علی عسگری یزدی

SUBJECT & OBJECTIVES : Pleasure motivates humans in pleasant and unpleasant behaviors. Numerous ethical schools have discussed pleasure. Some schools have embraced hedonism. One of these schools is utilitarianism. In the Holy Qur’an, many verses about pleasure are mentioned. These verses are discussed in the form of resurrection, social reform, food and clothing, etc. Since Jeremy Bentham's principles of hedonism have had a great impact on philosophers, thinkers, social laws, and the culture and lifestyle of people, the present article is an explanation of pleasure from Jeremy Bentham's viewpoint and compares it with verses of the Qur’an. METHOD & FINDING : The library data collection and information processing method is descriptive-analytical critical. A finding of this article is to explain the similarities and differences of Jeremy Bentham's view compared to the verses of the Holy Qur’an. CONCLUSION : After the studies, we concluded that in both perspective hedonism and its excitatory aspect in humans with psychological hedonism, there are also points of disagreement: In the verses of the Qur’an, unlike Bentham, the pleasures of the hereafter and its preference over the pleasures of this world have been emphasized and the other that in the Qur’an, hedonism is not accepted in an absolute. Also, some of the blessings of the hereafter are mentioned in the Qur’an

SUBJECT & OBJECTIVES: The paper provides a functionalist analysis of human free will and its impact on lifestyle from the perspective of Imam Ali . The discussion of free will and human influence over one’s actions is a significant issue in the fields of anthropology and theology, and it is interconnected with many topics in Islamic sciences and disciplines. Human beings possess various dimensions and characteristics, among which free will is a key feature. Imam Ali , in opposition to the prevalent deterministic interpretation, emphasized human free will and its impact on one’s actions. The belief in free will manifests in individuals’ lifestyles.METHOD & FINDING: In an analytical-descriptive method, this paper aims to examine the statements of Imam Ali  regarding human free will and its role in human lifestyle and progress. An active lifestyle or a passive lifestyle is considered a result of the belief in or denial of this free will. Progress and advancement in life, as well as divine happiness and reward, are achieved through free will, effort, and endeavor.CONCLUSION: Reward and punishment would be meaningless without free will. Effort and endeavor are fundamental aspects of lifestyle that arise from the belief in human free will. “An attempt to change undesirable conditions” and “Governance of belief” are among the manifestations of free will in individuals’ lifestyles. Man must strive to preserve freedom and not allow beliefs and values to be controlled by emotions.

Today, the approach of separating spirituality from religion in modern spirituality, in competition with spirituality derived from established religions, is prevalent. One of the key foundations of this approach is the liberalism towards Western readings. The present study aims to critique the basis of liberalism in separating spirituality from religion in order to clarify the fundamental flaws of this approach and the inadequacy of its results in providing for human spiritual life. In this regard, the works of Allamah Tabataba’i, as one of the greatest interpreters of Islamic teachings, have been extensively utilized. To this aim, data collection was done through library research and information processing using descriptive-analytical method with a critical approach. According to the findings, liberalism towards Western readings, rooted in individualistic humanism, is ineffective in the foundation of human spiritual life regarding the three major criticisms. Firstly, absolute freedom, which is the basis and component of the approach of separating spirituality from religion, is unattainable and non-existent. Then, freedom is not the ultimate goal but a tool to achieve genuine and true spirituality, and finally, rights-based approaches, considered as consequences of liberalism, are in contrast and on the other hand, duty-based approaches are the crucial basis for achieving true spirituality and without it, it is unimaginable.