An Anthology of Philosophy in Persia, Vol. 2 Ismaili Thought in the Classical Age

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The tradition of philosophy in the Persian-speaking world is extraordinarily rich, creative and diverse. This anthology, which is divided into five volumes, aims to communicate something of that richness and diversity. The term ‘philosophy’ is understood to in its widest sense to include theological debate, philosophical Sufism and philosophical hermeneutics (taʾwīlThe elucidation of the inner or esoteric meaning, bāṭin , from the literal wording or apparent meaning of a text, ritual or religious prescription.). Extending over a period of more than two millennia, and showcasing translations by well-established scholars, the anthology offers full bibliographical references throughout. For anyone interested in exploring, in all their varied manifestations, the fascinating philosophical traditions of Persia, such a wide-ranging and ambitious work will be an indispensable resource. Volume 2 covers five centuries of Ismaili philosophy, and includes extracts from outstanding Ismaili works including the Rasāʾil Ikhwān al-Ṣafaʾ (Treatises of the Brethren of Purity) and the philosophical odes of Nāṣir Khusraw. It is of great significance that, in the early centuries of Islam, philosophers were influenced by Pythagorean and Hermetic ideas, which are usually associated with Shiʿi thought in general and Ismailism in particular. Ismaili philosophy at this time was able to integrate strands of Greco-Alexandrian thought such as Hermeticism and Neo-Pythagoreanism, as well as aspects of Mazdaeism and Manichaeism. It also showed marked interest in Neo-platonism.

List of Reprinted Works
Note on Transliteration
List of Contributors

General Introduction, S. H. Nasr

1. Umm al-kitāb
   Introduction, M. Aminrazavi
   The Mother of Books (from Umm al-kitāb)
2. Jābir ibn Ḥayyān
   Introduction, S. H. Nasr
   The Book of Stones (from Kitāb al-aḥjār)
3. Abū Yaʿqūb Sijistānī
   Introduction, M. Aminrazavi
   Kashf al-maḥjūb: Introduction to the Translation, Hermann Landolt
   Unveiling of the Hidden (from Kashf al-maḥjūb)
   The Book of Wellsprings (from Kitāb al-yanābīʿ)
4. Abū Ḥātim Rāzī
   Introduction, M. Aminrazavi
   Aʿlām al-nubuwwah (Science of Prophecy)
5. Ḥamīd al-Dīn Kirmānī
   Introduction, M. Aminrazavi
   Repose of the Intellect (from Rāḥat al-ʿaql)
   The Brilliant Epistle (from al-Risālat al-durriyyah)
6. Rasāʾil Ikhwān al-ṢafāʾFrom Arabic, lit. ‘Brethren of Purity’, a group of learned scholars who were based in Basra and Baghdad around the last quarter of the t10th century CE. It is more… (Treatises of The Brethren of Purity)
   Introduction, S. H. Nasr
   Microcosm and Macrocosm
   A Theory on Numbers
   Man and the Animals
7. al-Muʾayyad fi’l-Dīn Shīrāzī
   Introduction, M. Aminrazavi
   Seven Lectures(from Khuṭba)
8. Nāṣir-i Khusraw
   Introduction, S. H. Nasr
   The Sum of the Two Wisdoms (from Kitāb Jāmiʿ al-ḥikmatayn)
   Knowledge and Liberation (from Gushāyish wa rahāyish)
   Philosophical Poetry (from the Dīwān)
9. Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī
   Introduction, M. Aminrazavi
   Contemplation and Action (from Sayr wa sulūk)
   The Garden of Submission, or Notions (from Rawḍat al-taslīmor Taṣawwurāt)

Select Bibliography
Index

Seyyed Hossein Nasr is University Professor of Islamic Studies at George Washington University. He is the author of over 300 articles and thirty books, and has lectured widely on Islamic philosophy.

Mehdi Aminrazavi is the author and editor of numerous books and articles, and is currently Professor of Philosophy and Religion at the University of Mary Washington, where he directs the Middle Eastern Studies Program.