Sebastian Günther is Professor and Chair of Arabic and Islamic Studies at the University of Göttingen. He has previously held appointments at the University of Toronto promoted in 2003 to Associate Professor of Arabic Language and Literature, with tenure) and Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg (PhD in 1989). In addition, he has accepted repeated invitations for visiting professorships at various universities and other institutions in the Middle East, including Al-Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt
Renowned for his profound scholarship, the philosophical theologian and mystic Abū Ḥāmid al-Ghazā... more Renowned for his profound scholarship, the philosophical theologian and mystic Abū Ḥāmid al-Ghazālī (d. 505/1111) has profoundly influenced Islamic thought and education for centuries. This article presents a novel approach to studying his body of works. It analyzes six of al-Ghazālī's key works on logic in chronological order, offering a fresh perspective on his views on reasoning. Additionally, the study explicitly focuses on al-Ghazālī's concept of "logic as a tool of learning," leading into an exploration of the relevance of his insights for contemporary humanistic education.
The Brethren of Purity, a circle of high-ranking 9th and 10th-century scholars from the Iraqi por... more The Brethren of Purity, a circle of high-ranking 9th and 10th-century scholars from the Iraqi port city of Basra, is renowned for having produced an immense literary corpus of encyclopedic erudition: the Rasāʾīl Ikhwān al-Ṣafāʾ. The wide range of religious and non-religious subjects of these Epistles, the questions as to the identity of their authors and intended addressees, as well as the specifics of the language and literary devices characterizing these treatises, have fascinated readers and researchers from medieval times to the present. Surprisingly, however, the Epistles have not yet been adequately studied from the perspective of their role in Islamic educational thought. This article takes a step in that direction by looking into the pedagogical dimension of remarks the Brethren offer to conclude some of their treatises. It focuses primarily on the endings of their perhaps most programmatic texts, i.e., Epistle 7 (“On the Scientific Arts”), Epistle 8 (“On the Practical Crafts”) and Epistle 22 (“Animals versus Man”). The endings of a few individual chapters in these three works are also examined. Guiding this approach are questions such as: What differentiates each ending from the body of its respective text? What functions do they have beyond merely summarizing content? And are there indications that preceding literary and scientific traditions, Islamic or non-Islamic, may have influenced the form, language and style of these finales? Thus we hope to advance some insights into the Epistles’ role in the general development of classical Arabic writing, and their educational significance more specifically.
Maher Jarrar's pioneering study casts important new light on key issues in the developmen... more Maher Jarrar's pioneering study casts important new light on key issues in the development of dogmatic instruction in early Islam, as it examines the creed written by the Basran and Baghdadi Sunni preacher Ghulam Khalil (d. 275/888). It includes a critical edition of the Arabic text and an English translation of what appears to be one of the earliest statements of religious beliefs in Islam. In particular, this book argues that this influential text was authored by the ninth century Ghulam Khalil rather than the Hanbali preacher of Baghdad, al-Barbahari - a claim repeatedly made by modern scholars, both Western and Eastern. The present publication broaches multi-layered themes with the aim of specifying the parameters of this “Muslim Creed” in terms of the composite relationship between its content and its origin. In addition, it tackles the important question of what may have led modern Salafis to embrace the doctrinal positions of this particular statement of belief and practice and, perhaps more importantly, to pursue its “institutionalization” as a religious orthodoxy.
O LM S Representations and Visions of Homeland in Modern Arabic Literature highlights the complex... more O LM S Representations and Visions of Homeland in Modern Arabic Literature highlights the complexity, diversity, and vitality of literary voices in expressing a broad spectrum of ideas and images centered around the Arab homeland and nation. This book therefore contributes to a deeper understanding of the historical dimensions and literary representations of home and homeland in the modern Arab world on the one hand, and the far-reaching cultural and political impact of these concepts on the other.
Lesen, Deuten und Verstehen?! Debatten über heilige Texte in Orient und Okzident, herausgegeben von Sebastian Günther und Florian Wilk, Tübingen, 164-191., 2021
A study of Muslim views of the Ten Commandments in the Bible and in the Quran
Ideas, Images, and Methods of Portrayal: Insights into Classical Arabic Literature and Islam, 2005
Th article deals with the genre of “rules of conduct for teachers and students.” This remarkable ... more Th article deals with the genre of “rules of conduct for teachers and students.” This remarkable subcategory of classical Arabic literature has received little attention from modern scholarship thus far. In particular, this study scrutinizes two of the very earliest Arabic treatises devoted to educational theory and practice in Islam. These two treatises stand out in the history of ideas not only for their early date of origin, but also for the abundance and originality of the educational ideas they contain. Through a discursive analysis, this article tackles such aspects of these two texts as their socio-political context, and their literary-historical, literary-stylistic, and educational dimensions. A catalogue of solid data is established (one of the goals of hermeneutics) which, it is hoped, contributes to increasing the understanding of the educational foundations of a “learning society,” as represented by Muslim civilization between the 9th and the 11th centuries. Among the educational aspects discussed, three points seem to be particularly striking. One relates to the sincerity and enthusiasm with which both Ibn Sahnun and al-Jahiz promote such virtues as modesty, patience, and a passion for working with youth. This notion seems to anticipate the idea of the father-son relationship between teacher and student, which will become an issue of major significance in the mystical writings of al-Ghazalì and the works of other Muslim scholars of later times. A second point concerns the remarkable variety of teaching topics that Ibn Sahnun and al-Jahiz indicate for the 9th century curriculum at the elementary and higher levels of Islamic education. Finally, a third aspect relates to the importance that al-Jahiz credits to books, reading, and writing, for the stimulating effects these have on independent thinking and intellectual creativity. In fact, since the teacher instructs in reading, writing, and calculation — the “pillars” of human civilization as al-Jahiz calls them — he deserves praise and special recognition in society.
Knowledge and Education in Classical Islam: Religious Learning between Continuity and Change , 2020
Introduction to: Knowledge and Education in Classical Islam: Religious Learning between Continuit... more Introduction to: Knowledge and Education in Classical Islam: Religious Learning between Continuity and Change (2 ed. vols.)
The Intermediate Worlds of Angels: Islamic Representations of Celestial Beings in Transcultural Contexts, 2019
“As the Angels Stretch Out Their Hands (Qurʼān 6:93): The Work of Heavenly Agents according to Mu... more “As the Angels Stretch Out Their Hands (Qurʼān 6:93): The Work of Heavenly Agents according to Muslim Eschatology" is a detailed survey of the role of angels in Muslim eschatology. It focuses on classical eschatological texts, such as the works of al-Muḥāsibī (d. 243/857), al-Ghazālī (d. 505/1111), and Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya (d. 751/1350). However, it also draws attention to parallels in Rabbinic, Iranian, and ancient Egyptian traditions, showing that the highly imaginative descriptions of angels and their functions in Islam can be understood as reverberations and transformations of earlier traditions, which undergo a “resourceful adoption” to the Islamic context.
Magie im Islam - Gegenstand, Geschichte und Diskurs , 2018
Die Geheimnisse der oberen und der unteren Welt (“The Secrets of the Upper and the Lower World”) ... more Die Geheimnisse der oberen und der unteren Welt (“The Secrets of the Upper and the Lower World”) is a substantial new collection of essays on magic in Islamic cultural history. Both comprehensive and innovative in its approach, this book offers fresh insights into an important yet still understudied area of Islamic intellectual history. The eighteen chapters deal with key aspects of Islamic magic, including its historical developments, geographical variants, and modern-day practices. The general introduction identifies and problematizes numerous sub-topics and key practitioners/theoreticians in the Arabo-Islamic context. This, along with terminological and bibliographical appendices, makes the volume an unparalleled reference work for both specialists and a broader readership.
Die Geheimnisse der oberen und der unteren Welt Magie im Islam zwischen Glaube und Wissenschaft , 2018
Die Geheimnisse der oberen und der unteren Welt (“The Secrets of the Upper and the Lower World”) ... more Die Geheimnisse der oberen und der unteren Welt (“The Secrets of the Upper and the Lower World”) is a substantial new collection of essays on magic in Islamic cultural history. Both comprehensive and innovative in its approach, this book offers fresh insights into an important yet still understudied area of Islamic intellectual history. The eighteen chapters deal with key aspects of Islamic magic, including its historical developments, geographical variants, and modern-day practices. The general introduction identifies and problematizes numerous sub-topics and key practitioners/theoreticians in the Arabo-Islamic context. This, along with terminological and bibliographical appendices, makes the volume an unparalleled reference work for both specialists and a broader readership
Renowned for his profound scholarship, the philosophical theologian and mystic Abū Ḥāmid al-Ghazā... more Renowned for his profound scholarship, the philosophical theologian and mystic Abū Ḥāmid al-Ghazālī (d. 505/1111) has profoundly influenced Islamic thought and education for centuries. This article presents a novel approach to studying his body of works. It analyzes six of al-Ghazālī's key works on logic in chronological order, offering a fresh perspective on his views on reasoning. Additionally, the study explicitly focuses on al-Ghazālī's concept of "logic as a tool of learning," leading into an exploration of the relevance of his insights for contemporary humanistic education.
The Brethren of Purity, a circle of high-ranking 9th and 10th-century scholars from the Iraqi por... more The Brethren of Purity, a circle of high-ranking 9th and 10th-century scholars from the Iraqi port city of Basra, is renowned for having produced an immense literary corpus of encyclopedic erudition: the Rasāʾīl Ikhwān al-Ṣafāʾ. The wide range of religious and non-religious subjects of these Epistles, the questions as to the identity of their authors and intended addressees, as well as the specifics of the language and literary devices characterizing these treatises, have fascinated readers and researchers from medieval times to the present. Surprisingly, however, the Epistles have not yet been adequately studied from the perspective of their role in Islamic educational thought. This article takes a step in that direction by looking into the pedagogical dimension of remarks the Brethren offer to conclude some of their treatises. It focuses primarily on the endings of their perhaps most programmatic texts, i.e., Epistle 7 (“On the Scientific Arts”), Epistle 8 (“On the Practical Crafts”) and Epistle 22 (“Animals versus Man”). The endings of a few individual chapters in these three works are also examined. Guiding this approach are questions such as: What differentiates each ending from the body of its respective text? What functions do they have beyond merely summarizing content? And are there indications that preceding literary and scientific traditions, Islamic or non-Islamic, may have influenced the form, language and style of these finales? Thus we hope to advance some insights into the Epistles’ role in the general development of classical Arabic writing, and their educational significance more specifically.
Maher Jarrar's pioneering study casts important new light on key issues in the developmen... more Maher Jarrar's pioneering study casts important new light on key issues in the development of dogmatic instruction in early Islam, as it examines the creed written by the Basran and Baghdadi Sunni preacher Ghulam Khalil (d. 275/888). It includes a critical edition of the Arabic text and an English translation of what appears to be one of the earliest statements of religious beliefs in Islam. In particular, this book argues that this influential text was authored by the ninth century Ghulam Khalil rather than the Hanbali preacher of Baghdad, al-Barbahari - a claim repeatedly made by modern scholars, both Western and Eastern. The present publication broaches multi-layered themes with the aim of specifying the parameters of this “Muslim Creed” in terms of the composite relationship between its content and its origin. In addition, it tackles the important question of what may have led modern Salafis to embrace the doctrinal positions of this particular statement of belief and practice and, perhaps more importantly, to pursue its “institutionalization” as a religious orthodoxy.
O LM S Representations and Visions of Homeland in Modern Arabic Literature highlights the complex... more O LM S Representations and Visions of Homeland in Modern Arabic Literature highlights the complexity, diversity, and vitality of literary voices in expressing a broad spectrum of ideas and images centered around the Arab homeland and nation. This book therefore contributes to a deeper understanding of the historical dimensions and literary representations of home and homeland in the modern Arab world on the one hand, and the far-reaching cultural and political impact of these concepts on the other.
Lesen, Deuten und Verstehen?! Debatten über heilige Texte in Orient und Okzident, herausgegeben von Sebastian Günther und Florian Wilk, Tübingen, 164-191., 2021
A study of Muslim views of the Ten Commandments in the Bible and in the Quran
Ideas, Images, and Methods of Portrayal: Insights into Classical Arabic Literature and Islam, 2005
Th article deals with the genre of “rules of conduct for teachers and students.” This remarkable ... more Th article deals with the genre of “rules of conduct for teachers and students.” This remarkable subcategory of classical Arabic literature has received little attention from modern scholarship thus far. In particular, this study scrutinizes two of the very earliest Arabic treatises devoted to educational theory and practice in Islam. These two treatises stand out in the history of ideas not only for their early date of origin, but also for the abundance and originality of the educational ideas they contain. Through a discursive analysis, this article tackles such aspects of these two texts as their socio-political context, and their literary-historical, literary-stylistic, and educational dimensions. A catalogue of solid data is established (one of the goals of hermeneutics) which, it is hoped, contributes to increasing the understanding of the educational foundations of a “learning society,” as represented by Muslim civilization between the 9th and the 11th centuries. Among the educational aspects discussed, three points seem to be particularly striking. One relates to the sincerity and enthusiasm with which both Ibn Sahnun and al-Jahiz promote such virtues as modesty, patience, and a passion for working with youth. This notion seems to anticipate the idea of the father-son relationship between teacher and student, which will become an issue of major significance in the mystical writings of al-Ghazalì and the works of other Muslim scholars of later times. A second point concerns the remarkable variety of teaching topics that Ibn Sahnun and al-Jahiz indicate for the 9th century curriculum at the elementary and higher levels of Islamic education. Finally, a third aspect relates to the importance that al-Jahiz credits to books, reading, and writing, for the stimulating effects these have on independent thinking and intellectual creativity. In fact, since the teacher instructs in reading, writing, and calculation — the “pillars” of human civilization as al-Jahiz calls them — he deserves praise and special recognition in society.
Knowledge and Education in Classical Islam: Religious Learning between Continuity and Change , 2020
Introduction to: Knowledge and Education in Classical Islam: Religious Learning between Continuit... more Introduction to: Knowledge and Education in Classical Islam: Religious Learning between Continuity and Change (2 ed. vols.)
The Intermediate Worlds of Angels: Islamic Representations of Celestial Beings in Transcultural Contexts, 2019
“As the Angels Stretch Out Their Hands (Qurʼān 6:93): The Work of Heavenly Agents according to Mu... more “As the Angels Stretch Out Their Hands (Qurʼān 6:93): The Work of Heavenly Agents according to Muslim Eschatology" is a detailed survey of the role of angels in Muslim eschatology. It focuses on classical eschatological texts, such as the works of al-Muḥāsibī (d. 243/857), al-Ghazālī (d. 505/1111), and Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya (d. 751/1350). However, it also draws attention to parallels in Rabbinic, Iranian, and ancient Egyptian traditions, showing that the highly imaginative descriptions of angels and their functions in Islam can be understood as reverberations and transformations of earlier traditions, which undergo a “resourceful adoption” to the Islamic context.
Magie im Islam - Gegenstand, Geschichte und Diskurs , 2018
Die Geheimnisse der oberen und der unteren Welt (“The Secrets of the Upper and the Lower World”) ... more Die Geheimnisse der oberen und der unteren Welt (“The Secrets of the Upper and the Lower World”) is a substantial new collection of essays on magic in Islamic cultural history. Both comprehensive and innovative in its approach, this book offers fresh insights into an important yet still understudied area of Islamic intellectual history. The eighteen chapters deal with key aspects of Islamic magic, including its historical developments, geographical variants, and modern-day practices. The general introduction identifies and problematizes numerous sub-topics and key practitioners/theoreticians in the Arabo-Islamic context. This, along with terminological and bibliographical appendices, makes the volume an unparalleled reference work for both specialists and a broader readership.
Die Geheimnisse der oberen und der unteren Welt Magie im Islam zwischen Glaube und Wissenschaft , 2018
Die Geheimnisse der oberen und der unteren Welt (“The Secrets of the Upper and the Lower World”) ... more Die Geheimnisse der oberen und der unteren Welt (“The Secrets of the Upper and the Lower World”) is a substantial new collection of essays on magic in Islamic cultural history. Both comprehensive and innovative in its approach, this book offers fresh insights into an important yet still understudied area of Islamic intellectual history. The eighteen chapters deal with key aspects of Islamic magic, including its historical developments, geographical variants, and modern-day practices. The general introduction identifies and problematizes numerous sub-topics and key practitioners/theoreticians in the Arabo-Islamic context. This, along with terminological and bibliographical appendices, makes the volume an unparalleled reference work for both specialists and a broader readership
Vorträge über den Islam: Aus dem Nachlaß herausgegeben und um einen Anmerkungsteil ergänzt von Sebastian Günther. , 1999
An annotated edition of eight unpublished papers by Johann Fück on the Quran and aspects of Arab... more An annotated edition of eight unpublished papers by Johann Fück on the Quran and aspects of Arabic-Islamic culture in the classical period of Islam.
Quellenuntersuchungen zu den Maqatil at-Talibiyyin des Abu l-Farag al-Isfahani, 1991
A detailed study of the sources used by the historian and litterateur Abu l-Faraj al-Isfahani in ... more A detailed study of the sources used by the historian and litterateur Abu l-Faraj al-Isfahani in compiling his unique encyclopaedic work on early Shi'i history
Knowledge and Education in Classical Islam: Religious Learning between Continuity and Change , 2020
Knowledge and Education in Classical Islam: Religious Learning between Continuity and Change is a... more Knowledge and Education in Classical Islam: Religious Learning between Continuity and Change is a pioneering collection of essays on the historical developments, ideals, and practices of Islamic learning and teaching in the formative and classical periods of Islam (i.e., from the seventh to fiſteenth centuries CE). Based on innovative and philologically sound primary source research, and utilizing the most recent methodological tools, this two- volume set sheds new light on the challenges and opportunities that arise from a deep engagement with classical Islamic concepts of knowledge, its production and acquisition, and, of course, learning. Learning is especially important because of its relevance to contemporary communities and societies in our increasingly multicultural, “global” civilizations, whether Eastern or Western
Doctrinal Instruction in Early Islam: The Book of the Explanation of the Sunna, 2020
Maher Jarrar's pioneering study casts important new light on key issues in the development of dog... more Maher Jarrar's pioneering study casts important new light on key issues in the development of dogmatic instruction in early Islam, as it examines the creed written by the Basran and Baghdadi Sunni preacher Ghulam Khalil (d. 275/888). It includes a critical edition of the Arabic text and an English translation of what appears to be one of the earliest statements of religious beliefs in Islam. In particular, this book argues that this influential text was authored by the ninth century Ghulam Khalil rather than the Hanbali preacher of Baghdad, al-Barbahari - a claim repeatedly made by modern scholars, both Western and Eastern.
The present publication broaches multi-layered themes with the aim of specifying the parameters of this “Muslim Creed” in terms of the composite relationship between its content and its origin. In addition, it tackles the important question of what may have led modern Salafis to embrace the doctrinal positions of this particular statement of belief and practice and, perhaps more importantly, to pursue its “institutionalization” as a religious orthodoxy.
Die Geheimnisse der oberen und der unteren Welt (“The Secrets of the Upper and the Lower World”) ... more Die Geheimnisse der oberen und der unteren Welt (“The Secrets of the Upper and the Lower World”) is a substantial new collection of essays on magic in Islamic cultural history. Both comprehensive and innovative in its approach, this book offers fresh insights into an important yet still understudied area of Islamic intellectual history. The eighteen chapters deal with key aspects of Islamic magic, including its historical developments, geographical variants, and modern-day practices. The general introduction identifies and problematizes numerous sub-topics and key practitioners/theoreticians in the Arabo-Islamic context. This, along with terminological and bibliographical appendices, makes the volume an unparalleled reference work for both specialists and a broader readership.
Die Geheimnisse der oberen und der unteren Welt (“The Secrets of the Upper and the Lower World”) ... more Die Geheimnisse der oberen und der unteren Welt (“The Secrets of the Upper and the Lower World”) is a substantial new collection of essays on magic in Islamic cultural history. Both comprehensive and innovative in its approach, this book offers fresh insights into an important yet still understudied area of Islamic intellectual history. The eighteen chapters deal with key aspects of Islamic magic, including its historical developments, geographical variants, and modern-day practices. The general introduction identifies and problematizes numerous sub-topics and key practitioners/theoreticians in the Arabo-Islamic context. This, along with terminological and bibliographical appendices, makes the volume an unparalleled reference work for both specialists and a broader readership.
Roads to Paradise: Eschatology and Concepts of the Hereafter in Islam offers a multi-disciplinary... more Roads to Paradise: Eschatology and Concepts of the Hereafter in Islam offers a multi-disciplinary study of Muslim thinking about paradise, death, apocalypse, and the hereafter. It focuses on eschatological concepts in the Quran and its exegesis, Sunni and Shi‘i traditions, Islamic theology, philosophy, mysticism, and other scholarly disciplines reflecting Islamicate pluralism and cosmopolitanism. Gathering material from all parts of the Muslim world, ranging from Islamic Spain to Indonesia, and the entirety of Islamic history, this publication in two volumes also integrates research from comparative religion, art history, sociology, anthropology and literary studies. Unparalleled and unprecedented in its scope and comprehensiveness, Roads to Paradise promises to become the definitive reference work on Islamic eschatology for the years to come.
Representations and visions of home, homeland (watan), and nation are perennial themes in Arabic ... more Representations and visions of home, homeland (watan), and nation are perennial themes in Arabic literary writing. In its most recent iteration, namely modern Arabic poetry and prose, these ideas are framed against the backdrop of an increasingly expansive conceptual universe, taking in a wide array of artistic and intellectual expressions. Indeed, the notion and prospect of home and homeland gained even great currency in contemporary Arabic literature, largely in light of the Arab uprisings in 2010 and 2011, where the Arab people attempted to reclaim their countries from the many oppressive power structures guilty of robbing them of their homeland.
The present volume highlights the complexity, diversity, and vitality of literary voices in expressing a broad spectrum of ideas and images centered around the Arab homeland and nation. This book therefore contributes to a deeper understanding of the historical dimensions and literary representations of home and homeland in the modern Arab world on the one hand, and the far-reaching cultural and political impact of these concepts on the other.
The thematic spectrum of this book ranges from studies of writings on home and nostalgia, travel accounts, didactic epistles, and prison memoirs, as well as the nahda-literature and the genre of collective autobiographies or “village books”. While some essays focus on the processes of symbolic nation-building, others deal with the literary techniques and poetic devices that modern Arab authors employ in order to deconstruct and question the political discourses on waṭan and Arab nationalism.
This collection of essays is the result of a symposium held in 2011 at the University of Göttingen, Germany. The contributors to the volume are renowned specialists in Arabic literature and Middle East Studies working in Universities across the globe, including such countries as Australia, Demark, Lebanon, Norway, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, the United States, and Germany.
See all contributions OA here: https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/9783110597745/html
... more See all contributions OA here: https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/9783110597745/html In all religions, in the medieval West as in the East, ideas about the past, the present and the future were shaped by expectations related to the End. The volumes Cultures of Eschatology explore the many ways apocalyptic thought and visions of the end intersected with the development of pre-modern religio-political communities, with social changes and with the emergence of new intellectual and literary traditions.
The two volumes present a wide variety of case studies from the early Christian communities of Antiquity, through the times of the Islamic expansion and the Crusades and up to modern receptions, from the Latin West to the Byzantine Empire, from South Yemen to the Hidden Lands of Tibetan Buddhism. Examining apocalypticism, messianism and eschatology in medieval Christian, Islamic, Hindu and Buddhist communities, the contributions paint a multi-faceted picture of End-Time scenarios and provide their readers with a broad array of source material from different historical contexts.
The first volume, Empires and Scriptural Authorities, examines the formation of literary and visual apocalyptic traditions, and the role they played as vehicles for defining a community’s religious and political enemies. The second volume, Time, Death and Afterlife, focuses on key topics of eschatology: death, judgment, afterlife and the perception of time and its end. It also analyses modern readings and interpretations of eschatological concepts.
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This article takes a step in that direction by looking into the pedagogical
dimension of remarks the Brethren offer to conclude some of their treatises. It focuses primarily on the endings of their perhaps most programmatic texts, i.e., Epistle 7 (“On the Scientific Arts”), Epistle 8 (“On the Practical Crafts”) and Epistle 22 (“Animals versus Man”). The endings of a few individual chapters in these three works are also examined. Guiding this approach are questions such as: What differentiates each ending from the body of its respective text? What functions do they have beyond merely summarizing content? And are there indications that preceding literary and scientific traditions, Islamic or non-Islamic, may have influenced the form, language and style of these finales? Thus we hope to advance some insights into the Epistles’ role in the general development of classical Arabic writing, and their educational significance more specifically.
particular, this study scrutinizes two of the very earliest Arabic
treatises devoted to educational theory and practice in Islam. These
two treatises stand out in the history of ideas not only for their early
date of origin, but also for the abundance and originality of the educational ideas they contain. Through a discursive analysis, this article tackles such aspects of these two texts as their socio-political context, and their literary-historical, literary-stylistic, and educational dimensions. A catalogue of solid data is established (one of the goals of hermeneutics) which, it is hoped, contributes to increasing the understanding of the educational foundations of a “learning society,” as represented by Muslim civilization between the 9th and the 11th centuries.
Among the educational aspects discussed, three points seem to be
particularly striking. One relates to the sincerity and enthusiasm with
which both Ibn Sahnun and al-Jahiz promote such virtues as modesty,
patience, and a passion for working with youth. This notion
seems to anticipate the idea of the father-son relationship between
teacher and student, which will become an issue of major significance
in the mystical writings of al-Ghazalì and the works of
other Muslim scholars of later times. A second point concerns the
remarkable variety of teaching topics that Ibn Sahnun and al-Jahiz indicate for the 9th century curriculum at the elementary and higher
levels of Islamic education. Finally, a third aspect relates to the importance that al-Jahiz credits to books, reading, and writing, for the
stimulating effects these have on independent thinking and intellectual
creativity. In fact, since the teacher instructs in reading, writing,
and calculation — the “pillars” of human civilization as al-Jahiz calls them — he deserves praise and special recognition in society.
Iranian, and ancient Egyptian traditions, showing that the highly imaginative descriptions of angels and their functions in Islam can be understood as reverberations and transformations of earlier traditions, which undergo a “resourceful adoption” to the Islamic context.
Both comprehensive and innovative in its approach, this book offers fresh insights into an important yet still understudied area of Islamic intellectual history.
The eighteen chapters deal with key aspects of Islamic magic, including its historical developments, geographical variants, and modern-day practices. The general introduction identifies and problematizes numerous sub-topics and key practitioners/theoreticians in the Arabo-Islamic context. This, along with terminological and bibliographical appendices, makes the volume an unparalleled reference work for both specialists and a broader readership.
Both comprehensive and innovative in its approach, this book offers fresh insights into an important yet still understudied area of Islamic intellectual history.
The eighteen chapters deal with key aspects of Islamic magic, including its historical developments, geographical variants, and modern-day practices. The general introduction identifies and problematizes numerous sub-topics and key practitioners/theoreticians in the Arabo-Islamic context. This, along with terminological and bibliographical appendices, makes the volume an unparalleled reference work for both specialists and a broader readership
This article takes a step in that direction by looking into the pedagogical
dimension of remarks the Brethren offer to conclude some of their treatises. It focuses primarily on the endings of their perhaps most programmatic texts, i.e., Epistle 7 (“On the Scientific Arts”), Epistle 8 (“On the Practical Crafts”) and Epistle 22 (“Animals versus Man”). The endings of a few individual chapters in these three works are also examined. Guiding this approach are questions such as: What differentiates each ending from the body of its respective text? What functions do they have beyond merely summarizing content? And are there indications that preceding literary and scientific traditions, Islamic or non-Islamic, may have influenced the form, language and style of these finales? Thus we hope to advance some insights into the Epistles’ role in the general development of classical Arabic writing, and their educational significance more specifically.
particular, this study scrutinizes two of the very earliest Arabic
treatises devoted to educational theory and practice in Islam. These
two treatises stand out in the history of ideas not only for their early
date of origin, but also for the abundance and originality of the educational ideas they contain. Through a discursive analysis, this article tackles such aspects of these two texts as their socio-political context, and their literary-historical, literary-stylistic, and educational dimensions. A catalogue of solid data is established (one of the goals of hermeneutics) which, it is hoped, contributes to increasing the understanding of the educational foundations of a “learning society,” as represented by Muslim civilization between the 9th and the 11th centuries.
Among the educational aspects discussed, three points seem to be
particularly striking. One relates to the sincerity and enthusiasm with
which both Ibn Sahnun and al-Jahiz promote such virtues as modesty,
patience, and a passion for working with youth. This notion
seems to anticipate the idea of the father-son relationship between
teacher and student, which will become an issue of major significance
in the mystical writings of al-Ghazalì and the works of
other Muslim scholars of later times. A second point concerns the
remarkable variety of teaching topics that Ibn Sahnun and al-Jahiz indicate for the 9th century curriculum at the elementary and higher
levels of Islamic education. Finally, a third aspect relates to the importance that al-Jahiz credits to books, reading, and writing, for the
stimulating effects these have on independent thinking and intellectual
creativity. In fact, since the teacher instructs in reading, writing,
and calculation — the “pillars” of human civilization as al-Jahiz calls them — he deserves praise and special recognition in society.
Iranian, and ancient Egyptian traditions, showing that the highly imaginative descriptions of angels and their functions in Islam can be understood as reverberations and transformations of earlier traditions, which undergo a “resourceful adoption” to the Islamic context.
Both comprehensive and innovative in its approach, this book offers fresh insights into an important yet still understudied area of Islamic intellectual history.
The eighteen chapters deal with key aspects of Islamic magic, including its historical developments, geographical variants, and modern-day practices. The general introduction identifies and problematizes numerous sub-topics and key practitioners/theoreticians in the Arabo-Islamic context. This, along with terminological and bibliographical appendices, makes the volume an unparalleled reference work for both specialists and a broader readership.
Both comprehensive and innovative in its approach, this book offers fresh insights into an important yet still understudied area of Islamic intellectual history.
The eighteen chapters deal with key aspects of Islamic magic, including its historical developments, geographical variants, and modern-day practices. The general introduction identifies and problematizes numerous sub-topics and key practitioners/theoreticians in the Arabo-Islamic context. This, along with terminological and bibliographical appendices, makes the volume an unparalleled reference work for both specialists and a broader readership
In particular, this book argues that this influential text was authored by the ninth century Ghulam Khalil rather than the Hanbali preacher of Baghdad, al-Barbahari - a claim repeatedly made by modern scholars, both Western and Eastern.
The present publication broaches multi-layered themes with the aim of specifying the parameters of this “Muslim Creed” in terms of the composite relationship between its content and its origin. In addition, it tackles the important question of what may have led modern Salafis to embrace the doctrinal positions of this particular statement of belief and practice and, perhaps more importantly, to pursue its “institutionalization” as a religious orthodoxy.
Both comprehensive and innovative in its approach, this book offers fresh insights into an important yet still understudied area of Islamic intellectual history.
The eighteen chapters deal with key aspects of Islamic magic, including its historical developments, geographical variants, and modern-day practices. The general introduction identifies and problematizes numerous sub-topics and key practitioners/theoreticians in the Arabo-Islamic context. This, along with terminological and bibliographical appendices, makes the volume an unparalleled reference work for both specialists and a broader readership.
Both comprehensive and innovative in its approach, this book offers fresh insights into an important yet still understudied area of Islamic intellectual history.
The eighteen chapters deal with key aspects of Islamic magic, including its historical developments, geographical variants, and modern-day practices. The general introduction identifies and problematizes numerous sub-topics and key practitioners/theoreticians in the Arabo-Islamic context. This, along with terminological and bibliographical appendices, makes the volume an unparalleled reference work for both specialists and a broader readership.
The present volume highlights the complexity, diversity, and vitality of literary voices in expressing a broad spectrum of ideas and images centered around the Arab homeland and nation. This book therefore contributes to a deeper understanding of the historical dimensions and literary representations of home and homeland in the modern Arab world on the one hand, and the far-reaching cultural and political impact of these concepts on the other.
The thematic spectrum of this book ranges from studies of writings on home and nostalgia, travel accounts, didactic epistles, and prison memoirs, as well as the nahda-literature and the genre of collective autobiographies or “village books”. While some essays focus on the processes of symbolic nation-building, others deal with the literary techniques and poetic devices that modern Arab authors employ in order to deconstruct and question the political discourses on waṭan and Arab nationalism.
This collection of essays is the result of a symposium held in 2011 at the University of Göttingen, Germany. The contributors to the volume are renowned specialists in Arabic literature and Middle East Studies working in Universities across the globe, including such countries as Australia, Demark, Lebanon, Norway, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, the United States, and Germany.
In all religions, in the medieval West as in the East, ideas about the past, the present and the future were shaped by expectations related to the End. The volumes Cultures of Eschatology explore the many ways apocalyptic thought and visions of the end intersected with the development of pre-modern religio-political communities, with social changes and with the emergence of new intellectual and literary traditions.
The two volumes present a wide variety of case studies from the early Christian communities of Antiquity, through the times of the Islamic expansion and the Crusades and up to modern receptions, from the Latin West to the Byzantine Empire, from South Yemen to the Hidden Lands of Tibetan Buddhism. Examining apocalypticism, messianism and eschatology in medieval Christian, Islamic, Hindu and Buddhist communities, the contributions paint a multi-faceted picture of End-Time scenarios and provide their readers with a broad array of source material from different historical contexts.
The first volume, Empires and Scriptural Authorities, examines the formation of literary and visual apocalyptic traditions, and the role they played as vehicles for defining a community’s religious and political enemies. The second volume, Time, Death and Afterlife, focuses on key topics of eschatology: death, judgment, afterlife and the perception of time and its end. It also analyses modern readings and interpretations of eschatological concepts.