Abu Rayhan al-Biruni - An Enlightened Mind of History

Burhan-ul-Haq Abu Rayhan Muhammad Bin Ahmad Al-Biruni was called Al-Biruni from the beginning or later he became famous with this title? Mention and history books are silent about it. New investigations into his origins have cast doubt on the idea that he was born in a village on the outskirts of Khwarazm and that since he was not a special Khwarazm and the Khwarazm people called those living outside their city outsiders. Therefore, the ratio was also external. Al-Biruni was well versed in almost all the popular sciences of his time. His study was also deep and extensive. That is why he soon distinguished himself from his contemporaries in matters of mathematics, physiology, astronomy and wisdom. His famous book "Al-Athar al-Baqiyah an-Al-Qarun al-Khaliyah" which discusses the scholarly works of the past, etc., is the work of his young age.

Nature created Al-Biruni for research in the field of definitive sciences.

His intellectual and empirical efforts in the field of mathematics and mathematical sciences are immense. Geometry, Geodesy, Minerals, Botany, Anthropology There is no field of science that he has not been interested in and about which he has not written anything. His philosophical insights are undeniable. Interestingly, his insights were rooted in religion, and he used them to reflect on some important issues. Intuitive and deductive research methods of mathematical sciences and empirical and inductive methods of reasoning of the natural and natural sciences, we find in Alberoni's research and writings where the subject matter is needed, and that is why modern research principles in modern times. The scholars who use Al-Biruni find themselves very close to themselves.

Another important point that people lose interest in is that Al-Biruni's view on the issue of whether the earth is moving or the sun was wise and prudent. A learned scholar is cautious in his opinion in matters of science, which cannot be proved, he neither admits nor denies, this is the attitude of Al-Biruni regarding the issue of whether the earth is moving or the sun. He has also mentioned it in Kitab-ul-Hind. And also in Isti'ab where he has written about Astrallab Zorqi. In Isaiah he writes:

Abu Sa'id al-Sanjari had made a great astral lab, the process of which I liked very much and I admired Abu Sa'id very much because the principles on which he based his declaration recognize the dynamic of the planet. I swear to God that this conspiracy is in such a state of doubt that it is very difficult to resolve and it is very difficult to refute it. Engineers and scholars will be very upset in response to this conspiracy.

If Europeans were familiar with Al-Biruni's views on the earthly movement, they might not have considered Ptolemy's position to be the last word, and long before Copernicus, it would have been proved that the earth, not the sky, is moving. Reflecting on the philosophy of a philosopher has opened the door to skepticism on this issue and has hollowed out the basis of the belief which has been the belief of physicists for centuries.

Al-Biruni was neither a philosopher in the style of a Muslim philosopher nor a philosopher in the style of a theologian, yet we can call him a philosopher because he has had philosophical discussions on the existence of the universe and metaphysical matters. The question and answer he received from Ibn Sina testify to the fact that he did not believe in the tradition of Masha's philosophy, did not consider the world to be ancient, and Aristotle's objection to the adherents of the theory of partiality. I thought it was wrong.

Aristotle also had this objection as to why he denies the existence of a world which is separate from this world when there are so many arguments for the possibility of this world and the arguments against it should be rejected. Can The fact is that the arguments for its existence take precedence over the arguments for its non-existence. Al-Biruni's writings on history, geography, and physiology also contain scientific and historical discussions, as well as his views on philosophy, cosmology, and metaphysics. In Kitab-ul-Hind, where he has described the beliefs and ideas of the Hindus, we often find his own metaphysical and philosophical ideas and interpretations along with the commentary on these beliefs and ideas.

In the rest of the works, his discussions regarding the uniformity and stability of nature in the periods of human history and the laws of nature give a good idea of ​​his insight and scientific contemplation.

"While he is a firm believer in the strength of the laws of nature, he is also aware of the colorful nature of the natural world and the complex and insoluble state of his mind. There are those who seem to be out of the realm of possibility and whose causes often cause the human intellect to fail. "

Alberoni also translated two Sanskrit books, Sank and Patanjali, into Arabic. His keen interest in metaphysical and spiritual problems is evident, the subject matter of the Sank is tangible and rational beings, and the principles of the liberation of the soul from the bondage of the body are explained in Patanjali.

Al-Biruni was a Muslim, and in some of his writings, the Qur'anic verses as a witness to the truth and the argument of the definitive argument are given in such a way that it is known that these verses were revealed to him on occasion. It also shows that his study of the Qur'an and other sciences was profound and he was second to none in understanding the Qur'an. His faith in God, His Messenger and the Hereafter was strong. Some of the prominent phrases in the preface of Qanun Masoodi make it clear that they are not merely for the sake of phraseology but for the voice of a true Muslim drowning in pain from the depths of his heart. He writes:

"Blessed is he who, by the help of God, has become virtuous, and by His grace has become one with his contemporaries and his contemporaries. How could the news of it reach the far corners of the world if Allah had not shown the dominance of His Messenger and the believers? He raised his remembrance, revealed his religion through you, and exalted his word and command. Then, after the messenger, God made others the caliph of that light which cannot be extinguished by blows, nor by tongues and lips. Denial can be invalid. "

Isn't it amazing that such a brilliant and eloquent scholar as Al-Biorni, who spent his entire life in high-level scientific research and scientific pursuits, never for a moment became skeptical and never expressed his belief? Did not hesitate In the first paragraph of the chapter which mentions Hindu scriptures and certain rituals in Kitab-ul-Hind, he declares:

"Glory be to Him Who creates with wisdom and keeps improving the affairs of creation."

It is true that he quotes from the writings of Abu Bakr al-Razi and his attitude towards it is also sympathetic, but contrary to al-Razi's view of the universe, as is evident from a comparative study of his geology and civilizations, And there is a deep connection between the ancient and the never-ending praise. This is not to say that there is no difference between Al-Biruni's faith and science. Rather, the fact is that the source of his scholarly research stems from faith in God, and that his roots in research are rooted in his religious beliefs. It is clear from his discussion of Hadith Alam in "Tahdid" that he does not forget God even for a moment during his investigation.

Al-Biruni was not one of those claimants of knowledge and wisdom who insisted on binding religion to human reason. He was well aware of the limits of human intellect. In the history of Islam, when the battle of intellect and religion had started, there was a lot of speculation regarding divine issues and all these were in his sight but he used his God-given intelligence. Karr came to the conclusion that the religion of God could not be contrary to reason, although he was not convinced that the human mind was always on the straight path. His belief was that the human intellect should be subject to the affairs of God and if ever there are signs which are not in accordance with our understanding, then these signs should not be denied. That is why he is opposed to the extremist enlightenment and unbridled rationalism of philosophers like Al-Razi, as well as to those who, on the basis of ignorance, prejudice and narrow-mindedness, exclude one or the other religious aspect of science and philosophy. 

Al-Biruni was also a historian, he was a historian who studied civilizations and their establishments, and in this regard, his Minhaj research could not be said to be inferior to the principles of contemporary research. He was not an imitator of the art of historiography of his time, he was a mujtahid. With a wealth of inventiveness and creativity, the study was extraordinarily wide and deep. In an age when books were not printed in large numbers, scholarly journals did not exist and the information that was available had great difficulty in moving from one place to another. And if Minhajat had unique thinking in research, then we start thinking that maybe the theory of great personality is correct, that is, in every age, there must be an exceptional personality who with his extraordinary intelligence and strong will to turn things around. Gives and leaves a lasting impression of his personality on his promise. There are examples of such personalities in the world of science and in this respect, Al-Biruni was undoubtedly a genius.

Only a historian with a good knowledge of geography is considered good. Al-Biruni was aware of this secret and had a high level of geographical knowledge. He does not in any way sever his relationship with events and facts and uses great clarity and perfect caution in his statements but he also understands well that the position of both history and science is that he deviates from events and facts. Look no further. Because nothing can be understood just by looking at the events. They need to be interpreted.

Al-Biruni believed that history is more than a continuum of events and that real history is a history of ideas and intentions. A study of the book Al-Hind reveals the same fact about Al-Biruni's conception of history. It is also clear from his writings that he believed that the beliefs, religious customs and cultural characteristics of the people of India could not be described in-depth and truthfully unless their philosophy and ideology of life were well understood. Not understood

We do not find in all the Muslim geographers and writers on the subject of nations and peoples before Al-Biruni the universality, depth, purpose and formality which we find in this Khwarizmi world. Kitab-ul-Hind not only shows that its author was interested in knowing the conditions and beliefs of the people of India, but it also shows that it was not his hobby or hobby and his curiosity for curiosity. In fact, he wanted to establish a relationship with a culture that was very different and contradictory to his own and that of his fellow religions, so that the two could easily understand each other. It says:

The teacher wanted to record what we have learned about the Hindus so that those who want to discuss and debate with them may be helped and those who We have written it in such a way that it does not attribute any statement to any party which is not his and not from copying his word if He is opposed to the truth and the people of truth find it difficult to listen to him. What he has avoided is the belief of this party and he is well aware of his belief.

Al-Biruni insisted on the need for observation and experimentation at every stage of the acquisition of knowledge and research art, and did not, like a true scientist, consider those who imitate tradition without criticism and scrutiny worthy of attention. He was against separatism and said that all religions are one in the level of their universal truths. Truth is for Allah, Allah keeps it steadfast.

Abu Rayhan al-Biruni was a reasonable scientist who never fell into the folly of applying the principles of experimental science to the field of religion and the humanities. In this regard, his theory of knowledge was of great importance. His theory of knowledge was that different forms of knowledge go through stages of gradual evolution, but the basic knowledge, the source of which is divine revelation, is devoid of change.

Whenever he wrote on science, he took care to state the history of their evolution first. He is the founder of the comparative study of the history of religions and religions. In a sense, he also laid the foundation of the history of science. But it has never, under any circumstances, abandoned the unchanging knowledge from the womb of which all human sciences are born and continue to determine the paths of evolution by going through stages of regression and addition.

Al-Biruni's accomplishments in the world of science have been the focus of much public attention, and it is often overlooked that he is the only person in his time, and perhaps in the entire history of Islam, to have the discipline of a comparative study of religions. Gave a new direction and went far beyond its predecessors in this field of knowledge.

Before mentioning Al-Biruni's distinguishing features in this regard, it seems appropriate to thank the German Orientalist Edward Sakhau for his generous gratitude for his two controversial works, Athar al-Baqiya and Kitab al-Hind. Edited and published, as well as English and German translations.

The Urdu translation of Kitab-ul-Hind, published by Anjuman-e-Tarqi Urdu-Hind in 1941, also sought the help of Sakhao's English translation, but as far as we know, the rest of the works have not been translated into Urdu yet. Al-Biruni mentions his method of research in the preface of the rest of the archeology and since this method of research is fundamental in the comparative study of cultures and religions, and for this reason, we call it the founder of this discipline. It must be mentioned. He did not have a good opinion of most of his predecessors in this field, but he believed that if the correct method of research was adopted, the beliefs and rules of other religions could be stated impartially. It is our good fortune that in both of his books mentioned above he has shed light on his method of research, he writes:

One of the writers asked me about the nature of the history of different nations (Sunan) and the reason for the differences in their doctrines. Are based, what are they, besides what were the reasons that caused this difference, as well as what are the famous festivals and fairs, memorable days, specific times and rituals etc. which are common in different nations, insisted Mr. Explain these matters in such a way that they become clear to the reader and he does not need to refer to various books and previous authors. I knew that this is a very difficult and difficult task to achieve. "Especially for a person who wants to write these things in a way that leaves no doubt in the heart of the reader."

The best explanation of these issues is to know the newspapers and traditions of the past nations, as most of them shed light on the rest of their religious and secular customs. It cannot be achieved by speculating on feelings, but by being aware of the common and correct ideas of the People of the Book and the Companions of Allah and Arbab-e-Millal and considering them on their own basis instead of on the basis of this information. I must compare their different views and opinions. "

"But first of all, it is obligatory to rid oneself of the disorders and causes which blind most people from seeing the truth, such as habitual malfeasance, prejudice and zeal for conquest, selfishness, the pursuit of the goal, and so on. I am mentioning that this is the best way to get the Gohar Maqsood and to get rid of the doubts and doubts about it. It is not easy to follow the rules and procedures that we have set, but because of the isolation and difficulty, it is suspected that it is impossible to reach them.

The reason is that all the falsehoods have entered into all the newspapers and traditions and apparently these things are not even known from the impossibility that they can be easily identified and removed. However, we have considered traditions and newspapers as possible and have accepted them as authentic traditions. Provided they are invalidated by other evidence. Because we ourselves see such things in natural conditions and people before us have seen such things again and again that if there was any tradition like theirs in the past, we would say that it is impossible. Other than that, human life cannot be enough to know the newspapers of one nation, so how can it be that it is impossible to know the newspapers of all nations in many nations.

"When this state of affairs prevails, it is incumbent upon us to take the lesser things from the nearest things and the lesser things from the more known things, and correct them as much as possible. Transmit the traditions to those who As far as traditions are concerned, try to correct and correct them as much as possible and leave the rest to their own devices so that our practice gives the seeker of truth and the lover of wisdom an opportunity to investigate other subjects and discover these matters. What we did not know. We did it with God's help. "

Al-Biruni's method of research was comparative, comparative study of religions may be easy for a person who is not a follower of any of the existing religions, but this was not the case with Al-Biruni, that religion was a follower of Islam, and we saw that In the preface of Qanun Masudi, he openly declared his faith in God and His Messenger, then the environment in which he was living, the atmosphere of orthodoxy in the religion, the atmosphere of Sultan Mahmud's triumphant enthusiasm. Yes, he knew that his books would be read in the general atmosphere of this orthodoxy. In his study, however, he uses complete impartiality and absolute objectivity and does not allow the shadow of prejudice to fall anywhere. Can be done From this point of view, even today, among the researchers of this field of knowledge, one can seldom find anyone who has the neutrality and objectivity of Al-Biruni. Along with this, this happiness was a special divine gift.

This genius of ours knew many languages, such as Sanadi and Khwarizmi (two forms of Persian), Arabic, Hebrew, Syriac and Sanskrit. Had learned Greek philosophy from its Arabic translation. He did not read it directly in Greek, but Al-Biruni learned Sanskrit with great difficulty, despite his lexical and grammatical difficulties with the Sanskrit language and the hostile attitude of the people of India. He used books directly on the philosophy, knowledge and beliefs and customs of the people of India.

In the first chapter of Kitab-ul-Hind, he has described in detail all the difficulties and obstacles which he encountered while learning the Sanskrit language and using Hindu books. Undoubtedly, it was his immense patience and perseverance and his unwavering willpower that overcame the difficulties of this path.

Adapted from the book: Al-Biruni and the Geography of the World