OJPPOpen Journal of Philosophy2163-9434Scientific Research Publishing10.4236/ojpp.2014.41004OJPP-42511ArticlesSocial Sciences&Humanities Individual Essences in Avicenna’s Metaphysics uhammadKamal1*Asia Institute, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia* E-mail:muhammad@unimelb.edu.au2601201404011621October 14th, 2013November 14th, 2013 November 21st, 2013© Copyright 2014 by authors and Scientific Research Publishing Inc. 2014This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution International License (CC BY). http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Central to Aristotle’s metaphysics is the question of individuality. The individuality of each substance is explained in relation to “matter” because the “form” is universal. Avicenna, as one of the Aristotelian Neoplatonist philosophers, is not content with this explanation and proposes to establish individuality on other grounds. In this paper, I argue that in his perspective it is not the “matter” which determines individuality but rather the principle of existence.

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