Study of being in Al-Farabi
Tuleubekov Assyl
PhD Student in Philosophy,
Department of Social Sciences and Philosophy
University of Jyväskylä
Jyväskylä, Finland
1. The Al-Farabi’s ontology
Al-Farabi calls the philosophical concept of the world
as metaphysics. It is known that Aristotle considered philosophy as the
doctrine of ‘things in existence’. This doctrine is outlined in the Aristotle’s
“Metaphysics”. In Enumeration
of the Sciences (Iḥṣāʼ al-ʿulūm), Al-Farabi portrays metaphysics as a discipline
having a precise method (demonstration) and an articulated structure, in which
a full-fledged ontology (the study of being qua being) in its different aspects
precedes, first, a part dealing with the foundation of the other sciences and,
second, a philosophical theology concerned, among other things, with Islamic
issues such as God's attributes, divine names and actions. In all these
classificatory treatises, the position of the Metaphysics with respect to the other works of
Aristotle, or of metaphysics with respect to the other philosophical
disciplines, is not stable, but varies according to the particular perspective
that Al-Farabi adopts:
significantly, in some of them metaphysics is presented as the culmination of
the entire system of knowledge, for example, in The Philosophy of Aristotle [1]. Therefore,
Metaphysics is the doctrine of the fundamental principles of being and
knowledge.
The Al-Farabi’s metaphysics is sometimes called as
‘divine science’. Following Aristotle, who included over-natural forces into
philosophy, Al-Farabi clearly separated the logico-gnoseological aspect of metaphysics
from ontological one defining ontology as the special section of metaphysics. In texts in which Al-Farabi lays down
his program for philosophical education, such as the Enumeration of the
Sciences, he explains that metaphysics has three parts. The first one
studies beings qua beings; the second studies the principles of the theoretical
sciences, such as logic and mathematics; the third studies beings that are
neither bodies nor in bodies and discovers that they form a hierarchy leading
to the First or One, which gives existence, unity, and truth to all other
beings. It also shows how all other beings proceed from the One [2].
In the Al-Farabi’s “Classification of the Sciences”
metaphysics lies in the final place after such theoretical disciplines as
linguistics, logic, mathematics and physics, that is, metaphysics comes as a
synthesis of all theoretical sciences. At the same time, metaphysics justifies
all principles of these sciences.
“Metaphysics is
divided into three subdivisions. The first one studies existing objects and
processes that happen with them, because they are existing objects. The second
one studies evidence of theoretical sciences... The third one studies existing
nonmaterial items...” [3]. The
main point of the work is that metaphysics is more encompassing than, and not
reducible to, the philosophical theology of book Lambda. Following this aim, Al-Farabi first rejects the attempts to interpret
Aristotle’s work along Neoplatonic and monotheistic lines (in this he has
probably in mind al-Kindī's theologizing conception of metaphysics), and
advocates a type of explanation akin to that of the Greek commentators
(Alexander of Aphrodisias and Themistius). Then he derives from the universal
nature of metaphysics, understood as the science having being qua being as its subject-matter,
indications regarding its scope (it incorporates a part on philosophical
theology, namely on the doctrine of the first causes of being), as well as on
its oneness as an universal science (there cannot be more than one universal
science), its name (by being more general than physics it is also “after”
physics) and its overall content [4].
Let’s note the most important points of the Farabian
ontology.
1. Substance is the main category of ontology.
2. Substance is a unity of form and matter. Form
is both the essence and the outer side of things. Form is given directly, if
you stop the movement of things at some moment. Matter is the substrate,
the background which makes changes.
3. Being is intensity. Essence of things has levels of
saturation by being: from the rarefaction to maximum fullness. That’s why we
can say about “levels of beings”.
4. Being has regular laws.
5. Human ontology cannot be fully linked with destiny.
In Neo-Platonism, there is the idea of the First
Impersonal Single/One who is above every being, every entity and knowledge. In
the philosophy of Al-Farabi, the degrees of being come from this Impersonal
Single/One. In this regard, the Al-Farabi’s views are close to this
Neo-Platonic idea. The Sky, stars, Earth, water, stones, plants, animals,
people are combined in the concept of an ‘object’. The object is the accidence
of being. Substance is ‘what’, while accidence is ‘how’.
Relation of substance to accidence has an important
place in the Farabian philosophy.
In a broad sense, accidence includes all kinds of expressions of substance. This is the
famous nine Aristotelian categories, which come after substance (entity): quantity,
quality, relation, time, place, state, condition, action, suffering from
actions. Relation of substance to accidence has an important place in the
Farabian philosophy.
In a narrow sense, accidence is accidental feature of substance. In the Al-Farabi’s
philosophy, there is a term ‘al-faid’, which means the expiration. This term
means the Neo-Platonic term of emanation. According to Al-Farabi, the
whole world is an emanation of the Impersonal Single/One, in whom we can see
hierarchically organized stages of being.
“The First Impersonal Single/One is the cause of all
beings, in general. He is free from defects. His existence is completely
virtuous in the highest degrees”.
·
Necessarily
existing essence – a thing, which
existence determined by its deep essence.
·
Potentially
existing essence – a thing, which does not
come from its existence.
As the initial link of causality of everything, the
essence of the First Impersonal Single/One comes as the opposite to everything
else, being of which is done thanks to another. This “different cause”, through
which all other things get their existence, is the First Cause/Reason. The
First Cause/Reason can be proved only by the absence of external reasons for
Him; so Al-Farabi said that “He does not exist for anything else and there is
no other cause before Him”. He realizes Truth and Life.
These words of Al-Farabi on the essence of the First
Cause/Reason demonstrate his dependence from the Plotinus’ teachings about
emanation and represent the Universe with a strong pantheistic character,
proving the close link of substantial God with the Universe. In addition to the
First Cause/Reason, Al-Farabi includes ten minds into the
heavenly world, which he sometimes calls “the second causes”.
The second causes live in nine areas:
·
the first
heaven,
·
the sphere of
the fixed stars,
·
Saturn,
·
Jupiter,
·
Mars,
·
the Sun,
·
Venus,
·
Mercury,
·
the Moon,
·
10th
mind – Actual Mind/Intellect – has no own area.
The Earthly World with its material substrate and
forms corresponds to the Actual Mind/Intellect.
2. The Farabian doctrine of being and
Neo-Platonism
Metaphysically-theological conception of the world in
the Al-Farabi’s philosophy was transformed into cosmology and astronomy. The most fundamental of these
assumptions, which the Neoplatonists shared with the majority of intellectuals
of the ancient world, including most pre-Socratic thinkers as well as Socrates,
Plato, Aristotle and their followers, is that mindful consciousness (nous,
often translated as thought, intelligence, or intellect) is in an important
sense ontologically prior to the physical realm typically taken for ultimate
reality (Mind over Matter). There existed a dispute between Plato and Aristotle
over whether or not the objects of mindful consciousness (abstract concepts,
Platonic or otherwise, numbers, geometrical properties, and so forth) are also
ontologically prior, but the Neoplatonists regarded this fact as a matter of
inconsequential detail. And so, following a venerable and abiding tradition of
Mind over Matter, Neoplatonism inevitably turned out to be an idealist type of
philosophy [5]. In the context of cosmology, which expressed the
doctrine of emanation, Al-Farabi develops the teachings on “the earthly world”,
in which the elements of materialism come very clearly.
The Neo-Platonists brought emanation to the depth of
the matter, in which emanation turned into darkness. Al-Farabi describes
emanation only as the Actual Mind/Intellect, understanding matter as lightness.
Al-Farabi and neo-Platonists are similar in their desire to identify the
existence of all being with knowledge. Thus, a Single/One in Neo-Platonism and
the First Reason of Al-Farabi are the identity of thinking and being. The presentation of the third part shows
that Al-Farabi has abandoned al-Kindi’s view of the One as beyond being and
intellect, and that he equates some features of Aristotle’s Prime Mover who is
an Intellect with those of the Neoplatonic One. He also distinguishes the First
or God from the agent intellect. As the First knows only itself, emanation is
necessary and eternally gives rise to the world. Al-Farabi intends to tidy up
all the unresolved questions of Aristotle’s Metaphysics and to develop a theological teaching (Druart
2005, 334) [2]. Realization of universal knowledge happens through the
eternal emanation of the divine essence. Creative force of the First Reason
lies in its knowledge about its nature, and such kind of knowledge is a
necessary knowledge of the Universe.
Minds, i.e. ideal principles, create the Universe and
determine its ideal nature. But the difference of conception of Al-Farabi from
Plotinus is that Al-Farabi allocates significant place of matter. In the
earthly world, everything consists of two components: matter and form. The
thesis of Al-Farabi on the organic unity of form and matter has also
materialistic character. “The form without matter can have neither substance
nor being”. Al-Farabi considers matter as one of the steps in the hierarchy of
being.
According to Al-Farabi, the Universe is as eternal as
God. In full accordance with Aristotle, Al-Farabi believes that movement is the
transition from potentiality to eternal reality. Time is as eternal as
movement. In determining time of Al-Farabi counted that time is a
characteristic of the movement. Recognition by Al-Farabi the identity of world
and God can be considered and his recognition of the eternity of the world,
because he believed that God is the First Reason/Cause of this eternal world.
Such view is supported by the unconditional recognition of the eternity of
matter, motion, and time.
3. Human being
as the highest form of being in the Al-Farabi’s ontology
In the earthly world, the hierarchy of being goes from
lowest to highest: “The least perfect is primary matter; then up the steps of
perfection –the elements, minerals, plants, animals without reason; and,
finally, a reasonable animal (a man) whose intellect is the highest among any
other animals.”
Considering human being as higher one in the
development in the earthly world, Al-Farabi marks the major ‘forces’ of human
soul:
·
Feeding force,
·
Perceptive force,
·
Force of
imagination,
·
Thinking force,
and
·
Aspiring force.
In this regard, Al-Farabi develops anatomy, physiology
and human psychology. Al-Farabi recognizes a lot of the same abilities between
a man and a woman, but he does not think that between the man and the woman the
abilities of imagination and intellect are equal.
In summary, in the Al-Farabi’s philosophy a man has
the highest ability to be similar both to the Actual Intellect and the First
Reason/Mind. A man is capable to understand being, completing all the harmony
of the world.
Reference:
1.
Arabic and
Islamic Metaphysics. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, July 5, 2012.
2.
Greek Sources in
Arabic and Islamic Philosophy. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, October 2, 2013.
3.
Al-Farabi.
Metaphysics, or Divine Science, 172-173.
4.
Al-Farabi, Mā yanbaġī an yuqaddama qabla
taʿallum falsafat Ariṣṭū, Dieterici 1890, pp. 49–55. [What Ought to be Premised to the Learning of Aristotle’s
Philosophy].
5.
Neoplatonism. Stanford
Encyclopedia of Philosophy, January 11, 2016.
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