The Role of Knowledge and Action in Man’s Gradual Perfection According to Sadra

Abstract

Mohammad Zabihi* ׀ Ali Alahbadashti** ׀ Ali Raizan*** Received: 24/08/2018 | Accepted: 02/01/2019 Abstract The Human soul has two faculties of theoretical intellect and practical intellect. The soul’s divine matter has the potential to elevate and seek absolute perfection and if man abandons it purposelessly, it will go towards darkness. The gradually perfecting and evolutionary qualities of the soul are among the indisputable principles of Sadrian philosophy and substantive motion is one of its main arguments. Based on this, man is constantly in a state of motion and becoming. The main discourse of this article is that man’s gradually perfecting motion in Sadrian philosophy towards ultimate happiness and the peak of existence is not possible except through knowledge and action. Knowledge and action correlate to one another and each is the cause for the development and actualization of a more perfect degree of the other. Although, in terms of assigning value knowledge is higher than action because in the initial stage knowledge is the cause for action in a way that without it action has no meaning; and in higher stages as well, knowledge is the purpose of action and action is the prelude and constituent of knowledge which results in the removal of inner and outer obstacles and veils, i.e. it creates the groundwork so that man’s divine existence becomes manifest and results in a knowledge known as “Divine Knowledge”.

Keywords

• soul
• knowledge
• action
• substantive motion
• gradual perfection
• sadra