Disciplining the soul according to Ibn Miskawayh and Al-Ghazali

Islamic philosophers discussed the change of morality, the maturation and the purification of the bad aspects of man under the name of exquisite manners. In this context, our study constitutes the views of Ibn Miskawayh, one of the most important philosophers of Islamic moral philosophy, and Al- Ghazali's exquisite manners. Ibn Miskeveyh is a philosopher representing the Mashshai tradition and systematically deals with moral issues. Al- Ghazali is one of the pioneers of theological-Sufi tradition. We aim to examine the similar and different aspects of these two philosophers' views on exquisite manners.İbn Miskawayh, who thinks that the soul should be trained in order to mature without submitting to the wishes, has been influenced mostly by the Greek Philosophers. Particularyly he focused on virtues and psychological illnesses. Al-Ghazali accepts that exquisite manners are possible. In this regard, we have found that he made royalties between traditional morality and mystical morality. He gave priority to heart cleaning and self-purification As a result, we have found that both of our thinkers had similar aspects in moral understanding and self-discipline. This study will make important contributions to the discussions of psychology in the history of Islamic moral philosophy.