Otoritas Epistemologis Kashf dalam Tasawuf Kontemporer: Telaah Pemikiran Seyyed Hossein Nasr dan William C. Chittick

Tantriatus Sholehah

doi:10.53396/media.v7i2.939

Authors

Tantriatus Sholehah Universitas Islam Negri Sunan Ampel Surabaya

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.53396/media.v7i2.939

Keywords:

Kashf, Epistemologi Tasawuf, Scentia Sacra, 'Alam al-Khayal, Validitas Epistemik

Abstract

This study analyzes the epistemological authority of kashf in contemporary Sufism by bringing Seyyed Hossein Nasr’s concept of scientia sacra into dialogue with William C. Chittick’s interpretation of ‘alam al-khayal. It employs qualitative philosophical library research using philosophical hermeneutics and dialectical analysis of the thinkers’ primary works and relevant secondary literature. The analysis shows that Nasr provides a metaphysical foundation for spiritual knowledge by relating knowing to the Absolute, while Chittick explains the ontological possibility of spiritual unveiling through the imaginal realm as an intermediary between material and spiritual realities. Their complementary perspectives frame kashf as al-‘ilm al-hudhuri, or knowledge by presence, involving the subject’s existential participation in the reality known. Within this framework, its authority rests on the coherence of ontological structure, spiritual preparedness, and revelation as a normative horizon. Revelation, unveiling, and self-transformation constitute interconnected dimensions of Sufi epistemology rather than successive verification procedures. The study concludes that kashf possesses a conceptual foundation within the Islamic intellectual tradition, grounded in the unity of revelation, intellect, and self-purification. This synthesis enriches Islamic epistemology and broadens philosophical discussion of spiritual knowledge beyond empirical verification.

Author Biography

Tantriatus Sholehah, Universitas Islam Negri Sunan Ampel Surabaya

Tantriatus Sholehah is an undergraduate student in Islamic Aqidah and Philosophy at UIN Sunan Ampel Surabaya, Indonesia. She was born in Pamekasan, Indonesia, on September 6, 2002.

References

Ali, St. Nur Hayati. Problema Manusia Modern: Solusi Tasawuf menurut Seyyed Hossein Nasr. Rajawali Press, 2022.

Chittick, William C. “Reason, Intellect, and Consciousness in Islamic Thought.” In Reason, Spirit and the Sacral in the New Enlightenment, edited by A. T. Tymieniecka. Springer Netherlands, 2011. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-9612-8_2.

Chittick, William C. The Self Disclosure of God Principles of Ibn Al-Arabis Cosmology. State University of New York Press, 1998.

Chittick, William C. “The Spirituality of the Sufi Path.” In The Wiley Blackwell Companion to Islamic Spirituality, 1st ed., edited by Vincent J. Cornell and Bruce B. Lawrence. Wiley, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118533789.ch17.

Chittick, William C. The Sufi Path of Knowledge. State University of New York Press, 1989.

Haqq, Muhammad Valiyyul, and Iskandar Arnel. “Barzakh and the Imaginal Realm: A Phenomenology of Postmortem Experience in Sufism.” Focus 6, no. 2 (2025): 249–64. https://doi.org/10.26593/478hr802.

Hulawa, Djeprin Ersen, Arbi Yasin, and Alwizar Alwizar. “Seyyed Hossein Nasr’s Unity Concept: A Study of the Relationship between Science and Islam.” Al-Fikra: Jurnal Ilmiah Keislaman 22, no. 2 (2024): 168. https://doi.org/10.24014/af.v22i2.22348.

Khunaeni, Fadhilah. “Spirituality in the Philosophical Thought of Seyyed Hossein Nasr.” Ulumuna 20, no. 2 (2016): 373–94. https://doi.org/10.20414/ujis.v20i2.812.

Kiatpapan, Siriporn, and John Giordano. “Scientia Sacra: A Holistic Educational Approach for Transforming Environmental Consciousness.” Prajñā Vihāra 21, no. 1 (2020): 75–75.

Lukman. “Tasawuf dalam Perspektif Sayyed Hossein Nasr.” El-Afkar 8, no. 2 (2019).

Marks, Laura U. “Real Images Flow: Mullā Sadrā Meets Film-Philosophy.” Film-Philosophy 20, no. 1 (2016): 24–46. https://doi.org/10.3366/film.2016.0003.

Masykur, Zein Muchamad, Syamsun Ni’am, and Ngainun Naim. “Scientia Sacra Seyyed Hossein Nasr Perspektif Filsafat Lingkungan dan Kontribusinya pada Pengembangan Kajian Ekologis.” Substantia: Jurnal Ilmu-ilmu Ushuluddin 25, no. 2 (2023): 166–83. https://doi.org/10.22373/substantia.v25i2.20121.

Muama, Avisena Perdana Putra. “Membaca Pandangan Seyyed Hossein Nasr tentang Sumber dan Doktrin Tasawuf dalam Islam.” Jurnal Yaqzhan: Analisis Filsafat, Agama dan Kemanusiaan 9, no. 2 (2023): 297. https://doi.org/10.24235/jy.v9i2.14973.

Nasr, Seyyed Hossein. Knowledge and the Sacred. With Internet Archive. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1989. http://archive.org/details/knowledgesacred0000nasr.

Noor, Irfan. “Sufisme Seyyed Hossein Nasr dan Formalisme Agama di Indonesia.” Al-Banjari: Jurnal Ilmiah Ilmu-ilmu Keislaman 13, no. 2 (2015). https://doi.org/10.18592/al-banjari.v13i2.402.

Nurcholis, Agung, and Mamluatul Hasanah. Gagasan Scientia Sacra Seyyed HosseinNasr dan Implikasinya dalam Kebijakan Pendidikan Bahasa Arab. n.d.

Rustom, Mohammed. “Equilibrium and Realization: William Chittick on Self and Cosmos.” American Journal of Islam and Society 25, no. 3 (2008): 52–60. https://doi.org/10.35632/ajis.v25i3.404.

Sadilah, Nur, and M. Ied Al Munir. “Krisis Ekologis sebagai Krisis Spiritualitas: Telaah Filsafat Islam dalam Pemikiran Seyyed Hossein Nasr tentang Pengelolaan Alam.” SUNGKAI: Jurnal Aqidah dan Filsafat Islam 3, no. 1 (2025): 1–14.

Widiyanto, Asfa. “Traditional Science and Scientia Sacra: Origin and Dimensions of Seyyed Hossein Nasr’s Concept of Science.” Intellectual Discourse 25, no. 1 (2017). https://doi.org/10.31436/id.v25i1.1000.