Morality in Mulla Sadra

Ahmet Pirinç

Article Details

Morality in Mulla Sadra

Authors:

Ahmet Pirinç

Publisher:

Harran University

Main Topics:

İslam Felsefesi

Journal:

Harran İlahiyat Dergisi Issue 53, pp.290-313

Document Type:

Article

Publication Date:

6/2025

Document Language:

Turkish

Document ID (Org No.):

2001342571

pISSN:

2791-6812

Keywords:

Abstract:

 This study examines the moral philosophy of Mulla Sadra, the founder of the school of Transcendent Theosophy ḥikmat al-mutaʿāliyah, and the metaphysical foundation upon which this moral thought is constructed. Sadra defines ethics as the science that cultivates the disposition to follow goodness, acquire virtuous habits, and avoid evil and immoral behaviors. Since he does not separate ethics from his metaphysical thought, he uses gnosisʿirfānī-metaphysical references in his ethical framework. He constructs a religious and mystical moral metaphysics primarily based on the esoteric interpretation of the Qurʾān, Shiʿa hadith traditions, and the teachings of the infallible Imams. Sadra divides the metaphysical ground of his moral thought into two dimensions: religious and philosophical. Religious foundations include belief in God, awareness of the afterlife, prophethood nubuwwah, guardianship walāyahimāmate, and divine wisdom ḥikmah. Philosophical foundations consist of the principles of the primacy of existence aṣālat al-wujūd, substantial motion ḥarakat jawhariyyah, gradation of existence tashkīk al-wujūd, and the doctrine of the nobler possibility imkān al-ashraf. Stressing that it is difficult to explain human morality without understanding human nature, Sadra explains the essence of the soul, the soul-body relationship, and the perfection of the soul through three metaphysical principles: jismāniyyat al-ḥudūth wa rūḥāniyyat al-baqāʾ physical origination and spiritual subsistence, ḥarakat jawharīyya substantial motion, and tashkīk al-wujūd gradation of existence. He states that while the human soul initially emerges in corporeal form, it evolves into a spiritual essence through gradual perfection, with the body serving as a medium for this development. He emphasizes the natural and animalistic faculties of the soul and argues that moral perfection can only be achieved if the rational faculty dominates othersespecially lust. While lust pursues pleasures and animalistic desires, the rational faculty enables moral and intellectual virtues. Sadra explains the realization of virtue in the soul through the concept of moderation iʿtidāl, which requires the guidance of divine revelation, prophethood, and imamate. A central concept in Sadras moral philosophy is the Perfect Human al-Insān al-Kāmil, described as the purest essence of being and the highest goal of divine creation. He identifies the Prophet Muhammad as the embodiment of this ideal human, whose moral and epistemological superiority is explained through the principle of the nobler possibility. Sadra attributes great importance to knowledge, gnosis, and maʿrifah in the perfection of the soul, seeing them as the sources and principles of human virtues. He considers belief in the afterlife essential in terms of moral accountability. Reward and punishment play a crucial role in moral development, making belief in the Day of Judgment vital for both personal and societal ethics. Although Sadra refers to ancient and earlier Islamic ethical traditions, he ultimately remains loyal to Transcendent Theosophy and the gnosisʿirfānī tradition. While he does not take a positive view of Sufi moral thought, he gives significant importance to prophetic teachings. Sadra envisions an ethics model that prioritizes the traditional religious understanding of morality centered on the individual. Although he acknowledges the existence of innate moral traits, he maintains that ethics is mutable and shaped through education and practice. In sum, Sadras moral philosophy is situated between normative and practical ethics, deeply infused with ʿirfānī metaphysical tones.

 This study examines the moral philosophy of Mulla Sadra, the founder of the school of Transcendent Theosophy ḥikmat al-mutaʿāliyah, and the metaphysical foundation upon which this moral thought is constructed. Sadra defines ethics as the science that cultivates the disposition to follow goodness, acquire virtuous habits, and avoid evil and immoral behaviors. Since he does not separate ethics from his metaphysical thought, he uses gnosisʿirfānī-metaphysical references in his ethical framework. He constructs a religious and mystical moral metaphysics primarily based on the esoteric interpretation of the Qurʾān, Shiʿa hadith traditions, and the teachings of the infallible Imams. Sadra divides the metaphysical ground of his moral thought into two dimensions: religious and philosophical. Religious foundations include belief in God, awareness of the afterlife, prophethood nubuwwah, guardianship walāyahimāmate, and divine wisdom ḥikmah. Philosophical foundations consist of the principles of the primacy of existence aṣālat al-wujūd, substantial motion ḥarakat jawhariyyah, gradation of existence tashkīk al-wujūd, and the doctrine of the nobler possibility imkān al-ashraf. Stressing that it is difficult to explain human morality without understanding human nature, Sadra explains the essence of the soul, the soul-body relationship, and the perfection of the soul through three metaphysical principles: jismāniyyat al-ḥudūth wa rūḥāniyyat al-baqāʾ physical origination and spiritual subsistence, ḥarakat jawharīyya substantial motion, and tashkīk al-wujūd gradation of existence. He states that while the human soul initially emerges in corporeal form, it evolves into a spiritual essence through gradual perfection, with the body serving as a medium for this development. He emphasizes the natural and animalistic faculties of the soul and argues that moral perfection can only be achieved if the rational faculty dominates othersespecially lust. While lust pursues pleasures and animalistic desires, the rational faculty enables moral and intellectual virtues. Sadra explains the realization of virtue in the soul through the concept of moderation iʿtidāl, which requires the guidance of divine revelation, prophethood, and imamate. A central concept in Sadras moral philosophy is the Perfect Human al-Insān al-Kāmil, described as the purest essence of being and the highest goal of divine creation. He identifies the Prophet Muhammad as the embodiment of this ideal human, whose moral and epistemological superiority is explained through the principle of the nobler possibility. Sadra attributes great importance to knowledge, gnosis, and maʿrifah in the perfection of the soul, seeing them as the sources and principles of human virtues. He considers belief in the afterlife essential in terms of moral accountability. Reward and punishment play a crucial role in moral development, making belief in the Day of Judgment vital for both personal and societal ethics. Although Sadra refers to ancient and earlier Islamic ethical traditions, he ultimately remains loyal to Transcendent Theosophy and the gnosisʿirfānī tradition. While he does not take a positive view of Sufi moral thought, he gives significant importance to prophetic teachings. Sadra envisions an ethics model that prioritizes the traditional religious understanding of morality centered on the individual. Although he acknowledges the existence of innate moral traits, he maintains that ethics is mutable and shaped through education and practice. In sum, Sadras moral philosophy is situated between normative and practical ethics, deeply infused with ʿirfānī metaphysical tones.

 This study examines the moral philosophy of Mulla Sadra, the founder of the school of Transcendent Theosophy ḥikmat al-mutaʿāliyah, and the metaphysical foundation upon which this moral thought is constructed. Sadra defines ethics as the science that cultivates the disposition to follow goodness, acquire virtuous habits, and avoid evil and immoral behaviors. Since he does not separate ethics from his metaphysical thought, he uses gnosisʿirfānī-metaphysical references in his ethical framework. He constructs a religious and mystical moral metaphysics primarily based on the esoteric interpretation of the Qurʾān, Shiʿa hadith traditions, and the teachings of the infallible Imams. Sadra divides the metaphysical ground of his moral thought into two dimensions: religious and philosophical. Religious foundations include belief in God, awareness of the afterlife, prophethood nubuwwah, guardianship walāyahimāmate, and divine wisdom ḥikmah. Philosophical foundations consist of the principles of the primacy of existence aṣālat al-wujūd, substantial motion ḥarakat jawhariyyah, gradation of existence tashkīk al-wujūd, and the doctrine of the nobler possibility imkān al-ashraf. Stressing that it is difficult to explain human morality without understanding human nature, Sadra explains the essence of the soul, the soul-body relationship, and the perfection of the soul through three metaphysical principles: jismāniyyat al-ḥudūth wa rūḥāniyyat al-baqāʾ physical origination and spiritual subsistence, ḥarakat jawharīyya substantial motion, and tashkīk al-wujūd gradation of existence. He states that while the human soul initially emerges in corporeal form, it evolves into a spiritual essence through gradual perfection, with the body serving as a medium for this development. He emphasizes the natural and animalistic faculties of the soul and argues that moral perfection can only be achieved if the rational faculty dominates othersespecially lust. While lust pursues pleasures and animalistic desires, the rational faculty enables moral and intellectual virtues. Sadra explains the realization of virtue in the soul through the concept of moderation iʿtidāl, which requires the guidance of divine revelation, prophethood, and imamate. A central concept in Sadras moral philosophy is the Perfect Human al-Insān al-Kāmil, described as the purest essence of being and the highest goal of divine creation. He identifies the Prophet Muhammad as the embodiment of this ideal human, whose moral and epistemological superiority is explained through the principle of the nobler possibility. Sadra attributes great importance to knowledge, gnosis, and maʿrifah in the perfection of the soul, seeing them as the sources and principles of human virtues. He considers belief in the afterlife essential in terms of moral accountability. Reward and punishment play a crucial role in moral development, making belief in the Day of Judgment vital for both personal and societal ethics. Although Sadra refers to ancient and earlier Islamic ethical traditions, he ultimately remains loyal to Transcendent Theosophy and the gnosisʿirfānī tradition. While he does not take a positive view of Sufi moral thought, he gives significant importance to prophetic teachings. Sadra envisions an ethics model that prioritizes the traditional religious understanding of morality centered on the individual. Although he acknowledges the existence of innate moral traits, he maintains that ethics is mutable and shaped through education and practice. In sum, Sadras moral philosophy is situated between normative and practical ethics, deeply infused with ʿirfānī metaphysical tones.

 Bu çalışmada hikmetül-müteâliye felsefesinin kurucu filozofu olan Molla Sadrânın ahlâk anlayışı ve bu ahlâkî düşüncenin inşa edildiği metafizik zeminin mahiyeti ele alınmıştır. Sadrâ, ahlak ilmini, iyi olana uymak, güzel alışkanlık ve faziletler kazanmak, kötü alışkanlık ve rezaletlerden kaçınmak istidadını kazandıran bir ilim olarak tanımlamıştır. Sadrâ, ahlâk anlayışını metafizik düşüncesinden ayırmadığından ahlâkı temellendirmede irfânî metafiziksel referansları kullanmıştır. Başta Kuranın bâtınî yorumu ve Şii hadis geleneği olmak üzere masum imamlar öğretisine dayanan dinî ve irfânî bir ahlâk metafiziği inşa etmiştir. Sadrâ, ahlâk düşüncesinin zeminini oluşturan metafiziği, dinî ve felsefî olmak üzere ikiye ayırmıştır. Dinî referanslar; Tanrıya iman, ahiret bilinci, nübüvvet, velayetimamet ve hikmettir. Felsefî referanslar ise; asaletül-vücud, hareket-i cevheri, teşkikül-vücud teorileriyle imkânül-eşref yaklaşımıdır. Sadrâ, insanın mahiyeti anlaşılmadan onun ahlâkîliğinin izah edilmesinin zorluğuna dikkat çekerek, nefsin mahiyetini, nefs-beden ilişkisini ve nefsin yetkinleşme problemini cismâniyetul-hudus rûhâniyetul-bekâ, hareket-i cevheri ve teşkikül-vücud şeklinde üç metafizik ilkeyle açıklamıştır. Bu önermeden hareketle nefsin mahiyetini, nefs-beden ilişkisini ve nefsin yetkinleşme problemini cismâniyetul-hudus rûhâniyetul-bekâ, hareket-i cevheri ve teşkikül-vücud şeklinde üç metafizik ilkeyle açıklamıştır. İnsan nefsi varlığının başlangıcında cismânî bir formda tahakkuk etmiştir. Ancak beden, nefsin yetkinleşme ortamı olduğundan nefs, kendi cevherindeki değişimle birlikte aşamalı teşkik bir yetkinleşmeye doğru evrilerek ruhanî bir öze ulaşmıştır. Sadrâ, nefsin hayvanî ve tabiî kuvvelerine dikkat çekerek insanın doğuştan itibaren bu güçlerin etkisi altında olduğunu, insanın yetkinleşmesinin ancak akıl gücünün başta şehvet olmak üzere diğer güçleri kontrol altında tutmasıyla mümkün olacağını belirtmiştir. Şehvet gücüyle lezzetler ve hayvanî isteklerin elde edildiğini; akıl gücüyle de hikemî ilimler ve güzel ahlâkın kazanıldığını ifade eden Sadrâ, insan nefsinde erdemlerin tahakkukunu itidal yani orta doktrin kavramıyla açıklamıştır. Ona göre, orta olanın ölçüsünün takdir edilip belirlenmesinde vahyî bilgi, nübüvvet ve velayet kurumu merkezi öneme sahiptir. Sadrânın ahlâk anlayışında, insân-ı kâmil kavramı oldukça önemlidir. Onu, en temiz öz şeklinde niteleyerek tabiat bakımından ilâhî varoluşun ulvî neticesi ve gayesi olarak tasvir etmiştir. Onun ideal insanı, ahlâkî erdemlerin davranışlarında açıkça görüldüğü ve teorik yetkinliğiyle hakikate tanıklık eden bir entelektüeldir. Sadra, insân-ı kâmili Hz. Peygamberle özdeşleştirerek onun ahlakî ve epistemik üstünlüğünü imkânül-eşref kuralıyla temellendirmiştir. Nefsin yetkinleşmesinde ve insân-ı kâmile evrilme sürecinde ilim, irfan ve marifet kavramlarına oldukça önem atfetmiştir. Sadrâ, ilim ve marifeti insanî faziletlerin ortaya çıkmasının ilkesi ve kaynağı olarak görmüştür. O, ahlâkî müeyyide bakımından ahiret inancını önemli gördüğünden bu inancı ahlâk anlayışının dayandığı metafizik ilkelerden biri kılmıştır. Özellikle mükâfat ve cezanın insanın ahlâkî gelişimindeki rolüne binaen Sadrâ, ahiret gününe imanın hem bireysel hem de toplumsal ahlâkın inşasında önemli olduğunu belirtmiştir. Sadrânın antik dünyanın ve kendinden önceki İslam ahlâk literatürüne atıfları söz konusu olsa da o, son tahlilde hikmetül-müteâliyeye ve irfânî geleneğe bağlı kalmıştır. Ancak bununla beraber sufî ahlâk anlayışına da olumlu bakmamıştır. Ahlâk düşüncesinde nebevî öğretiye oldukça önem atfetmiştir. Sadrâ, birey merkezli geleneksel dini ahlâk anlayışını ön planda tutan bir ahlâk modeli ön görmüştür. Ahlâkî tutumlarda aslî fıtrata önem atfetmekle birlikte ahlakın değişebileceğini savunmuştur. Sadrâ, insan doğasının mahiyetini dikkate alarak ahlakın doğuştan olup değişmeyeceği anlayışına sıcak bakmamıştır. O, insanın doğuştan bazı ahlâkî nitelikleri beraberinde getirmiş olsa da son tahlilde ahlâkın değişebileceğini söylemiştir. Sadrânın ahlak düşüncesini bir bütün olarak dikkate aldığımızda onun ahlak anlayışı normatif ahlâk ile pratik ahlâk arasında konumlanmış irfânî rengi ağır basan bir özelliğe sahiptir.

Article Details

Morality in Mulla Sadra

Authors:

Ahmet Pirinç

Publisher:

Harran University

Main Topics:

İslam Felsefesi

Journal:

Harran İlahiyat Dergisi Issue 53, pp.290-313

Document Type:

Article

Publication Date:

6/2025

Document Language:

Turkish

Document ID (Org No.):

2001342571

pISSN:

2791-6812

Islamic Philosophy

Transcendent Theosophy

Mulla Sadra

Ethics

Soul

Perfect Humanİslâm Felsefesi

Hikmetü’l-müteâliye

Molla Sadrâ

Ahlâk

Nefs

İnsân-ı kâmil

Issues

Article Details

Authors: Ahmet Pirinç

Publisher: Harran University

Main Topics: İslam Felsefesi

Journal: Harran İlahiyat Dergisi Issue 53, pp.290-313

Document Type: Article

Publication Date: 6/2025

Document Language: Turkish

Document ID (Org No.): 2001342571

pISSN: 2791-6812

Issues

Authors:

Ahmet Pirinç

Publisher:

Harran University

Main Topics:

İslam Felsefesi

Journal:

Harran İlahiyat Dergisi Issue 53, pp.290-313

Document Type:

Article

Publication Date:

6/2025

Document Language:

Turkish

Document ID (Org No.):

2001342571

pISSN:

2791-6812