The Princeton Encyclopedia of Islamic Political Thought

Mulla Sadra (ca. 1572–1640)

Sadr al-Din al-Shirazi, commonly known as Mulla Sadra, is one of the most revered philosophers in Islam. Born Muhammad b. Ibrahim Qawami al-Shirazi to a wealthy family in Shiraz, southern Iran, on the return journey from his sixth pilgrimage to Mecca, he died in Basra, where his burial place was known until recent times.

Sadra’s oeuvre does not include a treatise on political philosophy. A systematic examination of the principles of political philosophy is absent in his writings, and, contrary to classical political philosophy, he does not treat the concept “city” (madīna), or the “ideal city” (al-madīna al-fāḍila), as a subject of inquiry. There is no discussion of what constitutes a good or bad city, and there is neither a systematic examination of what justice is nor a theoretical concern with types of rule. Classical concepts such as “governance” (siyāsa), “political rule” (ḥukūma), and “management” (tadbīr) are never discussed in relation to the “virtuous city” (al-madīna al-fāḍila), while his discussion of the concept of “rule” relates to “divine management” (tadbīr-i ilāhī) generally and never to any specified political process, actual or theoretical. This means that Sadra’s works can be described neither as political philosophy (al-siyāsa al-madaniyya) nor as practical philosophy (al-falsafa al-‘amaliyya) in the classical sense. This does not mean that his new holistic philosophical system, “Metaphysical Philosophy” (al-Ḥikma al-Muta‘āliya), is devoid of ideas and doctrines on political philosophy or theory; rather, it means that we have to glean his thoughts on the subject from different parts of his work.

Sadra’s political thoughts focus on three themes: the authority and legitimacy of the learned (‘ālim) philosopher-sage (ḥakīm), the source of inspirational knowledge that renews the foundations of science in every age, and governance by Shi‘i imams who possess infallibility (‘iṣma) and impart unrestricted knowledge to the most learned (a‘lam). In all, the emphasis is on legitimizing the structure of Shi‘i governance and establishing the “most learned” figure as the “source of imitation” (marja‘ al-taqlīd), an emerging Shi‘i political institution later designated “ayatollah” (hierophant, lit. “Sign of God”). These themes are found in the classical theories of Farabi (d. 950) and Ibn Sina (d. 1037) and in the political doctrine of Shihab al-Din Yahya al-Suhrawardi (d. 1191).

The classical theory has a twofold core. First, it comprised an epistemology based on Aristotelian theories of intellectual knowledge according to which any person devoted to philosophical inquiry may gain access to objective knowledge and achieve union with the Active Intellect (‘aql fa‘‘āl), which acts as the giver of forms (wāhib al-ṣuwar) in Aristotelian epistemology, unrestricted by God’s will. This theory of knowledge, later refined and reformulated by Ibn Sina into a unified theory of prophecy, is one of the most significant and enduring components of Islamic political philosophy. The second part of the theory is a practical philosophy that fuses the theories of intellectual knowledge in Aristotle’s De Anima III and Metaphysics XII with the ideals of the perfect state in Plato’s Republic, framed by the Islamic notion of just rule as the ultimate purpose of philosophy. Farabi had redefined Greek political philosophy in the context of Islamic monotheism and beliefs about prophecy and revelation, positing the ideal political order as one legislated by a prophet-lawgiver and reformed and upheld by the learned (‘ulama’). This ensures just rule, a condition necessary for earthly and eternal happiness. Following Farabi’s most popular work, The Ideas of the Inhabitants of the Virtuous City, Sadra mentions the doctrine of just rule and encourages philosophical discourse on prophecy and laws that affect the beliefs and practices of the Muslim community.

These form the classical components of Sadra’s views and later help define the Shi‘i political doctrine that invokes the “virtuous city” to describe just rule by the divinely inspired philosopher-ruler, who is progressively referred to as the “jurist-guardian” (al-walī al-faqīh).

The next components, perhaps the most essential of Sadra’s political views, are founded on Suhrawardi’s doctrine in which the political system is deemed meaningful if, and only if, a state, nation, or city embodies and in some actual manner manifests a divine dimension in its politics. According to Suhrawardi’s illuminationist (ishrāqī) theory, legitimate rule is associated with a wholly other source, the “unseen realm” (al-‘ālam al-ghayb), and is not shaped or initiated by the “sensed realm” (al-‘ālam al-maḥsūs) or the “seen realm” (al-‘ālam al-shahāda)—that is, the corporeal. Rulers in command of temporal rule, be they kings, sages, philosophers, or persons in a state of occultation, must possess and exhibit a sign of divine inspiration that displays a real relation with the “unseen” source of authority. Such rulers serve as a link between the world of sense perception and pure being and light from which all things emanate, political authority included. A ruler gains legitimacy by God’s command (al-ḥākim bi amr allāh). This means that governance or ḥukūma can be justified if and only if it is through connection with the divine, or by the command (amr) of God.

The synthesis of earlier political philosophies with Illuminationist thought is revealed in Sadra’s views, which combine the following elements: the theory of prophethood and the Islamic view of the miraculous powers of prophets (anbiyā’) and saints (awliyā’); the ancient Iranian concepts of royal “glory” (kharra-yi kīyānī), a sign of authority granted to legitimate rulers, and divine glory, which, as related by Suhrawardi, may be gained by any person who obtains wisdom (ḥikma) and in whom it will visibly radiate as a divine light (farra-i izādī); and an Islamic belief in saints and mystics who exercise awe-inspiring occult powers.

To conclude, Sadra’s political doctrine may be summarized as follows: Any member of the ‘ulama’ who persists in the pursuit of knowledge, preoccupies himself with the Divine Word, and immerses himself in remembering the attributes of the Shi‘i imams may gain unrestricted intellectual knowledge. Combining what is bestowed in the conjunction of the Active Intellect and acquired intellect (‘aql mustafād) with intuitive inspirational knowledge, such a person acquires legitimate authority to rule. Authority will manifest itself upon the ruler as a radiating light that is visible to his subjects, who will consequently obey his commands as though issued by an infallible imam. The unrestricted knowledge associated with such a figure is also essential for the renewal and upholding of the principles of science, which in turn ensure enduring justice in the state.