The Distinction of Two Aspects of Being in Ibn Sina

Ibn Sina speaks repeatedly of the distinction between the specific (khas) being and the positive (ijabi) being; a distinction on the basis of which is his distinction of being and essence. Thence, the famous problem of the distinction of being and essence is applicable to this distinction too. The difficulty is this: if the specific being is 'being'? This is indeed a problem about essence: is there any sense of being present in Ibn Sina’s understanding of essence? Based on the relation of the specific being to positive being, possible being, thingness, and essence, this paper is trying to explain that the distinction between specific and positive being in Ibn Sina is, indeed, a distinction between two aspects of being in its Greek sense; a distinction on the basis of which is the famous distinction of being and essence and has not been focused on in Greek philosophy.