Philosopher builds bridges of understanding to the world of Islamic philosophy
Professor of Philosophy Jari Kaukua has just been awarded Academy Professor funding for a six-year period starting in the beginning of 2026. He studies Islamic intellectual history, specifically the reception of Shihab al-Din al-Suhrawardi’s (1154–1191) illuminationist philosophy from the 13th century to the beginning of the 17th century.
Suhrawardi’s and his followers’ texts were not translated into Latin during the Middle Ages, and therefore their ideas remained almost unknown in Western culture until orientalists began studying these texts in the 19th century and early 20th century.
Illuminationism later became a major philosophical school of thought within Islamic culture.
Professor Kaukua says that the focus of his Academy research project is specifically on the illuminationist tradition of philosophical thought.
His research challenges the prevailing view of the history of philosophy, according to which illuminationism was primarily a mystic interpretation of religious prophecy, rather than a philosophical system developed through rational argumentation.
“This research sheds light on the development of views concerning the essential metaphysical and epistemological concepts of illuminationism, as well as the concepts of philosophy and its history endorsed in this movement,” says Kaukua.
The project builds on Kaukua’s earlier research on Suhrawardi, which showed that Suhrawardi developed illuminationism into a systematic, critical alternative to the Aristotelianism of Ibn Sina (also known as Avicenna).
Translation efforts and broadening the field of philosophy
Illuminationist philosophy belongs to the post-classical era of Islamic philosophy, which only became the subject of systematic research in the history of philosophy in the 21st century.
According to Kaukua, investigating Suhrawardi’s legacy as a part of the research of post-classical philosophy provides means for integrating Islamic philosophy into the global history of philosophy. Philosophically oriented historical research also helps to build bridges and foster understanding between contemporary philosophical traditions.
Kaukua states that the research into Islamic philosophy is largely concerned with interpreting and translating its key concepts into the philosophical language of our own time.
Islamic philosophy also comprises many historical layers. They include Arabic translations of Ancient Greek philosophy, various commentaries on them, new essays based on these works, as well as completely new philosophical thinking that takes a critical view of the ancient heritage. Only a fraction of this material was translated into Latin, which is why Islamic philosophy forms its own, historically independent vein within the global history of philosophy.
An ongoing shift from the Eurocentric narrative of the history of philosophy
In broadening the history of philosophy, the research of Islamic philosophy is part of a larger movement in which Indian, Chinese, African, and Indigenous American philosophies, for instance, are studied as independently developing philosophical traditions.
“It can be said that philosophical research is undergoing a shift away from the narrow, Eurocentric historical narrative,” says Kaukua. “Alongside the history of Western philosophy, new research is bringing forth independent lines of development that can no longer be justifiably ignored.”
The work involves reconstruction and balancing between two intentions: respecting the distinctive character of the source material while also finding ways to interpret it in a manner that enables understanding its terms and concepts in the philosophical language of our own time.”
“Here, I am seeking an approach that bridges this historical material with our present philosophical discussion”, he says.
In Jyväskylä, an international research team focused on Islamic philosophy has formed around Professor Kaukua. At present, the team consists of three researchers and two visiting researchers. Yusuf Dașdemir and Sajad Amirkhani bring a strong connection to the well-established Turkish and Iranian traditions of research into the history of Islamic philosophy. Agnieszka Erdt is an expert in both post-classic Islamic and modern Iranian philosophy.
Forthcoming: a digital text database
In addition to traditional work on the history of philosophy, a central aim of the project is to create a comprehensive digital database of the illuminationist textual tradition. In addition to Suhrawardi’s works, the database will include related commentaries and will be further expanded to cover texts that can be shown to engage in direct dialogue with illuminationist writings.
Foundational research and academic discussion on the historical tradition of Islamic philosophy remains active and important.
As a researcher, I can make an impact by increasing understanding of this important blind spot in the history of philosophy,” says Kaukua. “
This is significant not only because it contributes to the inclusiveness of Western academic philosophy, but also because it helps build and strengthen connections between contemporary Islamic and analytic philosophy. As far as the global political situation allows, we aim to continue and increase cooperation with our colleagues in the Islamic world within the framework of this project.”
Jari Kaukua enjoys teaching
Jari Kaukua has worked as a professor of philosophy at the University of Jyväskylä since 2017 and specialises in medieval philosophy, particularly in the traditions pursued in the Islamic world. In 2016, he received ERC funding from the European Research Council, and the newly awarded six-year Academy Professorship is a continuation of his earlier research work.
Kaukua also teaches philosophy at JYU. He enjoys teaching and hopes that philosophy will retain its popularity. Its relevance, however, must be increasingly often explained to students, as concerns about working life and its demands weigh heavily on their minds.
When the professor is not researching or teaching, he spends time exercising, reading, or playing the saxophone. Family life in Jyväskylä also claims its fair share of his time.
