Ibn Sina's Remarks and Admonitions: Physics and Metaphysics
An Analysis and Annotated Translation
Columbia University Press
Published on 8. July 2014
Book
Hardback
248 pages
978-0-231-16616-4 (ISBN)
Description
Al-Isharat wal-Tanbihat (Remarks and Admonitions) is one of the most mature and comprehensive philosophical works by Ibn Sina (Avicenna, 980-1037). Grounded in an exploration of logic (which Ibn Sina described as the gate to knowledge) and happiness (the ultimate human goal), the text illuminates the divine, the human being, and the nature of things through a wide-ranging discussion of topics. The sections of Physics and Metaphysics deal with the nature of bodies and souls as well as existence, creation, and knowledge. Especially important are Ibn Sina's views of God's knowledge of particulars, which generated much controversy in medieval Islamic and Christian philosophical and theological circles and provoked a strong rejection by eleventh-century philosopher al-Ghazali. This book provides the first annotated English translation of Physics and Metaphysics and edits the original Arabic text on which the translation is based.
It begins with a detailed analysis of the text, followed by a translation of the three classes or groups of ideas in the Physics (On the Substance of Bodies, On the Directions and Their Primary and Secondary Bodies, and On the Terrestrial and Celestial Souls) and the four in the Metaphysics (On Existence and Its Causes, Creation Ex Nihilo and Immediate Creation, On Ends, on Their Principles, and on the Arrangement [of Existence], and On Abstraction. The Metaphysics closes with a significant discussion of the concepts of providence, good, and evil, which Ibn Sina uses to introduce a theodicy. Researchers, faculty, and students in philosophy, theology, religion, and intellectual history will find in this work a useful and necessary source for understanding Ibn Sina's philosophical thought and, more generally, the medieval Islamic and Christian study of nature, the world beyond, psychology, God, and the concept of evil.
It begins with a detailed analysis of the text, followed by a translation of the three classes or groups of ideas in the Physics (On the Substance of Bodies, On the Directions and Their Primary and Secondary Bodies, and On the Terrestrial and Celestial Souls) and the four in the Metaphysics (On Existence and Its Causes, Creation Ex Nihilo and Immediate Creation, On Ends, on Their Principles, and on the Arrangement [of Existence], and On Abstraction. The Metaphysics closes with a significant discussion of the concepts of providence, good, and evil, which Ibn Sina uses to introduce a theodicy. Researchers, faculty, and students in philosophy, theology, religion, and intellectual history will find in this work a useful and necessary source for understanding Ibn Sina's philosophical thought and, more generally, the medieval Islamic and Christian study of nature, the world beyond, psychology, God, and the concept of evil.
Reviews / Votes
An important text by one of the leading writers on Islamic philosophy and the first English translation of high quality. It will be heavily used by those in the discipline. -- Oliver Leaman, University of Kentucky Finally, thanks to Inati, we have now available in English the Physics and Metaphysics of Ibn Sina's most famous work in the East, the Isharat, or Remarks and Admonitions. The Isharat offers Ibn Sina's more mature thinking, so access to it in English is invaluable. Now East and West can truly meet to discuss one of the greatest philosophers. -- Therese-Anne Druart, Catholic University of America This work continues Inati's earlier volumes of analysis and translation into English of Ibn Sina's al-Isharat wal-Tanbihat, the last philosophical masterpiece of the shaykh of Muslim peripatetic philosophers. In providing a clear and accessible translation of difficult text with very useful annotations, Inati has made a major contribution to Avicenna's studies and has put students of Islamic as well as Western medieval philosophy in her debt. -- Seyyed Hossein Nasr, George Washington University Ibn Sina (the Avicenna of Latin fame) is without doubt among the most important and influential Muslim philosophers of all time. He presented his unique intellectual system with its mix of Greek science and Islamic theology in no less than three encyclopedias, of which Remarks and Admonitions is the shortest and most enigmatic. With Ibn Sina's Remarks and Admonitions: Physics and Metaphysics, Shams C. Inati has provided us with a helpful tool with which future scholars can dig deeper into the nuanced philosophical system of Ibn Sina and mine the virtually untapped riches of postclassical Islamic philosophy. -- Jon McGinnis, University of Missouri, St. Louis Inati's masterful translation has produced a remarkable work that is useful both for students and scholars. Her extensive analysis, commentary, and annotations have added much value to this work, which will no doubt shed further light on our understanding of Ibn Sina. -- Mehdi Aminrazavi, University of Mary Washington This is an important translation from the original Arabic of a major text by one of the most influential Muslim philosophers to date. It is handsomely presented by Columbia University Press. International Journal of Philosophy of Religion A considerable contribution to Avicennan scholarship with her translation of the Isharat. Journal of Islamic StudiesMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Trade binding
Dimensions
Height: 236 mm
Width: 159 mm
Thickness: 25 mm
Weight
472 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-231-16616-4 (9780231166164)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Ibn Sina's Remarks and Admonitions: Physics and Metaphysics
An Analysis and Annotated Translation
E-Book
07/2015
1st Edition
De Gruyter
from
€56.95
Available for download
Person
Shams C. Inati is an internationally renowned intellectual and scholar on Islamic philosophy, a poet, and an educator. She is professor of Islamic philosophy and theology at Villanova University. Dr. Inati is the author of numerous articles and a number of books, including The Problem of Evil: Ibn Sina's Theodicy; Ibn Sina and Mysticism: Remarks and Admonitions; and Remarks and Admonitions: Logic.
Content
Preface Analysis of the Text Part Two: Physics Prologue First Class: On the Substance of Bodies Second Class: On the Directions and Their Primary and Secondary Bodies Third Class: On the Terrestrial and Celestial Souls Supplement to the [Third] Class: On Expositing the Movements Produced by the Soul Part Three: Metaphysics Fourth Class: On Existence and Its Causes Fifth Class: Creation Ex Nihilo and Immediate Creation Sixth Class: On Ends, on Their Principles, and on the Arrangement of existence Seventh Class: On Abstraction Notes Bibliography Index