Leibniz’s Monads and Mulla Sadra’s Hierarchy of Being: A Comparative Study

Mulla Sadra and Leibniz, the two philosophers from the East and the West, belong to two different worlds. Though they were unaware of the ideas of each other, their philosophical systems share certain common points that are comparable. Monads constitute the basis of Leibnizʹs thought and he refers to their features in his various works. On the other side, Mulla Sadraʹs philosophy is also based on being and he tries to deal with its reality in his philosophy. Though Leibnizʹs monads are many and Mulla Sadraʹs being is one, they use certain terms for monads and being which are very close to each other and are comparable from different points of view. Leibniz’s monads, while being many, are one as well. Similarly, Mulla Sadraʹs philoso-phy also enjoys multiplicity in unity. Leibnizʹs monads enjoy perception and Mulla Sadraʹs being likewise coexists with knowledge. This paper is an attempt to study being in Mulla Sadraʹs thought and monad in Leibnizʹs philosophy, and pinpoints the basic common grounds in these two philoso-phers.