Marife Turkish Journal of Religious Studies

Abstract

One is a commonly used concept in the language. It is considered one of the most general predication that the mind has, such as the concepts of "existence" and "thing". Therefore, it appears among the issues studied in metaphysics. In the history of philosophy, there are also philosophers and schools who do not see one as a concept, and who give it the highest level of existence and accept it as the real principle of all existences. In such systems, which also have an important sphere of influence, one is not only the supreme metaphysical principle, but also the supreme and first existent that gives unity to all beings, to each individual who is described as one. The one in this sense is given a privileged position similar to the god figure that appears in religions.In addition to these, one is also very closely related to the way of comprehending the world and the universe. Is the field of beings, that is, the universe, which also encompasses our individual being, a unified whole or a separate multiplicity? Is the universe a heap formed by the coming together of independent parts? If so, the disintegration of beings cannot go on indefinitely; this separation will stop when the indivisible singles that compose them are reached. Here, ones also form the boundary of existence. To these finite and limited ones, the One, which is a higher metaphysical principle, gives their unity. In this sense, a supreme being is both the supreme existent and the most fundamental principle that gives each individual his unity. In this case, the universe is a collection of finite and limited parts, in other words, ones. Here, since the universe consists of finite and limited ones, it passes into the appearance of a heap formed by the coming together of the discrete (munfasil). On the other hand, if the division of beings continues forever, the basic founding principle of existence cannot be one, since a limit at which this division stops cannot be considered. Seen from this point of view, one can always be an accident added to an existing thing. Here, the universe will be a unified whole, not a heap of discrete ones whose division terminates in indivisible ones; and the one will be a necessity accident that exists with every existent.Discussions of change and continuity in nature are also held in the shadow of the understanding of the one. Is it the unity in them that ensures the identical continuity in the changing entities? In this respect, behind different universe models and natural philosophies, there are conceptions of one, unity and multiplicity.It is not possible for us to understand the unity and multiplicity that we encounter in the texts of philosophers without considering the different meanings attributed to one and the background created by the understanding of existent and the universe emerging as an extension of these. These different approaches to the one are directly affect to the study of it. In this study, I tried to deal with Ibn Sīnā's analysis of the one in al-Shifā: Metaphysics. In the text, first of all, after mentioning the philosopher's approach to the one in itself and the highest reality and its difference from an understanding that we encounter in the works of both Aristotle and al-Kindī, I tried to focus on how he classifies one as an accident. By trying to explain the background of these classifications put forward by the philosopher, I tried to explain the meaning of each class within itself. In order to contribute to a better understanding of the issue I have examined, I have also made references to the approaches of Muslim Peripatetic philosophers such as al-Kindī and al-Fārābī. Based on these classifications, I eventually turned to creating a general scheme for the use of one, and then a hierarchical scheme. In the article, besides focusing on Ibn Sīnā's al-Shifā: Metaphysics, another aim was to present a perspective to more advanced studies by trying to capture the basic parameters of where one is positioned in the philosophical system of the philosopher.