unity of existence

The vision of God is one of the significant theological discussions. Corporeal andnon-corporeal vision with the physical eye, the impossibility of vision, and the vision of God through the heart are among the prominent theological perspectives. The viewpoints of theologians in this regard are supported by strong Qur'anic and hadith-based foundations. Existing studies in this domain have generally focused on the critique and analysis of theologians’ theories, which exegetes have addressed from the past to the present. It appears that no new work has been conducted specifically on the vision of God; however, from a mystical perspective, this issue holds considerable potential for scholarly inquiry. This article, using a descriptive-analytical method, reports the mystical views found in Shiʿa and Sunni tafsirs and examines the opinions of introspective exegetes. It maintains that most Sunni mystic exegetes have adopted the Ashʿarite view, while the majority of Shiʿa mystic exegetes have accepted the Imāmī perspective. Nevertheless, within introspective tafsir, there is no essential difference between Shiʿa and Sunni exegetes due to the adoption of a shared interpretive foundation regarding the verses. The vision of God in both this world and the hereafter is considered possible due to the manifestation of the divine names and attributes in the Perfect Human. The highest level of this vision pertains to the doctrine of the Unity of Existence, and gazing upon the Imams (peace be upon them) as the Face of God (wajh Allah) is understood as the vision of God itself.

The aim of the present research is to comparatively examine the concept of the unity of existence from the perspective of Shams and Ibn Arabi. The methodology employed in this study is descriptive– analytical. The theory of the unity of existence can be regarded as the most central concept in Islamic mysticism, with all other concepts revolving around this main axis and serving to exalt it. In Shams’s school, everything in this world is in a state of unity and singularity, with no separation between them. Concepts such as the unity of the witness and the witnessed, the unity of the souls of the believers and saints, and the unity of the mystic with God (the state of annihilation) can be clearly observed. In summary, from Shams’s perspective true monotheism is achieved when one recognizes that the world is nothing other than God and that the multiplicities are merely different manifestations and expressions of God. In contrast, according to Ibn Arabi, monotheism is an endeavor to attain selfknowledge in the human soul, whereby one seeks to understand that the God who created him is “one” and possesses no partner in His divinity. “Unity” (being one) is a quality of the Truth, and its derived appellation is “Ahad and Wahid” (singular and one); however, “singularity” refers to the realization of unity into oneness, in the sense that it can be apprehended only through the establishment of a onefold intellectual apprehension, and if any relation exists, it is indeed a relation of negation. From Ibn Arabi’s perspective, discourse regarding the monotheism of God, in terms of His divinity, stems from the affirmation of His existence; yet, the affirmation of His existence, by the necessity of reason, is apprehended based on the existence of a possible entity through one of two modes.

For a long time, Muslim theologians have considered the "proof of the creation of the world" as one of the important ways of proving the Creator and have relied on narrative and rational arguments to prove the creation of the world. Among the narrational evidences, hadiths with the theme "There was God and nothing was with Him" are of special importance. From the point of view of theologians, these hadiths indicate the temporal occurrence of the world, but from the point of view of philosophers, they only indicate the intrinsic occurrence. Mystics also consider the unity of existence as the main purpose of these narrations. Some have also dismissed these hadiths under the title of single news. The current research has examined these views by using the descriptive-analytical method and a critical approach. The results of the research indicate that, first of all, due to the multiplicity of these hadiths, it is possible to ensure the issuance of this content. Secondly, considering things such as: internal proofs of hadiths and external proofs and the time lag of other views, it is clear that the correct view, among the three views, is the view of the theologians.

Sadr al-Din Muhammad bin Ebrahim Qavam Shirazi or Molasadra, is a divine sage and philosopher, mystic and poet of the 11th century AH and the founder of transcendental wisdom. In his Masnavi, he has expressed some mystical, philosophical and ruling opinions. The aim of the current research is to investigate the attitude of the poet in expressing the term May with various interpretations, which is done in a descriptive-analytical way. From the findings of this research, we can refer to the concepts of May in this Masnavi. Mulla Sadra calls for the flame whose fire is like a burning flame and can erase the mystic's ego in the stage of annihilation in God. According to Mulla Sadra, the perfect mystic is in the fire of love, freed from the ego and intoxicated to observe the mysteries. is achieved When he is not drunk, he does not consider the possibility of an independent and separate existence. It is because the heart is the eternal place of his spiritual light, just as the dark house of the heart has been transformed into a glade of meanings due to the light of that wind. The wine that Sadrul Matalhin wants is the wine of knowledge of the negation of existence and lack of validity, and by drinking it, the mystic realizes the knowledge of absolute existence, which is indeed the secret of unity.

Personal unity of existence means that the concrete and real existence outside is merely one, i.e. there is nothing outside but the dependent manifestations and epiphanies of that one existence. This theory is one of the highest and deep doctrines of Islamic mysticism; it came across diverse interpretations and obstacles, though. One obstacle in the way of such a lofty doctrine is the theory of interpenetration of existence according to which Allah’s existence is interpenetrated with that of abodes of creatures so that while keeping the distance between the creator and the creatures, maintains the infinity of Allah Almighty.
The “specific gradation of existence” theory which says there is only one identical existence appearing in different states and various multiplicities i.e. unity is running through multiplicity, can be considered a weak obstacle to the personal unity of existence, for it is open to some particular interpretation.
In their efforts, the authors try not only to show the correct interpretation of the “specific gradation of existence” theory which is the other side of “personal unity of existence”, but also to take a critical look into the “interpenetrated existence” theory as per rational arguments and firm evidences from the Qur’an and traditions.

In the worldview of the unity of existence, all possibilities are composed of hierarchies that start from the first matter and lead to the total existence, and all beings reflect their only center, which is existence, like concentric circles. In this worldview, man is manifested through the manifestation of names and attributes, the truth and the world through the manifestation of his actions, and the eternal beloved has caused the appearance of all these characters and images with his holy and holy graces. Persian mystical poetry shows the thought of the unity of mystical existence and reflects the deep concepts of mystic and lover poets who expressed it with their mystical experience. Therefore, the explanation and analysis of Attar and Sheikh Shabastri's poems shows that they They have discussed the same about the manifestation of unity; Because both of them agree that the creation has emerged from the manifestation of names, attributes and actions of the one God and all possibilities are like multiple mirrors which, according to their characteristics, are the manifestation of that absolute essence. The metaphor of the mirror is the most obvious metaphor that the two mystics use in this case to show the relationship between possibilities and the manifestation of truth. The only difference between them is that Attar pays attention to the appearance of truth in the mirror of possibilities with a more romantic look than Shabestri; And Shabestri with more veil and modesty and with a sharper submissiveness kills me. With a comparative approach and citing the works of these two great writers, this article tries to show their intellectual similarities and commonalities, such as; The uniformity of form and meaning, the series of degrees of existence, unity in the same multiplicity and multiplicity in the same unity, seeing creation as a magazine of the manifestation of unity, creation in the sense of imagining the possibility of emergence, the nothingness of possibilities and the existence of the existence of God Almighty and... about manifestation explain and examine the unity of existence. Attar's ghazals and Shabastri's Golshan Raz, which express their mystical thoughts in the best way, form the basis of this comparison.

Dawood Qaisari is one of the famous mystics of the sixth century who has a great contribution in the development and growth of Ibn Arabi school. This book is undoubtedly one of the most prominent educational texts on theoretical mysticism, which testifies to the author's mastery in understanding and explaining the topics of Ibn Arabi's thought. The discussion of "unity of existence" is one of the important topics in this work, which is very interesting and has always been discussed by other mystics and thinkers of the Valley of Mysticism; For example, in the present era, Imam Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic, who, although entering the world of politics, does not hide his devotion and interest in Ibn Arabi's thought and his works, and especially in the discussion of the unity of existence. In the works of Daud Qaisari and Imam Khomeini, both of which are influenced by the teachings of the Ibn Arabi school, we find that they have similar views and opinions on the unity of existence and its bills, which are worthy of attention. Similarities such as: the unity of personal intuition, the first determination, the status of oneness and unity, etc. Although at first Imam Khomeini disagreed in some cases,

One of Mulla Sadra's most important ontological innovations is the theory of pure conjunction of contingent existence. On the one hand, the theory is based on some prerequisites without which it would be impossible to be argued for, and on the other hand, there may be found some notable conclusions that on their basis preceding philosophical thoughts are subject to fundamental changes. In the present study, it is intended to study and explain the ontological prerequisite and conclusions of this theory. Personal unity and functional plurality of the existence and impossibility of acquired and intuitive knowledge of the caused being as such may be regarded as the most notable prerequisite, and unity of reality, tasha`un, precedence by truth, gradation in appearance and extended existence as the most notable consequences of the theory

In the paper, it has been intended to study Stace`s view on unity of existence as understood in Islamic mysticism. Therefore, Muslim mystics` view on the unity of existence has been explained first and then, Stace`s view in the field has been mentioned and finally a comparison has been made between the two sides. Contrary to Stace, that views Muslim mystics as being dualist with existential monistic tendency and more or less monist, they should surely be known as existential monist. And it is just the same point that Stace says in his mystical special speech, shathiyah, of unity of existence. God`s being and, at the same time, not being just the same as the world expressed by Stace may be taken to mean the same as Muslim mystics` view on unity in multiplicity and multiplicity in unity. The difference of the views lies only in the manner of speech and depth of perception and, in conclusion, in explaining unity and multiplicity, the point meant incorrectly by Stace and viewed by him as contradictory and, at the same time, justifiable. Stace knows mysticism beyond the field of logic and, therefore, far from mind and reason. While Muslim mystics view existential monism as logical and reasonable.

Unity of Existence is a grave problem of ontology that first appeared in mysticism and came to be dealt with in the domain of philosophy. Acceptance or denial of it has impact on all philosophical problems. With acknowledgement of unity of Being the universe assumes a new significance and as a result the principle causality will lose its explanatory force, for an utterly distinct analysis is made on the existence of the Real and Sharia Law. Earlier philosophers had discussed the issue but Mulla Sadra argued for it and claimed that he managed to demonstrate it properly and precisely. The authors made an attempt to give Sadra’s formulation of the problem along with the arguments made in favor of it. Mulla Sdara offered five arguments for the unity of being by scrutinizing such concepts as copula existence, simple reality, sheer existence, Essentially Necessary Being, and infinity.