Abstract

Peripatetics use the terms "necessary existent" and "first principle" to define God on the basis of dividing existents into necessary and possible. They also state that the chain of the possible existents leads up to a non-caused cause. According to Peripatetics, there is no way to learn about the nature of God and the most which can be done is to perceive God via terms such as "necessary existent" and "first principle".Still, they emphasize, that this very perception cannot and should not make us think of a quiddity in this connection for all quiddities need a cause.Avicenna says that existence in God cannot be the same as existence in other beings for the latter is much less in intensity; God's necessity of existence, he maintains, is the same as its intensity and that forms the reality of the Almighty's nature.On the use of demonstrations to prove God's existence, Avicenna believes that demonstrations as such are either a priori or a posteriori; since God has no cause, the a priori demon stration which begins with a cause to find an effect does not work here.As for the a posteriori demonstrations, he can be credited with one that expounds on essence to prove the existence of God.Based on Avicenna's demonstration, an existent if necessary is self subsistent and if possible ends up in the necessary existent, and any other option leads to a vicious circle which is out of the question.