Existence is the most obvious thing: You have never doubted that things exist. You know the chair is there, the sun is there, you are there. To doubt existence, you must exist to do the doubting. Wujud (existence, being) is the most self-evident concept of all — because it is the ground on which every other concept stands.
Existence is also the most mysterious thing: Yet if someone asks you, "What IS existence?" — no philosopher in 2,500 years of human thought has produced a complete answer. As Ibn Sina said in Al-Shifa': "Existence is known to everyone — and unknown to everyone at the same time." You are already inside it, so you cannot step outside it to look at it.
Why existence cannot be defined: In Mantiq we learned that to define a thing, you give its genus and its differentia — for example, "human" is "animal" (genus) plus "rational" (differentia). But what is the genus of existence? There is no wider category that contains existence — existence contains everything. And what differentiates existence from non-existence? The only answer is "existence itself" — and the definition goes in a circle.
A primary intelligible: So Wujud is a Ma'qul Awwali — a Primary Intelligible. It is grasped directly by the intellect, not through any definition. As Allamah Tabataba'i wrote in Bidayat al-Hikmah: "Existence is the clearest concept to the mind — and the most resistant to formal definition — precisely because it underlies all other concepts." You already know what existence is — because you ARE.
Two ways of existing: Everything that exists, exists in one of two modes, and both are real. Wujud Dhihni (mental existence) is existence in the mind: when you think of fire, fire exists in your mind — but your mind does not burn. Wujud Khariji (external existence) is real existence in the world: when actual fire burns, your hand really burns. The concept of a unicorn exists mentally; the sun exists externally. Allah is the most perfect Wujud Khariji — the source of all external existence.
Example
Think of the number seven. It exists in your mind — you can count with it, do sums with it. But you cannot find "seven" lying on a table, and it has no weight or colour. Now think of the cup on your table. It exists both in your mind and outside it — you can pick it up, and it has weight. Both kinds of existing are real, but they are very different kinds of real.
Key Terms
- Wujud (وجود) — existence, being; the fact that something is
- Ma'qul Awwali (معقول اولی) — a Primary Intelligible; a concept grasped directly by the intellect, not by definition
- Wujud Dhihni (وجود ذہنی) — mental existence; existence in the mind
- Wujud Khariji (وجود خارجی) — external existence; real existence in the world outside the mind
Quran or Hadith
None used in this topic.
Fresh diagram to be drawn: A picture split in two: on the left, a head with a small flame drawn inside it, labelled "Wujud Dhihni — fire in the mind, no burning"; on the right, a real flame burning wood, labelled "Wujud Khariji — real fire, real burning".
- Wujud is the most self-evident concept — to doubt existence, you must exist to doubt.
- Wujud cannot be defined, because no wider category contains it; it is a Ma'qul Awwali, grasped directly by the intellect.
- Things exist in two modes: mentally (Dhihni) and externally (Khariji), and both are real.