Islamic Philosophy Essay

* Ibn Sina – â€Å"Philosophy is the exercise of intellect, enabling man to know Being as it is in itself. It is incumbent upon man to do this by the exercise of his intellect, so that he may ennoble his soul and make it perfect, and may become a rational scientist, and get the capacity of eternal bliss in hereafter. † * It is not necessarily concerned with religious issues. They have the following: HADITH(the traditional sayings of the Prophet) SUNNA(the practices of their community). FIQH(Islamic law, which discusses particular problems concerning how Muslims ought to behave) * It is not exclusively produced by Muslims. * Philosophy helps the Muslim to understand the truth using different techniques from those directly provided through Islam * It is the continuous search for Hikma(Wisdom) Nature and Origin * Philosophy in its fullest sense began in the third century of hijra(The hijra was in 622 ad; it is the first year according to the Muslim calendar) * The main sources of early Islamic philosophy are the religion of Islam and Greek philosophy. Greek philosophy because most their works on philosophy like logic, medicine mathematics and so forth were translated into Arabic. During the middle ages, both Muslims and Christian philosophers relied upon the Greek Philosophy, their main resources are the works of Aristotle and Plato along with few others. Hikma and Falsafa * Hikma (wisdom) -Philosophy as hikma has the advantage of referring to a wide range of conceptual issues within Islam. * Falsafa-an Arabic expression designed to represent the Greek philosophia. Islamic Philosophy of Education. Islamic education is an essential need derived from Islam as a religion or way of life, as Allah wanted. Thus Islam sources are the same for Islamic education. The Quran is the main source of Islam, which contains every principles of Islamic thought. Islamic education also is uniquely different from other types of educational theory and practice largely because of the all-encompassing influence of the Quran. The Quran serves as a comprehensive blueprint for both the individual and society and as the primary source of knowledge. Some examples of the proof that the importance of education is repeatedly emphasized in the Quran: Al-Quran * â€Å" †¦ Say: â€Å"are those equal, those who know and those who do not know? It is those who are endued with understanding that receive admonition† (Az-Zumar : 9) Sunnah * â€Å"Who so walks in path seeking for knowledge therein, God will thereby make easy to him the path of paradise† (Abu Hurairah and Muslim) The aims of Islamic Education * Imam Al-Ghazali * Education should make a child aware of the laws though the study of Qu’ran and Hadith. * Education should make the child firm in religious beliefs otherwise he will be led astray. * Ibn Khaldun * Knowledge of God and faith in Islamic laws will make Muslims know the reality which in turn will lead to good and possession of good character. * Ibn Sina * Education as the overall growth of the individual: physical, mental, and moral; followed by the preparation of this by individual to live in a society through a chosen chose trade according to his aptitudes. * According to Contemporary Perspectives * To provide the teachings of Holy Quran as the first step of education. * To provide experiences which are based on fundamentals of Islam as embodied in Holy Quran and Sunnah which cannot be changed * To develop such qualities of a good man which are universally accepted by the societies which have faith in religion * To bring man nearer to an understanding of God and of the relation in which man stands to his creator * To produce man who has faith as well as knowledge in spiritual development These aims and objectives of Islamic education distinguish clearly from the modern system of education which is based on Western philosophy of life. This approach of Islamic education was endorsed in the First World Conference on Muslim Education held at Mecca in 1977 in the following words: â€Å"Education should aim at the balanced growth of the total personality of man through the training of Man’s spirit, intellect, his rational self, feelings and bodily senses. Education should cater therefore for the growth of man in all aspects: spiritual, intellectual, imaginative, physical, scientific, linguistic, both individually and collectively and motivate all aspects towards goodness and the attainment of perfection. The ultimate aim of Muslim education lies in the realization of complete submission to Allah on the level of the individual, the community and humanity at large. † Mohamad Johdi (2009) synchronizes that Islamic education aims at the balanced growth of the total balanced-personality of human, acronym JERISAH – Jasmani- physical Emosi- emotional Rohani- spiritual Intelek- intellectual Sosialisasi- social Alam- environment Hamba Allah- humbleness towards Allah.