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Abu Reyhan Muhammad ibn Ahmed al-Biruni(September 4, Kyat city, Khorezm, - December 9, Ghazni, modern Afghanistan) - a great scientist from Khorezm, author of numerous major works on history, geography, philology, astronomy, mathematics, geodesy, mineralogy, pharmacology, geology, etc. Biruni mastered almost all the sciences of his time. According to information, the posthumous list of his works, compiled by his students, took 60 finely written pages.
Biography
Al-Biruni received a broad mathematical and philosophical education. An outstanding mathematician and astronomer Ibn Iraq was his teacher in the ancient capital of Khorezmshahs, Kyat. After the capture of Kyat by the Emir of Gurganj in 995 and the transfer of the capital of Khorezm to Gurganj, al-Biruni left for Rei, where he worked for al-Khojandi. Then he worked in Gurgan at the court of Shams al-Ma'ali Qabus, to whom he dedicated the Chronology around 1000, then returned to Khorezm and worked in Gurganj at the court of the Khorezmshahs Ali (997-1009) and Mamun II. Since 1017, after the conquest of Khorezm by Sultan Mahmud Gaznevi, he was forced to move to Ghazna, where he worked at the court of Sultan Mahmud and his successors Masud and Maudud. Al-Biruni participated in Mahmud's campaigns in India, where he lived for several years.
He was dying in full consciousness and, saying goodbye to all his friends, asked the latter: “What did you once explain to me about the methods of counting unrighteous profits?” "How can you think about it in such a state?" he exclaimed in surprise. "Oh you! - said Biruni barely audibly. “I think that leaving this world knowing the answer to this question is better than leaving it ignorant…”
Scientific works
In the very first work “Chronology, or Monuments of Past Generations” (1000), al-Biruni collected and described all the calendar systems known in his time, used by various peoples of the world, and compiled a chronological table of all eras, starting from the biblical patriarchs.
Biruni devoted more than 45 works to astronomy. A popular introduction to astronomical science is The Book of Encouragement to the Elements of the Science of the Stars, written around 1029 and which has come down to us in two versions: in Arabic and in Farsi. This book consists of 530 questions and answers on geometry, arithmetic, astronomy, geography, chronology, astrolabe and astrology.
Illustration from the book of al-Biruni in Persian. The different phases of the moon are shown.
Biruni's main work on astronomy is "Masud's Canon on Astronomy and Stars". The plan of this work is close to the standard plan of the Arab zijs, but unlike them, detailed experimental and mathematical proofs of all the stated provisions are given here; a number of provisions of his predecessors, for example, Biruni refutes the assumption of Sabit ibn Korra about the connection between the movement of the apogee of the Sun and the prelude to the equinoxes, and in many issues comes to new conclusions. He considered the hypothesis of the motion of the Earth around the Sun; he asserted the same fiery nature of the Sun and stars, in contrast to the dark bodies - planets, the mobility of stars and their huge size compared to the Earth, the idea of gravitation. Biruni carried out observations on the wall quadrant with a radius of 7.5 m built by al-Nasavi in Rei, performing them with an accuracy of 2′. He established the angle of inclination of the ecliptic to the equator, calculated the radius of the Earth, described the change in the color of the Moon during lunar eclipses and the solar corona during solar eclipses.
Biruni paid much attention to mathematics, especially trigonometry: in addition to a significant part of the "Canon of Mas'ud", he dedicated to her the works "On the determination of chords in a circle using a broken line inscribed in it" (here, a number of theorems belonging to Archimedes that have not been preserved in Greek manuscripts are considered). ), “On Indian Rashiks” (the so-called triple rule is discussed in this book), “Sphere”, “The Book of Pearls on the Plane of the Sphere”, etc. The treatise “Shadows”, several treatises on the astrolabe and other astronomical instruments are devoted to issues of applied mathematics, a number of essays on geodesy.
As a researcher, Biruni emphasized the need for a thorough verification of knowledge by experience, contrasting experimental knowledge with speculative knowledge. From these positions, he criticized the Aristotelian and Avicenna concept of "natural place" and the argument against the existence of emptiness.
In addition to his native Khorezmian language, Biruni spoke Arabic, Persian, Greek, Latin, Turkish, Syriac, as well as Hebrew, Sanskrit and Hindi. This knowledge contributed to the development of principles for translating natural science terminology from one language into another. The transcription system created by Biruni on the basis of Arabic script in many respects anticipated the modern system of rendering Indian words in Urdu.
Works of al-Biruni
- Biruni Abu Reyhan. Monuments of past generations Per. and approx. M. A. Salie // Selected Works, Volume I. Tashkent: Fan, 1957.
- Biruni Abu Reyhan. India. Per. A. B. Khalidov, Yu. N. Zavadovsky. // Selected Works, Volume II. Tashkent: Fan, 1963. // Reprint: M.: Ladomir, 1995.
- Biruni Abu Reyhan. Collection of information for the knowledge of jewelry (Mineralogy). Per. A. M. Belenitsky. L.: Ed. Academy of Sciences of the USSR, 1963.
- Biruni Abu Reyhan. Geodesy (Determination of the boundaries of places to clarify the distances between settlements) Issl., Per. and approx. P. G. Bulgakov // Selected Works, Volume III. Tashkent: Fan, 1966.
- Biruni Abu Reyhan. Pharmacognosy in medicine / Issl., Per. and approx. U. I. Karimova. // Selected works, Volume IV. Tashkent: Fan, 1974.
- Beruni Abu Rayhan. Canon of Mas'ud. / Per. and approx. P. G. Bulgakov, B. A. Rosenfeld and A. Akhmedov. // Selected Works, Volume V, Parts 1-2. Tashkent: Fan, 1973. Book 1, chapter 1.
- Beruni Abu Rayhan. The book of admonishment to the rudiments of the science of the stars / Per. and approx. B. A. Rosenfeld and A. Akhmedov. // Selected works, Volume VI. Tashkent, Fan, 1975.
- Beruni Abu Rayhan. Mathematical and astronomical treatises. / Prev., per. and comm. P. G. Bulgakov and B. A. Rosenfeld. // Selected works, Volume VII. Tashkent: Fan, 1987.
- Star catalog of al-Biruni with the application of the catalogs of Khayyam and at-Tusi. Historical and astronomical research, issue 8, 1962, p. 83-192.
- al-Biruni Abu Rayhan. Treatise on the definition of chords in a circle by means of a broken line inscribed in it. In the book: , issue. 3, 1963, p. 93-147.
- al-Biruni Abu Rayhan. A book about Indian rashiki. Per. and approx. B. A. Rosenfeld. In the book: From the history of science and technology in the countries of the East, issue. 3, 1963, p. 148-170.
- Beruni and Ibn Sina. Correspondence. Per. Yu. N. Zavadovsky. Tashkent: Fan, 1973. Beruni's ten questions about the "Book of Heaven" and the answers of Ibn Sina.
- al-Biruni. On the relationship between metals and precious stones in terms of volume. Per. B. A. Rosenfeld and M. M. Rozhanskaya. In the book: From the history of physical and mathematical sciences in the medieval East. M.: Nauka, 1983, p. 141-160.
Films
Notes
Literature
- Biruni. Digest of articles. Ed. S. P. Tolstova. M.-L., 1950.
- Bulgakov P. G. Life and works of Beruni. Tashkent: Fan, 1972.
- Bulgakov P.G. "Geodesy" of Biruni as a historical and astronomical monument. , 11, 1972, p. 181-190.
- Bulgakov P. G. Biruni's early treatise on Fakhri's sextant. Historical and astronomical research, 11, 1972, p. 211-220.
- Jalalov G.D. Indian astronomy in Biruni's book "India". Historical and astronomical research, 8, 1962, p. 195-220.
- Jalalova Z. G. Al-Biruni's teaching about the motion of the Sun. Historical and astronomical research, 12, 1975, p. 227-236.
- Matvievskaya G. P., Sirazhdinov S. Kh. Abu Rayhan Beruni and his mathematical works. Moscow: Knowledge, 1978.
- Matvievskaya G.P. Essays on the history of trigonometry. Tashkent: Fan, 1990.
- Rozhanskaya MM On the reconstruction of the full text of al-Biruni's treatise on specific weights. Historical and mathematical research, 7(42), 2002, p. 223-243.
- Rozenfeld B. A., Rozhanskaya M. M., Astronomical work of al-Biruni "Canon of Mas'ud". Historical and astronomical research, X, 1969, p. 63-95.
- Rosenfeld B. A., Rozhanskaya M. M., Sokolovskaya Z. K. Abu-r-Raykhan Al-Biruni, 973-1048. M.: Science. 1973.
- Rozenfeld B. A. Astronomical work of al-Biruni "The book of admonishment to the rudiments of the science of stars." Historical and astronomical research, XII, 1975, p. 205-226.
- Sadykov Kh. U. Biruni and his works on astronomy and mathematical geography. M.: GTTI, 1953.
- Timofeev I.V. Biruni. M. Young Guard, 1986.
- Sharipov A. The great thinker Abu Rayhan Biruni. Tashkent, Fan, 1972.
- Shchetnikov AI On the reconstruction of an iterative method for solving cubic equations in medieval mathematics. Proceedings of the third Kolmogorov readings. Yaroslavl: Publishing House of YaGPU, 2005, p. 332-340.
- Shlomo Pines, Tuvia Gelblum. Al-Biruni's Arabic Version of Patanjali's Yogasutra// Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, 1977, Vol.29, No. 2, pp. 302-325.
- Scheppler B. Al-Biruni: Master astronomer and muslim scholar of the eleventh century. Rosen, 2006.
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See what "Al-Biruni" is in other dictionaries:
Al Biruni Snapshot of the Lunar Orbital Probe ... Wikipedia
- (4.10.973 - 13.12.1048, according to other sources - after 1050), a Central Asian scientist encyclopedist. Wrote in Arabic. Born in Khorezm. In 1018 (or 1017) he was taken away by Mahmud of Ghazni to Ghazni, where he remained until the end of his life. B.'s writings include ... ... Great Soviet Encyclopedia
BIRUNI, Beruni, Abu Reyhan Mohammed ibn Ahmed al-Biruni- , cf. Asian, scientist encyclopedist. and thinker. One of the founders of experimental natural science, advocated delimitation of the spheres of science and religion. Supporter... ... Russian Pedagogical Encyclopedia
Biruni, Beruni, Abu Reyhan Mohammed ibn Ahmed al-Biruni- (973 1048) Central Asian scientist, encyclopedist and thinker. Author of many, ch.o. naturally scientific works (about 30 have survived) written in Arabic. The book of admonishment to the beginnings of the science of the stars (c. 1029) a summary of the basics ... ... Pedagogical terminological dictionary
BIROUNI (BERUNI, AL-BIROUNI) ABU REIKHAN MUHAMMED IBN AHMED AL-BIROUNI
(973 - 1048)
“Real courage lies in contempt for death (whether it is expressed in speech or action), in the struggle against lies. Only he who eschews lies and adheres to the truth is worthy of trust and praise even in the opinion of liars ... "
Abu Reyhan Muhammad ibn Ahmed al-Biruni was born on September 4, 973 in the suburbs of the city of Kyat, which at that time was the capital of Khorezm (now Kyat has been renamed in honor of the great scientist and is called Biruni, located in Uzbekistan). There is practically no information about the scientist's childhood. It is known that from an early age Biruni studied with the famous mathematician and astronomer Abu Nasr Mansur ibn Ali ibn Iraq, who was also the cousin of the Shah of Khorezm Abu Abdallah. In one of his poems, Biruni wrote: “In truth, I don’t know my genealogy. After all, I don’t really know my grandfather, and how can I know my grandfather, since I don’t know my father! At the same time, from other works of the scientist it becomes clear that he knew the date of his own birth. Such a contradiction, of course, seems strange. Trying to draw some conclusions about the origin of Biruni, researchers resort to the standard method in such cases - the study of the names of the scientist. But in this case, this method gives little. For example, disputes flared up about the nickname, which was often given by the place of birth of a person. "Biruni" in translation means "outside, outside." The 12th-century historian Samani translated this part of the name as "a man from the suburbs". Following him, many researchers began to assume that Biruni was born outside the walls of the city. From the fact that artisans usually settled outside the fortress wall, in turn, it is concluded that Biruni was born into a family belonging to this social group. For obvious reasons, this point of view was especially widespread in the USSR. But then it is not clear how Biruni in early childhood could get into a family that belonged to the ruling dynasty in Khorezm. Therefore, there is another interpretation of the appearance of this nickname. The word "Biruni" was often used to refer to non-indigenous residents of a particular area. It is possible that the scientist received this nickname when he returned to Khorezm after long wanderings. The name Mohammed and the name of the father Ahmed also give us little information, since sometimes such names were given to children whose father is unknown.
We can say with confidence that already at the age of seventeen Biruni was engaged in serious scientific activity - in 990 he calculated the latitude at which the city of Kyat is located. By 995, when the young scientist was 22 years old, he was already the author of a large number of scientific papers. Of these, "Cartography" has survived to this day, in which the young scientist considered methods for projecting an image of the surface of the globe onto a plane.
In 995, the calm course of the life of a young scientist was disturbed. The fact is that at the end of the 10th - beginning of the 11th century, the situation in the Arab world was turbulent. In Khorezm and the territories adjacent to it, civil strife broke out every now and then. During the next of them, the ruler Abu Abdallah was overthrown by the emir of Gurganj, the second largest city in Khorezm. How Abu Nasr survived these events is unknown. His own student, Biruni, was forced to flee. Where exactly - the same is unclear. It is only known that some time after the flight, he settled in Ray (present-day Tehran). Biruni wrote that he did not have a patron in Ray (which was very important for a scientist at that time) and he was forced to live in poverty.
Nevertheless, he continued to engage in scientific activities, in particular, he regularly made and recorded astronomical observations. This gave modern researchers the opportunity to determine some of the dates of Biruni's life. For example, the scientist describes the eclipse of the moon, which he observed on May 24 in Kyat. Consequently, at that time Biruni visited Khorezm. But then he again, voluntarily or forcedly, left his homeland. It is possible that the scientist came to Kyat only to observe the eclipse. The fact is that at the same time, by agreement with Biruni, another astronomer observed the eclipse in Baghdad. According to the timing of the eclipse, scientists have determined the difference in the longitude of these cities. This means that Biruni traveled again and lived for some time in Gurgan, on the southeastern coast of the Caspian Sea. When exactly he settled there, it is not exactly known, but around the year 1000 he wrote the book "Chronology", which he dedicated to the ruler of Gurgana. In this work, the author refers to seven of his earlier works. On August 14, 1003, Biruni, while still in Gurgan, observed the eclipse of the Moon, but on June 4, 1004, he was already at home, as he described a similar phenomenon he saw there.
This time in Khorezm, the scientist was received with dignity. In Gurganj, the new capital of Khorezm, Ali ibn Mamun ruled first, and then his brother Abu Abbas Mamun. Both rulers were patrons of science and kept at their court a large staff of the best scientists, among whom Biruni took an honorary position. In addition, here the young scientist was able to work with his former teacher Abu Nasr Mansur, for whom he had the warmest feelings.
Happy and fruitful cooperation with the former teacher at home continued until 1017. This year, Mahmud of Ghazni, the ruler of the Ghaznavid state, which reached its peak at that time, captured Khorezm. Most likely, Biruni and Abu Nasr were taken away by Mahmud. There is no reliable information about how the relationship between scientists and the new ruler developed. But in one of the texts written by Biruni, there is a mention of some serious difficulties that he encountered at the beginning of his work under the auspices of Mahmud. The astronomical observations made by him can again testify to where exactly the scientist continued his work immediately after his departure from Khorezm. For example, the recorded results of observations made on October 14, 1018 in Kabul. The fact that Biruni used instruments made independently from improvised means most likely indicates that Mahmud Ghaznevi was not a very generous patron. By the autumn of 1019, Biruni was in Ghazna (the modern city of Ghazni in Afghanistan), as evidenced by his observations of celestial phenomena. Here, most likely as a prisoner, Biruni lived and worked until the end of his life, except for the fact that he accompanied Mahmud on some of his military campaigns. Around 1022, the sovereign included the northern parts of India in his sphere of influence, and by 1026 his army had reached the coast of the Indian Ocean. Biruni is supposed to have visited the northern regions of India and even lived there for several years. He calculated the latitudes of eleven major cities in the Punjab and Kashmir region. But the main result of the trip to India was the major work "An Explanation of the Teachings Belonging to the Indians, Acceptable by Reason or Rejected."
In 1030, Mahmud died, and power passed to his son Masud. It seems that the new ruler treated Biruni much better than his father. Much indicates that the scientist was able to travel freely. Tellingly, Biruni named one of his most famous astronomical works, Masuda's Canon on Astronomy and the Stars, after his new patron. The scientist died in 1048 at the age of 75. Until his death, he continued to engage in scientific activities and wrote scientific papers.
This is practically all the facts from the life of one of the greatest scientists of the Middle Ages. We have already noted that usually much more is known about the works of ancient scientists than about themselves. Biruni is no exception. Due to constant wanderings and a semi-free life, he had neither a family nor children. Books were the main value of his life. “All my books are my children, and most people are fascinated by their children and poetry,” he wrote.
In total, Biruni owns about 150 scientific papers. Like most of his predecessors and contemporaries, he was a generalist scientist. The range of his scientific interests included almost all contemporary sciences. No wonder Biruni is often called the "great encyclopedist". He is the author of works on history, mathematics, astronomy, physics, geography, geology, medicine, ethnography. An important role in the development of science was played by the data obtained by Biruni himself, and by the fact that he was able to systematize and present the knowledge accumulated before him by scientists from the Arab world, Greece, Rome, and India. In addition to Arabic, the scientist spoke Persian, Sanskrit, Greek, possibly Syriac and Hebrew. This gave him a unique opportunity to compare and compile the knowledge of different peoples. Here is what Biruni himself wrote about this: “I cite the theories of the Indians as they are, and in parallel with them I touch on the theories of the Greeks to show their mutual closeness.” When translating texts, he worked very carefully, which favorably distinguished him from many contemporary translators. If most of the translations of that time contributed to the accumulation of errors and inaccuracies in the texts, then Biruni, on the contrary, often corrected the mistakes made earlier.
From the works of Biruni, twenty-seven books have survived to this day. We will briefly describe the most significant of them.
One of the first major works of Biruni wrote around 1000. This is the “Chronology” (“Monuments left over from past generations”), which we have already mentioned. In this book, the scientist refers to his earlier work - "Astrolabe" ("Book of exhaustion of possible ways to construct astrolabes"). Around 1021, Biruni compiled the fundamental work “Shadows” (“The Book on the Separation of Everything Said on the Question of Shadows”). In 1025, he wrote the treatise "Geodesy" ("The book of determining the boundaries to clarify the distances between settlements"), and the book "Science of the Stars" ("Kliga of admonition in the beginnings of the science of the stars") dates back to 1030.
Particularly noteworthy is the previously mentioned work "An Explanation of the Teachings Belonging to the Indians, Acceptable by Reason or Rejected." It can be said without exaggeration that this book, written on the basis of materials collected during the Indian military campaigns of Mahmud Ghazni, has become the most important source telling about the history of India, the development of its culture and science. In "Explanations ..." Biruni compares the religion, culture and scientific achievements of the Hindus: "I will add that the Greeks in the era of paganism, before the advent of Christianity, adhered to beliefs similar to those held by the Indians: the worldview of the Greek nobility was close to the worldview of the Indian nobility, and the idolatry of the common people in Greece is similar to the idolatry of the common people in India.”
Of great importance among the works of Biruni is the treatise "Masud's Canon on Astronomy and the Stars." Firstly, this work is a kind of encyclopedia of astronomical knowledge. Secondly, the author places special emphasis on mathematical proofs of certain theories and on experimental data. Biruni considered the results of observations and calculations not as biased as many of his astronomer predecessors, who often neglected data that did not fit into one theory or another. In addition to astronomical theories and information, the Canon of Masuda contains a large number of mathematical calculations that played an important role in the development of mathematics.
Already after 1041, Biruni wrote the works "Mineralogy" and "Pharmacognosy". The last work included a description of more than 1000 medicines, information about which Biruni drew from the writings of 250 authors.
Of course, the famous Arab scientist not only studied and systematized the results of research by other scientists, but also conducted his own research and put forward scientific theories. Biruni the researcher was very careful about the results obtained and encouraged his colleagues to do so. Here are his words, which may well be the motto of modern scientists: "The observer must be attentive, carefully review the results of his work, re-examine himself."
Among the most significant theories put forward by Biruni is the idea that the Sun is a hot fiery body, and the planets and the Moon glow with reflected light. He argued that the speed of the rays of light cannot be felt, since there is nothing that would move faster than the rays of light; believed that the solar corona is similar in nature to smoke. Biruni adhered to the Ptolemaic system of the world, but at the same time believed that the theory of heliocentrism was also mathematically acceptable. He also explained the nature of morning and evening dawn, suggesting that it is the result of the glow of dust particles.
The merits of Biruni are also great in the development of new scientific methods in the design of measuring instruments. In the Canon of Masuda, Biruni describes his own way of calculating the radius of the Earth. For this purpose, the scientist climbed a mountain of known height and determined the angle formed by the line of sight directed to the horizon, and its plane. Having the height of the mountain and this angle, Biruni quite accurately calculated the size of the globe. The scientist is the author of many methods of geodetic measurements. He perfected the quadrant, the sextant, and the astrolabe. For example, the fixed quadrant with a radius of 7.5 meters built by him made it possible to take measurements with an accuracy of two arc minutes and remained the most perfect in the world for four centuries. Many of his measurements, such as the angle of the ecliptic to the equator, also remained the most accurate data for hundreds of years. While working on the book "Mineralogy", Biruni determined the specific gravity of many minerals with exceptional accuracy and even introduced a method for determining minerals by their density.
In his books, Biruni also paid attention to astrology. But, as many quotations from his works show, he was very skeptical about this "science". Apparently, he was forced into astrology, as required by the interests of his patrons. “Once I saw a man who considered himself famous and most learned in the art of divination by the stars,” Biruni wrote. “Because he wanted to get the results of what the stars predetermine, he sincerely believed, in his ignorance, in the combination of the luminaries and looked for the results of their impact on man and society in their connection.”
Obviously, in the works of Biruni, not only the theories and data presented by him are of great value, but also the demonstration to followers of the very approach to science, which consisted in accuracy, accuracy and repeated verification of theoretical calculations with data obtained experimentally. Biruni also talked about science in general and its place in the world.
We will finish our story about the great encyclopedist with another quote from his works: “There are many areas of knowledge, and there are even more of them when the minds of people of the era of ascending development turn to them in a continuous series: a sign of the latter is the desire of people for the sciences, their respect for them and their representatives. This is, first of all, the duty of those who govern people, since it is they who must free their hearts from worries about everything necessary for earthly life and excite the spirit to seek the greatest possible praise and approval: after all, hearts are created to love this and hate the opposite. However, for our time, rather, the reverse situation is typical. It remains only to regret that these words, spoken a thousand years ago, are still relevant today. I would like to believe that over time, scientists will have less and less reason to speak in the same way about those in power.
ASTROLOGISTS OF THE REMOTE PAST
Knowledge is the most excellent of possessions. Everyone strives for it, but it does not come by itself.
The greatest scientific genius of the early Middle Ages, Biruni, was fluent in Arabic, Persian, Greek, Syriac, and Sanskrit. Quite often, historians of science call the entire first half of the 11th century the "epoch of Biruni". He can be attributed to one of the world's first encyclopedists, whose scientific feat was repeated only by a very few and much later. But Biruni also studied the science of the stars and was considered a great master of horary astrology. one of his most famous works is the unique treatise "Book of Instructions on the Fundamentals of the Art of Astrology".
History knows many geniuses endowed with outstanding abilities in all areas of human activity. Such people constitute the golden fund of mankind.
During the transition from the first to the second millennium, the East presented the world with a whole galaxy of thinkers whose works are still included in the treasury of world culture. Among the names of Ibn Sina, Ibn Rushd and Omar Khayyam, al-Biruni rightfully stands out. His figure is unique. Quite often, historians of science call the entire first half of the 11th century the “epoch of Biruni.” With good reason, he can be attributed to one of the first encyclopedists in the world, whose scientific feat was repeated only by a very few, and much later. His creative legacy includes more than 150 works on astronomy, mathematics, geography, mineralogy, chemistry, ethnography, philosophy, history, biology, medicine, and astrology.
Biruni (Abu-Raykhan Muhammad ibn Ahmad il Biruni) was born on September 4, 973 in the city of Kit, one of the cities of the ancient state of Khorezm (now the city of Biruni in the Republic of Uzbekistan). We know almost nothing about his childhood and youth. It is only known that he received a brilliant mathematical and philosophical education. Biruni was fluent in Arabic, Persian, Greek, Syriac, and Sanskrit.
The main part of his life was spent at the courts of the rulers of various states. Initially, he lived at the courts of the rulers of Kyat and Kurgan, and then in Khorezm at the court of Shah Mamun, where he created and headed one of the first scientific institutions in the world - the Mamun Academy, which became the largest spider center in Central Asia. The high level of this Academy is evidenced by the fact that such world-famous scientists as Abu-ali-ibn Sina, better known under the nickname Avicenna and the founder of algebra, Muhammad ibn Musa al Khorezmi, worked in it.
In 1017, Khorezm was conquered by Sultan Mahmud Gaznevid, and at his invitation, Biruni lived in Ghazni at his court. As a scientist, he took part in several campaigns of Mahmud to India, and lived in this country for several years. In 1030, he completed the fundamental work, which was the result of his travels in India, "An Explanation of the Teachings Belonging to the Indians, Acceptable by Reason or Rejected", better known as "India". In it, he gave a detailed scientific description of the life, culture, history and philosophy of the Hindus.
Biruni is the brightest representative of the Virgo sign, along with the Sun and the ascendant, there are also Mercury and the Ascending Lunar Node.
In the entire zodiac, Virgo is the only sign where its ruler, Mercury, is both in the monastery and in its exaltation at the same time. That is, a person who has Mercury in this sign in the horoscope, as a rule, is distinguished by high intelligence, orderliness in acquiring information, excellent logic, as well as the ability to notice small things and classify them.
But here Mercury is highlighted especially, because. falls in one degree with the Ascending Lunar Node, i.e. all its qualities are amplified many times over and are directly related to the evolutionary growth of man.
Moreover, the characteristic of this 25th degree of Virgo directly indicates great mental activity, and most importantly - good luck and luck, because. it is a royal degree.
In the horoscope of Biruni, the sign of Virgo is also Rising, which focuses the attention of the individual on the exact sciences. As a matter of fact, the beginnings of modern mathematics are inextricably linked with his name. It was he who brought from India the numbers that the whole civilization now uses, later called "Arab". Possessing deep knowledge in this area, he predetermined its future development, in particular, he expanded the concept of number, created the theory of cubic equations, made a significant contribution to spherical trigonometry and the creation of trigonometric tables. We also recall that the founder of algebra Muhammad ibn Musa al Khorezmi was his direct student!
The Highest Virgin is an encyclopedist, which undoubtedly was Biruni. However, he is not only an encyclopedic theorist, but also a practical and empiricist at the same time. In his writings, he emphasized the need for a thorough verification of knowledge by experience and observation, contrasting experimental knowledge with speculative knowledge. He developed astronomical methods of geodetic measurements, improved the basic astronomical instruments. Al-Biruni personally made observations on the wall quadrant with a radius of 7.5 m built by an Nasawi in Rey, performing them with an accuracy of 2 ". This quadrant for accurate observations of the sun and planets for 400 years was the largest and most accurate in the world. He established also the angle of inclination of the ecliptic to the equator, calculated the radius of the Earth, described the change in the color of the Moon during lunar eclipses and the solar corona during solar eclipses. Many of his astronomical measurements remained unsurpassed in accuracy for several centuries. He developed an accurate method for determining the radius of the Earth, based on its spherical rather than flat shape.
Biruni's interest in astronomy is not at all accidental. The ruler of the first house, Proserpine, is on the cusp of the 11th house in conjunction with Saturn, one of the significators of this house. Biruni made an outstanding contribution to the development of astronomy, and is rightfully considered one of the greatest astronomers in the world. More than a third of his extensive scientific heritage (62 works!) are connected with this science. In 1036-1037, he completed work on his main work on astronomy, widely known among astronomers of the world - the Canon of Masuda. In it, he subjected to certain criticism the geocentric system of Ptolemy, dominant in science of that time, and for the first time in the Middle East and Central Asia expressed the idea that the earth moves around the sun. The book contains trigonometric methods for measuring geographic longitudes, and also outlines the methods of trigonometric methods for measuring distances, which anticipated the discoveries of European scientists by 600 years.
Biruni was also an outstanding astrologer. 23 of his astronomical works are directly related to this science. His ability to foresee events was legendary even during his lifetime. According to one such legend, Sultan Mahmud Ghazni once decided to test his astrological art. He invited him to the palace and asked him to predict which of the four doors of the waiting room, located on the second floor, he would go out. Biruni wrote an answer and put it under the carpet in front of the Sultan's eyes. After that, the Sultan ordered to cut through the fifth door and went out into it. Immediately returning and taking out a piece of paper from under the carpet, Mahmud read: “He will not go out through any of these four doors. They'll break another door, and he'll come out through it." Caught in a set-up trap, the Sultan ordered Biruni to be thrown out of the window. So they did, but at the level of the first floor an awning was stretched, which saved his life. When Biruni was again brought to the Sultan, he exclaimed: “But you didn’t foresee this trip, did you?” "I foresaw" - Biruni answered and asked to bring his own horoscope as proof. The prediction for this day was: "I will be thrown from a high place, however, I will reach the ground unharmed and stand healthy." The enraged sultan ordered Biruni to be imprisoned in a fortress, where he spent six months and wrote the essay "The Science of the Stars" during his time in prison.
It was thanks to his fame as an astrologer, and not only a theorist, but also as a master of horary astrology, that in 1017 the Afghan sultan Mahmud Ghazni, under threat of invasion, demanded that the Shah of Khorezm extradite Biruni. The great scientist was forced to move to Ghazni, where he spent 17 years under virtual house arrest.
The possibility of arrest is also indicated by his natal chart. On the cusp of the XII house is the Cross of Fate in conjunction with Mars and Venus! Mars, the lesser evil, also has a negative aphetic status.
It should be noted that we interpret Biruni's horoscope in the system of Porfiry, it was in this system that natal birth charts were interpreted at that time. This has its reasons, since the system of houses, where the sectors between the main corner points are divided equally, indicates that a person is included in a certain rigid system of relationships. The society of the Middle Ages was such, which sharply distinguishes it from the New European time, where a person (to a certain extent, of course) is his legislator. In a horoscope built according to this system, the cusp of the XII house falls into the destructive 10 degrees of Leo, which again indicates the negative problems associated with this house.
In the XII house, secrets and isolation are in conjunction with the almuten of the VIII (Mars) and IX houses.
the coloration of the Moon during lunar eclipses and the solar corona during solar eclipses. Many of his astronomical measurements remained unsurpassed in accuracy for several centuries. He developed an accurate method for determining the radius of the Earth, based on its spherical rather than flat shape.
Biruni's interest in astronomy is not at all accidental. The ruler of the first house, Proserpine, is on the cusp of the 11th house in conjunction with Saturn, one of the significators of this house. Biruni made an outstanding contribution to the development of astronomy, and is rightfully considered one of the greatest astronomers in the world. More than a third of his extensive scientific heritage (62 works!) are connected with this science. In 1036-1037, he completed work on his main work on astronomy, widely known among astronomers of the world - the Canon of Masuda. In it, he subjected to certain criticism the geocentric system of Ptolemy, dominant in science of that time, and for the first time in the Middle East and Central Asia expressed the idea that the earth moves around the sun. The book contains trigonometric methods for measuring geographic longitudes, and also outlines the methods of trigonometric methods for measuring distances, which anticipated the discoveries of European scientists by 600 years.
Biruni was also an outstanding astrologer. 23 of his astronomical works are directly related to this science. His ability to foresee events was legendary even during his lifetime. According to one such legend, Sultan Mahmud Gaznevi once decided to test his astrological art. He invited him to the palace and asked him to predict which of the four doors of the waiting room, located on the second floor, he would go out. Biruni wrote an answer and put it under the carpet in front of the Sultan's eyes. After that, the Sultan ordered to cut through the fifth door and went out into it. Immediately returning and taking out a piece of paper from under the carpet, Mahmud read: “He will not go out through any of these four doors. Break another door, and wow
(Venus). This is a clear indication that a person will receive secret, esoteric information in distant wanderings, which was completely lost by Biruni. It was he, practically the first, who gained access to the sacred knowledge of the ancient Hindus.
The Sun - the ruler of the 12th house - is located in the 1st house of the personality, which means that he must manifest all this informational layer of secret knowledge, open it for humanity, and this coincides with his evolutionary task, because. there is the ascending lunar node.
At that time, it was almost impossible to join Indian scientific knowledge - knowledge of Vedic mathematics, astrology, Sanskrit itself, the “divine language”, according to the teachings of the Vedas, “mlechs”, non-Hindus, “cattle in the form of a man”, was not previously transmitted. Even seven centuries later, in India, British scientists faced enormous difficulties in similar studies.
Let us return once again to the astrological works of al-Biruni. One of his most famous works is the unique treatise "Book of Instructions on the Fundamentals of the Art of Astrology". It is interesting that this work was practically the only astrological treatise published throughout the entire Soviet history, moreover, in an academic publication (See Biruni, Abu Raykhan. Selected Works. Vol. VI. Tashkent: Fan, 1975).
In the introduction to this book, Biruni briefly outlined his path to astrology: “... I started with geometry, then moved on to arithmetic and numbers, then to the structure of the Universe, and then to the judgments of the stars, for only he is worthy of the title of astrologer who has fully studied these four sciences.
In this treatise, Biruni is a brief but encyclopedically complete exposition of the very foundations of astrology, with the necessary sections in the related disciplines necessary in the work of an astrologer. This work has not lost its relevance so far, and can be recommended to anyone who wants to master the basics of classical astrology.
In conclusion, we note that the fate of this outstanding scientist was largely of a mystical nature. He lived at the end of the 10th and beginning of the 11th centuries. According to the Avestan teaching, just at this time, the transition of humanity to the Virgo microcycle took place within the framework of the 12,000-year cycle taken into account by the Avestan system.
This is the sacred cycle of the Earth, associated with the dominion of a certain sign of the Zodiac over the earth's pole (do not confuse it with the cycle of precession). In turn, it is also divided into 12, and each millennium passes under a certain sign of the Zodiac. The last 1000 years is a coincidence of the big and small epochs of Virgo. It was associated with the era of fragmentation, because. its ruler Proserpina, the planet of analysis, trifles, fragmentation and transmutation, at that time a technocratic and scientistic civilization was born and developed globally.
Biruni lived at the very beginning of this era, symbolically connected with the 1st degree of Virgo, where he had Pluto. It is indicative that, being an outstanding astrologer, he at the same time acts as a critic of astrological science, and this cautious criticism was later carried by modern scientists to the point of absurdity, to the complete denial of astrology.
But we have recently entered a New Age, and in this new time the art of astrology must receive its second birth.
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The sage al-Biruni owns the words:
“... bodily pleasures to those who experience them leave behind suffering and lead to illness. And this is in contrast to the pleasure that the soul experiences when it knows something, for such a pleasure, having begun, increases all the time, without stopping at any limit.
The achievements of al-Biruni are enormous, we note the most important:
He made one of the first scientific globes, on which settlements were marked, so that it was possible to determine their coordinates;
- designed several instruments for determining the geographic latitude, which he described in "Geodesy": the latitude of Bukhara, according to his data, is 39 ° 20 ", according to modern - 39 ° 48"; the latitude of Chardjou is 39° 12" and 39° 08" respectively;
- trigonometrically determined the radius of the Earth, having received approximately 6403 km (according to modern data - 6371 km);
- determined the angle of inclination of the ecliptic to the equator, setting its secular changes. The discrepancies between his data (1020) and modern ones are 45"";
- estimated the distance to the Moon as 664 Earth radii;
- compiled a catalog of 1029 stars, the positions of which were recalculated from earlier Arabic zijs;
- considered the Sun and stars as fireballs, the Moon and planets as dark bodies reflecting light; argued that the stars are hundreds of times larger than the Earth and similar to the Sun;
- noticed the existence of double stars;
- created a spherical astrolabe, which made it possible to monitor the rising and setting of stars, their movement at different latitudes and solve a large number of problems.
Al-Biruni learned to determine impregnable distances, and his method is still used. Let's consider this method.
To defineTo measure the width of the ravine BC, al-Biruni proposes to construct two right-angled triangles ABC and ACD with a common side AC. An observer at point A, using an astrolabe, measures the angle BAC and builds the same one - CAM. The point on the segment AM is fixed with a milestone. After that, continuing the direction of the direct aircraft toside of milestone M, finds point D, which lies at the intersection of BC and
AM. Now measures DC, this distance is equal to the desired distance BC.
Al-Biruni managed to measure the radius of the Earth during a trip to India. Angle "lowered"and Ihorizon "a he determined with the help of an astrolabe, and the height of the mountain from which he made measurements - with the help of an altimeter designed by him. Let h = AD - the height of the mountain, AB and AM - tangents to the Earth's surface, OD - the radius of the Earth, CMB - the visible horizon.
The figure shows that R = (R + h) cosa,
The merit of al-Biruni is the determination of the specific gravity (density) of precious stones and metals. To measure the volume, he designed a pouring vessel. IzmThe measurements were highly accurate (compare the data of al-Biruni and modern ones in g/cm3):
Gold: 19.05 and 19.32;
- silver: 10.43 and 10.50;
- copper: 8.70 and 8.94;
- iron: 7.87 and 7.85;
- tin: 7.32 and 7.31.
Biruni found out that the specific gravity of cold and hot, fresh and salt water are different, and measured them. In Europe, similar measurements were made during the Renaissance, after Galileo built hydrostatic balances.
When compared with modern data, Biruni's results turn out to be very accurate. Russian consul in America N.Khanykov in 1857 found al-Khazini's manuscript entitled "The Book of the Scales of Wisdom". This book contains extracts from Biruni's book "On the relationship between metals and precious stones in volume", containing a description of the Biruni device and the results obtained by it. Al-Khazini continued the research begun by Biruni with the help of specially designed scales, which he called "the scales of wisdom."
Monument to al-Biruni in Tehran by Olga Ampel
Al-Biruni monument adorning the southwestern entrance of Lale Park in Tehran (Iran)
According to information, the posthumous list of his works, compiled by his students, took 60 finely written pages. Al-Biruni received a broad mathematical and philosophical education. An outstanding mathematician and astronomer Ibn Iraq was his teacher in the ancient capital of Khorezmshahs, Kate. After the capture of Kyat by the Emir of Gurganj in 995 and the transfer of the capital of Khorezm to Gurganj, al-Biruni left for Rei, where he worked for al-Khojandi. Then he worked in Gurgan at the court of Shams al-Ma'ali Qabus, to whom he dedicated the Chronology around 1000, then returned to Khorezm and worked in Gurganj at the court of the Khorezmshahs Ali and Mamun II. Since 1017, after the conquest of Khorezm by Sultan Mahmud Gaznevi, he was forced to move to Ghazna, where he worked at the court of Sultan Mahmud and his successors Masud and Maudud. Al-Biruni participated in Mahmud's campaigns in India, where he lived for several years.
He was dying in full consciousness and, saying goodbye to all his friends, asked the latter: “What did you once explain to me about the methods of counting unrighteous profits?” "How can you think about it in such a state?" he exclaimed in astonishment. "Oh you! Biruni said in a barely audible voice. “I think that leaving this world knowing the answer to this question is better than leaving it ignorant…”
Buried in the city of Ganja in southern Afghanistan
Al-Biruni was born on September 4, 973 in the city of Kyat, the capital of the state of Khorezm. Full name - Abu Rayhan Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Biruni. The young Al-Biruni received an excellent education from the outstanding astronomer and mathematician Ibn Iraqi. Education included not only mathematics, but also philosophy. He studied, in addition to Khorezmian, nine languages of the East, including Sanskrit and Hindi, as well as Greek and Latin.
Al-Biruni was a man of very broad interests. He studied everything: history and geography, mathematics and astronomy, geodesy and philology, mineralogy and pharmacology - the list could go on. In all these areas, he conducted independent research, wrote 45 works in various disciplines.
Already in the first work devoted to chronology, the scientist collected and analyzed all the calendar systems known at that time and compiled a voluminous chronological table.
Al-Biruni compiled descriptions of medicines known at that time, in a work on mineralogy he described the properties of 50 metals, alloys and minerals. Conducted mathematical research. Developed the theory of translation of scientific terms from one language to another ...
While working on his main work - "The Canons of Mas'ud on Astronomy and the Stars" - the scientist calculated the radius of the Earth, set the angle of inclination of the ecliptic to the equator, described lunar eclipses with a change in the color of the Moon during them, as well as solar eclipses, having analyzed the nature of the solar corona, expressed the idea of the fiery nature of the stars and the sun, in contrast to the planets.
The indefatigable Al-Biruni visited many cities of the East and even lived for several years in India, where he reached with the campaign of Sultan Mahmud Ghaznevi. The result was an essay on the philosophical systems of India, including the theory of Samkhya, cosmic evolution, and so on. In the same book, the famous legend about the sage, the king and the grains laid out exponentially on each cell of the board, the prototype of the chess and checkers, was set out.
Dying on December 9, 1048 in the city of Ghazna, Al-Biruni was in full consciousness and, although he was weak, he talked on scientific topics. Saying goodbye to his friends, he asked the latter: “Oh yes, I kept wanting to ask, what did you tell me once about the methods of counting unrighteous profits?” The amazed friend exclaimed: “Is this what to talk about now!”. Al-Biruni, already losing his voice, whispered: “Oh, you! I think that it is better to leave the world having learned the answer to this question than to leave ignorant ... ".
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Welcome! Khush kelibsiz! Kosh keldiniz! Kosh keldynyzder!Khush omaded! Hoş geldiniz! !ترحيب Great people don't die. Because their intellectual, emotional and spiritual Universe is so rich, voluminous, multifaceted that after their physical death we feel not only their influence, but also an invisible presence. We correlate our actions with them, consult, learn. And so from distant ages great teacher Beruni addresses us today. |
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Abu Rayhan Beruni(Biruni; Abu Rayhan Muhammad Ibn Ahmad al-Biruni) (973–1048). 75 years old Outstanding Uzbek scientist-encyclopedist. Born on September 4, 973 in the ancient capital of Khorezm - the city of Kyat. Very little is known about the early years of Beruni's life, except that he was an orphan. About his origin, he wrote: "... I do not really know my genealogy. After all, I do not really know my grandfather, and how can I know my grandfather, since I do not know my father!" |
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Beruni's childhood and youth were spent in the house of the cousin of Khorezmshah Abu Abdallah from the local dynasty of Irakids - one of the outstanding mathematicians of Khorezm of that time - Abu Nasr Mansur ibn Ali ibn Iraq (he owns one of the first proofs of the sine theorem for flat and spherical triangles).
Abu Nasr was sincerely attached to his pupil, and this attachment he retained for the rest of his life, continuing to patronize him touchingly and give instructions, even when the scientific fame of the student far exceeded his own. Over the years, mentorship gave way to cooperation, and the spiritual closeness of these two people, who put the selfless service of truth above all earthly blessings, will determine the amazing similarity of their human paths - fate, which separated them often and for a long time, will eventually bring both into exile, where both will end their lives. life without ever seeing their native land.
The inquisitive Beruni from childhood tried to expand the information about the world he received from the teacher. In his work "Pharmacognosy in Medicine", he wrote that by nature from his youth he was endowed with an excessive greed for acquiring knowledge. As evidence of this, Beruni gives the following example: when he was about seven years old, a Greek settled in their district, to whom he brought various grains, seeds, fruits, plants, etc., asked what they were called in his language, and wrote down the names. Then the Greek introduced Beruni to another knowledgeable person named Masihi, who recommended the books he needed to read and explained incomprehensible things. Beruni wrote his first work "The Chronology of Ancient Peoples", in which he collected and described all the calendar systems known in his time, used by various peoples, when he was a little over twenty years old.
The similarity of Beruni's earthly path with the fate of his other greatest contemporary, Abu Ali Ibn Sina, with whom, by the way, they actively exchanged letters, discussing the natural philosophical views of Aristotle, is also surprising.
Like Ibn Sina, fate sometimes exalted Beruni, then beat him to the ground: years of a quiet life, filled with scientific research and palace honors, were replaced by years of poverty and exile.
Beruni several times had to endure the loss of all his manuscripts, and start everything from scratch in a new place. But the strength of mind and the desire for scientific research did not allow Beruni to give up even in hopeless situations.
Since 1017, after the conquest of Khorezm by Sultan Mahmud Gaznevi, Beruni lived in Ghazna at the court of Sultan Mahmud and his successors Masud and Maudud. Under the compulsion of the Sultan, Beruni participated in Mahmud's campaigns in India, where he lived the second half of his life. There are many legends about the circumstances of his move to Ghazna. Did he voluntarily go to the capital of Sultan Mahmud in search of a good income, or was he forcibly taken there in custody and in shackles, like a dangerous criminal? Most researchers are inclined to the second version: when the capital of the Khorezm principality was destroyed in 1017, the great scientist was captured and "as a captive-hostage, he, along with other prominent Khorezmians, was taken to Ghazna" and was even imprisoned there. After his release in Ghazna, the scientist led a secluded life, and only work remained his only joy.
Only for two days a year - on New Year's Day and on the holiday of Mihrjan - he devoted himself to the care of acquiring supplies of food and clothing, and on the remaining days of the year he devoted himself entirely to science.
There is a legend that once Sultan Mahmud himself decided to test the logic and knowledge of Beruni. To do this, he arranged an audience in the great hall of his palace, which had four doors. And he ordered him to guess through which of them he would enter the hall. Beruni immediately asked for paper and ink, and, having written a note containing the answer, he hid it under the pillow on which the sultan usually sat. He ordered to break part of the wall in the hall and entered this gap. Taking out a note from Beruni from under the pillow, he found in it the answer that the Sultan should enter the hall through a hole in the wall.
Enraged, Mahmud ordered the scientist to be immediately thrown out the window, but Beruni ordered ahead of time to prepare a ramp under the window, along which he rolled down without any harm to himself.
In old age, Beruni lost his sight, but until the last minute of his life he considered a cheerful spirit to be the main "mechanism" for continuing life. Dying on December 9, 1048 in Ghazna, Beruni was in full consciousness and, although he was weak, he talked on scientific topics. Saying goodbye to his friends, he asked the latter: “Oh yes, I wanted to ask everyone, what did you tell me once about the methods of counting unrighteous profits?” The amazed friend exclaimed: “Is this what to talk about now!”. Biruni, already losing his voice, whispered: “Oh, you! I think that it is better to leave the world having learned the answer to this question than to leave ignorant ... ".
Beruni was an encyclopedically literate person, with diverse interests. Beruni learned the Arabic language, grammar and style himself. In addition, he knew nine languages of the East (in addition to Khorezmian and Arabic), including Sanskrit and Hindi, as well as Greek and Latin.
In total, he wrote 45 works in various disciplines: medicine, pharmacology, pharmacognosy, history, geography, mathematics, astronomy, geodesy, philology, mineralogy. He calculated the radius of the Earth, set the angle of inclination of the ecliptic to the equator, described lunar eclipses with a change in the color of the Moon during them, as well as solar eclipses, having analyzed the nature of the solar corona, expressed the idea of the fiery nature of the stars and the sun, in contrast to the planets.
As a reward for compiling star tables, the Sultan sent Beruni as a gift of an elephant loaded with silver. But the scientist returned the gift to the treasury, saying: “I don’t need silver, I have the highest wealth - knowledge”.
Capital labor Beruni "Pharmacognosy in medicine"(“Kitab as-Saidana fit-t-tibb”) is of great importance at the present time. In this book, he details described about 880 plants, their separate parts and selections; gave their exact descriptions, streamlined the terminology. The description of plants is accompanied by drawings with their images. "Saidana" ("Pharmacognosy") also contains rich material on the distribution of medicinal plants and their ranges.
Beruni collected and explained about 4500 Arabic, Greek, Syrian, Indian, Persian, Khorezmian, Sogdian, Turkic, and other plant names. These synonyms are still used in modern pharmacognosy when deciphering ancient treatises.
For European science "Saidana" ("Pharmacognosy") was unknown until 1902.
Beruni's aphorism: "A scientist acts consciously even when he spends money."
Another aphorism: « No nation is spared from ignorant people and leaders, still moreignorant».
