Archives for Philosophy

Mortification and Monasticism

Mortification and Monasticism
by | November 15, 2021 | No Comments

(An excerpt from Murtada Mutahhari, THE ISSUE OF HIJAB, pp. 23-33. Paperback available HERE.) Causes of Man’s Inclination toward Monasticism The connection of the issue of covering with the philosophy of mortification and monasticism is thus explained that the woman is the greatest source of man’s pleasure and delight, and if a man and a woman interact and are attracted to each other, they will consciously or unconsciously seek for such pleasure and delight. In order to keep the atmosphere
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Fiṭrah and Ibn Athīr’s View

Fiṭrah and Ibn Athīr’s View
by | September 15, 2020 | No Comments

The word fiṭrah                                        Now, we shall begin with the first issue. What kind of word is the word fiṭrah as it appears in the Qur’an? فِطْرَةَ اللَّهِ الَّتِي فَطَرَ النَّاسَ عَلَيْهَا لاَ تَبْدِيلَ لِخَلْقِ اللَّهِ …the origination of Allah according to which He originated mankind. (30:30)
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Transmigration and Resurrection

Transmigration and Resurrection
by | June 21, 2020 | 2 Comments

The Literal and Technical Meanings of Tanāsukh (Transmigration) Tanāsukh is derived from the root word n-s-kh and its literal function is associated with two characteristics: Change and transfer, and Succession of two things, one succeeding another.[1] As such, the word naskh in the parlance of jurisprudence (fiqh) and its principles (uṣūl al-fiqh) means a ruling (ḥukm) in the sharī‘ah which is abrogated by another ruling, and each of these two characteristics of the literal meaning exist in it. In the
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Assessment of Hume’s Objections to the Argument of Design

Assessment of Hume’s Objections to the Argument of Design
by | June 7, 2020 | 2 Comments

David Hume (1711-1776) of Scotland was one of the empiricist and skeptic philosophers of the West. He opposed many metaphysical foundations such that he had also disputed the proofs of the existence of God. In view of the fact that during his time the most popular proof ever presented for the existence of God in the Western world was the argument of design or teleological argument, he had also posed a serious challenge to it, raising some objections to it.
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The Natural and the Moral Action

The Natural and the Moral Action
by | February 15, 2020 | No Comments

Now, in general, what is akhlāq or, in the expression of the Noble Messenger, akhlāq mukarramatī? From where should we begin? We have said that we shall begin from the admitted opinions and indisputable facts. For the meanwhile, we are not concerned with doubtful issues which one school of thought may regard as ‘moral’ while another school of thought may not regard the same as ‘moral’. What is certain is that most of the human actions are natural actions and
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Definitions of Religion Based on Metaphysical Foundation

Definitions of Religion Based on Metaphysical Foundation
by | October 15, 2019 | No Comments

Some of the philosophers of religion regard as religion any school of thought which has the following three principal elements of belief: There is a world beyond the world of tangibles; The world of nature has a purpose; and The world of being has a moral system. The third element can be analyzed in two ways. One way is that the world of being is such that it perceives what is morally good or evil. The other way is that the
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