The Influence of Non-epistemic Factors on Knowledge in the Illuminative Philosophy

In his writings, Shahab ul-Ddin al-Suhravardi (Shaikh ul-Ishraq) emphasizes on extensive, deep and direct influence of the human’s act on knowledge. In his view, all of the stages of human’s knowledge are "intuitive" or "presential" (knowledge by presence) and are produced without mediation of imaginative forms. Such knowledge is directly under the influence of non-epistemic factors and specially human’s act. Human’s acts which are effective in human’s knowledge are divided in two general kinds: values and anti-values. Suhravardi has mentioned the most important nonepistemic factors and values. The aim of this article is proving the point that according to Suhravardi, the theoretical and practical aspects –as most important aspects of human existence and luminous nature of soul- are both two united dimensions which are not separable and have direct relations to each other, so that the influence of non-epistemic factors and values on human’s knowledge is more than theoretical and cognitive factors. Thus, a pure knowledge, i.e. a knowledge that don’t influenced by nonepistemic factors and values can’t lead in certainty alone without act, since knowledge is not a merely logical and epistemological fact, but is a stage and level of human existence or even is equal to it. Moreover, in this article I will try to introduce a process for the influence of non-epistemic factors and values on intuitive knowledge in Suhravardi’s thinking.