Islamic Philosophy, with Emphasis on Mulla Sadra's Hikmat al-Muta'aliyah

A four module program of a total of 25 sessions spanning the world of Islamic Philosophy - for complete beginners to the subject - by Dr. Syed Abbas Z Naqvi.

Total Sessions - 25

Modules - 4

Primary Text - Bidayat al-Hikmah (with supplementary papers/handbooks)

Module Titles:

I - Foundations of Metaphysics (6)

II - Sadrian Ontology (6 sessions)

III - Motion and Cosmology (5)

IV Epistemology and Synthesis (8)

Primary Texts:

Bidāyah al-Ḥikmah (The Elements of Islamic Metaphysics) is a foundational, concise textbook on Islamic philosophy and metaphysics written by Allamah Sayyid Muhammad Husayn Tabatabai.

Hikmat e Sadra - An Introduction to Islamic Philosophy by Ustad Hamid Reza Fazil (Published by Hast-o-Neest).

Across six sessions of the first Module, the study follows a single line of reasoning — from the most basic question in philosophy (what does it mean to be?) to one of the central debates that has shaped Islamic metaphysics for centuries.

The sessions are sequenced so that each builds the vocabulary and concepts required for the next.

Session 1: Introduction to Metaphysics- What is metaphysics?- Being qua being- Subject of metaphysics- Metaphysics as a discipline: the Aristotelian starting point An orientation to the discipline: what it means to study ‘being’ as such, and why this question has occupied philosophers for millennia.

Session 2: Essence and Existence- Why distinguish essence from existence?- Essence in itself- The unicorn example- The horse example- External existence- Mental existence (first introduction)- One essence, multiple modes of existence- Why mental existence does not mean ‘imaginary’ The central session of the module. Participants come to see how a single essence — ‘horse,’ for instance — can be said to exist in more than one way.

Session 3: The Three Domains of Being- External existence- Mental existence- The domain of factuality (nafs al-amr) — kept accessible A concise, non-technical survey of the three domains in which something can be said to be real, building directly on Session 2.

Session 4: Historical Development- Mu’tazilah- Farabi- Avicenna- Suhrawardi Having established the underlying problem, participants are now introduced to the thinkers who engaged with it across the history of Islamic thought.

Session 5: Avicenna's Ontology- Bridge: how essence and existence become necessity and contingency- Necessity- Contingency- Causality- Possible beings- Necessary Being An examination of how Avicenna develops the essence/existence distinction into a rigorous argument concerning necessity, contingency, and the Necessary Being.

Session 6: The Primacy Debate: Essence or Existence?- Suhrawardi- Asalat al-Mahiyyah (primacy of essence)- Asalat al-Wujud (primacy of existence)- Closing synthesis: the whole journey in one picture The concluding session addresses one of the central fault lines in Islamic metaphysics: whether essence or existence is more fundamentally real. The session closes with a brief synthesis connecting each of the preceding five sessions into a single line of argument.

The study program is intended for

• Anyone with a genuine interest in philosophical inquiry and no assumption of prior study.

• Students, teachers, and seminary participants seeking a firmer grounding before continuing further; and any adult with a sustained interest in the foundational questions of Islamic philosophy.

• No prior background in philosophy, logic, Arabic, or Persian is required.

• Comfort following instruction in a mix of English and Urdu.

• Participants with some prior background in philosophy or kalam are also welcome; the pace, however, is set for those encountering this material for the first time

Participant requirements:

• Comfortable with Urdu and English language

• Attendance at all six sessions, as each builds directly on the one before it.

• A willingness to ask questions and engage in discussion.

Structure.

Pace: one session per week, over six weeks, allowing sufficient time between sessions for the material to be absorbed.

Mondays, 9:00 pm (to 10:00/10:30 pm) - Online on Zoom & in-person at Hast-o-Neest Lahore - starting 10th August 2026.

• Recordings of sessions will be provided to applicants.

• Thecontributing fee for Module 1 is PKR 7,500/-

Applicants will be provided with the method of payment.

Dr. Syed Abbas Z Naqvi | is an Associate Professor of Engineering at University of Engineering & Technology, Lahore. He obtained his PhD from Purdue University, USA, in Computer Sciences. His research areas include: Sparse bayesian learning, Object recognition, Collaborative robots & deep learning.

Mulla Sadra (c. 1571–1640) was a pivotal philosopher. His Ilahiyat (metaphysics/theology) represents a massive synthesis of Peripatetic philosophy, Illuminationist philosophy, Sufi metaphysics, and scriptural sources.

• ملا صدرا 17ویں صدی کے مشہور فلسفی، صوفی اور "حکمت متعالیہ" کے بانی تھے۔ انہوں نے فلسفہ، عرفان، اور کلام کو یکجا کر کے "وجود" (Existence) کو بنیاد بنایا، جس میں وجود کی حقیقت (اصالت الوجود) اور اس کی تدریجی حرکت (حرکت جوهری) مرکزی نظریات ہیں۔

The book Hikmat e Sadra - An Introduction to Islamic Philosophy by Ustad Hamid Reza Fazil was published by Hast o Neest in 2021.

“اسلامی فلسفہ صدیوں سے اسلامی علمی روایت کا ایک اہم جز اور ستون رہا ہے - چنانچہ درس نظامی کے نصاب میں منطق اور دیگر علوم عقلیات کے زمرے میں شامل رہا ہے - علامہ محمد اقبال کی پی ایچ ڈی مقالے میں اقبال ملا صدرا کا ذکر کرتے ہیں -” Dr. Syed Rizwan Zamir

To Apply:

نام، تعلیم، پیشہ اور فلسفہ میں دلچسپی کی تفصیلات مندرجہ ذیل پتہ پہ ارسال کر دیں ۔

Send Name, Profession, Academic Background, Whatsapp Number and a brief statement on the reason for applying to hast.o.neest@gmail.com or on 0300 8493170.