They define a "perfect man" in their "Rasa'il" as "of East Persian derivation, of Arabic faith, of Iraqi, that is Babylonian, in education, Hebrew in astuteness, a disciple of Christ in conduct, as pious as a Syrian monk, a Greek in natural sciences, an Indian in the interpretation of mysteries and, above all a Sufi or a mystic in his whole spiritual outlook". There are debates on using this description and other materials of "Rasa'il" that could help with determination of the identity, affiliation (with Ismaili, Sufism, ...), and other characteristics of "Ikhwan al-Safa".