The Mystery of Destiny and Al-Hekmat Al-Arshiye (the Arshiye treatise)
The Arshiye treatise:
As it has been mentioned in the preface of this treatise, some relatives asked of Avicenna to write a treatise about the Monotheism and proving the “Necessary” so that to understand by reason and proof, the existence of the Divinity and His Attributes and Acts. Avicenna also accepted their request and has written this treatise which includes three principles.
-First principle: on proving the “Necessary” (väjeb),
####-Second principle: on His Monotheism
-Third principle: on negation of the reasons from Him.
He has presented issues and subjects about these three principles which some of them are as follows:
-on explaining the God’s Attributes
-the first Attributes is science
-the second Attribute is life
-the third Attribute is “Desirous or Willing” (morid),
-the fourth Attribute is power
-the fifth and sixth Attribute is Hearing and Seeing
-the seventh Attribute is Speech or Speaking
-on quality of God’s actions (means How God do His actions),
-briefly on decree and destiny
Treatise on mystery of destiny:
Somebody asked Avicenna the meaning of this word by Sufism which (they) have said: “Anybody who know the mystery of destiny to go astray”. Avicenna answered: Although this subject is not without problem and if you ask me to write, inevitably it should be in a secret manner, because it cannot be taught to everyone, it should be withhold from those who do not have talent to understand it. By the prophet’s miraculous word who said: “The destiny is the mystery of God, do not reveal the mystery of God”, and also the Imam Ali’s word who said in responding to the issues: “The destiny is a deep sea do not enter it”. Again the asker asked and the Imam answered: “Really the destiny is a hard way, do not go that way”. Again the asker repeated the question, he said: “The destiny is a very hard way, do not inconvenience yourself”. After that, Sheikh says: “Know that the mystery of the destiny is based on three prefaces which till this prefaces do not become known, the meaning of destiny mystery will not be clear and obvious.
1- The first preface: God is the cause of existence of all higher and ”lower” (earthly) world’s creatures
2- The second preface: The ancients have said by the philosophers’ word: “Reward (saväb) means acquiring the pleasure for the soul…
3- The third preface: resurrection means returning of human’s souls to the their original world
The author brief biography:
Abu Ali Hussein, the son of Abdullah Ibn Sina, famous to Ibn Sina, also called Sharaf Al-Molk and Sheikh Al-Ra’is, is the philosopher, physician, poet, mathematician and Iranian astronomer, the most famous Islamic scientist and one of the great scholars that have been yet. He was born in a city of Bukhärä’s environs in 981A.D.(370A.H.). In Bukhärä which that time was the Samanids’ capital, he leaned the logic, medicine and mathematics. Due to his great talent and intelligence, very soon could gain scientific fame in different cases. In the age of 17, he cured Nooh Ibn Mansoor Sämäni and this task caused to be famous. Therefore he entered to the royal library. He himself says: the books that I saw there, nobody even heard their names. I read them and profited by use of them. When I got 18 years old, I graduated. Although Ibn Sina was great philosopher but besides, he was a very busy doctor, had perfect political influence and as a minister, served to his supporter princes. He wrote “The Canon of Medicne” book, in 1013 A.D. (403A.H.). During his life, which coincided with Ghaznavids rule, he travelled to different cities and did different services, till after Shams Al-Doale’s Daylami’s death, his successor by the name of “Samä Al-Doleh” imprisoned him for a month but Abu Ali Sina, after releasing, went to Isfahan and had the respects of people of Isfahan. He instructed and wrote there. In fact, he spent in Isfahan the last fourteen years of his fruitful life and finally in a journey with Alä’ Al-Dolleh to Hamadan, he died at the age of fifty eight in 1037A.D.(428A.H.).
The book structure:
1- The list of “Al-Zorriye Benefits Treatise”, (the treatise of Al-Zorriye benefits is a treatise which Ziyä Al-din Dôri has written it in translating the “Mystery of destiny and “Al-Hekmat Al-Arshiye):
-the preface of Arshiye treatise
-comparing the Avicenna with Aristotle
-comparing the Avicenna with Farabi
-proving the Avicenna’s shiism
-proving the non-committing to the wine drinking
-the Avicenna’s writings
2- The Arshiye treatise list: Monotheism, Negation the cause from the Necessary, the God’s Attributes, the God’s knowledge (sciences), the Attribute of life, the Attribute of Willing or Desirous, the Power Attribute, Hearing and Seeing, doing the Actions by God, decree and destiny
3- The treatise list of “Mystery of Destiny”: Treatise on “The Mystery of Destiny”.
Sources :
The Mystery of Destiny and Al-Hekmat Al-Arshiye by Avicenna