Philosophy in the Islamic World

The latest in the series based on the popular History of Philosophy podcast, this volume presents the first full history of philosophy in the Islamic world for a broad readership. It takes an approach unprecedented among introductions to this subject, by providing full coverage of Jewish and Christian thinkers as well as Muslims, and by taking the story of philosophy from its beginnings in the world of early Islam all the way through to the twentieth century. Major
figures like Avicenna, Averroes, and Maimonides are covered in great detail, but the book also looks at less familiar thinkers, including women philosophers. Attention is also given to the philosophical relevance of Islamic theology (kalam) and mysticism-the Sufi tradition within Islam, and Kabbalah
among Jews-and to science, with chapters on disciplines like optics and astronomy. The book is divided into three sections, with the first looking at the first blossoming of Islamic theology and responses to the Greek philosophical tradition in the world of Arabic learning. This 'formative period' culminates with the work of Avicenna, the pivotal figure to whom most later thinkers feel they must respond. The second part of the book discusses philosophy in Muslim Spain (Andalusia), where Jewish
philosophers come to the fore, though this is also the setting for such thinkers as Averroes and Ibn Arabi. Finally, a third section looks in unusual detail at later developments, touching on philosophy in the Ottoman, Mughal, and Safavid empires and showing how thinkers in the nineteenth to the
twentieth century were still concerned to respond to the ideas that had animated philosophy in the Islamic world for centuries, while also responding to political and intellectual challenges from the European colonial powers.

List of contents

• Part I: The Formative Period


• 1: The Straight Path: Philosophy and Islam


• 2: All for One: The Mu'tazilites


• 3: Founded in Translation: From Greek to Syriac to Arabic


• 4: Philosopher of the Arabs: al-Kind¿


• 5: The Chosen Ones: Philosophy and Judaism


• 6: Reasoned Belief: Saadia Gaon


• 7: High Five: al-R¿z¿


• 8: Aristotelian Society: the Baghdad School


• 9: The Second Master: al-F¿r¿b¿


• 10: State of Mind: al-F¿r¿b¿ on Religion and Politics


• 11: Eye of the Beholder: Theories of Vision


• 12: Strings Attached: Music and Philosophy


• 13: Balancing Acts: Arabic Ethical Literature


• 14: Undercover Brothers: Philosophy in the Buyid Age


• 15: God Willing: the Ash'arites


• 16: The Self-Made Man: Avicenna's Life and Works


• 17: By the Time I Get to Phoenix: Avicenna on Existence


• 18: By All Means Necessary: Avicenna on God


• 19: Into Thin Air: Avicenna on the Soul


• 20: Special Delivery: al-Ghaz¿l¿


• 21: Miracle Worker: al-Ghaz¿l¿ against the Philosophers


• Part II: Andalusia


• 22: Philosophy's Reign in Spain: Andalusia


• 23: Laying Down the Law: Ibn ¿azm and Islamic Legal Theory


• 24: Fantasy Island: Ibn B¿jja and Ibn Tufayl


• 25: Back to Basics: Averroes on Reason and Religion


• 26: Single Minded: Averroes on the Intellect


• 27: A Matter of Taste: Ibn 'Arab¿ and Mysticism


• 28: Team Spirit: Ibn Khald¿n


• 29: Matter over Mind: Ibn Gabirol


• 30: Choosing My Religion: Judah Hallevi


• 31: Born Under a Bad Sign: Freedom and Astrology in Jewish Philosophy


• 32: With All Your Heart: Ethics and Judaism


• 33: The Great Eagle: Maimonides


• 34: He Moves in Mysterious Ways: Maimonides on Eternity


• 35: Burnt Offerings: the Maimonides Controversy


• 36: Man and Superman: Gersonides and the Jewish Reception of Averroes


• 37: Neither the Time nor the Place: ¿asdai Crescas


• 38: When Bad Things Happen to Good People: Suffering in Jewish Philosophy


• 39: Chariot of Fire: Kabbalah


• 40: A Matter of Principles: Joseph Albo and Isaac Abravanel


• Part III: The Later Traditions


• 41: Golden Ages: The Later Traditions


• 42: All Things Considered: Ab¿ l-Barak¿t al-Baghd¿d¿


• 43: For the Sake of Argument: Fakhr al-D¿n al-R¿z¿


• 44: Let There Be Light: Suhraward¿


• 45: Bright Ideas: Illuminationism


• 46: A Man for All Seasons: Nä¿r al-D¿n al-¿¿s¿


• 47: To Be or Not to Be: Debating Avicenna's Metaphysics


• 48: Eyes Wide Shut: al-R¿m¿ and Philosophical Sufism


• 49: Proof Positive: The Logical Tradition


• 50: By the Book: Ibn Taymiyya


• 51: Aftermath: Philosophy and Science in the Mongol Age


• 52: Family Feud: Philosophy at Sh¿r¿z


• 53: Follow the Leader: Philosophy under the Safavids


• 54: To Be, Continued: Mull¿ ¿adr¿ on Existence


• 55: Return to Sender: Mull¿ ¿adr¿ on Motion and Knowledge


• 56: Subcontinental Drift: Philosophy in Islamic India


• 57: Turkish Delights: Philosophy under the Ottomans


• 58: Blind Alley: Taql¿d, Sufism, and Philosophy


• 59: The Young Ones: Encounters with European Thought


• 60: The Stronger Sex: Women Scholars in the Islamic World


• 61: All for One and One for All: Mu¿ammad 'Abduh and Mu¿ammad Iqb¿l


• 62: Iran So Far: The Heirs of Mull¿ ¿adr¿

About the author

Peter Adamson took his doctorate from the University of Notre Dame and first worked at King's College London. In 2012 he moved to the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, where he is Professor of Late Ancient and Arabic Philosophy. He has published widely in ancient and medieval philosophy, especially on Neoplatonism and on philosophy in the Islamic world.

Summary

Peter Adamson presents the first full history of philosophy in the Islamic world for a broad readership. He traces its development from early Islam to the 20th century, from Spain to Persia. He introduces Jewish and Christian thinkers as well as Muslim; theology, mysticism, and the history of science all feature here in this rich and lively story.

Additional text

bite-sized, well-indexed chapters on key philosophers, movements, and developments which took place in the Islamic world.

Report

This is a well-written and interesting work . . . the author deserves credit for engaging with such a complex subject and making it accessible to the public. Muhammad Khan, The Muslim News

Product details

• Authors: Peter Adamson, Peter (Professor of Late Ancient and Arabic Philosophy Adamson
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 31.05.2018
• EAN: 9780198818618
• ISBN: 978-0-19-881861-8
• No. of pages: 544
• Series: A History of Philosophy; A History of Philosophy
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > Religion/theology; Non-fiction book > Philosophy, religion > Miscellaneous