and Ṭūsī as well as some of their ethical views are the most important factors in the interpretation of the underlying reasons of the mentioned development. Manuscript profile
• Open Access Article
  • Abstract Page
  • Full-Text
  
  13 - An Interpretation of the Dialogue of Laws from the Viewpoint of Leo Strauss Based on Fārābī’s Treatise of Talkhīṣ al-Nawāmīs
  Havva Jami Seyed Mohammad  Hakkak Qazvini Ali Naghi  Baghershahi Shervin Moghimi Zanjani
  20.1001.1.20089589.1402.14.2.1.3
  Presently, historicism is the dominant approach in interpreting philosophical traditions. This approach considers each science, particularly philosophy, to be in some way related to the specific lifetime of thinkers. Within this framework, historicist interpreters exami More

  Presently, historicism is the dominant approach in interpreting philosophical traditions. This approach considers each science, particularly philosophy, to be in some way related to the specific lifetime of thinkers. Within this framework, historicist interpreters examine Plato’s works in relation to four different periods, with the dialogue of Laws belonging to the latest period of his life, indicating a change in his approach. However, in opposition to any kind of historicist view, Leo Strauss disagrees with this division and believes that there is no change of direction in Plato’s overall philosophy – from the first to the last dialogue – and all of them address philosophical problems from a specific standpoint. We encounter this comprehensive approach also in Strauss’ reading of the dialogue of Laws. In fact, Strauss believes that, in order to grasp a real understanding of the dialogue of Laws, one must follow his method and consider Fārābī’s interpretation of this work in Talkhīṣ al-nawāmīs as a basis. Strauss also maintains that it is the only way through which one can go beyond the limits of historical interpretation. While providing a brief discussion of the historical interpretation of the Laws, the purpose of the present study is to examine Fārābī’s interpretation of the dialogue of Laws, Strauss’ critique and view of this interpretation, and the most distinctive features of Strauss’ innovative interpretation of this dialogue. Manuscript profile