Marife Dini Araştırmalar Dergisi

Abstract

Ideas are evaluated with the socio-cultural environments that reveal themselves. Similar environments can cause intellectual formations of the same property. Humanism is mostly regarded in Western thought and in a secular nature. However, whether humanism supposedly emerging with modernity belongs only to the West and its relationship with religion should be discussed. At this point, it should be examined whether the Muʻtazilī thinkers who stand out with their intellectual orientation in Islamic thought should be regarded as humanists. In this study, the projection of humanism in Muʻtazilī thought will be revealed by referring to the cultural framework that constitutes the thoughts.
Firstly, the concept of humanism will be emphasized in the first part of our study and it will be revealed how it was formed in the Western thought tradition. Afterwards, it will be examined whether a humanist interpretation of religions in general and Islam in particular is possible. In this context, it will be determined that there can be different humanisms, one of which is God-centered humanism. The approach of the Muʻtazilī thinkers, who emerged in the intellectual background of the second century, to literary studies, whether they trust human abilities in the construction of religious knowledge, their role in the legislative activities, how they evaluate the social political aspects of human beings will be discussed. From this point of view that distinguish their understanding of religion from other Islamic interpretations will be pointed out in some places by comparisons.