FAZLUR RAHMAN'S ISLAMlC PHILOSOPHY (1)

F A T I M HUSEIN
S tudent Number: 9548 150
A Thesis Submitted to
The Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research
in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts
Cnstitute of Islamic Studies
McGill University
Montreal
May, 1997
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study was to determine whether traditionai learn-to-swim
progressions, leading to the front and back swim, were developmentally valid for children
with physical disabilities.
Forty children between the ages of 5 and 13 years participated in this study. The
children were descnbed according to four descriptive characteristics: disability type,
functionai sport classification, mode of ambulatioc and need of a floatation device. The
children required recomrnendation from their regular aquatic instructor as being
cornfortable in the water to participate in the study. In addition. each child had to pass a
water orientation-adjustment test.
The developmental validity of the progressions was assessed by testing the children
on seven sklls: rhythmic breathing, front float, front glide, front swim, back float, back
-oi ide. and back swim. A pass consisted of al1 criteria for success being met for a particular
skiil. The data were analyzed to determine the number of children who followed the
typical progression and the number who followed an atypical progression.
The resuks indicated that the proposed learn-to-swim progressions for both the
front swim and back swim were nor developmentally valid for most children with physical
disabilities who were neither estremeiy high nor low in functional sport ability.
These results are consistent with the views of ecological theory and sugsest t hat
not al1 children with physical disabilities will reach an end-goal using the same means.
Aquatic instmctors therefore, need to adapt their teaching methods to the individual
strengths of their students.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This thesis owes rnuch to the help and contributions of a great many people. First
and foremost my mother, father and two brothers, who have always supported me and
understood my cornmitment to my studies- Sincere thanks are due to Professor Todd
Lawson for his invaluable advice. His inteilectual and constructive cnticism, patience and
encouragement were instrumental in the cornpletion of this thesis. It was he who "opened"
my minci to thinking critically and to trying to understand the underlying reasons and
rneanings behind every single notion. 1 would also Like to thank Prof. h e r Turgay for his
warmth and kindness, which has contributed to a very positive environment in the Institute.
Many thanks are also due to CIDA (Canadian International Development Agency),
which has given me the opportunity to nnish my Mastes' degree at McGiIl University. I
would Iike ta express my wami appreciation to the Project's staff, Wendy Allen, Lori
Novak, Susy Ricciardelli, and Joanna Gacek, as well as the staff of the Islamic studies
Library, Saiwa Ferahian, Wayne St. Thomas, and Beverly Warriner, not only for their
professional assistance, but most importantly, for the fkiendships we made during my stay
in Montreal. I would also like to thank S teve Millier, Asaad F. Shaker and Reem Meshal
for their editorial assistance.
Gratitude is also owed to rny beioved %end Soraya Hajjaji-Jarrah, who has given
to me so generously of her very Iimited time. To rny Indonesian fiends in Montreal, who
I carmot mention one by one, I would like to thank them for emiching me with "bittersweet"
mernories; and to Shama and Zeshan Farooqui, for their kind hospitality as 1 st ayed
with them for about one year. Last, but not Ieast, my deepest thanks are reserved for a
special ccsomeoneyiyn Indonesia, without whom this thesis would not have been possible.
SPELLING AND TRANSLITERATIQN
The Arabic names and tems in this thesis follow the system of transliteration
employed by the Institute of Islamic Studies, McGill University, Montreal. Place names
will be written according to the conventionai English spellings.
English Arabic
-
Long vowels of 1, G, 9, are typed by using the bars above characters: a, i, and ü.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Abstract .............................. .. ........................................................................................... ii
... Resume ............................................................................................................................... 111
Acknowledgments ............................................................................................................... iv
Spelling and Transliteration ............................................................................................. v
Table of Contents .............................................................................................................. vi
Introduction ........................~............................................................................................. 1
Chapter One: FAZLUR RAHMAN'S ISLAMIC PHILOSOPHY ................................ 10
A .T he Development of Fdsafah and K a in I slam: A Brief Discussion .......... I I
B . Some Definitions of Islamic Philosophy ........................................................ 14
C. Fazlur Rahman and the Character of His Philosophy ...................................... 21
D . Conclusion ...................... .. ........................................................................... 31
Chapter Two: THE INTERPRETATION OF THE KISTORY OF ISLAMIC
PHILOSOPHY ...................................................................................................... 3 4
A . Fazlur Rahman's Understanding of the Development of Islarnic Philosophy .. 3 5
B . Comecting Rahman's Religious, Histoncal and Polit ical Thought ................ 45
C. The Discourse Surroundhg Essence and Existence ........................................ 54
D . Conclusion ........................................................................................................ 59
Chapter Three : ON THE VALUE OF BLAMIC PHILOSOPHY IN THE
CONTEMPORARY WORLD .............................................................................. 62
A . FazlurRahrnanys Qur'Znic Methodology ......................................................... 63
B . Some Philosophical Expressions ..................................................................... 77
C . The Application of Rahman's Methodology .................................................... 88
D . Conclusion ........................................................................................................ 98
Concluding Remarks ......................................................................-................................1.0 0
Selected Bibliography ..................................................................................................... 1 O 4
INTRODUCTION
This thesis is a study of Faziur Rahman's Islamic philosophy by examining his
studies and critique of Muslim philosophers' works and his certitude as to the value of the
Qur'anic message. The thesis is not concerned with Rahman's opinion on the value (if any)
of the suonah or tradition of the Prophet in providing answers for the needs of
contemporary man. Rather, it concentrates on his opinion on the vdue of Islamic
philosophy in the contemporary world, as mostly expressed in the Qur'Zn. The reason for
choosing this approach lies in the importance that the Qur'iin occupies Rahman's scheme
of thought. This thesis, therefore, examines the relationship between Rahman's philosophy
and his task of interpreting the Qur'anic message in the light of contemporary needs.
It should be note4 however, that Rahman himself does not term this specific
thought as "Islamic philosophy." The reason why 1 have chosen to refer to Rahman's
intellectual activity in this rnanner is because of his disagreement with the Muslim
philosophers' preoccupation with metaphysical notions on the one hand, and his offer of
what he regarded as a more ethics-based system of thought.
Fazlur Rahman, one of this century's greatest Muslim scholars, was a Muslim
scholar who was boni in 19 19 in what is now Pakistan, into a Muslim farnily that was
deeply religious. Despite the piety of his parents, however, his father convinced him that
although Islam was a great religion, it had to face modemity both as "a challenge and as an
opportunity."' For this reason, Rahman was attracted in his youth to both traditional and
1 Fazlur Rahman, "Faziur Rahman," in The Courage of Conw'ction, ed. P. L. Berman (New
York: Dodd, Mead & Company, 1985), 154.
modern knowledge. His early education in M a to ok place at traditional institutions of
Islamic studies. In 1942, he received his Master's degree in Arabic Literature at Punjab
University. From there, he went on to Oxford University whence he graduated with a
doctorate in Islamic Philosophy in 1949.~
It was Rahman's study of philosophy which first created a conflict between his
traditional beliefs and his modem thinking. He confesses that for at least six years -- f7om
the late forties to the mid-fifties -- he experienced an acute scepticism. His book Prop6ecy
io IsIam; reflecting this scepticism, gives an account of traditional Muslim theologians and
Muslim philosophers on the issue of prophecy. During that same penod Rahman realized
that he needed to leam Islamic philosophy in preparation for a complete study of Islam, and
from that time onward he devoted a great deal of energy to Islamic philosophy. To quote
Rahman:
Convinced that the MusIim philosophers were headed in the wrong direction, I was
"rebom" with a new impulse to understand Islam. But where was that Islam? Had
1 not studied it with my father? But then my father had transmitted to me a
fourteen-cent ury-old tradition, and my scept icism had been directed at certain
2 This description of Rahman's life does not pretend to be a complete biography, since many
other works provide this. In fact, Rahman himselfwote his autobiography in "Fazlur Rahman,"l54-
9. For a detailed account of Rahman's life see D. L. Berry, "The Thought of Faziur Rahman as an
Islamic Response to Modernity" (Ph-D. dissertation, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary,
1990), 50-61; Alparsian Açikgenç, "The Thinker of Islarnîc Revival and Reform: Fazlur Rahman's
Life and Thought (19 19-19 88)," Journal ofI'sfwcR esearch 4,2 (19 90): 232-48; F. M. Demy, 'The
Legacy of Fazlur Rahman," in 3ae Mwu'ms ofAmen'ca, cd. Y. Y. Haddad (New York and Oxford:
Oxford University Press, 1991), 96-8; T. A. Amal, Isfm dan Tmrmgm Modemitas: Studi atas
Pemihraa H&m Fazlw Rahmm (Islam and the Challenge of Modernity: A Study of Fazlcr
Rahman's Legal Thought) (Bandung: Mizan, 1993)' 79-104; Amhar Rasyid, "Sorne Qur'Znic Legal
Texts in the Context of Fazlur Rahman's Hermeneutical Theory" (MA. thesis, McGill University,
1994), 5-7.
'~azlurR ahman, fkpbecy in Isfam: PMosophy and Ohodoxy condon: George Allen &
Unwin, 1958).
important aspects of that tradition. 1 then realized that dthough Muslims claim
their beliefs, law, and spirituality are "based upon the Quran," the scripture
embodying the revelation of the Prophet Muhammad (570-632), the Quran was
never t aught by itself in any seat of traditional learning, but always with the aid of
commentaries. A study of the Quran itself, together with the Life of the Prophet,
enabled me to gain fiesh insight into its meaning and purpose, making it possible
for me to reevduate my tradition."
Among those accomplishrnents for which Rahman is most renowned is his method
of interpreting the Qur'%a. This method served as the basis of his understanding of Islamic
legal theory.' It is acknowledged that Rahman's recommendations for achieving a proper
underst anding of Islamic principles are among his most significant contribut ions to the field
of Islamic religious doctrines6 Furthermore, as Demy states, in Rahman's works one
discerns an intellectual approach that presupposes those first principles which are rooted
in faith? However, Islamic philosophy, which fist inspired Rahman to learn the Qur'Zn in
depth, has not received the attention it requires fiom scholars interested in his thought.
In fact, Rahman pays great attention to Islamic philosophy, and -- departing fiom
the Muslim philosophers' conceptions of God, man, and nature -- attempts to provide a
Qur'Gnic perspective on these subjects, doing so in the hope of filling certain needs of
contemporary man. In his writings: Rahman alternates between suppoa and criticism of
ahma man, "Fazlur Rahman," 155.
' ~ e ea mong others, Tamara SOM,' cFaziur Rahman's Islamic Methodology," The Muslm
World 8 1,3-4 (199 1): 2 12-30; Amal, Islam dan Tantmgan Modemitas, Rasyid, "Some QurY5nic
Legal Texts."
6~onn",F azlur Rahman's Islamic Methodology," 2 13.
7 F. M. Demy, "Fazlur Rahman: Muslim Intellectual," The Mushn World 79, 2 (1 989): 9 1.
or a complete bibliography of Rahman's works, consult T. A. Amal and 1. Ali-Fa&,
"Bibliografi Karya-k;irva Intelektual Fazlur Rahman: Bagian 1 & II (Fazlur Rahman's Bibliography:
Muslim philosophers and makes a strong effort to elaborate his oim position. This attention
is not usually seen as part of his philosophical thought but, rather, of his Legal thought; it
cm in fact be said to belong to the discourse of Islamic revival and reform?
In analyzing Rahman's thought, especiaily his emphasis on $%&md his criticism
of the world-negating conceptions of the S Üfis, one is struck by its similarities with ideas
advanced by some famous Miislim thinkers of the Indian subcontinent, such as Sirhindi (d.
1624) and Shah WaE-Allah of Delhi (d. 1762). These two thinkers spoke out in response
to the political chaos faced by Indian Muslims at that tirne.''
Both Sirhindi and Wali-AU& criticized the doctrine of zubdrthe world-negat ion").
In Sirhindi's view, "the last point in creation which is this world is also the nearest to the
starting point [(God), because the world is the purpose of the whole creative process].""
Part 1 & II)," hiamika 1 (July-September 1993) and liIamika 2 (October-December 1993): 1 10-3,
and 8 14, respectively; ''Fazlur Rahman's Works," Jouznal oflslami R e s e d 4,2 (1 990): 248-52;
Muhammad Khaiid Masud, "Dr. Fazlur Rahman (1919-1988)," IsImicSt~dies27,4(1 988): 390-6.
' ~ e ea mong others, Amal, Islam dao T'tmgm Modemite Rasyid, "Some QurYZnicL egal
Texts."
'O~or a discussion on the political situation of india at the tirne of Sirhindi and Wali-Allah,
and the mu~addidd("renewer")t radition see, among others, Aziz Ahmad, ed., Religin mdsociety
in Pakisfm (Leiden: E. J. Brili, 1971); 1. H. Qureshi, Mema in Po/icics(Karachi: Ma'aref, 1972); P.
Hardy, Mus/lms ofBn'tish hdra (London: Cambridge University Press, 1972), 1-60; B. D. Metcalf,
Ishic Revival in Bn'tish h d a : Deoband, 1860-1900 (New Jersey: Princeton University Press,
1982), 3-45; Eqbal Ahmed, "Islam and Politics," in Islam, Politics and the Sfafe: The PaMstan
Expeiieoce, ed. M. A. Khan (London: Zed Books, 1985), 13-30; E. Landau-Tasseron, 'The 'Cyclical
Reform': A Study of the Mqhddid'ïradition," Studia Islmica 70 (1989): 79-1 17; S. Alvi, 'The
Myaddidand TajdidTradition in the Indian Sub-continent: A Histoncal Overview," Amma/ of
Twkis6 Studies 18 (1994): 1-15.
"S. Grnad Sirhindi, "Intikhàb-i Shaykh *mad Sirhindi," ed., Fazlur Rahman, Selected
Lettem ofShiiko AQnadSirhinrG(Karachi: Iqbal Academy, l968), 47, line 8. The English quotation
of this passage is taken fiom F. Rahman, c%troduction," SelectedLettezs, 53. For more discussion
on Sirhindi's views and works that have been done on him, see chapter two of this thesis.
W - pointe d in the same direction, postulating a world-affirming o ~ t l o o k .H' ~e
objected to the practices of popular religion in India, including worship at saints' tombs and
the sacrifice of &als to deities.13 Wali-Allah's insistence on the importance of ijtiZdis
equally apparent. Hermansen argues that his position resembles that of the Shâfi'T school,
although Wali-Allah was a Hanafi in practice. She further maintains that he "went fiom a
position of reject ing taqfid to an accept ance of generally following the four madhbabs,
afthough being able to go outside them on specific cases.""
Indeed, Rahman admires both Sirhindi and Wali-Allah. In one place, he describes
Sirhindi's attempt to harmonize shaficah and tgawwuf as revealing "some of the rarest
insights into the nature of Islam," and asserts that "his religiously world-affing attitude
would astonish even the most modern thinker."15 Elsewhere, Rahman notes that Wali-Alla
was a thinker "suigenenk in the entire history of traditional Islam," and that "no one before
him attempted an integration [Tatbiql [sic] of the total Islamic Stru~ture."'~
12~azluRr ahman, "Some Reflections on the Reconstruction of Muslim Society in Pakistan,"
lslamic Studies 6, 2 (1967): 118.
13p. Hardy, Musliims of British hdia, 29.
"~hah WaE Alla, B e Coocfmive k g m e n t ficm Goa Sh2i Wd Ailah ofDe&i 3 Hujjât
Allah al-Baligha, tram M. K . Herrnansen (Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1996), xxxi-ii. See also Fazlur
Rahman, "The Thinker of Crisis: Shah Waliy-Ullah," Pakism Quarted'y 6,2 (1 956): 45; Rahman,
"Interna1 Religious Developments in the Present Century Islam," lournal of WorldHistov 2, 4
(1955): 863-4. For more discussion on Wafi-All& see, among others, A. Ahmad, "Political and
Religious Ideas of Shah Wali-Ullah of Delhi," T6e Mus/im World 52 (1962): 22-30; R. Peters,
"Iitilaid and TaqEd in 1 8th and 19th Century Islam," Die Weit des IsIams 20, 3-4 (1 980): 13 1-45;
J. M. S. Baljon, ReIig-~ona nd Thought o f S b a WaGALi& Dibfawr'f 703-1762Geiden: E. J. Brill,
1986); M. A. Ghazi, "State and Politics in the PhiIosophy of Shah Waiiy -Uah," in (sfm.- Sme and
Society, e h . K. Ferdinand and M. Mozaffari (London: Curzon Press, 1988), 89-102.
"~ahrnan, "The Thinker of Crisis," 44.
G
The question arïses as to whether these similarities between Rahman's thought and
that of the two eminent Indian scholars on certain issues, on the one hand, and Rahman's
admiration of these thinkers on the other, indicate their influence on Rahman's position.
One possible answer may be found in the notion of c'cumuIative tradition" advanced by W.
C. Smith. In Smith's view, Hinduism, Christianity and Islam are constantly being recreated.
In his discussion of lslam, Smith postulates that "For whatever reason, it is a fact
irrefutable and profoundly sio@ficant that the Islamic tradition has become [and one cm
hardly emphasize that word too strongly] what it has observably become; that it has
become so by gradua1 and complex historical process that can be studied." He further argues
that "The Islamic tradition that modem Musiims inherit, and that observers see, has been
the handiwork of ~uslims."" In other words, it is safe to argue that Fazlur Rahman ranged
himself alongside the Muslim scholars who preceded him. However, this does not
necessarily mean that he was infiuenced directly by their interpretations of the various
subjects discussed.
Although some work has been done on Fazlur Rahman, especially on his method of
interpreting the Qur'in, the focus of this thesis is his understanding of Islamic philosophy.
While his Qur'iinic methodology will be an important part of our aoalysis, this
methodology will concern us only insofar as it appeared to Rahman to provide an answer
or answers to contemporary man, since Rahman believed that it is only by grasping the true
meaning of the Qur'iin that the needs of contemporary man can be satisfied. Moreover, this
"W. C. Smith, The Meming aad End ofReIig7oï1, rev. ed. (Minneapolis: Fortress, 199 1),
1 64.
7
thesis examines the philosophical expressions which Rahman employs in some of his works
in order to discover the reasons behind his chosen expressions. Therefore, the main
contribution of this thesis will lie in its attempt to reveal Rahman's concept of Islarnic
philosophy, and -- as he himself insists -- to place his method of interpreting the Qur'Sn
within a pragmatic fkarnework, as opposed to the rnetaphysical one of the Muslim
philosophers.
Chapter one examines Rahman's definition of his philosophy. In order to reach a
comprehensive understanding of this definition, this chapter will provide two background
accounts: a brief one of the development of falsfd and kalam in Islam, and another of
some definitions of Islamic philosophy proposed by eminent scholars in the field. Rahman's
distinctive understanding of Islamic philosophy will be explored in the last section. In
particular, one will find that Rahman's philosophy is characterized by its ethical
orientation, based on three key tenns in the Qur' an: r'miüz, ishnf and tqwZ
Rahman's interpretation of the history of Islamic philosophy is fully analyzed in
chapter two. Before coming to his interpretation, however, a discussion on Rahman's
opinion of the development of philosophy in Islam is needed. This assessrnent leads to
another aspect of his thought whereby his religious, historical and political thought are al1
intenvoven. Since Rahman devoted a great deal of space to the debate on essence and
existence, with special reference to Ibn Sini, one needs to examine why it was so important
for Ralunan to deal with this subject. From these three aspects of the discussion, it is c!ear
that Rahman's emphasis on the use of the historical approach influenced his interpretation
of the philosophical tradition of Islam. At the same time, one finds that Rahman believed
8
that the debate over essence and existence is central to Islamic thought, which itself
emphasizes the fundamental distinction between God and created objects.
In the third chapter, the discussion is centered on Fazlur Rahman's view of the value
of philosophy in the conternporary world and is based on the arguments found in his Mqor
Themes of the Q~r ' i i z ,u~si~ng his other works only so far as t hey relate t O the discussion.
The book has been chosen as our principal source given the fact that Rahman's approach
to Islamic philosophy is closely related to his methodology of interpreting the Qur7in, in
that both are designed to bring out ideas that can help to satis& people's needs in this
world. This chapter consists of a threefold discussion. The f h t section examines Rahman's
Qur'anic methodology. Rahman's fiequent use of certain philosophical expressions in
explainhg the Qur'ân is discussed in section two of this chapter. The discussion culminates
in the third section, in which Rahman's application of his methodology is examined. It is
in this last section that his approach to making Islamic philosophy apply to contemporary
issues will become clear.
We hope to show in this study that Fazlur Rahman has made a significant
contribution to Islamic philosophical discourse. His argument that Islamic philosophy
should not deal solely with metaphysical notions but should instead relate to moral and
practical behaviour brings an alternative insight to the study of the subject. Moreover, his
view that Islamic philosophy did not cease to exist with the death of Averroes (d. 1 l%),
acknowledges the fact that Muslim thought not only had an impact on Western philosophy,
but is also worth~%iIe studying for its own sake. It is tnie that the characteristics of
18 Minneapolis: Bibliotheca Islamica, 1980.
9
Rahman's philosophy do not absolve him fiom inappropriate conclusion in relation to the
neglect of ethics by Muslim philosophers. Furthemore, his views regarding the contribution
of the Muslim philosophers to the intellect uai discourse in Islam somet imes seem
ambivalent. However, his attempt to fit Islamic philosophical discourse within a pragmatic
framework, in order to provide answers to the needs of contemporary man, places him --
to borrow Sonn's words -- at "the forefiont of Muslim scholars." I9
lg~ama rSaO M, c'Fa~.uRra hman's Existentid Hermeneutic," unpublished paper delivered
at the conference entitled "Islam and Modemity: The Fazlur Rahman Experience," Istanbul,
February 1997.