فصلنامه نقد و نظر
سال چهاردهم شماره 3 (پیاپی 55، پاییز 1388)

Scholars of methodology of jurisprudence (usul fiqh) in discussing whether the object of an imperative is nature (essence) of thing or its individuals are to explain the object of desire and that of will as well. The question is whether a desire is directed to a nature of thing or to its individual. Various interpretations are given of nature, individual and their relation. This is philosophical problem in principle but few Muslim philosophers dealt with it. Doctors of usul fiqh, however, are seriously interested in this issue and presented various interesting views on the matter. This article first a brief account and examination of the most prominent views of them and finally offers a different point of view to be studied as privileged view in comparison to its alternatives concerned.

There are various philosophical treatments on probability theory. The most important question raised is that what interpretation(s) can be given about the concept of probability which plays the most basic part in the probability theory. Western philosophers have suggested different interpretations of this concept. Among Muslim thinkers Martyr Sayyed Muhammad Baqir Sadr offered an interpretation that can be called a “generic interpretation” of probability. It is commonly understood that any interpretation of this concept is adequate provided that it results in or at least is compatible with postulates of probability theory. The present article attempts to show extent to which Sadr’s interpretation is compatible with the postulates of probability theory. As it has been shown, there are some incompatibilities between generic interpretation and postulates of probability theory which, of course, can be removed in case of some modifications in Martyr Sadr’s view in this respect.

From the exegetical point of view the verse fitrah is one of the controversial verses in the Islamic history of thought. One leading interpretation of the fitrah with which God has created human nature is to say that it alludes to affirmation of Unity of God and so to Islam. This interpretation by exegetes is triggered by traditions contained in Shi‛i and Sunni canonical collections of hadith, rational clarity of belief in unity of God and by some grammatical possibilities of the term fitrah in the passage in question. many exegetes failed to give an analysis of a relation between Islam or acknowledgement on the one hand, and the human primordial nature on the other. Zamakhshari and Tabarsi understtod this relation in terms of rationality of Islamic doctrines. Ibn Arabi and Mulla Sadra presented complex mystical and philosophical accounts of this relation and confined it to the doctrine of Unity of God. The Late Shahabdi and Allmah Tabatabae, however, achieved some innovations on this domain and explained the relation of fitrah with not only Unity of God but with other Islamic teachings as well. The exegeses made by the latter figures are privileged and of more value in comparison to views offered by earlier and later exegetes due to their totality, rationality, simplicity and understandability for general addressee of the revelation

Many religions hold that their holy scriptures are somewhat words of God which means that He communicated His words to human beings. The divine inspiration (or as in Islamic tradition revelation) theories explain this sort of relation between God and human mediator. When a theory claims that a holy scripture (like Quran or Bible) is divinely inspired, it emphasizes on two points: mechanism of inspiration (revelation), and the extent of inspiration (revelation). The former explain how the divine content is conveyed to human mediator, while the latter describes how much the existing materials in scripture are inspired (revealed). Christians believe their Scripture to be divinely inspired and thus present theories to establish their claim. These theories are generally divided into two categories: theories that hold the words and passages of the Bible to be divinely inspired, and theories that search for divine inspiration beyond the words and phrases. The present article deals with only the former type of theories. In view of the crucial importance of treatment of inspiration and revelation in the intellectual milieu of Iran, examination of current theories in other religious milieus can be of great use.

According to Dr Nasr the nature of human being is invariable and unchangeable reality and changes of communities in the course of history are accidental which have left no change in the very nature of man. Dr Nasr, however, gives a special image of modern man as well as that of traditional one and thus distinguishes between two sorts of modern and traditional humanology. Examination of Dr. Nasr’s view on unchangeable features of man and those specific of modern man shows that he has also listed some needs for humanity in general and for contemporary men in particular. The most important of these needs are: the need for Holy Essence, metaphysical knowledge, meaning of life, peaceful coexistence, preservation of life environment, sacred science, and the integrity of human character

This article deals with the relation between the theory of semantics of rigid designation of proper nouns in natural language and tat of metaphysical essentialism about individuals. More specifically the auther examines extent to which Kripke’s arguments for each of his essentialist claims depends on the theory of rigidity of proper nouns. In this way the present article attempts first to explain each one of these theories and then to distinguish three different levels ofessentialism in naming and the necessity, and finally to study the relation of each of essentialist claims with rigidity of proper nouns. Kripke, as it has been shown, is in no case dependent on semantic premisses in arguing for any of his fundamental essentialist claims.

This article takes a glance at mystical literature and doctrines of Muslim mystics in earlier centuries with a brief survey of their social concerns and whether mystical ethics is simply an individual and indifferent ethics with no interest in social life or it is concerned about it and shows interest in social institutions. In addition to explaining the concept of social ethics and listing its various meanings, this article attempts to discuss briefly what is to be found in mystical literature as warning doctrines and elements toward entering social networks. It also considers encouraging elements in joining such networks, focusing on the social role the Islamic mystics have played in the course of history. Through analysis of the mystic and Sufi doctrines the author attempts to give an account of relation between mystic ethics and sociability of mystics and thus their concerns about society.