Strengthening the faith

The book “Strengthening the faith” (Taqvim al – Iman) is a philosophical work written in Arabic, including the principles of philosophy.

It is composed by the prominent philosopher “Mirdamad” in the 17^th century.  

The  book presents the new philosophical discussions of the author 
the views which have not been before presented  in his other works
 the philosophical  views  such as : “ the unity of action” , “the particular reason on the  worlds formation” (origin), “Essence and  accident”.

“Strengthening the faith” was considered as a textbook, and the author himself taught it to his students.

The author

Mir Damad (d. 1631 or 1632), known also as Mir Mohammad Baqer Esterabadi, or Asterabadi, was an Iranian philosopher in the Neoplatonizing Islamic Peripatetic traditions of Avicenna and Suhrawardi, a scholar of the traditional Islamic sciences, and foremost figure (together with his student Mulla Sadra), of the cultural renaissance of Iran undertaken under the Safavid dynasty. As such he was the central founder of the School of Isfahan, noted by his students and admirers as the Third Teacher (mu'alim al-thalith) after Aristotle and al-Farabi.
Philosophy
His major contribution to Islamic philosophy was his novel formulation regarding gradations of time and the emanations of the separate categories of time as descending divine hypostases. He resolved the controversy of the createdness or uncreatedness of the world in time by proposing the notion of huduth-e-dahri (atemporal origination) as an explanation grounded in Avicennan and Suhrawardian categories, whilst transcending them. In brief, excepting God, he argued all things, including the earth and all heavenly bodies, share in both eternal and temporal origination. He influenced the revival of al-falsafa al-yamani (Philosophy of Yemen), a philosophy based on revelation and sayings of prophets rather than the rationalism of the Greeks, and he is widely recognized as the founder of the School of Isfahan, which embraced a theosophical outlook known as hikmat-i ilahi (divine wisdom).
Mir Damad’s many treatises on Islamic philosophy include Taqwim al-Iman (Calendars of Faith, a treasure on creation and divine knowledge), the Kitab Qabasat al-Ilahiyah (Book of the Divine Embers of Fiery Kindling), wherein he lays out his concept of atemporal origination, Kitab al-Jadhawat and Sirat al-Mustaqim. He also wrote poetry under the pseudonym of Ishraq (Illumination). He also wrote a couple of books on mathematics, but with secondary importance.
Among his many other students besides Mulla Sadra were Seyyed Ahmad-ibn-Reyn-al-A’bedin Alavi, Mohammad ibn Alireza ibn Agajanii, Qutb-al-Din Mohammad Ashkevari and Mulla Shams Gilani.
Mir Damad's philosophical prose is often accounted as being among the most dense and obtusely difficult of styles to understand, deliberately employing as well as coining convoluted philosophical terminology and neologisms that require systematic unpacking and detailed commentary. He was called Mir Damad (Groom of the King) because he married Shah Abbas's daughter and hence his fame was based on that event.
Works
Among his 134 works known:
•    Taqwim al-Iman (Calendars of Faith)
•    Kitab Qabasat al-Ilahiyah (Book of the Divine Embers of Fiery Kindling)
•    Kitab al-Jadhawat (Book of Spiritual Attractions)
•    Sirat al-Mustaqim (The Straight Path)

The book structure

The book is composed in chapters, which each chapter includes some philosophical subjects:

The 1^st chapter includes:

Definition of divine science (philosophy), the subject and issues of philosophy, existent is divided into necessary –existence and possible –existence, “possible” is divided into essence and accident,

The 2^nd chapter:

The partial and general reasoning, the reasoning of potency and action, the order reasoning, etc.

The 3^rd chapter:

 The attributes of Necessary Being, the quality of accident, etc.

The 4^th chapter:

Necessary Being, the quality of accidents on Necessary Being

The anteriority of Necessary Being, the formation and precedence of the universe, etc.

The 5^th chapter:

The last chapter includes epistemic discussions and also the authors viewpoints on science, and particularly about   divine science (philosophy)

 This chapter presents the following subjects.

1- Definition and division of science

2- The “active” in “acquisition” knowledge” presence knowledge”

3- The order of sciences and concepts

4- The Revelation of various concepts to human

5- The present and the passive science, etc.

Many commentaries have been written on this great work:

1- “Discovering the realities” ( kashf al- Haqayeq) , it is the most  important and the most extensive commentary written by Mirdamads  student “ Mir sayyed Ahmad Alavi”

 2- “ Arah al- Ayqon” ( the empyrean of  certitude) written by “ Mir Abdul Hasib” ( great grandchild of  Mirdamad)

3- A commentary written by his student “Mullah Shamsa  Gilani”.   

Sources

Keywords