Al-Farabi The Political Regime PDF

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Al-Farabi's opinions on the political regime and how to structure it in order to live the good life...

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Al-Farabi’s Background: ● During the fall of ancient Greece and Rome book burning happened, Islamic and Jewish writers saved philosophers texts and that’s why we have them today ● Golden age of Islam from 8th-13th ● House of wisdom: books and things translations and libraries ● Lived 870-950 ● Baghdad and Damascus ● Studied under a Christian ● Did his best to reconcile Plato and Aristotle ● An elitist True Happiness cannot be of this Life: ● You have to do well to have happiness in the next life ● In this life you have to work to be as close to that happiness as possible ● Political science is the highest science ○ Study of what will get us to true happiness ○ Echoes plato and aristotle ● When the city is ordered correctly it is virtuous ○ When a city is virtuous it’s citizens are virtuous ○ Leading by example ■ City will give the people an example of how to conduct themselves ■ Gives an image of how to live ■ Imitation is not necessarily bad, but it’s not the best possible thing ■ When people are virtuous they’re as close to happy as they can be Ruling a Virtuous City: ● 2 kings of ruling 1. Virtuous: a. Aim @ true happiness 2. Ignorant: a. Aim @ what happiness seems to be ○ Prolongs the debate between knowledge and happiness ○ 2 things a ruler needs: ■ Practical wisdom: Aristotle’s experiences ● Knowledge of decisions for particular situations ■ General knowledge: Plato’s ● Universal unchanging and necessary ■ Need both to rule efficiently ○ 2 parts of political science ■ Teach the public what happiness is ■ Order society virtuously to aim those who cannot attain happiness close to something like it ● Need philosophy ● Few people can really attain philosophy

○ Only ones who can really know happiness and attain it ○ Everyone else can get close by imitating people who understand, but their souls will be destroyed ○ The order of society is vital because it’s how people know what to imitate

How to Rule: ● Man needs someone to teach them what happiness is ● Teacher gives the tools for finding happiness not it’s definition ○ It’s a guide not an answer key ● Man needs other men to reach happiness ● Intelligibles: like angels, the onvoy between God and humans ● 2 steps to happiness ○ Know what it is ○ Do what it takes to get it ● Ruler has 2 way to make people listen ○ Force and persuasion ● Laws are implemented to solve succession problem Ruling and Degrees Thereof: 1. Ruled: a. Some people should always be ruled b. No interest in dictating things to other people, v chill 2. Subordinate rulers: a. Assistant to the regional manager b. Practical wisdom, but no general knowledge c. Guide people in some right directions, but not others 3. Supreme rulers: a. General and practical wisdom b. Achieved union with active intellect (angel guy) c. Universal, unchanging, and necessary knowledge makes them virtuous Active Intellect: ● Similar to an angel, but higher and yet not quite God ● Eternal ● Gives knowledge on universal unchanging and necessary things ● Similar to the idea of the Good Supreme Rulers Aim to Rule with Political Order: ● Political order: ○ Preserves happiness ○ Best regime: entirely full of philosophers ● Because regimes are unlikely to have continued virtuous leaders ○ Law ○ Preserves happiness and order without the presence of a philosopher ● If rulers and the law fails

Disorder Souls become sick: corrupted No way to understand happiness or achieve it When the city falls the individual falls Souls become focused on temporal things ■ When matter (bodies) cease to exist people cease to exist as well ● The few need all of society to help them get to heaven, through order ● How do we know order: ○ Intellect: ■ How we find universal knowledge ○ Imagination: ■ Particular, changing, contingent ■ Intellect lasts forever, but imagination dies with the body ● Most people only use their imaginations ○ Can’t or won’t use intellect ■ Nature ■ Habit ● Religion is subordinate to philosophy ○ Can’t get salvation with just religion because it is simply an image of philosophy used to make regimes have order ○ Role of religion: ■ Show 1 right order ■ Imitates this order ● Only 1 correct order of a city ○ Some images and thusly religions are better than others ○ Religions are different approximations of the same things The Good Regime: ● Supreme Ruler: ○ Uses religion ○ Goal: true happiness in heaven ○ Political science is concerned with the immortality of reputation ● The proper order: ○ Mirrors the natural order: ■ Humans ■ Animals ■ Plants and objects ○ Active intellect is communication between humans and the intelligences ■ Humans acquire universal unchanging and necessary truths if they can handle it and through this they can get revelations ○ Revelations: ■ Tells you 1st cause of existence ■ Philosophers cause revelation by achieving philosophy ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

■ Revelation: achievement of human perfection ● Democracy doesn’t allow for a creation of an order that reflects cultural identity because people are too different ● Supreme rulers need to know the correct order: ○ Through revelation ○ Causes: intelligences and God ○ City is the image of natural order ● The Good Political Order ○ Meant to accurately reflect the character of people ■ NOT: ● Ignorant city: no knowledge of final cause or images ● Immoral city: know final cause, but lost images ● Erring city: only knows image of happiness not the real thing- no philosophers to teach ● Weeds: non-virtuous people going all sophist like and corrupting the city ■ IS: ● Reflection of the natural order ● Philosophers ruling ● Theology is a tool to support philosophical rule ■ Rulers need ● Right dispositions and habits ● Get people to follow ○ Rhetoric and force The Good Life: ● Need reason and virtue ● Can everyone live a good life?...