

After aperiod of appropriation of the Greek sciences in the translationmovement from Greek into Arabic and the writings of the falâsifa up to Avicenna (Ibn Sînâ, c.980–1037), philosophy and the Greek sciences were“naturalized” into the discourse of kalâmand Muslim theology (Sabra 1987). On theArabic and Muslim side al-Ghazâlî's acceptance of demonstration( apodeixis) led to a much more refined and precise discourseon epistemology and a flowering of Aristotelian logics and metaphysics.With al-Ghazâlî begins the successful introduction ofAristotelianism or rather Avicennism into Muslim theology.

He was active at a time when Sunni theology hadjust passed through its consolidation and entered a period of intensechallenges from Shiite Ismâ’îlite theology and theArabic tradition of Aristotelian philosophy ( falsafa).Al-Ghazâlî understood the importance of falsafaand developed a complex response that rejected and condemned some ofits teachings, while it also allowed him to accept and apply others.Al-Ghazâlî's critique of twenty positions of falsafa in his Incoherence of the Philosophers( Tahâfut al-falâsifa) is a significant landmark inthe history of philosophy as it advances the nominalist critique ofAristotelian science developed later in 14th century Europe. Al-Ghazâlî ( c.1056–1111) was one of themost prominent and influential philosophers, theologians, jurists, andmystics of Sunni Islam.
