The Art of Being Human“Tafṣīl al-Nashaʾatayn wa Taḥṣīl al-Saʿādatayn” by al-Raghib al-Isfahani: Videos Ep.1,2,3- Commentary by Dr.Rami Koujah

 YouTube Video Ep.1:"The Art of Being Human" by al-Raghib al-Isfahani | Episode 1: What Is a Human Being?-Great Books of Islam by Dr.Rami Koujah -June 14,2026

https://youtu.be/76PdG9hRvHw?si=BBPqQFJD5MeNsBj3

What does it mean to be human? A thousand years ago, a scholar in Baghdad asked the same question and wrote a book about it that feels startlingly relevant today. Al-Rāghib al-Iṣfahānī's answer: being human is not a given — it's an achievement. You can have the biological form of a human being and still fall short of what humanity actually demands. Religion, for al-Rāghib, is the art of that achievement — and The Art of Being Human is one of the great overlooked masterworks of the Islamic intellectual tradition, and one of the most serious Islamic responses to the crisis of meaning ever written. In this episode, we cover: –The human being as a microcosm of the universe – Why studying nature is the key to self-knowledge — and why self-knowledge is the key to everything else – The cosmic significance of human speech – How to achieve happiness in this life and the next — and why the two are not in tension – What religion is actually for — and why it's the antidote to the modern crisis of meaning This is Episode 1 of a 3-part series. 🔔 Subscribe for Episodes 2 and 3. 📖 Deep Dive companion piece with translations from the text and commentary: https://open.substack.com/pub/islamic... 📚 Chapters: 0:00 Crisis of Meaning: Why Modern Life Feels Empty 4:52 Al-Rāghib al-Iṣfahānī: Islamic Philosopher and Mystic 7:26 Islamic Philosophy of Happiness 8:27 What Is a Human Being? 9:20 Self-Knowledge in Islamic Philosophy 12:32 The Cosmos and The Islamic View of Human Nature 16:00 The Human Being as Microcosm in Islamic Thought 25:59 What Is Religion For? 29:41 Deep Dive: Translations & Commentary on Substack

YouTube Video Ep.2

https://youtu.be/NTqxYyBBk6U?si=fvpESEsvrtYLhVPw

Last time, we asked what a human being is. This time, we ask what it's for. In this episode, we cover: – Nature and scripture as two books – Nature as an externalized reflection of the self – The purpose of human existence – The original "DEI" argument – The definition of happiness – Why "just be a good person" isn't enough – A philosophy of religion – A social theory of human difference This is Episode 2 of our 3-part series on The Art of Being Human. 🔔 Subscribe for Episode 3 — where we tackle why reason alone isn't enough, and just how high al-Rāghib thinks a human being can rise. 📖 Deep Dive companion piece with translations from the text and commentary: https://islamicbooks.substack.com/p/t... 0:00 Recap: What Is a Human Being? 0:54 Nature as an Externalized Reflection of the Self 7:03 The Purpose of Human Existence 11:27 The "Problem" of Evil 13:18 Why Civilization Exists 15:46 The Original DEI Argument 16:59 A Social Theory of Human Difference 19:26 The Role of the Prophets 21:19 What Is Happiness? 27:41 A Philosophy of Religion 29:27 What Worship Really Means 31:59 Nature and Scripture as Two Books 33:04 Why "Just Be a Good Person" Isn't Enough

YouTube Video Ep.3

https://youtu.be/k6ri9rryXI8?si=JWqjal4hhK3Uubh5

Last time, we asked what being human is for. This time, we ask how far it can go. In this episode, we cover: • Reason and revelation aren't competing for the same job — they're the same faculty, just working from two different directions: one from outside us, one from within • How a single bad habit slowly shuts down the heart — step by step, until it can't be reached at all — and how good habits do the exact reverse • Why you can't purify yourself through effort alone, but you also can't expect to be purified without making any effort — two opposite mistakes, both wrong • Why death isn't an ending but a second birth, and why a fully realized human being can actually outrank the angels • What it would really take to become "superhuman" This is Episode 3, the final installment of our 3-part series on The Art of Being Human. 🔔 Subscribe and follow on Substack (islamicbooks.substack.com) for what's next on The Great Books of Islam. 📖 Deep Dive companion piece with translations from the text and commentary: https://islamicbooks.substack.com/p/b... 00:00 Recap: The Path to Becoming Human 00:45 Purpose of Religion 08:42 Reason vs Revelation 17:53 Nature vs Nurture in Islamic Ethics 27:26 God's Grace in Islamic Philosophy: Leveling the Playing Field 29:02 Becoming Superhuman 35:41 Death: The Passageway to the Hereafter 39:09 Are We Actually Human? Closing Reflection

Dr.Rami Koujah's Biography: https://pil.law.harvard.edu/fellow/rami-koujah-2/

Great Books of Islam:Becoming Superhuman || “The Art of Being Human” by al-Raghib al-Isfahani  
A Deep Dive on “Tafṣīl al-Nashaʾatayn wa Taḥṣīl al-Saʿādatayn”- Dr.Rami Koujah - June 29,2026
https://islamicbooks.substack.com/p/becoming-superhuman-the-art-of-being