Was it because some motive supervened which it had not before? But there was nothing besides him, the Creator.

Was it, then, owing to some change in his own nature? If so, what has caused this change?

Thus he did not cease to consider these things within himself for some years, and to ponder over its different bearings; and a great many arguments offered themselves on both sides, so that neither of those opinions preponderated in his judgment over the other.

Hayy Concludes That The World Must Have A Creator Without Bodily Substance

Since it seemed difficult to him to make a definite decision on this question, he began to consider within himself what would be the necessary consequence which did follow from either of those opinions, and that they might both be alike. And he perceived that, if he supposed the world to be created in time, and to have had an existence after non-existence, it would necessarily follow therefrom that the world could not come forth into existence by its own power, but required some agent to produce it; but this agent could not be perceived by any of the senses; for if it were an object of the senses, it would be body, and if body, part of the world, and would have had its existence anew; so that it would have stood in need of some other cause which should have produced it anew. And if this second creator were also a body, he would depend upon a third, and that third upon a fourth, and so on ad infinitum, which, however, would be absurd and irrational.

The world, therefore, must necessarily have a creator that has not a bodily substance ; and as the creator is, indeed, without such a bodily substance, it is quite impossible for us to apprehend him by any ot our senses ; for we perceive nothing by the help of the five senses but bodies or such qualities as adhere to bodies.

And since it cannot be apprehended by sense, neither can it be comprehended by imagination. For imagination is nothing else but a representation of the forms of things, when their bodily objects are absent. And seeing it is not a body, we must not attribute to him any bodily properties, the first of which is extension into length, breadth, thickness; but he is free from that, and also from all other properties of body that flow from it. And seeing he is the Creator of the world, doubtless he knows whatsoever is in it, and has the sovereign command over it. "Shall not he know, that created it? For he is most eminent in knowledge and omniscient." (Koran.)

On the other side he saw that if he believed in the eternity of the world, and that it was ever as it is now, and that no time of chaos preceded it, that necessarily it would follow that motion was from eternity also, without any period of beginning, because there could be no rest before it whence to take its beginning.

Now, every motion necessarily requires a mover, and that mover is either some power diffused in some body, to wit, either in the body of the thing moved or else through some other body without it, or else some other power that is not diffused or dispersed through anything at all.

Now every power diffused in any body and dispersed through it, is divided or doubled. For example: gravity in a stone which causes it to move downwards. For if the stone be divided into two parts, the gravity is also divided into two parts; and if you add thereto another stone of equal weight, the gravity is doubled. And if it were possible that the stone grew ad infinitum, the gravity would also grow ad infinitum. On the other hand, if the stone should grow to a certain size and remain there, also the gravity would increase to the same extent, and no farther.

Now it has already been demonstrated that every body must necessarily be finite, and consequently every power inherent in a body is also finite. If, therefore, we can find a power which produces an infinite effect, it must needs be such a power that is not inherent in any body.

Now we find that the heaven is moved with a perpetual motion, without any cessation at all.

Therefore, if we affirm that its motion has no beginning, it necessarily follows that the power that moves is not inherent in its own body nor in any other body that is without it; but proceeds from something altogether abstract from bodies, and which can be described by no terms applicable to bodies.

Then it was evident to him, from his former contemplation of the lower world which is liable to generation and corruption, that the true essence of body consisted in its form, which is its disposition to various motions, but that that part of its essence which consisted in matter was very mean and poor, and can scarcely be conceived. Therefore the existence of the whole world consists in its disposition to be moved by this Mover, who is free of all matter and of all adjuncts belonging to the body, abstracted from everything which senses can apprehend or imagination can reach.

And since he is the efficient cause of the motion of the heaven, in which (though there be different kinds) there is no difference, no innovation or cessation, doubtless he has power over it and a perfect knowledge of it.

Thus His Contemplation Brought Him To The Same Conclusion To Which He Had Arrived Before

Nor did it trouble him in any way that he doubted the eternity of the world and its existence anew. For either way it was manifest to him that the Creator of the world was no body nor joined to body nor separated therefrom. For conjunction and separation, to be within and without, are the qualities of bodies, from which the Creator is quite free. And because every body stands in need of a form to be added to their matter, considering it cannot subsist but by that, nor exist without it, but by this voluntary Agent, it appeared to him that all things owed their existence to this Agent; and that none of them could subsist but through him; and consequently this Agent was the cause of them all, and they the effects, whether they were newly created after non-existence or whether they had no beginning with respect of time, without any privation foregoing it.

For upon either of these two cases their existence depended, for they could not continue, unless he continued, nor exist unless he existed, nor be eternal without his being eternal; but he stood not in any need of them nor in any way depended upon them.

And how should it be otherwise, considering it has been demonstrated that its power and virtue is infinite, whereas all bodies are finite and terminated and equally whatsoever adhereth unto them or dependeth upon them; therefore that the whole world, and whatsoever is in it, heaven, earth or stars, and whatsoever belongs to them, above or beneath them, is all his work and creation and consequently posterior to him in nature though not in time. As if you take any body in your hand and then move your hand, the body must necessarily follow the motion of your hand with a motion which is posterior to the motion of the hand in nature, though not in time, seeing both motions began together.

So all this world is created and caused by this Agent out of time, whose command is, when he would have anything done: Let it be, and it is.

Hayy Admires The Work Of The Creator

Now, when he saw that all things existing were the work of the Creator, he again considered the power of the same, greatly admiring so rare a workmanship, such accurate wisdom and profound knowledge.

There appeared to him in the most minute creatures (much more in the greater) such signs of wisdom and marvels of the work of creation that his mind was filled with the greatest admiration. Then he became assured that all these things must proceed from a voluntary Agent of infinite perfection, even above all perfection, to whom even the weight of an atom could not be unknown whether in heaven or earth, nor any other thing whether lesser or greater than it.

Thereupon he considered all the different sorts of animals, and how this Agent had given to every one of them such a fabric of body and then taught them what use to make thereof. For if he had not taught them to use the members he had given them for those employments for which they were designed, they would not have derived any benefit or advantage therefrom, but on the contrary would rather have found them a burden.

Hence he knew that he was most bountiful and most gracious of all. And then, when he perceived among the creatures anything that had beauty, perfection, power and strength, or whatever other excellency it had, he concluded that it must necessarily proceed from that voluntary Agent, from his existence and by his operation.

He knew that the qualities that were in him were much greater, more perfect, more absolute, more bountiful, more excellent and more lasting; and there was no comparison between those things that were in him and those that were found in the animals.

Nor did he cease to go on with his search till he had run through all the attributes of perfection, and found that they were all in the Agent and proceeded from him, and that he was worthy of them more than any to whom they should be ascribed.

Also he searched all the attributes of defects, and saw him free from them and void of them. And how was it possible for him to be otherwise, since the notion of imperfection is nothing but mere privation or what depends upon it.

How should he in any degree partake of privation, who is a most simple being, the very essence himself, and giving a being to everything that exists, and besides whom there is no existence. For He is the Existence, He is the Absolute, He is the Perfection, He is the Beauty, He is the Glory, He is the Power, He is the Knowledge, He is He, and all Things perish beside Him. (Koran.)