RezaAli Nowrozi; Jaber Eftekhari; Ashraf Sadat Mirza-Safi Naeini,
Abstract
Reason (‘aql), as one of the pillars of epistemology in Islamic thought, has always been a subject of attention for thinkers. This research aims to examine the role of Reason ...
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Reason (‘aql), as one of the pillars of epistemology in Islamic thought, has always been a subject of attention for thinkers. This research aims to examine the role of Reason in the thought of Abū ‘Uthmān ‘Amr ibn Baḥr al-Jāḥiẓ (160-255 AH), the prominent Mu‘tazilite scholar, by investigating its place in his epistemological system. Unlike Peripatetic philosophers such as al-Farabi and Ibn Sina (Avicenna), who emphasized the theoretical aspects of reason, al-Jāḥiẓ viewed reason as a practical and multifaceted tool that, alongside experience and revelation, aids in understanding the world and reforming social behavior. Using a qualitative content analysis method, this study examines key works of al-Jāḥiẓ, including al-Bayān wa al-Tabyīn, al-Ḥayawān, al-Bukhalāʾ, and al-Rasāʿil. It demonstrates that by integrating reason, experience, and revelation, he presented an innovative approach to Islamic epistemology. This perspective places al-Jāḥiẓ between the rationalism of the Peripatetics and the textualism of the Ash‘arites, highlighting his influence on the formation of Islamic empiricism. The present research suggests that further study of al-Jāḥiẓ’s thought can contribute to a deeper understanding of the history of Islamic philosophy.
