Ibn Rushd of Cordoba
Abu’l Waleed Muhammad Ibn Ahmad Ibn Muhammad Ibn Rushd, known as Averroes in the West, was born in 1126 in Cordoba, Spain.
Education
His grandfather was well versed in Fiqh (MaIiki School) and was also the Imam of the Jamia Mosque of Cordoba (Great Mosque of Cordoba). The young Ibn Rushd received his education in Cordoba and lived a quiet life, devoting most of his time to learned pursuits. He studied philosophy and law from Abu Jafar Haroon and from Ibn Baja; he also studied medicine.
Averroes rose to be chief qadi (judge) of Cordoba, an office also held by his grandfather (of the same name) under the Almoravids. After the death of the philosopher Ibn Tufayl, Averroes succeeded him as personal physician to the caliphs Abu Yaqub Yusuf in 1182 and his son Abu Yusuf Yaqub in 1184.
al-Mansur retained him for some time but soon Ibn Rushd’s views on theology and philosophy drew the Caliph’s wrath. All his books, barring strictly scientific ones, were burnt and he was banished to Lucena. However, as a result of intervention of several leading scholars he was forgiven after about four years and recalled to Morocco in 1198.
Astronomy
At the age of 25, Ibn Rushd conducted astronomical observations in Morocco, during which he discovered a previously unobserved star. He was also of the view that the Moon was opaque and obscure, and had some parts which were thicker than others, with the thicker parts receiving more light from the Sun than the thinner parts of the Moon. He also gave one of the first descriptions of sunspots.
In astronomy he wrote a treatise on the motion of the sphere, Kitab fi-Harakat al-Falak. He also summarized Almagest and divided it into two parts: description of the spheres, and movement of the spheres. This summary of the Almagest was translated from Arabic into Hebrew by Jacob Anatoli in 1231.
Medicine
Ibn Rushd also made remarkable contributions in medicine. In medicine his well-known book Kitab al-Kulyat fi al-Tibb was written before 1162 A.D. Its Latin translation was known as “Colliget”. The work composed of 7 books, concerning: anatomy, physiology, pathology, symptomatology, pharmacology, hygiene and therapeutics. In it, Ibn Rushd threw light on various aspects of medicine, including the diagnoses, cure and prevention of diseases and he made several original observations.
The Colliget was translated to Hebrew and Latin 90 years later and taught in Europe until the 18th century. This treaty is a summary of the medical science at that time and is subdivided into seven books:
1-Tashrih al-a’lda’ (“Anatomy of Qrgans”),
2- al-Sihha (“Health”),
3- al-Marad (“Sickness”),
4- al-’Alamat (“Symptoms”),
5- al-Adwiya wa ‘l-aghdhiya (“Drugs and Foods”),
6- Hifz al-sihha (“Hygiene”), and
7- Shifa al-amrad (“Therapy”)
Philosophy
In philosophy, his most important work Tuhafut al-Tuhafut was written in response to al-Ghazali’s work. Ibn Rushd was criticized by many Muslim scholars for this book, which, nevertheless, had a profound influence on European thought, at least until the beginning of modern philosophy and experimental science. His views on fate were that man is neither in full control of his destiny nor is it fully predetermined for him. He wrote three commentaries on the works of Aristotle, as these were known then through Arabic translations. The shortest Jami may be considered as a summary of the subject. The intermediate was Talkhis and the longest was the Tafsir. These three commentaries would seem to correspond to different stages in the education of pupils; the short one was meant for the beginners, then the intermediate for the students familiar with the subject, and finally the longest one for advanced studies. The longest commentary was, in fact, an original contribution as it was largely based on his analysis including interpretation of Quranic concepts.
In the field of music, Ibn Rushd wrote a commentary on Aristotle’s book De Anima. This book was translated into Latin by Mitchell the Scott.
Ibn Rushd has been held as one of the greatest thinkers and scientists of the l2th century. According to Philip Hitti, Ibn Rushd influenced Western thought from the l2th to the l6th centuries. His books were included in the syllabi of Paris and other universities till the advent of modern experimental sciences.
Death
on 11 December 1198 (9 Safar 595 in the Islamic calendar). He was initially buried in North Africa but his body was later moved to Cordoba for another funeral, at which future Sufi mystic and philosopher Ibn Arabi (1165–1240) was present.
