The Question of “Self Knowledge (ma\u27rifat an-nafs) in Islam: Mortazā Motahharī\u27s Theory of the Perfect Man(ensān-e kāmel)

Mortazā Motahharī (1920-79), who was actively writing and lecturing in 1960s and 70s Iran, is well known as an ideologue of the Islamic Revolution in Iran in 1979. In this paper I introduce his ethical thought, in which self-knowledge (ma\u27rifat an-nafs) is regarded as the ultimate goal of Islamic ethics and knowing God is taken for granted as its very base. Motahharī discusses the aforementioned issue through his profound knowledge concerning modern Western philosophy. At the same time, he keenly recognized the malaise observed in Iranian society at that time, so he never discussed the issues in an atemporal way that disregarded historical conditions. Lastly, his argument could be used as a stepping-stone for considering somewhat more general issues concerning modern society (e.g. excessively materialistic tendencies) outside of Iranian space