This research provides a comparative analysis of the views of Maurice Merleau-Ponty, a French phenomenologist, and Sadr al-Din Muhammad ibn Ibrahim al-Shirazi (Mulla Sadra), the founder of Transcendent Philosophy, concerning sensory perception. Both philosophers share a significant common ground by moving beyond traditional mind-body dualisms and emphasizing the central role of the body/self in understanding sensory perception. However, this research argues that their fundamental philosophical frameworks – existential phenomenology focused on the lived body and the pre-reflective lifeworld in Merleau-Ponty, and Transcendent Philosophy with its emphasis on the modal unity of existence (wahdat-e tashkiki), the levels of the soul (nafs), and the transcendent goal of knowledge in Mulla Sadra – lead to profound differences in explaining the nature, origin, and telos of sensory perception. Merleau-Ponty considers perception a foundational mode of being-in-the-world and the immediate encounter of the lived body with the sensible world, whereas Mulla Sadra regards sensory perception as the lowest level in the soul's journey of perfection towards the abstract realms and ultimately, the intuitive apprehension of intellectual realities through connection with the Active Intellect. This article, while highlighting these differences and commonalities, contributes to the richness of cross-cultural dialogue in philosophy.