A Philosophical Explanation of the Luminous Veils (Ḥujub‑i Nūrī) Based on the Principles of Transcendent Theosophy (Ḥikmat‑i Mutaʿāliyah)

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Assistant Professor, Department of Philosophy and Islamic Theosophy, Faculty of Theology and Islamic Studies, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran.

2 M.A. Student in Islamic Philosophy and theosophy, Shahid Motahari University, Women's Campus, Mashhad, Iran.

Abstract

Luminous veil (ḥijāb‑i nūrānī) is among the enigmatic terms in Islamic mysticism, which has also been employed in transmitted religious texts (mutūn‑i māʾthūr‑i dīnī). Despite accepting this term and believing in the existence of luminous veils at the higher stages of spiritual wayfaring (sulūk)—veils that are immaterial (mujarrad az māddah)—Ṣadr al‑Mutāʾallihīn [Mullā Ṣadrā], in agreement with other Islamic philosophers, holds that the concept of veil (ḥijāb) is exclusively confined to material things. The present research attempts to explain, through a philosophical approach, how a veil can exist in immaterial beings. In this direction, after a lexical and terminological examination of the word "veil" (ḥijāb), and through the discovery and analysis of those fundamental principles of Transcendent Theosophy (Ḥikmat‑i Mutaʿāliyah) that play a role in explaining this issue—such as the absence of a decisive boundary between the immaterial and the material, as well as the adherence to the theory of the "spirit of meaning" (rūḥ‑i maʿnā), which is fully compatible with Ṣadrian principles—a negative (ʿadamī) yet comprehensive definition of veil is offered that can apply to both material and immaterial, or luminous and dark, instances. Subsequently, with attention to Ṣadrian principles, an existential (wujūdī) interpretation of "luminous veils" (ḥujub‑i nūrī) is also presented, namely, "the intensity of manifestation and effulgence of divine perfections" (shiddat‑i ẓuhūr wa tajallī‑yi kamālāt‑i ilāhī). Furthermore, the research findings indicate that through a precise explanation of Ṣadrian ontological foundations, the possibility of the existence of veils in immaterial realms can be proven in such a way that it does not conflict at all with the philosophical view that confines the concept of veil to material things.

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Theology Journal
Volume 12, Issue 23 - Serial Number 23
January 2026
Pages 103-124

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