Avicenna's Psychology A Textbook on Perennial Psychology - Softcover

Laleh Bakhtiar

9781567441710: Avicenna's Psychology A Textbook on Perennial Psychology

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1567441718 ISBN 13: 9781567441710

Publisher: Kazi Publications, 2013

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The Unfolding of the Human Soul: The Giver of Forms/Active Intellect, a separate intelligence and an immaterial substance, gives substantial forms to properly prepared matter. The properly prepared matter then receives the substantial form of the human soul from the Giver of Forms when the male and female ova unite in creating an embryo and its undifferentiated humours (the humours play a basic role within the human form similar to the role of the elements in the sublunar world). The Giver of Forms/Active Intellect gives the Breath of Life (Spirit), Innate Heat and Radical Moisture to the embryo. The Breath of Life enters the heart where it undergoes combustion and circulates throughout the embryo through its blood stream. The Breath of Life has three energies (spirits): vital, natural and nervous. The vital energy enters the heart; the natural energy enters the liver; and the nervous energy enters the brain. These three energies cause the humours to separate into the four humours, each having a pair of the qualities of the elements (fire: hot and dry; air: hot and wet; water: cold and wet; earth: cold and dry) forming the temperament of the body and they activate the powers (faculties) of the human soul. The powers of the human soul include the powers of the mineral soul (preserving shape or form), vegetal or plant soul (growth, reproduction and nutrition and its four sub-powers of attraction, digestion, retention and expulsion) and of the animal soul: motivation (the power of movement; concupiscent power; and irascible power) and sensation/perception: the five external powers seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting and touching; and the five internal powers common sense, retention, estimation, memory and imagination). Imagination has two parts: sensitive (all animals) and rational (human being only). The rational soul is called the rational intellect when dealing with intelligibles. The rational intellect is divided into two parts: the theoretical intellect and the practical intellect. The theoretical intellect has four levels material, habitual, actual and acquired intellects. The acquired intellect can ascend to the level of the spiritual soul/intellect that is that of the prophets and saints. The theoretical intellect, directed upwards to receive intelligibles, is activated by the Active Intellect. The practical intellect, directed downwards and under the direction of the theoretical intellect, governs the body and moral development and healing.

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About the Author

Laleh Bakhtiar holds a BA in History from Chatham College, Masters degrees in Philosophy and Counseling Psychology and a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the University of New Mexico. Bakhtiar is a Licensed Professional Psychotherapist in the State of Illinois. She also taught courses on Islam at the University of Chicago. She is co-author of A Sense of Unity: The Sufi Tradition in Persian Architecture (University of Chicago Press) and author of SUFI Expressions of the Mystic Quest (Thames and Hudson), as well as a three volume work, God s Will Be Done, on Moral Healing, Rumi's Original Sufi Enneagram, Sufi Enneagram Secrets of the Symbol Unveiled and some 15 other books on various aspects of Sufism and Islam. She has adapted three of the five volumes of Avicenna's Canon of Medicine and is the Series Editor of the complete 5 volume work. Here she presents Avicenna's underlying psychology as a basis for his work in medicine. Bakhtiar is the leading authority on spiritual chivalry, most clearly expressed in the Sufi Enneagram, also known as the Greater Struggle. She has also translated over 30 books on Islam and the Islamic movement into English. Bakhtiar is the first woman to present a critical translation the Quran in any language. In her Sublime Quran translation she interprets the controversial verse that has lead to domestic violence in the Islamic community to the way the Prophet understood it. Instead of husbands being allowed to beat their wives, she translates: husbands should go away, let the anger subside and then consult with one another. Her translation has been introduced into evidence in child custody cases in the United States to counteract Muslim husbands saying that their religion allows them to beat their wives and is available for free viewing on islam awakened as well as having been chosen by HRH Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad of Jordan to appear on al-tafsir for the 6 million visitors. Bakhtiar is presently Director of the Institute of Traditional Psychology and Scholar-in-Residence at Kazi Publications.

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