On the “Psychological Dialectic” of al-Ghazālī Regarding Philosophers, or Did Ibn Sīnā Drink Wine?

Abstract

Al-Ghazālī, one of the most influential figures in the history of Islamic thought, criticized the prominent religious paradigms of his day. In this regard, his settling of accounts with philosophers from whom he benefitted in terms of methodology is particularly significant and consists of three stages: first, the identification; then, the description; and finally, the judgment of the philosophers by means of dialectic criticism. There are comprehensive studies on the theoretical aspects of this struggle between al-Ghazālī and the philosophers; nevertheless, his psychological dialectic, which he advances in a manner that addresses the common feelings of Muslims, is often overlooked. This paper examines al-Ghazālī’s allegation that Ibn Sīnā used to drink wine, since it is one of the most impressive examples of the conception that al-Ghazālī tried to establish regarding philosophers and philosophy by showing how weak the relationship is between philosophers and Islam. The objective is to obtain a deeper view of the content and construction of al-Ghazālī’s psychological dialectic.

Keywords

• Islamic philosophy
• tradition of incoherence (tahāfut)
• al-Ghazālī
• Ibn Sīnā
• Avicenna

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