The Death of the Angels -Mullā Ṣadrā's Viewpoint PDF

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The Death of the Angels - Mullā Ṣadrā's Viewpoint Sayyid Muṣṭafā Mūsawī A’ẓam, Ladan Qāsimzādeh, Sayyid Waḥīd ‘Alawī Abstract Mullā Ṣadrā is the first Muslim philosopher who has discussed the "death of the angels" in his school of philosophical thought. Mullā Ṣadrā’s philosophy is heav...

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The Death of the Angels - Mullā Ṣadrā's Viewpoint Sayyid Muṣṭafā Mūsawī A’ẓam, Ladan Qāsimzādeh, Sayyid Waḥīd ‘Alawī

Abstract Mullā Ṣadrā is the first Muslim philosopher who has discussed the "death of the angels" in his school of philosophical thought. Mullā Ṣadrā’s philosophy is heavily influenced by Islamic thought which is derived from the Qur’ān and the narrations (aḥādīth) and the preceding mystics before him. Without a precise perception of the Major Resurrection, it would be impossible to analyze the concept of the “death of angels” in Ṣadrā's school of philosophical thought. He analyzes the nature of the Major Resurrection through mystical fundamentals, on the basis of which he considers the ‘death of the angels’ to be justifiable. He has elaborated on how the death of the angels can occur from three perspectives: 1. Firstly, the Annihilation of Names through the manifestation of God's essence in the Major Resurrection. In this analysis, the idea of which has been presented earlier by Dāwūd Qayṣarī, the angels get annihilated (in God) with the manifestation of God's essence on the day of the Major Resurrection. 2. Secondly, the death of the greater human being (al insān al kabīr), which provides the ground for the occurrence and realization of the Major Resurrection by the separation of the world of commands (the immaterial world) from the world of creation (the material world). From this perspective, the angels represent the greater human beings sensory faculties, which will be deactivated after the death of the greater human being. 3. Thirdly, the swooning death (i.e. death by falling into an unconscious state first), which represents the return to the non-existence within the divine essence. This type of death occurs on the Day of the Major Resurrection and Ṣadrā has in various instances considered it to be true in the case of the angels.

Keywords: Death of the angels, Mullā Ṣadrā, the perfect human being, swooning death, the Major Resurrection.

Introduction As a common belief among the Muslim philosophers and theologians, the material (physical) creatures are alive only as long as they have a soul (nafs). This point of view is influenced by Plato and Aristotle. Plato considered the spirit (psyche) as the principle of life in any living creature (Vol.4:2297). Aristotle, following his instructor Plato, viewed the soul as the origin and source of life. Plotinus believed that the four elements of nature (fire, air, water, and earth) are not alive and even their integration will not result in life, since it is the soul that grants them life and orderliness (Vol.1, p.616, 630, 632, 633).

Death, in its common meaning, means the complete and permanent disappearance of the vital signs, and the Muslim philosophers which were influenced by the ancient Greek philosophers, believed that it is with the complete separation of the soul from the body that the vital signs, such as motion, growth, and productivity, may disappear permanently1. In Plato's opinion, life is the conjoint of the spirit and the body (Vol.4: 2297), thus, death is nothing but their disjoining and separation (463). Therefore, death is only realized for those creatures which have a soul (spirit).

The ancient philosophers believed that plants2, animals and human beings have souls and thus live and die, in contrast to the inanimate creatures which don’t. As it is not reasonable to give the attribute of blindness to a tree or a stone, due to the lack of their capability to see, it is accordingly unreasonable to think of death and mortality for the inanimate creatures (jamādāt), since they inherently lack the capability of living. From this point of view, the universe can be divided into two worlds, 1) the world of inanimate creatures (‘ālam al jamād) and 2) the world of life (‘ālam al ḥayā). On this basis, the plants, animals, humans, angels, and God are included in the world of life, such that the first three

1

Since the soul is the origin of life, death can occur only when the soul is separated from the body. The soul, which

is indeed the truth and the spirit of the living creatures, is separated from the body and then transferred to the afterworld (Ṣadruddīn Shīrāzī, 1354:410; 1381:24). In fact, death is exerted on the attributes, not the essences, meaning that when the attribute of the conjoint and attachment between the soul and the body is transformed into their disjoining and separation, death becomes realized. Hence, death is nothing but the separation of the physical body from the soul (‘Uyūn Masā’ilun Nafs, 659). 2

According to Plato, plants also have spirits (48), and his viewpoint has been discussed by Aristotle and other Muslim

philosophers as an accepted issue.

are assigned to the material world and the last two (angels and God) are assigned to the immaterial world. In the Aristotelian thought, the decline and destruction between the form and the matter occurs when there is a separation between these two. This belief is accepted by the majority of the Muslim philosophers, in addition to the belief that the angels belong to the immaterial world, hence, they are not made of matter and only have a form. The belief that the angels were only made of forms (souls), led the Muslim philosophers to reject the thought of death and destruction to be applicable to the angels. On this basis, death, meaning the separation of the form (soul) from the matter (body) was rejected.

Avicenna (Ibn Sīnā), in his al Ishārāt wat Tambīhāt, classifies God's actions into two types, namely synthesis (ṣun'a) and creatio ex nihilo (ibdā'). Avicenna considers the angels as creatio ex nihilo (creation out of nothing), which require merely a form and the agent cause, while he includes the humans among the synthesized creatures (created creatures) that depend, at least for their material life, not only on the form (soul), but also on matter and time (Avicenna, 1375; Vol.3:p.67).

In Christian philosophy and theology, the issue of angelology is entangled with the doctrine of hylomorphism. Hylomorphism is a doctrine according to which all creatures result from the composition of matter and form, and even the angels are not exempted from this rule. There has occurred numerous extensive discussions concerning the issue of whether the angels are made of matter and form or not, and debates among the Jewish and Christian philosophers in the middle ages has led to various, and sometimes opposite viewpoints, so much so that it is believed by some scholars that there is no subject in the field of angelology that has been as much scrutinized as this issue (Keck, 94). Even in the Middle Ages, the philosophical issues related to the matter and form, were so important that Dante mentions this question in his book, Paradise (Keck, 94) from the threefold divine comedy. Considering the fact that the majority of the medieval philosophers believed in the immortality of the angels, it becomes even more important to provide an answer to the question; whether the angels are made of matter and form or not? The answer to this question helps us to see the angels as essentially immortal creatures or as creatures which have become immortal due to the divine grace of God.

Aquinas approach is in agreement with that of the Muslim philosophers, and he considers hylomorphism as fundamentally wrong (Keck, 94). He considers the angels as beings which are totally immaterial and have pure forms, without any material feature, in contrast to the human being which has a material body and is composed of matter and form (Aquinas, 1947: STI, q50, a2, r3). On this basis, the angel, in its realization or creation, depends purely on the divine will (God), while on the contrary, the human existence is reliant on the material conditions, in addition to the divine will. Hence, Aquinas believes that immortality is within the essence of the angels and is not the result of divine grace and favor (Summa Theologica: 348).

In the history of philosophy, Solomon Ibn Gabirol is known as the first philosopher who believed in hylomorphism (In Zalta, Edward N. 2015). Alexander of Hales is another medieval philosopher who believed in the spiritual matter, under whose influence Bonaventure, a famous medieval philosopher, also came to believe in hylomorphism (Keck, 94). In Christian theology, the two schools of Franciscans (Bonaventure included) and Dominicans (which Aquinas was the foremost philosopher in) continued their disputations during the 14th century on whether the angels are composed of matter and form or not. In this regard hylomorphism was the distinct characteristic of the Franciscan school (Keck, 94). The death of the angels, based on hylomorphism, can be justified by arguing that as soon as God wills, the angels’ form will be separated from its matter. Hence, if the believers in hylomorphism consider the angels as immortal creatures, it is due to the divine favor and grace, not due to their own essence.

In agreement with Avicenna and Aquinas opinions, Mullā Ṣadrā adds simplicity and immateriality among the attributes of the angels (Vol.6:p417; Vol.7:p130). He believes that the nature of the angels are simple in form, and that they are free from the composition of matter and form or the composition of spirit and body (Vol.7:p130). Aside this point of view, he pointed out the ‘death of the angels in several instances. The idea of the ‘death of angels,’ proposed by Mullā Ṣadrā, has arisen numerous questions among those who are interested in the fields of Islamic theology and philosophy. Hence, the present study has focused on some of these questions, including; "Why does Mullā Ṣadrā hold such a belief and what explanations does he have for it?" "What are the roots for such a viewpoint?" "Death means, the separation of the spirit from the body, and it is an attribute of the material world, so what is meant by the death of the angels?"

"How has the process of the death of the angels been described by Mullā Ṣadrā?"

The present work attempts to step into the realm of these questions and move forward with a historical-analytical perspective by referring to the works of Mullā Ṣadrā and his predecessors. Prior to this research, no work has been written about the ‘death of the angels’ in the Islamic tradition and neither about the viewpoints of Muslim thinkers in regards to this topic. Angelology is one of the areas in Islamic theology that has received very little attention. While Christian and Jewish philosophers of the middle ages have discussed the subject of angels thoroughly, it has barely received the same attention within Islamic theology and philosophy.

1. In this article we will firstly look at the Qur’ānic and narrative background of the subject on the ‘death of the angels’ in Islam, and what influence it had on Mullā Ṣadrā. 2. Secondly, the three descriptions (mentioned earlier) of “how” the ‘death of angels’ occur in Mullā Ṣadrā’s philosophical school of thought will be presented. However two of those descriptions which was proposed by Mullā Ṣadrā, on the ‘death of the angels,’ shows that he was influenced by his predecessors before him and this discussion will be explained later on. 3. Thirdly, although he doesn't explicitly mention the death of the angels, regarding the topic which has to do with ‘the death of the great human being,’ his opinion can still be extracted on this topic because of his beliefs in the fundamentals of mysticism. These three explanations have in reality addressed the subject from different perspectives and thus, they don't represent three different and distinct ways to reach the topics (death of the angels) end result; rather, in some cases, they aid and complete each other so as to perceive a better clarification.

Qur’ānic and narrative background on the ‘death of the angels’ The discussions on the death of the angels are based on a Qur’ānic and narrative ground bed engaging some of the Muslim philosophers and theologians with itself during history. Since the Muslim theologians and philosophers are influenced by the Islamic teachings, we are inevitably forced to look upon the Qur’ān and the narrations and what they have to say about this issue.

The Qur’ān gives no explicit indication to the death of the angels, yet there are some verses in the Qur’ān that points towards their death. Following verses can be mentioned in this regard: “Everything that exists will perish (is perishable) except His Own Face (except Himself)” (AlQaṣaṣ-88).3 “Every soul will taste death” (Al-‘Ankabūt [The Spider]-57).4 And on the day when the trumpet (horn) is blown, all those who are in the heavens and those who are on the earth shall be smitten in fear, except those whom Allāh wants to exempt”. (An-Naml [The Ant]-87).5

In relation to the above verses, some of the interpreters, theologians, and philosophers have presented some narration-based discussions and arguments and the verse that should be taken into account as the most relevant, is verse-68 of chapter az-Zumar: “And the trumpet will be blown, and all those who are in the heavens and those who are on the earth will swoon except those whom Allāh wants to exempt”.6

(88 ،‫ کل شيء هالك إلا وجهه )قصص‬3

(75 ،‫ کل نفس ذائقة الموت)عنکوبت‬4

(85 ،‫ و یوم ینفخ في الصور ففزع من في السماوات و من في الارض الا من شاالله )نمل‬7

(88 ،‫ و نفخ في الصور فصعق من في السماوات و من في الاض الا من شاء الله )زمر‬6

This verse refers to the Day of Resurrection (before every creature goes to the Hereafter), God takes the life of all creatures except a few ones whom God has exempted by His own will.

In the narrative books of the Sunni Muslims (ahlas-sunna), there is a narration (ḥadīth) quoted from the Holy Prophet in which the Prophet has pointed to the death of the angels. In Anas ibn Mālik's narration the Prophet is asked about those who are exempted by God in verse-68 of chapter az-Zumar, and in that narration the Prophet mentions the names of Jibrā’īl, Mikā’īl, Isrāfīl, and ‘Izrā’īl. The Prophet says: "After the trumpet is blown, God addresses Izrā’īl and asks him if there is anybody still alive? Izrā’īl, the angel of death, answers by mentioning the names of Jibrā’īl, Mikā’īl, Isrāfīl and himself. Thus, God wants him to take the lives of Isrāfīl and Mikā’īl. And finally, God Himself takes the lives of Izrā’īl and Jibrā’īl, respectively (Sharḥ Nahjul Balāgha, by Ibn Abil Ḥadīd; Vol.1: p.95; at Tafsīr al Kabīr: An Interpretation of The Holy Quran (at Tabarani); Vol.5: p.386; Kashful Asrār wa ‘Iddatul-Abrār, Vol.8: p.436)).

This narration can be found in most of the Sunni narrative books as well as in some of the Shi’a narrative books such as Biḥār al Anwār (Majlisī) and A'lāmud-Dīn fī Ṣifāt al-Mu’minīn (Ḥasan ibn Muḥammad Deylamī) (at Tafsīr al Kabīr: An Interpretation of The Holy Qur’ān (at Tabarānī) Vol.5: p.386; A'lāmud-Dīn fī Ṣifāt al Mu’minīn: p.353; Biḥār al Anwār: Vol.79: p.184).

In Shi’a narrations, in addition to the above narrations that has been accepted by many of the Shi’a muḥaddithīn (scholars of ḥadīth), there are some other narrations which are narrated from the Shi’a Imams (the twelve divinely elected leaders) that support and enhance the idea of the death of the angels. The first narration is attributed to Imam Ṣādiq and has been narrated by ‘Ubayd-ibn-Zurāra. In this narration, which has been mentioned under the verse 16 of chapter al-Ghāfir (To whom belongs the kingdom this day? To Allah, the One, the Subduer)7, Imam Ṣādiq, (the sixth Shi’a Imam) narrates that on the Day of Resurrection, death is not limited specifically for this material world (earth, or this universe) and the skies surrounding it, but God will take the lives of every existing being within all the heavens (the different realms) until the turn comes to Jibrā’īl, Isrāfīl, and ‘Izrā’īl

"‫ "لمن الملك الیوم لله الواحد القهار‬5

(Tafsīr al Qummī, Vol.2:p.256; Biḥār al Anwār, Vol.6:p.326; al Burhān fī Tafsīril Qur’ān, Vol:4:p.751). Another narration which is attributed to the Eighth Shi’a Imam (Imam Riḍā), which he attributes to the Prophet through his forefathers (the Imams), Imam Riḍā says that on the Day of Resurrection, God tells the angel of death: "I swear upon My Dignity, Glory, and Majesty that, as I gave My servants the taste of death, I will make you taste it as well" (Saḥīfa al Imam Riḍā –Peace Be Upon Him – p.61; al ‘Amālī (Ṭūsī), anNās, p.336; Nawādīr al Akhbār fī mā Yata'allaq bī Usū-lud-dīn (Fayḍ), an-Nās, p.333).

The next narration is the one quoted by Ya’qūb Aḥmar in Uṣūl al Kāfī, which is the most important Shi’a ḥadīth book (book of narrations from the prophet and the Imams). According to this narration, after the demise of Imam Sādiq’s son, Ismā’īl, some of his followers came to him to offer their condolences. Imam told them, that on the Day of Resurrection, God will take the lives of all those who are on the earth until there doesn't remain anyone. Then, He will take the lives of all those who are in the heavens (the non-physical realms) until there remains no one except the angel of death, ‘Izrā’īl, the carriers of the Throne of God (ḥamala-tul-‘Arsh), Jibrā’īl, and Mikā’īl. God will ask ‘Izrā’īl about those who are still alive. After answering God's question and mentioning the names of those who are alive, ‘Izrā’īl takes their lives one by one upon the command of God. Finally, God takes the life of ‘Izrā’īl himself. It is at this moment where God says: "Where are those who claimed partnership (association) in My kingdom, and where are those who assumed other gods with Me” (al Kāfī, Vol.3:p.256; al Wāfī, Vol.24:p.192; Tafsīr aṣ-Ṣāfī, Vol.1:p.405-406; al Fusūl al Muhimma fī Uṣūl al A’imma, Vol.1:p.297).

Although this narration, in contrast to that of Anas ibn Mālīk, is not annotated under verse-68 of chapter az-Zumar, Shi’a scholars have utilized it to refer to the death of the angels. This narration has a very high level of validity and credibility so much so that the highest ranking Shi’a narrators have commonly referred to it and scholars such as Kulaynī, Fayḍ Kāshānī, Majlisī, Ḥurr al ‘Āmilī, and others have mentioned it in their narrative (ḥadīth) books also. Mullā Ṣadrā has also been influenced by this narration when proposing the idea on the death of the angels. In two of his books, by the name of Asrār al Āyāt (p.102) and Maẓāhir al Ilāhīyyā fī Asrār al ‘Ulūm al Kamālīya (p.139), he mentions this narration under verse-68 of chapter az-Zumar, and concludes that the phrase: " ‫"من في السماوات‬

All those who are in the heavens- refers to the angels who will die after the ‘blowing of the trumpet’ (Isrāfīl's Trumpet).

The Muslim interpreters, theologians, and philosophers who have addressed the narrations about the death of the angels have proposed different opinions. For instance, Muḥammad Na’īm Ṭālīqānī, in his book Minhājur Rashad fī Ma'rifa-tul-Ma'ād, describes the death of the angels as the separation of their souls from their subtle bodies (Minhājur Rashad fī Ma'rifa-tul-Ma'ād, Vol.1:p.241). On this basis, he believes that the common conventional meaning of death stands true for the angels as well. Moreover, Makārim Shīrāzī in his Tafsīr-e Nemūneh, mentions another probability for the death of the angels, besides the separation of the angels souls from their imaginal bodies, which is the deactivation of the continuous activity of the angels spirits and the loss of their ability of perception (al Amthāl fī Tafsīril Kitā-billāhil Munzal, Vol.15:p.154).

Mullā Ṣadrā's dual approach to the death of the angels Mullā Ṣadrā, in his Sharḥ Uṣūl al Kāfī, in the footnote underneath verse-68 of chapter az-Zumar, points to the narration in which one of the Imams is asked a question about verse-88 of chapter AlQaṣaṣ: “Everything that exists will perish (is perishable) except His own face” (Sharḥ Uṣūl Kāfī by Ṣadrul Muta'allihīn, Vol.4:pp.141-142).

As described by Ṣadrā, there are two points which are significant in this verse. First, whatever other than “God” and...