Introduction to Islamic Cosmological Doctrines

Seyyed Hossein Nasr

Paperback, 350 pages

9780791415160

This is the only book to deal with classical Islamic cosmology as it was formulated by the Ikhwan al-S'afa al Biruni and Ibn Sina during the tenth and eleventh centuries. These figures influenced all the later centuries of Islamic history and in fact created the cosmological framework within which all later scientific activity in the Islamic world was carried out--the enduring image of the cosmos within which Muslims have lived during the past millennium. 

Nasr writes from within the Islamic tradition and demonstrates how, based on the teachings of the Quran and the Prophet, the figures treated in this work integrated elements drawn from various ancient schools of philosophy and the sciences. This book is unique in its treatment of classical Islamic cosmology as seen from within the Islamic world-view and provides a key for understanding of traditional Islamic thought.

Contents

PART I. THE IKHWAN AL-SAFA

1. The Rasa'il of the Ikhwan al-Safa--Their Identity and Content

2. The Principles of the Study of the Cosmos and the Hierarchy of the Universe

3. The Individual Cosmological Sciences

4. The Microcosm and Its Relation to the Universe

PART II. AL-BIRUNI

5. The Life, Works, and Significance of al-Biruni

6. The Creation of the World and Its Subsequent History

7. The Role of Nature and the Methods of Its Study

8. The Universe and Its Parts

9. The Wedding of Heaven and Earth in Astrology

10. The Attitude of al-Biruni Toward Philosophy and Learning

PART III. IBN SINA

11. The Life and Works of Ibn Sina and His Significance

12. The Anatomy of Being

13. Principles of Natural Philosophy

14. The Universe, Man, and Their Relation

15. Nature and the Visionary Recitals