Islamic Thought in the Dialogue of Cultures: A Historical and Bibliographical Survey

286 Pages·2012·1.63 MB·English

by  Hans Daiber

Islamic Thought in the Dialogue of Cultures
Themes in Islamic Studies
VOLUME 7
The titles published in this series are listed at brill.nl/tis
Islamic Thought in the Dialogue
of Cultures
A Historical and Bibliographical Survey
By
Hans Daiber
LEIDEn • BOStOn
2012
Cover illustration: Abū Ǧaʿfar Ḫāzin al-Ḫurāsānī (first half of the 4th/10th c.)
Masʾalat al-Handasa. A treatise on Euclid’s Parallels Postulate,
an Unknown Commentary on Euclid’s Elements. Copy from the year 867/1462.
Daiber collection III ms. 137, text nr. 397, fols. 3v–4r
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Daiber, Hans, 1942-
Islamic thought in the dialogue of cultures : a historical and bibliographical survey / By
Hans Daiber.
p. cm. — (Themes in Islamic studies ; v. 7)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBn 978-90-04-22227-4 (hardback : alk. paper) — ISBn 978-90-04-23204-4 (e-book)
1. Islamic philosophy—History. 2. Islamic philosophy—Influence. 3. Islamic philosophy—
Greek influences. 4. Islamic philosophy—Bibliography. I. title.
B741.D25 2012
181’.07—dc23
2012015660
ISSn 1389-823X
ISBn 978 90 04 22227 4 (hardback)
ISBn 978 90 04 23204 4 (e-book)
Copyright 2012 by Koninklijke Brill nV, Leiden, The netherlands.
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COntEntS
Abbreviations ...................................................................................... ix
Introduction ......................................................................................... 1
Chapter One: The Qurʾānic Background of Rationalism in
Early Islam ....................................................................................... 5
Chapter two: Theocracy Versus Individuality: The Dispute
on Man’s Free Will and its Impact on a new Rational
World-View in the 8th/9th Century ........................................... 21
Chapter Three: The Encounter of Islamic Rationalism with
Greek Culture: The translation Period and its Role in the
Development of Islamic Philosophy ........................................... 43
3.1. Motives and Principles for the Selection of translations
from Greek into Arabic ........................................................ 43
3.2. The Syriac Share in the Early Greek-Arabic translations ... 44
3.3. The Iranian Share and the Role of the nestorians in
the translation Movement ................................................... 48
3.4. Ways of transmission of Greek Sciences to the Arabs:
From Alexandria to Baghad ................................................. 49
3.5. Themes of Early Arabic translations ................................. 52
3.6. Ḥunayn Ibn Isḥāq and his “School” ................................... 54
3.7. Qustạ̄ Ibn Lūqā ....................................................................... 55
3.8. Greek natural Philosophy and Islamic World-View ...... 56
3.9. From translation to Commentary and the Role of the
Alexandrian School ................................................................ 59
Chapter Four: The Autonomy of Philosophy in Islam ............... 65
Chapter Five: The Encounter of Islamic Philosophy with
European Thought: Latin translations and translators
of Arabic Philosophical texts and their Importance for
Medieval European Philosophy. Survey and State of the Art .... 89
5.1. Introduction ........................................................................... 89
vi contents
5.2. Indispensable Research Material ............................... 91
5.3. The Arabic Aristotle in the Middle Ages ................. 94
5.3.1. Aristoteles Arabico-Latinus ......................... 94
5.3.2. Aristoteles Semitico-Latinus ........................ 95
5.3.3. Arabic-Islamic Determinants of the Picture
of Aristotle in the Middle Ages ................... 101
5.4. Qustạ̄ Ibn Lūqā in Latin transmission .................... 102
5.5. Liber de causis ............................................................... 103
5.6. The Arabic-Latin Alexander of Aphrodisias ........... 107
5.7. Other Channels of Philosophy from Islam to
Europe ............................................................................ 109
5.8. The Latin transmission of Kindī .............................. 112
5.9. The Latin transmission of Fārābī ............................. 114
5.10. Ibn Sīnā in the Latin Middle Ages ... ......................... 118
5.10.1. The Latin transmission of Ibn Sīnā ........... 118
5.10.2. “Avicennism” .................................................. 122
5.11. Ghazālī in the Latin Middle Ages ............................. 132
5.11.1. The Latin transmission of Ghazālī ............ 132
5.11.2. Ramon Llull .................................................... 136
5.12. Ibn Rushd in the Latin Middle Ages ........................ 138
5.12.1. The Latin transmission of Ibn Rushd ....... 138
5.12.2. “Averroism” .................................................... 143
5.12.3. Critique of “Averroism” and trends of
Research .......................................................... 158
Chapter Six: Assimilation of Islamic Philosophical Thought
and Dissociation in the Latin Middle Ages ....................... 167
6.1. The Arabic-Latin translations as Mediator of the
Cultural Heritage of Islam .......................................... 167
6.2. A Pioneer of Alexandrian Exegesis of Aristotle:
al-Kindī, the “Philosopher of the Arabs” ................. 168
6.3. An Interlude: The Peripatetic Fārābī ........................ 170
6.4. The Consolidation of Philosophical Doctrines
about God, Soul and Intellect: The Contribution
of Ibn Sīnā ..................................................................... 172
6.5. The Islamic Criticism of Philosophy: the Example
of Ghazālī ...................................................................... 177
6.6. Ibn Rushd’s Return to the “Pure Aristotle” ............ 179
6.7. Latin “Averroism”? ...................................................... 185
contents vii
6.8. The Role of Islamic Philosophizing in the
Middle Ages ............................................................... 187
Chapter Seven: Islamic Roots of Knowledge in Europe ............ 191
Chapter Eight: Manifestations of Islamic Thought in an
Intertwined World: Past and Future tasks of their Study .... 215
Bibliography ........................................................................................ 233
Index of names and Subjects .......................................................... 245
Index of Ancient and Medieval titles ........................................... 257
Index of terms ................................................................................... 263
Index of Modern Authors ................................................................ 266

ABBREVIAtIOnS
AAH Acta antiqua Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae.
Budapest
AAWG.PH Abhandlungen der Akademie der Wissenschaften in
Göttingen, philologisch-historische Klasse
Abr-n. Abr-nahrain. Department of Semitic Studies. University
of Melbourne. Leiden
AGPh Archiv für Geschichte der Philosophie (und Soziologie).
Berlin
AHDL Archives d’histoire doctrinale et littéraire du Moyen Âge.
Paris
AKM Abhandlungen für die Kunde des Morgenlandes
ArScPh Arabic Sciences and Philosophy. Cambridge
ASL Aristoteles Semitico-Latinus
BEO Bulletin d’études orientales de l’Institut Français de
Damas. Beyrouth
BFPUL Bibliothèque de la Faculté de Philosophie et Lettres de
l’Université de Liège
BGPhMA Beiträge zur Geschichte der Philosophie (und Theologie)
des Mittelalters. texte und Untersuchungen. Münster
BiblThom Bibliothèque thomiste. Paris
BiOr Bibliotheca Orientalis. Leiden
BPhM Bulletin de philosophie médiévale. Louvain
BTS Beiruter texte und Studien. Wiesbaden-Beirut
CAG Commentaria in Aristotelem Graeca. Berlin
EHS Europäische Hochschulschriften. Frankfurt/M. [etc.].
EI Enzyklopaedie des Islam. I–V and Supplement. Leiden;
Leipzig 1913–1938.
EI2 Encyclopaedia of Islam. 2nd edition. Leiden (etc.) 1960ff.
EM Études musulmanes
EnIr Encyclopaedia Iranica
GAS Sezgin, Fuat: Geschichte des arabischen Schrifttums. Iff.
Leiden 1967ff.
IOS Israel Oriental Studies. tel-Aviv
IPTS Islamic Philosophy, Theology and Sciences. texts and
Studies. Leiden, new York, Kobenhavn, Köln
x abbreviations
JA Journal Asiatique
JAOS Journal of the American Oriental Society. new Haven
JNES Journal of near Eastern Studies
JPhSt Jahrbuch für Philosophie und spekulative Theologie.
Paderborn [etc.]
JRAS Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and
Ireland. London
JSS Journal of Semitic Studies. Manchester
MIDEO Mélanges de l’Institut Dominicain d’études orientales
du Caire
MM Miscellanea mediaevalia. Berlin
MNAW.L Mededelingen der K. nederlandse Akademie van Weten-
schappen. Afdeling Letterkunde. Amsterdam
MS Mediaeval Studies. Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval
Studies. toronto
MUSJ Mélanges de l’Université Saint-Joseph. Beirut
NAWG nachrichten der Akademie der Wissenschaften in
Göttingen
NSchol new Scholasticism. Washington, D.C.
OLZ Orientalistische Literaturzeitung. Leipzig
Pens. Pensamiento. Revista de investigación e información
filosófica. Madrid
PhAnt Philosophia antiqua. Leiden
PhMed Philosophes médiévaux. Louvain
PhR Philosophische Rundschau. tübingen
PInHAIS.IP Publications of the Institute for the History of Arabic-
Islamic Science. Islamic Philosophy. Ed. by Fuat Sezgin
in collaboration with M. Amawi, C. Ehrig-Eggert,
E. neubauer. Frankfurt/M. 1999–2000
PPJ Pakistan philosophical journal. Lahore
RNSP Revue néoscolastique de philosophie. Louvain
RSPhTh Revue des sciences philosophiques et théologiques.
Paris
RThPh Revue de théologie et de philosophie. Lausanne
SBAW.PH Sitzungsberichte der Bayerischen Akademie der Wissen-
schaften in München—Philosophisch-Historische Klasse.
München
SPHP Studies in philosophy and the history of philosophy.
Washington, D.C.