One major trajectory of early 'aql traditions is scrutinized: the Aqbil! Adbir! creation narrative "lamma khalaqa llahu l-'aqla (When god had created the intelligence ...)". In Part I early Sunni and Shii transmission and reception of the varying texts dominates the discussion, with analysis of chief motifs. Then successive transformations are traced, with attention devoted to ideas of 'first creation'. The original context of the Aqbil! reports is convincingly explained within the thought forms of 1st & 2nd century theological ideas of voluntarism or predestination, without recourse to Goldziher's "new-Platonic element". The late neo-Platonising form "awwalu ma khalaqa llahu l-'aqlu, (The first (thing) God created is the intellect ...)", is shown to be not earlier than the mid-3rd/9th century. / In a related class of narratives, 'aql pre-exists in the realm of the divine Throne. The focus is the notion of the divinely provisioned innate trait of 'intelligence' or 'wisdom' as a "light in the heart" inequitably apportioned among humanity. Part II examines the creative manner in which the sixth Shi'iimam Ja'far al-Sadiq (d.148/765) transforms the Aqbil! tradition by integrating this heavenly sapiential 'aql with the 'Adam-Iblis' conflict into a binary listing of the character traits (akhlaq, khisal). His myth of the creation, empowerment, and opposition between 'aql and jahl (intelligence & ignorance, or wisdom & folly) propounds a psycho-ethical scheme for the inner purgative struggle, wherein 'aql operates as chief of the character traits, Ja'far stresses the cognitive function (ma'rifah) in the perfection of 'aql peculiar to the inner circles of humanity (prophets, saints$ $ Imams, the faithful). An assessment is given of the repercussions of al-Sadiq's contribution for continuing Shii and Sufi enrichments of the 'aql creation narratives (eg. with al-Hakim al-Tirmidhi).
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.40333 |
| Date | January 1996 |
| Creators | Crow, Douglas Sloan. |
| Contributors | Landalt, Hermann (advisor) |
| Publisher | McGill University |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Coverage | Doctor of Philosophy (Institute of Islamic Studies.) |
| Rights | All items in eScholarship@McGill are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated. |
| Relation | alephsysno: 001537633, proquestno: NN19716, Theses scanned by UMI/ProQuest. |
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