Gnostic Elements in the Mystical System of Ayn al-Quzat Hamadani

According to the followers of Gnosticism, this school refers to the ideas and methods that are needed to achieve the most certain and supreme kind of knowledge, and consequently, to acquire true happiness and purification of the soul through intuition and illumination. The school has been popular among many ethnic groups since ancient times and has influenced Islamic-Iranian mysticism over the centuries. Ayn al-Quzat Hamadani is also influenced by the teachings of Gnosticism. Using the analytical - comparative method, the present article first states the characteristics of the Gnostic school and then compare them with the views of Ayn al-Quzat Hamadani. The purpose is to explain and illustrate the common points of Gnostic beliefs and his mystical principles. The common points are as follows: belief in the duality of light-darkness, trust in intuitive knowledge instead of acquired knowledge, believing that the being is a mystery, belief in esotericism, emphasis on self-knowledge to achieve true knowledge, belief in the originality of the spiritual world as opposed to the physical world and finally belief in Homo Deus or “perfect man”.