Mulla Sadra’s Anthropology – with an Emphasis Upon the Perfect Man SEYYED MOHSEN MIRI Al-Mustafa International University, Iran, smmiri@yahoo.com ABSTRACT: Mulla Sadra, the great Islamic philosopher who founded a new philosophical school called Transcendent Wisdom, held his own specific views on anthropology in general and upon the perfect man in particular. By reviewing the general principles of his school, the present essay discusses Mulla Sadra’s perspective on the perfect man and his characteristics from various aspects. KEYWORDS: Mulla Sadra, anthropology, perfect man, the four intellectual journeys Introduction As we know, Mulla Sadra gathered different perspectives within his comprehensive philosophy and had his own unique viewpoints on a variety of philosophical problems, including the creation of the soul. With regard to the human soul, Mulla Sadra believed that it was corporeal in the beginning, but gradually becomes abstract and free of matter by passing through various states – from solid to vegetable, from vegetable to animal and from animal to human – while retaining the same identity throughout all its various transformations. Mulla Sadra held that human beings are of two aspects: physical and spiritual. Through bringing their speculative and practical faculties to perfection, while following an ascetic path to purify their hearts, they can attain a station of perfection