Soul Alchemy and Intellectual Transmutation: An Analysis of Hylomorphism in Rasail Ikhwan al-Safa, Volume II, First Epistle
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.36668/szsxz253Abstract
This study explores the radical expansion of the concept of hylomorphism (matter and form) in the philosophical thought of Ikhwan al-Shafa beyond the conventional boundaries of material physics. Through a philosophical-hermeneutical analysis of Ras??il Ikhw?n al-?af??, Volume II, First Epistle, the study demonstrates that the Ikhw?n al-?af?? employ the principles of Hay?l? (matter) and ??rah (form) as a theosophical methodology for explaining the substantial transformation of the human being. By positioning the soul as a potential matter (hay?l?) and knowledge as an actualizing form (??rah), the Ikhw?n al-?af?? formulate a distinctive conception of “soul alchemy.” The findings reveal that the acquisition of knowledge is not merely a cognitive activity but rather a process of “intellectual transmutation” that ontologically transforms the quality of the soul from a lower state, bound to material existence, into a noble spiritual substance. This transformation is understood as a gradual actualization of the soul’s latent capacities through the reception of intelligible forms. The study further argues that such a framework provides a novel perspective within Islamic theosophy concerning the relationship between the knowing subject and the object of knowledge as an inseparable hylomorphic unity in the spiritual ascent toward the Universal Soul. Consequently, the Ikhw?n al-?af?? offer a comprehensive metaphysical model in which epistemology, ontology, and spiritual development converge within a single process of existential perfection.
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