Ethical thought of Companions:Necessity, possibility and method of recognition

Contemporary studies on the history of moral thoughts in the Islamic world are more focused on the recognition of philosophical moral thoughts from the 2nd century AD onwards, and in them, less attention has been paid to the historical study, typology and classification of opinions that are not included in the framework of the philosophical tradition of the Islamic world. Often, the origin of the moral thoughts of Muslim scholars reflected in the philosophical tradition is sought somewhere outside the Islamic world. A critical look at this approach requires that we present evidence in favor of the continuity of moral theorizing in the Islamic world from the oldest period, the age of the Companions of the Prophet Muḥammad, and answer the question of theoretical basis. So we have to ask which theoretical basis can be used in order to recognize the ancient moral ideas of Muslims in the age of the Companions. In other words, we need to know how to recognize moral theories presented in formats different from the system of philosophical ethics and therefore remained unknown. To achieve this goal, it is necessary to show the reasonableness and significance of tracing the moral thought in the era of the Companions. Also, we have to answer the question of how it is possible for the Companions to become the promoters of different opinions and schools despite their participation in the discipleship of the Prophet Muḥammad. In the same way, we must express the method of gathering resources and data analysis strategies in accordance with this goal. The current feasibility study has been carried out with the aim of answering the aforementioned questions in order to create a theoretical basis for the analysis of the history of the moral thought of the Companions era. As we will see, we can expect the formation of different moral schools in the era of the Companions; Schools that can open a way beyond their recognition based on the proposed method in this study.