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Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Philosophical Instructions Lesson Sixty-Six: Attributes of Essence Introduction As indicated in the previous lesson, the concepts which refer to ontological perfections and do not denote any kind of deficiency or limitation are applicable to the sacred divine essence.

All of them can be considered to be attributes of the divine essence, such as Light ( nūr ), Magnificence ( bahā’ ), Beauty ( jamāl ), Perfection ( kamāl ), Love ( ḥubb ), Bliss ( bahjah ), and other Names and attributes which are presented in the noble verses of the Qur’ān, the sacred narrations and the supplications of the Infallible Ones ( ‘a ), which do not refer to the station of action.

However, what are usually mentioned as attributes of essence are Life ( ḥayāt ), Knowledge ( ‘ilm ) and Power ( qudrah ), and most mutakallamīn have added other attributes, such as Hearing ( samī‘ ), Seeing ( baṣīr ), Willing ( murīd ) and Speaking ( mutakallim ). There are discussions about whether these concepts are attributes of essence or attributes of action, which would require a very lengthy review.

Here we shall present a discussion of the threefold attributes of essence, followed by a discussion of some of the other well known attributes. Life Existents which are familiar to man may be divided into two general groups, the living and the non-living. The attribute called life ( ḥayāt ) is attributed to living existents which are conscious and possess voluntary movement, and in the Arabic language the word ḥayawān (animate) is appropriately applied to living existents.

However, if we are precise, it becomes clear that the application of the attribute life to material existents is a kind of ‘ waṣf bi ḥāl muta‘allaq ’ (description of something in terms of another thing on which it is dependent), and actually, life is an essential description of their souls, and is accidentally related to their bodies.

After learning that animal souls have a degree of immateriality ( tajarrud ) (although this is an imaginal immateriality), we come to the conclusion that life implies immateriality, and furthermore that life is more expressive than immateriality, because immateriality, as was previously indicated, is a negative concept. In other words, just as extension is an essential characteristic of material existents, life is an essential characteristic of immaterial existence.

Likewise, knowledge and will, which are also implied by life, are immaterial.