The Epistemology of Goodness and Badness According to Avicenna's Views

The topic of goodness and badness in Avicenna’s view has been studied recently in the articles of the researchers of Moral Philosophy. The major approach in these articles is the affirmation of “moral realism” in Avicenna philosophy and rejecting “moral non-realism” from his views. In other words, in these articles, goodness and badness in his thoughts have been studied from an ontological point of view, and the relation of Avicenna’s view with “intrinsic goodness and badness” has been investigated. However, an epistemological study has not been carried out in this case. According to the popular view about the epistemology of goodness and badness, the theory of “religious goodness and badness” is related to Ash‘ari scholars, and the theory of “rational goodness and badness” is related to the Mu'tazila and Shi‘i scholars. Rational goodness and badness are also attributed to the Islamic philosophers. But there are ideas against this view in Avicenna’s works. Because although Avicenna, similar to the Mu‘tazilites, considers moral knowledge, a rational and demonstrable knowledge, on the other hand, alike the Ash‘arites, he accounts the religious law and the religious teachings, as the source of certain knowledge in practical philosophy and ethics. There are several pieces of evidence which show that Avicenna’s ethical theory is actually a combined theory, regarding an epistemological viewpoint.