Journal Of Religious Thought
Year:2004 | Volume:- | Issue:12|Papers Count:10

In this article the thesis of "intellects" and its influence on Sadra's understanding of Quranic verses are investigated and criticized. For this purpose, all Sadra's philosophical and interpretative works are studied and his Quranic interpretations based on this thesis are gathered. Then, in the light of other verses, traditions, rational and verbal circumstantial evidences, as well as features of the intellects, quoted in philosophy, these interpretations are verified. In this research, it is proved that all Sadra's interpretations based on this thesis, but 3 cases are not valid.

In this paper, some attempts in Iran in the realm of empirical religious (Islamic) sciences are discussed. Two approaches on Islamic science are formulated and discussed which are called inferential and complementary approaches. The inferential approach could be criticized on both religious and scientific sides. On the religious side, this approach does not seem defensible on the ground that religion has a particular function consisting of leading humans toward God. On the scientific side, this approach leads to the unacceptable result of changing religious statements into hypotheses. The complementary approach tries to compensate gaps of scientific theories by adding religious scientific points.. The main problem with this approach is that it leads to providing incoherent wholes under the title of Islamic sciences.Instead of these two approaches, an alternative view is suggested called the constructive approach. According to this view, an Islamic science requires that, 1) its teachings are regarded as underlying presuppositions of a scientific theory; 2) some hypotheses are suggested inspired by those teachings; 3) these hypotheses are examined and experimental evidence are sought; 4) supporting evidence could be collected; and 5) a systematic whole could be provided by the collected evidence.

Sahifeh Sajadieh is one of the classical and authoritative Islamic texts. Mysticism has to be regarded its dominant and primary dimension. Scholar of political thought attempts/ regarding the relationship between mysticism and politics and diving it to Sahifeh ocean through sketching questions, force the text to speak and achieving to get its answers from Sahifeh. Contrary to the viewpoints which believe in the repudiation of the establishment of political thought and political behavior in the realm of mysticism, the author's hypothesis is based on the claim that Imam' s religious teaching in the framework of the present claims in sahifeh could result in the establishment of the political thought, political orientation and political behavior construction.

In this article:1. We have discussed existence of belief in the concept of savior in the religions and cultural evolution of China. With this aim we focused our attention on Confucianism and Daoism, because these tow are native Chinese religions, but Buddhism is not native. We searched the classical Chinese books of these religions and theories of thinkers. We found that the concept of savior existed throughout Chinese history.2. Then we considered the nature of this concept, and concluded that the savior in the Chinese religion has a human personality with particular qualities, without being a certain particular person. When the savior appears in the world, he will unit all the world, and the peace will appear between all creatures. This is the same age that according the Chinese culture existed in the old times and will appear in the future and is well known as "Great Peace" and "Tai Ping".3. We have discussed the repercussions of the concept of savior in society and culture. It has been showed that many revolutions in China had emanated from this concept; also this led to the formation of several cults that some of them are governmental and some belong to all people.

There are two questions concerning the act of creation: 1- Why has God created? 2- How has He created?Answering the first question Avicenna says that God had not any purpose outside his own essence, and answering the second, he says that God has created by favor agency. In this article, the difference between Avicenna's approach and that of theologians (Moatazelites and Asharires) concerning these two questions has been discussed.

Plotinus' negation theology has rooted in the Plato's thoughts. He takes the Idea of Good beyond our mind and language. He, rejecting any restricting quality of the One, mentions that the person who takes away all things from him and does not ascribe to him any thing is doing right.Always being has a determined form, but on the other hand the One is undetermined and has not any restricted form, so He is beyond being and not-being. He is neither knowable nor describable. Plotinus apparently holds that the One is neither a thing nor a quality or quantity. He is neither a reason nor a soul, neither moving nor motionless. In a word He is beyond these distinctions.The author, drawing logical implication of this view, shows some inconsistency in Plotinus, view. If we can not know anything of the One, so we must leave any judgment about Him and must take an attitude based on the silence not on the negation. Logical consequence of Plotinus' view is leaving judgment not taking away any thing from the One which is in itself a form of judgment.

Traditionalism-as a school established at 20th century by Rene Guenon, Ananda Coomaraswamy and expanding and developing by figures like Seyyed Hossein Nasr , Martin Lings ,Titus Burckhardt and ...- assumes human as vicegerent of God which has an important role in the universe. In this point of view Egalitarianism isn't acceptable because human beings are different in respect of sexuality, emotions, talents and races. Differences between races and societies prove the necessity of religious plurality on one hand, and unity of the Reality above the forms prove "Transcendence Unity of Religion" on the other.