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Intellectual History of the Islamicate World, 2024
This article presents a comparative reading of two 10th-century Islamicate lettrist works: Kitāb ... more This article presents a comparative reading of two 10th-century Islamicate lettrist works: Kitāb Khawāṣṣ al-ḥurūf by Ibn Masarra and a commentary on the Sefer Yetsirah by Saʿadia Gaon. Close analysis of both treatises emphasizes that philosophy coexists with other ways of knowing in lettrist theories. While some lettrist authors overtly employ a philosophical structure, this paper argues that others reference and re-interpret philosophical concepts (such as primordial elements and prime matter) implicitly within their work. Through reading these texts in conversation, I suggest that a framework of "implicit philosophy" creates space for lettrism within the domain of philosophy and science, while also acknowledging the intertwining aspects of mysticism, esoterism, and occultism that weave both within and beyond the realm of philosophy. Thinking in terms of implicit philosophy opens up new ways of understanding and contextualizing lettrist works, both as individual texts and as constituents of a broader Islamicate lettrist milieu.
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Magic, Ritual, and Witchcraft
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J Med Ethics, 2015
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Guest-Edited Journal Special Issues
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Conference Organization
“Forms and Functions of Islamic Philosophy” seeks to highlight how Islamic philosophy (falsafa/ḥi... more “Forms and Functions of Islamic Philosophy” seeks to highlight how Islamic philosophy (falsafa/ḥikma) was practiced “in conversation”—between scholars, with various audiences, and with different disciplines, approaches, and rhetoric. Islamic philosophy was composed not only in traditional forms of treatises and commentaries, but also through narratives written in poetry and prose. For example, Fakhr al-Dīn al-Rāzī penned a panegyric poem written in Persian in praise of logic, physics, and metaphysics, alongside his many philosophical prose treatises. Ibn al-ʿArabī’s philosophical mysticism includes prose that reads as Aristotelian commentary alongside succinct poems highlighting his key philosophical concepts through mystical metaphors. In reference to Ibn Sīnā’s allegorical treatise, Ibn Tufayl’s famous Ḥayy Ibn Yaqẓān provides an intriguing narrative and philosophical thought experiment. What do story-telling, poetry, narrative, metaphor, and allegory reveal about the nature and purpose of philosophy?
The conference is organized in conjunction with the “Islamic Philosophy in Conversation” working group. The conference aligns itself with the goals of the working group, and therefore seeks to highlight the work of a diverse group of scholars, including emerging scholars of Islamic philosophy, as well as those who identify as female, non-binary, or as belonging to a historically-marginalized group.
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This conference used the particular case study of astrology as a means to study the broader impli... more This conference used the particular case study of astrology as a means to study the broader implications of boundary-work. It examined the intersections among science, the occult, and the religious cultures that lived in the medieval Islamic world—including Islam, Judaism, Christianity, and Zoroastrianism. The conference complicated the categories of magic, science, and religion by looking at how boundaries between these fields were articulated by medieval scholars. Boundary-work, by its very nature, is interdisciplinary; the conference brought together scholars of religious studies, history, sociology, art, and science studies to collectively examine the chosen case study of astrology. By looking at practices of, categorizations of, and debates surrounding astrology in the medieval Islamic world, the conference shed light on the broader questions of when, where, why, and how definitions and boundaries are established between science, magic, and religion.
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Blog Posts
Islamic Occult Studies on the Rise (blog), 2022
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Books Reviews
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The Journal of Religion, 2018
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Papers
Guest-Edited Journal Special Issues
Conference Organization
The conference is organized in conjunction with the “Islamic Philosophy in Conversation” working group. The conference aligns itself with the goals of the working group, and therefore seeks to highlight the work of a diverse group of scholars, including emerging scholars of Islamic philosophy, as well as those who identify as female, non-binary, or as belonging to a historically-marginalized group.
Blog Posts
Books Reviews
The conference is organized in conjunction with the “Islamic Philosophy in Conversation” working group. The conference aligns itself with the goals of the working group, and therefore seeks to highlight the work of a diverse group of scholars, including emerging scholars of Islamic philosophy, as well as those who identify as female, non-binary, or as belonging to a historically-marginalized group.