Al-Farabi Flashcards
(46 cards)
Dates
c. 870-951 CE
What did he arguably found?
Islamic philosophy (falsafa)
What was he called?
‘The Second Master’ (after Aristotle), due to his systematic and original engagement with Greek thought
How did he become well known?
Through the works of Avicenna
Metaphysics
The branch of philosophy that deals with the first principles of things, including abstract concepts such as being, knowing, identity, time, and space
Virtuous City
Proposes that a just society mirrors the cosmic order, led ideally by a philosopher-prophet who unites rational knowledge and revelation
What is logic?
Logic is foundational: it is the instrument for correct reasoning and the precondition for sound theology, jurisprudence, and metaphysics
Role of religion
Religion plays an epistemic and civic role, guiding the masses through accessible narratives and rituals while supporting the philosopher-ruler in creating a harmonious society
Defining analogy
From our knowledge that a judgement (a) applies to a certain subject (d), we transfer this judgement to another subject (c) to which this judgement was not known to apply but which resembles (d) in a certain way.
D (predicate) has judgement A, therefore C (predicate) should due to similarity have judgement A
To make this transfer of judgement possible, we need to show why/how (a) relates to (d), which will subsequently serve as the reason as to why (a) relates to (c)
Farabi’s example of analogy
Known case (d): Animals
Judgement (a): Are created (i.e., came into existence)
Unknown case (c): The planets or heavens
Shared cause/likeness (b): Being inseparable from contingent things (muqārin li-l-ḥawādith)
Potential objections to analogy
If (b) is not the cause of (a) in all instances then the transfer of (a) to (c) is not warranted
If (b) is the cause of (a) in all instances (we have an a-b causal relation), we can regiment the argument as a first figure syllogism, wherein the conclusion follows necessarily from the premises
If we can put something into a first figure syllogism, it is no longer analogy - the initial case (d, animals) is no longer needed
(Ghazali)
Cosmology - meaning
The science of the origin and development of the universe
Emanation
He adopts an emanationist framework: the universe flows hierarchically from the First Cause, losing perfection with each emanation
Cosmology - society
Political structures and religion must be rooted in a cosmological understanding to function properly
Cosmology is not symbolic – it is real, ontological, and epistemological, and politics is built on it
Cosmology - Damien Janos
Cosmology underpins all of al-Fārābī’s philosophical project and cannot be reduced to metaphor. It is the framework within which all of al-Fārābī’s other concerns make sense
Dimitri Gutas
Highlights the structural role of metaphysics in al-Fārābī’s thought, tracing Aristotelian roots
Neoplatonica Arabic
Arabic translations and adaptations of Neoplatonic philosophy, especially texts falsely attributed to Aristotle (like the Theology of Aristotle) that actually stem from Plotinus and Proclus, reworked by Syriac and Arabic translators
Philosophy and culture
Believes true (Greek) philosophy offers universal truths, applicable across cultural boundaries
Gutas - Kindi
Frames al-Fārābī as continuing al-Kindī’s project of fusing Greek and Islamic thought
DiPasquale - correction
Suggests al-Fārābī may ‘correct’ Aristotle to fit a more Platonic (or Islamic) framework e.g. rejects the eternity of the world to fit it with Islamic theology
Janos - method
Emphasises that Greek philosophy is a method, not a concern in itself
Virtuous City - analogy
The Virtuous City functions analogously to the universe: led by a philosopher-king as a microcosm of the First Cause
Janos - politics
Warns against reducing his metaphysics to political metaphor – cosmology comes first
Aim of politics
Politics aims at happiness (saʿāda), which is ultimately achievable through philosophical knowledge
