Note 419 — PART II THE DIVINE COMEDY COMPARED WITH OTHER MOSLEM LEGENDS ON THE AFTER-LIFE (continued 2)

Ibn Arabi admits, however, a certain trinity of relations as essential to Divine unity. The metaphysical reason of his opinion is to be found in the Pythagorean conception of the number three as being the origin of odd numbers (cf. Futuhat, III, 166, 228, 603). In Futuhat, II, 90, he applies the doctrine to theology and, in order to explain the origin and existence of the Cosmos, he establishes three Divine elements: the Essence, the Will, and the Word. In Dakhair, 42, he attempts to establish analogies between the Christian doctrine of the Trinity of Divine Persons and the trinity of Divine names as taught in the Koran—God, the Lord, and the Merciful.