Shafaqna English- “Mullā Ṣadrā maintains that all beings glorify God through knowledge and awareness. According to his view, every being, at whatever level of existence it occupies and to whatever extent it partakes of existence, possesses a corresponding degree of knowledge and awareness of its Creator, and through that awareness glorifies Him,” Dr Saeid Sobhani expressed in the Annual Conference of the British Association for Islamic Studies.
According to Shafaqna, the Annual Conference of the British Association for Islamic Studies was held on 18–19 May at Aga Khan University, with the participation of scholars and academics from around the world.
At this conference, Dr Saeid Sobhani, from The Islamic College, presented Mullā Ṣadrā’s perspective on the glorification (tasbīḥ) of all creatures. He stated that one of the profound teachings of the Holy Qur’an is that the entire universe — from the depths of atoms to the vastness of galaxies — is engaged in the glorification of God.
Linguistically, tasbīḥ means declaring something free from all deficiency and imperfection. In other words, whenever a being is regarded as pure and transcendent beyond every flaw and shortcoming, this act is referred to as tasbīḥ.
The Qur’an describes the glorification of creation in various ways. At times, it presents tasbīḥ as a universal reality and states that all beings glorify God.
At other times, the Qur’an refers, either explicitly or implicitly, to the glorification of certain beings, stating that the angels continually glorify their Lord. The Qur’an also speaks of the glorification of birds, thunder, and mountains.
Accordingly, the entire cosmos is filled with the whisper of divine glorification, and every creature is engaged in praising God in its own way. However, the true nature of this glorification — and how mountains, birds, thunder, and, more generally, beings that appear to lack consciousness and perception glorify God — has remained a subject of diverse interpretations among Qur’anic exegetes and Muslim thinkers.
The First Interpretation
According to this view, the meaning of tasbīḥ is the ontological submission and obedience of all beings before the Divine command and will. In other words, the entire universe is in complete submission to the will of God and functions according to the laws and order that He has established. For example, the sun and the moon rise and set according to the precise order and laws determined by God.
Supporters of this theory cite Qur’anic verses that speak about the submission of all beings before the Divine will, including verse 11 of Sūrat Fuṣṣilat.
Based on this interpretation, the glorification of creatures is understood as a form of ontological glorification. That is, creatures do not verbally praise God through spoken language; rather, through their function and harmony with the cosmic order, they demonstrate their obedience to the Divine will. In other words, the glorification of creation is realized not through words and speech, but through complete submission and conformity to the Divine laws. Thus, the tasbīḥ of creatures is essentially their perfect obedience to the order and will of God.
The Second Interpretation
According to this view, the remarkable order, precision, and harmony found within every creature testify to the infinite knowledge, power, and wisdom of its Creator. Just as this order points to the existence of the Maker (Khāliq), it also bears witness, through the language of creation, that the Creator of the universe is All-Knowing, All-Powerful, and free from every form of weakness and ignorance.
These two theories ultimately return to a similar conclusion, since both interpret the glorification of creatures as a purely ontological form of glorification and do not attribute independent awareness or consciousness to creatures regarding their glorification.
However, many Qur’anic exegetes do not consider these two interpretations fully satisfactory. Firstly, both views regard the glorification of creatures as merely ontological and devoid of knowledge and awareness, whereas the Qur’an explicitly states that creatures are aware of their worship and glorification: “Each knows its prayer and its glorification.” (24:14)
Secondly, if tasbīḥ simply means the ontological obedience of the universe or the indication of cosmic order toward the knowledge and power of God, then such glorification would not be limited to any specific time. Human beings could perceive it whenever they reflect upon the order of creation. Yet the Qur’an describes the glorification of certain beings — such as the mountains — as occurring specifically in the morning and evening.
Therefore, although the universe is undoubtedly a clear sign of the existence and perfection of God, the glorification of creatures is a reality that goes beyond their merely serving as signs pointing to the existence of God.
The Third Interpretation
Mullā Ṣadrā maintains that all beings glorify God through knowledge and awareness. According to his view, every being, at whatever level of existence it occupies and to whatever extent it partakes of existence, possesses a corresponding degree of knowledge and awareness of its Creator, and through that awareness glorifies Him.
Ṣadr al-Dīn al-Shīrāzī explains this view on the basis of some of his major philosophical principles, particularly the doctrine of the fundamentality of existence (aṣālat al-wujūd). He regards the affirmation of consciousness and glorification throughout the whole cosmos — even within minerals and plants — as one of his own philosophical innovations. He also maintains that the glorification of all beings is “verbal” (qawlī), and in order to establish this claim, he offers a new interpretation of the meaning of “speech” (qawl) and “language” (kalām).
According to Mullā Ṣadrā, speech is not confined merely to sounds and words. Rather, it means the disclosure of inner realities and the communication of meaning to another, whether this transmission occurs through words or through non-verbal means.
From his perspective, existence at every level is accompanied by a form of knowledge, awareness, and perception. This argument is founded upon two principles:
Firstly, in the universe, the source of all effects and perfections is existence itself. Every form of knowledge, power, life, and motion proceeds from existence, whereas non-existence cannot be the source of qualities such as life, knowledge, and power.
Secondly, the reality of existence is one and the same throughout all levels of being — whether material or immaterial, necessary or contingent. The difference among beings lies only in the intensity and weakness of their existential degrees, not in the reality of existence itself. Accordingly, if knowledge and awareness are found at one level of existence, such as in human beings and other living creatures, then the root of this quality must also exist, in proportion to existential degree, throughout the remaining levels of being. Otherwise, either existence would not be the source of all perfections, or we would have to accept that existence consists of entirely separate and unrelated realities.
According to Mullā Ṣadrā, the reality of “speech” is not what most people commonly assume — namely, merely conveying meanings to others through sounds and words. Rather, whenever a speaker communicates an intended meaning to another by any means whatsoever, this act constitutes speech.
On this basis, anything that discloses inner realities and intentions may be regarded as “speech,” whether expressed verbally or non-verbally. For example, when defendants in a court encounter witnesses against them, fear and anxiety may overwhelm them, causing a visible change in their facial expressions. This alteration, which reveals their inner emotional state and hidden feelings, may itself be considered a form of non-verbal speech.
In summary, “speech” means the manifestation of what exists inwardly, whether through words or without them. Human beings generally communicate through conventional language and verbal expressions; however, speech is not limited to words alone. Rather, anything that reveals a meaning or intention may properly be regarded as speech.
Accordingly, Mullā Ṣadrā does not believe that the glorification of creatures resembles human speech through conventional language and words. Rather, every being, in accordance with its existential rank and degree of consciousness, glorifies God through its own particular mode of expression.