Ghazālī’s Epistemology

<p>Focusing on Abū Ḥāmid al-Ghazālī (d. 1111) – one of the foremost scholars and authorities in the Muslim world who is central to the Islamic intellectual tradition – this book embarks on a study of doubt (<i>shakk</i>) and certainty (<i>yaqīn</i>) in his epistemology. </p><p>The book looks at Ghazālī’s attitude to philosophical demonstration and Sufism as a means to certainty. In early scholarship surrounding Ghazālī he has often been blamed as the one who single-handedly offered the death-blow to philosophy in the Muslim world. In much of contemporary scholarship Ghazālī is understood to prefer philosophy as the ultimate means to certainty granting Sufism a secondary status. Hence much of previous scholarship has either focused on Ghazālī as a Sufi or as a philosopher; this book takes a parallel approach and acknowledges each discipline in its right place. It analyses Ghazālī’s approach to acquiring certainty his methodological scepticism his foundationalism his attitude to authoritative instruction (<i>taʿlim</i>) and the place of philosophical demonstration and Sufism in his epistemology. </p><p>Offering a systematic and comprehensive approach to Ghazālī’s epistemology this book is a valuable resource for scholars of Islamic philosophy and Sufism in particular and for educated readers of Islamic studies in general.</p>