SUBSTANTIVE MOTION ACCORDING TO MULLA SADRA SHIRAZI

This thesis examines the doctrine of substantive motion (al-ḥaraka al-jawhariyya) in the metaphysical system of Mulla Sadra and analyzes its ontological, cosmological, and epistemological implications. Rejecting the Peripatetic limitation of motion to accidents, Mulla Sadra advances the thesis that motion is intrinsic to substance itself, thereby reconceptualizing existence as dynamic and continuously unfolding. Through a close reading of Sadrian texts, the study explores the philosophical foundations of this doctrine, including the primacy of existence (aṣālat al-wujūd), gradation of being (tashkīk al-wujūd), and the unity of substance and change. The thesis further evaluates how substantive motion restructures classical metaphysics by integrating temporality into the very essence of being. By situating Sadra’s theory within the broader Islamic philosophical tradition, the research demonstrates its originality and enduring significance for metaphysical discourse.