The Improvement of Human Reason

exhibited in the Life of Hai Ebn Yokdhan

By Ibn Tufail

(Abu Bakr Muhammad Ibn Tufail al-Qasi)

Newly Translated from the Original Arabick

by Simon Ockley(1708)

An online book at The Spirit and Flesh World Religion and Spirituality Online Library: uniting seemingly opposed ideologies and vibrations into the true, pristine harmony of cosmic oneness.

The Improvement of

HUMAN REASON,

Exhibited in the LIFE of

Hai Ebn Yokdhan:

Written in Arabick above 500 Years ago, by Abu Jaafar Ebn Tophail.

In which is demonstrated,

By what Methods one may, by the meer
Light of Nature, attain the Knowledg
of things Natural and Supernatural;
more particularly the Knowledg of God,
and the Affairs of another Life.

Illustrated with proper FIGURES,

Newly Translated from the Original Arabick by
SIMON OCKLEY,
A.M. Vicar of Swanesey in Cambridgshire.

With an APPENDIX,

In Which the Possibility of Man's attaining
the True Knowledg of GOD, and
Things necessary to Salvation, without
Instruction, is briefly consider'd.

To the Reverend

Mr. Edward Pococke,

Rector of

MINAL, in Wiltshire.

THE PREFACE.

When Mr. Pococke first publish'd this Arabick Author with his accurate Latin Version, Anno 1671. Dr. Pococke his Father, that late eminent Professor of the Oriental Languages in the University of Oxford, prefix'd a Preface to it; in which he tells us, that he has good Reason to think, that this Author was contemporary with Averroes, who died very ancient in the Year of the Hegira 595, which is co-incident with the 1198th Year of our Lord; according to which Account, the Author liv'd something above five hundred Years ago.

He liv'd in Spain, as appears from one or two Passages in this Book. He wrote some other Pieces, which are not come to our Hands. This has been very well receiv'd in the East; one Argument of which is, that it has been translated by R. Moses Narbonensis into Hebrew, and illustrated with a large Commentary. The Design of the Author is to shew, how Human Capacity, unassisted by any External Help, may, by due Application, attain to the Knowledge of Natural Things, and so by Degrees find out its Dependance upon a Superior Being, the Immortality of the Soul, and all things necessary to Salvation.

How well he has succeeded in this Attempt, I leave to the Reader to judge. 'Tis certain, that he was a Man of Parts and very good Learning, considering the Age he liv'd in, and the way of studying in those Times. There are a great many lively Stroaks in it; and I doubt not but a judicious Reader will find his Account in the Perusal of it.

I was not willing ('though importun'd) to undertake the translating it into English, because I was inform'd that it had been done twice already; once by Dr. Ashwell, another time by the Quakers, who imagin'd that there was something in, it that favoured their Enthusiastick Notions. However, taking it for granted, that both these Translations we're not made out of the Original Arabick, but out of the Latin; I did not question but they had mistaken the Sense of the Author in many places. Besides, observing that a great many of my friends whom I had a desire to oblige, and other Persons whom I would willingly incline to a more favourable Opinion of Arabick Learning, had not seen this Book; and withal, hoping that I might add something by way of Annotation or Appendix, which would not be altogether useless; I at last ventur'd to translate it a-new.

I have here and there added a Note, in which there is an account given of some, great Man, some Custom of the Mahometans explain'd, or something of that Nature, which I hope will not be unacceptable. And lest any Person should, through mistake, make any ill use of it, I have subjoin'd an Appendix, the Design of which the Reader may see in its proper place.

SIMON OCKLEY.

THE BOOKSELLER TO THE READER.

When I first undertook the Publication of this English Translation, I thought it would not be amiss to present the World with a Specimen of it first. But since the Introduction is such, that the Reader can no more by it give a Guess at what is contain'd in the Book itself, than a Man can judge of his Entertainment by seeing the Cloath laid; I have thought it necessary to give him a Bill of Fare.

The Design of the Author (who was a Mahometan Philosopher) is to shew how Humane Reason may, by Observation and Experience, arrive at the Knowledge of Natural Things, and from thence to Supernatural; particularly the Knowledge of God and a Future State. And in order to this, he supposes a Person brought up by himself where he was altogether destitute of any Instruction, but what he could get from his own Observation.

He lays the Scene in some Fortunate Island situate under the Equinoctial; where he supposes this Philosopher, either to have been bred (according to Avicen's Hypothesis, who conceiv'd a possibility of a Man's being formed by the Influence of the Planets upon Matter rightly disposed) without either Father or Mother; or self-expos'd in his Infancy, and providentially suckled by a Roe. Not that our Author believ'd any such matter, but only having design'd to.

He lays the Scene in some Fortunate Island situate under the Equinoctial; where he supposes this Philosopher, either to have been bred (according to Avicen's Hypothesis, who conceiv'd a possibility of a Man's being formed by the Influence of the Planets upon Matter rightly disposed) without either Father or Mother; or self-expos'd in his Infancy, and providentially suckled by a Roe. Not that our Author believ'd any such matter, but only having design'd to contrive a convenient place for his Philosopher, so as to leave him to Reason by himself, and make his Observations without any Guide. In which Relation, he proposes both these ways, without speaking one Word in favour of either.

Then he shews by what Steps and Degrees he advanc'd in the Knowledge of Natural Things, till at last he perceiv'd the Necessity of acknowledging an Infinite, Eternal, Wise Creator, and also the Immateriality and Immortality of his own Soul, and that its Happiness consisted only in a continued Conjunction with this supream Being.

The Matter of this Book is curious, and full of useful Theorems; he makes most use of the Peripatetick Philosophy, which he seems to have well understood; it must be confess'd indeed, that when he comes to talk of the Union with God, &c. (as in the Introduction) there are some Enthusiastick Notions, which are particularly consider'd and refuted by the Editor in his Appendix.

Whose Design in publishing this Translation, was to give those who are as yet unacquainted with it, a Taste of the Acumen and Genius of the Arabian Philosophers, and to excite young Scholars to the reading of those Authors, which, through a groundless Conceit of their Impertinence and Ignorance, have been too long neglected.

And tho' we do not pretend to any Discoveries in this Book, especially at this time of Day, when all parts of Learning are cultivated with so much Exactness; yet we hope that it will not be altogether unacceptable to the curious Reader to know what the state of Learning was among the Arabs, five hundred Years since. And if what we shall here communicate, shall seem little in respect of the Discoveries of this discerning Age; yet we are confident, that any European, who shall compare the Learning in this Book, with what was publish'd by any of his own Country-men at that time, will find himself obliged in Conscience to give our Author fair Quarter.

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An online book at The Spirit and Flesh World Religion and Spirituality Online Library: uniting seemingly opposed ideologies and vibrations into the true, pristine harmony of cosmic oneness.