نشریه آینه پژوهش
سال بیست و ششم شماره 5 (پیاپی 155، آذر و دی 1394)

A large part of knowledge is made of the famous propositions (They are kind of deduction and refer to the propositions which are famous and accepted among all or most of the people). On the one hand, most of the famous propositions are right and the result of the collective wisdom. On the other hand, one should not completely trust the famous propositions and doesn’t accept everything merely due to its fame. Criticizing the famous propositions is the same as criticizing public opinions, and if these opinions are combined with public sentiment, it turns into a confrontation between science and emotion. The only efficient thing in order to face with the famous propositions is critical thinking. Everywhere, including among the faithful, the famous propositions are found unsubstantiated. This paper is going to scrutinize some samples of false famous propositions.

By the late mediaeval period, Sufism (sometimes defined as Islamic mysticism) was a clear presence in every Muslim town or village, and Sufis were present in many different levels of Muslim society. However, if we were to look back to the earliest centuries of Islamic history, it becomes increasingly harder to find evidence of individuals going by the description of ‘Sufi’. Individuals with the name appear around the late eighth century C.E., but we only start to see the rise of a particular group using that name in the mid-ninth century. But how and why did Sufism rise in this period, and what were the reasons behind its growing importance for Muslim society? By looking at the contributions of scholars in recent decades, the author of this article will try to trace the development of Sufism from its early origins, up to its consolidation as a visible social institution during the 12th century. He makes an attempt to focus more on the evolution of Sufism as a social group and a body of tradition, rather than focusing on the development of mystical thought and teachings. Hence, the main argument of the article is that to study the formation of Sufism, one must consider its link with the more general change in the Islamic traditions and schools of thought. Before addressing the main issues, the author is going to note some points about studying Sufism in the contemporary era.

The author of this article is going to point out some of the mistakes made by biographers and translators in the published works in the form of biographies as well as translated books; and provide some examples for them. Thus, he reveals how untrustworthy some of the translators’ methods are; and denies having absolute trust in whatever is said or written about the lives of the departed.

Encyclopedia of the Qur’anic Sciences, written by a group of researchers, is one of the works designed and composed by Information and Islamic Document Center of Islamic Sciences and Culture Academy. It includes 4842 entries which are based on the studying of more than 200 documents of the Qur’anic sciences. The entries are of two types: informative entries, and referential ones. In order to introduce this work, the author of the article is going to scrutinize its forming factors, structure of the essays, content, and features.

One of the major theoretical approaches to religion is sociological study of religion. Among the new researches carried out in this field is An Introduction to the Sociology of Religion: Classical and Contemporary Perspectives, by Igner Furseth and Pal Repstad which is published in 2006. This book is translated by Majīd Ja’fariān; and University of Religions and Denominations Press publishes it in 1394. The book is an attempt to have a sociological perspective on religion, define religion and its dimensions, and talks about its place in some grand narratives such as modernity, globalization, and secularization. It also scrutinizes individual piety, religious organizations and movements, and the role of religion in the public sphere and its relationship with race, ethnicity, gender and sociology. In the present paper, the author, after an introduction, is going to talk about 12 chapters and a detailed list of the book. Following this, she briefly points out the book writers’ objectives and approach.

Al-Mulakhas and al-Zakhirah by Sharīf Mortezā Alamolhodā are considered two valuable books on Ilm al-kalām (Science of discourse) due to their including most of Kalāmi issues and explaining topics in many Kalāmi fields. There are some queries and important vague points regarding both books. Among all, two of the major queries which should be addressed seriously are about the way of their composing, and their relation. The author in this article is trying to study and examine the available evidences in order to answer the questions such as:1.How was each one of these books compiled?2.What is the relation between these books in terms of structure and content?3.Why are the last chapters of al-Mulakhas and the first chapters of al-Zakhirah the same?4.Which chapters were originally in al-Mulakhas and al-Zakhirah and now are lost?Before talking about the relation between two books, the author is going to have a close look at their structural characteristics.

Different researchers have so far expressed their opinions about al-Zakhirah by Sharīf Mortezā and its relation with al-Mulakhas. Professor Sabine Schmidtke discusses this issue in her recent article which is about an old version of al-Zakhirah available in St. Petersburg Library. The author of the following paper is going to explicate some of the points which Sabine Schmidtke has reached in her discussion. Following this, he tries to add some facts in order to confirm her research and to provide an interpretation of the nature and cause of the books relation.

In the following article, the author is going to present Dr. Hasan Ansāri’s opinions about his own paper titled “Notes on the Structure of and the Relation between al-Mulakhas and al-Zakhirah by Sharīf Mortezā”. Dr. Hasan Ansāri wrote a note about some of the matters discussed in the mentioned paper in Historical Studies page of Kātibān Site. The author of the paper quotes some of the advantages which were missed in his paper but pointed out by Dr. Ansāri. He also talks about the most important facts upon which he and Dr. Ansāri disagree, as well as some other considerations.

The Study Qur’an: A New Translation and Commentary is the culmination of a project which has been carried out by the publication of Harper Collins in 2015. This book for the first time provides its readers with a complete English commentary on the Qur’an. This is a comprehensive and inclusive book whose writers are a group of scholars of Islamic Studies who worked under the guidance of Editor-in-Chief Seyyed Hossein Nasr, with the cooperation of Caner Dagli, Maria Dakake, Joseph Lumbard, and Muhammad Rustom. In both translation and commentary on the Qur’an verses, they draw upon a wide range of Muslim commentaries on the Quran, including Sunni and Shii commentaries; and generally deal with the principles of believes which are consistent with the dominant various kalāmi trends in Islamic thought. The present article is the translation of Mobin Vid’s article in which he provides a critical and almost comprehensive review of the Study Qur’an. At first, he briefly talks about the current outlook of the Qur’an translations, and then examines the features of the Study Qur’an. Finally, he notes some considerations about the book such as the withdrawal of consensus in stoning sentence, and religious pluralism.

Sheikh Kamāloddin Mas’oud Khojandi, known as ‘Sheikh Kamāl’ is one of the famous mystics and poets of 8th century. Various researchers have done research about him in the form of book, article, and thesis. In the present paper, the author tries to provide a list of the books, articles, theses, and…which have been published about Kamāl Khojandi and his poems. Regarding this, he has used authentic sources including general bibliographies and electronic databases.