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Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Dictionary of Islamic Philosophical Terms Mim ma “What?”: a form of question put in order to discuss the form and matter of definitions and propositions with regard to the problems that arise in science. The interrogative pronoun ma is used in logic to ask two kinds of things: (1) the essence or meaning of a thing denoted by a term, i.e. its definition; (2) the intention of the speaker, i.e. the meaning of a term as intended by one who uses that term.

See also muta‘alliqat al-qiyas wa’l-burhan. al-maddat al-ula Prime matter; see hayula. mani‘at al-jam‘ "Mutually exclusive", i.e. the relation that exists between two contraries (diddan, q.v.) like odd and even, or two contradictories (naqidan, q.v.) like B and not-B or existence and non-existence; but whereas the contradictories (naqidan) are mutually exclusive as well as totally exhaustive (mani ‘at al-khuluww, q.v.) the contraries (diddan) are only mutually exclusive.

Two universal propositions have opposite quality, i.e. one affirmative and the other negative like "All S is P" and "No S is P" (see al-qadiyatan al-mutadaddatan) also mutually exclude each other. mani‘at al-khuluww "Totally exhaustive", i.e.

the relation that exists between two contradictories (naqidan) like existence (wujud) and non-existence (‘adm) or B and not-B; or between two contradictory propositions (al-qadiyatan al-mutaqabilatan bi’l-tanaqud, q.v.) like "All S is P" and "Some S is not P", or like "No S is P" and "Some S is P"; this, however, does not hold true of two contraries (diddan, q.v.). mahiyah The "whatness" of a thing, i.e. its essence or quiddity as opposed to ’anniyah (q.v.), the "thatness" of a thing, i.e.

its existence. The essence of a thing is the reason why it is or what it is; existence is the actuality of essence. There is one Being alone whose essence is His very existence and that is God, the Necessary Being (al-wajib al-wujud, q.v.).

In the case of all other things, which are possible or contingent beings (al-mumkin al-wujud, q.v.), their essence does not necessarily imply their existence for it is possible to think of the essence of a (created) thing without knowing whether it exists or not.