As this forum is about sharing and exchanging views, ideas and opinions on various issues, I would like to greet you NAVROZ MUBARAK with an invitation to reflect upon the importance of relevant knowledge in our Tariqah. The following are my humble thoughts on this important issue facing us. Please share your thoughts on this.
CONCEPT OF KNOWLEDGE
Mowlana Hazar Imam on numerous occasions both within the Jamat and without has expressed concern about the volume of information that we are exposed to and it's quality and relevance. In the following extract from the speech He made in Cape Town, South Africa at the Commonwealth Press Union Conference on October 17, 1996, he said:
We live in a time when the quantity of information has exploded in incalculable ways. Data flows in greater volumes, at higher speeds, over greater distances to larger audiences than ever before. And yet the result has not been greater understanding or enlightenment. In fact, it has often been just the reverse.
One is reminded of T S Eliot's haunting question: Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge? Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?
Responding to these concerns, in His Speech at the Opening Session of Word of God, Art of Man: The Quran and its Creative Expressions; at the Ismaili Center London, Mowlana HazarImam elaborates on the concept of knowledge and it's purpose when talking about Sayyedna Nasir Khusraw as:
"Poetising the Prophets teaching, Nasir Khusraw, the 11th century Iranian poet-philosopher, also extols the virtue of knowledge. For him, true jihad is the war that must be waged against the perpetrators of bigotry, through spreading knowledge that dispels the darkness of ignorance and nourishes the seed of peace that is innately embedded in the human soul".
From the above statement, we can see that the purpose of knowledge is two fold. First to 'dispel darkness of ignorance' and secondly, to 'nourish the seed of peace that is innately embedded in the human soul'. When disseminating knowledge through our institutions in the form of waezes, lectures, seminars or write-ups, we must ask ourselves whether we are fulfilling the purpose of knowledge above. The discussion on the concept of knowledge is not a new idea. It has been a perennial issue and has been discussed over and over by great thinkers since time immemorial. Our Ismaili thinkers have also been engaged in this endeavour. For example, Hamiduddin Kirmani who was an important dai during the Fatimid period composed an important work 'Rahat-al-Aqal' which conveys a sense of 'Peace of mind' that is derived from knowledge. For more information on this important work please refer to the following address: http://www.iis.ac.uk/library_iis/galler ... allery.htm .
This concept needs re-examination or re-evaluation in light of the sheer volume of information that we encounter. To raise awareness on this issue, I will attempt to give a classification of knowledge that would satisfy the epistemology alluded to above. I realise that this is a vast field and what I will be proposing is perhaps a drop in the ocean. The intent is not to articulate or propound this epistemology in a greater detail, but rather to point to good and relevant knowledge as opposed to mere information especially within the context of our Tariqah. The following are my thoughts on what is relevant knowledge.
1. It should address the fundamental questions about our existence such as: What is the purpose of life? Who is the creator? What is the purpose behind creation? What are space, time and causation, the criteria by which we perceive reality? Is there a hereafter? If so, what is its purpose? What are the heavens?
2. It should include a coherent system of beliefs which are internally consistent and accord with reason in response to the existential questions alluded to above. This category would include theology and religious sciences, which are based on the premise that Allah is the creator. Our concepts of Tawheed, Adl, Imamat, Nabuwaah, Qiyama, and other related concepts would be included in this category as well as the correct interpretation of history. Knowledge on these matters that is derived from sources that do not accord with our interpretation of faith or are not based on theistic premises at all should be excluded generally. An example of an exclusion would be a translation of Holy Quran based on Sunni interpretation of faith.
3. It should provide guidance and wisdom to live a life consistent with the purpose defined above. For the sake of peace and assurance, this should be based on trusted authority such as the Imam of the time, great thinkers, mystics etc. Knowledge sources that would fall under this category would include the firmans, speeches and interviews of HazarImam, poetry including ginans and qasidas, scriptures and general ethics which will include the notions of sharia within the context of our Tariqah.
4.It should reinforce the correct responses to the existential questions alluded above and therefore provide a constant source of solace, comfort and strength in adversity as well as providing a renewed sense of identity. This criteria would include work of art i.e. poetry, painting, calligraphy and architecture and correct interpretation of our traditions - rites and ceremonies being the backbone. Autobiographies of important personalities can provide roles models of correct personification of values and principles of life and thereby serve as sources of inspiration.
5.It should promote the understanding of the world around us. This would include all aspects of science, mathematics and logic, geography, history, sociology, information technology, etc. It is not possible to know everything about our external circumstances. However, Hazar Imam by virtue of his responsibilities has involved himself in all aspects involving the material conditions of His murids. Through his institutions he has dealt with a wide spectrum of issues ranging from development and business to matters of faith. Therefore, from the material point of view, he has acquired a great deal of experience, wisdom and knowledge and has expressed his views on many issues. In this regard, his speeches and interviews give useful authoritative insights into present conditions and indeed should serve as basis to discuss many of the issues that we face in our daily lives be they of material or spiritual nature.
6. It should promote the understanding of the internal world. This would include psychology and the science of consciousness, which provide the basis for understanding esotericism or sufism. The science of revelation and the relationship between matter and spirit would fall under this category. In this regard, the late Prince Sadruddin in one of his speeches, which can be referenced at: http://ismaili.net/sadru/960926.html stated:
And yet, is it not self-evident that, beyond the mere symbolic dimension, organized religion, together with science, has an enormous potential to spark an alternate or deeper consciousness?
7.It should promote and serve the general interest of peace and pluralism. It should recognise that there are different interpretations of life based on different responses to the existential issues alluded to above and different linguistic and cultural contexts. Yet, there are common values and shared principles that are reinforced when encounters happen between different faiths or cultures. In this regard knowledge that encourages hatred and obscurantism should be avoided.
Finally, there should be an appropriate ethos for knowledge. Its sources must be verified scrupulously for veracity and accuracy. It should also be conducted within the ethical framework, otherwise it can lead to intellectual vanity and greed. Good knowledge being the nourishment of the seed of peace in individual soul is not alien to it. A good indication of it is that there is an immediate response from the soul in the form of joy and ecstasy. Pir Sadardeen expresses this in the following verse of the Ginan "Ginan Bolore Nit Noore Bhariyaa" as:
ejee geenaan bolo re neet noore bhariyaa evo haidde tamaare harakh na maye ji.........................1
meaning: O momins! Recite (sing) Ginans which are full
of divine knowledge. Knowledge, so that your hearts will have boundless joy. ...1
I will end this post with a saying of Holy Prophet Muhammad, which summarises the purpose and importance of knowledge in Islam.
ACQUIRE KNOWLEDGE
It enabled its possessor to distinguish right from wrong;
It lighteth the way to heaven;
It is our friend in the desert, our society in solitude, and our companion when friendless;
It guideth us to happiness;
It sustaineth us in misery;
It is an ornament amongst friends, and armour against enemies.
Concept of Knowledge Revisited
Just wanted to add some sayings by Iman Ali (A.S) <BR><BR>1.That knowledge which remains o­nly o­n your tongue is very superficial. The intrinsic value of knowledge is that you act upon it. <BR><BR>2. There are many educated people who have ruined their future o­n account of their ignorance of religion. Their knowledge did not prove of any avail to them.
More thoughts on knowledge
Wonder, rather than doubt, is the root of knowledge.
- Heschel, "Man Is Not Alone"
Man is wise only while in search of wisdom; when he imagines he has attained it, he is a fool.
- Ibn Gabirol, "Mibhar HaPeninim"
It is but few who hear about the Self
Fewer still dedicate their lives to its
Realization. Wonderful is the one
Who speaks about the Self; rare are they
Who make it the supreme goal of their lives.
-Katha Upanishad
Judge the nature of your listeners and speak accordingly.
There is nothing more virtuous or valuable than this.
-Tirukkural 65:644
Education is when you read the fine print. Experience is what you get if you dont.
-Pete Seeger
He who, for the sake of learning, lowers himself by exposing his ignorance, will ultimately be elevated.
- Ben Azzai, Talmud: Berakot, 63b
Better than a thousand useless words is one word that gives peace.
-Buddha Sayings of the Buddha: Reflections
Nothing in life is to be feared. It is only to be understood.
-Marie Curie
I know that the more I humble myself to others, the broader my understanding of God has actually become.
-Francis Frangipane
In the case of good books, the point is not to see how many of them you can get through, but how many can get through to you.
-Mortimer J. Adler
To speak so listeners long to hear more and to listen
So others' meaning is grasped are the ideals of the impeccably great.
-Tirukkural 65:646
Excerpted
- Heschel, "Man Is Not Alone"
Man is wise only while in search of wisdom; when he imagines he has attained it, he is a fool.
- Ibn Gabirol, "Mibhar HaPeninim"
It is but few who hear about the Self
Fewer still dedicate their lives to its
Realization. Wonderful is the one
Who speaks about the Self; rare are they
Who make it the supreme goal of their lives.
-Katha Upanishad
Judge the nature of your listeners and speak accordingly.
There is nothing more virtuous or valuable than this.
-Tirukkural 65:644
Education is when you read the fine print. Experience is what you get if you dont.
-Pete Seeger
He who, for the sake of learning, lowers himself by exposing his ignorance, will ultimately be elevated.
- Ben Azzai, Talmud: Berakot, 63b
Better than a thousand useless words is one word that gives peace.
-Buddha Sayings of the Buddha: Reflections
Nothing in life is to be feared. It is only to be understood.
-Marie Curie
I know that the more I humble myself to others, the broader my understanding of God has actually become.
-Francis Frangipane
In the case of good books, the point is not to see how many of them you can get through, but how many can get through to you.
-Mortimer J. Adler
To speak so listeners long to hear more and to listen
So others' meaning is grasped are the ideals of the impeccably great.
-Tirukkural 65:646
Excerpted
More quotes on knowledge
The spiritual perfection of man consists in his becoming an intelligent being--one who knows all that he is capable of learning.
- Maimonides
- Maimonides
We fail in our duty to study God's Word not so much because it is difficult to understand, not so much because it is dull and boring, but because it is work. Our problem is not a lack of intelligence or a lack of passion. Our problem is that we are lazy.
-R.C. Sproul
***
Do not say, "When I have leisure, I will study." Perhaps you will have no leisure.
- Pirkei Avot 2:4
***
A common opinion of philosophers is that higher angels understand things with fewer, more far-reaching ideas than lower angels, who need many more less inclusive ideas to comprehend.
- John Ronner,
"Know Your Angels"
-R.C. Sproul
***
Do not say, "When I have leisure, I will study." Perhaps you will have no leisure.
- Pirkei Avot 2:4
***
A common opinion of philosophers is that higher angels understand things with fewer, more far-reaching ideas than lower angels, who need many more less inclusive ideas to comprehend.
- John Ronner,
"Know Your Angels"
Those who argue and discuss without understanding the truth are lost amid all the forms of relative knowledge, running about here and there and trying to justify their view of the substance of ego.
If you realize the self in your inmost consciousness, it will appear in its purity. This is the womb of wonder, which is not the realm of those who live only by reason.
Pure in its own nature and free from the categories of finite and infinite, Universal Mind is the undefiled wonder, which is wrongly apprehended by many.
-Lankavatara Sutra
From "Buddha Speaks," edited by Anne Bancroft, 2000
If you realize the self in your inmost consciousness, it will appear in its purity. This is the womb of wonder, which is not the realm of those who live only by reason.
Pure in its own nature and free from the categories of finite and infinite, Universal Mind is the undefiled wonder, which is wrongly apprehended by many.
-Lankavatara Sutra
From "Buddha Speaks," edited by Anne Bancroft, 2000
thanks for the link
Thanks for the link in your first post. I love to read anything about the Fatimid Dynasty.
The Importance of Studying Ismailism
By Professor W. Ivanow
Should we study Ismailism, its history, its evolution, its influence upon Islamic civilization? Different answers may be received, but there are two varieties of these which will predominate.
The conservative people say: our fathers and grandfathers carried on their business, and were quite happy without special inquiries into what our ancestors did or said. Why should we waste our time and labor on all such studies which do not promise to bring us any practical advantage?
The "modernist" would say: all these old books and ideas were quite good, perhaps, at their own time when conditions in the world were quite different. Now they have become quite useless. What matters is prosperity, the rest is of secondary importance.
Both these trends, which exist not only amongst the Ismailis but also among the followers of other religions, are fundamentally wrong. They are based on personal and selfish standpoint, centered around one's own advantages, and are hopelessly shortsighted.
Man alone is nothing, that is why there are communities, organizations, nations, etc. The Ismaili community has attained prosperity only because they were an organized body guided by their Imams. This helped them to survive the terrible catastrophes which overtook them in the course of history.
Such organization, with such long tradition, is a priceless heritage, and it would be simply stupid to underestimate it, or speak about it slightingly. It is the duty of every intelligent member to guard it and to contribute to its strengthening.
The world as it is at present, with the untold hardships of economical and political strain, demands desperate struggle for survival. This can be achieved only by arming oneself with education. Specialization, intellectual superiority over one's competitors. The main stream of the world's progress is technical advancement. Various religions which could withstand centuries of strain, now become finally powerless to exercise any influence upon the life of the society, nation, humanity. If they are still preserving some meaning, it is only in the backward strata of the nation, where religion is almost indistinguishable from bare superstition.
But, as it happens in many religions, education not only adds to qualifications but also greatly broadens the outlook of the individual. Questions inevitably arise in the minds of young educated men and women, about which their religious literature is unable to answer. This inevitably leads to its greater and greater depreciation, so that in the eyes of some it may become something quite useless and superfluous. Thus the situation automatically becomes created—that exactly those better educated and therefore useful members, become the less steady in the community, and often simply abandon it.
This development is quite well-known and causes great anxiety to the responsible and thoughtful leaders. But in reality there is no sound reason that such an undesirable development should not be combated and even prevented, at least from taking the form of a regular process. And it seems that the best means would be exactly the proper, serious, honest study of Ismailism, its history and philosophy.
Ismailism, as it developed a thousand years ago was not only a religion, i.e., a system of organized inner life of an individual, but also an ideology, a system of social organization. Its great ideal was surprisingly modern: equality in what is now called a classless society, based on a thorough and effective system of cooperation. Stagnation which is inseparable from many great religions which preach "eternity" and unchangeability of their eternal principles, works as a powerful brake on every form of advance in all aspects of life. The priceless advantage of the Ismaili system is its doctrine of Imamat and ta'wil. Both these together imply an ample means of what resembles automatic regulation. The doctrine of the obligatoriness of the ta'wil authorized by the Imam removes the effect of obsolescing, of lagging behind the progressing life. In many other religions every "innovation", however legitimate, is bound to be the source of fierce accusations of "altering the eternal law given by God"; this leads to dissensions, fights, hereticism, etc. In Ismaillsm, if properly used,the system of authorized ta'wil explains the application of the basic religious principles to the everchanging forms of life in the society, and guides the community in its attitude to all that is of advantage for its progress.
But the proper use of the organized functioning of the principle of ta'wil demands a broad religious education, of one being conscious of the life of his community in the course of its whole history. Only this may show that various changes which the Imam introduced through ta'wil are not incidental and haphazard, but form a part of a long tradition.
A proper guidance of the community depends on the Imam, but the Imam has to have suitable, reliable, responsible, dependable and intelligent assistants who could convey the Imam's will and guidance to the community, who may assist it to apply the principle of ta'wil as authorized by the Imam. This demands well-trained and well-educated people. And these may be of great help in seeing that serious questions of educated members of the community may receive intelligent and honest answers, not merely consisting of sophisms and manipulations or misinterpretation of verses of the Quran or hadiths.
Ismaili philosophy did not develop in a vacuum—the student must also know the historical background of its evolution. Only this may give its study firm and solid foundation which would make it a reality, not a series of theorizings. Ismailism must be studied as a whole as regards time and also as regards its different schools and divisions.
-------------------------------------------
NOTE FROM ADMIN - This needs an original reference of the book it was published in... not a pointer to the site that has copied from another site. In any case, outside pointers are not allowed on this forum except in rare case [one being pointers to akdn or iis web site, these are allowed].
By Professor W. Ivanow
Should we study Ismailism, its history, its evolution, its influence upon Islamic civilization? Different answers may be received, but there are two varieties of these which will predominate.
The conservative people say: our fathers and grandfathers carried on their business, and were quite happy without special inquiries into what our ancestors did or said. Why should we waste our time and labor on all such studies which do not promise to bring us any practical advantage?
The "modernist" would say: all these old books and ideas were quite good, perhaps, at their own time when conditions in the world were quite different. Now they have become quite useless. What matters is prosperity, the rest is of secondary importance.
Both these trends, which exist not only amongst the Ismailis but also among the followers of other religions, are fundamentally wrong. They are based on personal and selfish standpoint, centered around one's own advantages, and are hopelessly shortsighted.
Man alone is nothing, that is why there are communities, organizations, nations, etc. The Ismaili community has attained prosperity only because they were an organized body guided by their Imams. This helped them to survive the terrible catastrophes which overtook them in the course of history.
Such organization, with such long tradition, is a priceless heritage, and it would be simply stupid to underestimate it, or speak about it slightingly. It is the duty of every intelligent member to guard it and to contribute to its strengthening.
The world as it is at present, with the untold hardships of economical and political strain, demands desperate struggle for survival. This can be achieved only by arming oneself with education. Specialization, intellectual superiority over one's competitors. The main stream of the world's progress is technical advancement. Various religions which could withstand centuries of strain, now become finally powerless to exercise any influence upon the life of the society, nation, humanity. If they are still preserving some meaning, it is only in the backward strata of the nation, where religion is almost indistinguishable from bare superstition.
But, as it happens in many religions, education not only adds to qualifications but also greatly broadens the outlook of the individual. Questions inevitably arise in the minds of young educated men and women, about which their religious literature is unable to answer. This inevitably leads to its greater and greater depreciation, so that in the eyes of some it may become something quite useless and superfluous. Thus the situation automatically becomes created—that exactly those better educated and therefore useful members, become the less steady in the community, and often simply abandon it.
This development is quite well-known and causes great anxiety to the responsible and thoughtful leaders. But in reality there is no sound reason that such an undesirable development should not be combated and even prevented, at least from taking the form of a regular process. And it seems that the best means would be exactly the proper, serious, honest study of Ismailism, its history and philosophy.
Ismailism, as it developed a thousand years ago was not only a religion, i.e., a system of organized inner life of an individual, but also an ideology, a system of social organization. Its great ideal was surprisingly modern: equality in what is now called a classless society, based on a thorough and effective system of cooperation. Stagnation which is inseparable from many great religions which preach "eternity" and unchangeability of their eternal principles, works as a powerful brake on every form of advance in all aspects of life. The priceless advantage of the Ismaili system is its doctrine of Imamat and ta'wil. Both these together imply an ample means of what resembles automatic regulation. The doctrine of the obligatoriness of the ta'wil authorized by the Imam removes the effect of obsolescing, of lagging behind the progressing life. In many other religions every "innovation", however legitimate, is bound to be the source of fierce accusations of "altering the eternal law given by God"; this leads to dissensions, fights, hereticism, etc. In Ismaillsm, if properly used,the system of authorized ta'wil explains the application of the basic religious principles to the everchanging forms of life in the society, and guides the community in its attitude to all that is of advantage for its progress.
But the proper use of the organized functioning of the principle of ta'wil demands a broad religious education, of one being conscious of the life of his community in the course of its whole history. Only this may show that various changes which the Imam introduced through ta'wil are not incidental and haphazard, but form a part of a long tradition.
A proper guidance of the community depends on the Imam, but the Imam has to have suitable, reliable, responsible, dependable and intelligent assistants who could convey the Imam's will and guidance to the community, who may assist it to apply the principle of ta'wil as authorized by the Imam. This demands well-trained and well-educated people. And these may be of great help in seeing that serious questions of educated members of the community may receive intelligent and honest answers, not merely consisting of sophisms and manipulations or misinterpretation of verses of the Quran or hadiths.
Ismaili philosophy did not develop in a vacuum—the student must also know the historical background of its evolution. Only this may give its study firm and solid foundation which would make it a reality, not a series of theorizings. Ismailism must be studied as a whole as regards time and also as regards its different schools and divisions.
-------------------------------------------
NOTE FROM ADMIN - This needs an original reference of the book it was published in... not a pointer to the site that has copied from another site. In any case, outside pointers are not allowed on this forum except in rare case [one being pointers to akdn or iis web site, these are allowed].
Admin,kmaherali wrote:[-------------------------------------------
NOTE FROM ADMIN - This needs an original reference of the book it was published in... not a pointer to the site that has copied from another site. In any case, outside pointers are not allowed on this forum except in rare case [one being pointers to akdn or iis web site, these are allowed].
You seem to have overlooked a link to a hostile site posted by unnalhaq under Doctrines -> Religion of Hazir Imam's children???, and have deleted a link to a friendly site. What kind of attitude and absurdity is this?
Last edited by kmaherali on Sat Aug 20, 2005 12:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.
[quote="curious2"][quote="sofiya"][quote="curious2"]Ego is the hardest thing to manage.
- me (if no one else has a patent on this quote).
[/quote]
Sure it is the hardest thing for YOU! I can clearly see that!!!!!!!!![/quote]
Lol...lol...lol...
funny, funny, funny Sofia. I love you too dear. 
[/quote]
GET A LIFE Curious2!
And learn to spell my name correctly in future.
Little things please little minds.
- me (if no one else has a patent on this quote).
[/quote]Sure it is the hardest thing for YOU! I can clearly see that!!!!!!!!![/quote]
Lol...lol...lol...
funny, funny, funny Sofia. I love you too dear. [/quote]GET A LIFE Curious2!
And learn to spell my name correctly in future.
Little things please little minds.
Hey thanks for reminding, you're not sofia but sofiya....oh what a difference one character makes.sofiya wrote:
GET A LIFE Curious2!
And learn to spell my name correctly in future.
Little things please little minds.
BTW, do you want me to teach you how to correctly post a post? See how my post looks like compared to yours? At least I can return a favor this way. What say you, Sofiya? (see, I even capitalized your first letter, nice eh).
Eventually we will get to love.
--me (just made one up).
curious2 wrote:Hey thanks for reminding, you're not sofia but sofiya....oh what a difference one character makes.sofiya wrote:
GET A LIFE Curious2!
And learn to spell my name correctly in future.
Little things please little minds.
BTW, do you want me to teach you how to correctly post a post? See how my post looks like compared to yours? At least I can return a favor this way. What say you, Sofiya? (see, I even capitalized your first letter, nice eh).
Eventually we will get to love.
--me (just made one up).
Thanks for your offer but I am quite capable of doing things by myself.
Little things please little minds.
http://www.iis.ac.uk/learning/life_long ... pments.htm
Ismaili Studies: Background and Modern Developments
Farhad Daftary
The Origins of the Myths
In the course of their long and complex history, dating to the formative period of Islam, the Ismailis have often been accused of various heretical teachings and practices and a multitude of myths and misconceptions have circulated about them. This is mainly because the Ismailis were, until the middle of the twentieth century, studied and evaluated almost exclusively on the basis of the evidence collected or fabricated by their enemies. As a Shi‘i community that upheld the right of the ‘Alid imams to the caliphate, the Ismailis, from early on, aroused the hostility of the Sunni Abbasids. With the foundation of the Fatimid state in 909 CE, the Ismailis posed a challenge to the established order and, thereupon, the Abbasid caliphs and the Sunni ulama launched what amounted to an official anti-Ismaili propaganda campaign. The overall objective of this systematic and prolonged campaign was to discredit the entire Ismaili movement from its origins so that the Ismailis could be readily condemned as malahida, heretics or deviators from the true religious path. Anti-Ismaili writings provided a major source of information for Sunni scholars and heresiographers, such as al-Baghdadi (d. 1037), who produced another important category of writing against the Ismailis.
The Black Legend
A number of polemicists, starting with Ibn Rizam in the first half of the 10th century, fabricated travesties in which they attributed a variety of shocking beliefs and practices to the Ismailis. These forgeries circulated as genuine Ismaili writing and were used as source materials by subsequent generations. By spreading a variety of defamations and even forged accounts, the anti-Ismaili authors, in fact, produced a “black legend” in the course of the 10th century. Ismailism was now erroneously depicted as the arch-heresy of Islam, carefully designed by some non-‘Alid impostors, or possibly even a Jewish magician disguised as a Muslim, aiming at destroying Islam from within. By the 11th century, this elaborate “black legend” had been accepted as an accurate and reliable description of Ismaili motives, beliefs and practices.
The emergence of the Persian Ismaili state in the 1090s, led by Hasan Sabbah (d. 1124), within the domain of the Saljuq Turks, the new overlords of the Abbasids, brought about another vigorous reaction against the Ismailis in general and the Nizari Ismailis in particular. Hasan Sabbah championed the cause of the Nizari branch of Ismailism and founded a state centred at the fortress of Alamut in northern Iran with a subsidiary state in Syria. The Saljuq vizier, Nizam al-Mulk, initiated a new anti-Ismaili literary campaign, accompanied by military expeditions against Alamut and other Nizari strongholds in Persia. He devoted a long chapter in his Siyasat-nama (The Book of Government) to the condemnation of the Ismailis.
The Syrian Nizaris attained the peak of their power and fame under Rashid al-Din Sinan, who was their chief leader for some three decades until his death in 1193. He was the original “Old Man of the Mountain” referred to in sources from the Crusaders and it was during his time that Western chroniclers of the Crusades and a number of European travellers and diplomatic emissaries began to write about the Nizari Ismailis. These writers, who were not interested in collecting accurate information about Islam as a religion and its communities of interpretation despite their proximity to Muslims, remained completely ignorant of Islam in general and the Ismailis in particular. It was under such circumstances that they produced reports about the purported secret practices of the Nizari Ismailis.
The Assassin Legends
In the event, medieval Europeans themselves began to fabricate and put into circulation a number of tales about the purported practices of the Nizaris, who were made famous in Europe as the Assassins. These so-called Assassin legends consisted of a number of separate but interconnected tales, including the “paradise legend”, the “hashish legend”, and the “death-leap legend”. The legends developed in stages, receiving new embellishments at each successive stage, and finally culminated in a synthesis popularized by Marco Polo (see F. Daftary, The Assassin Legends, London, 1994). The famous Venetian traveller added his own original contribution in the form of a “secret garden of paradise”, where bodily pleasures were supposedly procured for the fida’is (the Nizari devotees who were prepared to sacrifice their lives in the service of their community) under the influence of hashish by their mischievous leader, the Old Man, as part of their indoctrination and training. Marco Polo’s version of the Assassin legends was reiterated to various degrees by subsequent European writers. Strangely, it did not occur to any European that Marco Polo may have actually heard the tales in Italy after returning to Venice in 1295 from his journeys to the East - tales that were by then widespread in Europe. Ata Malik Juwayni (d. 1283), an avowed enemy of the Nizaris who accompanied the Mongol conqueror Hulagu to Alamut in 1256 as a court historian and inspected that fortress and its library before their destruction by the Mongols, does not report having discovered any “secret garden of paradise” there, as claimed in Marco Polo’s account.
By the 14th century, the Assassin legends had acquired wide currency and were accepted as reliable descriptions of alleged Nizari Ismaili practices, in much the same way as the earlier “black legend” had been accepted as accurate explanations of Ismaili motives, teachings and practices. By the beginning of the nineteenth century, Europeans still perceived the Nizari Ismailis in an utterly confused and fanciful manner.
Misinformed Scholarship
The orientalists of the nineteenth century, led by Silvestre de Sacy (1758-1838), began their more scholarly study of Islam on the basis of the Arabic manuscripts which were written mainly by Sunni authors. As a result, they studied Islam according to the Sunni viewpoint and, borrowing classifications applicable to Christian contexts, generally treated Shi‘ism as the “heterodox” (deviant) interpretation of Islam by contrast to Sunnism, which was taken to represent Islamic “orthodoxy” (correct or accepted interpretation). It was mainly on this basis, as well as the continued attraction of the seminal Assassin legends, that the orientalists launched their own study of the Ismailis. Consequently, the orientalists, too, tacitly lent their seal of approval to the myths of the Ismailis.
Indeed, de Sacy’s distorted evaluation of the Ismailis, though unintentional, set the frame within which other orientalists of the nineteenth century studied the medieval history of the Ismailis. As a result, misrepresentation and plain fiction came to permeate the first Western book on the Persian Nizaris of the Alamut period written by Joseph von Hammer-Purgstall (1774-1856). Originally published in German in 1818, von Hammer’s book achieved great success in Europe and continued to be treated as the standard history of the Nizari Ismailis until the 1930s. With rare exceptions, notably Charles F. Defrémery (1822-1883) who produced valuable historical studies on the Nizaris of Syria and Iran, and the studies of Michael J. de Goeje (1836-1909) on the dissident Qarmatis (who disagreed with the Fatimid Ismailis on the question of continuity in the Imamat and maintained their belief in a line of seven Imams ending with Muhammad b. Ismail), the Ismailis continued to be misrepresented to various degrees by later orientalists. Meanwhile, Westerners had retained the habit of referring to the Nizari Ismailis as the Assassins, a misnomer rooted in a medieval pejorative appellation.
A New Era in Ismaili Studies
The breakthrough in Ismaili studies occurred with the recovery and study of genuine Ismaili texts on a large scale - manuscript sources which had been preserved secretly in numerous private collections. A few Ismaili manuscripts of Syrian provenance had already surfaced in Paris during the nineteenth century, and some fragments of these works were studied and published there by S. Guyard and others. More Ismaili manuscripts preserved in Yaman and Central Asia were recovered in the opening decades of the twentieth century. In particular, a number of Persian Nizari texts were collected from Shughnan and other districts of Badakhshan (now divided by the Oxus River between Tajikistan and Afghanistan) and studied by Aleksandr A. Semenov (1873-1958), the Russian pioneer in Ismaili studies from Tashkent. However, by the 1920s knowledge of European scholarly circles about Ismaili literature was still very limited.
Modern scholarship in Ismaili studies was initiated in the 1930s in India, where significant collections of Ismaili manuscripts have been preserved in the Tayyibi Ismaili Bohra community. This breakthrough resulted mainly from the pioneering efforts of Wladimir Ivanow (1886-1970), and a few Ismaili scholars, notably Asaf A. A. Fyzee (1899-1981), Husayn F. al-Hamdani (1901-1962) and Zahid Ali (1888-1958), who based their studies on their family collections of manuscripts. Ivanow, who eventually settled in Bombay after leaving his native Russia in 1917, collaborated closely with these Bohra scholars and succeeded, through his own connections within the Khoja community, to gain access to Nizari literature as well. Consequently, he compiled the first detailed catalogue of Ismaili works, citing some 700 separate titles which attested to the hitherto unknown richness and diversity of Ismaili literature and intellectual traditions (see W. Ivanow, A Guide to Ismaili Literature, London, 1933). This very catalogue provided a scientific frame for further research in the field. Ismaili scholarship received another major impetus through the research programmes of the Ismaili Society of Bombay, established in 1946 under the patronage of Sir Sultan Muhammad Shah, Aga Khan III (1877-1957), the forty-eighth imam of the Nizari Ismailis.
By 1963, when Ivanow published a revised edition of his catalogue (Ismaili Literature: A Bibliographical Survey), many more Ismaili sources had become known and progress in Ismaili studies had been truly astonishing. Numerous Ismaili texts had now begun to be critically edited by scholars, preparing the ground for further progress in this new field of Islamic studies. In this connection, particular mention should be made of the Ismaili texts of Fatimid and later times edited together with analytical introductions by Henry Corbin (1903-1978), and the Fatimid texts edited by the Egyptian scholar Muhammad Kamil Husayn (1901-1961). At the same time, Arif Tamir (1921-1998) edited a number of Ismaili texts of Syrian provenance, and a few European scholars such as Marius Canard (1888-1982) and several Egyptian scholars, notably Hasan Ibrahim Hasan (1892-1968), Jamal al-Din al-Shayyal (1911-1967) and Abd al-Mun‘im Majid (1920-1999), made important contributions to Fatimid studies.
By the mid-1950s, progress in the field had already enabled Marshall G. S. Hodgson (1922-1968) to produce the first scholarly and comprehensive study of the Nizari Ismailis of the Alamut period, albeit mistitled as The Order of Assassins (The Hague, 1955). Soon, others representing a new generation of scholars, notably Samuel M. Stern (1920-1969), Wilfred Madelung and Abbas Hamdani produced major studies, especially on the early Ismailis and their relations with the dissident Qarmatis.
Progress in Ismaili studies has proceeded at a rapid pace during the last few decades through the efforts of yet another generation of scholars such as Ismail K. Poonawala, Heinz Halm, Paul E. Walker, Azim Nanji and Thierry Bianquis. The modern progress in the recovery and study of Ismaili literature is well reflected in Professor Poonawala’s monumental Biobibliography of Isma‘ílí Literature (Malibu, California, 1977), which identifies some 1300 titles written by more than 200 authors. Meanwhile, the Satpanth Ismaili tradition of the Nizari Khojas as reflected in the ginan literature provided yet another area of investigation within Ismaili studies. In particular, Ali Asani, A. Nanji and A. Esmail have made valuable contributions here.
The Role of the Institute of Ismaili Studies
Modern scholarship in Ismaili studies is set to continue at an even greater pace as the Ismailis themselves are now becoming widely interested in studying their literary heritage and history - a phenomenon attested by an increasing number of Ismaili-related doctoral dissertations written in recent decades by Ismailis. In this context, a major role is played by The Institute of Ismaili Studies. Established in London in 1977, this institution is already serving as the central point of reference for Ismaili studies while making its own contributions through various programmes of research and publications. Numerous scholars worldwide participate in these academic programmes, and many more benefit from the accessibility of the Ismaili manuscripts held at the Institute’s Library. With these modern developments, the scholarly study of the Ismailis, which by the closing decades of the twentieth century had already greatly deconstructed the seminal anti-Ismaili legends of medieval times, promises to dissipate the remaining misrepresentations of the Ismailis rooted either in hostility or imaginative ignorance of the earlier generations.
Ismaili Studies: Background and Modern Developments
Farhad Daftary
The Origins of the Myths
In the course of their long and complex history, dating to the formative period of Islam, the Ismailis have often been accused of various heretical teachings and practices and a multitude of myths and misconceptions have circulated about them. This is mainly because the Ismailis were, until the middle of the twentieth century, studied and evaluated almost exclusively on the basis of the evidence collected or fabricated by their enemies. As a Shi‘i community that upheld the right of the ‘Alid imams to the caliphate, the Ismailis, from early on, aroused the hostility of the Sunni Abbasids. With the foundation of the Fatimid state in 909 CE, the Ismailis posed a challenge to the established order and, thereupon, the Abbasid caliphs and the Sunni ulama launched what amounted to an official anti-Ismaili propaganda campaign. The overall objective of this systematic and prolonged campaign was to discredit the entire Ismaili movement from its origins so that the Ismailis could be readily condemned as malahida, heretics or deviators from the true religious path. Anti-Ismaili writings provided a major source of information for Sunni scholars and heresiographers, such as al-Baghdadi (d. 1037), who produced another important category of writing against the Ismailis.
The Black Legend
A number of polemicists, starting with Ibn Rizam in the first half of the 10th century, fabricated travesties in which they attributed a variety of shocking beliefs and practices to the Ismailis. These forgeries circulated as genuine Ismaili writing and were used as source materials by subsequent generations. By spreading a variety of defamations and even forged accounts, the anti-Ismaili authors, in fact, produced a “black legend” in the course of the 10th century. Ismailism was now erroneously depicted as the arch-heresy of Islam, carefully designed by some non-‘Alid impostors, or possibly even a Jewish magician disguised as a Muslim, aiming at destroying Islam from within. By the 11th century, this elaborate “black legend” had been accepted as an accurate and reliable description of Ismaili motives, beliefs and practices.
The emergence of the Persian Ismaili state in the 1090s, led by Hasan Sabbah (d. 1124), within the domain of the Saljuq Turks, the new overlords of the Abbasids, brought about another vigorous reaction against the Ismailis in general and the Nizari Ismailis in particular. Hasan Sabbah championed the cause of the Nizari branch of Ismailism and founded a state centred at the fortress of Alamut in northern Iran with a subsidiary state in Syria. The Saljuq vizier, Nizam al-Mulk, initiated a new anti-Ismaili literary campaign, accompanied by military expeditions against Alamut and other Nizari strongholds in Persia. He devoted a long chapter in his Siyasat-nama (The Book of Government) to the condemnation of the Ismailis.
The Syrian Nizaris attained the peak of their power and fame under Rashid al-Din Sinan, who was their chief leader for some three decades until his death in 1193. He was the original “Old Man of the Mountain” referred to in sources from the Crusaders and it was during his time that Western chroniclers of the Crusades and a number of European travellers and diplomatic emissaries began to write about the Nizari Ismailis. These writers, who were not interested in collecting accurate information about Islam as a religion and its communities of interpretation despite their proximity to Muslims, remained completely ignorant of Islam in general and the Ismailis in particular. It was under such circumstances that they produced reports about the purported secret practices of the Nizari Ismailis.
The Assassin Legends
In the event, medieval Europeans themselves began to fabricate and put into circulation a number of tales about the purported practices of the Nizaris, who were made famous in Europe as the Assassins. These so-called Assassin legends consisted of a number of separate but interconnected tales, including the “paradise legend”, the “hashish legend”, and the “death-leap legend”. The legends developed in stages, receiving new embellishments at each successive stage, and finally culminated in a synthesis popularized by Marco Polo (see F. Daftary, The Assassin Legends, London, 1994). The famous Venetian traveller added his own original contribution in the form of a “secret garden of paradise”, where bodily pleasures were supposedly procured for the fida’is (the Nizari devotees who were prepared to sacrifice their lives in the service of their community) under the influence of hashish by their mischievous leader, the Old Man, as part of their indoctrination and training. Marco Polo’s version of the Assassin legends was reiterated to various degrees by subsequent European writers. Strangely, it did not occur to any European that Marco Polo may have actually heard the tales in Italy after returning to Venice in 1295 from his journeys to the East - tales that were by then widespread in Europe. Ata Malik Juwayni (d. 1283), an avowed enemy of the Nizaris who accompanied the Mongol conqueror Hulagu to Alamut in 1256 as a court historian and inspected that fortress and its library before their destruction by the Mongols, does not report having discovered any “secret garden of paradise” there, as claimed in Marco Polo’s account.
By the 14th century, the Assassin legends had acquired wide currency and were accepted as reliable descriptions of alleged Nizari Ismaili practices, in much the same way as the earlier “black legend” had been accepted as accurate explanations of Ismaili motives, teachings and practices. By the beginning of the nineteenth century, Europeans still perceived the Nizari Ismailis in an utterly confused and fanciful manner.
Misinformed Scholarship
The orientalists of the nineteenth century, led by Silvestre de Sacy (1758-1838), began their more scholarly study of Islam on the basis of the Arabic manuscripts which were written mainly by Sunni authors. As a result, they studied Islam according to the Sunni viewpoint and, borrowing classifications applicable to Christian contexts, generally treated Shi‘ism as the “heterodox” (deviant) interpretation of Islam by contrast to Sunnism, which was taken to represent Islamic “orthodoxy” (correct or accepted interpretation). It was mainly on this basis, as well as the continued attraction of the seminal Assassin legends, that the orientalists launched their own study of the Ismailis. Consequently, the orientalists, too, tacitly lent their seal of approval to the myths of the Ismailis.
Indeed, de Sacy’s distorted evaluation of the Ismailis, though unintentional, set the frame within which other orientalists of the nineteenth century studied the medieval history of the Ismailis. As a result, misrepresentation and plain fiction came to permeate the first Western book on the Persian Nizaris of the Alamut period written by Joseph von Hammer-Purgstall (1774-1856). Originally published in German in 1818, von Hammer’s book achieved great success in Europe and continued to be treated as the standard history of the Nizari Ismailis until the 1930s. With rare exceptions, notably Charles F. Defrémery (1822-1883) who produced valuable historical studies on the Nizaris of Syria and Iran, and the studies of Michael J. de Goeje (1836-1909) on the dissident Qarmatis (who disagreed with the Fatimid Ismailis on the question of continuity in the Imamat and maintained their belief in a line of seven Imams ending with Muhammad b. Ismail), the Ismailis continued to be misrepresented to various degrees by later orientalists. Meanwhile, Westerners had retained the habit of referring to the Nizari Ismailis as the Assassins, a misnomer rooted in a medieval pejorative appellation.
A New Era in Ismaili Studies
The breakthrough in Ismaili studies occurred with the recovery and study of genuine Ismaili texts on a large scale - manuscript sources which had been preserved secretly in numerous private collections. A few Ismaili manuscripts of Syrian provenance had already surfaced in Paris during the nineteenth century, and some fragments of these works were studied and published there by S. Guyard and others. More Ismaili manuscripts preserved in Yaman and Central Asia were recovered in the opening decades of the twentieth century. In particular, a number of Persian Nizari texts were collected from Shughnan and other districts of Badakhshan (now divided by the Oxus River between Tajikistan and Afghanistan) and studied by Aleksandr A. Semenov (1873-1958), the Russian pioneer in Ismaili studies from Tashkent. However, by the 1920s knowledge of European scholarly circles about Ismaili literature was still very limited.
Modern scholarship in Ismaili studies was initiated in the 1930s in India, where significant collections of Ismaili manuscripts have been preserved in the Tayyibi Ismaili Bohra community. This breakthrough resulted mainly from the pioneering efforts of Wladimir Ivanow (1886-1970), and a few Ismaili scholars, notably Asaf A. A. Fyzee (1899-1981), Husayn F. al-Hamdani (1901-1962) and Zahid Ali (1888-1958), who based their studies on their family collections of manuscripts. Ivanow, who eventually settled in Bombay after leaving his native Russia in 1917, collaborated closely with these Bohra scholars and succeeded, through his own connections within the Khoja community, to gain access to Nizari literature as well. Consequently, he compiled the first detailed catalogue of Ismaili works, citing some 700 separate titles which attested to the hitherto unknown richness and diversity of Ismaili literature and intellectual traditions (see W. Ivanow, A Guide to Ismaili Literature, London, 1933). This very catalogue provided a scientific frame for further research in the field. Ismaili scholarship received another major impetus through the research programmes of the Ismaili Society of Bombay, established in 1946 under the patronage of Sir Sultan Muhammad Shah, Aga Khan III (1877-1957), the forty-eighth imam of the Nizari Ismailis.
By 1963, when Ivanow published a revised edition of his catalogue (Ismaili Literature: A Bibliographical Survey), many more Ismaili sources had become known and progress in Ismaili studies had been truly astonishing. Numerous Ismaili texts had now begun to be critically edited by scholars, preparing the ground for further progress in this new field of Islamic studies. In this connection, particular mention should be made of the Ismaili texts of Fatimid and later times edited together with analytical introductions by Henry Corbin (1903-1978), and the Fatimid texts edited by the Egyptian scholar Muhammad Kamil Husayn (1901-1961). At the same time, Arif Tamir (1921-1998) edited a number of Ismaili texts of Syrian provenance, and a few European scholars such as Marius Canard (1888-1982) and several Egyptian scholars, notably Hasan Ibrahim Hasan (1892-1968), Jamal al-Din al-Shayyal (1911-1967) and Abd al-Mun‘im Majid (1920-1999), made important contributions to Fatimid studies.
By the mid-1950s, progress in the field had already enabled Marshall G. S. Hodgson (1922-1968) to produce the first scholarly and comprehensive study of the Nizari Ismailis of the Alamut period, albeit mistitled as The Order of Assassins (The Hague, 1955). Soon, others representing a new generation of scholars, notably Samuel M. Stern (1920-1969), Wilfred Madelung and Abbas Hamdani produced major studies, especially on the early Ismailis and their relations with the dissident Qarmatis.
Progress in Ismaili studies has proceeded at a rapid pace during the last few decades through the efforts of yet another generation of scholars such as Ismail K. Poonawala, Heinz Halm, Paul E. Walker, Azim Nanji and Thierry Bianquis. The modern progress in the recovery and study of Ismaili literature is well reflected in Professor Poonawala’s monumental Biobibliography of Isma‘ílí Literature (Malibu, California, 1977), which identifies some 1300 titles written by more than 200 authors. Meanwhile, the Satpanth Ismaili tradition of the Nizari Khojas as reflected in the ginan literature provided yet another area of investigation within Ismaili studies. In particular, Ali Asani, A. Nanji and A. Esmail have made valuable contributions here.
The Role of the Institute of Ismaili Studies
Modern scholarship in Ismaili studies is set to continue at an even greater pace as the Ismailis themselves are now becoming widely interested in studying their literary heritage and history - a phenomenon attested by an increasing number of Ismaili-related doctoral dissertations written in recent decades by Ismailis. In this context, a major role is played by The Institute of Ismaili Studies. Established in London in 1977, this institution is already serving as the central point of reference for Ismaili studies while making its own contributions through various programmes of research and publications. Numerous scholars worldwide participate in these academic programmes, and many more benefit from the accessibility of the Ismaili manuscripts held at the Institute’s Library. With these modern developments, the scholarly study of the Ismailis, which by the closing decades of the twentieth century had already greatly deconstructed the seminal anti-Ismaili legends of medieval times, promises to dissipate the remaining misrepresentations of the Ismailis rooted either in hostility or imaginative ignorance of the earlier generations.
Every person in this world has knowledge. It can be of any type or of any object. Some people have good knowledge about books, music and some people who are interested in studies have knowledge about their particular subject.
Each of us has stored in our repertoire huge amounts of knowledge, most of which, needless to say, we can’t even recall when we want to. Have you ever thought that what is the source of all these facts and information (knowledge) you have? How do they get into our memory banks? Most of us think that we gain knowledge from our family, various institutes, society, media etc. Well, this is correct but this is only one of the sources of knowledge. There are other sources as well. Most people, to some extent, are acquainted with these other sources but they don’t have deep information about them.
There are basically four sources of knowledge. The first “our senses” can be considered as the primary source of information. Two other sources “rationality” and “intuition” are derivatives in the sense that they produce new facts from data already supplied to our mind. The fourth source mentioned earlier is “authority”.
The senses
Throughout life, it is a dominant source of knowledge about our self and our environment. We are gifted with five senses — the senses of taste, touch smell, hearing and sight. These senses are exploratory organs; we use them all to become acquainted with the world we live in. You know that sugar and candies are sweet but onions and ginger are not. You came to know this through your sense of taste. When you use these senses you start experiencing the world.
* Classical senses — Senses of taste and touch are called classical senses because in this physical contact is required. In order to feel the structure of a thing you have to touch it or in order to taste something you have to place it on your tongue. These senses are realistic. Physical contact is the condition for the realization of these two senses
* Non classical senses — The senses of sight, smell and hearing are for the knowledge of distant objects. In this system physical contact is not necessary. Like through sight you see things without going close to them. You can smell things from a far-off place and you hear voices that are far away from you. In this you are attaining knowledge without physical closeness.
* Senses for specific areas – One thing common for the senses of sight, smell, taste and hearing is that they experience things from specific areas. For sight you have eyes, for smelling you have nose, for hearing you have ears and for tasting you are provided with tastebuds. The sense of touch is quite different from the above four because the experience of touching can be done through any part of the body. This sense is very comprehensive because it can be experienced from head to toe.
Knowledge from others
Authority is personal influence. This means that we gain knowledge from others. People around us are a continued source of information. Such information, however, is always second-hand or third-hand knowledge, or nth-hand knowledge. We receive a good deal of knowledge from the society in which we live, but it can’t be accepted un-critically. Here you can take the example of your own self. You have trust on your kith and kin. You believe in whatever they say. So basically they are a source of knowledge for you. But there is an insidious danger involved in relying upon others for knowledge. Most of us are prone to the development of dependencies, we commonly select one or two authorities, invest our trust in them and indulge our laziness to the absurd point of accepting all they tell us. Despite the fact that developing one’s critical skills is hard work; those who wish to feel more secure in their knowledge avoid dependencies which inhibit personal inquiry and growth.
Using known facts
Our reasoning faculty can be a source of true facts. “Reason” might be defined as using known facts to arrive at new facts. These known facts or ideas are considered innate, by rational thinkers (rationalists); hence, we are gifted with these ideas by birth — classical senses. If we start with the data that we are sure of then we can apply deductive or inductive procedures and arrive at new information that we didn’t had before. Suppose you are on a visit to Dubai and your travel guide reads “one dirham is equal to Rs16” you can readily calculate how much your drink and chips will cost if the bill is for four dirham. It doesn’t take much reasoning to discover that your snacks will cost you sixty four rupees. Reasoning itself, therefore, can produce new facts. There are two types of reasoning.
* Deductive reasoning — Deductive reasoning is based on formal rules of logic. These rules are assumed to be innate. It is a process of drawing out (making explicit) the implications of one or more premises or statements of fact. If one infers correctly what the premises imply, then the person’s inference (conclusion) is said to be “valid”. For example: all cats have glowing eyes. Tom is a cat. Therefore Tom has glowing eyes.
* Inductive reasoning — Inductive reasoning is based on consistency in one’s experience. It is the procedure of developing general explanatory theory to account for a set of facts. For example: a girl’s father, brother, husband and son are very possessive. Then from her experiences she’ll conclude that all men are possessive. In inductive reasoning one’s working hypothesis is always tentative; it is always subject to change whenever further facts are obtained.
Intuition
The word “intuition” has varied connotation, when carefully defined it can be considered as a source of knowledge. Intuition refers to insight or bits of knowledge which emerge in the light of consciousness from the deeper sub-conscious. It is the direct and immediate source of knowledge, which, unlike reason, does not need any pre-supposed concept or idea. In simple words it is the sixth sense. This can be explained by the experience of an American theologian McConnell. When he was in high school, he was assigned some algebra questions for homework. He solved all the sums except for the last one. He was unable to solve it. He wrestled with it in prolonged frustration, but it would not come out, and finally he gave up and went to bed. The next morning the solution popped up in his mind. It dawned on him that his subconscious mind had continued to work on the problem while his conscious mind slept. The next evening he tried the same thing — he briefly glanced over his sum, promptly forgot it and went to sleep. Needless to say, the next morning there was no solution. McConnell recalls the lesson he learned: the subconscious mind can do creative work, if fairly treated. Sometimes intuition is experienced as an emotional experience. When something is about to go wrong your inside feelings prompt you. The unconscious can correlate data in such a way that it can “foresee”.
Well, these were some important sources of knowledge. In the end I just want to say that now you are point zero, zero five per cent acquainted with philosophy because this is what the philosophy students study in the introduction of the subject.
By Sehrish Fatima
Each of us has stored in our repertoire huge amounts of knowledge, most of which, needless to say, we can’t even recall when we want to. Have you ever thought that what is the source of all these facts and information (knowledge) you have? How do they get into our memory banks? Most of us think that we gain knowledge from our family, various institutes, society, media etc. Well, this is correct but this is only one of the sources of knowledge. There are other sources as well. Most people, to some extent, are acquainted with these other sources but they don’t have deep information about them.
There are basically four sources of knowledge. The first “our senses” can be considered as the primary source of information. Two other sources “rationality” and “intuition” are derivatives in the sense that they produce new facts from data already supplied to our mind. The fourth source mentioned earlier is “authority”.
The senses
Throughout life, it is a dominant source of knowledge about our self and our environment. We are gifted with five senses — the senses of taste, touch smell, hearing and sight. These senses are exploratory organs; we use them all to become acquainted with the world we live in. You know that sugar and candies are sweet but onions and ginger are not. You came to know this through your sense of taste. When you use these senses you start experiencing the world.
* Classical senses — Senses of taste and touch are called classical senses because in this physical contact is required. In order to feel the structure of a thing you have to touch it or in order to taste something you have to place it on your tongue. These senses are realistic. Physical contact is the condition for the realization of these two senses
* Non classical senses — The senses of sight, smell and hearing are for the knowledge of distant objects. In this system physical contact is not necessary. Like through sight you see things without going close to them. You can smell things from a far-off place and you hear voices that are far away from you. In this you are attaining knowledge without physical closeness.
* Senses for specific areas – One thing common for the senses of sight, smell, taste and hearing is that they experience things from specific areas. For sight you have eyes, for smelling you have nose, for hearing you have ears and for tasting you are provided with tastebuds. The sense of touch is quite different from the above four because the experience of touching can be done through any part of the body. This sense is very comprehensive because it can be experienced from head to toe.
Knowledge from others
Authority is personal influence. This means that we gain knowledge from others. People around us are a continued source of information. Such information, however, is always second-hand or third-hand knowledge, or nth-hand knowledge. We receive a good deal of knowledge from the society in which we live, but it can’t be accepted un-critically. Here you can take the example of your own self. You have trust on your kith and kin. You believe in whatever they say. So basically they are a source of knowledge for you. But there is an insidious danger involved in relying upon others for knowledge. Most of us are prone to the development of dependencies, we commonly select one or two authorities, invest our trust in them and indulge our laziness to the absurd point of accepting all they tell us. Despite the fact that developing one’s critical skills is hard work; those who wish to feel more secure in their knowledge avoid dependencies which inhibit personal inquiry and growth.
Using known facts
Our reasoning faculty can be a source of true facts. “Reason” might be defined as using known facts to arrive at new facts. These known facts or ideas are considered innate, by rational thinkers (rationalists); hence, we are gifted with these ideas by birth — classical senses. If we start with the data that we are sure of then we can apply deductive or inductive procedures and arrive at new information that we didn’t had before. Suppose you are on a visit to Dubai and your travel guide reads “one dirham is equal to Rs16” you can readily calculate how much your drink and chips will cost if the bill is for four dirham. It doesn’t take much reasoning to discover that your snacks will cost you sixty four rupees. Reasoning itself, therefore, can produce new facts. There are two types of reasoning.
* Deductive reasoning — Deductive reasoning is based on formal rules of logic. These rules are assumed to be innate. It is a process of drawing out (making explicit) the implications of one or more premises or statements of fact. If one infers correctly what the premises imply, then the person’s inference (conclusion) is said to be “valid”. For example: all cats have glowing eyes. Tom is a cat. Therefore Tom has glowing eyes.
* Inductive reasoning — Inductive reasoning is based on consistency in one’s experience. It is the procedure of developing general explanatory theory to account for a set of facts. For example: a girl’s father, brother, husband and son are very possessive. Then from her experiences she’ll conclude that all men are possessive. In inductive reasoning one’s working hypothesis is always tentative; it is always subject to change whenever further facts are obtained.
Intuition
The word “intuition” has varied connotation, when carefully defined it can be considered as a source of knowledge. Intuition refers to insight or bits of knowledge which emerge in the light of consciousness from the deeper sub-conscious. It is the direct and immediate source of knowledge, which, unlike reason, does not need any pre-supposed concept or idea. In simple words it is the sixth sense. This can be explained by the experience of an American theologian McConnell. When he was in high school, he was assigned some algebra questions for homework. He solved all the sums except for the last one. He was unable to solve it. He wrestled with it in prolonged frustration, but it would not come out, and finally he gave up and went to bed. The next morning the solution popped up in his mind. It dawned on him that his subconscious mind had continued to work on the problem while his conscious mind slept. The next evening he tried the same thing — he briefly glanced over his sum, promptly forgot it and went to sleep. Needless to say, the next morning there was no solution. McConnell recalls the lesson he learned: the subconscious mind can do creative work, if fairly treated. Sometimes intuition is experienced as an emotional experience. When something is about to go wrong your inside feelings prompt you. The unconscious can correlate data in such a way that it can “foresee”.
Well, these were some important sources of knowledge. In the end I just want to say that now you are point zero, zero five per cent acquainted with philosophy because this is what the philosophy students study in the introduction of the subject.
By Sehrish Fatima
In a war of words none can defeat an eloquent man
Who never succumbs to fear or confusion.
Upon finding men whose forceful speech is couched
In cogent and enchanting ways, the world swiftly gathers around.
Unaware of the artful use of a few flawless words,
Men become enamored with excessive syllables.
Men who cannot communicate their knowledge to others
Resemble a bouquet of unfragrant flowers in full bloom.
-Tirukkural 65:647-650
Excerpted from the Tirukkural
Who never succumbs to fear or confusion.
Upon finding men whose forceful speech is couched
In cogent and enchanting ways, the world swiftly gathers around.
Unaware of the artful use of a few flawless words,
Men become enamored with excessive syllables.
Men who cannot communicate their knowledge to others
Resemble a bouquet of unfragrant flowers in full bloom.
-Tirukkural 65:647-650
Excerpted from the Tirukkural
Say: Are those who know and those who do not know alike? Only the men of understanding are mindful. (QURAN, SURAH ZUMUR, 39:9)
1. ILM (Knowledge) is the life of Islam and a support of iman (faith) whosoever picks up a little knowledge (ILM) shall get full reward from Allah. Whosoever acquired knowledge and acted accordingly - to him Allah imparts education - which he does not know. (Nahjul Farasat, Hazrat Moh'd (PBUH).
2. ILM is essential to acquire and compulsory for every muslim.(Hazarat Moh'd(PBUH).
3. ILM is base of every merit and illiteracy is foundation of each demerit.(Jama-ul-Ahadith).
4. ILM is like treasure and its keys are questions put up questions so that Allah bestow upon you Rahamat (Merciful Blessings) the learned conservation benefits four types of people:
a: one who asks questions
b: one who answers the questions
c: those who hear
d: their friends and attached persons.
(Tohful Uqul, p.41 Hazrat Noh'd (PBUH).
5. ILM is momins friend and reserved seriousness is its vazir (minister) wisdom a guied/patience its armyofficer dependence a father merits brother and his lineage is ADMS/Family line Taqva and the reformation of wealth is from valor. (Tohful Uqul, p.46 Hazrat Moh'd (PBUH).
6. ILM and wealth cover up every defect but poverty exposes each demerit. ((Nahjul Farasat, Hazrat Moh'd (PBUH).
7. It is quite undue and invalid to stop people from acquiring the knowledge (Nahjul Farasat, Hazrat Moh'd (PBUH).
8. ILM is Allah's safe debris on earth of which ulema are guarantee there fore whoever acts upon his knowledge frees himself formthe safe debris and who doesn't practice upon knowledge all his actions shall be written with those who embezzles(Behar ul anwar, 77/168, Hazrat Moh'd (PBUH)
9. ILM is safe with its ahl (Worth) and you are ordered to acquire from them. (Behar ul anwar, 1/177, Hazrat Moh'd (PBUH)
10. ILM, which is acted upon, is like such treasure, which is not spent. Its master puts himself into troubles for not having spent but for him no gain at all. (Hazrat Moh'd (PBUH).
11. ILM is like a hidden lamp. (Behar ul anwar, 78/292, Hazrat Moh'd (PBUH)
12. There are two kinds of ILM. Devine (God Gifted) and acquired. If the man does not possess ability the acquired ilm does not profit at all. (Nahjul Balagha, Hazrat Ali (AS).
13. ILM during the childhood is similar to the engraved writing on stone slab. . (Behar ul anwar, 1/224, Hazrat Ali (AS).
14. It leads towards haq(truth) and illiteracy spoils qayamat as well as akhirat.(Guharul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS)
15. ILM cannot be surrounded it is therefore better to choose fine ilm. (Guharul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS).
16. ILM is nearer to heart light to blinds and power to the weak bodies. (. (Behar ul anwar, 1/166, Hazrat Ali AS.
17. ILM is guide to wisdom and wisdom is its follower, which is bestowed by Allah upon lucky Persons, and unlucky lot is deprived of. . (Behar ul anwar, 1/166, Hazrat Ali AS.
18. ILM saves form hardships and difficulties and illiteracy is more harmful to the body then indigestion. Hazrat Ali AS.
19. ILM is the murder of foolishness and illiteracy - but is the reason for the worthiness and greatness. The biggest calamity is illiteracy and foolishness. (Guhar ul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS.)
20. ILM is biggest and most pretty treasure its weight is light and vain but gain is great. It is a means of respect among people and fellow while in solitary hours.(Nahjul Balagha, Hazrat Ali AS)
21. ILM is the key of such a door, which leads to open a thousand doors. (Behar ul anwar, 40/129, Hazrat Ali AS).
22. ILM stops difficulties and obstacles. Illiteracy and foolishness are the worst enemies. (Hazrat Ali AS).
23. ILM is essence of life and having a healing factor, illiteracy is death for living and is caused for misfortune and cruelty. (Guharul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS).
24. ILM is decoration and ornament for well to do people but is dependence source for the people deprived of. ( Guharul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS)
25. There are three kinds of ilm Knowledge of religion, Medical science (Tibb) and literature. (Behar ul anwar, 78/45.52, Hazrat Ali AS)
26. ILM gives encouragement to cross over siraat (Pul-e-Sirat) while wealth and money are hindrance. (Behar ul anwar, 1/185, Hazrat Ali AS)
27. ILM is the noblest guidance and illiteracy for virtue is worst and also means decline and misguidence. (Guharul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS).
28. ILM is of course better then wealth. The wealth is spent and results in decreasing but ilm increases if as much as spent. (Nahjul Balagha, Hazrat Ali AS).
29. ILM is such a kingdom and authority (Power) who ever gives it for having assaulted with ilm and those who do not have ilm are attacked upon. (Nahjul Balagha, Hazrat Ali AS).
30. ILM is wisdom's fruit and reformation like branches illiteracy and foolishness is the root of all evils. (Guharul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS).
31. ILM guides you in the direction which is ordered for piousness makes the way easy going. (Guharul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS).
32. ILM is the lost capital of momin. (Behar ul anwar, 1/168, Hazrat Ali AS)
33. ILM is better then every father and brings together all his worthy fellows. (Behar ul anwar, 74/175, Hazrat Ali AS)
34. ILM is fruit flourishing for knowing oneself. No other evil than illiteracy and foolishness. (Guharul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS). 35. ILM lifts trodden people and glorifies with personality and its giving up makes respectful most disrespectful. (Guharul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS).
36. ILM increases wisdom in wise men.(Hazrat Ali AS)
37. ILM and amal (ACTS) are linked together who ever is aalim (Learned) acts upon his ilm and ilm sounds for action that is to say of. (Hazrat Ali AS).
38. ILM is heavenly fruit it is a companion in fear journey and solitude. (Hazrat Ali AS).
39. ILM goes up and up moment after moments and day by day. (Behar ul anwar, 26/87, Hazrat Ali AS).
1. ILM (Knowledge) is the life of Islam and a support of iman (faith) whosoever picks up a little knowledge (ILM) shall get full reward from Allah. Whosoever acquired knowledge and acted accordingly - to him Allah imparts education - which he does not know. (Nahjul Farasat, Hazrat Moh'd (PBUH).
2. ILM is essential to acquire and compulsory for every muslim.(Hazarat Moh'd(PBUH).
3. ILM is base of every merit and illiteracy is foundation of each demerit.(Jama-ul-Ahadith).
4. ILM is like treasure and its keys are questions put up questions so that Allah bestow upon you Rahamat (Merciful Blessings) the learned conservation benefits four types of people:
a: one who asks questions
b: one who answers the questions
c: those who hear
d: their friends and attached persons.
(Tohful Uqul, p.41 Hazrat Noh'd (PBUH).
5. ILM is momins friend and reserved seriousness is its vazir (minister) wisdom a guied/patience its armyofficer dependence a father merits brother and his lineage is ADMS/Family line Taqva and the reformation of wealth is from valor. (Tohful Uqul, p.46 Hazrat Moh'd (PBUH).
6. ILM and wealth cover up every defect but poverty exposes each demerit. ((Nahjul Farasat, Hazrat Moh'd (PBUH).
7. It is quite undue and invalid to stop people from acquiring the knowledge (Nahjul Farasat, Hazrat Moh'd (PBUH).
8. ILM is Allah's safe debris on earth of which ulema are guarantee there fore whoever acts upon his knowledge frees himself formthe safe debris and who doesn't practice upon knowledge all his actions shall be written with those who embezzles(Behar ul anwar, 77/168, Hazrat Moh'd (PBUH)
9. ILM is safe with its ahl (Worth) and you are ordered to acquire from them. (Behar ul anwar, 1/177, Hazrat Moh'd (PBUH)
10. ILM, which is acted upon, is like such treasure, which is not spent. Its master puts himself into troubles for not having spent but for him no gain at all. (Hazrat Moh'd (PBUH).
11. ILM is like a hidden lamp. (Behar ul anwar, 78/292, Hazrat Moh'd (PBUH)
12. There are two kinds of ILM. Devine (God Gifted) and acquired. If the man does not possess ability the acquired ilm does not profit at all. (Nahjul Balagha, Hazrat Ali (AS).
13. ILM during the childhood is similar to the engraved writing on stone slab. . (Behar ul anwar, 1/224, Hazrat Ali (AS).
14. It leads towards haq(truth) and illiteracy spoils qayamat as well as akhirat.(Guharul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS)
15. ILM cannot be surrounded it is therefore better to choose fine ilm. (Guharul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS).
16. ILM is nearer to heart light to blinds and power to the weak bodies. (. (Behar ul anwar, 1/166, Hazrat Ali AS.
17. ILM is guide to wisdom and wisdom is its follower, which is bestowed by Allah upon lucky Persons, and unlucky lot is deprived of. . (Behar ul anwar, 1/166, Hazrat Ali AS.
18. ILM saves form hardships and difficulties and illiteracy is more harmful to the body then indigestion. Hazrat Ali AS.
19. ILM is the murder of foolishness and illiteracy - but is the reason for the worthiness and greatness. The biggest calamity is illiteracy and foolishness. (Guhar ul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS.)
20. ILM is biggest and most pretty treasure its weight is light and vain but gain is great. It is a means of respect among people and fellow while in solitary hours.(Nahjul Balagha, Hazrat Ali AS)
21. ILM is the key of such a door, which leads to open a thousand doors. (Behar ul anwar, 40/129, Hazrat Ali AS).
22. ILM stops difficulties and obstacles. Illiteracy and foolishness are the worst enemies. (Hazrat Ali AS).
23. ILM is essence of life and having a healing factor, illiteracy is death for living and is caused for misfortune and cruelty. (Guharul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS).
24. ILM is decoration and ornament for well to do people but is dependence source for the people deprived of. ( Guharul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS)
25. There are three kinds of ilm Knowledge of religion, Medical science (Tibb) and literature. (Behar ul anwar, 78/45.52, Hazrat Ali AS)
26. ILM gives encouragement to cross over siraat (Pul-e-Sirat) while wealth and money are hindrance. (Behar ul anwar, 1/185, Hazrat Ali AS)
27. ILM is the noblest guidance and illiteracy for virtue is worst and also means decline and misguidence. (Guharul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS).
28. ILM is of course better then wealth. The wealth is spent and results in decreasing but ilm increases if as much as spent. (Nahjul Balagha, Hazrat Ali AS).
29. ILM is such a kingdom and authority (Power) who ever gives it for having assaulted with ilm and those who do not have ilm are attacked upon. (Nahjul Balagha, Hazrat Ali AS).
30. ILM is wisdom's fruit and reformation like branches illiteracy and foolishness is the root of all evils. (Guharul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS).
31. ILM guides you in the direction which is ordered for piousness makes the way easy going. (Guharul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS).
32. ILM is the lost capital of momin. (Behar ul anwar, 1/168, Hazrat Ali AS)
33. ILM is better then every father and brings together all his worthy fellows. (Behar ul anwar, 74/175, Hazrat Ali AS)
34. ILM is fruit flourishing for knowing oneself. No other evil than illiteracy and foolishness. (Guharul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS). 35. ILM lifts trodden people and glorifies with personality and its giving up makes respectful most disrespectful. (Guharul Hikma, Hazrat Ali AS).
36. ILM increases wisdom in wise men.(Hazrat Ali AS)
37. ILM and amal (ACTS) are linked together who ever is aalim (Learned) acts upon his ilm and ilm sounds for action that is to say of. (Hazrat Ali AS).
38. ILM is heavenly fruit it is a companion in fear journey and solitude. (Hazrat Ali AS).
39. ILM goes up and up moment after moments and day by day. (Behar ul anwar, 26/87, Hazrat Ali AS).
The following anecdote about Ghazali illuminates our approach to knowledge....that it is not confined to bookish gathering of information only...it is about application of higher faculties of reflection, analysis, deduction and judgement using the intellect.
Ghazali and the Robbers
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Author Unknown
Ghazali, the renowned Muslim scholar, was born in Tus, a small village near Mashhad. He lived in the fifth century hijrah.
In those days, students wishing to acquire higher knowledge of Islam travelled to Nishapur, which boasted several centres of learning and many teachers of repute. Ghazall, after completing his preliminary education at home, arrived in Nishapur to pursue further studies. He was brilliant and was soon acclaimed by his tutors as the most studious and painstaking student. In order not to forget any finer points of erudition, he formed the habit of noting down all that he heard and learnt from his teachers. And then he meticulously rewrote them under various headings and chapters.
He treasured these notes as dearly as his life, or perhaps more.
Years later, he decided to return to his village. He tied all his prepared notes into a neat bundle and set forth in the company of a caravan. On the way, they were held up by a gang of highway thieves who robbed each traveller of all his valuables. And then it was Ghazali's turn. They searched him thoroughly, snatching away all that they wanted, and then laid hands on the tied bundle of notes.
"Take all that you want, but please do not touch this bundle," Ghazali pleaded. And the waylayers thought that there must be something very precious hidden in the bundle which Ghazali was trying to save.
So they untied the bundle and ransacked the pages. What did they find? Nothing but a few written papers.
They asked: "What are these? Of what use are they?"
"Well, they may be of no use to you, but they are of great use to me," Ghazali answered.
"But of what use are they?" the robbers insisted.
"These are the fruits of my labour. If you destroy them, I am also ruinously destroyed.
All the years of my attainment go down the drain," Ghazali replied.
"So whatever you know is in here, isn't it?" one of them said.
"Yes," Ghazali replied.
"Well, knowledge confined in a few papers, vulnerable to theft, is no knowledge at all.
Go and think about it and about yourself"
This casual but pungent remark by a commoner shook Ghazali to the core. He realised that he had studied as a parrot, jotted down all that he learned and crammed in into his mind. He found that he knew more, but he thought less. If he wanted to be a true student and a good scholar, he had to assimilate knowledge, think, ponder, deduce and then form his own judgement.
He set out seriously to learn the way he should, and became one of the greatest ulema in Islam. But in his advanced age, when he summarised his achievements, he said:
"The best counsel and admonition which changed my thinking, came to me from a highway robber."
Ghazali and the Robbers
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Author Unknown
Ghazali, the renowned Muslim scholar, was born in Tus, a small village near Mashhad. He lived in the fifth century hijrah.
In those days, students wishing to acquire higher knowledge of Islam travelled to Nishapur, which boasted several centres of learning and many teachers of repute. Ghazall, after completing his preliminary education at home, arrived in Nishapur to pursue further studies. He was brilliant and was soon acclaimed by his tutors as the most studious and painstaking student. In order not to forget any finer points of erudition, he formed the habit of noting down all that he heard and learnt from his teachers. And then he meticulously rewrote them under various headings and chapters.
He treasured these notes as dearly as his life, or perhaps more.
Years later, he decided to return to his village. He tied all his prepared notes into a neat bundle and set forth in the company of a caravan. On the way, they were held up by a gang of highway thieves who robbed each traveller of all his valuables. And then it was Ghazali's turn. They searched him thoroughly, snatching away all that they wanted, and then laid hands on the tied bundle of notes.
"Take all that you want, but please do not touch this bundle," Ghazali pleaded. And the waylayers thought that there must be something very precious hidden in the bundle which Ghazali was trying to save.
So they untied the bundle and ransacked the pages. What did they find? Nothing but a few written papers.
They asked: "What are these? Of what use are they?"
"Well, they may be of no use to you, but they are of great use to me," Ghazali answered.
"But of what use are they?" the robbers insisted.
"These are the fruits of my labour. If you destroy them, I am also ruinously destroyed.
All the years of my attainment go down the drain," Ghazali replied.
"So whatever you know is in here, isn't it?" one of them said.
"Yes," Ghazali replied.
"Well, knowledge confined in a few papers, vulnerable to theft, is no knowledge at all.
Go and think about it and about yourself"
This casual but pungent remark by a commoner shook Ghazali to the core. He realised that he had studied as a parrot, jotted down all that he learned and crammed in into his mind. He found that he knew more, but he thought less. If he wanted to be a true student and a good scholar, he had to assimilate knowledge, think, ponder, deduce and then form his own judgement.
He set out seriously to learn the way he should, and became one of the greatest ulema in Islam. But in his advanced age, when he summarised his achievements, he said:
"The best counsel and admonition which changed my thinking, came to me from a highway robber."
When God fills an adept with the desire to comprehend His essence, knowledge becomes vision, vision revelation, revelation contemplation, and contemplation existence in God. Words are hushed to silence, life becomes death, explanations come to an end, signs are effaced, and disputes are cleared up.
-Junayd, in "Rabi'a the Mystic"
-Junayd, in "Rabi'a the Mystic"
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nashvelshi
- Posts: 404
- Joined: Tue Nov 29, 2005 8:21 pm
- Location: Toronto
- Contact:
This is a good story about the value of knowledge and how it should be properly assimilated and used.
However Ahmed Bin Ghazali, who became one of the greatest Ulema in Sunni Islam, was a vicious enemy of the Ismailis. He was asked by the Caliph of Baghdad, who was a Seljuq Turk and ruled during the time of Hasan Bin Sabah, to write a book refuting the doctrine of Imamat and especially the doctrine of Talim, namely that the Imam is an infallible Teacher, which was written and promulgated Dai by Hasan Bin Sabah.
Ghazali, who was a formidably brilliant scholar, wrote a number of vitriolic books against the Ismailis and was also responsible for consolidating the doctrine of Ibn Hanbal, the Sunni legal scholar. The long-term effects of this consolidation by Ghazali have been absolutely devastating for the muslim world in general. In my view, the consolidation of this Hanbali-Ghazalian doctrine became the mantra of the Sunni orthodoxy and was so stifling to philosophers like the rationalist Mutazila that it, more than anything else, was resposible for killing science and scientific development in the Muslim world.
The current sorry state the muslim world finds itself in today, where the west leads the muslim world around like a dog on a leash, can be traced back primarily to the handiwork of Ahmed Bin Ghazali.
Thank you very much, Mr. Ghazali!!! You and your cronies were responsible for bringing to an end 4 glorious centuries of scientific, philosophical and other fertile intellectual endeavour.
Thank you very much indeed!!!!!
However Ahmed Bin Ghazali, who became one of the greatest Ulema in Sunni Islam, was a vicious enemy of the Ismailis. He was asked by the Caliph of Baghdad, who was a Seljuq Turk and ruled during the time of Hasan Bin Sabah, to write a book refuting the doctrine of Imamat and especially the doctrine of Talim, namely that the Imam is an infallible Teacher, which was written and promulgated Dai by Hasan Bin Sabah.
Ghazali, who was a formidably brilliant scholar, wrote a number of vitriolic books against the Ismailis and was also responsible for consolidating the doctrine of Ibn Hanbal, the Sunni legal scholar. The long-term effects of this consolidation by Ghazali have been absolutely devastating for the muslim world in general. In my view, the consolidation of this Hanbali-Ghazalian doctrine became the mantra of the Sunni orthodoxy and was so stifling to philosophers like the rationalist Mutazila that it, more than anything else, was resposible for killing science and scientific development in the Muslim world.
The current sorry state the muslim world finds itself in today, where the west leads the muslim world around like a dog on a leash, can be traced back primarily to the handiwork of Ahmed Bin Ghazali.
Thank you very much, Mr. Ghazali!!! You and your cronies were responsible for bringing to an end 4 glorious centuries of scientific, philosophical and other fertile intellectual endeavour.
Thank you very much indeed!!!!!
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nashvelshi
- Posts: 404
- Joined: Tue Nov 29, 2005 8:21 pm
- Location: Toronto
- Contact:
This is a post I made on the Science and Religion thread and re-post here to show how even western commentators show how it was the orthodoxy in Islam that stifled scientific endeavour a thousand or so years ago:
nashvelshi
Joined: 29 Nov 2005
Posts: 99
Location: Toronto
Posted: 18 Mar 2006 05:33 am Post subject:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alas!!
This is what killed science after the first 4 centuries of Islam; the same factions that are causing the problems we face today in the Islamic world: I quote:
"For a few centuries at the turn of the first millennium, Islam presided over
a burst of exuberant scientific and philosophical inquiry. It began with the
translation of the treasure of Greek and Roman manuscripts that had lain forgotten
for centuries. It then went beyond translation, producing a large body of original
work in mathematics, chemistry, astronomy, optics, and philosophy, among other
fields. Then this burst of activity died away. Summarizing and simplifying the
argumant that follows: Islam provided a sense of purpose and vitality that helped
power the achievements of its golden age, but Islam could not accomodate itself
to the degree of autonomy required to sustain it"
"Why did the burst of activity fade so rapidly? The root cause of its decline
is to be found.....in the ability of its orthodox upholders to stifle once-flowering
science".
"Those accomplishments of Islamic mathematical and medical science which continue
to compel our admiration were developed in areas and in periods where the elites
were willing to go beyond and possibly against the basic strains of orthodox
thought and feeling"
Charles Murray:
'Human Accomplishment: the Pursuit of Excellence in the Arts and Sciences, 800
B.C. to 1950'
nashvelshi
Joined: 29 Nov 2005
Posts: 99
Location: Toronto
Posted: 18 Mar 2006 05:33 am Post subject:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alas!!
This is what killed science after the first 4 centuries of Islam; the same factions that are causing the problems we face today in the Islamic world: I quote:
"For a few centuries at the turn of the first millennium, Islam presided over
a burst of exuberant scientific and philosophical inquiry. It began with the
translation of the treasure of Greek and Roman manuscripts that had lain forgotten
for centuries. It then went beyond translation, producing a large body of original
work in mathematics, chemistry, astronomy, optics, and philosophy, among other
fields. Then this burst of activity died away. Summarizing and simplifying the
argumant that follows: Islam provided a sense of purpose and vitality that helped
power the achievements of its golden age, but Islam could not accomodate itself
to the degree of autonomy required to sustain it"
"Why did the burst of activity fade so rapidly? The root cause of its decline
is to be found.....in the ability of its orthodox upholders to stifle once-flowering
science".
"Those accomplishments of Islamic mathematical and medical science which continue
to compel our admiration were developed in areas and in periods where the elites
were willing to go beyond and possibly against the basic strains of orthodox
thought and feeling"
Charles Murray:
'Human Accomplishment: the Pursuit of Excellence in the Arts and Sciences, 800
B.C. to 1950'