The Analysis of the Place of Imagination and Fancy in the Domain of Human Perceptions and Actions According to Mulla Sadra

The domain of ‘perceptions’ and ‘philosophy of action’ is a new and significant issue in Islamic philosophy. Our goal is to provide a consistent analysis of the place of two internal faculties - namely imagination and fancy - in the domain of human perceptions and actions. Regarding imagination as the place of particular forms، Mulla Sadra explains the function of these two faculties in multiple relations with other internal faculties. Seeing the imagination as a significant basis of action، Mulla Sadra explains the role of imagination as a link between sensible and intelligible world and like a habitus in keeping forms. This faculty is the source of arbitrary، habitual، natural and temperamental actions. Also fancy - as a perceiver of particular concepts - is the faculty of perception; With a expansion approach، we can promote the place of this faculty from ‘An intellective faculty along with other internal intellective faculties’ to a ‘dominant faculty on all animal faculties’ and even finally take the fancy equal to ‘animal soul’. And also fancy has a basic role in the intellective/ perceptive mistakes and its subsequent actions.