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90Affective Attitudes and Democratic Political Culture التوجهات الانفعالية في الثقافة السياسية الديمقراطيةTabayyun for Philosophical Studies 12 (45): 71-107. 2023.There are many types of political culture as well as many elements to be found in each type of political culture. The present study will be limited in two ways. Firstly, we shall not deal with all the elements of political culture. We shall focus on what has been called the "Affective Attitudes" element, which we take to include feelings and emotional proclivities, which to us, are inseparable from values and evaluations. Secondly, we shall not focus on all types of political cultures, but rathe…Read more
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78On Conspiracy Theory حول نظرية المؤامرةTabayyun 12 (47): 155-176. 2024.This paper is a study of Conspiracy Theory, the theory according to which the causes which explain the occurrence of many events and phenomena are not the officially advertised causes which the public media present us with; rather, the events and phenomena in question should be viewed as the work of agents and agencies that operate in secret in the service of projects that may or not be publicly known. The paper discusses the relation between theory and evidence and compares conspiracy theories …Read more
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63Forgiveness, Affect and CognitionIn Forgiveness: An Interdisciplinary Dialogue, Brill. pp. 75-84. 2011.This chapter explains how two seemingly unrelated theories in the fields of morality and emotion conspire to make the notion of forgiveness seem (doubly) impossible. The discussion of the paradoxical nature of forgiveness is followed by a proposal about the relation between affect and cognition which reconciles conflicting claims and vindicates the coherence of the notion of forgiveness.
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6Khiṭāb al-karāmah wa-ḥuqūq al-insānal-Markaz al-ʻArabī lil-Abḥāth wa-Dirāsat al-Siyāsāt. 2017.
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943محاضرة القيت في المركز العربي للدراسات وابحاث السياسات (الدوحة/قطر) في العام 2018. تعرض المحاضرة لمفاهيم مختلفة حول عبور التخصصات وتحاول ان تبين من منها يمكن ان يؤخذ بجدية ومن منها لا يصمد امام الامتحان النقدي. ينتهي المحاضر الى القول بان هناك عبور للتخصصات بمعني او معاني تتسم بالبراءة ويمكن التعايش معها، كما ان هناك مفاهيم أخرى ليست واضحة المعنى، واخرى معادية لفكرة وجود تخصصات في المقام الأول. يحاجج المحاضر ان ليس هناك مبرر قوي للتنكر للتخصصات ولا لمحو الحدود بينها، وان القول بخ…Read more
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37Scepticism About Other Minds: Propositional and ObjectualPhilosophical Investigations 45 (2): 200-219. 2021.Philosophical Investigations, Volume 45, Issue 2, Page 200-219, April 2022.
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325On the Idea of Islamic FeminismJournal for Islamic Studies 20 33-62. 2000.The object of this paper is to explore the possibility of defending women's rights within a framework of Islamic concepts and ideas. This is to be accomplished by introducing a number of methodological principles that can, and for feminists should, govern the practice of " religious interpretation" (ijtihad) which Muslims have used throughout the centuries to adapt Qur)anic and Islamic teachings to changing realities and circumstances. The main goal is to explore the meaning and possibility of "…Read more
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237Toward an Islamic Conception of Democracy: Islam and the Notion of Public ReasonCritique: Critical Middle Eastern Studies 12 (1): 43-60. 2003.This paper is a discussion of the ways in which the notion of public reason has come to manifest itself in recent Islamic writings. The discussion is part of an effort to discover a common language in terms of which Islamic and liberal/secular discourses about democracy and public debate can be understood. The difficult question we are left with is whether it is permissible to speak of “public reason” sans phrase, or whether the notion must always be qualified by reference to culture and relig…Read more
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376People vs. God: The Logic of Divine Sovereignty in Islamic Democratic DiscourseIslam and Muslim-Christian Relations 11 (3): 287-297. 2000.This paper aims at clarifying the role which the concept of 'divine sovereignty ' plays in the discussions which are taking place among Islamic thinkers (and others) concerning the possibility of democracy in an Islamic context. It argues that 'sovereignty ' has at least two meanings, one 'f'actual', the other 'normative'. The paper also argues that the second sense of 'sovereignty ' allows us to construe ta!k o{ 'divine sovereignty' as an attempt by Islamic thinkers to go beyond the merely proc…Read more
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277Injustice as Injury, Forgiveness as HealingIn Court Lewis (ed.), Explorations of Forgiveness. pp. 59-89. 2016.My aim is to argue that forgiveness may be conceived by analogy to healing. The analogy is not self-evident, but a number of subsidiary analogies will be seen to point in its direction, or so I will argue. In the course of the discussion we shall see how injustice (and wrong-doing) may be compared to physical injury (both change the state of the sufferer to the worse), and how the resentment caused by suffering injustice may be compared to the physical pain caused by injury (both are aversiv…Read more
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822Action, Ontology, and Intersubjectivity انطولوجيا الفعل ومشكلة البين-ذاتيةArab Center for Research and Policy Studies. 2019.The main idea of this book (in Arabic) is that the dichotomy of intention/behavior is about as viable as the mind/body dichotomy, which is to say it is not at all viable. An approach to the problem of knowledge of other minds and intersubjectivity via a discussion of the ontology of human action, which must be viewed as an original unity, not a combination of two really distinct things, namely, intention and bodily movement.
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256Discourse of Dignity and Human Rights خطاب الكرامة وحقوق الانسانArab Center for Research and Policy Studies. 2017.An exploration (in Arabic) of the foundations of humans rights and the associated notion of human dignity. These include religious, rational-secular, as well as naturalistic foundations. Arguments are presented in support of naturalistic foundations, with reference to natural human needs and dispositions and 'moral sentiments'.
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1079Islamic Law and Legal PositivismRivista di Filosofia Del Diritto [V, 2/2016, Pp. 245-266] 2 (V): 245-266. 2016.The object of this paper is to elaborate an understanding of Islamic law and legal theory in terms of the conceptual framework provided by Legal Positivism. The study is not based on denying or contesting the claim of Islamic law to being of divine origin; rather, it is based on the historical reality of Islamic law as part of a (once) living legal tradition, with structure, method, and theory, regardless of claims of origin. It will be suggested that Ash‘arism may be taken as providing an Islam…Read more
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841Justice and Mercy: Two Islamic Views on the Nature and Possibility of Divine ForgivenessIn Gregory Bock (ed.), The Philosophy of Forgiveness Volume III: Forgiveness in World Religions, Vernon Press. pp. 47-66. 2019.This chapter (5) focuses on the concept of the forgiving God in Islamic religion and theology and claims that Islamic thinking about divine forgiveness accommodates two different views that emphasize two different attributes of God: justice and mercy. The first view is associated with a rationalist school of theology known as Mu'tazilism, while the second is associated with a fideistic school known as Ash'arism. The author argues that the first view, which is based on a strict calculus of de…Read more
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29Religion, Democracy, and the dawla madaniyya of the Arab SpringIslam and Muslim-Christian Relations 29 1-18. 2018.The object of this article is to review and evaluate a debate that has been taking place among Muslim and Arab writers for some time now about the concept of ‘dawla madaniyya’ (‘civil state/ government’), and the place of religion in democratic politics. More precisely, it will be suggested that the current popularity of the term ‘dawla madaniyya’ signifies only a partial meeting of minds between Islamists and their liberal and secular opponents. By and large, the concept seems to have an instrum…Read more
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9The Philosophy of Forgiveness is multi-dimensional and complex. As recent scholarly philosophical works on forgiveness illustrate, incorporating personal, relational, political, ethical, psychological, and religious dimensions into one consistent conception of “forgiveness” is difficult. As part of Vernon Press’s series on the Philosophy of Forgiveness, Explorations of Forgiveness: Personal, Relational, and Religious begins the task of creating a consistent multidimensional account of forgivenes…Read more
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18Ockham’s Razor and the Identity of IndiscernablesPhilosophy Research Archives 14 405-414. 1988.In this paper it is argued that The Principle of the Identity of Indiscernibles can be justified as a concrete application of Ockham’s Razor, the maxim which enjoins us not to multiply entities beyond necessity. First, a statement of the Principle is presented, according to which the Principle, while interesting enough, is not logically necessary. It is then argued that the assumption of the falsity of the Principle prescribes an epistemological situation where it seems to be impossible to find …Read more
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59Ockham’s Razor and the Identity of IndiscernablesPhilosophy Research Archives 14 405-414. 1988.In this paper it is argued that The Principle of the Identity of Indiscernibles can be justified as a concrete application of Ockham’s Razor, the maxim which enjoins us not to multiply entities beyond necessity. First, a statement of the Principle is presented, according to which the Principle, while interesting enough, is not logically necessary. It is then argued that the assumption of the falsity of the Principle prescribes an epistemological situation where it seems to be impossible to find …Read more
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75Leibniz, Aristotle, and the Problem of IndividuationPacific Philosophical Quarterly 73 (3): 185. 1992.Leibniz and Aristotle offer diametrically opposed accounts of what it is for ordinary particulars to be numerically diverse. Leibniz, through his Principle of the Identity of Indiscernibles (PII), affirms that numerically diverse particulars must have different qualities, whereas Aristotle insists that such particulars are different on account of their "matter". In this paper I seek to bridge the gap between these two rival accounts by means of a (PII)-like principle which seems to be a conseque…Read more
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720Modernity and Islamic Religious ConsciousnessIn Shahram Akbarzadeh (ed.), A Handbook of Political Islam, . pp. 35-50. 2012.A discussion of the intellectual impact which Modernity has had on Islamic religious consciousness
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From Jihad to Peaceful Co-existence: the Development of Islamic Views on Politics and International RelationsIbrahim Abu Lughod Institute of International Studies. 2003.
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90Miracles and Ghazali’s First Theory of CausationPhilosophy and Theology 5 (2): 137-150. 1990.In the 17th Discussion of his Tahafut al-Falasifah (“Incoherence of the Philosophers”), Ghazali presents two theories of causation which, he claims, accommodate belief in the possibility of miracles. The first of these, which is usually taken to represent Ghazali’s own position, is a form of occasionalism. In this paper I argue that Ghazali fails to prove that this theory is compatible with belief in the possibility of miracles.
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603On the Idea of Islamic FeminismJournal of Islamic Studies 20 33. 2000.The object of this paper is to explore the possibility defending women's rights (or, more broadly, expressing women's concerns) within a framework of Islamic concepts and ideas. This is to be accomplished by introducing a number of methodological principles that can, and (for feminists) should govern the practice of "religious interpretation" (ijtihad) which Muslims have used throughout the centuries to adapt Qur'anic and Islamic teachings to changing realities and circumstances.
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78Ghazali on the Creation vs. Eternity of the WorldPhilosophy and Theology 6 (3): 259-275. 1992.There are two ways in which Ghazali contributes to the discussion of whether God exists: by arguing for the existence of God, and by arguing against certain views which, in his opinion, stand in the way of truly believing that God exists. In this paper I examine Ghazali’s argument from creation and his refutation or the philosophers’ second proof for the eternity or the world. My purpose will be to argue that: firstly, Ghazali’s argument and his refutation are based on incompatible views of time…Read more
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Ash'ari's Theological Determinisma and the Senses of 'Can'Hamdard Islamicus 15 (1): 39-57. 1992.In this paper I argue that al Ash'ari was a Theological Determinist whose position on free will and human responsibility was marred by his failure to distinguish between two senses of the word 'can' (yastati'u ). I also compare al Ash'ari's position with that of the Mu'tazilite thinker al Qadi 'Abd al Jabbar. I conclude that their positions may not have been so much opposed to each other as merely different. This, I suggest, should invite us to re evaluate the nature and extent of the disagree…Read more
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101Ghazali on Miracles and Necessary ConnectionJournal of Nietzsche Studies 9 (1): 39-50. 2000.The paper offers a critical examination of Ghazali’s main arguments against the views of the philosophers on causation. The authors argue that Ghazali’s definition of miracles as "departure from the usual course of events" carries at least two meanings, only one of which is in conflict with necessary causal relations. The authors also argue that Ghazali’s desire to uphold the possibility of miracles need not constrain him to repudiate the idea of necessary connection, since he is able to explain…Read more
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141Avicenna and the Problem of UniversalsPhilosophy and Theology 21 (1-2): 3-25. 2009.The main object of this paper is to clarify and evaluate Avicenna’s view of universals, in light of some modern and contemporarydiscussions. According to Avicenna, universality is a contingent attribute of entities that are in themselves neither universal norparticular. An account of universality as a contingent attribute is offered which clarifies and gives additional support to Avicenna’sview. Nevertheless, it will be argued that Avicenna, through his use of such terms as “nature” and “quiddit…Read more
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57Identity and Necessary SimilarityCanadian Journal of Philosophy 22 (4). 1992.The Principle of the Identity of Indiscernibles, commonly attributed to Leibniz, has given rise to much discussion and debate. Thus philosophers have argued over how it should be formulated, whether it is true, and what, if any, metaphysical consequences it has.It is not my intention to add to these discussions here, having done so elsewhere. Rather, I intend to introduce and defend a closely related principle which I shall, for want of a better name, refer to as The Principle of the Identity of…Read more
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593Democracy without Secularism?In John Bunzl (ed.), Islam, Judaism, and the Political Role of Religions in the Middle East, University of Florida Press. pp. 99-118. 2004.The object of this paper is to present and discuss the way democracy is conceived of by some prominent Islamic thinkers. Their position is that democracy, rightly understood, is simply a method of dispensing, sharing, and managing political authority, and as such does not imply secularism or other values and practices that are associated with liberalism. This paper is conceived of within a broader project to theorize the relations (actual and possible) between Islam, democracy, and modernity.
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118Emotion as patheceptionPhilosophical Explorations 18 (1): 104-122. 2015.Emotion as patheception. . ???aop.label???. doi: 10.1080/13869795.2013.874494.
Raja Bahlul
Doha Institute for Graduate Studies
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Doha Institute for Graduate StudiesProfessor
Areas of Specialization
1 more
Islam |
Metaphysics |
Social and Political Philosophy |
Philosophy of Mind |
Free Will |
Epistemology |
Areas of Interest
Value Theory |
Social Sciences |
Cognitive Sciences |