Article

Critical Edition and Analysis of Mulla Lutfī’s al-Sab‘ al-shidād

Abstract

The main subject of this article is the Ottoman scholar Mulla Lutfı̄’s work al-Sab‘ al-shidād, which means “seven firm questions.” In the article, we showed that the work was a product of a series of discussions held in the presence of the sultan in the Ottoman Empire. We determined the name and the date of the work, and the cause for writing. For the first time we detected that there were two different versions of the treatise. We compared these two different versions in this work. We discussed the content of the treatise and listed the issues that Mulla Lutfı̄ discussed in it. In this context we determined that the treatise initially consisted of objections to the view of Jurjānı̄ on the subject of sciences. We showed that Mulla Lutfı̄’s objections against Jurjānı̄ are mainly related to the subject of sciences. In this context, we mainly discussed subjects concerning the philosophy of science such as the subject of sciences, and the distinction of subjects. We analyzed objections about the subjects of sciences such as philosophy, kalam, calculus, and arithmetic. We focused on the meaning of the true, nominal, and conditional unity of the subject of sciences. We discussed whether the conditions applied to subjects are included in the subject. We pointed out whether the common issues in the sciences could be differentiated by the type of evidence and if it is accepted that this is possible, whether this breaks the rule of ‘Sciences differ from each other by the distinction of their subjects’ within the framework of Mulla Lutfı̄’s views. Finally, we identified the copies of both A and B versions and conducted a critical edition of the both versions.

Keywords

Mulla Lutfı̄ Jurjānı̄ al-Sab‘ al-shidād Ottoman thought subject of sciences