An Evaluative Study of the Principles of Practical Wisdom in Al-Farabi and Avicenna

Al-Farabi and Avicenna are among the greatest and most well-known Muslim peripatetic philosophers in philosophical and intellectual discussions. The intellectual foundations of the Peripatetic philosophical system in the Islamic world are based on the rational principles and philosophical thoughts of these two great philosophers. The type of these philosophers' attitude toward practical wisdom has raised questions and doubts about this concern to that extent that some have wondered whether the search for practical wisdom was Avicenna's concern. Presenting and evaluating the views of al-Farabi and Avicenna about practical wisdom, the present paper attempts to show that Avicenna, in addition to sharing the same view of basic principles of practical wisdom with al-Farabi, also considers the doctrine of Saint Legislator as the source of the three branches of ethics, home economics and politics; and the difference between Avicenna's and al-Farabi's viewpoints about practical wisdom stems from the fact that the former considers moral propositions to be among the generally accepted and well-known opinions, while the latter considers moral propositions to be rational and proof-based one.