Renewing the Metaphysics of the Soul between Greek and Islamic Philosophy ( Al-Farabi as a model )

Abstract

This research seeks to renew the concept of the "metaphysics of the soul" through an evolutionary study that preserves its epistemological foundations while presenting it from a contemporary philosophical perspective. The first section traces its Greek origins, beginning with Socrates’ concept of the "care of the soul," followed by Plato’s dualism, Aristotle’s hylomorphism, and Plotinus’s emanationism, which viewed the soul as a mediator between the material and the divine. The second section examines Al-Farabi’s innovative synthesis of Greek philosophy and Islamic doctrine. His originality is reflected in the theory of connection, which argues that the soul’s immortality and happiness depend on its ascent from potentiality to actuality through union with the Active Intellect. The study concludes that, for Al-Farabi, the soul is not merely the body’s animating principle but an entity that achieves perfection through knowledge, intellectual development, and existential elevation.