Philosophers of the Islamic World During the Middle Ages
Categorizing philosophers into traditions frequently comes with controversy. The case of calling a philosopher an "Islamic Philosopher" or a “philosophy of the Islamic world” is no exception. The same holds for other labels with religious references because it is not always the case that the philosopher or philosopher has so much religion intertwined in their work as is implied with such a marker. Sometimes this label can be too sweeping, just as it would be to call the history of philosophy in Europe “Christian philosophy” or “philosophy in the Christian world.” Thus, first, it should be clarified that this article, by summarizing five key thinkers of the Islamic world during the Middle Ages, refers to five individuals of the Muslim faith, but who were also from different geographical regions, and all contributed unique dialogues to the long conversation that is the history of philosophy.
Al-Kindi (c. 801-73)
The period from 750 to 1258 is known as the golden age of Islam because of the ruling dynasty of the Abbasids’ promotion of learning and culture. There was an important library in the capital of Baghdad that served as a center for the study and translation of important Greek and Syriac texts, among other important elements that fostered such a golden period. But as this environment cultivated learning, which included not just theological reflection but also the use of reason and evidence in analysis, there was a rift that grew between the Sunni and Shiʻa schools, with the former mostly rejecting the possibility of reconciliation between theology and philosophy, ending with philosophy residing mostly with the latter.
The first individual on record recognized in this group of philosophers of the Islamic world is al-Kindi. As is often the case with those thinkers that this article will cover, he was interested in demonstrating how ancient Greek philosophy could be consistent with Muslim teachings; he thought they both arose from the same source. One such exploration of this came from Plotinus and his doctrine of the primordial One, which shares with Muslim theology the oneness of God; complete unity in the highest degree of reality means singular perfection, which also implies being eternal.
Al-Kindi also drew some parallels with Aristotle’s philosophy on essence. But he could not reconcile some issues such as how a person could be a substance, comprised of form and matter, but that must also have a non-material soul. Still, he started a conversation that continued with the next individual on the list here, al-Farabi.
Al-Farabi (872-950)
Labeled the “Second Teacher” after the individual generally then considered the “first,” Aristotle, al-Farabi continued the aforementioned emanationist view of al-Kindi that the oneness of God also explains creation, as being the highest degree of reality means that the universe emanates from God. Al-Farabi placed philosophical study above theological study, persuaded that logic was a universal language. Thus, he was a strong advocate for Aristotle, but also Plato.
Al-Farabi was especially influenced by Plato’s political philosophy, agreeing that the best kind of ruler was the one outlined by Plato’s notion of the “philosopher-king”, an individual solely after the pursuit of wisdom. However, he also recognized that it is not always easy to find such a philosopher-king in society, so he focused on studying what causes the decay of society. His argument was that this is the result of three causes: error, wickedness, or ignorance. When people err, they do not apply knowledge correctly. When people are wicked, they do not use their knowledge. When people are ignorant, they lack knowledge. But as the history of philosophy is a long conversation, keeping Aristotle in the discussion with his commentaries was one of the most important of al-Farabi’s contributions.
Avicenna (980-1037)
Image of Avicenna, by Michel Bakni, 2021, Source: Wikimedia Commons
Much is conjectured about Avicenna because he was one of the few to have written an autobiography—but it is also one that may not be entirely accurate given what may be at times an exaggerated view of himself. Either way, arguably it is Avicenna (as he is known in the West), and next especially Averroes, who would become the most influential philosophers in this list.
For Avicenna, philosophy helps the individual seek the truth and the good. This helps lead to the perfection of the soul because it provides knowledge itself, and then to how to apply that knowledge. Also within this is an argument akin to what was much later proposed by Descartes advocating for soul/body dualism. Thus, he makes a distinction between theoretical knowledge and practical knowledge—this is what philosophical reflection helps us see. Thus, he also serves to reconcile philosophy and theology, with the latter residing as part of practical knowledge.
Of utmost importance within philosophy is the study of logic for Avicenna. Logic is the basis for critical thinking, as well as for human happiness. Logic leads us to knowledge and aids in the aim to find the truth, and then how we may choose to act upon that knowledge to achieve happiness.
Avicenna also makes important contributions to continuing the emanationist view, arguing that God is the only necessary being that causes everything else to exist because everything else is contingent—but there must be something that is not contingent to bring those other things into being, and that necessary first cause of everything is God. Avicenna’s view of God thus closely parallels Aristotle’s notion of the “unmoved Mover.” God, being necessary, one, and perfect, does not change, so God is involved with other things that do not change. Thus, Avicenna’s God is less personal than some other interpretations, but it is how he proposes that God is understood to be eternal and perfect as the highest of the hierarchy of all. Not all would agree with some of his views here, but as often is the case in the history of philosophy, sometimes it is through disagreement that the conversation continues to thrive.
Al-Ghazali (1058-1111)
That disagreement came strongly from the next individual, al-Ghazali, who did not consider himself a “philosopher” and could perhaps be categorized as the “anti-philosopher” of this list. His famous work, in fact, was titled The Incoherence of the Philosophers, which was a very clear rejection of the discipline. Principally important for al-Ghazali was to place theology back above philosophy, as he thought philosophy undermined Islam; revelation and faith are more important than logic and reason, he argued. But in demonstrating his arguments for this, he was also doing philosophy by working to show how emphases on philosophical reasoning fail.
Al-Ghazali was especially concerned with what he saw as the errors of Avicenna. He argued that Avicenna’s views on the eternity of the universe, his impersonal God that is not concerned with the particulars of the universe, among other ideas he saw as mistakes, undermined the Islamic faith which taught the opposite. Al-Ghazali even went as far as to advocate for the killing of anyone who proposed such views. Thus, al-Ghazali was part of the rift that led to the Sunni emphasis on revelation as superior to reason, and to the dominance of theology over philosophy.
Averroes (1126-1198)
As noted, often in the long conversation that is the history of philosophy, inquiry is sparked by disagreement, which would continue with the next and probably the most influential of all the thinkers in this list, Averroes. In response to al-Ghazali’s key text on the Incoherence of the Philosophers, Averroes wrote The Incoherence of the Incoherence to argue for bringing back the critical role of philosophical reflection. While he was not entirely successful in this endeavor, he did bring back critical studies on Aristotle, which would have a lasting impact. But as with Avicenna, some of his Aristotelian-inspired views would conflict with dominant Islamic doctrine. For example, Averroes agreed with the view of a single, universal mind; that of God, rejecting the view of the individual souls of humans. His views that contradicted not only Islamic but also Christian thought would be later unraveled and reinterpreted by Saint Thomas Aquinas in such a way, in fact, to lead to Thomism as it is called as being deemed the official philosophy of the Catholic Church. Still, some of Averroes's most important contributions to the history of philosophy were his commentaries on Aristotle, even if in a response of rejection.
Averroes understood philosophy and theology to be reconcilable, and that any disagreement that may arise between the two is just from a lack of clear understanding of the conflict, which is essentially not a conflict. He also argued that the disagreement over the eternality of the universe could be resolved with an Aristotelian lens by positing that it was the form that was imposed on it at a certain time, but that the universe, in sum, is eternal. In general, Averroes understood philosophy and theology to simply be two avenues to the same truths.
The History of Philosophy in the Islamic World
Despite such important contributions of several figures as those listed here, the reputation of philosophy and being a philosopher was largely defined by the work of al-Ghazali, as still today the Sunni Muslims comprise the largest group. Still, much of the work among the philosophers of Europe during the Middle Ages was significantly impacted by the world of these philosophers of the Islamic world, such as through their translations of important ancient Greek texts into Arabic, and then from that eventually into Latin. Commentaries on Aristotle—as noted, considered the “First Teacher” and ultimate source of philosophy—such as those by Averroes especially, would prove to be critical in continuing the long conversation that is the history of philosophy. All of these thinkers made important contributions that subsequently shaped the history of philosophy, of which this article only scratches the surface.