Prophecy and the Authority of the Prophet in al-Ġazālī's Maqāṣid al-falāsifa

At a close analysis, Abū Ḥāmid al-Ġazālī's Maqāṣid al-falāsifa [Intentions/Doctrines of the Philosophers] reveals itself as a richly stratified work, where the most rational trends of Avicennan falsafa intertwine with an approach strongly influenced by religious revelation. Focusing on the fifth and final treatise of the Physics of the Maqāṣid, this paper analyses the way in which prophecy is not only discussed as the subject-matter of a specific philosophical analysis, but also prominently employed throughout the treatise as a doctrinal authority in the context of otherwise purely philosophical argumentations. The great number of quotations from the Qurʾān and from the tradition of prophetic deeds and sayings (aḥādiṯ) showcases in particular al-Ġazālī's ability to weld and crosspollinate the two traditions of Greek-Arabic philosophy and Islamic religion.