The Relationship between Imagination and Knowledge in Mulla Sadra's Philosophy

In the current article and using analysis and inference, the main intention is to present a sketch of Mulla Sadra’s philosophical view regarding the relationship between imagination and knowledge. Such sketch can illuminate the nature of the relationship between imagination and knowledge and the intervention of imagination in knowledge acquisition process. Imagination is referred to as the set of soul’s capacities for dealing with and working with imaginary figures, including storing and maintaining images, discretionary action in ideas, formalism for intellectual concepts and intellectualization of images.Mental picture is a copy (photograph or drawing) presented by the soul from external reality. Provision, maintenance, and expansion of mental images is considered as an understanding of the concept and acquired knowledge process. The relationship between imagination with knowledge in four areas of “imagination and formation of mind”, “imagination and possibility of knowledge”, “imagination and survival of knowledge”, and “imagination and the extension of knowledge” is examined and explained. Mulla Sadra considers a high status and a fundamental role for imagination as one function of the soul.