Ibn Rusyd or Averroes

IBN RUSHD

IBN RUSHD, Abu 'l-Walid Muhammad b. Ahmad b. Muhammad b. Rushd, al-Hafid (the grandson), the 'Commentator of Aristotle', famous in the Mediaeval West under the name of Averroes, scholar of the Qur'anic sciences and the natural sciences (physics, medicine, biology, astronomy), theologian and philosopher.

He was born at Cordova in 520/1126 and died at Marrakush in 595/1198. The Arabic biographical sources are: Ibn al-Abbar, Takmila, BAH, vi, no. 853; Ibn Abi Usaybi'a, 'Uyun; al-Ansari, supplement to the dictionaries of Ibn Bashkuwal and of Ibn al-Abbar (notice published in the complete works of Renan, iii, 329); al-Dhahabi, Annales (ibid., 345); 'Abd al-Wahid al-Marrakushi, Mu'dhib.

Ibn Rushd belonged to an important Andulusian family. His grandfather (d. 520/1126), a Maliki jurisconsult, had been qadi and imam of the Great Mosque of Cordova. His father was also a qadi. The biographers stress the excellent juridical education of the future Commentator; his teacher was al-Hafií Abu Muhammad ibn Rizq and he became very competent in the science of khilaf (controversies and contradictions in the legal sciences). He learned by heart the Muwatta'. Ibn al-Abbar mentions that he studied 'a little' with Ibn Bashkuwal, which implies that he touched on the science of the traditions of the Prophet; but the same author says that the science of law and of the principles (usul), diraya, interested him more than the science of traditions, riwaya. He worked also on Ash'ari kalam which he was later to criticize. In medicine, he was the pupil of Abu Dha'far Harun al-Tadhali (of Trujillo), who was in addition a teacher of hadith (cf. 'Uyun). Ibn al-Abbar mentions another of his teachers, Abu Marwan ibn Dhurrayul (notice no. 1714), who (he says) was one of the foremost practitioners of his art. The biographers do not mention philosophic studies. Ibn Abi Usaybi'a limits himself to reporting, following al-Badhi, that Averroes studied 'philosophical sciences' (al-'ulum al-hikmiyya) with the physician Abu
Dha'far. Ibn al-Abbar mentions in passing that he 'inclined towards the sciences of the Ancients ('ulum al-awa'il)', probably an allusion to his knowledge of Greek thought.

In 548/1153, Averroes was at Marrakush. Renan supposes that he was occupied there in carrying out the intentions of the Almohad 'Abd al-Mu'min 'in the building of colleges which he was founding at this time'. It is known, through the Commentary of the De Caelo, that he was engaged there in astronomical observations. It is perhaps to this period of his life that he is referring in the Commentary of book L of the Metaphysics, when he speaks of the researches which must be done on the movements of the planets in order to found an astronomy which would be physical and not only mathematical: 'I hoped in my youth that it would be possible for me to carry out this research successfully; but now that I am old, I have lost this hope ...'. It is possible that he met at this time Ibn Tufayl, who was to play an important part in his career as a philosopher by presenting him to Abu Ya'qub Yusuf, the successor of 'Abd al-Mu'min. Al-Marrakushi (Mu'dhib, ed. Dozy, 174-5) obtained the account of this interview from a pupil of Ibn Rushd, who reported the actual words of his teacher. The prince questioned Averroes on the sky: is it a substance which has existed from all eternity, or did it have a beginning? (It is known that, ever since Plato's Timaeus and the De Caelo and the Metaphysics of Aristotle down to Proclus and Johannes Philoponus (Yahya al-Nahwi), this problem had been fiercely debated). Ibn Rushd was worried by this dangerous question, but Yusuf understood this and began a discussion with Ibn Tufayl, displaying a wide knowledge of the ancient philosophers and of the theologians. Put thus at ease, Ibn Rushd in his turn began to speak and was able to show the extent of his learning. He received rewards and thenceforth enjoyed the prince's favour. This event may be dated to 1169 or slightly earlier. Al-Marrakushi also tells us that the Commander of the Faithful complained to Ibn Tufayl of the obscurity of the texts of Aristotle and of their translations. He wished them to be clearly explained. It issaid that Ibn Tufayl, considering himself to be too old and too busy, asked Averroes to undertake the work.

Averroes remained in favour throughout the reign of Abu Ya'qub Yusuf (558-80/1163-84). In 565/1169, he was qadi of Seville (Mu'dhib, 222). In a passage in the fourth book of the De partibus animalium, completed in that year, he points out the duties of his post, and the fact that he was separated from his books which remained in Cordova, all thingsQwhich made difficult the writing of his paraphrase (Munk, 422). In 567/1171, he was back at Cordova, still as qadi. During this period he increased his rate of production of commentaries in spite of his numerous obligations: he travelled to various towns of the Almohad empire, in particular to Seville, from which he dates several of his works between 1169 and 1179.

In 578/1182, at Marrakush, he succeeded Ibn Tufayl as chief physician to Abu Ya'qub Yusuf (Tornberg, Annales Regum Mauritaniae, 182). Then he received the office of chief qadi of Cordova.

During the reign of Ya'qub al-Mansur (580-95/1184-99), Ibn Rushd still enjoyed the prince's favour. It was only during the last years (from 1195) that he fell into disgrace. Several stories exist on this matter. It seems that the caliph, at that time engaged in Spain in a war against the Christians, thought it advisable to gain the support of the fuqaha', who had long imposed on the people their rigorous orthodoxy (cf. D. Macdonald, Development of Muslim theology, New York 1903, 255). Indeed, not only was Averroes banished to Lucena, near Cordova, and his doctrine pronounced anathema following his
appearance before a tribunal consisting of the chief men of Cordova, but edicts were issued ordering that philosophical works be burned and forbidding these studies, which were considered dangerous to religion. Those who were jealous of Ibn Rushd or doctrinally opposed to him took advantage of the occasion to criticize him in vulgar epigrams, which have been published and translated by Munk (427-8 and 517).

But once he had returned to Marrakush, to a Berber milieu which was less sensitive on matters of doctrine, the caliph repealed all these edicts and summoned the philosopher again to his court. Ibn Rushd did not have long to enjoy this return to favour, since he died in Marrakush on 9 ‘afar 595/11 December 1198. He was buried there outside the gate of Taÿhzut. Later his body was taken to Cordova, where the mystic Ibn al-'Arabi, still a young man, was present at his funeral (cf. H. Corbin, L'imagination creatrice dans le soufisme d'Ibn 'Arabi, 32-8).