Book of Letters (Kitab Al-Huruf)

Charles Butterworth presents a work that appears to be a discussion of Aristotle’s Metaphysics, often referred to by the letters of its chapters, and explores the development of logic and language in relation to syllogistic inquiry, philosophy, and religion. The book includes a complete translation of the work—the first in English or any language—and features a new Arabic edition of the text Muhsin Mahdi was working on prior to his death. The content is divided into three parts: the first introduces letters or particles called "categories" by Aristotle and traces their connection to early syllogistic reasoning and concepts in physics, psychology, and metaphysics; the second part examines the origin of human religion, the development of language, and the relationship between philosophy and religion, along with the evolution of the syllogistic arts; the third part explores how interrogative particles contribute to investigations in philosophy and science, especially divine science, and discusses the limitations of demonstrative reasoning while highlighting the epistemological benefits of dialectic.