Romance and reason : Islamic Transformations of the Classical Past 9780691181844, 0691181845

Table of contents :
Romance and reason : Islamic transformations of the classical past / Samuel Thrope, Raquel Ukeles --
The Alexander romance / Julia Rubanovich --
Picturing the archetypal king: Iskandar in Islamic painting / Rachel Milstein --
Islamic medicine : refractions of the classical past / Leigh Chipman --
Mathematics, astronomy, and astrology / Y. Tzvi Langermann --
Rationalizing the divine : Greek philosophy in the Islamic world / Steven Harvey.

Citation preview

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own hard-won and much loved manuscripts. A man who

We hope that Romance and Reason, both in its por¬

lived and worked in the midst of a conversation among

trayal of the cultural dialogue between ancient Greece

cultures—in the religiously and culturally diverse Jeru¬

and medieval Islam and in its presentation of this

salem of the late nineteenth century, as ajewish scholar of

central aspect of Islamic art and culture to a twenty-first-

Islam and Judaism, and as a public intellectual in Europe,

century American audience, can fulfill, even if only in

the Middle East, and America—Yahuda also worked to

part, Yahuda’s vision.

further understanding between them. Toward the end of his life, Yahuda and his wife, Ethel, imagined estab¬

Fig. 1-4. Alai’s Book of Pleasures (Nuzhatnamah-yi Alai). Folios 57

lishing an Arab-Jewish research center in Jerusalem; his

verso, 58 recto: Black Lead Associated with Saturn; Lead Associat¬

personal manuscript collection would have served as its

ed with Jupiter and Iron Associated with Mars. Author: Shahrmardan ibn Abi al-Khayri. Ink and color, with gold on thick cream

centerpiece. His untimely death in 1951, however, meant this lofty goal never became a reality.

20

paper, Shiraz and Tabriz, November 17, 1526. NYPL: Spencer Pers. Ms 50. Checklist no. 59.

Transformations, Preservations,

to be revised as well. The Greek intellectual project that

and Classical Pasts

began with Pythagoras, Galen, and Euclid continued until the Islamic conquest in 650 ce and afterward. This

With Yahuda’s multiple identities and cultural affilia¬

is true not only in the sense that ancient manuscripts

tions in mind, we can turn to one of the central concerns

continued to be copied and commented upon right up to

of the exhibition and this catalogue. The issue at hand

the moment before Hunayn walked into a scriptorium

might best be raised as a question: What does trans¬

in a monastery in Alexandria or into a private library in

formations mean in the exhibition’s subtitle, Islamic

Damascus, though the history of the manuscript as an

Transjormations of the Classical Past?

object is also central to this story. As mentioned, ancient

To begin with, “transformation” is a conscious and

Greek thought continued to engage scholars throughout

pointed substitute for the earlier notion of “preservation.”

the Hellenized world, and classical discoveries, theories,

In previous European scholarship, and still today in

and legends were reshaped in the light of other tradi¬

some quarters of the popular imagination, Arabic trans¬

tions and local innovations.

lators like Hunayn ibn Ishaq had a clear (if unconscious)

The contributions to this catalogue develop and

goal: preserving the Greek classics during Europe's dark

underscore these points, adding depth and breadth to

ages until Galen, Aristotle, Plato, and Euclid could be

the items collected here. As Leigh Chipman points out

repatriated during the Renaissance. In this concep¬

in her essay on Islamic medicine, at various points in

tion, the Islamic engagement with Greek culture was of

history Hippocrates and Galen vied for primacy with

secondary importance to a more lofty cultural project,

Indian and Chinese medical theories. The former won

namely protecting and shepherding the kernel of classi¬

the day, in part, because of the flexibility of the Hippo¬

cal civilization to its home in the West.

cratic theory of humors. As the beautifully illustrated

Romance and Reason aims to show how the

manuscripts of the Arabic recension of Dioscorides’ De

Islamic engagement with the classical intellectual her¬

materia medica (first translated by our own Hunayn)

itage—in translation, commentary, integration, and

show, Greek medicine in its Islamic guise was flexible

full-throated debate—was in no way passive or deriv¬

enough to incorporate newly discovered medicinal

ative. Islamic thinkers actively expanded, and even

plants and minerals from the far-flung corners of the

argued with, the body of Greek knowledge that trans¬

Islamic world. Just as important is Chipman’s point that,

lators including Hunayn had first rendered into Arabic.

while most of the history of scholarship has focused

Hunayn's younger contemporary Abu Bakr Razi, a

on Islamic medicine as it progressed up to the reintro¬

pioneering philosopher and physician who died in 925,

duction of the medical tradition to Europe during the

could already write a book entitled Doubts on Galen

Renaissance, after the sixteenth century Islamic medi¬

(Al-shukuk 'ala Jalinus) that criticized the ancient physi¬

cine continued to develop in Turkish and Persian.

cian’s theory of the four humors. Moreover, that active

The same insights come to the fore in Tzvi Langer-

engagement was not unified, but multiple, changeable,

mann’s essay on the exact sciences. Geometry, both as

and diverse—truly “transformations” rather than a sin¬

a purely theoretical discipline and as a prelude to astro¬

gular "transformation.”

nomical observation, was almost entirely dependent on,

If the earlier notion of Islamic preservation of the

and continued to elaborate, the Greek tradition. Nasir

classical heritage has been debunked, the exhibition

al-Din Tusi, a leading Persian astronomer of the thir¬

also aims to make a more subtle point that has been

teenth century, composed a highly influential recension

intimated above. As the contributors to this catalogue,

of Ptolemy’s Almagest,

all leading scholars in their fields, make clear in their

drian’s model of planetary motion that remained the

essays, just what we mean by “classical past” might have

standard until Kepler. As Langermann writes, Tusi’s

the second-century Alexan¬

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synthesis and reworking represented a crucial advance

sion to Islam, the visual representation of Alexander's

in the field.

story reflected the conquerors' desire to become, and

In contrast to the unadulterated classical lineage of

be taken for, a legitimate local dynasty. Alexander, the

Islamic geometry, however, computational mathematics,

Greek who became ruler of all of Asia, had a particular

observational astronomy, astrology, and alchemy, like

resonance for the Mongols, themselves warriors from a

medicine, owed a wider cultural debt. The preparation of

distant corner of the known world who became its kings.

astronomical tables, the zij, depended on and continued

In later periods, in contrast, the Alexander cycle was

earlier Babylonian, Indian, and Iranian observational

often not illustrated at all.

traditions. Indeed, the mathematical legacy inherited

Julia Rubanovich’s essay on the Islamic Alexander

by Islamic scholars was itself already a hybrid science,

Romance both provides a survey of the diverse sources of

thanks, again, to the Hellenistic encounter between

the classical Persian renditions of Alexander’s story and

Greek and ancient Babylonian civilizations in the wake

discusses how various medieval poets framed Alexan¬

of Alexander the Great’s conquests. Islamic thinkers

der’s character and the legends surrounding his exploits.

such as Tusi and his fifteenth-century colleague Ghi-

In delving into the origins of the epic retellings of Alex¬

yath al-Din Jamshid al-Kashi expanded this work not

ander’s story—by Firdausi, Nizami, Abd al-Rahman

only theoretically but through observation. As Lan-

Nur al-Din Jami, and Dihlavi—Rubanovich precisely

germann points out, al-Kashi improved and developed

illustrates how multiple traditions contributed to the

astronomical instruments at the court ot Ulugh Beg in

Islamic engagement with the Greek world: the contem¬

Samarqand, and Tusi, with the patronage of the Mon¬

poraneous Greek histories; later Greek, Syriac, and other

gol emperors, constructed an observatory at Maragha,

versions of the Alexander Romance; Zoroastrian Persian

located near the contemporary Iranian city of Tabriz.

demonizations of the Macedonian conqueror; Qur anic

The Maragha observatory attracted scientists from

references to "The Two-Horned One,” taken to be Alex¬

throughout the Islamic world and even as far as China,

ander; as well as oral versions and other literary streams

an example of cultural synthesis that is far more com¬

contributed to the later works. However, as Rubanovich

plex and rich than the binary model of Greek-Islamic

shows, the poets were not slaves to these or other sources.

intellectual transfer would suggest.

Adding and subtracting from the menu of types and epi¬

This point is borne out artistically as well. A six¬

sodes available to them, Islamic writers painted distinct

teenth-century Ottoman Turkish handbook on twelve

portraits of Alexander the Great: as adventurer, as lover,

major scientific fields (fi ;

as king, as prophet, and as philosopher.

includes illustrations

depicting the twelve signs of the zodiac and the planets.

Philosophy is probably the best-known domain

However, here the familiar figures of Venus and Mars

in which Islamic thinkers engaged and contributed

are depicted with many arms, like Hindu gods, but in

to the classical tradition. Some of the leading Islamic

Chinese costumes: Venus’s four hands bear gifts, and

philosophers have been mentioned already, and other

Mars holds a severed head in one hand and brandishes a

illustrious names could be added to that list. It may be

sword in his other three.

a surprise, then, that philosophical manuscripts only

The artistic tradition of illustrating the Islamic

play a small role in Romance and Reason. This is, in part,

Alexander Romance is likewise diverse and, just as

because Islamic philosophy is relatively well-known, but

importantly, reflects changes in politics and culture.

primarily because the lack of illustrated philosophical

As Rachel Milstein discusses in her contribution, the

manuscripts complicated the selection of examples that

tradition of painting Alexander the Great goes back to

would engage the general public. The curatorial team

the Ilkhanid period in the thirteenth century. During

has attempted to ameliorate the absence of philosoph¬

this period of Mongol rule, even before their conver¬

ical texts by displaying scenes that portray Iskandar as

A

participating in philosophical disquisitions with, among

transformations, multiple, changing, even ongoing—

others, Aristotle and Plato, key philosophical figures

and richer for it.

that greatly influenced later Islamic philosophy. Steven

Harvey’s

contribution

to

these pages

Gutas 1998,179.

is therefore all the more crucial, as it constitutes an

Ukeles 2017.

in-depth study of the Islamic philosophical world that

Yahuda to Chester Beatty, July 13, 1928, National Library of Israel Archives, MS. VAR. Yah 38.217: Beatty A. Chester,

could not be presented in the gallery space. He provides

1927-42; cited in Ukeles 2017, 8.

a brief history of Islamic philosophy, focusing on its key figures and the centrality of Aristotle to their work. For those more familiar with the European philosophical canon, it should come as no surprise that Aristotle, first among philosophers, provides the strong intellec¬ tual trunk from which Islamic thinkers branched out and developed. Harvey's essay provides an important balance to what has come before in another way. As he discusses, logical reasoning and methods also pro¬ vided the “rules of the game” for intellectuals like the mutakallimun, the scholastic theologians who argued for the truth of revealed religion on rational grounds, and even for mystics like al-Ghazali, who rejected phi¬ losophy as such. However, philosophy was not without its dangers. If the exhibition’s title, Romance and Rea¬ son: Islamic Transformations of the Classical Past, might at first blush seem to chronicle a happy meeting or mul¬ ticultural fusion, Harvey reminds us that sometimes the price paid by those who identified strongly with the classical past and its intellectual models could be high; the stakes were real. He points to the example of Averroes, the illustrious physician and philosopher of thirteenth-century Andalusia, who was imprisoned for his writings, and to the statement of his contemporary Ibn Sa’id al-Andalusi, who wrote: “In Spain, philosophy is an abhorred field of inquiry that cannot be pursued openly by its adherents, who, for the same reason, must keep their works hidden." A long gulf, thus, separates Hunayn ibn Ishaq, the manuscript hunter whose mission was sanctioned (and funded) by the Abbassid powers that be and Ibn Said's depiction of philosophy as abhorred in medieval Spain. But that is exactly the point: the Islamic encounter, adoption, confrontation, and synthesis with the classi¬ cal past is not linear or binary in any sense. It is precisely

2-

■'

TWO

The Alexander Romance Julia Rubanovich

•- •

From History to Fiction:

formed into a legendary, almost mythic figure, largely

Unraveling the Strands of the

devoid of historical fact. The rich and multihued medi¬

Persian Alexander Tradition

eval Perso-Islamic Alexander tradition reflects this metamorphosis.

In 334

bce

Alexander, son of Philip of Macedonia

and Queen Olympias, led Macedonian forces against

Alexander in the Zoroastrian Tradition

the Achaemenid Empire to avenge the devastation of Greek sacred places perpetrated by Xerxes (r. 486-465 bce)

in 480

bce

(fig. 2-1), After three battles—at the

Granicus (May 334

Issus (November 333

By the time the Sasanian dynasty (r. 224-651

ce)

took

control over Greater Iran, with the Zoroastrian priest¬

bce),

hood gaining a firm foothold in matters of the empire,

Persians were

the figure of Alexander had emerged as Iran's archenemy

vanquished. The last Achaemenian king, Darius III,

and the "accursed” (gizistag) uprooter of the Zoroastrian

subsequently fled to the east of his empire, where he was

faith. According to Zoroastrian narrative, Alexander

assassinated by a group of conspirators headed by the

the Roman (or the Byzantine),3 instigated by Ahriman,

bce),

and Gaugamela (October 331

bce)—the

satrap of Bactria, Bessus, in 330

bce.

In the same year,

Alexander set fire to the palaces of Persepolis, the major ceremonial and administrative center of the Achaemenid Empire. The event, a strategic and political decision on Alexander’s part, was imbued with great symbolic import: for the Macedonians, it signaled the end of the punitive campaign against the Persians, while for the lat¬ ter it implied the end of their imperial tradition.1 Alexander was no doubt attracted by the concept of Persian kingship, with its emphasis on divine elec¬ tion, world domination, and imperial splendor. His honoring of Cyrus the Great, the execution of Bessus according to Persian custom, his assumption of Persian court ceremonies, and so forth, although instigated mostly for pragmatic reasons and in response to the exi¬ gencies of the hour, attest nevertheless to his absolute claim to personal autocracy by his self-representation as the universal ruler of Asia, and not as an heir of the Achaemenid kingdom alone.2 Notwithstanding the pro-Iranian steps of the Macedonian conqueror, Alexander’s subjugation of Iran scars the Iranian collective memory to this day. At the same time, with the advent of Islam, new components of the Alexander narrative came to the fore; rooted first and foremost in the Greek Alexander Romance and in Islamic exegetical literature, they represented him in a generally agreeable light. Thus, over the centuries, the

Fig. 2-1. Alexander the Great. Marble, Africa (?), 100 bce-100 ce.

historical Alexander has become fictionalized, trans¬

TBM: 54.162. Checklist no. 1.

27

the Evil Spirit, slayed the last Iranian ruler (or instigated

It was most probably compiled in the third century

his assassination); murdered the Iranian aristocracy and

CE

priests; destroyed fire temples and quenched the sacral

Hellenized Egyptian, and spuriously attributed in

fires; demolished cities; burnt the Avesta, the sacred

some medieval European manuscripts to Alexander’s

book of Zoroastrianism; divided the Persian Empire

historian, Callisthenes (executed in 327

into minor principalities, and more.4

its alternative title Pseudo-Callisthenes? The Pseudo-

Although there

in Alexandria by an anonymous author, likely a

Callisthenes

instance, Alexander’s destruction of cities or fire temples

Alexander's exploits bordering on the legendary and

might echo the plundering and partial destruction of

the fantastic. Among its various sources, which merged

Persepolis5—the majority of the allegations originated

into a single whole and became the thematic backbone

in the ideological and historical context of the Sasanian

of all subsequent versions of the Alexander Romance,

and early Muslim periods. The sixth century was a time

are a novella about Alexander’s birth from the Pharaoh

when a semiofficial written account of "Iranian National

Nectanebo; an exchange of correspondence between

History," known by the general name the Book of Lords

Alexander and Darius; the "Letter to Aristotle about

(Xwaday namag), took shape. Based mainly on oral tra¬

India,” which depicts Alexander’s encounters with fab¬

dition and compiled through the lens of the Sasanian

ulous creatures; the account of his meeting with the

dynasty, it strove to encompass the mythic, legendary,

Naked Philosophers; a novella about Alexander’s visit

and contemporaneous history of Iran, highlighting at the

to Queen Candace, and more.10 Since

the

a

chain

semi-historical

hence

is a kernel of truth to some of the accusations—for

same time the legitimacy of the Sasanians. The "Iranian

offers

bce),

narrative

of transmission

has

of

many

National History" added ballast to Alexander’s negative

omissions, reconstruction of the ways by which the

image by anachronistically associating him with Rum,

Pseudo-Callisthenes entered the Islamic domain remains

which during the Sasanian period signified the Byzan¬

hypothetical. Without describing the problematics,11 it

tine Empire, the Sasanians’ staunch enemy to the west.

should suffice to say that, although a lost Middle Persian

The accusation that Alexander plundered and torched

(Pahlavi) translation of the work existed, it was the Syr¬

sacred writings must have arisen from Zoroastrian

iac version of the Greek Alexander Romance, executed in

efforts to place themselves on an equal footing with Bud¬

the early seventh century, that gave rise to several Ara¬

dhists, Christians, Manichaeans, and, later on, Muslims

bic translations (presumably in the late eighth—early

too, with regard to possessing a revealed written book.6

ninth centuries).12 These Arabic translations must have

The forging of a narrative about the early written tradi¬

incorporated two additional Syriac texts, both of an

tion of the Avesta, severed by Alexander’s misdeed, was

apocalyptic nature: the Syriac Alexander Legend, com¬

intended to blur the reality of the centuries-old oral

posed in about 629-30

transmission of the sacred canon, which was arranged

Homily (known also as the Song of Alexander), composed

and written down only considerably later, probably in the

probably between 630 and 640 but falsely ascribed to

fourth century, possibly under Shahpur II (r. 309—79).7

Jacob of Serug (d. 521).13 The former spawned the stories

ce,

and the Syriac Alexander

of Alexander’s journeys to the ends of the earth and his The Greek Alexander Romance;

building the rampart against Gog and Magog, whereas

Its Transmission and Transformation in

the latter gave rise to the narrative of Alexander’s wan¬

the Islamic Perso-Arabic Domain

derings in the Land of Darkness and his failure to find the Water of Life. The supreme importance of these two

The prodigious, diversified, and multilingual Alexan¬

Syriac texts for the Alexander tradition on Islamic soil

der tradition, customarily referred to as the Alexander

lies in their contribution to the perception of Alexander

Romance, originates in the Greek Alexander Romanced

as a prophet (see discussion below).

28

Sometime in the eighth or ninth century, these

mentioned in the Qur’an (18:83—97) (f

. Dhu

composite Arabic translations must have been incor¬

al-Qarnayn is usually identified with Alexander the

porated into an Arabic translation-cum-reworking of a

Great—Iskandar al-Rumi—who was sent by God to

version or versions of the Book oj Lords, which in turn

subdue the peoples of the world, calling them to the

was rendered into New Persian (no longer extant) no

monotheistic faith.15 The status of Dhu al-Qarnayn in

later than the first half of the tenth century.14 It was in

exegetical literature, however, always remained con¬

all probability during this translational period that the

troversial: while some exegetes conceded that he was

Zoroastrian antagonistic narrative became supplanted

a prophet, albeit sent “without a revelation” (ghayr

by the favorable view of Alexander, leaving, however,

mursal), others confined his status to that of “a pious

some of its tincture behind.

servant” (al-'abd al-salih) of God and a virtuous ruler.

Two fundamental adaptive developments accom¬ panied the infiltration of the Pseudo-Callisthenes into

The Iranization of Alexander's

character,

by

granting him Iranian lineage, must have sprung from

the Islamic Perso-Arabic domain: the figure of Alexan¬ der underwent Islamization and Iranization, Alexander's Islamization was facilitated through

Fig. 2-2. Qur’an. Folios 200 verso, 201 recto: Qur’an Verse Refer¬ ring to "The Two-Horned One" (Surat al-Kabf [The Cave], 18:86).

exegetic activity revolving around the mysterious fig¬

Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper, Iran, early 16th century.

ure of Dhu al-Qarnayn (“The Two-Horned One”)

NLI: Ms. Yah. Ar. 910. Checklist no. 4.

Iskandar’s half-brother.16 Their kinship is revealed only later, during their strife. Germane to making the Iranian version of Alex¬ ander’s birth was an earlier endeavor to appropriate the victor in the Greek Alexander Romance, where Alexander is said to have descended from the union of Nectanebo, an Egyptian pharaoh disguised as a magician, and Queen Olympias, Philip’s wife (fig. 2-3).17 Although the historical account of Alexander’s descent from Philip and, to a much lesser extent, the Egyptian version of his origin continued to circulate in the Islamic world, the Iranian account of Alexander’s conception gained the widest dissemination, becoming a prevalent and almost authoritative narrative.18 At the same time, even after an overtly positive perception of Alexander had become ingrained in Islamic culture, the residue of belligerent Zoroastrian attitudes could be found in Firdausi’s Shahnamak: whereas the chapter devoted to Iskandar’s reign, based on the Pseudo-Callisthenes, recognizes him as a legiti¬ the concept of the legitimate continuity of rulership

mate Iranian king, the sections of the poem dealing

characteristic of pre-Islamic and early Islamic Iranian

with the Sasanian sovereigns contain references to

history. Iranian rulers ascended the throne in orderly

Iskandar as their zealous foe, and he is mentioned in

succession within the royal family and as such were

the same breath as the most bitter enemies of Iran.19

invested with “divine grace” (Jarr) and thus legitimized. In order to ensure this continuity and mitigate the

Alexander in Medieval Persian Literature20

painful memory of Alexander’s conquest, the story of Alexander/Iskandar’s Iranian parentage had to be con¬

The Alexander material pervades all genres of medieval

cocted. According to the narrative, best reflected in Abu

Persian literature. Chronologically, the first coherent

al-Qasim Firdausi’s version (ca. 940—1019 or 1025),

Persian version of the Alexander Romance, or Book

Iskandar was born of the abruptly terminated mar¬

of Alexander (Iskandarnamah), is a lengthy chapter

riage of Darius/Darab, vaguely identified with one of

on Iskandar in the Shahnamah of Firdausi. Firdausi’s

the Achaemenid kings, to Nahid, daughter of the Qay-

version established Alexander's transformation in the

sar of Rum, Philip/Filqus. During the nuptials, Darab

Persian domain into a metahistorical, semi-mythical

smelled his newlywed’s bad breath, which instantly

figure, and it amalgamated sources and influences that

made her repugnant to him. Darab sent Nahid back to

would inform most medieval Persian texts devoted to

her father, without knowing that she was pregnant with

Iskandar after Firdausi.

his offspring. In the meantime, Darab begets Dara,

Firdausi’s Iskandar is Darab s son and Dara’s half-

loosely identified with Darius III, who thus emerges as

brother, and he legitimately takes the throne of Iran after the latter’s death. The narrative is saturated with

Fig.

2-3.

Bust of Alexander. Copper alloy, Egypt,

MMA: 08.202.52. Checklist no. 3.

30

150 bce-200 ce.

Islamic motif clusters, such as Iskandar’s pilgrimage to the Ka’ba or his erection of the Wall against Gog and

Magog, At the same time, Iskandar’s conquests lack a

philosopher-king to monotheistic prophet, is singular in

sense of purpose and are driven by insatiable curiosity,

the Perso-Arabic domain.

turning the hero into a kind of idle peregrinator rather

The two later poems. The Alexandrian Mirror

than a determined world conqueror. Through a number

(A’ inah-yi Iskandari), completed in 1299/1300 by Amir

of key episodes, such as his encounters with Qaydafah,

Khusraw Dihlavi (1253-1325) and The Alexandrian

queen of Andalus, and with Faghfur, the ruler of Chin

Book of Wisdom (Kbiradnamab-yi Iskandari), completed

(fig. 2-4), Firdausi accentuates the hero’s imperfections.

ca. 1485 by Abd al-Rahman Nur al-Din Jami, were

A substantially different treatment of Iskandar

written in response to Nizami’s Book oj Alexander. The

is found in the two-part Book oj Alexander of Nizami

Iskandar of Amir Khusraw Dihlavi is first and foremost

Ganjavi (1141-1209), which comprises the last poem of

an explorer and an adventurer. He guides Aristotle in

his Quintet (Khamsa). The first part is generally referred

inventing an astrolabe, and explores the depth of the

to as the Book of Glory (Sharajnamab) and the second

ocean in a glass bell. This Iskandar is interested in phil¬

as the Book of Fortune (Iqbalnamab). Here, Iskandar is

osophical knowledge of an applied, practical kind, while

transformed into an accomplished conqueror, whose

ancient philosophy as a tool of independent reasoning is

conquests are propelled by the desire to bring justice to

condemned, Jami surrounds his protagonist with Greek

the oppressed rather than to dominate the world. Niza¬

philosophers who teach, guide, and counsel him from

mi’s Iskandar is unaffected by Iranian sensibilities; the

childhood to death. Their wise advice comes in the form

poet prefers the historical version of Iskandar's birth

of seven Books of Wisdom whose contents, though,

from Philip/Filqus, labeling all other accounts “nonsen¬

are not Greek philosophy but Sufi tenets and ideals.

sical talk.’’21 Whereas the plot of the Book oj Glory follows

Iskandar serves as a mouthpiece for Jami’s own ethical,

the course of Iskandar’s campaigns throughout the

religious, and ascetic concepts.

world, the Book of Fortune is loosely structured around

Despite the different perceptions of Iskandar in

discrete tales and parables, each demonstrating some

the works mentioned above, there exists a rather stable

moral, ethical, or philosophical issue. In accordance with

inventory of salient episodes that also figure prominently

Nizami’s dynamic conception of the character, Iskandar,

in the Persian illustrative tradition of the Alexander

after achieving perfect philosophical knowledge, moves

Romance. The survey below offers a synoptic summary

to the ultimate stage of development, that of monothe¬

of some of the major episodes, with an emphasis on their

istic prophet. While following Iskandar's identification

modifications and reinterpretations (or lack thereof)

with the Qur anic Dhu al-Qarnayn, Nizami transforms

from one text to another, thus showing the mechanisms

the conventional framework of the Dhu al-Qarnayn nar¬

of “variation within continuity.” Due to limited space, I

rative. Thus, Iskandar goes on his mission equipped with

refer only to the textual sources introduced above, illus¬

the three Books of Wisdom (khiradnamabs) presented to

trations from which also appear in the catalogue.

him by Aristotle, Plato, and Socrates. Contrary to usual depictions of Dhu al-Qarnayn's converting infidels by

A Survey of the Principal Episodes in the

the sword, Nizami’s hero is peaceful and his missionary

Medieval Persian Alexander Tradition

activity is not emphasized. Toward the end of the nar¬ rative in the Book of Fortune, after Iskandar’s encounter

Iskandar, Dara, and Iskandar’s Conquest of Iran22

with an ideal community where no ruler exists and peo¬ ple are prosperous, just, and equal (discussed in detail

The episode of the strife between Iskandar and Dara

below), he abandons his prophetic mission as unneces¬

in most medieval Persian texts is significantly drama¬

sary. Nizami’s triple and dynamic concept of the hero,

tized as a result of their kinship. Most of the Persian

depicting his gradual evolution from world conqueror to

versions narrate that when Filqus, Iskandar’s grandfa-

**

*'

a

-

" ,

■. _

>

sSpUfLyUj

^A j’it'ii/ji >}' j

’•

'

LLSifb^}J>

Fig. 2-4. Khamsa. Folio 241 recto: Iskandar and the Khaqan of Chin Feast and Drink Together. Author: Nizami Ganjavi. Ink,

Fig. 2-5 (opposite). Khamsa. Iskandar Attends the Dying Dara

opaque watercolor, and gold on paper, Shiraz, ca. 1585. MLM:

Author: Nizami Ganjavi. Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on

MS. M.470. Checklist no. 24.

paper, Iran, 17th century. TBM: 34,5996. Checklist no. 9.

32

f

ther, dies, Iskandar, now the ruler of Rum, ceases to pay a traditional tribute to Dara, who has inherited Darab's throne, thus opening the door to the strife. Iskandar has the upper hand in their ensuing three battles, and finally the Iranian capital of Istakhr falls.2" In anticipation of Iskandar’s victory, Dara’s two counselors—Mahyar and Janushyar—conspire against the king and plunge a dag¬ ger into his chest. They then inform Iskandar of their deed, hoping to win a reward. Iskandar, overwhelmed with rage and sorrow, orders them detained and hurries to his dying half-brother.24 The scene of Iskandar comforting the dying Dara is by far the most commonly illustrated of all the Alexan¬ der episodes, and its iconography follows the text quite closely.25 Iskandar dismounts and lays the wounded man's head on his thigh; he removes Dara’s crown from his head and untangles his heavy breastplate (figs. 2-5, 2-6). He begs Dara to hold on while he brings him the best doctors of India and Rum, and he promises to restore him to his Iranian throne and to punish the con¬ spirators. After Dara breathes his last, Iskandar buries him according to Persian custom in a splendid tomb (dakhmah), hangs Mahyar and Janushyar on the gallows in front of the tomb, and has them stoned to death (fig. 2-7,). He then ascends to the throne of Iran.26 While in the Shahnamah Iskandar’s conquest of Iran concludes with his marriage to Rawshanak (fig. 2-8), Nizami inserts before that episode a chapter on Iskandar’s destruction of the Zoroastrian fire temples (atash-kadah) (see fig. 3-10).27 Depicting the iniquitous nature of the fire temples, the narrator reports how Iskandar extinguished sacred fires, burnt the Zoroastrian scriptures, and expropriated temple treasuries to ensure the spread of "the proper faith” (din-i durust),28 As a result, “Everybody found protection in the Abrahamic faith, / and turned their backs on [worshipping] the Moon and the Sun.”29 Of interest here is the trans¬ mutation undergone by the Zoroastrian criticism of Alexander’s figure in the Perso-Islamic domain, and Fig. 2-6. Shahnamah. Recto: Iskandar Comforts the Dying Data. Author: Abu al-Qasim Firdausi. Ink, opaque watercolor, and

specifically under Nizami's pen; its elements are con¬

gold on paper, Iran, ca. 1590-1600. AMSG: S1986.266.

strued in favor of Iskandar to build his character as a

Checklist no. 10.

monotheistic believer and a religious warrior.30

34

Iskandar's Encounter with Qaydafah/Nushabah

persona of his own vizier, Bitaqun. Although Iskandar’s disguise worked well in other cases, Qaydafah quickly

The elaborate tale of Alexander/Iskandar’s visit to the

recognizes the young king. Having heard much about

realm of Queen Candace/Qaydafah belongs to the

Iskandar’s astounding conquests, she had secretly sent

' narrative kernel” of the Alexander Romance, produc¬

a Greek artist to paint a portrait of him. At the right

ing a kind of self-contained petit roman within the larger

moment, she shows the painting to the faux messen¬

narrative.31 It also looms large in the Islamic Alexander

ger: confronted with proof of his identity, the abashed

tradition, where Iskandar’s encounter with the queen acts as the turning point in his education, as she leads Fig. 2-7. Shabnamah. Folio 447 recto: Iskandar Executes the him to self-recognition. According to the gist of Firdausi’s version, Iskandar comes to Qaydafah’s court as an envoy assuming the

Murderers of Dara. Author: Abu al-Qasim Firdausi. Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper, Iran, late 16th century. FLP: Lewis O. 51. Checklist no. 11.

Fig. 2-8. Khamsa. Folio 39 verso: Iskandar Weds the Daughter of Dara. Author: Nizami Ganjavi. Copyist: Shah Tahmasp workshop.

Fig. 2-9 (opposite). Khamsa. Folio 284 recto: Iskandar Meets

Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper. Folio: H. 28.6 cm;

Queen Nushabah of Barda. Author: Nizami Ganjavi. Ink and

W. 14.6 cm, Iran, 16th century. Rare Book Department, Free

color, with gold on polished cream and pink papers, Shiraz, 1515.

Library of Philadelphia: Lewis O. 64.

NYPL: Pers. Ms 47. Checklist no. 15.

36

Iskandar launches a tirade to defend his hurt honor,

on this path through life when it ends with a stone (i.e.,

Qaydafah smiles and relishes her moralizing response,

the grave)? Iskandar agrees with Nushabah: "A thou¬

in which she outlines the model of an ideal ruler: suc¬

sand praises on this woman of sound judgment / who

cess is not attained by a ruler's personal prowess, but

guides us towards uprightness.”35

by the guidance of God and destiny; he who sheds the

The tale of Iskandar and Qaydafah/Nushabah

blood of kings deserves punishment in the Fire of Hell;

is an evident elaboration on the well-known literary

good deeds and generosity will earn a ruler a good name

topos of victor victus—“victor vanquished.” The queen

in generations to come.32 For Firdausi, Qaydafah exem¬

brings about Iskandar’s humiliation and thus chal¬

plifies the ideal sovereign: she is just, noble, generous,

lenges the exclusivity of sagacity and invulnerability

restrained in her emotional reactions, and above all, she

that he claims for himself. She leads Iskandar to realize

possesses khirad, inborn wisdom.

his frailty in the face of destiny and God—the ethical

Unlike Firdausi, who is faithful on the whole to his sources, Nizami stretches the limits of the familiar

message that reverberates in other famous episodes of the Alexander Romance.

material. The poet renames the queen, giving her the telling name Nushabah, "The Water ot Life,” which is

Iskandar Travels to the Land of the Brahmins36

especially meaningful in the context of Iskandar’s futile search for immortality (fig. 2-9). He places her domain

Iskandar’s meeting with the Brahmins, also tradition¬

in the historical locality of Barda', situated not far from

ally referred to as “naked gymnosophists,” is a stock

his native town of Ganja in present-day Azerbaijan. In

subject in all the versions of the Alexander Romance.

addition, Nizami fuses the Nushabah tale with that

According to the Shahnamah,3' when the Brahmins

of the Amazons, thus strengthening the feminine ele¬

learn of Iskandar’s approach, they send him a letter

ment in the story: the queen is a virgin, a wise, pure,

explaining that they have no possessions to give him, for

God-knowing soul surrounded by chaste damsels and

“[the sole] profit we possess is patience and knowledge;

"in no need to see men.”

/ due to knowledge [our] souls are full of happiness.”38

Nizami punctuates his version with an account

Intrigued, Iskandar pays them a peaceful visit in the

of a feast in honor of Iskandar, intended to commu¬

company of his Greek philosophers (see fig. 3-3). The

nicate Nushabah’s ethical message to the king in the

Brahmins wear clothes of grass and live on seeds; they

most tangible way possible. Two cloths are laid out

engage neither in feasting nor in warfare. Iskandar

in the banqueting hall: that of Nushabah’s carries

inquires about their habits and way of life and is given a

food “beyond limit,” while Iskandar’s cloth is made of

lesson in humility: “An ambitious man struggles to gain

gold and has a tray with four crystal cups on it: “One

something that is not worth the effort he has put forth,

full of gold, and the other of ruby; / the third full of

and then he passes from the world while his gold and

cornelian, and the fourth of pearl.”3’ Iskandar, not sus¬

treasure and crown remain here. Only his good deeds

pecting Nushabah’s intention, wonders: “In this my

will accompany him, and his head and glory will both

dish of cornelian and tray of gold, / all is stone; how

return to dust.’’’9

may I eat stone? // How devours a man stone? / How

Iskandar poses riddle-like questions to the Brah¬

can nature [tabi'at] tolerate that? // Bring a kind of food

mins and receives wise answers. Deeply moved by the

that one can eat, / to which one can extend his hand

encounter, in a burst of magnanimity he offers to fulfill

with delight.’’34

any of their wishes. When cunningly asked, “Close the

Hearing this, Nushabah explains the true mean¬ ing of her actions: Why should one boast of things that cannot be turned into food? Why heap jewel upon jewel

38

door of old age and death for us!”40 Iskandar painfully realizes his powerlessness and mortal nature. In the almost two centuries that separate Firdau-

fenced in, herds are not guarded, and houses and shops have no locks on their doors. When the bewildered Iskandar asks why nothing is guarded in this paradisi¬ acal (clou frdaus-i) place, the hospitable town dwellers lay out the moral-philosophical principles of their .Ia^XuJd

existence: they do not lie or steal, nor do they harbor {L> Uhl

enmity; they extend help to those in trouble; they pos¬ sess equal wealth and avoid excess; they are pious and just and accountable to God alone. Iskandar realizes the futility of his wanderings and recognizes the supe¬ riority of the way in which this community lives. He abandons his prophetic mission and returns to Rum.42 With Nizami, then, the Brahmin episode develops into a distinctly utopian tale about the structure and precepts of the perfect society.43

Iskandar in the Land of Darkness

UArjJ-O^ti3

LCs->-V-'fcv 1/

and the Search for the Water of Life

i— jf leiilA^lrU

ll*j efcAjtekf

MAdJp l^ul1 W*

iHiP-W^CN 14) b Ji—(V / s 6'^ j?l!>i»-

-Dj^SSjW.v

JJ44£upl

As mentioned above, the story of Alexander’s wan¬ derings in the Land of Darkness is anchored in the

C>Ju^i »h-,ikui,J /- ..-'

seventh-century Syriac Alexander Homily by PseudoJacob of Serug. In the Islamic tradition, however, the tale has accrued numerous new motifs and become a conglomeration of distinct sub-episodes or motif clusters. The singular prominence of this story in the Islamic tradition was due to an exegetical-theological effort to explain the Qur anic episode of the prophet Musa’s (Moses’) journey to the junction of the two seas

si’s poem from Nizami’s Book of Fortune, the episode

(majma' al-bahrayn; Q 18:60-64), which was gradually

of Iskandar and the Brahmins underwent significant

conflated with the Dhu al-Qarnayn story found in the

modifications and was augmented with subsidiary

same surahd4

motifs and fresh meanings.41 Nizami relates how Iskan-

According to the Shahnamah, on his arrival to

dar, toward the very end of his nonviolent exploration of

the city of red-faced and blond-haired warriors Iskan-

the world as a prophet, arrives at a cultivated and well-

dar inquires about the marvels worth seeing and is

irrigated country whose flourishing gardens are not

informed of the existence of the Land of Darkness (zulumat), where there is a spring (chashmah) whose water comes

Fig, 2-10. Shaknamah. Iskandar Speaks with the Bird on the Mountain. Author: Abu al-Qasim Firdausi. Ink, opaque water-

from

Paradise (firdaus)

and confers

immortality on those who bathe in it,45 Iskandar enters the Darkness accompanied by forty warriors and the

color, and gold on paper, Folio: H. 20.5 cm; W. 13.3 cm, probably Isfahan, Iran, ca. 1330-40. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Bequest of Monroe C. Gutman, 1974. MMA: 1974.290.33.

prophet Khidr, who is described as his counselor (rayzan). Iskandar gives Khidr one of the two precious

39

of them." They pose enigmatic questions related to the moral condition of the human race and, satisfied with his answers, direct him to go on foot to the mountain’s summit (fig. 2-10).47 There Iskandar encounters the angel Israfil, with a trumpet (sur) in his hand, awaiting God’s order to sound it on the Day of Resurrection (see fig. 3-7). Spotting Iskandar, Israfil bursts into a wrath¬ ful tirade:

Stop struggling, slave of greed! One day, at last, Your ears will hear the mighty trumpet's blast— Don’t worry about crowns and thrones! Prepare To pack your bags and journey on elsewhere!48

Iskandar feebly justifies his pursuits by reference to fate and, disheartened and weeping, returns to his retinue.49 As they are retrieving their steps in the Dark¬ ness, they hear a voice delivering a puzzling message: whoever picks up stones from under his feet will feel regret, whoever does not will regret too (see fig, 3-6). Once Iskandar and his men emerge from the Land of Darkness, the meaning of the message becomes clear; the stones prove to be rubies, pearls, and emeralds: whoever took some felt sorry he had not taken more; whoever had not taken anything lamented at returning stones (or seals; muhra) that would shine brightly at

empty-handed.50

the site of the water. On the third day of roaming in

The Shahnamah's rendering of Iskandar’s search

the Darkness (see fig. 3-8), Iskandar loses his way and

for the Water of Life lacks narrative coherence and is

is separated from Khidr, who alone chances upon the

imbued with ominous signs that intensify the sense

water of life (ab-i hayat), bathes in it, and obediently

of Iskandar’s failure and the futility of his pursuits:

prays to God.46

immortality is to be found neither in world conquest

In

the

meantime,

the

unfortunate

Iskandar

nor in the quest for universal power, but in the good

emerges into the light and ascends a mountain, the peak

name that a ruler bequeaths and that is earned by

of which is crowned by two ebony pillars. Two stupen¬

just and benevolent deeds alone. Nizami's handling

dous green birds in nests on top of the pillars address

of a similar extended episode is more coherent and

Iskandar in Greek, tacitly rebuking him for his insatia¬

much less critical of Iskandar’s image and is a verita¬

ble worldly ambitions: “Even if you raise your head to the

ble treasure trove for studying cross-cultural thematic

high heavens, / you will still remain miserable because

influences.51 As for Nizami’s successors, Amir Khus¬ raw Dihlavi and Jami, the former gives a succinct summary, while the latter limits himself to briefly

Fig.

2-11.

Khamsa. Folio 207 recto: Iskandar Meets Plato (detail).

Author: Amir Khusraw Dihlavi. Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold

mentioning Iskandar's journey to the Land of Dark¬

on paper, Iran, 1609. NLI: Ms. Yah. Ar. 1014. Checklist no. 27.

ness. However, typical of medieval Persian literature,

40

Jami does not hesitate to dissect the tale and recycle

already in Firdausi’s Shahnamah with Aristotle as

one of its sub-episodes, that of collecting stones that

Iskandar's tutor and guide, it is only in the poems of

prove to be gems, in another poem, The Chain oj Gold

Nizami, Amir Khusraw Dihlavi, and Jami that Iskan¬

(Silsilat al-dhahab), transforming the motif into a mys¬

dar's relations with philosophers come to the fore.

tical Sufi parable (fig. 3-6).52

In his Book of Fortune, Nizami incorporates var¬ ious philosophical tales related to Aristotle, Fdermes

Iskandar and the Philosophers

(Trismegistus), and Plato, who reside at Iskandar's court. The poet also narrates a story of Iskandar's visit

Iskandar’s association with philosophy and philoso¬

to Socrates, well-known from other Muslim sources.

phers in the medieval Persian tradition is rooted in early

According to Nizami's version, Iskandar is eager to

Arabic wisdom literature and concentrated around

enjoy Socrates’ sagacity and invites him to his court,

four themes: his relationship with Aristotle; his role as

Socrates, who leads a life of pure asceticism, repeatedly

a philosopher-king as expressed in the hikam tradition of wise maxims ascribed to Iskandar; his moralethical message in the Letter of Consolation to his mother; and the so-called Funeral Sentences, or lam¬

Fig. 2-12. The Story of Iskandar, the Two-Horned One (Qissah-yi Iskandar Dhu al-Qarnayn). Folio 3 recto: Iskandar as The TwoHorned One Discusses the Coming of the Prophet Muhammad

entations, which are uttered by wise men during his

(detail). Ink and opaque watercolor on paper, Iran-India, 18th

interment.53 Although traces of these themes are found

century. NLI: Ms. Yah. Ar. 1060. Checklist no. 5.

rejects the kings requests. Insulted by such insolence,

Alexandrian Mirror, where Socrates is replaced with

Iskandar arrives on foot at Socrates' solitary dwelling,

Plato (fig. 2-11).55

where they engage in a poignant religio-philosophical conversation on the inferior nature of worldly desires vis-a-vis the quest to purify one’s soul through wisdom Fig. 2-13. Khamsa. Folio 114 verso; Iskandar at Mecca (derail).

and humility before God.54 The episode of Iskandar’s coming to Socrates is reworked in Amir Khusraw’s

42

Author; Nizami Ganjavi. Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on pa¬ per, India, 19th century. NLI; Ms. Yah. Ar. 1005. Checklist no. 13.

Alexander Islamized:

With Nizami we are on firmer ground. The poet

Iskandar Visiting the Ka'ba and Building

specifically identifies his hero with The Two-Horned

the Wall against Gog and Magog

One," providing various explanations for this appella¬ tion (fig. 2-12). However, for Nizami, Iskandar is still

The Islamization of Alexander’s figure described above

a “proto-Muslim” who professes the din-i hanifi: he is

gave rise to a variety of episodes, the most notable of

acquainted with pilgrimage rituals (hisab-i manasik),

which deal with Iskandars pilgrimage to the Ka'ba and

circumambulates the Ka'ba, and kisses the door

his building the Wall against Gog and Magog (Yajuj

2-13, 2-14). Iskandars reverence for the place also finds

and Majuj).56 It is worth mentioning that as time goes

expression in its adornment with precious stones and

on, Iskandars character becomes more distinctly Mus¬ lim. In the Shahnamah, his religious identity is still fluid, and although Iskandar visits the Ka'ba, he is nowhere referred to as Dhu al-Qarnayn, and most of the episode

Fig. 2-14. Signposts oj Benefits (Dala'il al-khayrat); a Muslim Prayer Collection. Folios 22 verso, 23 recto: The Ka ba in Mecca; the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina. Author: Al-Jazuli. Opaque watercol-

focuses on his reinstatement of Nasr, a descendant of Isma'il in Mecca.57

or and gold on paper, Kashmir, late 18th century. NLI: Ms. Yah.

_

—

^

jj ll (*A^-> ^>==>',

1

■—*>£) L-Lj>; ^ lr^j5^«

—^ >!\ 4-^iX ■>

jL

i

uWr jdl j &

Lslxa-J^^Aj^vj V.5jJ^“.

Jl 'J

‘L=>o

u_/jljl

;Hj t>l*j k^^^ss* X

1 J

^ !^>0'4i)crii^^V. 1^" ^

! vXjljllfobbJjl

>Lf*

j

,

^

l 'lry&* J

l> CA-*—-j

*jA '{&£j>d>jjjJ~-

' ^i^Xirr1 jLT^ryw

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: '’iJ>i'^/yo'>iV y >JJ ^V, ,‘,1

age, etc.), he must have the ability to apply general rules

Islamicate world were also physicians, or at least wrote

to specific cases and adjust them accordingly. Last but

on medicine: to cite only the most prominent examples,

not least, the good physician must himself avoid illness:

Abu Bakr Razi (Lat. Rhazes, (ca. 865—925), see fig.

it is shameful for one whose business is to take care of

4-2, Avicenna, (980-1034), and Averroes, (1126-1198)

the health of others not to take care ol his own.k

among Muslims; and Isaac Israeli (d. 932), Judah Halevi

As in the Classical world, theory is what differenti¬

(d. 1141), and Maimonides (d. 1204) among Jews.

ated the learned physician from his rivals in the medical marketplace. And despite the emphasis on Hippocrates

The Canon of Medicine and De materia medica

in the ethical literature, Galen was the physician par excellence as far as Muslims were concerned. It is not by

The medical theory of the premodern Islamic world

chance that so many of the philosophers of the medieval

was basically Galenic: while Galen himself wrote so much that he contradicted himself over the course

Fig. 4-3. The Canon of Medicine (Al-qanun fi al-tibb). Folio 386 verso:

of his

long

career,

physicians

writing

in

Arabic

Opening of the Fourth Book. Author: Avicenna. Ink and gold on

translated, systematized, critiqued, and developed Hel¬

paper, Iran, early 15th century. NLM: MS A 53. Checklist no. 39.

lenistic understandings of his pathology based on the

68

four humors and the six non-naturals, thus creating a

corresponds to an element that manifests two of the

highly flexible system covering all fields of medicine. The

four primary qualities, thus:

most famous rendition of this system is undoubtedly The Canon of Medicine by Avicenna, perhaps the single most

Yellow bile = fire = hot and dry

influential medical book in history (fig. 4-3).9 Avicenna

Black bile = earth = cold and dry

aimed to place medicine on a sound philosophical basis,

Phlegm = water = cold and moist

and not only did his Canon became the major textbook

Blood = air = hot and moist

of medical education up to the nineteenth century across the Old World from India to England (since it was trans¬

A balanced mixture of the humors constitutes health,

lated into Latin, Hebrew, and Persian), it also became the

and sickness is caused by an imbalance

center of an entire satellite literature of abridgements,

Healing is to a large extent the regaining of the desired

.u

epitomes, commentaries, and supercommentaries—just as Galen’s works had been.10

Fig. 4-4. The Treasury Dedicated to the King of Khwarizm (Za-

Most medical handbooks followed the Canon in starting with basic theoretical knowledge, before describing its application in practice. The humoral the¬

kirah-yi khwarizmshahi). Folios 7 verso, 8 recto: Sixth Discourse of the First Book: On Humors. Author: Sayyid Ismail Jurjani; Copyist Muhammed ibn Abd Al-Baqi al-Abrandabazi; Language: Persian. Ink on paper, Folio: H. 35 cm; W. 24.5 cm, Iran, 1349-1350. From

ory, as applied to medicine, considers all organs to be

the collections of The National Library of Israel. NLI: Ms. Yah.

composed of a mixture of four elements, each of which

Ar. 115.


*l

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wijolljklj1)

0^1 J

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i'

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| l, J^4~

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,u_, x, »■»■ --a' lv -■'' M- ijj-jis, bjk. ’ .v dj_o- ''»t>--*

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tr Nj'q.o-v IX- J >■ r/

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jL

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AlLft- J 0 Mdjsly-/u'j'G'3 o'M-'JsAal Ml* p>0'AJ^J uj-ji *_>jj”i J/.XojU O -11—*- 1 Jf-J >• 1

U) J JO* U

*’-

*,,_LwiJjjkl /h)j J>*\aoO>Joj'/*\G.'-J-Ai.'G j»-

—’ Gy^a— J>Ur^-' Jf -W;:-AU»’0 > c' Goi— J j' J jGj_^j>JDj>*bG>~>-*gvo**j 1 j-Vr* -• i/ j’Gz’ Ga 1 ^L-jj.'joUl_—) j'^j\_jGj\yiwg L)' i biiJJjTj j b jy»*U

X 'fX: ^,—o j1 t ‘t/V h'yA'X. 3A*'jlcf j A .J“j *X>”:J-Abl ^ Jo-\' -*

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69

1

‘U-U’Uii^ ~\x, d^t Ll!

4:t

OjH: j

>j. >v^j

4ll>dab^ b) (jI^J

L^J) IkjJ^

^

fw LjlSJ(^J^l*'c)l

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centuries before the latter’s discovery of the circulation of blood.22 Apart from the illustrations of plants and animals in herbals, the major illustrations appearing in medical books in the Islamic world are of parts of the body, espe¬

l^_-» >Uo k-^Jr^J 1 ]r l**-* ^'

cially of the eye and brain (often appearing together, to depict the entire visual system, as in figure 4-12). This

^toiTk^^J I ^ J l j\ J Lo- \-* 1^5
jt'Ay fAs’

>y?f*y»\jy

^jli

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v^i_>

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Mi

ibn Ilyas. Ink on paper, Isfahan, December 8, 1488. NLM: MS P 18. Checklist no, 43.

Fig. 4-13. Mansur’s Anatomy (Tasbrih-i mansuri). Folios 25 verso, 26 recto: The Venous System. Author: Mansur

V

treating diseases, indicating an acceptance of Galenic medicine even without an Islamic overlay. The treatise on the Medicine of the Prophet (Al-tibb al-nabawi) composed by the theologian Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya (d. 1350) provides a good example of the weaving together of Islamic tradition and Hellenis¬ tic medicine in the chapter on "treatment of plague and precautions against it."2

It begins with a series

of traditions going back to the Prophet Muhammad, culminating in his definition of the plague faun) as “the swelling of a gland like that of the camel, which affects the soft places and the armpit.”28 Ibn Qayyim then quotes the physicians' definition of plague as being “caused by bad blood which tends to putrefaction and corruption and transforms into a poisonous substance. It corrupts the organ and changes what is adjacent to it; sometimes it allows blood and pus to leak out ’29— certainly what we would expect a physician trained in Galenic physiology to say. He continues to explain the limitations of physicians’ understanding of the cause of plague, since they ignore "hidden matters,” that is, the influence of spirits on people's bodies. “We must make clear,” Ibn Qayyim says, “that the relationship of the medicine practiced by physicians to the medicine of the Prophet is like the relationship of medicine practiced by village healers to the physicians' medicine, and this is acknowledged by most experts and leaders among physicians. It should be clearly seen that human nature is the most susceptible of all to the influence of spirits and that the powers contained in the formulas of taking refuge and in spells and supplications are superior to the powers of medicines, even counteracting the force of deadly poisons.”30 So far, this is what we might have expected a theologian to say—but a paragraph later, we find Hippocrates quoted directly and approvingly, without being backed up by a religious source.31 Fur¬ thermore, in the second part of the book, devoted to simple drugs and food,32 we find the degrees of the Fig. 4-14. Mansur's Anatomy (Tashrih-i mansuri). Folio 46 recto:

primary qualities of heat/cold and moistness/dryness

The Human Female Body Showing a Fetus in the Womb and Oth¬ er Organs. Author: Mansur ibn Ilyas. Ink and wash on polished

reported for each substance—just as we saw in the

paper, Iran, 15th century. NYPL: Spencer Pers. Ms. 17. Checklist

herbals based on Dioscorides. The degrees are noted

no. 42.

completely as a matter of fact, with no attribution

80

either to the Prophet or to any physician, so deeply had they become part of the culture.

Conclusion

To sum up, we may say that it is impossible to imagine medicine in the Islamicate world without the influence of Greek medicine. At the same time, it is very clear that the picture referred to at the beginning of this article—the image of Arabic medicine as a conduit for Greek medicine, transferring it unchanged to the Latin West—is completely wrong. Authors of many faiths living under Muslim rule, writing first in Syriac and Arabic and then in Hebrew, Persian, and Turkish, adopted, adapted, translated, transformed, commented upon, critiqued, summarized, expanded, and absorbed the writings of Greek and Hellenistic physicians, doing everything but passively receiving the texts and preserving them “as is" for Christian Western Europeans. These men shaped Galen's often contradictory writings into a flexible and coherent system, capable of absorbing new materials and methods from further east, in the aftermath of the Muslim conquests and later of the Mongol ones. The Arabic-to-Latin transla¬ tion movement of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries was not in fact restoring ancient Greek knowledge, but bringing to the West the most up-to-date revisions of that knowledge. When we today seek a complete pic¬ ture of Greek medicine, we find it necessary to go to the Arabic tradition, in which works lost in Greek still exist33—not preserved like flies in amber, but part of a project truly heroic in scope, taking what was consid¬ ered the best medical science of the past and adapting it to the needs of a new and different society. Medicine in the Islamic world was a very particular representa¬ tion of the Classical past, a refraction and not a mere reflection of it.

Fig. 4-15. Mansur’s Anatomy (Tashrih-i mansuri). Folio 19 recto: The Skeleton. Author: Mansur ibn Ilyas. Ink and opaque watercolor on paper, Iran, 15th~early 16th century. NLM: MS P 19. Checklist no. 44.

81

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I

See Saliba 2007.

3

Allsen 2001,151-52.

4

Ibn Abi Usaibia 1965, 33-35.

Shefer-Mossensohn and Hershkovitz 2013.

This summary refers primarily to the following works: Levey 1967, 1-95; Said ibn al-Hasan 1968; Ibn Jumay’ 1983. Sijistani 1979, 61—62. On Hippocrates as an ethical example, see Pinault 1992. Levey 1967, 19, 65, Ibn al-Ruhawi does not give the exact sources he used, but Galen wrote a short treatise with the title The Best Physician Is Also a Philosopher. See Galen 1997. Pormann and Savage-Smith 2007, 88-90. Paavilainen 2010, 29. 10

On this topic, see Fancy 2013.

II

Paavilainen 2010, 29.

12

For an example of such a book, see Dols and Gamal 1984.

13

For a thorough discussion of this topic, see most recently Amar and Lev 2017.

14

This paragraph and those following in this section are based on

15

Saliba and Komaroff 2008.

16

Amar, Lev, and Serri 2014.

Chipman 2017.

17

Ragep and Wallis 2014, 106b.

18

On the prescriptions found in the Cairo Genizah and what can

19

Hamarneh 1962.

be learned from them, see Lev and Chipman 2012, esp. 137-54.

20

Albucasis 1972, vii-x.

21

Savage-Smith 2000, 307-21.

22

MeyerhofF 1935.

23

Russell 1992.

24

Das 2017.

25

See Perho 1995.

26

Ibid., 80-81.

27

Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya 1998, 27-32.

28

Ibid., 27.

29

Ibid., 27-28.

30

Ibid., 29.

31

Ibid., 30. Penelope Johnstone, the translator, identifies the quo¬

32

Ibid., 205-82.

33

In his magisterial study of the Greek-to-Arabic translation

tation as being from Airs Waters Places.

movement, Dimitri Gutas (1998, 2) said: "One can justly claim that the study of post-classical Greek secular writings can hard¬ ly proceed without the evidence in Arabic, which in this context becomes the second classical language, even before Latin.”

Fig. 4-16. Revision of "The Book oj Optics Jor Those Possessing Sight and Insight” by Ibn aTHaytham (965-1040) (Tanqih al-manazir li-dhawi al-absar wa-l-basa’ir). Folio 37 recto: Diagram of the Eye. Author: Kamal al-Din al-Farisi. Ink on paper, Ottoman Turkey, 1511. NLI: Ms. Yah. Ar. 384. Checklist no. 50.

■£S3&tixm

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FIVE

Mathematics, Astronomy, and Astrology Y* Tzvi Langermann

The exact sciences feature prominently among the many

of madrasas, there was a need from time to time to

classical writings that were absorbed by Islamicate

produce new literature, presenting refinements, crit¬

culture early on, especially in the intense translation

icisms, comparisons, and the like.1 Two of the most

activity that was sponsored by the early Abbasid caliphs.

important writers of this sort of literature were

The "Greek” pedigree of the sciences differed from dis¬

Shams al-Din Samarqandi (1250—1310) and Nasir

cipline to discipline. Already in the early centuries of

al-Din Tusi (1201—1274). The men were contempo¬

the Common Era, astronomy was a thoroughly hybrid¬

raries, although they do not seem to have known each

ized Greco-Babylonian tradition.

other. Their books became popular and exemplify two

Geometry, by contrast, was a fairly pristine prod¬

genres that were in demand.2 The former authored

uct of Greek civilization. Islamic mathematicians, in

a condensed and simplified version of thirty-five key

addition to developing further the tradition of Euclid,

propositions from Euclid. The latter produced a series

Archimedes, and Apollonius, contributed a new, hybrid

of books, each of which he called a tahrir, or “recension,”

branch

combining

of classic works in the exact sciences.3 Tusi’s recen¬

Euclidean geometry with Babylonian problem-solving

sion of Ptolemy’s Almagest will be discussed below.

methods. Astrology was an applied science of the stars

Of particular interest are the recensions that he pre¬

in the view of its proponents, who included most of the

pared of shorter books of classical geometry, especially

leading scientists of the period. They were well aware

the so-called middle books, advanced texts based on

of the shaky epistemological grounds upon which the

Archimedes, Menelaus, and others, that were meant

art was founded, but nonetheless did not dismiss out

to aid the student’s progress from basic geometry to

ol hand the purported connections between astral con¬

the more advanced geometry needed for astronomy.4

figurations and terrestrial events. Ptolemy, the great

Tusi’s recensions represent the best in scholarship,

authority in astronomy, was also a highly regarded

including comparisons between the available trans¬

writer on astrology. However, the astrological tradition

lations (although unfortunately Tusi was not able to

that developed within Islamic civilization drew heavily

consult the original Greek) and some original mathe¬

on other cultural resources, particularly those of pre-

matics of high quality.

of

mathematics—algebra—by

Islamic Persia.

Four of these recensions are found in the rich codex MS Yahuda 419, along with other scientific and Geometry

philosophical works, some of them also penned by Tusi. The recensions are of two minor works by Euclid,

Classical geometry, above all, of course, the fundamen¬

Optics and Data, Autolycus’s book On the Moving

tal Elements of Euclid, but also a long list of tracts by

Sphere, and a book of Redactions of Extracts jrom

Archimedes, Apollonius, and others, was translated into

Archimedes (Tahrir kitab ma'khudhat Arshimidis). The

Arabic early on and received a warm reception. It was nei¬

last of these was known in the Latin tradition as Liber

ther the elegant mathematics alone nor the application of

assumptorum; T. L. Heath translated it in full under

its theorems to astronomy, optics, and other disciplines

the title Book of Lemmas? There is a high probability

that gave this science its high standing. Geometry was

that Redactions of Extracts from Archimedes preserves,

the model par excellence of a demonstrative science, a

if only indirectly, authentic Archimedean materials

body of knowledge possessing a mechanism for demon¬

that do not survive in the original. Scholars have been

strating the truth of its propositions with airtight logic

drawn in particular to the eighth lemma, which was

and absolute certainty—in most cases.

used by some medieval mathematicians to trisect the

As geometry continued to develop within Islamic cultures, earning a place in the advanced curriculum

angle and is illustrated in figure 5

(the drawing in

the manuscript is not to scale):6 We are given arc AE

Computational Sciences

To the extent that any intellectual tradition can be "pure,” the geometric tradition represented chiefly by Euclid, Archimedes, and Apollonius was purely Greek. Geometers working in Islamicate cultures adhered to this tradition and its methods of analysis, synthe¬ sis, and proof, all the while enlarging and refining it. Not so the computational sciences, those that in one way or another evoke the Arabic term hisab (fig. 5-3). These disciplines—which include arithmetic, algebra, and mensuration, and also, depending on the writer, number theory, root extraction, and astronomical and physical measurements—drew heavily on Babylonian methods but also incorporated contributions from India and elsewhere. on the circle whose center is D. We draw chord AB

Moreover, in this branch of mathematics, Islamic

such that its extension will meet the extended diame¬

scientists for all practical purposes must be credited

ter EF at point C, and BC will be equal to the radius of

with creating new fields of research. Most notable in

circle EAB. We then prove that arc AE is three times

this respect is algebra, which is founded on Babylo¬

arc BF. This proposition thus gives a "neusis construc¬

nian methods of computation, bolstered by the proofs

tion’’ for trisecting the angle.

found in Euclid's geometric algebra; on these founda¬

The more successful of the new books written

tions, mathematicians working in Islamic lands built

by Islamic scientists then set in motion a new cycle

an impressive body of knowledge. Although, thankfully,

of commentary and condensation. The commentary

historians today know better than to name any single

of Qadizade al-Rumi

(1364—1436), completed in

individual as the "father” of a science, it still seems

1412, soon outstripped Samarqandi’s original in its

accurate to acknowledge the pivotal role of Muhammad

popularity (fig. 3-2). Qadizade belonged to a group of

ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi, who participated in the great

scientists, including Ghiyath al-Din Jamshid al-Kashi

surge of scientific activity under the sponsorship of the

(more on him below) and the sultan himself, Ulugh

caliph al-Ma'mun (r. 813—33). Al-Khwarizmi evinced a

Beg, who worked at the madrasa and observatory that

distinct prejudice against Greek science, and his work

the sultan founded in Samarqand.'

in mathematics and astronomy was based to the extent possible on Babylonian and Indian sources. His book on algebra, while perhaps not the first, certainly had the greatest impact, especially in its Latin and other Euro¬ pean avatars.8 In

the

earlier

phases

of Islamicate

sciences,

specialized treatises, such as those on the "Hindu reck¬ oning’’ or the nascent science of algebra, were the rule.9 Fig, 5-1. Redaction oj Extracts from Archimedes (Tahrir kitab ma'

As knowledge increased, however, and refined methods

khudhat Arshimidis). Folio 49 verso: Geometrical Theorem (detail). Author: Nasir al-Din Tusi. Ink on paper, Iran, 1656. NLI: Ms.

of computation and measure were widely applied, the

Yah. Ar. 419. Checklist no. 51.

domain of the computational sciences expanded. Major

86

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writers were free to plan their books on hisab as they

encompasses just about anything that can be computed,

saw fit, and to expand the boundaries of the discipline

including not just pure mathematics, but astronomical

as they wished. One of the most wide-ranging and

and physical measurements as well. However, in enlarg¬

original works in this science was written by al-Kashi,

ing the compass of "dm al-hisab, he followed precedents

who flourished in the first part of the fifteenth cen¬

set by earlier mathematicians, such as al-Khawwam

tury, working at Samarqand at the court of Ulugh Beg.

al-Baghdadi (early fourteenth century) and Kamal

Samarqand was at the time a major center for scientific

al-Din al-Farisi (1260—ca. 1320). Nearly every chap¬

activity in Islamic lands, and the sultan himself took

ter that has been the subject of modern studies has

part in research, most notably the astronomical tables

been shown to contain new and exciting discoveries or

that bear his name. Among other writings, al-Kashi wrote an important work on astronomical instruments. He both described those used by Ptolemy and designed

Geometry (Sharh kitab ’ashkal al-ta’asis ft al-handasa) by Shams al-

some of his own.10

Din Samarqandi (1250-1310). Folios 13 verso, 14 recto: Geometric

Al-Kashi took a very wide view of hisab. His monumental Key

Fig. 5-2, Commentary on the Book of the Fundamental Theorems of

to

Computation

(Miftah

al-hisab)

Shapes and Calculations. Author: Qadizade al-Rumi. Ink on paper, Anatolia, 1436 (?). NLI: Ms. Yah. Ar. 426. Checklist no. 54.

87

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