Dr Osman Bakar is currently Distinguished Professor, Al-Ghazzali Chair of Islamic Thought at ISTAC, International Islamic University Malaysia and also its Shaykh al-Kulliyyah. He is an author of twenty-five books on various aspects of Islamic thought and civilization. His most recent publications are Islamic Civilization and the Modern World (2014) and Quranic Pictures of the Universe (2016).

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The work of the Malaysian philosopher Osman Bakar, Al-Fārābī: Life, Works and Significance is a clear and concise introduction to the work of Abū Naṣr al-Fārābī (ca. 870 – 950), known in the Islamic tradition as al-muʻallim al-thānī – “The Second Teacher” after Aristotle. The book, first published in 1987, in an expanded form in 2018, and then in a Bosnian translation in 2025, provides a systematic overview of the life, written oeuvre and lasting meaning of this key thinker of the Islamic Peripatetic tradition.

The book is divided into three parts. The first part provides a biographical account of al-Fārābī’s life, based on classical sources and contemporary historiography. The second part offers an overview of his major works and teachings, including logic, metaphysics, ethics, political philosophy, and musicology. The third part, added in the second edition, contains a selection of al-Fārābī’s wisdom and sayings, which gives the reader a direct insight into the world of thought of the philosopher himself.

The author especially emphasizes the synthesis of the Greek philosophical heritage and the Islamic revelatory horizon. Al-Fārābī is presented as a thinker who, starting from the Qurʾan and the Sunnah, sought to devise an intellectual response to Hellenistic philosophy, carrying out its "Islamization". His concept of the Virtuous City (al-Madīna al-fāḍila) is depicted as a fusion of philosophical and prophetic ideals, with the philosopher-ruler uniting worldly and spiritual leadership.

The author especially emphasizes the synthesis of the Greek philosophical heritage and the Islamic revelatory horizon. Al-Fārābī is presented as a thinker who, starting from the Qurʾan and the Sunnah, sought to devise an intellectual response to Hellenistic philosophy, carrying out its “Islamization”. His concept of the Virtuous City (al-Madīna al-fāḍila) is depicted as a fusion of philosophical and prophetic ideals, with the philosopher-ruler uniting worldly and spiritual leadership.

Particular attention is paid to Farabi’s understanding of science and the classification of knowledge (Iḥṣāʾ al-ʿulūm), the theory of emanation and the hierarchy of intellects. The book clearly shows his influence on later Islamic philosophers such as Ibn Sīnā and Ibn Rushd and highlights his role in shaping Islamic epistemology in the spirit of tawḥīd. The text is concise, reviewed and written in a style that combines scientific foundation and essayistic readability.

The Bosnian translation of Nevada Kahteran represents a significant contribution to the domestic philosophical and cultural environment. The translator consistently applied transliteration standards for Arabic terms (for instance, ḥ, ṣ, ṭ), ensuring accuracy and clarity. The key terms are authentically transmitted: al-ʿaql al-faʿʿāl as “Active Intellect”, al- Muʿallim al-thānī as “Second Teacher”, al-Madīna al-fāḍila as “Virtuous City”. The term saʿāda is translated as “happiness”, in the sense of bliss as a final good, which corresponds to established terminology.

The translator distinguished between falsafa (philosophy in the Aristotelian- Neoplatonist tradition) and ḥikma (wisdom), thus preserving the nuances of the Islamic thought horizon. In terms of style, the translation is fluid and readable, and the accompanying prefaces and notes additionally place the text in the context of the intellectual tradition of the language climate. With this translation, a systematic account of al-Fārābī is available to the readership, which opens up space for further research and academic discussion.

Bakar’s book in this edition offers a comprehensive synthesis of the life and thoughts of the “Second Teacher” and at the same time serves as a bridge between ancient philosophy and Islamic revelation. It is valuable both for specialists (philosophers, orientalists, theologians) and for the wider cultural public interested in the history of ideas outside the Western canon.

Although the work does not include a discussion of the influence on the Latin scholastic tradition or bring the latest research of Western authors, its value remains in the clear and inspiring synthesis of al-Fārābī’s oeuvre. The translation work of Nevada Kahteran allowed this work to get its deserved place in the domestic philosophical and cultural context.

The book Al-Fārābī: Life, Works and Significance in this translation deserves a permanent reception in the humanities and can serve as a starting point for new research on Islamic philosophy and its place in global intellectual history.

Željko Paša
Pontificio Istituto Orientale
Pontificia Università Gregoriana

Nova web-stranica za bosanski prijevod Al-Fārābī: Život, djela i značaj

https://www.unsa.ba/novosti/nova-web-stranica-za-bosanski-prijevod-al-farabi-zivot-djela-i-znacaj