Physical Resurrection from Ibn Arabi's Point of View

Ibn Arabi regards resurrection as both spiritual and physical. Based on his perspective, the true nature of resurrection is the accumulation of individual souls into the universal soul. Physical resurrection is also of two different qualities for people of heaven and dwellers of hell. While the congregations of heavenly people's bodies is not in the material form, their congregated bodies are heavenly, soft bodies which is called natural body; this has superiority to elemental and material world, and has no earthly characteristics. On the other hand, the congregation of the bodies of the dwellers of hell is in the elemental form and a worldly temperament, having capacity for annihilation, change, degeneration and corruption. Reliance on elemental world and terrestrial desires will lead to a perpetual closure of all spiritual realms for the dwellers of hell. So they will never be released from the elemental world. This article addresses Ibn Arabi's point of view about the necessity of physical resurrection and its quality.