3PR Islamic Philosophy Reading Group - Fall 2022
We will be reading Ibn Sīnā, al-Ghazālī, and possibly Ibn Rushd on the question of personal identity and the mind/body problem. Depending how things progress, at the end of the semester we may also read selections from the correspondence between Miskawayh and al-Tawhidi.
Philosophy in Islamic thought spans many geographic areas and time periods, and its study calls for collaboration between philosophers, philologists, historians, and scholars of religion along with academics in Islamic thought and intellectual history. This interdisciplinary reading group is open to students, researchers, and faculty in philosophy, near eastern studies, history, religion, the humanities, and anyone interested in Islamic philosophy. Our goal is to foster a learning community to explore broader questions in Islamic philosophy that challenge, interest, or confuse us. No prior background is presumed, and all are welcome. The reading group is informal and collegial and everyone is welcome to drop in as often, or not, as they may.
Schedule
Sep 27 – JRR 301
01 – al-Ghazālī, Iḥyā, K. al-ʿilm. On the Intellect.
02 – al-Ghazālī, Iḥyā, K. ʿajāʾib al-qalb. Defining the Soul, Spirit, Heart and Intellect.
03 – Ibn Sīnā, K. al-Shifāʾ. The Existence of the Soul and It’s Faculties
Oct 11 – JRR 397
04 – Ibn Sīnā, K. al-Shifāʾ. Immateriality, Temporality, Incorruptibility of the soul. The Active Intellect.
Oct 25 – JRR 397
05 – al-Ghazālī, Tahāfuṭ, Prefaces, Contents, and Conclusion
06 – al-Ghazālī, Iqtiṣād. Probing in Philosophy and the Methods of Proof.
07 – al-Ghazālī, Tahāfuṭ XVI – Celestial souls and the particulars of the world
Nov 1 – TBC
08 – al-Ghazālī, Tahāfuṭ XVIII – The human soul, materiality, and the body
09 – al-Ghazālī, Tahāfuṭ XIX – Incorruptibility of the human soul.
Nov 15 – JRR 397
10 – Ibn Rushd, Ṭahāfut al-Ṭahāfut, Sixteenth, Eighteenth, and Nineteenth Discussions.
Nov 22 – TBC
Guest speaker: Reza Pourjavady (IAS): “The Reception of Averroes in the Islamic East.”
https://www.ias.edu/scholars/reza-pourjavady
Dec 6 – JRR 397
11 – The Philosopher Responds – Miskawayh’s replies to al-Tawhidi, Selections.
