In this deep and fascinating study of the hermeneutic interrelations between medieval Muslim philosophy and modern European philosophy, Varlik pays tribute to Ricoeur's ability to abandon chronology and culture in an unceasing quest for the polytonal nature of ancient, modern and Eastern thought. Here Varlik sees parallels with Avicenna's philosophical skill in appropriating Greek wisdom into Islamic thought and the heuristic tensions that arise through such comparisons. Creating a rich resonance between these philosophical and religious traditions, Varlik also sees analogous tensions between, on the one hand, our efforts to derive hermeneutical appropriations across and between philosophies and on the other, our struggles to live with contradictory aspects of human self-hood, proposing that we address the tensions that inevitably arise from both philosophical and individual attempts to appropriate difference and manage the consequent uncertainties. In addition, by exploring the essence/ existence duality inherent in these and many other thinkers' works, Varlik shows his own philosophical prowess and contributes significantly to the hermeneutical field of modern appropriative thought.

Alison Scott-Baumann, Professor of Society and Belief, SOAS, UK