LessonsIs Inspiration a Source of Knowledge?Quiz

وَكَانَ الْأَوْلَى أَنْ يَقُولَ: لَيْسَ مِنْ أَسْبَابِ الْعِلْمِ بِالشَّيْءِ
It would have been preferable to say: “It is not among the means of knowing a thing.”

The qualification “correctness” prompts a subtle objection. A discussion of means of knowledge is broader than verifying the truth or falsity of a claim already under consideration; it also concerns knowing objects, their properties, and other states of affairs. Thus knowledge of a thing appears to be the more comprehensive expression.

This improvement in wording does not by itself mean that a person's inspired understanding can never be correct. The breadth of a definition and the public authority of an alleged means are separate questions.

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Knowledge of a thing versus proving its correctness

Is Inspiration a Source of Knowledge?

وَكَانَ الْأَوْلَى أَنْ يَقُولَ: لَيْسَ مِنْ أَسْبَابِ الْعِلْمِ بِالشَّيْءِ
It would have been preferable to say: “It is not among the means of knowing a thing.”

The qualification “correctness” prompts a subtle objection. A discussion of means of knowledge is broader than verifying the truth or falsity of a claim already under consideration; it also concerns knowing objects, their properties, and other states of affairs. Thus knowledge of a thing appears to be the more comprehensive expression.

This improvement in wording does not by itself mean that a person's inspired understanding can never be correct. The breadth of a definition and the public authority of an alleged means are separate questions.