Summary of Avicenna's Metaphysics

00:00:00 - 00:10:00

In this video, Avicenna discusses the concepts of possibility, impossibility, and necessity, and offers a proof for the existence of God. He argues that the world is a possible existent and that its essence neither prejudices us in favor of its existence nor is not existence. He then argues that the cause of the world is a necessary existence and that this cause is God. He concludes that because God is necessary in himself, all of his attributes, including generosity, are necessary. While there are some problems with Avicenna's argument, his influence is nonetheless widespread.

• 00:00:00 Avicenna's Metaphysics discusses the concepts of possibility, impossibility, and necessity, and offers a proof for the existence of God.
• 00:05:00 Avicenna argues that because every part of the clock is a physical object, the clock is a physical object. This implies that the set of all contingent entities is like that, which in turn implies that the entire set is contingent. He then argues that the world is a possible existent and that its essence neither prejudices us in favor of its existence nor is not existence. He then argues that the cause of the world is a necessary existence and that this cause is God. He concludes that because God is necessary in himself, all of his attributes, including generosity, are necessary.
• 00:10:00 Avicenna's Metaphysics attempts to prove the existence of God, but there are several problems with the argument. First, some possibilities could be realized just as brute facts, and there is no further explanation for that. Second, there are worries about whether the set of contingent things is itself contingent, and the internal structure of the set of contingent things is also questioned. Finally, causation can't be circular, and the Vasanas arguments trying to derive the divine attributes out of the notion of a necessary existent are weak. Avicenna's influence is spread throughout the Western and Muslim worlds, but he is mostly studied in Britain.