Introduction: Philosophy as Rational Ontology
First, we must briefly examine the nature of Islamic philosophy and then examine the relationship that the Quran and Islamic teachings can have with philosophy in this sense. Philosophy has various meanings, but what is generally recognized in our time as Islamic philosophy—used in an absolute sense, without qualifiers or contextual clues—is that philosophy, and specifically Islamic philosophy, refers to rational ontology.
In fact, the philosopher seeks to investigate existence using a rational method to acquire knowledge of its features and characteristics. The object of the philosopher’s inquiry is existence and reality as a whole; philosophy discusses, of course, the entirety of existence purely from the perspective of its reality.
The Quranic Emphasis on Freethinking and Rationality
Methodologically, various sciences exist among human forms of knowledge, including rational sciences, transmitted sciences, and empirical sciences. Philosophy is among the rational sciences, where the research method applied to its issues is also rational. Accordingly, we define philosophy as rational ontology. The primary relationship the Quran can have with philosophy stems from the fact that the Quran, with great frequency, in various ways, and through diverse expressions, invites humanity to contemplate, exercise reason, and present evidence when engaging with others.
The Holy Quran also demands evidence from others. In certain verses, it forbids humans from blindly imitating others, emphasizing that they should rely on certainty rather than conjecture and speculation. Issues of this kind have numerous precedents in the Holy Quran, demonstrating that it does not hinder human freethinking but rather underscores freethinking and rationality—which constitute the primary foundation and core basis of philosophizing—so that we may attain knowledge utilizing our God-given intellect. Thus, through this avenue, the Quran serves as an encourager of philosophy.
Another contribution the Quran can make to philosophical discourse, paving the way for the philosopher, is presenting subjects for philosophical inquiry. Religious teachings, in general, can influence philosophy from various dimensions. Furthermore, the philosophical coherence of an issue depends on it being proven through rational demonstration; that is, as long as no argument is provided for an ontological claim, it is not considered a philosophical issue, even if it appears in religious texts or the Holy Quran.
The Holy Quran and the Introduction of New Issues for the Philosopher
This requirement does not preclude other sciences or religious texts from having any impact on philosophy. One of the impacts of religious texts, including the Holy Quran, on philosophy is that by presenting divine teachings, the Quran introduces new subjects and issues for the philosopher, prompting them to apply their rational faculties to those subjects. The main issue for ancient Greek philosophers was nature; in a sense, ancient Greek philosophy was natural philosophy. However, a Christian philosopher like Aquinas, while adhering to the prerequisites of philosophizing, addresses the subject of the Trinity. Of course, from the perspective of a monotheistic philosopher, this subject lacks rational demonstration; rather, our reason leads us to the opposite of the Trinity, toward monotheism.
Setting this issue aside, the Christian philosopher’s belief drives him to apply his philosophical efforts to the subject of the Trinity. On the same basis, the Holy Quran can also generate issues for the believing, Muslim philosopher. It is for this reason that in Islamic philosophy, we observe numerous issues derived from the teachings of the Islamic faith. Issues such as the unity of the Necessary Being are undoubtedly influenced by the religious doctrine of monotheism. Monotheism in divinity, the simplicity of the Necessary Being, the unity of the Divine attributes with His essence, and many other issues have been raised in the Holy Quran and other sacred texts of Islam, guiding the philosopher to direct their intellectual and philosophical efforts toward these subjects.
Therefore, religious texts, particularly the Holy Quran, initially not only did not prohibit but rather consolidated the first foundation and basis of philosophizing, which is freethinking. In the next step, they guide the philosopher to direct their philosophizing toward specific issues. Among these issues, we can mention human determinism and free will, a subject to which multiple verses of the Holy Quran refer, drawing the philosopher’s mind toward it. The issue of Ma’ad (the Resurrection) and its details, such as physical and spiritual resurrection, also assist the philosopher in orienting their philosophizing toward specific subjects.
The Quranic Guidance in Formulating Arguments
Another way in which religious texts, including the Holy Quran, pave the way for philosophy is by presenting and formulating arguments directly within the scriptures. An instance of this Quranic guidance is “The Proof of the Truthful” (Burhan al-Siddiqin) articulated by Islamic philosophers. The great Islamic philosopher Avicenna (Ibn Sina), and before him Farabi, drew inspiration from the Holy Quran to originate a new argument in philosophy. Similarly, verse 22 of Surah Al-Anbiya (“Had there been other gods besides Allah in the heavens or the earth, both realms would have surely been corrupted. So Glorified is Allah, Lord of the Throne, far above what they claim.”) clearly presents an argument to prove monotheism in divinity.
Conversely, philosophy can also aid in understanding certain verses. It is quite possible that many exegetes who lack grounding in philosophical foundations may fail to accurately interpret the content of those verses, such as the verses at the beginning of Surah Al-Hadid, which introduce God as both the First and the Last. While these present new issues for the philosopher, philosophy simultaneously assists in ensuring that the ontological foundations and perspectives that a philosopher has achieved are utilized for an accurate and proper understanding of such verses.
Transcendent Philosophy’s Reliance on Revelation
Among the three schools of Islamic philosophy—namely Peripatetic (Mashsha), Illuminationist (Ishraq), and Transcendent Philosophy (Hikmat al-Muta’aliyah)—without a doubt, Transcendent Philosophy has made the most extensive use of Quranic teachings in proposing and elucidating its philosophical issues. Mulla Sadra himself engaged in the exegesis of the Holy Quran and wrote a commentary on Usul al-Kafi—considered the most important hadith collection of the Shia denomination—which ranks among the finest commentaries.
Transcendent Philosophy, in addition to human reason and mystical experiences, places profound emphasis on religious texts within its reasoning. In various ways, it has devoted more attention to the Quran than the two schools preceding it, both in deriving issues from religious texts and in extracting philosophical conclusions from them.
- Text is based on an interview with IQNA News Agency.
