As a contemporary neo-Sadraian philosopher, Muhaqeq Isfahani has proposed his own account of the ontological argument for the existence of Allah. This account of the argument is unprecedented and has caught the attention of many contemporary thinkers. There have been proposed five accounts of this argument upon three pivots. First is the concept of necessary being as a mental concept. Second is the concept of necessary being so far as it denotes something beyond the concept. And third is the very (...) reality of necessary being existing by itself in the outside world. Each of the above accounts is open to some criticisms. Prof. Mahdi Ha’iri Yazdi has leveled four criticisms at that account of the argument such as counter-argument, begging the question, the confusion of categorical proposition with non-categorical one. The proponents of ontological argument have raised objections to Ha’iri’s criticisms. Most of those objections are not valid for they stem from the insufficient consideration of the fact that concepts such as “necessary being”, “God”, “partner of Creator” and the like are philosophical secondary intelligible. Accordingly, most of Prof. Ha’iri’s criticisms against Muhaqeq Ishafani are valid and thus the ontological argument fails to prove the existence of Allah. (shrink)

Recently there is an increasing technological development in intelligent tutoring systems. This field has become interesting to many researchers. In this paper, we present an intelligent tutoring system for teaching information security. This intelligent tutoring systems target the students enrolled in Advanced Topics in Information Security in the faculty of Engineering and Information Technology at Al-Azhar University in Gaza. Through which the student will be able to study the course and solve related problems. An evaluation of the intelligent tutoring systems (...) was carried out and the results were promising. (shrink)

I seek to explicate the ways in which the soul is deemed immaterial in two main strands of Islamic philosophy, and then consider some arguments for the immateriality of the soul. To do so, I first overview Avicenna’s theory of the spiritual incipience (al-ḥudūth al-rūḥānī) of the soul and his version of substance dualism. I will then discuss Mullā Ṣadrā’s view of the physical incipience (al-ḥudūth al-jismānī) of the soul and how the soul emerges and develops towards immateriality on his (...) account. I then overview and discuss five of the most important arguments presented by these two great Muslim philosophers in favor of the immateriality of the soul. To do so, I will also point out some of the main contemporary physicalistic views of the nature of mind and mental states. I will then argue that arguments for the immateriality of the soul – dealt with here – do not indeed target or challenge any significant versions of contemporary physicalism. Moreover, these arguments involve conflations of epistemological or ontological issues. (shrink)

The special theory of relativity holds significant interest for scientific perspectivists. In this paper, I distinguish between two related meanings of “perspectival,” and argue that reference frames are perspectives, provided that perspectival means “being conditional” rather than “being partial.” Frame-dependent properties such as length, time duration, and simultaneity, are not partially measured in a reference frame, but their measurements are conditional on the choice of frame. I also discuss whether the constancy of the speed of light depends on perspectival factors (...) such as the idealized definition of the speed of light in a perfect vacuum and the Einstein synchronization convention. Furthermore, I argue for the view that the constancy of its speed is a robust property of light according to the conditions of currently acceptable experimental setups pertaining to special relativity, and conclude that this view supports perspectivism. (shrink)

This paper concerns the recent revival of entity realism. Having been started with the work of Ian Hacking, Nancy Cartwright and Ronald Giere, the project of entity realism has recently been developed by Matthias Egg, Markus Eronen, and Bence Nanay. The paper opens a dialogue among these recent views on entity realism and integrates them into a more advanced view. The result is an epistemological criterion for reality: the property-tokens of a certain type may be taken as real insofar as (...) only they can be materially inferred from the evidence obtained in a variety of independent ways of detection. (shrink)

This paper draws on the phenomenological-hermeneutical approaches to philosophy of science to develop realist perspectivism, an integration of experimental realism and perspectivism. Specifically, the paper employs the distinction between “manifestation” and “phenomenon” and it advances the view that the evidence of a real entity is “explorable” in order to argue that instrumentally-mediated robust evidence indicates real entities. Furthermore, it underpins the phenomenological notion of the horizonal nature of scientific observation with perspectivism, so accounting for scientific pluralism even in the cases (...) of inconsistent models. Overall, realist perspectivism is proposed as the way to go for (phenomenologically-hermeneutically minded) philosophers of science. (shrink)

This paper first explores in detail a regenerated theory in philosophy of mind, known among contemporary philosophers as ‘emergentism’. By distinguishing strong and weak versions of the theory, I explain two important explanatory challenges presented by physicalists against this theory. In the following, I provide a brief overview of Sadr al-Muta’allihin’s theory of the incipience and degrees of the soul, examining similarities and differences between this theory and strong emergentism. Then, underlining the main aspects of similarity between the two theories, (...) I consider the challenges presented by physicalists against emergentism as reconstructible against Sadra’s theory. Surveying some explanations by Sadraean philosophers of the soul-body relationship, I ultimately argue that Sadra’s theory is inadequate in face of the objections and doubts raised by contemporary physicalists. My assessment is that Sadra’s philosophy is in need of further development to meet those explanatory challenges. (shrink)

Relying on the notion of “overlapping perspectives,” this paper argues that entity realism and perspectivism are complementary. According to entity realism, it is justified to maintain a positive attitude toward the existence of unobservable entities with which multiple experimental interactions are possible. Perspectivism also explains that our beliefs about these entities are bounded by historically contingent theoretical and instrumental perspectives. The argument of the paper is developed through a discussion of Ronald Giere’s versions of realism: entity realism, constructive realism, and (...) perspectival realism. (shrink)

This dissertation is about human knowledge of reality. In particular, it argues that scientific knowledge is bounded by historically available instruments and theories; nevertheless, the use of several independent instruments and theories can provide access to the persistent potentialities of reality. The replicability of scientific observations and experiments allows us to obtain explorable evidence of robust entities and properties. The dissertation includes seven chapters. It also studies three cases – namely, Higgs bosons and hypothetical Ϝ-particles (section 2.4), the Ptolemaic and (...) Kepler model of the planets (section 6.7), and the special theory of relativity (chapter 7). -/- Chapter 1 is the introduction of the dissertation. Chapter 2 clarifies the notion of the real on the basis of two concepts: persistence and resistance. These concepts enable me to explain my ontological belief in the real potentialities of human-independent things and the implications of this view for the perceptual and epistemological levels of discussion. On the basis of the concept of “overlapping perspectives”, chapter 3 argues that entity realism and perspectivism are complementary. That is, an entity that manifests itself through several experimental/observational methods is something real, but our knowledge of its nature is perspectival. Critically studying the recent views of entity realism, chapter 4 extends the discussion of entity realism and provides a criterion for the reality of property tokens. Chapter 5, in contrast, develops the perspectival aspects of my view on the basis of the phenomenological-hermeneutical approaches to the philosophy of science. This chapter also elaborates my view of empirical evidence, as briefly expressed in sections 2.5 and 4.5. Chapter 6 concerns diachronic theoretical perspectives. It first explains my view of progress, according to which current perspectives are broader than past ones. Second, it argues that the successful explanations and predictions of abandoned theories can be accounted for from our currently acceptable perspectives. The case study of Ptolemaic astronomy supports the argument of this chapter. Chapter 7 serves as the conclusion of the dissertation by applying the central themes of the previous chapters to the case study of special relativity theory. I interpret frame-dependent properties, such as length and time duration, and the constancy of the speed of light according to realist perspectivism. (shrink)

In this commentary, I ask six questions concerning the implications of Philipp Berghofer’s experience-first approach for the epistemology of science, in general, and that of quantum mechanics, in particular. His responses will deepen my comprehension of his ideas. I also anticipate that these questions will aid him in further refining and strengthening his arguments.

The evolution of Intelligent Tutoring System (ITS) is the result of the amount of research in the field of education and artificial intelligence in recent years. English is the third most common languages in the world and also is the internationally dominant in the telecommunications, science and trade, aviation, entertainment, radio and diplomatic language as most of the areas of work now taught in English. Therefore, the demand for learning English has increased. In this paper, we describe the design of (...) an Intelligent Tutoring System for teaching English language grammar to help students learn English grammar easily and smoothly. The system provides all topics of English grammar and generates a series of questions automatically for each topic for the students to solve. The system adapts with all the individual differences of students and begins gradually with students from easier to harder level. The intelligent tutoring system was given to a group of students of all age groups to try it and to see the impact of the system on students. The results showed a good satisfaction of the students toward the system. (shrink)

This paper proposes a way to understand the meaning of reality (in science) on the basis of the concepts of persistence and resistance. It first supports the ontological view that reality consists of persistent potentialities, which resist being excluded from existence. A study of the cases of the Higgs boson and the hypothetical Ϝ-particle helps to illustrate how real entities persist and resist. The paper then suggests that, perceptually speaking, the results of ordinary perception or observational processes persistently appear under (...) appropriate conditions, and they resist disappearance even when the appropriate conditions are not completely prepared. Finally, it argues that, epistemologically speaking, a truthful theory resists being falsified and persists across replicable observations and experiments. (shrink)

This paper aims, first, to argue against using opaque AI technologies in decision making processes, and second to suggest that we need to possess a qualitative form of understanding about them. It first argues that opaque artificially intelligent technologies are suitable for users who remain indifferent to the understanding of decisions made by means of these technologies. According to virtue ethics, this implies that these technologies are not well-suited for those who care about realizing their moral capacity. The paper then (...) draws on discussions on scientific understanding to suggest that an AI technology becomes understandable to its users when they are provided with a qualitative account of the consequences of using it. As a result, explainable AI methods can render an AI technology understandable to its users by presenting the qualitative implications of employing the technology for their lives. (shrink)

In this paper, I seek to explain Suhrawardī’s method of writing his allegories – how he draws upon his philosophical principles to construct forms and plots of his stories. To do so, I begin by delineating two key doctrines of his Illuminationist (Ishrāqī) ontology: the world of Forms (‘ālam al-muthul) and the discontinuous imaginal world (‘ālam al-mithāl al-munfaṣil). I provide an account of the history of these two doctrines and the nature of these two worlds, and then consider some of (...) their functions for, and effects on, Suhrawardī’s explanations and analyses. I will then deal with Suhrawardī’s allegories, pinpointing particular effects of the belief in the world of Forms and the imaginal world on his symbolisms and allegories. Distinguishing three main spiritual-mystical notions in Suhrawardī’s allegories, I elaborate upon the role of the above two doctrines in his construction of characters and fictional events, whereby I demystify certain symbols in these stories. I conclude that there is a close tie between Suhrawardī’s allegories and his philosophical doctrines. Thus, his spiritual doctrines are presented in a symbolic form in certain allegorical characters and adventures. The deployment of characteristics of the world of Forms and the imaginal world plays a central role here. (shrink)

According to the care crisis in modern medicine, the existential needs of patients are not sufficiently satisfied. One idea is that to address the crisis physicians should be educated to be virtuous. This suggestion is helpful but incomplete. It does not take into account the part of (non-)human factors, including (medical) technologies. In particular, the paper focuses on online caring forums and argues that they are technological factors that can play the role of focal things, in which the members gather (...) together to do a care-related focal practice. Furthermore, we empirically study the online forums of Ninisite, a popular Persian website on pregnancy, childbirth, and parenting, and suggest that these forums shape focal practices that are helpful in alleviating the care crisis. (shrink)

Avicenna has placed the discussion of bliss and happiness as the main axis of the eighth Namat of ishārāt wa-al-tanbīhāt, and he has dedicated the first two chapters of this Namat to the issue of the originality of pleasure and intellectual happiness and its strength compared to other pleasures. In the first chapter, Avicenna has addressed the anteriority of internal pleasure over external pleasure by expressing an "Wahm" and "Tanbih", and he has rejected the views of those who make pleasure (...) exclusive to external issues. On the other hand, he also mentioned the second chapter as a sequel to the first chapter and in that he refuted the promise of those who reckon that happiness is exclusive in sensual matters. In this way, Avicenna's purpose in these two chapters is to prove the pleasure and intellectual happiness and its superiority over other pleasures. As a matter of fact, Avicenna has made this discussion the basis for other discussions of this Namat, and this study will aim to analyze the content of these two chapters. (shrink)

Many ordinary things are made up of material things. For example, the statue of Ferdousi in the University of Tehran is made up of a particular piece of bronze. Calling the relation between the statue of Ferdousi and that piece of bronze material constitution, many philosophers have claimed that this relation between a material thing and the thing that it constitutes is identity. Baker, in contrast, believes that these things have genuine unity without necessary identity. In this article, I first (...) illustrate the principles of Baker’s theory and his explanation of this relation. Then I will assess the theory against objections. I will conclude that this theory can successfully explain relation between many of material things, but concerning things belonging to human beings, the theory fails to introduce a criterion for constitution. (shrink)

This chapter explores the relevance of empirical evidence to real causes. I argue for the claim that instrumentally mediated empirical results are causally dependent on unobservable entities. I develop this idea in the context of discussions on entity realism. As a consequence of my argument, an antirealist version of empiricism, which underlines the significance of empirical evidence but which abstains from real causation, is incoherent.

4E Cognition refers to a group of frameworks that propose an embodied, embedded, enacted and extended approach to cognition, in contrast with computational or brain-focused perspectives. Here I would like to explore questions of morality and ethics from the perspective of some such frameworks. In particular we will look at Varela (1999)'s exploration of ethics inspired by eastern traditions and on his own and Maturana's framework of autopoietic organisations (Maturana and Varela, 1987). We then look at Fuchs (2020)'s idea of (...) relational values which gives us an insight into how might overarching values arise in a society where people are interconnected. Moreover, Urban (2014) points us towards a potential source of inspiration in works of Care Ethics, specifically Held et. al (2006) where we find overlapping conceptions of person as a relational being rather than the dominant individualistic view, and we try to draw from their developments in the field of ethics to our help. (shrink)

Generally speaking, voluntarism and evidentialism have been two competing approaches to the ethics of belief. Criticizing these two approaches, Louis Pojman, the contemporary American philosopher, sets forward the theory of normative indirect voluntarism. In its analysis of the belief formation process, the theory takes into consideration the role of both reasons and the background parameters. Furthermore, it uses rationality to adjudicate between conflicting evidence and reasons. Relying on such an analysis, Pojman tries to defend indirect voluntarism with respect to acquiring (...) and maintaining a belief in spite of sufficient evidence to the contrary. (shrink)

This review provides an outline of the collection New Approaches to Scientific Realism, edited by Wenceslao Gonzalez. In particular, it questions whether the contributions to this edition can claim to be novel. The edition includes an introductory chapter and eighteen texts by well-known philosophers, such as Peter Achinstein, Alexander Bird, Donald Gillies, Theo Kuipers, Alan Musgrave, Thomas Nickles, Ilkka Niiniluoto, Howard Sankey, and John Worrall.

metempsychosis is the concept of the transmigration of a human or animal soul into another human, animal, plant, or even an inanimate object. The theory of metempsychosis poses a challenge to the belief in resurrection (maʿād), making it necessary to reject metempsychosis before proving maʿād. Avicenna presents two arguments against metempsychosis. The first argument, found in numerous works, rejects metempsychosis on the grounds that it requires the union of two soul s within a single body. Avicenna alludes to the second (...) argument in his Al-Isharat wa al-Tanbihat but postpones its full explanation to another unspecified work. Nasir al-Din al-Tusi, Fakhr al-Din Razi, and Qutb al-Din Razi have proposed different interpretations of this second argument. The variations in interpretation revolve around the number of implications Avicenna expressed for this modus ponendo and his reasons for rejecting them. Among these interpretations, only Qutb al-Din Razi's aligns more closely with Avicenna's original words. In the other two interpretations, there are either deficiencies or excesses compared to Avicenna's work. (shrink)

Al-Muḥaqqiq al-Iṣfahānī (1878-1942) and Spinoza (1632-1677), two prominent intellectuals of the Islamic and Western worlds respectively, have proposed different versions of the ontological argument for the existence of God. I present five versions of al-Muḥaqqiq al-Iṣfahānī’s argument in three general dimensions: first, the concept of the necessary being (wājib al-wujūd) as a mental concept; second, the concept of the necessary being as a representation of something external; and finally, the reality of the necessary being or what externally exists by its (...) essence. Only one of these versions is compatible with al-Muḥaqqiq al-Iṣfahānī’s words. On the other hand, Spinoza has presented six arguments in which he has deployed the concept of God in three ways: the concept of God as a concept, the concept of God as a representation of something external, and the mental existence of this concept. In this paper, I compare the accurate construal of al-Muḥaqqiq al-Iṣfahānī’s argument with Spinoza’s six arguments, whereby I make a case for a strong similarity between the grounds and forms of the ontological argument as formulated by these two intellectuals. (shrink)

One of the components of John Cottingham's thinking - a contemporary English philosopher - in the relationship between reason and religion, is the distinction between the field of science and religion. He has presented this distinction in two parts: the type of issues in the field of science and religion, and The method of inference in the field of science and religion. According to Cottingham, religious issues are related to outside the field of human knowledge, and the way of debunking (...) them is not the way of debunking the best explanation in empirical sciences; Because despite the problem of evil, theistic hypothesis cannot be considered as the best explanation for the phenomena of the world. His proposed model for the field of religion is the legal model; That is, the fact that the explanation presented is not incompatible with empirical evidence is enough to justify religious belief. He considers his point of view between extreme faithism and pseudo-scientific inferentialism. This view is criticized in several ways; Including: 1. Failure to pay attention to the function of secondary philosophical concepts in understanding the metaphysical dimension of the world of matter and abstractions, 2. The problem of "ignoring", 3. The inefficiency of the proposed model with regard to the issue of evil. (shrink)

John Cottingham focuses on two types of religious experience: general religious experience and specific religious experience. According to him, general experiences do not require special and complex education, scientific research or philosophical theorizing, but are a simple act of accepting a gift. Of course, unlike everyday observations, such experiences are not available to everyone and their realization requires special conditions. Regarding specific religious experiences, he also believes that when dealing with parts of the Bible that contain reports of such experiences, (...) one should neither have a naturalistic or demythologizing approach, nor an appearance-oriented approach; Rather, these verses should be interpreted in such a way that both its amazing content is preserved and this content does not conflict with modern science. Using the basics of Islamic philosophy, this work has a critical review of both parts of his view. The result of these criticisms is that due to the personal nature of evidences from religious experiences, the epistemological guarantee of these experiences is obtained through the rational and revelatory method. And based on this, these experiences cannot be considered as an independent path alongside the rational and revelatory path. Also, the observation of specific religious experiences is not a sensory observation and occurs in the container of human imagination and fantasy, without being a part of these experiences, they have become a characteristic of the self. (shrink)

Plato is among the most influential philosophers in the course of history, and the range of his ideas about different issues makes other scholars impressed. Considering his various views on varied subjects, one can argue that many ideas of the thinkers originated from Plato’s ideas in the contemporary world. Plato, in different positions, discussed women and their equality with men, especially in Republic Book V. The study of the ideas makes one suppose that the book explores the roots of feminist (...) theory. In Book V, Plato deals with the equality of women and men related to learning different issues and positions. Besides, he has discussed the children-sharing system resulting in the elimination of the private family system. Plato’s opinions are highly disputed; on the one hand, his ideas are considered feminist, and on the other hand, however, they are seen with no relation to feminist philosophy. The present paper aims to judge opinions related to women in the Republic Book V. -/- . (shrink)

Videogames are a pervasive part of lives of children and adults alike, with 73%of Americans older than 2 years engaging with them (Group, 2019). Playingvideogames can be seen as an activity that is done through our fingertips andwith our visual apparatus focused on a screen, without involvement of the restof our body, and it is usually considered as such from a cognitivist point ofview (Campbell, 2012; Gee, 2003; Klimmt and Hartmann, 2006) however thisraises the question of whether videogames can alternatively (...) be thought of as anembodied experience, and if so, how can we formulate them as such, and whatfactors are at play? (shrink)

The discussion of artificial intelligence (AI) as a newly emerging phenomenon in the present era has always been faced with various ethical challenges. The expansion of artificial intelligence is inevitable, and since this phenomenon is related to the human and social world, anything related to humans and society falls within the realm of morality and rights. In doing so, it must be understood whether the use of artificial intelligence is an ethical matter or not. Furthermore, do humans have the right (...) to use it or not? It seems that Al-Farabi's thought in the realm of practical wisdom can provide an answer to this issue. By reflecting on the theories of this prominent philosopher in civil philosophy, the theory of natural rights is obtained, and on the other hand, Al-Farabi's ethical opinions are also consistent with the theory of natural rights and, in general, with Al-Farabi's civil philosophy. It can, therefore, be argued that, one can consider and elucidate this issue through the lens of Al-Farabi's ethical and civil school of thought. -/- . (shrink)

Abstract: Sickle cell disease (SCD) comprises an inherited blood disorder that is life long and affects many people globally. Despite progress in therapy, SCA is a considerable cause of mortality and morbidity. This study was designed to measure the immunological and inflammatory parameters of patients with sickle cell disease (SCD) and to found if there is any role of it in the pathogenicity of the disease. This study included A total of 32 patients, their ages ranged from 16 to 55 (...) years patients with Sickle cell disease who have been evaluated during vaso occlusive crisis and had been followed up till they attained steady state, and there are 32 normal control subjects matched with patients in age and sex. In general there was elevation in all parameters the study were included in patients than control and particularly in crisis, despite the IgM value which was insignificantly decrease, but the statically significant elevation reported only in CRP, IgG, IgA. (shrink)

The idea of the uniformity of nature, as a solution to the problem of induction, has at least two contemporary versions: natural kinds and natural necessity. Then there are at least three alternative ontological ideas addressing the problem of induction. In this paper, I articulate how these ideas are used to justify the practice of inductive inference, and compare them, in terms of their applicability, to see whether each of them is preferred in addressing the problem of induction. Given the (...) variety of contexts in which inductive inferences are made, from natural science to social science and to everyday thinking, I suggest that no singular idea is absolutely preferred, and a proper strategy is probably to welcome the plurality of ideas helpful to induction, and to take pragmatic considerations into account, in order to judge in every single case. (shrink)

Background: Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is a hematopoietic stem cell disease, associated with a reciprocal translocation between chromosomes 9 and chromosome 22, lead to the formation of the BCRABL fusion gene (Philadelphia chromosome). This fusion gene is believed to play golden role in the initial development of CML with constitutive tyrosine kinase activation. Successful use of tyrosine kinase inhibiters (TKIs) play a role in improve survival and increase prevalence of CML, but un fortunately mutations in the BCR-ABL kinase domain may (...) cause, or contribute to increase, resistance to TKIs in CML patients. . Objective: This study was designed to assess the association of five most common BCR-ABL kinase domain mutations (T315I, M351T, E255K, M244V and E255V) with resistance state of CML patients on TKIs in Iraqi Middle Euphrates region. Patients and methods: A retrospective case-control study in which 85 patients with chronic myeloid leukemia in chronic phase (45 patients as cases group and 40 patient as control group) were selected from three hemato-oncology centers in middle Euphrates in Iraq during the period from January 2016 till October 2016 out of a total of 240 CML patients (108 male and 132 female) who were registered during this period in these three centers and all patients on TKI (Imatinib and Nilotinib). Venous blood sampling done for BCRABL kinase domain mutations screening. Results: four patients from cases group (4/45) were carriers of one of five selected ABL kinase domain mutations and no one of control group. T315I mutation was detected in 3/45 (6.6 %) of resistant patients, with a significant risk association to develop resistance to TKI therapy (odd ratio and C. I.) (6.67, 0.3340 - 133.2255). E255V was detected in 1/45 (2.2 %) and also had significant risk association to develop resistance to TKIs (odd ratio, C.I.) (2.73, 0.1081 -68.9424). No one of these mutations had significance correlation with demographic or hematological features. M351T, E255K and M244V were not detected in any one of our study groups CML patients. Conclusions: T315I and E255V among five ABL kinas domain mutations were detected in our CML patients with resistance to TKIs. All of them may play a role in development variable degree of resistance to first and second generation TKIs weather primary or secondary.T315I mutation is most common mutation within BCR-ABL domain kinase gene. (shrink)

Presentists argue that only present entities exist absolutely and unrestrictedly. Presentism, which itself is a temporal analog of the modal doctrine of actualism, is an ontological idea about time and existence against theories such as eternalism, possibilism, and growing block theory. Thus, presentists deny the existence of atemporal or timeless entities and describe presentism as a version of the (A-theory), which makes a difference between present, past, and future. Also, presentists are not able to ontologically, justify the existence of some (...) entities such as Socrates and the year 3000 in the past and the future and the relations involving non-present objects like ‘Abraham Lincoln was taller than Napoleon Bonaparte’. However, presentism is altered via the addition of an abstract four-dimensional manifold of ersatz time, which is a type of (B-theory) series, to identify all ontological entities and justify the dynamic world. This inquiry is an attempt to put a completely different perspective on presentism and, the result obtained that despite the new conceptualization of time, there is an inconsistency between time and being in presentism. Therefore, presentists have failed to determine the ontological identification of cross-temporal relations, reference and propositions, and truth-makers. Also, whatever the final outcome of the debate between presentism and other views is significantly eternalism, according to ersatz presentism, it is hard to make sense of the idea that things change from one moment to the next. (shrink)

Fārābī's legal theory, which is among his views in civil wisdom, consists of three things: foundation, source, and purpose. The foundations of Abu Nasr al-Fārābī's virtuous law is natural law, which is compatible with the objectives of Islamic Law. Furthermore, the source of the existing laws in the virtuous city, which is codified by the first ruler, is the divine revelation and tradition. Some divine traditions or natural laws are understood by common sense, and some others, which are hidden from (...) the understanding of the majority, are inspired by revelation to the first ruler of virtuous city, or the first ruler understands them by using his acquired intellect. The aim of the first ruler, which is also the aim of the laws of virtuous city, is the happiness. The problem of this study is to investigate and explain these three things (foundation, source, and purpose) with descriptive-analytical method, which can be considered as the theory of virtuous law, which is the same as Fārābī's legal theory. (shrink)

The principle of causality is one of the most fundamental principles that has been discovered in the history of philosophy and science. Several foundations revolve around this concept. The importance of this principle in classical physics lies in giving physicists the ability to predict phenomena. Furthermore, due to causality is recognized as a fundamental principle in classical physics. With the introduction of the principle of uncertainty, the principle of causality is empirically called into question. Because the claim of the principle (...) of uncertainty in quantum mechanics is that the relationships between fundamental particles are not causally related to each other, and even the behavior of an electron or a subatomic particle is not based on the principle of causality. If we want to identify the speed of particles, we will not be able to identify their state, and if we want to determine their state, we will not be able to identify their speed. The best way to resolve this conflict is to bring the discussion into philosophy, which is exactly what has been done in Islamic philosophy. The concept of causality in Western philosophy seems to be based on Newtonian concepts. But what has been stated in Islamic philosophy is based on metaphysical concepts, and therefore the principle of uncertainty cannot contradict the concept of causality in Islamic philosophy, especially what has been discussed in the philosophy of Avicenna and Allameh Tabataba'i. (shrink)

Background: This study was conducted to measure depression literacy (D-Lit) and mental health literacy (MHL) and to investigate their relationship with psychological status and quality of life among Iranian patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). -/- Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2021 among 400 patients with T2DM in Iran. Samples were selected using proportional stratified sampling. Data collection tools comprised a demographic questionnaire, measures of MHL and D-Lit, the diabetes quality of life (DQOL) scale, and the DASS-21. (...) After confirming the normality of the data using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, parametric statistical tests (such as one-way ANOVA, independent samples t-test, and Chi-Square) were used to investigate the relationship between the variables using SPSS v22 software. The results of continuous quantitative data are reported in the form of means and standard deviations, and qualitative data are reported in the form of absolute and relative frequencies. -/- Results: In this study, 10.25% of the participants (n = 41) had severe depression, while 36.75% (n = 147) experienced severe anxiety. The mean (standard deviation) of MHL was 80.92 (9.16) from 130 points. Of the participants, only 1.7% (n = 7) did not answer any questions correctly on the D-lit scale, and only 5.8% (n = 23) were able to answer 15 questions or more correctly on the D-lit. MHL had a significant negative correlation with depression (r = −0.236), anxiety (r = −0.243), and stress (r = −0.155) (P < 0.001). There was a positive and significant correlation between MHL and D-Lit (r = 0.186) (P < 0.001). D-Lit had a significant negative correlation with depression (r = −0.192), anxiety (r = −0.238), and stress (r = −0.156) (P < 0.001). There was a positive and significant correlation between the ability to recognize disorders (r = 0.163), knowledge of self-treatment (r = 0.154), and DQOL (P < 0.001). Depression (r = −0.251), anxiety (r = −0.257), and stress (r = −0.203) had a significant negative correlation with DQOL (P < 0.001). -/- Conclusion: MHL and D-Lit levels were found to be inadequate in patients with T2DM. These low levels of MHL and D-Lit among patients with T2DM were associated with higher levels of anxiety, depression, and stress, as well as a lower quality of life. Therefore, designing and implementing preventive programs to improve the mental health of patients with T2DM can help prevent mental disorders and ultimately improve their quality of life. (shrink)

Suhrawardī has presented arguments to support the existence of wājib al-wujūd in many of his works. One of the most fundamental of these arguments, which also has a forward-looking feature, is the one he presents in his books al-Talwīḥāt and Ḥikmah al-Ishrāq. To prove the existence of God, Suhrawardī devised three arguments in al-Talwīḥāt and one argument in Ḥikmah al-Ishrāq, all of which are interpretations of the ṣiddīqīn argument. In this article four of Suhrawardī’s arguments, three of them in al-Talwīḥāt (...) and one of them in Ḥikmah al-Ishrāq are reviewed. the main aim of this study is to analyze and explain Suhrawardī’s arguments, due to their importance in philosophy and theology, with the descriptive-analytical method and using library-based collecting data. The arguments presented in the al-Talwīḥāt are succinct, and what made these claims essential was the evaluation of their robustness and content. The significance of his first and third arguments in this book is that they do not require the denial of the vicious circle as a precondition, and by assuming the likelihood of both the vicious circle and infinite regress, the necessity of existence is demonstrated. On the other hand, his argument in Ḥikmah al-Ishrāq, which, like his second argument, is based on the refutation of the vicious circle and infinite regress, includes innovative features and should be investigated thoroughly. -/- . (shrink)

Humanities and its branches are related to many disciplines and even influence them. It can be claimed that everything that is related to humans and human social life is also related to humanities and can also be influenced by humanities. Artificial intelligence is one of the phenomena that is related to humans, and based on this, the question of this paper is whether humanities is related to artificial intelligence and whether it has the ability to influence it. Three assumptions are (...) made to answer this question. In the first and second assumptions, it is proved that humanities are related to AI and even influence it. Since artificial intelligence is man-made and related to humans, it has the ability to be guided by humanities. Furthermore, humanities can be effective in AI through the ethics. In the second assumption, it is also claimed that artificial intelligence is recognized by humans and humanities, so it can be influenced by humanities, because anything that can recognize something else can also influence it. The third assumption is that humanities are not able to influence AI and the reason is that humanities and artificial intelligence are two separate fields. -/- . (shrink)

Al-Fārābī's discussed fundamental issues in the first ten sections of Kītāb al-Mīllah briefly. Defining the nation (religion), describing the types of societies, dividing the nation (religion) into opinions and actions, and mentioning each of them, synonyms of the nation with other concepts such as religion and shārīʿa, the method of inferring the opinions of the nation, the similarity of the virtuous nation to philosophy, the relationship between the two components of the nation with theoretical philosophy and phronesis (practical philosophy), dealing (...) with fallacies using topic and rhetoric, the reasons for not expressing some laws by the first ruler, the conditions of the rulers after the first ruler, the wisdom, jurisprudence and virtue of the nation's ruler, and discussing the philosophical nature of jurisprudence, the most important contents of Al-Fārābī's in this ten section. On the other hand, it must be claimed that various theories can be extracted from Kītāb al-Mīllah: 1. Revelation as the highest faculty of reason; 2. The unity of theoretical philosophy and Phronesis- the unity of theoretical and practical reason; 3. Philosophy of jurisprudence; 4. Governance philosophy; 5. shārīʿa purposes; 6. Aristocracy; 7. Philosophical jurisprudence. In this paper, in addition to the translation of the first ten sections of Kītāb al-Mīllah, its content is also explained and these seven ideas are extracted from this treatise. (shrink)

If we consider Kitāb al-Milla as the foundation for Al-Farabi's other civil and political thoughts, we are not making an exaggerated claim. Abu Nasr Al-Farabi presents the philosophy of his civil and political theory through this treatise, embedding his ideas within it. Upon reflecting on the content of this work, it can be clearly divided into two parts. In the first part, Al-Farabi discusses issues that serve as the foundation for the second part, which is the science of civics. In (...) the second part, which is the focus of this study, he addresses matters that constitute the philosophy of civics. A close examination of the second section of Kitāb al-Milla reveals that Al-Farabi speaks of two enumerations: one concerning happiness and the other concerning politics. In general, these two elements make up the issues of the science of civics. (shrink)

Avicenna, in his treatise called "Al-Siyasāt al-Ahliyyah", has discussed various topics about household management, among which are discussion about family formation and discussion about wife and children. The discussions about wife and child in this treatise are not only about family management, how to deal with wife and child. However, the issues related to women's rights and children's rights are also seen in it. The two fundamental questions of this paper are whether women's rights and children's rights, which are found (...) in Avicenna's views in this treatise, are comparable to the provisions of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (first question), and if they can be compared, do they confirm or deny each other? Hence, the topics that will be examined in this paper will be in line with the answers to these two questions in a descriptive-analytical method. (shrink)

Natural rights play a fundamental role in the political, legal, and economic system of John Locke. Many of his views are based on natural rights. Although Locke is not the first scholar to discuss natural rights, and before him, other thinkers have theorized about it in different eras and intellectual traditions, it must be claimed that Locke is a modern natural rights theorist and has presented a novel interpretation of this theory. Locke's natural rights are based on equality and individual (...) independence. Freedom, life, and property are the three basic pillars of Locke's theory. However, many international charters that defend human rights also in some way protect personal freedom, life, and property of individuals around the world. One of the international agreements is the Convention on the Rights of the Child in the United Nations, which defends the freedom and security of children worldwide and guarantees their basic rights. In this convention, natural rights patterns, especially those of Locke, can be seen, and he is also considered the spiritual father of human rights and one of the sources of modern human rights, the foundations of natural rights. Therefore, the main purpose of this paper is to examine the foundations of natural rights in the Convention on the Rights of the Child and compare them with the foundations of John Locke. (shrink)

Suhrawardi is among the philosophers who, compared to other philosophers, developed his intellectual system in an innovative manner. Suhrawardi’s illuminative intellectual system is the result of his thoughts in philosophy and mysticism, and the ultimate of his illuminative school is to achieve the station of mystic perception and theosophy using intuition and reasoning. The pure soul is an important pillar in the wayfarer’s intuition; and since the soul has descended from the world of the dominant lights to the world of (...) nature, it may have diseases just like the body. In his treatises, the Master of Illumination opened a new door in philosophy by discussing the disease of the soul, and sought to provide a mystical and ethical solution for the treatment of the human’s rational soul through his illuminative way of thinking. Suhrawardi’s method for treating the diseases of the soul is expressed as an allegory because it is considered as a part of his mystical materials; and it is regarded as a moral matter because it is a prescription for all wayfarers. By recognizing the symbols in Suhrawardi’s allegorical treatises, we can identify his moral way of treating the diseases of the soul. (shrink)

Artificial intelligence, as a phenomenon that has a wide scope in various issues and topics, is also related to humanities and plays an effective role in it. The two basic questions of this article are whether artificial intelligence is related to humanities and whether artificial intelligence has an effective role in humanities. By reflecting on each of the questions, we can see that AI is related to humanities and plays a role in it. Its relevance is due to the fact (...) that humanities have the potential to be related to other fields, and of course, artificial intelligence will also have this capability. Regarding the second question, it should be said that AI can play a role in humanities in three ways. 1. Have an active role; 2. Help humanities researchers; 3. Be raised as a subject to be investigated in humanities. -/- . (shrink)

The problem of resurrection, one of the most important issues in the philosophy and theology. Some of Muslim philosophers and the vast majority of theologians always discussed about this topic. Some of Muslim philosophers accepted this problem and prove it, but, in quality of occurrence of them, they have differ believe from each other. However, some of Muslim theologians except those who believe in transmogrification, they consider the resurrection to be one of the principle of religion, beside monotheism and prophecy. (...) Moreover, they proved the principle of resurrection through reasons, and explanations them elaborates through the Holy Quran and Prophetic saying (Traditions- Hadith). Avicenna and Suhrawardi have been proving resurrection. Of course, for prove of this problem, they adopted of different manner from Muslim Theologians. Both of philosophers according to codify of ordinary psychological system, have proved and explanation this issue. Thus, for understand of Avicenna and Suhrawardi’s eschatology. First of all, we must understand of their psychological system. Furthermore, in this paper, we will discuss about survival of the soul according to immaterial soul and perfecting of soul as two premises for prove of resurrection. (shrink)

Poetry is sometimes used in a logical argument sense of the five major arguments, and the meaning behind it is the argument and expression that its common element is imagination. In fact, the distinguishing feature of poetry from other arguments is the poetic nature of the language. Poetry is sometimes used in an artistic sense and can be considered one of the seven arts. The definition of artistic poetry can be understood as a speech that is firstly rhythmic, secondly rhyming, (...) and thirdly imaginative. In this article, poetry is used in the second sense, as poetry in the artistic sense can have a sublime aspect. In fact, poetry in the first sense has an industrial and organic aspect, while poetry in the second sense has an authentic aspect. Mulla Sadra, in addition to writing in prose in rational knowledge, has also expressed many of his sublime philosophical ideas in poetic language. What Sadr al-Muta'allihin has written in poetic form is poetry in the second sense because it has both the three conditions of being rhythmic, rhyming, and imaginative, as well as expressing sublime wisdom in poetic and sublime art language. (shrink)

Suhrawardi created a revolution in the field of Iranian and Islamic thought by compiling the Illuminated Philosophy. The philosophy of Suhrawardi, which includes the collection of works and philosophical and mystical thoughts of Suhrawardi, is well presented in his book Hikma al-Ishraq. Unlike Farabi, Suhrawardi did not write an independent work about Utopia, but he spoke about the ideal ruler and the right to rule. Moreover, in his allegorical works, more than anything else, he pointed out moral points that can (...) lead the people of a society to salvation. Suhrawardi's philosophy is based on the originality of light, which shows that he had an opinion on the philosophers of Ancient Iran. In addition, Suhrawardi has repeatedly referred to Khosrvanion and Ancient Persian Scholars such as Zoroaster and Key Khosro and, for example, considered Key Khosro's government to be a desirable government in terms of politics and government. Another pillar of Suhrawardi's thought is the Quran and Islamic traditions, and therefore, his opinion about the government and ruler is consistent with Islamic teachings. In addition, he considered himself indebted to the divine philosophers of Greece such as Pythagoras and Plato and other divine scholars of the world such as Hermes, and he also took many of the opinions of his predecessor philosophers such as Farabi and Avicenna; Therefore, it can be assumed that he agrees with Farabi in many respects about utopia and its governing characteristics and conditions. (shrink)

Art among Iranian and Islamic philosophers has always been associated with moral, so that many philosophers have considered art to be synonymous with virtue. By examining Farabi's opinions, it is possible to extract his special ideas about art and artist. In Farabi's theory of Virtuous Art, the artist is on the second floor of utopia and carries religious truths and reasonable happiness. Also, the theory of Virtuous Art has all the aesthetic features and artistic creativity, and in fact, all artistic (...) values are the presupposition of being an art of Virtuous Art. By reflecting on Suhrawardi’s numerous works and intellectual foundations, we can also see that he also paid special attention to the virtuous art and the supreme aspects of art; although he did not directly theorize about the basics of art, but by examining his theories, we can infer the basics of Ishraghi's Virtuous Art. Moreover, Suhrawardi has written some of his works in allegorical and artistic language, and this is a manifestation of Suhrawardi’s Illuminating Art. Among contemporary thinkers, Seyyed Hossein Nasr and Titus Burckhardt have presented an approach with the title of Sacred Art, considering the sacred foundations of art and Traditionalism. (shrink)