The Analysis of the Concepts of Emanation and Birth and Their Implications in Al-Asfār and Nicene Creed

Al-Asfār and the Nicene Creed are among the most important works of Islamic philosophy and the world of Christianity. In these two sources, especially al-Asfār, the concepts of emanation and birth are frequently repeated. By examining these two concepts, the following results are obtained. First, the analysis of the two concepts leads us to common implications such as the emergence of something from something, eternity, cognation between Father and Son, or emanator and emanation, and the necessity of the existence of the intermediaries in the descending arc. Second, these implications are accepted in both sources. Third, in these sources, emanation and birth are used interchangeably. Fourth, the philosophy of Plotinus, in which emanation, burst, and eruption are central concepts, has had an impact on these two sources. Both perspectives, however, have mentioned justifications to avoid the materialistic sense of God, which finally show the closeness of the two concepts in the two sources.