A Critical Analysis of the Role of Worship in Avicenna's Ten-Intellect System

Abstract

The concept of worship in Islamic philosophy has consistently been interpreted in light of broader discussions surrounding the soul, intellect, and human felicity. Within this framework, Avicenna (Ibn Sīnā), through his formulation of the system of ten intellects and his designation of the Active Intellect as the ultimate goal of human motion, presents a distinctive interpretation of worship. The aim of this study is to analyze the role of worship within Avicenna’s philosophical system and to critique it from the perspectives of Islamic philosophy, theology (kalām), and mysticism. The central research question is whether worship, as conceived by Avicenna, aligns with the monotheistic foundations and the direct experiential nature of devotional practice, or whether it has been reduced to an abstract, mediated, and non-intuitive concept within a rationalist philosophical framework. This study adopts an analytical–descriptive methodology and draws upon authentic philosophical, Qur’anic, and mystical sources to examine Avicenna’s theoretical foundations—namely, the Principle of the One (qāʿidat al-wāḥid), the hierarchy of intellects, and the role of the Active Intellect. The research offers a reinterpretation of the concept of worship within his system. The findings indicate that Avicenna does not interpret worship as a means of existential proximity to God, but rather as a rational connection to the Active Intellect. This interpretation proves incompatible with revelatory and mystical doctrines, as it shifts the ultimate aim of worship from servitude to the Divine to a relationship with a transcendent created entity. Consequently, Avicenna's approach to worship can be described as rationalist yet lacking in monotheistic depth.