Winner of the 21st International Book of the Year Prize in Iran
This book investigates the convergence of philosophy, scriptural exegesis, and mysticism in the thought of the celebrated Islamic philosopher Mulla adra (d. 1050/1640). Through a careful presentation of the theoretical and practical dimensions of adra's Qur'anic hermeneutics, Mohammed Rustom highlights the manner in which adra offers a penetrating metaphysical commentary upon the Fati a, the chapter of the Qur'an that occupies central importance in Muslim daily life. Engaging such medieval intellectual giants as Fakhr al-Din al-Razi (d. 606/1210) and Ibn 'Arabi (d. 638/1240) on the one hand, and the wider disciplines of philosophy, theology, Sufism, and Qur'anic exegesis on the other, adra's commentary upon the Fati a provides him with the opportunity to modify and recast many of his philosophical positions within a scripture-based framework. He thereby reveals himself to be a profound religious thinker who, among other things, argues for the salvation of all human beings in the afterlife.
Autorentext
Mohammed Rustom is Assistant Professor of Islamic Studies at Carleton University. He is the coeditor (with Atif Khalil and Kazuyo Murata) of In Search of the Lost Heart: Explorations in Islamic Thought by William C. Chittick, also published by SUNY Press.
Inhalt
Acknowledgments
Transliterations and Abbreviations
Introduction
1. Qur'anic Hermeneutics
Lord of the Heart
Etiquette and Understanding
Concept and Reality
The Command's Decent
The Soul's Ascent
2. Formal Considerations
Texts and Sources
Structure and Content
3. Metaphysics
The Essence
Names and their Loci
4. Cosmology
The Act of Praise
The Muhammadan Reality
5. Theology
From Outer to Inner
Idols of Belief
The Religion of the Perfect Man
6. Soteriology I
The Nature of Things
The Essential and the Accidental
7. Soteriology II
Paths to Mercy
Divine Hands and Feet
Intellectual and Scriptural Fidelity
Revealing and Concealing
Chastisement's Sweetness
Conclusion
Appendix 1: Some Key Texts from the Mafati al-Ghayb
Appendix 2: Key Texts from the Tafsir Surat al-Fati a
Appendix 3: Passages from the Futüat Reworked into the Tafsir Surat al-Fati a
Notes
Bibliography
Index of Qur'anic Passages
Index of adiths and Sayings
Index of Names and Terms