The Epistemological Structure of Iʿtibārī (Constructed) Concepts in the Thought of Allameh Tabataba’i and Their Social Implications

Abstract

The theory of iʿtibārīyāt (constructed concepts) in the thought of Allameh Tabataba’i is not merely a linguistic or logical distinction from ḥaqīqī (real) perceptions; rather, it provides a philosophical and epistemological framework for explaining the emergence, function, and transformation of fundamental concepts that structure human voluntary and social life. This article, focusing on the inner structure of iʿtibārīyāt, analyzes six key features and four main types of them, while examining their relation to philosophical categories such as fiṭrah (primordial disposition), practical reason, and the active faculties of the human being. The findings indicate that iʿtibārī concepts, within Tabataba’i’s intellectual system, are not merely products of subjective will, but are formed in the process of interaction between objective necessities and the mechanisms of practical reason. The conceptual duality of “pre-social/post-social,” together with characteristics such as subjectivity, changeability, external effects, and the incapacity for demonstrative proof, provides a foundation for philosophical reconsideration of the human sciences on Islamic grounds. Thus, Tabataba’i’s theory of iʿtibārīyāt can be regarded as an attempt toward unifying epistemological, ontological, and social dimensions in the understanding of the human being.