List of Articles Illuminationist philosophy

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  1 - Rereading Suhrawardi’s Illuminationist Philosophy in the Light of Pierre Hadot’s Philosophical Model: Philosophy as a Way of Life
  Amir Abbas  ‘Alizamani Zahra  Rastakhiz Ghasroaldashti
  Pierre Hadot (1922-2010), the contemporary French philosopher showed the dynamism and true life of philosophy in philosophers’ everyday life through presenting a philosophical model, called Philosophy as a Way of Life, which is the product of his several years of resear More

  Pierre Hadot (1922-2010), the contemporary French philosopher showed the dynamism and true life of philosophy in philosophers’ everyday life through presenting a philosophical model, called Philosophy as a Way of Life, which is the product of his several years of research in the field of ancient philosophy. In this paper, the writers have tried to analyze and interpret Suhrawardi’s Illuminationist philosophy based on this model. Accordingly, in the first part, in addition to introducing the mentioned model, they explain its important elements such as the philosophical language of spiritual practice and its place in studying philosophical schools pursuing spiritual guidance. The second part provides an analysis and interpretation of the Illuminationist philosophy in the framework of this model. Therefore, it initially propounds the basic principles of Suhrawardi’s school regarding light, the hierarchy of lights, the soul and its significance, the world of Ideas and its necessity, epistemology, and ontology. Discussing the fundamental principles of Illuminationist philosophy helps to specify the way of life and its elements and features in this school in relation to the philosophical model of “Philosophy as a Way of Life”. Since Suhrawardi’s Illuminationist philosophy bears a tight unity with gnosis and spiritual wayfaring, it is difficult to perceive it philosophically and to demonstrate its structural coherence in explaining various philosophical problems. Through presenting certain strategies, Hadot’s model enables researchers to develop a coherent and comprehensive perception of the problems propounded in this philosophical-gnostic school and the way of life it advocates. Manuscript profile
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  2 - A Critical Study of the Illuminationist Nature of Ibn Sina’s Philosophy
  Abdolhossein  Khosropanah Hesam al-Din  Momeni Shahraki Seyyed Hamid  Forghani Dehnawi
  One of the important problems in the field of the study of Ibn Sina is whether his philosophy is of a Peripatetic nature or an Illuminationist one. Some believe that his philosophy follows an Illuminationist approach and offer certain proofs in order to demonstrate thei More

  One of the important problems in the field of the study of Ibn Sina is whether his philosophy is of a Peripatetic nature or an Illuminationist one. Some believe that his philosophy follows an Illuminationist approach and offer certain proofs in order to demonstrate their claim. In a general classification, it can be said that some of these proofs are based on the works of Ibn Sina himself, and some others are based on the knowledge sources he benefitted from. The writers of this paper believe that the proofs adduced on the Illuminationist nature of Ibn Sina’s philosophy are open to criticism. Therefore, they initially delve into the nature of Illuminationist philosophy and provide a concise but precise account of the proofs and reasons presented in support of the above claim. Next, they analyze and criticize them and highlight their weaknesses. This research has been carried out following an analytic critical method. Manuscript profile
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  3 - The Concept and Place of Bahman in Avestan and Pahlavi Texts as the “First Emanated” in Illuminationist Philosophy
  Hasan  Bolkhari Qehi
  The statement, “Reason was the first thing that God created”, which has been mentioned in several Islamic texts and has been quoted and emphasized by some great philosophers such as Suhrawardī and Mullā Ṣadrā (in Sharḥ-i uṣūl al-kāfī), is a well-known narration in Islam More

  The statement, “Reason was the first thing that God created”, which has been mentioned in several Islamic texts and has been quoted and emphasized by some great philosophers such as Suhrawardī and Mullā Ṣadrā (in Sharḥ-i uṣūl al-kāfī), is a well-known narration in Islamic ḥadīths. A similar statement with a clearer meaning is: “The Glorious God created the intellect, which was the first heavenly created”. Such statements gain more significance when we compare them with similar statements regarding the place of the intellect, which is equal to being, in Greek philosophy. As the master of all Iluminationist philosophers, Suhrawardī, as he has emphasized in his treatise of Fī ḥaqīqat al-‘ishq (On the Truth of Love) (p. 268), was well-aware of this famous narration. Given Suhrawardī’s explicit reference to this statement and his clear indication in Ḥikmat al-ishrāq, in which he calls himself the reviver of ancient Iranian philosophy (or at least introduces the wisdom of ancient Iranian philosophers (fahlavīūn) as one of the main sources of his own philosophy), this study aims to provide an answer to the question of how we can trace the effects of ancient Iranian wisdom in Suhrawardī’s philosophy. One of the most important factors linking his philosophy to ancient Iranian philosophy is his reference to the place of such Amesha Spenta as Bahman or Urdībihišt in Avestan and Pahlavi texts and considering them as the pillars of the nūrī (illuminative) and ontological system in his philosophy. Here, based on the principle of “Nothing is emanated from the one but one”, he calls the first-emanated from the light of lights (al-nūr al-anwār) the closest light (al-nūr al-aqrab) and, based on ancient Iranian philosophy, he calls it Bahman. However, one might inquire about the relationship between Bahman and the first-emanated, particularly if the first-emanated in Islamic philosophy is the intellect. Following a historical and analytic approach, this paper investigates the philosophy of choosing Bahman as the first-emanated in Suhrawardī’s philosophy and examines his particular choice of Bahman as the god of wisdom and knowledge as tantamount to the intellect in Islamic ḥadīths, which demonstrates Suhrawardī’s profound knowledge of ancient Iranian wisdom. Manuscript profile
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  4 - A Historical Glance at the Move from Self-Knowledge to Knowledge of God in Peripatetic and Illuminationist Philosophies
  Seyyed Mohammed Kazem  Alavi
  The development and consequences of self-knowledge is one of the important discussions in Islamic philosophy. One of the most noteworthy of these consequences, according to the hadith of “One who has self-knowledge verily knows God”, is to know the Creator. The explanat More

  The development and consequences of self-knowledge is one of the important discussions in Islamic philosophy. One of the most noteworthy of these consequences, according to the hadith of “One who has self-knowledge verily knows God”, is to know the Creator. The explanation and interpretation of this hadith was not taken seriously in earlier schools of Islamic philosophy. In fact, it was not until the early periods of the Schools of Shiraz and Isfahan up to the period of the dominance of the Transcendent Philosophy among contemporary thinkers that great attention was devoted to clarifying and interpreting it. This paper is intended to discuss the background of these explanations and analyses in two of the early schools of Islamic philosophy, Peripatetic and Illuminationist philosophies, and even in those preceding them. The interpretation of the hadiths on self-knowledge in Islamic philosophy is united with psychology. That is why its background is traceable to Greek philosophy. In books on Islamic philosophy, some ideas and words have been attributed in this regard to Greek early philosophers, who are considered to mark the beginning of writing the history of this issue. The narration of these hadiths and similar words began during the first periods of Islamic philosophy with Ikhwan al-Safa (Brethren of Purity). They mainly focused on the importance of self-knowledge and the immateriality of the soul, which is more prominent in the Peripatetic philosophy considering the significance of psychology and self-knowledge in this school. Through relying on these hadiths, Ibn Sina demonstrated the most important problem of self-knowledge, that is, the immateriality of the soul, and uses it as a religious confirmation of this point versus the view of mutikallimun as to the corporeality of the soul. In Illuminationist philosophy, given the fundamental status of the dimension of the epistemology of the soul, a more basic approach to the relationship between self-knowledge and the knowledge of God is observed. This approach is introduced as an argument in order to demonstrate the existence of God and His attributes; it is an argument which is indeed superior to other arguments. What is clearly witnessed in this historical process is an interpretation referring to the possibility of self-knowledge and the possibility of the move from that knowledge to the knowledge of God, which is considered to be gradational in its most Illuminationist explanation. Manuscript profile
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  5 - A Comparison of Perfect Nature in Islamic Philosophy with Fravashī in Khosravani Wisdom
  Maryam  Asadian Babak Alikhani Alikhani
  The concept of perfect nature (ṭabā ‘tāmm) has been derived from a Hermetic anecdote and, according to Illuminationists, is among nūrī (luminous) and archetypal truths. The union of the soul and archetype (intellect) is possible through purification, asceticism, and lib More

  The concept of perfect nature (ṭabā ‘tāmm) has been derived from a Hermetic anecdote and, according to Illuminationists, is among nūrī (luminous) and archetypal truths. The union of the soul and archetype (intellect) is possible through purification, asceticism, and liberation from intermediate and immaterial worlds. This view, which was also shared by Abu’l-Brakāt al-Baghdādī and some others before Suhrawardī, was explained and interpreted by Mullā Ṣadrā and his students. Mullā Ṣadrā believed that perfect nature is a single intellectual form and the highest level of Man’s existence which enjoys the highest degree of immateriality. He called this level the “Holy Spirit” and emphasized that there is no difference between the soul and perfect nature and, basically, the whole identity of the human soil originates in their perfect nature. Although perfect nature is closely related to Hermetic teachings, one cannot ignore its Khosravani roots. In Mazdayasnan teachings, reference has been made to the states and modes of the soul, the most supreme of which is Fravashī or Farvahar. Fravashī is the heavenly essence or an aspect of Mīnuy-e Xerad (or spirit of wisdom) which reveals itself to ascetics and teaches them religious principles. In the present paper, after examining the views of Islamic philosophers regarding perfect nature, the authors have tried to demonstrate that this concept is rooted in the pre-eternal essence of wisdom, which, in conformity with Suhrawardī’s etymology of both Eastern (Khosravani) and Western (Hermetic) branches of philosophy, is among the most fundamental principles of epistemology. In fact, in order to attain his own illuminationist purpose, which is to revive the pre-eternal substance through posing the concept of perfect nature, Suhrawardī has brought Khosravani and Hermetic philosophies together. Mullā Ṣadrā has also advocated him in this regard. Manuscript profile
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  6 - Concept of “Perennial Essence” and the Problem of “Revival or Establishment” in Suhrawardī’s Philosophy
  Ali Babaei
  The concept of “perennial essence” and its relationship with “Khosravani wisdom” in Illuminationist philosophy has prompted some researchers, such as Henry Corbin, to consider the purpose of Illuminationist philosophy and Suhrawardī’s “huge lifelong project” to be the r More

  The concept of “perennial essence” and its relationship with “Khosravani wisdom” in Illuminationist philosophy has prompted some researchers, such as Henry Corbin, to consider the purpose of Illuminationist philosophy and Suhrawardī’s “huge lifelong project” to be the revival of the philosophy of ancient Persia known as Khosravani wisdom. The present study reveals that several pieces of evidence in Illuminationist philosophy indicate that his goal was to establish a new school of philosophy rather than merely reviving a traditional one. An analysis of the concept of “perennial” and the related concepts and the attention to the newly emerged referents of perennial essence in various civilizations disclose the truth of Suhrawardī’s view. There are several differences between the concepts of “establishment” and “revival”; revival is a secondary, dependent, and imitative job, while establishment is an original, fundamental, and innovative endeavor which can also be followed by revival. Moreover, revival is consistent with historical changes, while pre-eternity is not a historical entity and is, rather, metahistorical, and any reception from perennial essence means receiving from a metahistorical source. Hence, discovering the relationship between ancient Persia and Suhrawardī’s Illuminationist philosophy could never be Suhrawardī’s main purpose. If he considers Khosravani wisdom to be a manifestation of the perennial essence, his view of Pythagorean philosophy and other schools of philosophy in some civilizations such as those of India and Babylonia should be the same. As a result, the advocates of the idea of the revival of Persian wisdom should repeat exactly the same views regarding the revival of Greek philosophy and other philosophical schools, while this is not the case. Therefore, Suhrawardī’s main purpose, unlike what some researchers claim, was to establish the Illuminationist philosophy and not to revive Khosravani wisdom. A careful scrutiny of the content of the theory of perennial essence and its concomitants nullifies any claim as to Suhrawardī’s being a Shu‘ūbi philosopher or the dominance of neo-Shu‘ūbism over his philosophical thoughts. Manuscript profile
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  7 - Avestan Sīmurgh, Ishraqi Sīmurgh (A Historical Etymology of Sīmurgh in Islamic-Iranian Philosophy)
  Hasan  Bolkhari Qehi
  Undoubtedly, Sīmurgh is one of the most important and attractive Ishraqi (Illuminationist) and gnostic symbols in the Islamic-Iranian civilization. The traces of this mythical bird can also be found in Avestan and Pahlavi texts as a near-stationed and heaven-residing bi More

  Undoubtedly, Sīmurgh is one of the most important and attractive Ishraqi (Illuminationist) and gnostic symbols in the Islamic-Iranian civilization. The traces of this mythical bird can also be found in Avestan and Pahlavi texts as a near-stationed and heaven-residing bird as well as the name of a prominent philosopher in Zoroastrian philosophy. The correct pronunciation of the world Sīmurgh is mərəyō saēnō in Avesta, sēnmurw and saeno muruk in Pahlavi language, and siræng in some Persian texts. Orientalists have translated this word into eagle and royal falcon in English. Perhaps the translation of Sīmurgh into eagle is rooted in translations’ focus on the word syena in Sanskrit, which means eagle in this language. Admittedly, this Sanskrit word is quite similar to the Avestan saena. Suhrawardī has talked about sīmurgh in different parts of his works such as in the treatises of Ṣafīr-i Sīmurgh, ‘Aql-i surkh, and Fī ḥālat al-ṭufullīyah. In ‘Aql-i surkh, following an innovative approach and method of interpretation, he discusses sīmurgh’s support of Rostam in his war with Esfandiar; in Ṣafīr-i sīmurgh he explains the virtues of sīmurgh in the Introduction to the treatise, and in the last treatise he elaborates on sīmurgh’s living in heaven. Suhrawardī’s method of discussion in these works reveals the place and holiness of this bird in his mind and language and, most importantly, the depth of his knowledge of ancient Iranian philosophy. In this paper, the author discusses the place of sīmurgh in Avestan and Pahlavi texts and Illuminationist philosophy. Manuscript profile
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  8 - Explaining the Concepts of Illuminationist Philosophy in Iranian Houses
  ‏Takameh Abbasnia Tehrani Khosro  Sahhaf Hassan  Rezaei Abolghasem  Qavam
  20.1001.1.20089589.1400.12.2.4.2
  Illuminationist philosophy is a discoursive-intuitive and light-centered school of philosophy. It has exercised a significant effect on Iranian art and architecture because of the Iranian-Islamic philosophical concepts that it employs. The present paper examines the ef More

  Illuminationist philosophy is a discoursive-intuitive and light-centered school of philosophy. It has exercised a significant effect on Iranian art and architecture because of the Iranian-Islamic philosophical concepts that it employs. The present paper examines the effects of Illuminationist views as a common language for the design of spiritual houses in the contemporary era. Hence, following a descriptive-analytic method, the authors initially explain some of the concepts and ideas in Suhrawardī’s Illuminationist philosophy and then examine their manifestation in the architecture of Iranian houses. Manuscript profile
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  9 - A Study of the Illuminationist Elements of Ibn Sīnā’s Works in the Realms of Method, Content, and Language
  Saeed  Rahimian
  20.1001.1.20089589.1400.12.1.6.2
  Although Ibn Sīnā was the master of Peripatetic philosophers, he also provided the bases for the development of Illuminationist philosophy. In terms of methodology and epistemology, through introducing Oriental wisdom, which, irrespective of the Greeks’ views, is his ow More

  Although Ibn Sīnā was the master of Peripatetic philosophers, he also provided the bases for the development of Illuminationist philosophy. In terms of methodology and epistemology, through introducing Oriental wisdom, which, irrespective of the Greeks’ views, is his own specific school of philosophy, and also through employing certain terminology, principles, and arguments which are associated with Illuminationism, he prepared the context for the revival and growth of Illuminationist philosophy by Suhrawardī. Ibn Sīnā’s critical mind and spiritual worthiness during his short life efficiently paved the way for the surge of Islamic philosophy and wisdom towards Illuminationist philosophy and then the Transcendent Philosophy in terms of methodology, content, and language. Suhrawardī mainly emphasizes the differences between his school of philosophy and that of Ibn Sīnā and his Peripatetic followers and introduces the beginning of his philosophy as the end of Peripatetic philosophy. However, we can confidently claim that his philosophy is to such a large extent influenced by Ibn Sīnā’s that one can consider Suhrawardī’s school to have been the outcome of the natural growth of Sinan philosophy in the course of time. Through highlighting gnostic and intellectually intuitive (or what was later called Illuminationist) elements in Ibn Sīnā’s available works, the present paper aims to demonstrate that Suhrawardī’s debt to Ibn Sīnā in all the three fields of methodology, content, and language is much greater than what is commonly assumed. Manuscript profile
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  10 - The Influence of Social Conditions on Mullā Ṣadrā’s Classification of Sciences
  Fatemeh Jamshidi Nasrin Serajipour
  20.1001.1.20089589.1400.12.3.5.5
  During the Safavid era, at the time of Mullā Ṣadrā and upon the rise of court-jurisprudents and pseudo-mysticism, true sciences such as jurisprudence, philosophy, and gnosis were in seclusion. Mullā Ṣadrā, as a religious scholar who was familiar with the philosophical a More

  During the Safavid era, at the time of Mullā Ṣadrā and upon the rise of court-jurisprudents and pseudo-mysticism, true sciences such as jurisprudence, philosophy, and gnosis were in seclusion. Mullā Ṣadrā, as a religious scholar who was familiar with the philosophical and gnostic ideas before him, tried to eliminate philosophical confusion from the scientific society and oppose this fallacious approach. Hence, he established a new philosophical system in order to bring all previous thoughts together in a consistent manner. In fact, he aimed to clarify the place of true knowledge and the ways of attaining it for society through establishing his own school of philosophy. The classification of sciences is one of the fundamental problems in any philosophical system. However, it is emphasized that each system of philosophy and the collection of its problems are influenced by the social conditions of their time. Similarly, Mullā Ṣadrā’s classification reflects his social concerns and has been developed in response to the social needs of his time and directing them towards true sciences. He has provided a specific classification of sciences in each of the three periods of his scientific life. He followed a peripatetic approach during the first period, an Illuminationist approach during the second one, and a transcendent approach during the third period, which reflected the height of his philosophical maturity. This paper aims to investigate Mullā Ṣadrā’s classification of sciences during each of the three periods of his scientific life and demonstrate how each was influenced by the social conditions of his time, and how each responded to the existing societal needs. Manuscript profile
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  11 - Historical Trends of Epistemological Issues in Pre-Sadrian Philosophical Tradition
  Ali Asghar  Jafari Valani Donya  Asadi Fakhrnejad
  20.1001.1.20089589.1401.13.2.4.9
  A study of epistemological developments in Islamic philosophy indicates that, although the issues in this philosophical trend have not been independently dealt with and have been generally discussed under epistemological issues, there are other problems in Islamic philo More

  A study of epistemological developments in Islamic philosophy indicates that, although the issues in this philosophical trend have not been independently dealt with and have been generally discussed under epistemological issues, there are other problems in Islamic philosophy that, if organized and classified, can open the door to philosophical approaches to ontological discussions. Perhaps, some of the fundamental ambiguities in epistemology can be clarified based on the outcomes of such discussions. For example, reference can be made to the effects of ontological views of Ibn Sīnā and Suhrawardī over their epistemology. The main question of this study is how an epistemological approach can be extracted from an investigation and analysis of a collection of problems and demonstrate it with reference to the standpoints and views of Islamic philosophers. In order to achieve this purpose, it must be said that an epistemology based on the sense, reason, and intuition can lead to the development of Islamic philosophers’ epistemology. The Peripatetic philosophy is mainly based on the intellect and reasoning, and the Illuminationist philosophy, although relying on reasoning, basically draws on unveiling and intuition in epistemological analyses. However, logic, as a gateway to epistemology, usually opens the discussion because almost all Islamic philosophers consider the theory of definition as a tool for unveiling the unknown (unveiling the general nature of affairs) relying on acquired knowledge and the five predicables (universals). Nevertheless, Suhrawardī and his followers, while relying on presential knowledge, believe that a genus-differentia definition is not justified and, by criticizing the theory of definition, try to discover the particular unknown through observation and illumination. Accordingly, the problem of vision and imagination in the common epistemological system is usually viewed as one of the sides of acquired knowledge. In contrast, it is explained under presential knowledge in Illuminationist philosophy. Manuscript profile