HIST-281 Lecture Notes - Lecture 31: Avempace, Ibn Tufail, Terra Incognita
3 Nov 2020
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Ibn bajja saw the exercise of reason and mathematical understanding as the height of experience. The divine is that which goes beyond even the limits of human reason. It grants an ecstasy that rationalism cannot describe. His awareness of this ecstatic experience made al-ghazali an ally of the sufi school of islam. At some point we would have to step onto the terra incognita of the divine: the goal for al-ghazali was to behold the light of god. Not just contemplate a theorem: averroes and ibn tufayl. In al-andalus, ibn rushd would become the greatest defender of rationalizing theology against its supposed opponents. Rushd would in some cases rival even avicenna for far reaching influence. To averroes, al-ghazali had gone too far in his attempt to rein in those who trusted too much in human wisdom or reason. He returned to the fine details of the logic and metaphysics of aristotle.
