Publication: The problem of presential knowledge in the illumination philosophy of Suhrawardi
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2020
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The problem of presential knowledge in the illumination philosophy of Suhrawardi
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Abstract
According to the Peripatetic philosophy of Avicenna, the “I” perceives itself directly as the “I” by the theory of Floating Man, and then the “I” knows itself distinctively in contrast to non-self. The “I” knows itself and non-itself as “thing” or existence and Avicenna believed existence is self-evident as a proposition for the “I”. There ought to be a reason (as indicated by Aristotle) to exist for what he recognizes as the existence and the reason is the proof of the existence of God (Existence of Existence). He tried to create a rational system to prove that the Many comes from the One. Avicenna recognized existence as the Many and then identified the Existence of Existence or God as the One and this is Avicenna's central metaphysical view. According to the Illumination philosophy of Avicenna, the “I” perceives itself directly as the “I” by Presential knowledge of the “I” to itself. The “I” knows itself and non-itself as light and Suhrawardi believed light is self-evident as wholeness. There ought to be a reason to exist for what he recognizes as light and the reason is the proof of the existence of God (Light of Light). He tried to create a rational system like Avicenna to prove that the Many comes from the One. In Suhrawardi's philosophy, like Avicenna first Suhrawardi recognized light as the Many and then identified the Light of Light or God as the One and this is Suhrawardi's central metaphysical view. Avicenna’s non-oneness view of Empirical knowledge based on Aristotle’s thought ultimately led him to separate himself from God, and he must acquire knowledge to achieve God. Suhrawardi’s oneness view of Presential knowledge based on his own mystical experience ultimately lead him to know himself and God as the One and the idea that there is a separation between man and God is an illusion. The great point in Suhrawardi's philosophy of illumination is not to present his philosophical structure based on light, because the structure of this philosophy of Illumination is based on the Peripatetic philosophy in many cases. The great point of Suhrawardi's thoughts is a new definition of self-evidence as wholeness by the concept of light. He believed that light knows itself as immediate, and this immediacy represents the One, unlike Avicenna, who believed that the starting point is self-evidence and that other things are knowable from this starting point. In fact, according to Suhrawardi, self-evidence is whole that is the One and nothing can be imagined outside of it. The researcher believes if light is self-evident then the “I” must know light directly without any intermediations but the “I” to know light, it has to make a relationship between itself and light, then light cannot be self-evident. Avicenna and Suhrawardi believed the “I” knows itself directly, without any intermediations and self-evident is knowable directly, without any intermediary then the researcher believes the “I” is self-evident and the “I” can be the starting point for knowledge. The “I” knows itself by itself and the “I” knows that the “I” is empty of any kind of relation or limitation. Perfection is beyond any kind of limitations and relation or in other words, Perfection is Absolute Simplicity. The researcher concludes that Perfection is Absolute Simplicity and the “I” is Absolute Simplicity then the “I” is Perfection (Absolute Simplicity). Suhrawardi and Avicenna believed that the “I” knows itself directly, but the “I” is Perfection and Perfection is beyond any consciousness, even consciousness of itself as Presential knowledge. Any kind of consciousness, even Presential knowledge, is a kind of relation, and it is not possible to know the Perfection based on relation. Unlike Avicenna and Suhrawardi, the researcher believes that the “I” does not know itself by itself, but consciousness, which is based on relation, recognizes the “I” in the form of a simple truth devoid of any relation as Perfection. The “I” is Perfection, and Perfection is beyond consciousness, but consciousness based on relation, perceives the “I” in two different states. In the first state, consciousness perceives the “I” in the form of a simple truth that is devoid of any relation as Presential “I”. Consciousness, in addition to knowing itself as a simple essence, always faces definitions in relation to itself as Empirical “I”. These relations present themselves with reason, feelings, imagination, and so on. The “I” is Perfection that is beyond consciousness, but the consciousness that is aware of the truth of the “I” is itself a kind of relation. Whatever is known as consciousness in the form of Presential knowledge or Empirical knowledge of the “I” to itself is the result of relation not the result of the “I” as Perfection. The “I” is the “I”. The “I” is not known as the physical body. The “I” is not known as feelings and emotions. The “I” is not known as an idea. The best answer to the question about “What is the “I”? Is the “I” is the “I”, and any description of the “I” does not show the truth of the “I” and the truth of the “I” cannot be described. The truth of the “I” is the simplest simple before the process of thinking.
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ปรัชญาดุษฎีบัณฑิต
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ปริญญาเอก
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บัณฑิตวิทยาลัย
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มหาวิทยาลัยอัสสัมชัญ