List of Articles معنا

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  1 - An Analysis of the Efficiency of the Theory of Coining Words for the Spirits of Meaning
  Abdollah Mirahmadi Mona Amanipoor
  One of the useful views regarding the expansibility of meaning in the Qur’an is rooted in the theory of “coining words for spirits of meaning”. This view originates in a gnostic principle based on which the vertical levels of the meanings of words have a single spirit t More

  One of the useful views regarding the expansibility of meaning in the Qur’an is rooted in the theory of “coining words for spirits of meaning”. This view originates in a gnostic principle based on which the vertical levels of the meanings of words have a single spirit that applies to all referents in the real sense of the word. Through expanding sensible and material concepts to meta-gnostic meanings, the advocates of the principle of the spirit of meaning maintain that the features originated in the referents of words cannot affect the real meaning because the signified objects of words are general. Accordingly, the truth of words can be applied to all levels of meaning from the level of hidden truth to a lower level which is comprehensible to all. The followers of this theory consider “expanded concept” to be a level of word meaning without rejecting the common understanding of the lexical meanings of words. In this paper, the writers have examined the defects of the theory of the spirit of meaning through an accurate analysis of its nature and extracting its principles from the various interpretations provided by its advocates. The disagreement with predicating predicate adjectives on metaphoric expressions, concentration on objective affairs in word semantics, and lack of attention to new linguistic views are among the most important defects of this theory. Manuscript profile
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  2 - Existence, Annexation, and Derivation: A Study of Mir Damad’s Theory on Being Existent and Derivation
  Davood  Hosseini
  In his books of al-Qabasat and al-Ufuq al-mobin, Mir Damad has presented two arguments against the annexed nature of existence. In this paper, the writer deals with two questions regarding these arguments. The first is whether Mir Damad’s arguments have a historical bac More

  In his books of al-Qabasat and al-Ufuq al-mobin, Mir Damad has presented two arguments against the annexed nature of existence. In this paper, the writer deals with two questions regarding these arguments. The first is whether Mir Damad’s arguments have a historical background, and the second is whether their consequences support his theory on the derivation of “existent”. Here, the first question is answered briefly by presenting two of the most famous arguments of philosophers and mutikallimun (particularly, Suhrawardi’s famous argument and that of the commentator of Maqasid). Next, the writer provides some reasons indicating that not only are Mir Damad’s arguments different from them but they are also logically and polemically superior to them. Nevertheless, a complete response is given to the second question by arguing that if we take one of Mir Damad’s theories of existence (non-precedence of existence to the object) for granted, the non-annexed nature of existence would result in the non-derivation of the “existent”. Manuscript profile
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  3 - Natural Causality and Metaphysical Causality: Homonymy or Polysemy in Mulla Sadra
  Maryam Heydari Hamid Reza  Ayatollahy‬‏
  Causality is one of the most important philosophical problems which has undergone vast semantic changes in the course of history. This process has sometimes occurred in the mould of empirical explanation and sometimes in the mould of philosophical explanation. The vastn More

  Causality is one of the most important philosophical problems which has undergone vast semantic changes in the course of history. This process has sometimes occurred in the mould of empirical explanation and sometimes in the mould of philosophical explanation. The vastness of such changes has led some thinkers to believe that there is a large semantic gap between metaphysical and natural kinds of causality, and the relationship between them is merely of the type of homonymy. The spread of this view among some philosophers and scholars has made any kind of agreement among them impossible. As a result, no comparative study can be carried out in these two fields concerning their shared concepts. Although some of the followers of the Transcendent Philosophy advocate the same view, the philosophical principles of Mulla Sadra have removed any kind of breach or borderline between these two fields and defines them in the same way. Accordingly, it can be claimed that natural causality is the degraded form of metaphysical causality and, thus, the unison of the two fields, their proximity to each other, and any interaction between them will be inevitable. Manuscript profile
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  4 - An Analytic Study of the Views of Mullā Ṣadrā and his Successors on the Nominal and Copulative Meanings of Being (Some Deliberations over the Linguistic Discussions of the Transcendent Philosophy)
  Roohollah  Daraei
  Mullā Ṣadrā pays due attention to linguistic issues in the phrasing of his ideas and discusses the difference between nominal and copulative meanings. His commentators have detected some incoherences in his views so that they have judged some of them to be more accurate More

  Mullā Ṣadrā pays due attention to linguistic issues in the phrasing of his ideas and discusses the difference between nominal and copulative meanings. His commentators have detected some incoherences in his views so that they have judged some of them to be more accurate and, thus, more favorable, than some others. Through propounding and comparing Mullā Ṣadrā’s views regarding the nominal and copulative meanings of being, the author presents a framework for posing some ontological, epistemological, and linguistic discussions in this paper. At the same time, relying on the linguistic discussions in jurisprudence (uṣūl-i fiqh), he introduces an analytic-linguistic approach in order to solve the problem of the existing incoherences. Mullā Ṣadrā believes that, on the one hand, one can reach the univocality of the nominal meaning of being (hast) through the univocality of the copulative meaning of being (ast). On the other hand, he argues that the difference between copulative being and predicative being pertains to their species. This view of Mullā Ṣadrā has raised different debates, interpretations, and questions among authorities in the field of philosophy. Some of these questions are as follows: Are these two views consistent with each other? Is this theory consistent with the gradation of existence and its univocal meanings? Are copulative and predicative existence commensurate with each other? Are the two classifications of being in the Transcendent Philosophy; i.e. the three-fold division of being into copula, copulative, and soulish and the two-fold division of being into copula and independent being, in contrast to each other? Are these two classifications consistent with Mullā Ṣadrā’s views in the field of nominal and copulative meanings? Manuscript profile
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  5 - A Study of the Functions of Faith and its Concomitants in Life Identification in ‘Allāmah Ṭabāṭabā’ī
  Soheila Golipoor Shrakey Mojtaba Jafari Eskavandi Mohsen Fahim Alireza Khajegir
  Faith is the most essential element of spiritual life, the jewel ornamenting the human soul, and the most brilliant ray of the higher world. One of the most important kalāmī problems is the discussion of faith and the related elements so that one cannot ignore its funda More

  Faith is the most essential element of spiritual life, the jewel ornamenting the human soul, and the most brilliant ray of the higher world. One of the most important kalāmī problems is the discussion of faith and the related elements so that one cannot ignore its fundamental role in the formation of life identification. The present study examines the function of faith and its concomitants in life identification in the view of ‘Allāmah Ṭabāṭabā’ī based on a descriptive-comparative method. The library method was used to collect the required data for the study from the works of ‘Allāmah Ṭabāṭabā’ī and other related books and sources. The collected data was later analyzed and evaluated based on his epistemological and anthropological principles. The findings of the study indicate that he considers faith to be a heart-related affair and maintains that it is necessary to commit oneself to its concomitants and practical effects. He also believes that, based on Islamic principles, faith is of four levels, the most important of which is the fourth one. Here, the authors also investigate the function of devotion in acting in the light of faith, the inseparability of faith and act, the effect of act on Man’s happiness, and the relationship between faith and morality in Man’s identification. ‘Allāmah Ṭabāṭabā’ī has referred to peace of heart, disappearance of doubt, humbleness, and kindness among the effects and benefits of faith. From an epistemological point of view, having faith in religious life, in addition to creating a positive and hopeful attitude, grants meaning to human life. Manuscript profile
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  6 - Ontology of the Spirit of Meaning in the Holy Qur’ān in Mullā Ṣadrā’s View and its Impact on the Discussion of the Quality of Coining Words
  Maryam  Kashefi Atiyeh  Zandieh
  20.1001.1.15600874.1401.27.4.6.2
  The principle of “coining words for the spirit of meaning in the Holy Qur’ān” in Mullā Ṣadrā’s works is closely related to his philosophy. Therefore, considering the Sadrian ontology as the basis, one can learn about the ontological applications of the meanings of words More

  The principle of “coining words for the spirit of meaning in the Holy Qur’ān” in Mullā Ṣadrā’s works is closely related to his philosophy. Therefore, considering the Sadrian ontology as the basis, one can learn about the ontological applications of the meanings of words and, thus, the quality of attaining the knowledge of them. In Mullā Ṣadrā’s view, the world, the Qur’ān, and the holy prophetic existence are three dimensions of the world that share a single and simple existence at the level of their “unfolded existence”, “immediate divine word”, and “Mohammedan truth”. They have dispersed at the level of the lower kingdom and are manifested in the form of the world of particular Ideas, the verbal Qur’ān, and the existence of the Holy Prophet (ṣ), respectively, and then descend to the world of matter. Mullā Ṣadrā believes that each lower level is an example of a higher level, and words are not an exception to this rule. In order to access the highest level of divine words, one should employ the principle of coining words for different types of meanings (absolute and general). Mullā Ṣadrā’s definition of spirit of meaning conforms with his definition of the natural universal and Platonic Ideas. The application and generalizability of the spirit of meaning in comparison to the natural universal originates in the limitedness of quiddity, while, in comparison to Platonic universals, it originates in existential amplitude. A comparison of the spirit of meaning and natural universals indicates that coinage of words is a human phenomenon, and the criterion for coining each word is the truth. Manuscript profile