The Problem of Free Will in the Post-Classical Period of the Hanafī Tradition: Samarqandī’s and Sadr al-Sharī‘a’s Criticisms of al-Rāzī

İmam Rabbani Çelik

Article Details

The Problem of Free Will in the Post-Classical Period of the Hanafī Tradition: Samarqandī’s and Sadr al-Sharī‘a’s Criticisms of al-Rāzī

Authors:

İmam Rabbani Çelik

Publisher:

Istanbul University

Main Topics:

İslam Hukuku

Journal:

İslam Tetkikleri Dergisi Vol.14 Issue 2, pp.359-384

Document Type:

Article

Publication Date:

9/2024

Document Language:

Turkish

Document ID (Org No.):

2001330660

pISSN:

2717-6967

Keywords:

Abstract:

 Fakhr al-Dīn al-Rāzī d. 6061210, who reconstructed Ashʿarite theology using the language and concepts of Avicennian philosophy, argued that the actions of the people were under compulsion jabr. His argument to prove this view set the agenda of Hanafī theologians and jurists in the post-classical period. Shams al-Dīn al-Samarqandī d. 7021303 and al-Sadr al-Sharīʿa d. 7471346, who were among the first thinkers in Transoxiana to reexamine the scholarly legacy of the Hanafī tradition accumulation in theology and legal theory with the concepts and issues of Avicennian philosophy and classical logic, criticised al-Rāzīs argument in their works. Although there are studies in the modern literature dealing with al-Rāzīs and Sadr al-Sharīʿas approaches to the acts of people, there is a need for a study that deals with al-Samarqandīs views on this issue in connection with these two thinkers ideas. This article aims to address a gap in the literature by examining the continuity and change in the criticism of al-Rāzīs argument within Hanafī circles. It will also demonstrate how the Hanafī tradition in Transoxiana engaged with the Ashʿarite tradition during the post-classical period through discussions on free will. This article demonstrates that al-Samarqandīs criticism does not differ from al-Rāzīs argument of jabr in terms of cause because he also uses the hierarchical chain of causality. However, Sadr al-Sharīʿas conception of the complete cause differs from al-Rāzīs conception of hierarchical causality and he integrates the ontological category of state al-ahwāl into the complete cause. In his criticism, Sadr al-Sharīa went one step further than his predecessor and tried to refute the premises of the jabr argument.

 Fakhr al-Dīn al-Rāzī d. 6061210, who reconstructed Ashʿarite theology using the language and concepts of Avicennian philosophy, argued that the actions of the people were under compulsion jabr. His argument to prove this view set the agenda of Hanafī theologians and jurists in the post-classical period. Shams al-Dīn al-Samarqandī d. 7021303 and al-Sadr al-Sharīʿa d. 7471346, who were among the first thinkers in Transoxiana to reexamine the scholarly legacy of the Hanafī tradition accumulation in theology and legal theory with the concepts and issues of Avicennian philosophy and classical logic, criticised al-Rāzīs argument in their works. Although there are studies in the modern literature dealing with al-Rāzīs and Sadr al-Sharīʿas approaches to the acts of people, there is a need for a study that deals with al-Samarqandīs views on this issue in connection with these two thinkers ideas. This article aims to address a gap in the literature by examining the continuity and change in the criticism of al-Rāzīs argument within Hanafī circles. It will also demonstrate how the Hanafī tradition in Transoxiana engaged with the Ashʿarite tradition during the post-classical period through discussions on free will. This article demonstrates that al-Samarqandīs criticism does not differ from al-Rāzīs argument of jabr in terms of cause because he also uses the hierarchical chain of causality. However, Sadr al-Sharīʿas conception of the complete cause differs from al-Rāzīs conception of hierarchical causality and he integrates the ontological category of state al-ahwāl into the complete cause. In his criticism, Sadr al-Sharīa went one step further than his predecessor and tried to refute the premises of the jabr argument.

 Fakhr al-Dīn al-Rāzī d. 6061210, who reconstructed Ashʿarite theology using the language and concepts of Avicennian philosophy, argued that the actions of the people were under compulsion jabr. His argument to prove this view set the agenda of Hanafī theologians and jurists in the post-classical period. Shams al-Dīn al-Samarqandī d. 7021303 and al-Sadr al-Sharīʿa d. 7471346, who were among the first thinkers in Transoxiana to reexamine the scholarly legacy of the Hanafī tradition accumulation in theology and legal theory with the concepts and issues of Avicennian philosophy and classical logic, criticised al-Rāzīs argument in their works. Although there are studies in the modern literature dealing with al-Rāzīs and Sadr al-Sharīʿas approaches to the acts of people, there is a need for a study that deals with al-Samarqandīs views on this issue in connection with these two thinkers ideas. This article aims to address a gap in the literature by examining the continuity and change in the criticism of al-Rāzīs argument within Hanafī circles. It will also demonstrate how the Hanafī tradition in Transoxiana engaged with the Ashʿarite tradition during the post-classical period through discussions on free will. This article demonstrates that al-Samarqandīs criticism does not differ from al-Rāzīs argument of jabr in terms of cause because he also uses the hierarchical chain of causality. However, Sadr al-Sharīʿas conception of the complete cause differs from al-Rāzīs conception of hierarchical causality and he integrates the ontological category of state al-ahwāl into the complete cause. In his criticism, Sadr al-Sharīa went one step further than his predecessor and tried to refute the premises of the jabr argument.

 Eşarî kelâmını meşşâî felsefenin dili ve kavramlarıyla yeniden inşa eden Fahreddin er-Râzî ö. 6061210 kulların fiillerinin cebr altında olduğunu ileri sürmüştür. Onun bu görüşünü ispat için getirdiği argüman klasik sonrası dönemde Hanefî kelâmcı ve usûlcülerinin de gündemini belirlemiştir. Mâverâünnehirde Hanefî geleneğin kelâm ve usûldeki birikimini meşşâî felsefenin ve mantığın kavram ve meseleleriyle yeniden ele alan ilk düşünürlerden olan Şemseddin es-Semerkandî ö. 7021303 ve Sadrüşşerîa ö. 7471346 yazdıkları eserlerle Râzînin bu argümanına eleştiriler yöneltmiştir. Modern literatürde özellikle müstakil olarak Râzînin ve Sadrüşşerîanın insan fiillerine yaklaşımlarını konu edinen çalışmalar yapılmakla birlikte Semerkandînin bu husustaki görüşlerini hususen bu iki düşünürle irtibatlı şekilde ele alan bir çalışmaya ihtiyaç vardır. Söz konusu ihtiyaca cevap vermeyi amaçlayan bu makalede zikri geçen iki Hanefî ismin Râzînin argümanına getirdikleri eleştiride süreklilik ve değişimin izi sürülecek ve Mâverâünnehirdeki Hanefî geleneğin klasik sonrası dönem Eşarî birikimiyle hesaplaşmasının irade tartışmalarına nasıl yansıdığı gösterilecektir. Bu makalede mezkûr iki Hanefî düşünürden Semerkandînin Râzîyi eleştirisine rağmen onun cebr argümanının hiyerarşik sebeplik zincirini benimseyerek illet anlayışında onunla benzeştiği, Sadrüşşerîanın ise farklı bir tam illet tasavvurundan hareketle hâlleri de bu illete dâhil ettiği tespit edilmiştir. Sadrüşşerîa eleştirisinde selefinden bir adım öteye giderek cebr argümanın öncüllerini çürütmeye çalışmıştır.

Article Details

The Problem of Free Will in the Post-Classical Period of the Hanafī Tradition: Samarqandī’s and Sadr al-Sharī‘a’s Criticisms of al-Rāzī

Authors:

İmam Rabbani Çelik

Publisher:

Istanbul University

Main Topics:

İslam Hukuku

Journal:

İslam Tetkikleri Dergisi Vol.14 Issue 2, pp.359-384

Document Type:

Article

Publication Date:

9/2024

Document Language:

Turkish

Document ID (Org No.):

2001330660

pISSN:

2717-6967

Islamic Theology

Islamic Legal Theory

Hanafīte

Ashʿarite

Human Act

WillKelâm

Fıkıh Usulü

Hanefîler

Eş‘arîler

İnsan Fiilleri

İrade

Issues

Article Details

Authors: İmam Rabbani Çelik

Publisher: Istanbul University

Main Topics: İslam Hukuku

Journal: İslam Tetkikleri Dergisi Vol.14 Issue 2, pp.359-384

Document Type: Article

Publication Date: 9/2024

Document Language: Turkish

Document ID (Org No.): 2001330660

pISSN: 2717-6967

Issues

Authors:

İmam Rabbani Çelik

Publisher:

Istanbul University

Main Topics:

İslam Hukuku

Journal:

İslam Tetkikleri Dergisi Vol.14 Issue 2, pp.359-384

Document Type:

Article

Publication Date:

9/2024

Document Language:

Turkish

Document ID (Org No.):

2001330660

pISSN:

2717-6967