The complete toolkit, assembled: Sessions 5 and 6 together give you the complete toolkit for propositions. Now you can form them, classify them, relate them, flip them, and use them.
Session 7 builds on this: Session 7 will build the syllogism from these propositions. Here is the application — the classical Islamic Kalam argument, using only the tools of Sessions 5 and 6.
Step 1 — set up the disjunction: The question: is Allah's existence Wajib (necessary) or Mumkin (contingent)? Step 1: set up a Munfasila Haqqiyya: "Either Allah's existence is Wajib (necessary) or it is Mumkin (contingent)" — these are the only two options, and exactly one must be true.
Step 2 — prove by elimination: Step 2: prove by elimination. If Allah's existence were Mumkin, then it would require a cause (Muttasila Haq): "If Allah's existence were Mumkin, then it would require a cause."
The chain to the contradiction: "If it required a cause, then something is prior to Allah" (Muttasila Haq). "If something were prior to Allah, then Allah is not the First Cause" — this contradicts the proven [E] proposition "Nothing is prior to Allah".
Step 3 — apply Tanaqud: Step 3: apply Tanaqud. The conclusion "Allah is not the First Cause" contradicts [E] "Nothing is prior to Allah".
Therefore not Mumkin: Since [E] is proven, [I] "Something is prior to Allah" is false. Therefore Allah's existence cannot be Mumkin.
Conclusion: Allah's existence is Wajib: Conclusion: the Munfasila is reduced to one option — Allah's existence is Wajib. Q.E.D.
The classical Burhan al-Imkan: This is the classical Burhan al-Imkan — the argument from contingency — used by Mulla Sadra and Allama Tabataba'i, built entirely from the tools in Sessions 5 and 6.
Example
The same skeleton, in full form later: This is the same skeleton as the full Cosmological Burhan in Session 11, Topic 11.5. Learn it here in small form, and the six-step version will be easy.
Key Terms
- Burhan al-Imkan (برہان الامکان) — argument from contingency
- Wajib (الواجب) — necessary
- Mumkin (الممکن) — contingent
Quran or Hadith
None quoted on this slide.
Fresh diagram to be drawn: A three-step flowchart: Munfasila (two options) → Elimination → One option remains (Wajib). To be drawn in Project Desk colours.
- Sessions 5 and 6 together give you the complete toolkit for propositions.
- This is the same skeleton as the full Cosmological Burhan in Session 11, Topic 11.5. Learn it here in small form, and the six-step version will be easy.