ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Philosophical Instructions Lesson Forty-Two: What is Location? Introduction The discussion of time and space is among the most important problems of philosophy which has always attracted the attention of thinkers and philosophers, and it has always retained its freshness and vivacity, and has never become stale or faded. It has not yet been filed away.

Although geniuses in Eastern and Western philosophy have thought and spoken at length about time and space, and among them the great Eastern philosopher, Ibn Sīnā has spilled much ink over the details of this subject in the Physics of his Shifā , yet there remains room for profound thinking, research and inquiries in its interstices.

The opinions of philosophers and authorities concerning time and space are so opposed and contrary to one another and include weird ideas to such an extent that few philosophical problems can be compared to it. For example, on the one hand, time and space are considered to be immaterial substances, while on the other hand, they have been degraded to such an extent that they are considered illusory and imaginary.

Kant, the famous German philosopher, considered them to be mental, or in his own terms ‘forms of sensibilities.’ Most philosophers, however, have considered them to be objective accidents. In this regard, the great Islamic philosopher, Ṣadr al-Muta’allihīn Shīrāzī has won the race against all of them and has presented a very important and firm view which can be considered the last word on the subject.

This view may also be considered a basis for establishing substantial motion, the philosophical explanation of which at the very least is one of the major original innovations of this great philosopher, as will be made clear in future chapters. In view of the fact that in the previous lesson the occupation of space and time have been discussed as properties of material things, we have seen fit here to present an explanation pertaining to space and time.

The Problem of Space and Time In all languages there are expressions for space and time, and all people believe that material things are related to space and time, which relations can be stated in various ways: “The sun is in the sky,” “The sea is where fish live,” “The book is on the table,” and so forth. Likewise, it is said: “The honorable Prophet of Islam, may the Peace and Blessings of Allah be with him and with his progeny, was born in the sixth century.