At the Roots of Causality: Ontology and Aetiology in Avicenna and his Islamic Interpreters (XI – XIII c.)

[The Subject and the Aim of This Study]: The present study investigates the Avicennian doctrine of efficient causality, integrating two specific perspectives. The first is foundational: the work focuses on the premises of efficient causality, namely those notions and propositions that make it possible to conceive Avicennian efficient causes and establish their actual existence. The second perspective is progressive or forward-looking: the work considers Avicenna inasmuch as he represents the point of reference for subsequent Islamic authors and, conversely, on those authors inasmuch as they embody different receptions and interpretations of Avicenna’s heritage. The scope of the historical analysis is restricted to the early phase of post-Avicennian philosophy, namely the period which extends from the mid-eleventh to the mid-thirteenth century: from Bahmanyār ibn Marzubān (d.1066) to Naṣīr al- Dīn al-Ṭūsī (d.1274). The aim of the study is to present a detailed account of the debates concerning the doctrinal background of efficient causality, outlining the positions held by Avicenna and his interpreters, as well as the reasons behind those positions and the arguments that support them. This will highlight the thread that connects Avicenna’s general ontology to his aetiology, while at the same time presenting the challenges his positions face. Additionally, the work will provide insights into the relation between Avicenna and his interpreters, assessing both continuities and discontinuities.