Analysis of the Efficacy of Supplication from the Perspective of Mīr Dāmād, with Special Emphasis on His Theory of Divine Decree (Qaḍāʾ) and Determination (Qadar)

Safaei Asl, Mahdi

doi:10.22059/jcis.2026.417471.1490

Analysis of the Efficacy of Supplication from the Perspective of Mīr Dāmād, with Special Emphasis on His Theory of Divine Decree (Qaḍāʾ) and Determination (Qadar)

Articles in Press

Document Type : Scholary

Author

Mahdi Safaei Asl

University of Tehran

10.22059/jcis.2026.417471.1490

Abstract

Supplication (duʿāʾ) constitutes one of the most significant means through which human beings establish a relationship with God and is described in Islamic traditions as “the weapon of the believer.” Mīr Dāmād, a leading Peripatetic philosopher, addressed this subject in al-Qabasāt and Nibrās al-Ḍiyāʾ, seeking to resolve its philosophical challenges. Employing a descriptive-analytical method, this study examines whether supplication can alter Divine Decree and Divine Determination according to Mīr Dāmād, and identifies the conditions and impediments governing its efficacy. The findings demonstrate that Divine Decree is immutable because it pertains to Divine Knowledge and the Intelligible World, both exempt from change, whereas Divine Determination pertains to the material realm and may therefore be modified through supplication. Mīr Dāmād explains this efficacy through his distinctive cosmological framework, which distinguishes three ontological orders: Eternality (Sarmad), Perpetuity (Dahr), and Temporal Time (Zamān). He also interprets Badāʾ within this metaphysical structure. Furthermore, he identifies the individual's ontological preparedness as the fundamental condition for the acceptance of supplication, maintaining that God grants a person's request according to their existential capacity and preparedness, even when no verbal request is expressed.

Keywords

supplication

efficacy of supplication

Divine Decree

Divine Determination

Mīr Dāmād

Subjects