The Philosopher Responds: An Intellectual Correspondence from the Tenth Century, Volume One

Abū Ḥayyān al-Tawḥīdī; Abū ʿAlī Miskawayh

Published by New York University Press 2019

The Philosopher Responds

An Intellectual Correspondence from the Tenth Century, Volume One

Abū Ḥayyān al-Tawḥīdī and Abū ʿAlī Miskawayh
Edited by: Bilal Orfali and Maurice A. Pomerantz
Translated by: Sophia Vasalou and James E. Montgomery

Volume 19 in the series Library of Arabic Literature

https://doi.org/10.18574/nyu/9781479886999.001.0001

Overview
Contents

About this book

Questions and answers from two great philosophers

Why is laughter contagious? Why do mountains exist? Why do we long for the past, even if it is scarred by suffering? Spanning a vast array of subjects that range from the philosophical to the theological, from the philological to the scientific, The Philosopher Responds is the record of a set of questions put by the litterateur Abu Hayyan al-Tawhidi to the philosopher and historian Abu 'Ali Miskawayh. Both figures were foremost contributors to the remarkable flowering of cultural and intellectual life that took place in the Islamic world during the reign of the Buyid dynasty in the fourth/tenth century.

The correspondence between al-Tawhidi and Miskawayh holds a mirror to many of the debates and preoccupations of the time and reflects the spirit of rationalistic inquiry that animated their era. It also provides insight into the intellectual outlooks of two thinkers who were divided as much by their distinctive temperaments as by the very different trajectories of their professional careers.

Alternately whimsical and tragic, wondering and brooding, trivial and profound, al-Tawhidi’s questions provoke an interaction as interesting in its spiritedness as in its content. This new edition of The Philosopher Responds is accompanied by the first full-length English translation of this important text, bringing this interaction to life for the English reader.

A bilingual Arabic-English edition.

Author / Editor information

al-Tawḥīdī Abū Ḥayyān :

Abū Ḥayyān al-Tawḥīdī (d. 414/1023) was a prominent litterateur and philosopher in Baghdad.Miskawayh Abū ʿAlī :

Abū ʿAlī Miskawayh (ca. 320-421/932-1030) was a philosopher and historian born in Rayy.Orfali Bilal :

Bilal Orfali is Professor and Sheikh Zayed Chair of Arabic and Islamic Studies at the American University of Beirut and previously held the M.S. Sofia Chair in Arabic Studies at the Ohio State University. He specializes in Arabic literature, Sufism, and Qur'anic Studies. He co-edits al-Abhath Journal and Brill’s series Texts and Studies on the Qur’an. He is the author and editor of more than twenty books on Arabic Studies. His recent publications include The Anthologist’s Art (Brill, 2016), The Book of Noble Character (Brill, 2015), The Comfort of the Mystics (Brill, 2013), Sufism, Black and White (Brill, 2012), and In the Shadow of Arabic (Brill, 2011).Pomerantz Maurice A. :

Maurice A. Pomerantz is Associate Professor of Literature at New York University Abu Dhabi. He is the author of Licit Magic: The Life and Letters of al-Sahib b. 'Abbad.Vasalou Sophia :

Sophia Vasalou is Senior Lecturer and Birmingham Fellow in Philosophical Theology at the University of Birmingham. Her books include Moral Agents and their Deserts: The Character of Mu'tazilite Ethics, Wonder: A Grammar, and Ibn Taymiyya’s Theological Ethics.Montgomery James E. :

James E. Montgomery is Sir Thomas Adams’s Professor of Arabic at the University of Cambridge and Fellow of Trinity Hall. His latest publications are Fate the Hunter: Early Arabic Hunting Poems, and Kalīlah and Dimnah: Fables of Virtue and Vice, with Michael Fishbein.Abū Ḥayyān al-Tawḥīdī (Author)
Abū Ḥayyān al-Tawḥīdī (d. 414/1023) was a prominent litterateur and philosopher in Baghdad.

Abū ʿAlī Miskawayh (Author)
Abū ʿAlī Miskawayh (ca. 320-421/932-1030) was a philosopher and historian born in Rayy.

Bilal Orfali (Editor)
Bilal Orfali is Professor and Sheikh Zayed Chair of Arabic and Islamic Studies at the American University of Beirut and previously held the M.S. Sofia Chair in Arabic Studies at the Ohio State University. He specializes in Arabic literature, Sufism, and Qur'anic Studies. He co-edits al-Abhath Journal and Brill’s series Texts and Studies on the Qur’an. He is the author and editor of more than twenty books on Arabic Studies. His recent publications include The Anthologist’s Art (Brill, 2016), The Book of Noble Character (Brill, 2015), The Comfort of the Mystics (Brill, 2013), Sufism, Black and White (Brill, 2012), and In the Shadow of Arabic (Brill, 2011).

Maurice A. Pomerantz (Editor)
Maurice A. Pomerantz is Associate Professor of Literature at New York University Abu Dhabi. He is the author of Licit Magic: The Life and Letters of al-Sahib b. 'Abbad.

Sophia Vasalou (Translator)
Sophia Vasalou is Senior Lecturer and Birmingham Fellow in Philosophical Theology at the University of Birmingham. Her books include Moral Agents and their Deserts: The Character of Mu'tazilite Ethics, Wonder: A Grammar, and Ibn Taymiyya’s Theological Ethics.

James E. Montgomery (Translator)
James E. Montgomery is Sir Thomas Adams’s Professor of Arabic at the University of Cambridge and Fellow of Trinity Hall. His latest publications are Fate the Hunter: Early Arabic Hunting Poems, and Kalīlah and Dimnah: Fables of Virtue and Vice, with Michael Fishbein.

Reviews

A marvel of literary finesse, of an English style seemingly able to match the often ornate prose of the Arabic... A pleasure to read throughout.

A fascinating read, particularly for the aspiring scholar of classical Arabic texts, who will benefit from a solid English translation alongside the original Arabic.

This publication not only offers a new critical reference edition of the Arabic text, but also, through an elegant and fluent English translation, makes this unique work accessible to an audience of non-specialists.

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Letter from the General Editor Publicly Available Download PDF	iii
Table of Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	vii
Acknowledgments Publicly Available Download PDF	x
Introduction Publicly Available Download PDF	xi
Map: Buyid and Neighboring Lands Publicly Available Download PDF	xxxii
Note on the Text Publicly Available Download PDF	xxxiii
Notes to the Introduction Publicly Available Download PDF	xxxix
The Philosopher Responds, Volume One
On the differences between a number of similar words Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	6
On why people commend the keeping of secrets yet still disclose them Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	22
On why certain names are more pleasing than others Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	30
On why people preach renunciation but do not practice it; on reasons, causes, time, and place Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	36
On why people seek worldly goods through knowledge but do not seek knowledge through worldly goods Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	50
On why people long for the past Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	56
On why men of knowledge tend to be conceited Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	60
On why people are sometimes ashamed and sometimes proud of wrongdoing; on the meaning of shame Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	62
On why people claim to have knowledge they lack Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	66
On why it pleases people when others ascribe good qualities to them Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	68
On why it is bad to praise people in their presence and good to praise them in their absence Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	68
On why people want to know what others say about them in their absence Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	72
On why people disapprove of young people who act as if they were older Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	74
On why mean people tend to be mild-tempered and generous people volatile Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	76
On why people need to acquire knowledge but not ignorance Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	80
On why people who provoke admiration also feel wonder at themselves; on the nature of wonder; on describing and knowing God Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	84
On why it is unseemly to eulogize long-time friends and acquaintances Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	92
On why blind people are often endowed with unusual powersstion Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	94
On why people say that nothing good comes from partnership Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	98
On why people use intermediaries despite the problems with partnership Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	102
On why people speak gladly about the needs of those they concern themselves with yet keep quiet about their own needs Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	104
On why some people become famous after they die Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	106
On why men of virtue and reason feel envious toward their equals even though they know envy is blameworthy Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	108
On why we fear death but sometimes welcome it Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	112
On why thin people tend to be noble and fat people ignoble Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	116
On why short people tend to be crafty and tall people foolish Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	118
On why some people overstate and others understate their age Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	120
On why people end up loving particular months or days and why they form different conceptions of different days Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	122
On the meaning and origin of injustice Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	128
On the significance of a popular saying, and the meaning of certain words Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	136
On why relatives and kinfolk are prone to outbreaks of extreme hostility Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	138
On why people become angry when others impute evil to them Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	140
On why a person who is being talked about suddenly appears out of nowhere; on the nature of coincidences Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	142
On the meaning of certain ordinary and technical terms Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	146
On the meaning of certain prepositional expressions concerning God Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	164
On the nature of the sense of familiarity we feel toward particular places and people Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	168
On why epilepsy is so hard to treat Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	170
On why people are so enamored of ascetic individuals Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	172
On why some people squander their money despite the harmful consequences this entails while others are miserly even though this gives them a bad name Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	174
On why some people keep their affairs private while others broadcast them for all to hear Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	176
On why self-praise is unseemly Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	178
On why people disparage avarice even though they’re avaricious; on the origin of avarice and generosity Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	178
On why people blame treachery and praise fidelity even though treachery predominates among them Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	182
On the origin of the customs of different nations Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	184
On why people don’t grow young again after they’ve grown old Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	186
On the benefit people derive from likening some things to others Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	188
On why some dreams are true and others false Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	190
On the nature of dreams Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	192
On why friendship arises between apparently dissimilar individuals Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	196
On the definition and nature of knowledge Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	202
On why people make apparently false statements when expressing admiration Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	210
On why people take pleasure in contemplating beautiful forms Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	212
On why people are more adept at counseling others than at managing their own affairs Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	218
On why the sight of open wounds provokes horror and fascination Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	220
On why people love the present world; on whether the religious Law can conflict with nature Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	224
On why people take their own lives Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	228
On a philosophical puzzle relating to the act of suicide Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	232
On moral change and acting out of character Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	234
On the meaning of a certain saying concerning God’s beneficence Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	236
On why noble-minded people love cleanliness Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	240
On the merits of singing versus playing musical instruments Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	246
On why some people master different subjects more easily than others Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	250
On the nature of physiognomy Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	254
On why people covet things denied to them Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	262
On why people inquire into what will happen in the future Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	266
Notes Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	271
Glossary Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	276
Bibliography Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	281
Further Reading Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	285
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	286
About the NYU Abu Dhabi Institute Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	294
About the Typefaces Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	295
Titles Published by the Library of Arabic Literature Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	296
About the Editor–Translators Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	300

Language: English
Publisher: New York University Press
Audience: Professional and scholarly;

eBook

Published: October 8, 2019
ISBN: 9781479886999