Ibn Sina, one of the key figures in early Islam, is considered by many to be a doctor of medicine (or Muhamed). He was born in Mecca around the seventh century. In his earliest writings he presents Muslim views on God and reasoning. He is called the father of Islamic Physiology (physiology) and author of the Treatise on Medicine (Kitab al-Miraj). He is also credited with developing Muslim pharmacology and developing the first Arabic language medical writing.
Ibn Saha was born about six centuries later. He continued his medical studies under Avicenna and became a famous teacher. His major works on physiology and psychology form the basis of Avicenna’s medical philosophy, which he was able to apply to problems in pathology and human nature. Avicenna, who was more a chemist than an educator, was knowledgeable about how plants worked, but did not have a clear view of God’s thoughts and therefore could not employ the same metaphysics that Ibn Sina had.
However, when we examine what Ibn Sina’s work has to say about God’s existence we find that he did have a metaphysics that was similar to that of Avicenna. Some say that his concept of essence was a bit different than that of Avicenna, but his arguments are all built on the same syllogistic. In both works, Avicenna argued that matter was made up of parts that existed in succession and separated one another. For Ibn Sina, however, there were no separate parts; all part exist simultaneously as a whole.
This metaphysical background was sufficient for him to introduce an algebraic language to describe physical phenomena. However, there is no evidence that he ever used this language, and he never presented it in court or during his discussions with other physicians. All that we know of its existence came from his mystical writings, which were kept by his students. Only a few of his students were able to translate his works; it is possible that only a small part of his works had been translated.
During his time as a student of Avicenna, Ibn Siau did encounter a new set of characters. One of these was Huniyan, the most famous of the Islamic philosophers. Huniyan is the founder of what became the Sufi philosophical schools and was born in Syria. In his work, he presents a much less materialistic point of view than Avicenna, yet both thinkers draw their ideas from the same school of thought.
The most important figures associated with the school of Islamic metaphysics that Ibn Siau founded are al Imam Jaafar al Husain, and his son Muhamad al Husain. According to tradition, al Husain left Arabia to seek knowledge of Avicenna’s philosophy in Greece, but according to one source, he actually died in Mecca while trying to acquire knowledge of Avicenna’s death. Muhamad al Husain, however, studied with Avicenna, learning much of Avicenna’s work, including the aramaic. As well as al Imam Jaafar al Husain, there were also other philosophers whose work was greatly influenced by Avicenna. These include such notable scholars as Abu Jaafar al Nasr, Abu Nuis, Abu Tabil, and others.
From all the above it can be seen that in addition to being a prolific author, Ibn Siau, also had strong influences on the fields of medicine, theology, anthropology, and even psychology. Avicenna’s works on the physical world and physics have had an enormous effect on the development of medicine in the west, and his work in this field is still very influential today. On a related note, it must also be noted that Avicenna’s work has had an immense impact on world economy. His works on mechanics and mathematics have given Indian, Chinese, and Arab mechanics an Islamic slant, while his astronomical works laid the basis for the modern day geocentric navigation.
When Ibn Sina returned from his journeys, he took his philosophy with him and set it forth in a sort of scriptural manner in what he called Kitab al Khurasans. This treatise, or book, consists of seventy-two verses that speak of God’s essence, existence, unity, and eternity. In these verses he compares the human being to the stars, explaining that the latter are nothing but mirrors of our existence, while the former are devoid of anything except the nature that exists independent of humans. Furthermore, he contends that knowledge is of two types, light and darkness, while the soul is the mirror of that which it examines. Lastly, he contends that the creation and essence precede creation, and that everything emanates from something else. As all of these topics sound eternally logical, one can only wonder where Ibn Siau’s thoughts on these topics were when he wrote his book.