Formulation of the claim
Among the Mu’tazila, the heart is understood as the center of psychological states, not merely a bodily organ; it is the locus of will, love, and thought, and of what is connected to inward action in terms of feeling and intention.
Explanation
The idea appears in a formulation that brings together several functions attributed to the heart: will, love, and thought. This indicates that the heart is presented as the unifying site of what moves the human being from within, not as a term for an organ detached from psychological meaning.
Its place in the book’s argument
This idea falls within the discussion of how the Mu’tazila understand the human agent from within, that is, the center of orientation and choice and the psychological processes connected to it. It serves a broader picture of how theological thought links the inner structure of the individual to responsibility for actions.
What the atom does not say
This formulation does not provide a precise technical account of the Mu’tazila’s uses of the heart, nor does it explain the fine distinctions between the heart and the intellect in every context, nor does it expand on the philosophical or medical structure of this conception.