The Improvement of Human Reason: Exhibited in the Life of Hai Ebn YokdhanIbn Tufayl, Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Malik
Islamic
The Improvement of Human Reason: Exhibited in the Life of Hai Ebn Yokdhan
Ibn Tufayl, Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Malik
Islamic philosophy -- Early works to 1800
This is the account of his way of Philosophizing, the greatest part of
which is enigmatical and full of obscurity, and for that reason of no
use to any but such as thoroughly perceive and understand the matter
before, and then afterwards hear it from him again, or at least such as
are of an excellent Capacity, and can apprehend a thing from the least
intimation. The same Author says in his _Aljawahir_ [i.e. _The Jewels_]
that he had Books not fit to be communicated, but to such only as were
qualified to read them, and that in them he had laid down the _Naked
Truth_; but none of them ever came into _Spain_ that we know of: we have
indeed had Books which some have imagin'd to be those incommunicable
ones he speaks of, but 'tis a mistake, for those are _Almaareph
Alakliyah [Intellectual notices]_ and the _Alnaphchi walteswiyal
[Inflation and AEquation]_ and besides these, _a Collection of several
Questions_. But as for these, tho' there are some hints in them, yet
they contain nothing of particular use to the clearing of things, but
what you may meet with in his other Books. There are, 'tis true, in his
_Almeksad Alasna_, some things which are more profound than what we meet
with in the rest of his Books, but he expressly says, that that Book is
not _incommunicable_; from whence it follows, those Books which are come
to our hands are not those incommunicable ones which he means. Some have
fancy'd that there were some great matters contain'd in that Discourse
of his, which is at the end of his _Meschal_ [i.e. _Casement_] (which
Belief of theirs, has plung'd them into inextricable Difficulties) where
speaking of the several sorts of those who are kept from nearer
Approaches, by the Brightness of the radiation of the Divine light, and
then of those who had attain'd to the _UNION_, he says of these later,
_That they apprehended such Attributes to belong to the Divine Essence
as were destructive of its Unity_; from, whence it appear'd to them that
he believ'd a sort of Multiplicity in the Godhead, which is horrid
Blasphemy. Now I make no Question but that the worthy Doctor _Algazali_
was one of those which attain'd to the utmost degree of Happiness, and
to those heights which are proper _to_ those who enjoy the _UNION_; but
as for his secret or incommunicable Books, which contain the manner of
_Revelation_, they never came to my hands: and that pitch of knowledge
which I have attain'd to, is owing to his other works and to _Avicenna_,
which I read and compar'd with the Opinions of the present Philosophers,
till at length I came to the Knowledge of the Truth. At first indeed, by
way of Enquiry and Contemplation;but afterwards I came to have a perfect
sense, and then I found that I could say something which I could call my
own. Now I was resolv'd that you should be the first, to whom I would
Communicate what I knew about these matters, both upon the account of
the Intimacy of our Friendship, and your Candor and Integrity. Only
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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