Risalat al-Nafs
- Author died
- 595 AH
- Editions
- Risalat al-Nafs
Risalat al-Nafs (Treatise on the Soul) is a philosophical work on psychology and the faculties of the soul by the Andalusian philosopher and jurist Ibn Rushd al-Hafid (520–595 AH / 1126–1198 CE), dedicated to analyzing and interpreting the psychological doctrines of Aristotle .
Purpose and Method
In the opening statement of purpose (gharad al-kitab), Ibn Rushd explains that his objective is to establish from the commentaries on the science of the soul what is most consistent with the findings of natural philosophy and most fitting with Aristotle's intent . He grounds his inquiry in foundational principles drawn from natural science, including the hylomorphic composition of corruptible bodies from prime matter (hayula) and form (surah), the doctrine of the four primary elements (fire, air, water, and earth), and the role of innate heat (al-hararah al-ghariziyyah) as the proximate instrument of vital operations in organic bodies .
Contents and Structure
The treatise examines the faculties of the soul in ascending order, proceeding from physical and biological functions to perception and intellection:
- The Nutritive Faculty (al-Quwwah al-Ghadhiyah): Ibn Rushd classifies nutrition among the active powers (al-quwa al-fa'ilah), explaining how it transforms food from potential nourishment into the actual substance of the nourished organism .
- The Sensitive Faculty (al-Quwwah al-Hassasah): Treated as a passive power (quwwah munfa'ilah), sensation is analyzed through proximate and remote potentiality . Ibn Rushd details the external senses, identifying touch as the earliest and most essential sense for animal preservation, followed by taste, smell, hearing, and sight . He notes that the sensitive faculty receives sensible forms abstracted from their material dimensions, representing an initial stage of immaterial cognition .
- The Imaginative Faculty (al-Quwwah al-Mutakhayyilah): The text investigates the internal impressions retained by the common sense (al-hiss al-mushtarak) after external sensible objects are absent . Ibn Rushd demonstrates that this faculty is subject to generation and corruption and serves animal motion and appetite .
- The Rational Soul and Separability (Mabda' al-Mufaraqah): The work explores whether any part of the soul—particularly the rational faculty—can exist separately from material bodies, establishing criteria for identifying immaterial operations that could allow for separability .
Modern Editions and Studies
An Arabic edition of the treatise alongside a Spanish translation was prepared by Father Nemesio Morata based on manuscripts preserved in the El Escorial library, published in 1934 by the Institute of Arabic Studies in Madrid and Granada .
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