Analysis of the Nature of Faith with an Emphasis on the Ontological Approach of Mulla Sadra to Knowledge

In the design of monotheistic religions, faith in God and in the unseen world is one of the most important facts which paves the way for man’s achieving happiness. Based on the ontological analysis of faith in the transcendent philosophy, there is a link between faith and knowledge such that the rules of knowledge such as being, hierarchy, and the rule of unity, can also be attributed to the truth of faith. Although, in the first glance, these Sadrean concepts seem to reduce the truth of faith to the theoretical reason of man, Sadra’s viewpoint was finally focused on both theoretical and practical reasons. He considers as real just that kind of faith which is based on both of them. The divisions of faith as well as the discussion of mortality, are all considered to be the result of the Sadra's science-centered approach toward faith.