POWERPOINT

PRESENTATION ON
HISTORY OF

Ab Rayn al-Brn

HISTORY
Ab al-Rayhn Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Brn[n 1](born 4/5
September 973 in Kath,Khwarezm,[3]died 13 December 1048 in
Ghazni) known asAlberoniusin Latin andAl-Biruniin English,[4]
was aPersian[5]-Khwarezmian[6][7]Muslimscholar and polymath
from theKhwarezmregion.
Al-Biruni is regarded as one of the greatest scholars of the
medieval Islamic era and was well versed inphysics,mathematics
,astronomy, andnatural sciences, and also distinguished himself
as ahistorian,chronologistandlinguist.[7]He was conversant in
Khwarezmian,Persian,Arabic,Sanskrit, and also knewGreek,
HebrewandSyriac. He spent a large part of his life inGhazniin
modern-day Afghanistan, capital of theGhaznavid dynastywhich
was based in what is now central-eastern Afghanistan. In 1017 he
traveled to the Indian subcontinent and became the most
important interpreter ofIndian scienceto theIslamic world. He is
given the titles the "founder ofIndology" and the "first
anthropologist".[8]He was an impartial writer on custom and
creeds of various nations, and was given the titleal-Ustadh("The
Master") for his remarkable description of early 11th-century
India.[7]He also made contributions toEarth sciences, and is
regarded as the "father ofgeodesy" for his important
contributions to that field, along with his significant contributions

Early life

He was born in the outer district of Kath, the

capital of theAfrighiddynasty ofKhwarezm(or
Chorasmia).[9]The wordBirunimeans "from the
outer-district" inPersian, and so this became his
nisba: "al-Brn" = "the Birunian".[9]His first
twenty-five years were spent in Khwarezm where
he studiedfiqh, theology, grammar,mathematics,
astronomy,medicsand other sciences.[9]The
IranianKhwarezmian language, which was the
language of Biruni,[10][11]survived for several
centuries afterIslamuntil the Turkification of the
region, and so must some at least of the culture
and lore of ancientKhwarezm, for it is hard to see
the commanding figure of Biruni, a repository of
so much knowledge, appearing in a cultural
vacuum.

Mathematics and Astronomy

Ninety-five of 146 books known to have been written by
Brn, about 65 percent, were devoted to astronomy,
mathematics, and related subjects like mathematical
geography.[17]
Biruni's major work on astrology[18]is primarily an
astronomical and mathematical text, only the last chapter
concerns astrological prognostication. His endorsement of
astrology is limited, in so far as he condemnshorary astrology
[19]
as 'sorcery'.
In discussing speculation by other Muslim writers on the
possible motion of the Earth, Biruni acknowledged that he
could neither prove nor disprove it, but commented
favourably on the idea that the Earth rotates.[20]He wrote an
extensive commentary onIndian astronomyin theKitab
ta'rikh al-Hind, in which he claims to have resolved the matter
of Earth's rotation in a work on astronomy that is no longer
extant, hisMiftah-ilm-alhai'a (Key to Astronomy):

Physics
Al-Birunicontributedtotheintroductionoftheexperimental
scientificmethodtomechanics,unifiedstaticsanddynamics
intothescienceofmechanics,andcombinedthefieldsof
hydrostaticswithdynamicstocreatehydrodynamics.[citation needed]
This section
requires
expansion.
FourdirectionsandPoliticaldivisionsofIranbyAbRayhnal-Brn
(June 2011)
Brnalsodevisedhisownmethodofdeterminingtheradiusof
theearthbymeansoftheobservationoftheheightofa
mountainandcarrieditoutatNandanainPindDadanKhan,
Pakistan.[28]
See also: History_of_geodesy#Biruni

Geography

PharmacologyandMineralogy

Duetoanapparatusheconstructedhimself,hesucceededindetermining
thespecificgravityofacertainnumberofmetalsandmineralswith
remarkableprecision.

HistoryandChronology

Biruni'smainessayonpoliticalhistory,Kitbal-musmarafabrrazm
(Bookofnightlyconversationconcerningtheaffairsofrazm)isnow
knownonlyfromquotationsinBayhaqsTrkh-emasd.Inadditiontothis
variousdiscussionsofhistoricaleventsandmethodologyarefoundin
connectionwiththelistsofkingsinhisal-thral-bqiyaandintheQnn
aswellaselsewhereinthethr,inIndia,andscatteredthroughouthis
otherworks.

History of Religions

BrnisoneofthemostimportantMuslimauthoritiesonthehistoryofreligion.[31]
Al-Biruniwasapioneerinthestudyofcomparativereligion.Hestudied
Zoroastrianism,Judaism,Hinduism,Christianity,Buddhism,Islam,andother
religions.Hetreatedreligionsobjectively,strivingtounderstandthemontheirown
termsratherthantryingtoprovethemwrong.Hisunderlyingconceptwasthatall
culturesareatleastdistantrelativesofallotherculturesbecausetheyareall
humanconstructs.Whatal-Biruniseemstobearguingisthatthereisacommon
humanelementineveryculturethatmakesallculturesdistantrelatives,however
foreigntheymightseemtooneanother.(Rosenthal,1976,p.10).Al-Biruniwas
disgustedbyscholarswhofailedtoengageprimarysourcesintheirtreatmentof
Hindureligion.HefoundexistingsourcesonHinduismtobebothinsufficientand
dishonest.Guidedbyasenseofethicsandadesiretolearn,hesoughttoexplain
thereligiousbehaviorofdifferentgroups.
Al-BirunidividesHindusintoaneducatedandanuneducatedclass.Hedescribes
theeducatedasmonotheistic,believingthatGodisone,eternal,andomnipotent
andeschewingallformsofidolworship.HerecognizesthatuneducatedHindus
worshippedamultiplicityofidolsyetpointsoutthatevensomeMuslims(suchas
theJabiriyya)haveadoptedanthropomorphicconceptsofGod.(Ataman,2005)

Indology

ThestatueofBiruniinLalehPark,Tehran,Iran

BrnsfameasanIndologistrestsprimarilyontwotexts. [32]Al-BiruniwroteanencyclopedicworkonIndiacalled
TarikhAl-Hind(HistoryofIndia)inwhichheexplorednearlyeveryaspectofIndianlife,includingreligion,history,
geography,geology,science,andmathematics.Heexploresreligionwithinarichculturalcontext.Heexpresseshis
objectivewithsimpleeloquence:Ishallnotproducetheargumentsofourantagonistsinordertorefutesuchofthem,
asIbelievetobeinthewrong.Mybookisnothingbutasimplehistoricrecordoffacts.Ishallplacebeforethereader
thetheoriesoftheHindusexactlyastheyare,andIshallmentioninconnectionwiththemsimilartheoriesofthe
Greeksinordertoshowtherelationshipexistingbetweenthem.(1910,Vol.1,p.7;1958,p.5)
AnexampleofAl-BirunisanalysisishissummaryofwhymanyHindushateMuslims.HeexplainsthatHinduismand
Islamaretotallydifferentfromeachother.Moreover,Hindusin11thcenturyIndiahadsufferedthroughwavesof
destructiveattacksonmanyofitscities,andIslamicarmieshadtakennumerousHinduslavestoPersia,which
claimedAl-BirunicontributedtoHindusbecomingsuspiciousofallforeigners,notjustMuslims.Hindusconsidered
Muslimsviolentandimpure,anddidnotwanttoshareanythingwithhim.Overtime,Al-Biruniwonthewelcomeof
Hinduscholars.Al-BirunicollectedbooksandstudiedwiththeseHinduscholarstobecomefluentinSanskrit,
discoverandtranslateintoArabicthemathematics,science,medicine,astronomyandotherfieldsofartsaspracticed
in11thcenturyIndia.HewasinspiredbytheargumentsofferedbyIndianscholarswhobelievedearthmustbe
ellipsoidshape,withyettobediscoveredcontinentatearth'ssouthpole,andearth'srotationaroundthesunisthe
onlywaytofullyexplainthedifferenceindaylighthoursbylatitude,seasonsandearth'srelativepositionswithmoon
andstars.Al-BiruniwasalsocriticalofIndianscribeswhohebelievedcarelesslycorruptedIndiandocumentswhile
makingcopiesofolderdocuments.[33]Al-Biruni'stranslationsaswellashisownoriginalcontributionsreachedEurope
in12thand13thcentury,wheretheywereactivelysought.
Whileotherswerekillingeachotheroverreligiousdifferences,Al-BirunihadaremarkableabilitytoengageHindusin
peacefuldialogue.MohammadYasinputsthisdramaticallywhenhesays,TheIndicaislikeamagicislandofquiet,
impartialresearchinthemidstofaworldofclashingswords,burningtowns,andburnedtemples.(Indicaisanother
nameforAl-BirunishistoryofIndia).(Yasin,1975,p.212).

PERSIAN WORK
Although he preferred Arabic to Persian in
scientific writing, his Persian version of the
Al-Tafhim[34]is one of the most important of
the early works of science in the
Persian language, and is a rich source for
Persian prose and lexicography.[34]The
book covers theQuadriviumin a detailed
and skilled fashion.

Legacy
The craterAl-Birunion theMoonis
named after him.