Mīr Ḥusayn Maybudī’s Thoughts Between Philosophy and Sufism

Mīr Ḥusayn Maybudī (d. 909/1504) was one of the most distinguished philosophers of Iran at the cusp of the Safavid period. In his writings, Maybudī constantly refers to the views of the ‘Sufis’ to which he has clear inclination. In a passage in his commentary on the Dīvān attributed to ʿAlī b. Abī Ṭālib, Maybudī credits the philosophers (ḥukamāʾ) for developing practical philosophy, mathematics and a major part of physics, yet he suggests that it was the ‘Sufis’ who came up with better ideas in metaphysics and even some aspects of physics. Therefore, those who are interested in metaphysics in particular should study the works of the ‘Sufis’. They were simply the masters of metaphysics and their theory is more expanded and advanced. This paper is going to explain whom Maybudī refers to by the ‘Sufis’ and who among his teachers could possibly have acquainted him with their teachings. Finally it examines those aspects of metaphysics and physics that Maybudī actually adopted from those ‘Sufis’.