Al-Ghazali (Persian: ابو حامد محمد ابن محمد غزالی توسی, romanized: Abū Ḥāmid Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad Ghazālī Ṭūsi; c. 1058 – 19 December 1111), also known by his Latinized name Algazelus, was a distinguished Shafi'i Sunni Muslim Iranian scholar and polymath. He is recognized as one of the most significant and impactful figures in Islamic history, excelling as a jurisconsult, legal theoretician, mufti, philosopher, theologian, logician, and mystic.
Al-Ghazali is widely regarded as the mujaddid, or renewer of faith, for the 11th century, a figure prophesied to emerge every hundred years to revitalize the Islamic community's spiritual foundations. His profound contributions earned him the esteemed honorific "Proof of Islam" (Ḥujjat al-Islām) from his contemporaries. Furthermore, he held a distinguished position as a leading mujtahid within the Shafi'i school of law.
A significant portion of Al-Ghazali's intellectual output originated from the spiritual crises he experienced after assuming leadership of the Nizamiyya of Baghdad, then the most esteemed academic post in the Islamic world. This profound internal conflict prompted his withdrawal from public life for over a decade, during which he recognized a prioritization of worldly status and ego over divine devotion. Many of his seminal works were composed during this period of introspection. He contended that the Islamic spiritual tradition had stagnated and that the spiritual sciences cultivated by the early Muslim generations had been neglected. This conviction inspired his magnum opus, Iḥyā’ ‘ulūm ad-dīn ("The Revival of the Religious Sciences"). Another notable contribution, Tahāfut al-Falāsifa ("Incoherence of the Philosophers"), stands as a pivotal text in philosophical history, notably for its early critique of Aristotelian science, anticipating similar developments in 14th-century Europe.
Biographical Information
Al-Ghazali, a Muslim scholar of Persian heritage, was born around c. 1058 in Tabaran, a town situated within the Tus district of Khorasan. His birth occurred shortly after the Seljuk conquest of Baghdad, which concluded the rule of the Shia Buyid Amir al-umaras and initiated significant Seljuk influence over the Caliphate. This period of expanding Seljuk power was further solidified by events such as Abu Suleiman Dawud Chaghri Beg's marriage of his daughter, Arslan Khatun Khadija, to Caliph al-Qa'im in 1056.
A posthumous account, whose veracity has been debated by contemporary scholars, suggests that Al-Ghazali's father died in destitution, entrusting his young sons, Al-Ghazali and Ahmad, to the care of a Sufi. However, 'Abd al-Ghafir al-Farisi, Al-Ghazali's contemporary and earliest biographer, simply states that Al-Ghazali commenced his studies in fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence) under Ahmad al-Radhakani, a local instructor, and Abu Ali Farmadi, a Naqshbandi Sufi from Tus. Subsequently, he pursued further education in Nishapur under al-Juwayni, an eminent jurist and theologian widely considered "the most outstanding Muslim scholar of his time," potentially following an earlier period of study in Gurgan. Following al-Juwayni's demise in 1085, Al-Ghazali left Nishapur to join the court of Nizam al-Mulk, the influential vizier of the Seljuk empire, likely based in Isfahan. In July 1091, after bestowing upon Al-Ghazali the honorifics "Brilliance of the Religion" and "Eminence among the Religious Leaders," Nizam al-Mulk appointed him to the Nizamiyya of Baghdad, then considered the "most prestigious and most challenging" professorial role.
In 1095, Al-Ghazali experienced a profound spiritual crisis, leading him to relinquish his academic career and depart from Baghdad under the guise of undertaking a pilgrimage to Mecca. He made provisions for his family, divested himself of his possessions, and embraced an ascetic existence. Biographer Duncan B. Macdonald suggests that his withdrawal from scholarly pursuits aimed to engage directly with spiritual experience and a more fundamental comprehension of "the Word and the Traditions." Following periods spent in Damascus and Jerusalem, including a This seclusion entailed refraining from instruction at state-funded institutions; however, he continued to publish, host visitors, and teach within the zawiya (private madrasa) and khanqah (Sufi lodge) he had established.
Fakhr al-Mulk, grand vizier to Ahmad Sanjar, urged al-Ghazali's return to the Nizamiyya of Nishapur. Al-Ghazali reluctantly acceded in 1106, anticipating significant resistance and controversy concerning his teachings. Subsequently, he returned to Tus, declining a 1110 invitation from the grand vizier of Seljuq Sultan Muhammad I to resume his post in Baghdad. His death occurred on December 19, 1111. 'Abd al-Ghafir al-Farisi reported that al-Ghazali had several daughters but no sons. He was interred near his residence in Tus, Iran.
School affiliations
Al-Ghazali played a pivotal role in systematizing Sufism and fostering its integration and acceptance within mainstream Islamic thought. As an Islamic scholar, he was affiliated with the Shafi'i school of jurisprudence and the Ash'arite school of theology. Al-Ghazali was bestowed with numerous honorific titles, including Zayn al-Dīn (زين الدين) and Ḥujjat al-Islām (حجة الإسلام).
He is considered a central figure within the influential Ash'arite school of early Muslim philosophy and a primary critic of the Mu'tazilites. Nevertheless, his philosophical stance diverged somewhat from that of the mainstream Ash'arites. Consequently, certain aspects of his beliefs and intellectual framework differed from orthodox Ash'arite doctrine.
Decade of seclusion
In 488, at the zenith of his academic career as the foremost scholar of the Islamic world's most esteemed institution, al-Ghazali resolved to relinquish his position and embark on a decade-long spiritual journey. Reports indicate that al-Ghazali experienced significant emotional and physical distress, manifesting as appetite loss, indigestion, and an inability to deliver his lectures with his usual eloquence. After prominent medical practitioners failed to alleviate his conditions with conventional treatments, they concluded that the root cause was psychological and spiritual, necessitating a spiritual remedy.
Al-Ghazali expressed strong criticism regarding the social and spiritual state of his academic institution, his scholarly contemporaries, and the political elite. To circumvent potential opposition from the leadership, he initially declared his intention to undertake the Hajj pilgrimage. Al-Ghazali subsequently divested himself of his possessions and distributed his assets, reportedly retaining enough for his dependents and donating the remainder to charitable causes.
His initial destination was Damascus, specifically the Umayyad Mosque. While in Damascus, he undertook the role of a mosque sweeper and resided in the mosque's minaret. This period marked the creation of his most renowned Islamic works, many of which remain seminal texts of that epoch. His magnum opus, Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn, was composed during this time. Other significant works from this period include al-Maqṣad al-asnā fī sharḥ asmāʾ Allāh al-ḥusnā, Bidāyat al-hidāya, al-Wajīz, Jawāhir al-Qurʾān, al-Arbaʿīn fī uṣūl al-dīn, al-Maḍnūn bihi ʿalā ghayr ahlih, al-Maẓnūn al-ṣaghīr, Fayṣal al-tafriqa, al-Qānūn al-kullī fī al-taʾwīl (Qānūn al-taʾwīl, p. 95, 111), Kīmiyā-yi Saʿādat, and Ayyuhā al-walad, in addition to those previously mentioned concerning Bāṭinism.
Al-Ghazali returned to Nishapur in Dhu al-Qa'da 499 (July 1106), where he recommenced teaching at the Nizamiyya. As articulated in his work al-Munqidh (pp. 65–68), believed to have been composed during this period of introspection:
"Before I was teaching the knowledge that brought prestige and position…; now, however, I am calling to the knowledge that leads one to renounce position."
Works
Approximately 70 works are attributed to al-Ghazali. He is also credited with issuing a fatwa condemning the Taifa kings of al-Andalus, asserting their lack of principle, unsuitability for governance, and advocating for their removal from authority. Yusuf ibn Tashfin subsequently utilized this fatwa to legitimize his conquest of al-Andalus.
Incoherence of the Philosophers
Al-Ghazali's 11th-century treatise, Tahāfut al-Falāsifa (The Incoherence of the Philosophers), represented a pivotal shift in Islamic epistemology. His engagement with skepticism prompted al-Ghazali to explore theological occasionalism, a doctrine positing that all causal events and interactions arise not from material conjunctions but directly from the immediate and present will of God.
In the subsequent century, Ibn Rushd, also known as Averroes, composed an extensive refutation of al-Ghazali's Incoherence, titling it The Incoherence of the Incoherence. Nevertheless, the epistemological trajectory of Islamic philosophy had already been established. Al-Ghazali illustrated the perceived illusion of independent causal laws by citing the combustion of cotton upon contact with fire. He contended that while this phenomenon might appear to be governed by a natural law, its occurrence was consistently attributable to divine will, asserting that the event constituted "a direct product of divine intervention as any more attention grabbing miracle". Conversely, Averroes maintained that although God established natural laws, humans "could more usefully say that fire caused cotton to burn—because creation had a pattern that they could discern."
The Incoherence additionally represented a pivotal moment in Islamic philosophy due to its forceful repudiation of Aristotelian and Platonic doctrines. This treatise specifically targeted the Falāsifa, a broadly categorized collective of Islamic philosophers active from the 8th to the 11th centuries, prominently including Avicenna and al-Farabi, who derived intellectual inspiration from Ancient Greek thought.
The precise impact of Al-Ghazali's work remains a subject of scholarly discussion. In 2007, George Saliba, a Professor of Arabic and Islamic Science, contended that the perceived decline of scientific inquiry in the 11th century has been exaggerated, citing ongoing progress, especially in astronomy, extending into the 14th century.
In 2012, Professor of Mathematics Nuh Aydin observed that "it is a widespread belief among orientalists that one of the major factors, if not the single most important reason, for the decline of science in the Islamic world after its golden age is al-Ghazali's attack on philosophers". This critique reached its zenith in his treatise Incoherence, where the core concept of theological occasionalism posits that philosophers are unable to provide rational elucidations for either metaphysical or physical inquiries. This notion gained traction, subsequently diminishing critical thought within the Islamic world.
Conversely, author and journalist Hassan Hassan posited in 2012 that although scientific intellectual activity in Islam experienced suppression during the 11th century, the primary responsibility for this decline should be attributed to Nizam al-Mulk, rather than al-Ghazali.
The Revival of Religious Sciences (Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm al-Dīn)
Another significant contribution by al-Ghazali is Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm al-Dīn, also known as The Revival of Religious Sciences. This comprehensive work encompasses nearly all domains of Islamic scholarship, including fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence), kalam (theology), and Sufism.
The work is structured into four principal divisions: Acts of Worship (Rub' al-'ibadat), Norms of Daily Life (Rub' al-'adatat), The Ways to Perdition (Rub' al-muhlikat), and The Ways to Salvation (Rub' al-munjiyat). The Iḥyāʾ subsequently attained prominence as the most frequently recited Islamic text following the Qur'an and the Hadith. Its significant accomplishment lay in its synthesis of orthodox Sunni theology and Sufi mysticism, presenting a practical and exhaustive guide for all facets of Muslim existence. The book garnered considerable acclaim from Islamic scholars, including Nawawi, who asserted: "Were the books of Islam all to be lost, excepting only the Ihya', it would suffice to replace them all." Nevertheless, this favorable reception was not ubiquitous, as the book faced public burning in Almoravid Spain in 1109 and 1143. This opposition stemmed from al-Ghazali's critique of the fuqaha for their involvement in political affairs, as well as his syncretic approach and endorsement of Sufism. Reportedly, upon learning of his book's destruction, al-Ghazali prophesied the emergence of the Almohad dynasty and entrusted its founder, Ibn Tumart, with the mandate to depose Almoravid governance.
The Alchemy of Happiness
The Alchemy of Happiness constitutes a revised rendition of The Revival of the Religious Sciences. Following an existential crisis that prompted a thorough re-evaluation of his lifestyle and religious perspective, al-Ghazali compiled The Alchemy of Happiness.
Disciplining the Soul
A pivotal section of Ghazali's Revival of the Religious Sciences is Disciplining the Soul, which examines the internal conflicts inherent to a Muslim's life. The first chapter primarily details the cultivation of positive attributes and commendable personal characteristics. The second chapter specifically addresses sexual gratification and gluttony. Ghazali asserts that these desires and needs are natural to all individuals. Nevertheless, the Islamic prophet Muhammad explicitly mandated a middle ground, crucial for faithful adherence to Islamic tenets. Ghazali's ultimate objective, presented across these two chapters and indeed the entirety of The Revival of the Religious Sciences, is to establish moderation and equilibrium within every aspect of the human soul. These discussions constitute the 22nd and 23rd chapters, respectively, of Ghazali's Revival of the Religious Sciences.
The Eternity of the World
Al-Ghazali articulated his refutation of the Aristotelian perspective on the world's creation in The Eternity of the World. He fundamentally presented two primary arguments against what he considered a sacrilegious philosophical stance. A core tenet of the Aristotelian framework posits that motion invariably precedes motion; specifically, one force always generates another, implying that any force's existence necessitates a preceding force acting upon it. This principle suggests that time extends infinitely into both the past and the future, thereby precluding the notion of God creating the universe at a singular, specific moment. Al-Ghazali countered this by initially asserting that if the world possessed precise boundaries at its inception, then in its present form, there would be no logical requirement for a temporal period preceding its divine creation.
The Decisive Criterion for Distinguishing Islam from Clandestine Unbelief
In The Decisive Criterion for Distinguishing Islam from Clandestine Unbelief, Al-Ghazali delineates his approach to Muslim orthodoxy. Diverging from the often rigid positions of many contemporaries, Ghazali asserted that belief in Muhammad and God alone permits diverse modes of Islamic practice, and that any tradition faithfully observed by believers should not be deemed heretical by other Muslims. While affirming that a Muslim practicing Islam in good faith is not guilty of apostasy, Ghazali nonetheless specifies in The Criterion that one particular standard of Islam is more accurate than others, and that individuals practicing the faith incorrectly should be encouraged to reform. In Ghazali's view, only Muhammad himself possessed the authority to deem a faithfully practicing Muslim an infidel, and his work served as a reaction to the religious persecution and strife prevalent among various Islamic sects during that period.
Deliverance from Error
Al-Ghazali's autobiography, composed late in his life and titled Deliverance From Error (المنقذ من الضلال al-Munqidh min al-Dalal), holds significant scholarly importance. Within this work, al-Ghazali details how, following the resolution of a crisis of epistemological skepticism through "a light which God Most High cast into my breast ... the key to most knowledge," he proceeded to study and master the tenets of kalam, Islamic philosophy, and Ismailism. Despite acknowledging the merits of at least the first two disciplines, he ultimately concluded that all three approaches were insufficient, finding ultimate spiritual value solely in the mystical experience and insight derived from Sufi practices. William James, in his work Varieties of Religious Experience, regarded this autobiography as a crucial text for "the purely literary student who would like to become acquainted with the inwardness of religions other than the Christian," citing the scarcity of recorded personal religious confessions and autobiographical literature from this era outside the Christian tradition.
Works in Persian
Al-Ghazali composed the majority of his scholarly output in both Persian and Arabic. His most significant Persian contribution is Kimiya-yi sa'adat (The Alchemy of Happiness), which serves as his condensed Persian adaptation of the Arabic text Ihya' 'ulum al-din (The Revival of Religious Sciences). This work stands as a prominent example of 11th-century Persian literature. It has undergone multiple publications in Tehran, notably through the edition prepared by the esteemed Iranian scholar Hussain Khadev-jam, and has been translated into English, Arabic, Turkish, Urdu, Azerbaijani, and various other languages.
Another authentic work attributed to al-Ghazali is the initial section of the *Nasihat al-muluk* (Counsel for Kings), addressed to the Saljuqid ruler of Khurasan, Ahmad b. Malik-shah Sanjar (r. 490-552/1097-1157). This text was composed in 503/1109, following an official reception at Sanjar's court and at his specific request. Al-Ghazali had been summoned due to the intrigues of his opponents and their criticism of his student's Arabic compilation, *al-Mankhul min taʿliqat al-usul* (The sifted notes on the fundamentals), as well as his refusal to continue teaching at the Nizamiyya of Nishapur. Following the reception, al-Ghazali reportedly held a private audience with Sanjar, during which he quoted Quran 14:24: "Have you not seen how Allah sets forth a parable of a beautiful phrase (being) like a beautiful tree, whose roots are firm and whose branches are in Heaven." The genuine *Nasihat al-muluk* is essentially an official epistle, featuring a brief explanatory note on *al-Manḵul* appended to its frontispiece.
A substantial number of other Persian texts, often ascribed to al-Ghazali to leverage his renown and authority, particularly within the "Mirrors for Princes" genre, are either deliberate fabrications created for various motives or compilations erroneously attributed to him. The most prominent among these is Ay farzand (O Child!), which is unequivocally a literary forgery composed in Persian one or two generations subsequent to al-Ghazali's demise. The sources utilized for this forgery include two authentic letters by al-Ghazali (partially letter number 4 and entirely letter number 33), both found in Fazaʾil al-anam. Additional sources comprise a letter known as ʿAyniya, penned by Muhammad's younger brother Majd al-Din Ahmad al-Ghazali (d. 520/1126) to his notable disciple ʿAyn al-Quzat Hamadani (492-526/1098-1131), published in the Majmuʿa-yi athar-i farsi-yi Ahmad-i Ghazali (Collection of the Persian writings of Ahmad Ghazali), and a letter by ʿAyn al-Quzat himself, featured in the Namaha-yi ʿAyn al-Quzat Hamadani (Letters by ʿAyn al-Quzat Hamadani). Subsequently, Ay farzand was translated into Arabic, gaining widespread recognition as Ayyuha al-walad, which is the Arabic equivalent of the Persian title. The earliest manuscripts of this Arabic translation date from the latter half of the 16th century, with most others originating in the 17th century. The initial known secondary translation from Arabic into Ottoman Turkish occurred in 983/1575. In contemporary times, the text has been translated from Arabic into numerous European languages and has seen countless publications in Turkey under the titles Eyyühe'l-Veled or Ey Oğul.
The less renowned *Pand-nama* (Book of Counsel), another work within the genre of advice literature, is a much later compilation by an anonymous author, formally addressed to an unspecified ruler. This text was falsely attributed to al-Ghazali, likely due to its extensive incorporation of fragments primarily derived from various sections of the *Kimiya-yi saʿadat*.
Influence
Throughout his lifetime, al-Ghazali authored more than seventy volumes encompassing science, Islamic philosophy, and Sufism. He was instrumental in the integration of Sufism with Sharia, and notably, he was the first to articulate a formal description of Sufism within his writings. His extensive body of work also served to bolster the standing of Sunni Islam in opposition to other theological schools. During al-Ghazali's era, the Batinite (Ismailism) movement had gained considerable traction in Persian territories, a period marked by the assassination of Nizam al-Mulk by Ismaili adherents. In his treatise Fada'ih al-Batiniyya (The Infamies of the Esotericists), al-Ghazali unequivocally condemned them as unbelievers whose lives could be forfeited. Al-Ghazali successfully fostered broad acceptance for Sufism, often at the expense of philosophical discourse. Paradoxically, in his critiques of philosophers, he employed their own philosophical categories, thereby inadvertently contributing to their broader dissemination.
Al-Ghazali's core religious philosophy asserted that the Creator constituted the central focus of all human existence and directly influenced global events. His impact extended beyond Islamic thought, as his writings circulated extensively among Christian and Hebrew scholars and philosophers. Notable Western figures influenced by al-Ghazali include Dante, Thomas Aquinas, and David Hume. Moses Ben Maimon, a Jewish theologian, was also profoundly shaped by al-Ghazali's works. A significant accomplishment attributed to al-Ghazali was his authorship and educational reforms, which established the framework for Islamic education from the 12th to the 19th centuries. Furthermore, Islamic mathematicians and astronomers, such as Nasir al-Din al-Tusi, frequently referenced al-Ghazali's writings.
Although al-Ghazali considered himself primarily a mystic or religious scholar rather than a philosopher, many academics widely recognize him as a preeminent figure in Islamic philosophy and intellectual discourse. He characterized his philosophical methodology as a quest for genuine knowledge, encompassing a profound comprehension of philosophical and scientific principles, alongside an enhanced understanding of mysticism and cognition. The era subsequent to Ghazali's contributions has been provisionally termed the "Golden Age of Arabic philosophy," largely due to his successful incorporation of logic into the curriculum of Islamic seminaries (Madrasahs).
Isaac Abravanel cited Ghazali to support the assertion that Greek scientific and philosophical knowledge originated from Jewish sources.
Scholarly Works
In a letter to Sultan Sanjar during his later years, al-Ghazali stated that he had authored "more than 70" works. Approximately "five dozen" of these are considered plausibly identifiable, while several hundred attributed works, often duplicates due to title variations, are regarded as doubtful or spurious.
The practice of falsely attributing works to al-Ghazali intensified during the 13th century, following the widespread circulation of Ibn Arabi's extensive body of writings.
Bibliographies have been compiled by scholars such as William Montgomery Watt (The Works Attributed to Al-Ghazali) and Maurice Bouyges (Essai de chronologie des oeuvres d'Al-Ghazali), among others.
Economic Philosophy
Al-Ghazali's economic philosophy was fundamentally shaped by his Islamic convictions. He posited that economic activity held significance not only for its societal benefits but also as a prerequisite for spiritual salvation.
He delineated three objectives for economic activity, which he considered integral to religious duty: "achievement of self-sufficiency for one's survival; provision for the well-being of one's progeny; and provision for assisting those in economic need." While acknowledging that individuals might voluntarily adopt a subsistence lifestyle for personal spiritual reasons, he contended that such a practice would be unsustainable and detrimental if widely adopted by the general populace, given its potential negative economic repercussions. Conversely, he advocated against the acquisition or possession of superfluous material goods, proposing that surplus earnings should be directed towards aiding the impoverished.
Al-Ghazali did not consider the enforcement of income equality in society to be a necessity. Instead, he promoted the idea that individuals should be motivated by the "spirit of Islamic brotherhood," encouraging them to voluntarily distribute their wealth. Nevertheless, he recognized that this ideal was not universally observed. He proposed that acquired wealth could serve two primary functions. The first involves personal well-being, encompassing the maintenance of one's own health and that of their family, alongside providing care for others and contributing to the welfare of the Islamic community. The second function, which al-Ghazali deemed a misuse, involves selfish expenditure on extravagant or superfluous material possessions.
Regarding commerce, al-Ghazali emphasized the imperative of exchanging goods both between proximate cities and across broader borders, as this facilitates greater access to essential and previously unavailable commodities for diverse populations. While acknowledging trade's necessity and its overall positive economic impact, he suggested that generating profit through such means might not always align with the highest virtues in his ethical framework. Consequently, he discouraged individuals from extracting "excessive" profits from their commercial transactions.
Reception of Work
William Montgomery Watt asserted that al-Ghazali was recognized as the mujaddid ("Reviver") of his era. A significant number, possibly a majority, of subsequent Muslim scholars concurred with this assessment, with some, as noted by Watt, even ranking him as the most eminent Muslim figure following Muhammad.
For instance, the Islamic scholar al-Safadi remarked:
Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Ahmad, known as the Proof of Islam and Ornament of the Faith, Abu Hamid al-Tusi (al-Ghazali), the Shafi'ite jurist, possessed no equal in his later years.
Furthermore, the jurist al-Yafi'i declared:
He was known as 'The Proof of Islam' and undeniably lived up to this designation, being utterly trustworthy in matters of faith. He provided numerous concise summaries elucidating the foundational principles of religion, condensing repetitive material and abridging lengthy discussions. He offered many clear explanations for profound subjects, presenting concise clarifications and definitive solutions to complex problems. He maintained a moderate demeanor, quietly yet decisively silencing opponents, though his pronouncements were like a sharp sword-thrust in refuting slanderers and preserving the true path of guidance.
The Shafi'i jurist al-Subki asserted:
'If a prophet were to have emerged after Muhammad, al-Ghazali would have been that person.'
Additionally, the widely respected Sunni scholar al-Dhahabi, in his commendation of al-Ghazali, wrote: "Al-Ghazali, the Imam and Shaykh, a distinguished scholar, Hujjat al-Islam, the marvel of his era, Zayn al-Deen Abu Hamid Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Tusi al-Shafa'i al-Ghazali, authored numerous books and possessed exceptional intellect. He pursued studies in fiqh in his hometown before relocating to Nishapur with a group of students. There, he resided with the Imam al-Haramayn and rapidly acquired profound expertise in fiqh. He subsequently mastered 'ilm al-kalam and debate, ultimately becoming the foremost debater."
The rationalist Ibn Rushd (Averroes) famously retorted that "to assert the incoherence of philosophers is, in itself, an incoherent declaration." Rushd's treatise, The Incoherence of the Incoherence, sought to challenge al-Ghazali's perspectives; however, this work did not gain widespread acceptance within the Muslim community.
Historian Firas Alkhateeb posits that "a superficial reading of Imam al-Ghazali's writings can readily lead to a misinterpretation of his stance as generally anti-scientific. The reality, however, is that al-Ghazali's sole admonition to students was against uncritically adopting all beliefs and ideas of a scholar merely due to their accomplishments in mathematics and science. By issuing this caution, al-Ghazali effectively safeguarded the scientific endeavor for future generations, preventing its amalgamation with theoretical philosophy, which could ultimately reduce science to a discipline founded solely on conjecture and reasoning."
Orientalist scholars have attributed a decline in Islamic scientific progress to Al-Ghazali, citing his refutation of contemporary philosophical currents. He reportedly perceived a threat in philosophical assertions that posited a non-omniscient or even non-existent deity, which fundamentally diverged from his orthodox Islamic convictions. This interpretation, however, has faced scholarly scrutiny. Al-Ghazali's subsequent declaration has been presented as counter-evidence to the claim of his opposition to scientific progress: "Indeed, a grave offense against religion is perpetrated by anyone who presumes that Islam is to be defended through the repudiation of mathematical sciences." This particular statement, whose original source is not specified in the referenced publication, originates from Deliverance from Error. Ghazali's intent is not to imply that disregarding mathematical study constitutes an offense against science or reason, but rather that its outright rejection is an affront to religious principles. The objective is not to advocate for mathematical study, but rather to denounce the perspective that views mathematics as antagonistic to religion. From his viewpoint, religion has no cause for apprehension regarding mathematics, as their respective domains of inquiry are distinct. To proscribe the study of mathematics out of concern for its potential threat to religion is to misapprehend their respective roles. This point is further elucidated by the subsequent sentence: "For the divine revelation neither seeks to invalidate nor validate these disciplines, and these disciplines, in turn, do not engage with theological concerns." Subsequently, he asserts that philosophical texts should be prohibited, defining philosophy as encompassing six distinct branches: mathematical, logical, physical, metaphysical, political, and moral. Al-Ghazali's intellectual contributions significantly impacted figures such as Ibn Rushd, Ayn al-Quzat Hamadani, al-Nawawi, Ibn Tumart, Fakhruddin Razi, Suyuti, Tan Malaka, Thomas Aquinas, David Hume, Sayf al-Din al-Amidi, Asad Mayhani, Ali al-Qari, and Muhammad Ibn Yahya al-Janzi.
- List of Ash'aris and Maturidis
- List of Sufis
- Nasîhatnâme
References
Notes
Citations
Sources
- Fieser, James; Dowden, Bradley (eds.). "Al-Ghazālī." In Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. ISSN 2161-0002. OCLC 37741658.
- Fieser, James; Dowden, Bradley (eds.). "Al-Ghazālī". Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. ISSN 2161-0002. OCLC 37741658.Griffel, Frank. "Al-Ghazali." In Zalta, Edward N. (ed.), Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. ISSN 1095-5054. OCLC 429049174.Source: TORIma Academy Archive