1
PhD in Comparative Philosophy, Shahid Motahari University.
2
Associate Professor and Faculty Member at Shahid Motahari University.
3
Associate Professor and Faculty Member at Allameh Tabataba'i University.
Abstract
Islamic philosophers, based on their established foundations, have addressed the process of perceiving intellectual universals (al-kulliyyāt al-‘aqlīyyah) and the means of their acquisition. Mullā Ṣadrā too, based on the robust foundations of transcendent philosophy and by employing these foundations, analyzes and elucidates the perception of intellectual universals and the means of attaining them. Through a descriptive-analytical method, this study aims to acquire the nature of perception of intellectual universals from Mullā Ṣadrā’s perspective, and seeks to clarify his proposed framework for achieving it. In doing so, we also critique his views at times. Mullā Ṣadrā explains the perception of universals based on three principles. At times, he identifies union with the Active Intellect as the condition for perceiving universals - a position largely aligned with the foundations of peripatetic philosophy. Elsewhere, he interprets the perception of intellectual universals through the observation of luminous realities, reflecting an Illuminationist perspective. In some works, he posits attainment and mystical witnessing of the Divine as the cause for perceiving intellectual universals and argues that the soul - through annihilation in God (fanā fī’llāh) - can observe the realities of all things in that abode, thereby grasping universals. This explanation is more consonant with the foundations of mysticism.
Zamanean,B. , jafari valani,A. A. and Akhan,M. (2025). The Nature of Perceiving Universals from the Perspective of Mullā Ṣadrā. Journal of Hikmat-e-Islami, 12(44), 137-154.
MLA
Zamanean,B. , , jafari valani,A. A. , and Akhan,M. . "The Nature of Perceiving Universals from the Perspective of Mullā Ṣadrā", Journal of Hikmat-e-Islami, 12, 44, 2025, 137-154.
HARVARD
Zamanean B., jafari valani A. A., Akhan M. (2025). 'The Nature of Perceiving Universals from the Perspective of Mullā Ṣadrā', Journal of Hikmat-e-Islami, 12(44), pp. 137-154.
CHICAGO
B. Zamanean, A. A. jafari valani and M. Akhan, "The Nature of Perceiving Universals from the Perspective of Mullā Ṣadrā," Journal of Hikmat-e-Islami, 12 44 (2025): 137-154,
VANCOUVER
Zamanean B., jafari valani A. A., Akhan M. The Nature of Perceiving Universals from the Perspective of Mullā Ṣadrā. Journal of Hikmat-e-Islami, 2025; 12(44): 137-154.