A. _Knowledge._ When the Abstract illumination associates itself with a
higher organism, it works out its development by the operation of
certain faculties--the powers of light, and the powers of darkness. The
former are the five external senses, and the five internal
senses--sensorium, conception, imagination, understanding, and memory;
the latter are the powers of growth, digestion, etc. But such a division
of faculties is only convenient. "One faculty can be the source of all
operations."[142:1] There is only one power in the middle of the brain,
though it receives different names from different standpoints. The mind
is a unity which, for the sake of convenience, is regarded as
multiplicity. The power residing in the middle of the brain must be
distinguished from the abstract illumination which constitutes the real
essence of man. The Philosopher of illumination appears to draw a
distinction between the active mind and the essentially inactive soul;
yet he teaches that in some mysterious way, all the various faculties
are connected with the soul.
[142:1] S̱ẖarh Anwāriyya fol. 57b.
The most original point in his psychology of intellection, however, is
his theory of vision.[142:2] The ray of light which is supposed to come
out of the eye must be either substance or quality. If quality, it
cannot be transmitted from one substance (eye) to another substance
(visible body). If, on the other hand, it is a substance, it moves
either consciously, or impelled by its inherent nature. Conscious
movement would make it an animal perceiving other things. The perceiver
in this case would be the ray, not man. If the movement of the ray is an
attribute of its nature, there is no reason why its movement should be
peculiar to one direction, and not to all. The ray of light, therefore,
cannot be regarded as coming out of the eye. The followers of Aristotle
hold that in the process of vision images of objects are printed on the
eye. This view is also erroneous; since images of big things cannot be
printed on a small space. The truth is that when a thing comes before
the eye, an illumination takes place, and the mind sees the object
through that illumination. When there is no veil between the object and
the normal sight, and the mind is ready to perceive, the act of vision
must take place; since this is the law of things. "All vision is
illumination; and we see things in God". Berkley explained the
relativity of our sight-perceptions with a view to show that the
ultimate ground of all ideas is God. The Is̱ẖrāqī Philosopher has the
same object in view, though his theory of vision is not so much an
explanation of the sight-process as a new way of looking at the fact of
vision.
[142:2] S̱ẖarh Anwāriyya fol. 60b.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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