Mulla Sadra and Metaphysics Madd&Ubnt-l Lieiity SajiaO H. Rizvi R £jriun*arcCÿHurtonintf->pMiMh!JH! MullÉ ØadrÉ and Metaphysics MullÉ ØadrÉ is one of the most important Islamic philosophers after Avicenna. In this exploration of his philosophy, the author examines the central doctrine of the modulation of being, and contextualises his work within the intellectual history of philosophical traditions in the Islamic East. Reading and critiquing the works of MullÉ ØadrÉ from an analytical perspective, this book pays particular attention to his text the Asfar, a work which, due to its complexity, is often overlooked. Looking at the concept of philosophy as a way of life and a therapeutic practice, the book explores the paradigm of the modulation of being in the philosophical method and metaphysics of MullÉ ØadrÉ and considers its different manifestations. The author relates his philosophy to larger trends and provides a review of the field, charting and critiquing the discussion on the topic to date and exploring recent thought in this direction, showing how Sadrian thought was addressed well into the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. This major contribution to the study of MullÉ ØadrÉ and the intellectual life of the Safavid period fills an important gap in the field of ØadrÉ studies and Islamic philosophy, and is indispensable to students of philosophy, religion and Islamic studies, and Islamic philosophy in particular. Sajjad H. Rizvi is Senior Lecturer in Islamic Studies and Director of the Centre of Islamic Philosophy at the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies at the University of Exeter, specialising in Islamic philosophical and hermeneutical traditions. PPrreelliimmss..iinndddd ii 11//2233//22000099 55::1144::1199 PPMM Culture and civilization in the Middle East General editor: Ian Richard Netton Professor of Islamic Studies, University of Exeter This series studies the Middle East through the twin foci of its diverse cultures and civilisations. Comprising original monographs as well as scholarly surveys, it cov- ers topics in the fields of Middle Eastern literature, archaeology, law, history, phi- losophy, science, folklore, art, architecture and language. While there is a plurality of views, the series presents serious scholarship in a lucid and stimulating fashion. Previously published by Curzon The origins of Islamic law The Qur’an, the Muwatta’ and Madinan Amal Yasin Dutton A Jewish archive from Old Cairo The history of Cambridge University’s Genizah Collection Stefan Reif The formative period of Twelver Shi’ism Hadith as discourse between Qum and Baghdad Andrew J. Newman Qur’an translation Discourse, texture and exegesis Hussein Abdul-Raof Christians in Al-Andalus 711-1000 Ann Rosemary Christys Folklore and folklife in the United Arab Emirates Sayyid Hamid Hurriez The formation of Hanbalism Piety into power Nimrod Hurvitz PPrreelliimmss..iinndddd iiii 11//2233//22000099 55::1144::3344 PPMM Arabic literature An overview Pierre Cachia Structure and meaning in medieval Arabic and Persian lyric poetry Orient pearls Julie Scott Meisami Muslims and Christians in Norman Sicily Arabic-speakers and the end of Islam Alexander Metcalfe Modern Arab historiography Historical discourse and the nation-state Youssef Choueiri The philosophical poetics of Alfarabi, Avicenna and Averroes The Aristotelian reception Salim Kemal Published by Routledge 1. The epistemology of Ibn Khaldun Zaid Ahmad 2. The hanbali School of Law and Ibn Taymiyyah Conflict or concilation Abdul Hakim I Al-Matroudi 3. Arabic rhetoric A pragmatic analysis Hussein Abdul-Raof 4. Arab representations of the Occident East-West encounters in Arabic fiction Rasheed El-Enany 5. God and humans in Islamic thought Abd al-JabbÉr, Ibn SÊnÉ and al-GhazÉlÊ Maha Elkaisy-Friemuth 6. Original Islam Malik and the madhhab of Madina Yasin Dutton PPrreelliimmss..iinndddd iiiiii 11//2233//22000099 55::1144::3355 PPMM 7. Al-Ghazali and the Qur’an One book, many meanings Martin Whittingham 8. Birth of the Prophet Muhammad Devotional piety in Sunni Islam Marion Holmes Katz 9. Space and Muslim urban life At the limits of the Labyrinth of Fez Simon O’Meara 10. Islam science The intellectual career of Nizam al-Din al-Nizaburi Robert G. Morrison 11. Ibn ‘Arabî Time and cosmology Mohamed Haj Yousef 12. The status of women in Islamic law and society Annotated translation of al-ÙÉhir al-×addÉd’s Imra’tunÉ fi ‘l-sharÊca wa ’l- mujtamac, with an introduction Ronak Husni and Daniel L. Newman 13. Islam and the Baha’i faith A comparative study of Muhammad ‘Abduh and ‘Abdul-Baha ‘Abbas Oliver Scharbrodt 14. Comte de Gobineau and orientalism Selected Eastern writings Translated by Daniel O’Donoghue Edited by Geoffrey Nash 15. Early Islamic Spain The history of Ibn al-Qutiyyah David James 16. German orientalism The study of the Middle East and Islam from 1800 to 1945 Ursula Wokoeck 17. MullÉ ØadrÉ and metaphysics Modulation of being Sajjad H. Rizvi PPrreelliimmss..iinndddd iivv 11//2233//22000099 55::1144::3355 PPMM MullÉ ØadrÉ and Metaphysics Modulation of being Sajjad H. Rizvi II Routledge Taylor&FrancisGroup LONDONANDNEWYORK PPrreelliimmss..iinndddd vv 11//2233//22000099 55::1144::3355 PPMM First published 2009 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 270 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10016 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an Informa business © 2009 Sajjad H. Rizvi Typeset in Times New Roman by Swales & Willis Ltd, Exeter, Devon Printed and bound in Great Britain by All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Rizvi, Sajjad H. (Sajjad Hayder) Mulla Sadra and metaphysics : modulation of being / Sajjad H. Rizvi. p. cm.—(Culture and civilization in the Middle East) Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. Sadr al-Din Shirazi, Muhammad ibn Ibrahim, d. 1641. 2. Philosophy, Islamic. 3. Metaphysics—History—17th century. 4. Ontology. I. Title. B753.M84R585 2009 181'.5—dc22 2008043527 ISBN 10: 0–415–49073–1 (hbk) ISBN10: 0–203–87954–6 (ebk) ISBN 13: 978–0–415–49073–3 (hbk) ISBN 13: 978–0–203–87954–2 (ebk) PPrreelliimmss..iinndddd vvii 11//2233//22000099 55::1144::3355 PPMM A supplication O Bestower of munificence and being, O Master of excellence and light, O Healer of the diseases of the heart, O He who saves souls from the baseness of bodies [and elevates them] to the source of bliss, Place us among the gnostics through the grace of Your sanctity, and among those who hold fast to Your covenant, Illuminate our intellects with the light of Your gnosis and the perception of Your Lordship, Make us see by the eye of Your providence and Your mercy, Purify us from all impurities by the power of Your impeccability, and make us among those who contemplate Your lights and who accompany those close to You, Make us companions of those who travel through Your heavens, Indeed, You are the one who bestows every good and sends down blessings, the one who bestows light from darkness. O Lord, bless the one who guides along the path of salvation and righteousness, who leads your servants to the straight path, and is their leader and director to the Return, MuÍammad, and his pure and glorious progeny. MullÉ ØadrÉ, Divine Manifestations PPrreelliimmss..iinndddd vviiii 11//2233//22000099 55::1144::3355 PPMM PPrreelliimmss..iinndddd vviiiiii 11//2233//22000099 55::1144::3355 PPMM Contents Preface x Abbreviations xii Introduction 1 PART I Preliminaries 1 Methodological concerns 17 2 The modulation of being 38 PART II Analysis of Sadrian ontology 3 The semantics of modulation of being 55 4 Mental being 77 5 Reality and the circle of being 102 Conclusion 131 Notes 137 Glossary of philosophical terms 183 Bibliography 185 Index 214 PPrreelliimmss..iinndddd iixx 11//2233//22000099 55::1144::3355 PPMM