Abstract

Abstract

The concept of fanāʾ (annihilation) is regarded as one of the most important notions in theoretical mysticism. The aim of this paper is to examine and Compare the differences in the concept of fanāʾ within Ibn ʿArabī’s mystical school and Sadrian philosophy (al-ḥikma al-mutaʿāliyya). This research, conducted using a qualitative methodology and adopting an analytical and comparative approach, employs techniques and tools of documentary analysis to describe and compare the two schools with respect to the issue of fanāʾ. The findings indicate that, based on the doctrine of the unity of existence (waḥdat al-wujūd) and the manifestation of the Divine Names, mystics understand fanāʾ as a kind of union with one of the Divine Names. From the mystical perspective, the spiritual wayfarer (sālik) may advance as far as the second determination (taʿayyun thānī) in the Divine realm (ṣuquʿ rubūbī) or even to the first determination (taʿayyun awwal). Mullā Ṣadrā, however, interprets fanāʾ as the wayfarer’s entry into the world of intellect and immaterial beings. He maintains that by passing through the stages of spiritual wayfaring and undergoing inner transformation, the wayfarer attains union with various intellects (from the Active Intellect to the First Intellect) and thereby achieves fanāʾ ilā Allāh (annihilation toward God). Thus, while the mystics of Ibn ʿArabī’s school seek fanāʾ in the Divine realm at the level of the second or first determination, Mullā Ṣadrā explains fanāʾ in terms of the intellectual world and union with it.