Dean's Lecture Series: Saiyad Nizamuddin Ahmad on Time, Eternity, and History in Islamic Philosophy

“Time, Eternity, and the ‘Tyranny of History’ in Islamic Philosophy” A lecture by A Lecture by Saiyad Nizamuddin Ahmad An examination of the problem of time and eternity in the context of the doctrine of creatio ex nihilo (creation out of nothing) and the problems and paradoxes raised by this in Islamic philosophy. This is a long-standing debate not only in Islam but in other religious traditions which cultivated philosophy as well, especially the Christian and the Jewish traditions. The classic example of this debate in Islam is the famous exchange between Ibn Rushd (d. 595 H/1198 CE) and al-Ghazālī (d. 505 H/1111 CE). The latter is well-known to Western students of philosophy, but developments since that time remain virtually unknown to the Western world. We will take the exchange between Ibn Rushd and al-Ghazālī as our point of departure and examine the roots of the question before Islam as well as examine its development after Ibn Rushd and al-Ghazālī in the profoundly original doctrine of “non-temporal origination” formulated by Mīr Dāmād. The question also continues among Muslim scholars in modern times and a few examples will be offered. https://www.sjc.edu/ Annapolis | 60 College Avenue | Annapolis, MD 21401 | 410-263-2371 Santa Fe | 1160 Camino de Cruz Blanca | Santa Fe, NM 87505 | 505-984-6000