Islamic Philosophy and the Problem of Evil; a Philosophical Theodicy

Essential and Accidental Evil

One may plausibly wonder whether, according to TNNE, beings have any role in the realization of evils. The answer can be affirmative in the sense that we may call some beings "evil" in as much as they bring about the reality of certain evils. In order to distinguish this sense from the non-existential (negative) meaning, Muslim philosophers typically call the former "accidental evil" (al-shar al-bithat) and the latter "essential evil" (al-shar al-bilaradh).

It is helpful to note that "accidental" here should be taken to mean "figuratively" or "metaphorically".13 So, we may admit that some beings could be called "evil" so far as they actually cause some sorts of nonexistence and privation.