İbni SİNA 980-1037

Who is İbn Sina

İbn Sina or Ebu Sina or also known in the Western world as Avicenna was born in 980 in the village of Afshana, near Bukhara, in what is now Uzbekistan, and was one of the most important scholars of the Golden Age of Islam. İbn Sina, who worked in the fields of medicine, astronomy, and philosophy, is known as the "father of early medicine" and "the prince of philosophers".

Avicenna's life in brief

İbn Sina's father, Abdullah, who was originally from Balkh and settled in Bukhara, a rival to Baghdad as the cultural capital of the Islamic world during the Samanid dynasty, was well educated, and his home was a center where topics related to philosophy, geometry and Indian mathematics were discussed, and scholars of the time gathered for conversation. İbn Sina became familiar with science and philosophy during his childhood.

İbn Sina, who had an extraordinary intelligence compared to his peers, memorized the Qur'an at an early age, and he studied language, literature, and Islamic law. He also studied Indian arithmetic at his father's request after receiving his first knowledge of geometry, arithmetic, and philosophy from his father.

İbn Sina, who easily accessed Middle and Neoplatonic and Aristotelian texts in Bukhara, read Euclid's book of the Elements and Ptolemy's Almagest, and reinterpreted them with the information he learned such as Persian and Indian mathematical systems, astronomy, algebra, trigonometry, was also interested in medical science.

In 997, he came under the protection of the Emir of Bukhara, whom he had recovered from a dangerous illness, and in return for his service he received the right to use the official library of the Samanids as he wished. He lost his father at the age of 22. When the Samanid dynasty collapsed in 1004, he went west, first to Urgench, and then traveled around the region from Merv to Nishapur and the borders of Khorasan. Eventually, he began to teach logic and astronomy in Gurgan, on the shores of the Caspian Sea. İbn Sina worked in Rey and Qazvin for a while and then settled in Isfahan. Here he worked as a doctor, scientific adviser, participated in battles, was appointed vizier by the Emir. At the same time, he began to study literature and philology. 

It has been recorded by his contemporaries that İbn Sina was gifted and very hardworking; however, the other hand, he had a personality that could not tolerate the obstinacy and defeat caused by overconfidence in his intelligence and knowledge.

The most important work of İbn Sina

İbn Sina wrote numerous works on early Islamic philosophy, especially on logic, ethics, and metaphysics. Most of the works of İbn Sina, who wrote about 450 articles and about 200 books, 240 of which have survived to the present day, were written in Arabic, the language of science in the Middle East, and some in Persian.  His most important works are the Kitabü'ş-Shifa (The Book of Healing) and al-Ḳānûn fi'ṭ-ṭıb (The Law of Medicine), which deeply influenced the European medical tradition.

İbn Sina's work in the field of medicine

İbn Sina, who was not only a great philosopher but also a famous physician, had a shocking impact on the European medical tradition as well as the Islamic world with his works in the field of medicine. 17th century in the Western world. İbn Sina, whose influence lasted until the century, is considered as important as the ancient Greek medical authorities Hippocrates and Galen. His work al-Ḳānûn fi'ṭ-ṭıb was translated into Latin in Spain shortly after his death and was taught as a textbook in European universities. 

On the cover of one of the first Latin editions of al-Ḳānûn fi'ṭ-ṭib, İbn Sina is depicted on a throne, with a crown on his head and a staff in his hand, while the famous Greek physicians Hippocrates and Galen are shown seated on either side of him. This is also an indication of the value given to İbn Sina in Europe. 

İbn Sina brought together the Ancient Greek, Byzantine, and Syriac medical literature before him, systematized it and updated it with personal observation data and produced his work al-Ḳānûn fi'ṭ-ṭıb. Thanks to this work of İbn Sina, the accumulation of medicine has turned into a consistent, systematic, and comprehensive branch of science. The success of the book against other works is attributed to this systematic and encyclopedic feature of it. 

How did İbn Sina die?

İbn Sina fell ill during the Hamedan expedition while he was living in Isfahan. He refused to apply the treatments offered to him. He donated his possessions to the poor, freed his slaves, and spent his days in worship. He died in June 1037 at the age of 57. His grave is in Hamedan, which is in what is today Iran.