Ibn Sina’s Practical Philosophy

This article is a brief review of Ibn S?n?‘s practical philosophy. It begins with a discussion of the Platonic, Aristotelian, and Neo-Platonic influences on Ibn S?n?‘s practical philosophy, as well as the influence of F?r?b? and of Islamic religious teachings. The creative synthesis invented by Ibn S?n? requires a particular view of the relation between religion and philosophy in such a manner that religion shapes the direction of philosophical inquiry, and philosophy opens the way to a more profound and esoteric understanding of religion.