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- Title
The Influence of al-Ghazzālī on the Hermeneutics of Ibn Rushd.
- Authors
Okumuş, Mesut
- Abstract
This article is intended to illustrate that the hermeneutics of al-Ghazzālī influenced Ibn Rushd in a certain degree. One can come across a number of contexts in the works of Ibn Rushd such as Taḥāfut al-taḥāfut, Faṣl al-maqāl and al-Kashf, in which he criticizes al-Ghazzālī in relation to the interpretation of religious texts. However, one can notice that Ibn Rushd is deeply influenced by the views of al-Ghazzālī on the matter of hermeneutics, especially concerning the definition of interpretation, the categorization of the ambiguous wordings in the religious texts as well as the classification of the groups of people authorized to fulfill the task of interpretation. In fact, Ibn Rushd's threefold graduation of people as the masses, the theologians, and the demonstrative people was masterminded and introduced by al-Ghazzālī. In addition, it is from al-Ghazzālī and from his interpretation of the 125th verse of Sūrat al-Nahl that Ibn Rushd borrowed the suggestion that as regards the interpretation of religious texts, each of these three groups should adopt one of the three methods described as rhetorical, dialectical, and demonstrative. Another important context where Ibn Rushd is clearly under the influence of al-Ghazzālī is the issue how the lawful method of interpretation is to be applied to the religious texts. Regarding this issue, he took up al-Ghazzālī's fivefold categorization of "being" as essential existence, sensual existence, imaginative existence, mental existence and analogical existence, suggesting to interpret the religious texts on the basis of this categorization.
- Publication
Der Islam, 2011, Vol 86, Issue 2, p286
- ISSN
0021-1818
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1515/ISLAM.2011.023