The upcoming issue of the journal encompasses a collection of scholarly endeavors and theoretical explorations, each of which, from a distinct perspective, delves into the fundamental issues in the fields of Islamic philosophy, epistemology, and the philosophy of religion. The mission of this issue has been to provide a platform for presenting original ideas and evaluating them within the scales of comparative and critical analysis.
The first research in this issue addresses the realm of perception and the role of the faculty of imagination, discussing the relationship between “story, imagination, and reality” in the views of Abu Nasr al-Farabi and Jean-Paul Sartre. This analysis demonstrates that unlike Sartre’s approach, which considers imagination a mechanism for negating reality, in Farabi’s view, imagination serves as a bridge between the sensory and intellectual worlds. Through art and storytelling, it renders exalted truths comprehensible for the sake of moral education and social cohesion.
However, attaining the higher levels of knowledge does not solely depend on the function of perceptual faculties; rather, it requires the inner preparedness of the epistemic agent. The second article examines the relationship between "humility and the evolution of knowledge" with an emphasis on Mulla Sadra's perspective. Relying on the concepts of "existential poverty" (faqr-i wujūdī) and "substantial motion" (ḥarakat-i jawhariyyah) (Mulla Sadra, 1383 SH, Vol. 6: 113; 1981, Vol. 8: 11), this study elucidates that humility is not merely a moral virtue, but an epistemological and ontological prerequisite for liberating the mind from dogmatism and fostering an openness to truths.
Neglecting these authentic moral and epistemic ultimate goals leads to the emergence of superficial interpretations of spirituality. The third research, employing a critical approach based on Allamah Tabatabai’s threefold criteria (Sharia, Intellect, and Wilayah), re-examines the wave of New Age spiritualities and critiques the book The Magic (by Rhonda Byrne). This article clearly illustrates how reducing a monotheistic virtue like gratitude to a mere materialistic and psychological technique confines the human being within the walls of egoism and distances them from their true ultimate telos.
In the sphere of fundamental philosophical debates, the fourth article presents a comparative re-reading of the theory of “mental existence” (wujūd-i dhihnī) in the thoughts of Jalal al-Din Dawani and Mulla Sadra. This research illustrates how the concept of “modal unfolding” (tashaʾʾun) in Dawani’s thought paved the way for an ontological understanding of perception, and how this theoretical capacity was more coherently formulated in Transcendent Theosophy (al-Ḥikmat al-Mutaʿāliyah) in light of the principles of the “principiality of existence” (aṣālat al-wujūd) and the rule of “the simple reality” (basīṭ al-ḥaqīqah). Consequently, knowledge is no longer seen merely as a mental representation, but rather as a level of the disclosure of truth.
Following these ontological and historical inquiries, the fifth research offers a critical reflection on the famous rule: “Every immaterial being is the sole individual of its species” (kullu mujarradin nawʿuhu munḥaṣirun fī fardih). By challenging the alleged consensus of the three Islamic philosophical schools regarding this rule, this article shows that not only is there evidence to the contrary in the works of Sheikh al-Ishraq (Suhrawardi), but also, from a demonstrative standpoint, the individuation and distinction of beings are not exclusively dependent on “matter” and its receptivity. Rather, considering the ontological bond of individuation with existence and the multiplicity of the aspects of emanation, the source of multiplicity among immaterial individuals can also be accurately explained through the “efficient cause”.
The reflection of these philosophical foundations in individual and social life is analyzed in the sixth research, focusing on Mulla Sadra’s anthropology based on the Hadith of “The Soldiers of Intellect and Ignorance”. This article explains how the dominance of the intellect over animalistic faculties and the repulsion of ignorance in the human soul moderate the self-interested nature and pave the way for the establishment of justice and a “sustainable and wise peace”.
In the realm of the philosophy of religion and the hermeneutics of sacred texts, the seventh article conducts a comparative study of the problem of “miracle” in the thoughts of Allamah Tabatabai and Rudolf Bultmann. This article clarifies that unlike Bultmann, who, with a demythologizing approach, reduces miracles to a symbolic and inner experience, Allamah Tabatabai, relying on the causal levels of existence, considers a miracle as an objective, rationally acceptable event reliant on divine will, which is in complete harmony with the wise system of the universe (Tabatabai, 1416 AH: 166).
Finally, the last article in this issue addresses one of the most profound human concerns, namely the “meaning of life”. By combining the ontological perspective of Allamah Tabatabai with the lived experience discussed in the views of Jaspers and Frankl, as well as the cultural contexts considered by Taylor, this research attempts to present a comprehensive three-layered model for understanding the meaning of life. In this model, meaning is not merely a mental construct, but the outcome of the synthesis between existential truth and human experience.
It is hoped that the articles presented in this issue will open new horizons for scholars and enthusiasts of Islamic philosophy and theology, and pave the way for fruitful reflections in these arenas.