Islamic Philosophy from Its Origin to the Present: Philosophy in the ...

Dimensions of the Islamic Intellectual Tradition 133
Mu‘tazilite kalåm as a result of which this form of kalåm lasted in
Yemen, the home of Zayd¥ Shi‘ism, long after it had ceased to exist as
a notable school of thought elsewhere in the Islamic world. Ismå‘¥l¥
thought, both philosophical and theological, developed early in the
history of Islam, and the two remained close to each other. Some of
the earlier Ismå‘¥l¥ thinkers, for example, ¡am¥d al-D¥n al-Kirmån¥ (d.
ca. 408/1017) and Nå∑ir-i Khusraw (d. between 465/1072 and 470/
1077), were more philosophers than theologians. Others, including Ab¨
¡at¥m al-Råz¥ (d. 322/933) and al-Mu˘ayyid fi˘l-D¥n al-Sh¥råz¥ (d. 470/
1077), were more theologians than philosophers. But both groups dealt
with the major themes of Ismå‘¥l¥ thought, such as the meta-ontological
status of the “unknowable” God or Deus absconditus, the inabililty of
the intellect to know the Divine Essence, the illumination of the intellect
by the Prophet and the Imams, the celestial archetype of Adam,
the relation between the function of prophecy (nubuwwah) and initiatic
power (walåyah/wilayah), and esoteric hermeneutics (ta˘w¥l). 13
Twelve-Imam Shi‘ite kalåm, however, developed much later. The
early concern of Twelve-Imam Shi‘ite thinkers was mostly ¡ad¥th,
Quranic commentary, and jurisprudence, although earlier Shi‘ite thinkers,
including Shaykh al-Muf¥d (d. 413/1022), must also be considered
as theologians. It was, however, only in the seventh/thirteenth century
that the first systematic treatise on Twelve-Imam Shi‘ite kalåm
was written by none other than the celebrated mathematician and
philosopher Nå∑ir al-D¥n al-apple¨s¥ (d. 672/1273). This is probably the
only instance in history in which the major theological text of a religious
community was composed by a scientist of the order of Nå∑ir al-
D¥n. The work of apple¨s¥ entitled Tajr¥d al-i‘tiqåd (Catharsis of Doctrines)
became rapidly the standard theological text, and more than a hundred
commentaries came to be written on it before this century. Perhaps
the most notable commentary is the Kashf al-muråd (The Unveiling
of the Desired) by ‘Allamåh Jamål al-D¥n al-¡ill¥ (d. 726/1326), who
is the most notable Shi‘ite mutakallim after apple¨s¥.
In studying this major opus, one can see clearly how Twelve-
Imam Shi‘ite kalåm differs in its concerns from early Ash‘arism. The
work begins with a discussion of being and nonbeing and modes and
grades of being. It develops an elaborate ontology that reminds one
more of the ontology of Ibn S¥nå than the atomism of al-Ash‘ar¥. 14 The
work then proceeds to a discussion of quiddity or essence, which
complements that of existence. Finally, the first section of the work
turns to the relation between cause and effect and the discussion of
causality in general. Again, in this basic issue, the work confirms the
reality of horizontal causality in direct opposition to the Ash‘arite view.