Abstract
Much have been written about al-Biruni’s contribution to the development of astronomy and materia medica that has earned him a distinguished place in the history of science. Yet little is known about his philosophy of mathematics, especially pertaining to the interplay of reason and spirit in his view of the foundation of mathematics. In this article, the author will examine al-Biruni’s position regarding the matter based on some of his writings, in particular, his Kitab al-tafhim li-awa’il sina‘at al-tanjim (The Book of Instruction in the Elements of the Art of Astrology).
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References
al-Biruni, al-Athar al-baqiya min al-qurun al-khaliya. English trans. By Edward Sachau, The Chronology of Ancient Nations (MinervaGMBH, London, 1879).
al-Biruni, al-Qanun al-Masudi (Canon Masudicus) (Osmania Oriental Publications Bureau, Hyderabad, 1954–1956).
al-Biruni, Kitab al-Jamahir fi marifat al-jawahir. Ed. By F. Krenkow (Osmania Oriental Publications Bureau, Hyderabad-Dn, 1936).
al-Biruni, Kitab al-Saydanah fi’l –tibb. Ed. and trans. By hakim Mohammed Said et al. (Hamdard Academy, Pakistan, 1973).
al-Biruni, Kitab al-tafhim li-awa’il sina’at al-tanjim. Tehran: Jalal huma’l, 1940. English trans. By R. Ramsay Wright, The Book of Instruction in the Elements of the Art of Astrology (Luzca, London, 1934).
al-Biruni, Kitab fi ifrad al-maqal fi amr al-zilal. (Osmania Oriental Publications Bureau, Hyderabad-Dn, 1948). Ed. and trans. As The Exhaustive Treatise on Shadows (University of Aleppo, E.S. Kennedy. Syria, 1976).
al-Biruni, Kitab fi tahqiq ma li’l Hind. English trans. By Edward Sachau, Alberuni’s India (Trubner, London, 1888).
al-Biruni, Tahdid nihayat al-amakin li-tashih. English trans. By Jamil Ali, The Determination of the Coordinates of Cities, al-Beruni’s Tahdid al-Amakin (American University of Beirut, Beirut, 1967).
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Samian, A. (2011). Reason and Spirit in Al-Biruni’s Philosophy of Mathematics. In: Tymieniecka, AT. (eds) Reason, Spirit and the Sacral in the New Enlightenment. Islamic Philosophy and Occidental Phenomenology in Dialogue, vol 5. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-9612-8_9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-9612-8_9
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