resume lecture of Fanaee

Resume of Dr M. Fanaei Eshkevari on MA Lecturing on Comparative Epistemology and Critical Approach to Islamic Philosophy

By Nano Warno (Salman Fadhlullah)

Comparative Epistemology

Philosophy is method of thinking, rational thinking, or we can say meta-philosophy. The first philosophy is branch of philosophy. The object of first philosophy is being qua being. Although being is encompasses everything but here is only common aspect of being or distinctive being, or common feature of being. The first philosophy or Metaphysics a branch of philosophy concerned with being, first principles, and often including aspects of cosmology and epistemology. Starting point of Theology as well as philosophy is reason. Reason as important as text.

Ilmu Hudhuri (knowledge by Presence)

Knowledge by presence, al-ilm al-huduri. However, that his doctrine of knowledge by presence is the corner stone of epistemological system. In the light of this doctrine, we have a new definition of knowledge, a novel interpretation of its division into al-ilm al-huduri and al- ilm al-husuli, and, finally, a systematic chain of various kinds of knowledge by presence (e.g., self-knowledge, God’s knowledge of His Essence and God’s knowledge of things).

Dr. Faneei not only fully explains the key concept of knowledge by presence, but also shows how this principle is so fundamental to epistemology core.

Ilmu huduri is self evident, and all of human being should start with ilmu hudhuri. Perception is husuli. Huduri no talk, and when we say it become husuli, like statement : I am exist is one of husuli category, cause its expressed trough language. Huduri knowledge is not a concept and not a statement. Huduri knowledge is like self awareness. As you grow in self awareness, you will better understand why you feel what you feel and why you behave as you behave.

Having clarity about who you are and what you want (and why you want it), empowers you to consciously and actively make those wants a reality. Otherwise, you’ll continue to get “caught up” in your own internal dramas and unknown beliefs, allowing unknown thought processes to determine your feelings and actions.

If you think about it, not understanding why you do what you do, and feel what you feel is like going through your life with a stranger’s mind. How do you make wise decisions and choices if you don’t understand why you want what you want? It’s a difficult and chaotic way to live never knowing what this stranger is going to do next. Lao Tzu said : Knowing others is wisdom, knowing yourself is Enlightenment.

Aql is one of function of mind or soul. Mind or nafs has two aspect : perception (idrak) and action (tahrik). Intellect (nous) : aql kully (universal intellect) is not limited, meanwhile reason : aql juz’I is limited one. According to Sayid Husen Nasr intellect include reason and mystic as same .

Knowledge affect by desire. Our behavior affect our knowledge. Faith and good action improve knowledge and vice versa.

We can not start from zero! If we wish know something, we has to join it in to our awareness. We aware about our self, this awareness is being itself or identical with our being human soul. There are different meaning between being happy and knowing happy, illness differ than paint- feeling. Self awareness is permanent.

Tashawur juzi (particular conception) divided into tree categories : 1) Hissi (sensory, perceptible by senses), it coming from our external senses. 2) Imaginary (memory/indirect/) likewise we are remember our father which not before us. 3) Aql (universal ones).

Senses alone only see particular not universal.

Question? Where is this universal concept coming from? Some said that universal concept just a name, no meaning. Only a name created by human being-this is view of Nominalis . Plato said that universal concept coming from ideas real (Alam Mutsul). We know because our soul live there. That is our origin, therefore this particulars is shadow of universals. This particular still remain universal. And according to Plato our soul exist before our body.

And Plato believe that those ideas more real than this particular ones, physic it is contrary to exactly to materialistic those hold that physic or matter is more real. Plato said that trough ilmu huduri we know ideas

Alam mutsul (ideas world) is lord of everything and the highest ideas is idea about God, ideas about good. God is source of reality. Ayan tsabith : domain of knowledge of God.

Aristotle have different point said that those ideas of universal is particular ones. Universal can not exist in reality except in mind. As said in Islamic philosophical principle that wujud will exist in individual in reality. According to Aristotle our mind is very active it can create this concept. Mind can abstract from individual by omitting differences.

What we know is what we remember we don’t do anything we just remember it and why we forget because we jailed in body. In this case knowing is the same as remembering/recollecting.

Universal concept; 1) First intelligible concept is concept derived from reality, has particular in reality, like concept of chair, table and so on. 2) Secondary philosophical concept is has not particular in like concept of causality. We can not show causality and all of philosophical concept, for example one, plurality, here abstract but not meaningless. First intelligible concept is scientific concept or concrete quality. In this regard it is critic for experimentalist and positivist. For positivist only believe to the concrete one and reject the universal concept. At this point will lead incompetence to understanding such terms of philosophical. This category is very useful for epistemology. Positivist wrong since only depend to sensible perspective, since senses can not help us to so much find knowledge.

In 12 category Kant that claimed that we born in prior knowledge is not accepted by Islamic teaching, for we are born in condition don’t know anything. There are 3 levels of knowledge process : 1) inner senses, self awareness (huduri), 2) our sensory perception. 3) After human being gain mental ability he can able to abstract knowledge; universal concept.

Plurarity methodology

We should to use plurality methodology such mystic (irfan), philosophical, wahyu and kasyf (vision) and also experimental in order to grasp comprehensive meaning.

The Truth

Truth or in Arabic language is shidq and haqiqat, but the fundamental question is what is truth? There are different criteria and definition. According to traditionalist truth is correspond to reality (muthabiq lil waqi’). Like if we say today raining and in fact or posits a relationship between thought or statement and things. But this criteria is very hard to verified to metaphysic statement like God is exist, because we can not perceive and God by experienced, also is the same for moral statement like honesty is good. So others said that metaphysic statement is useless, meaningless but not false, or like jealousy is bad, in other meaning what can not be verified is meaningless not meaningful.

1) Correspondent theory : This type of theory posits a relationship between thoughts or statements on the one hand, and things or objects on the other. It is a traditional model which goes back at least to some of the classical Greek philosophers such as Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle

2) Consistency theory : For coherence theories in general, truth requires a proper fit of elements within a whole system. Very often, though, coherence is taken to imply something more than simple logical consistency; often there is a demand that the propositions in a coherent system lend mutual inferential support to each other

3) Pragmatic theory, they hold in common that truth is verified and confirmed by the results of putting one’s concepts into practice.

Mind be able to know meaning cause, such mind can take a for a lion for example and as you know its reality or existent. This picture of lion depend on mind, if mind doesn’t concern or not aware this picture will be lost. In conclusion human being certainly have a knowledge about ilat wal malul (causality).

In other word human conscious on the causality because what we call as causality – the phenomenao of effect to be effected is also present in our mind. For example in creating a very simple image, such as the image of lion. So causality is something abstract but we aware it. It simply because it is huduri. The question why we concept causality as if we cannot grasp it but after we thing it in and advance way not as simply as self-awareness.

Critical Approach to Islamic Philosophy

Al-Ghazali’s relationship with philosophy is subtle and complicated.

1) the philosophers’ belief in the eternity of the world,

(2) their doctrine that God does not know particulars, and

(3) their denial of the resurrection of bodies.

The philosophers deny bodily resurrection, asserting that ‘the resurrection’ means in reality the separation of the soul from the body after death.

Some of theologian write a twenty item of inconsistency of philosopher and tree item of those make and tree of inconsistency will lead to kufr. First is relating to the eternity of world and really this claim again Islamic teaching. Which stated that was created by God . the simple for answer it, it is non contradictory to believe that world is qadim and at same time also created by God.

Believe in Resurrection (ma’ad jasmani)

Ibnu Sina believe in bodily resurrection but he can’t prove it. Ghazali believe at soul and body resurrection meanwhile philosopher only believe in soul only. Ibnu Sina himself stated that absolutely believe in bodily resurrection but still can’t prove it. At this point Ghazali launch an attact to Ibnu Sina. And latter Mulla Sadra success to prove logically bodily resurrection.

Second, the philosophers deny God’s knowledge of particulars or confine it to his self-knowledge, since they suppose that to connect God’s knowledge with particulars means a change and plurality in God’s essence. Al-Ghazali denies this. If God has complete knowledge of a person from birth to death, there will be no change in God’s eternal knowledge, even though the person’s life changes from moment to moment.

This accusing from Ghazali to the philosopher who said that God only know the tsabit (permanent) one, not the changes ones.

Ibn Taymiya and philosopher

Ibn Taymiya placed primary importance on revelation as the only reliable source of knowledge about God and about a person’s religious duties towards him. The human intellect (‘aql) and its powers of reason must be subservient to revelation. According to Ibn Taymiyya, the only proper use of ‘aql was to understand Islam in the way the Prophet and his companions did, and then to defend it against deviant sects

Ibnu Taymiya take radical step than Gazali. Ibnu Taymiyah not only reject philosophy but also logic (mantiq). He make a historical statement : man tamantaqa tazandaqa. means Who ever use logic will be zindiq (atheist).