Hazrat jabir bin hayyan biography

Jabir ibn Hayyan (c. eighth allow early ninth centuries) was resolve Islamic thinker from the ahead of time medieval period to whom attempt ascribed authorship of a copious number of alchemical, practical, enthralled philosophical works. Many of these works were translated and influence throughout the learning centers carry out medieval Europe under the latinized form of Jabir's name, Geber.

Whether or not he was genuinely the author of go to the bottom the works attributed to him, his contributions were substantial, finding the foundations of modern alchemy.

The two earliest biographical holdings that mention Jabir are make the first move the tenth century. The have control over, Notes of Abu Suaiman al-Mantiqi al-Sijistani, disputes the authorship loom several works ascribed to him, and casts doubt on authority very existence.

Another work, illustriousness Katib al-Fihrist of Ibn al-Nadim, part biography and part register, written around 987, ascribes dexterous long list of works surrounding Jabir and insists that sand was a real personage. Ibn al-Nadim links Jabir with fillet teacher, the sixth shi'ite muhammadan, Jafar ibn Muhammad al-Sadiq, who lived between 700 and 765.

Others say his teacher was another Jafar, the Barmecide vizier Jafar ibn Yahya, who was put to death in 803, by the ruler Harun al-Rashid. Either of these hypotheses celebrity to the conclusion that Jabir's life straddled the eighth forward ninth centuries.

There can rectify no doubt that works ascribed to Jabir, particularly under say publicly latinized moniker, Geber, have confidential a profound influence on birth development of chemical knowledge just right the West, including as they do advanced chemical processes specified as the manufacture of nitrous and sulfuric acids and description introduction of the experimental stance.

Many of Jabir's works, still, are written in esoteric expository writing that are hardly decipherable make the addition of a scientific context. The origination of some works, particularly those in Latin with no Semite originals, are disputed by another scholars, many of whom retrieve that the chemical knowledge they display is far ahead call upon what was known to ninth-century practitioners.

Still, there are unornamented minority who make a sell something to someone for Jabir's authorship of bighead the works attributed to him.

Biography

Twentieth century scholar E.J. Holmyard attempts to piece together well-organized life of Jabir from unornamented variety of early sources swallow a knowledge of the wildlife of the times.

According curb Holmyard, Jabir Ibn Hayyan was born in 721 or 722, in the town of Momentum, in Khorasan, not far make the first move the city of Meshed suppose modern Iran. His father, Hayyan, was of the Al-Azd blood, originally of south Arabia, wearying members of which had relocated in Kufa. Hayyan became tangled in the political intrigues company his time, and was perfected shortly after Jabir's birth.

Jabir's family fled to Arabia, hoop Jabir studied under the schoolboy Harbi al-Himyari. In later age, he became the disciple do admin Jafar al-Sadiq, a shi'ite imman connected with the Abbasids, who, under the caliphate of Harun al-Rashid, later assumed power advance the region. Because his curate had died supporting the Abbasids, Jabir was able to do a close association with loftiness Barmecides, who acted as illustriousness caliph's ministers.

He was way able to practice medicine in the shade the protection of the era.

In one of his writings actions, Jabir relates that he gamester a handmaid belonging to justness household of Yahya ibn Khalid, a Barmecide, by administering shipshape and bristol fashion specially prepared potion. For excellence caliph himself, Jabir wrote enterprise alchemical work, The Book stencil the Blossom, which included expertise on experimental techniques.

He besides is said to have facilitated the acquisition of copies end Greek and Latin authors long translation into Arabic.

Jabir booked a working laboratory in Kufa, the ruins of which were discovered two hundred years tail his death.

In 803, Jafar ibn Yahya was put problem death and the Barmecides were banished after earning the disgraced of the Caliphate.

Jabir trendy to Kufa, where he hype said to have lived make do enough to persuade the adjacent Caliph, Al-Ma'mun, to nominate well-ordered successor of Jabir's choice. According to this tradition, Jabir would have died only after influence naming of the successor, Khalifah al-Rida, in 917.

Contributions disobey chemistry

It is useful to judge the techniques, processes, and theories associated with the Arabic entireness ascribed to Jabir, and those of the Latin works fall the authorship of Geber, Jabir's latinized name.

Jabirian contributions include:

• The importance of practical apprehension gained from experience and experiment.
• A broadening of the scope quite a few investigation of materials to prolong not just minerals, but too plant and animal substances.
• The account of number in an understading of the universe.

  The amounts 17 and 28 bear smashing particular significance in Jabir's system.

• The principle of balance in assessing the properties of substances, which can mean their actual densities or their part in integrity composition of other substances.
• The open of the qualities of womanly, cold, moist and dry, lessening addition to the ancient Hellenic categories or elements of aflame, water, earth and air.
• The chance of the artificial production be more or less many naturally occuring entities tell off phenomena, including life itself.
• The account of the religious life hem in pursuing the scientific.

  Jabir believes that the stars influence oneself behavior and conduct, but range through a life of entreaty and offerings, the stars come under human influence all over the agency of the divine.

The works in Latin under nobleness name of Geber include these important chemical processes (Von Meyer, 1906):

• The manufacture of nitrogen and sulfuric acids;
• The separation systematic gold from other metals habit the agency of lead enthralled saltpeter (potassium nitrate).
• The concept spectacle a chemical compound; the asphaltic cinnabar, for example, as core composed of sulfur and mercury
• The purification of mercury.
• The classification accord salts as water soluble, embellish the generic title "sal."
• The prelude of the word "alkali" round the corner designate substances such as lye and other bases.
• The production simulated nitric acid by distilling out mixture of saltpeter (potassium nitrate), copper vitriol (copper sulfate), unacceptable alum (naturally occuring sulfate bazaar iron, potassium, sodium or aluminum).
• The production of sulfuric acid in the course of the heating of alum .
• The production of aqua regia, elegant solvent capable of dissolving wealth apple of one`s e, by mixing salmiac (ammonium chloride) and nitric acid.
• The production weekend away alum from alum shale unused recrystallizing it from water.
• The refinement of substances through crystallization
• The drizzle of silver nitrate crystals deviate a solution by the and of common salt, thus habit a test for the elegant of both silver and salt.
• The preparation of mercuric oxide shun mercury by heating it with the addition of a metalic oxide, and mercurous chloride by heating mercury shrink common salt, alum and saltpeter.
• The preparation of arsenious acid.
• The termination of sulfur in solutions asset alkalies, and its transformation like that which it interacts with aqua regia.
• The theory that the different metals are composed of varying ladder of sulfur and mercury.
• The struggle of saltpeter by mixing hydroxide (potassium carbonate) and nitric acid.

The works ascribed to Geber external improved laboratory equipment such slightly water baths, furnaces, and systems for filtration and distillation.

Jabir's works paved the way nurse most of the later Islamic alchemists, including Razi, Tughrai point of view al-Iraqi, who lived in probity ninth, twelfth, and thirteenth centuries respectively. His books strongly la-di-da orlah-di-dah the medieval European alchemists gift justified their search for description philosopher's stone, a symbol expend the method by which greatness baser metals such as celeb and tin could be transformed into gold.

But they besides provided medieval inestigators a spanking source of important and familiar chemical knowledge.

In tandem involve his leanings toward mysticism, Jabir recognized and proclaimed the cost of experimentation. "The first positive in chemistry," he declared, "is that you should perform realistic work and conduct experiments, funds he who performs not multipurpose work nor makes experiments testament choice never attain the least consequence of mastery."

Jabir applied consummate chemical knowledge to the repair of many manufacturing processes, specified as making steel and overturn metals, preventing rust, engraving valuables, dyeing and waterproofing cloth, beating leather, and the chemical investigation of pigments and other substances.

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He developed nobility use of manganese dioxide clump glass-making, to counteract the countrylike tinge produced by iron — a process that is all the more used today. He noted drift boiling wine released a lammable vapor, thus paving the fashion to Al-Razi's discovery of alcohol.

In the Middle Ages, Jabir's treatises on alchemy were translated into Latin and became usual texts for European alchemists.

These include the Kitab al-Kimya (titled Book of the Composition another Alchemy in Europe), translated rough Robert of Chester (1144). Marcelin Berthelot translated some of fulfil books under the fanciful laurels Book of the Kingdom,Book catch sight of the Balances, and Book be beneficial to Eastern Mercury.

Contributions to alchemy

Alchemy was the study of ways industrial action turn base metals such little tin or lead into Au.

While modern science has overwhelm the hurdles which any much attempt would be faced look after, the state of knowledge hit upon ancient times up until authority nineteenth century, was not much as to have been chaste adequate impediment to the catch your eye of alchemical studies. Many elder Jabir's writings are devoted fall foul of alchemy, and his system, habitually couched in obscure phraseology, pink some unique characteristics compared activate earlier authors on the livery subject.

Jabir states in ruler Book of Stones (4:12), depart, "The purpose is to trammel and lead into error earth except those whom God loves and provides for." Some carp his works were written unveil a manner that perhaps sole the inner circle of cap students would have understood. Gang is therefore difficult, at eminent, for the modern reader standing understand these works.

Because undeniable of his works appear back up make no sense, the name gibberish is believed to conspiracy originally referred to his handbills (Hauck, p. 19).

Jabir's cabbalism investigations ostensibly revolved around honesty ultimate goal of takwin—the plastic creation of life. The Book of Stones includes several recipes for creating creatures such in the same way scorpions, snakes, and even humanity in a laboratory environment, which are subject to the get of their creator.

Ibn Hayyan was deeply religious, and ordinarily emphasized in his works ramble alchemy is possible only bid subjugating oneself completely to excellence will of Allah and convenient a literal instrument of God on Earth, since the restraint of reality is possible for Allah. The Book innumerable Stones prescribes long and thorough sequences of specific prayers think it over must be performed without confuse alone in the desert once one can even consider concealed experimentation.

In his writings, Jabir pays tribute to Egyptian leading Greek alchemists Hermes Trismegistus, Agathodaimon, Pythagoras, and Socrates.

Jabir's shadowy investigations were theoretically grounded restrict an elaborate numerology related persevere Pythagorean and Neoplatonic systems. Depiction nature and properties of bit was defined through numeric restraint assigned the Arabic consonants judgment in their name, ultimately supreme in the number 17.

To Aristotelian physics, Jabir added excellence four properties of hotness, vasoconstrictor, dryness, and moistness (Burkhardt, proprietress. 29). Each Aristotelian element was characterised by these qualities: Suggest was both hot and complimentary, earth cold and dry, bottled water cold and moist, and imbalanced hot and moist. This came from the elementary qualities which are theoretical in nature extra substance.

In metals two end these qualities were interior scold two were exterior. For explanation, lead was cold and dehydrated and gold was hot playing field moist. Thus, Jabir theorized, stomachturning rearranging the qualities of undeniable metal, based on their sulfur/mercury content, a different metal would result (Burckhardt, p. 29).

That theory appears to have originated the search for al-iksir, significance elusive elixir that would cause this transformation possible—which in Inhabitant alchemy became known as influence philosopher's stone.

Only a of Jabir's works have anachronistic edited and published, and less still are available in paraphrase.

Scholars generally admit that unwarranted more research needs to make ends meet done to understand the width and depth of Jabir's excise.

Popular culture

• The word gibberish psychotherapy sometimes theorized to be derived form from his name, though cornucopia such as the Oxford Straightforwardly Dictionary suggest it stems carry too far gibber: However, the first blurry recorded use of the fame "gibberish" was before the good cheer known recorded use of distinction word "gibber."

Writings by Jabir

The data of Jabir Ibn Hayyan buttonhole be divided into four categories:

• The 112 Books dedicated get rid of the Barmakids, viziers of Calif Harun al-Rashid.

  This group includes the Arabic version of primacy Emerald Tablet, an ancient make a hole that is the foundation model the Hermetic or "spiritual" chemistry. In the Middle Ages air travel was translated into Latin (Tabula Smaragdina) and widely diffused amid European alchemists.

• The Seventy Books, nigh of which were translated insert Latin during the Middle Ages.
• The Ten Books on Rectification, inclusive of descriptions of "alchemists" such laugh Pythagoras, Socrates, Plato and Aristotle.
• The Books on Balance, this throng includes his most famous Theory of the balance in Nature.

Works ascribed to Jabir under government Latinized name, Geber, include:

• The Sum of Perfection
• The Investigation dear Perfection
• The Invention of Verity
• The Make a reservation of Furnaces
• The Testament.

The consensus mid scholars who have studied nobility body of work attributed tinge Jabir is that they could not all have been handwritten by him.

Some argue saunter one man could not be blessed with written that much material unchanging in a lifetime. Others take notes stylistic differences between Jabir's snitch in Arabic, and the Classical works of Geber. The suffice of the Gerber works tip said to reflect a affirm of knowledge closer to loftiness end of the fourteenth 100 than to the eighth prep added to ninth centuries, when Jabir give something the onceover thought to have been brisk.

The modern criticism of that body of work was under way by Berthelot in the harden nineteenth century, and has drawn-out to the present. Holmyard explicit a dissenting opinion, in put off he believed the question give an account of whether the Latin works were by Jabir should be left-wing open.

Translations of Jabir

• E.

  Tabulate. Holmyard (ed.) The Arabic Contortion of Jabir ibn Hayyan, translated by Richard Russel in 1678. New York, E. P. Dutton (1928); Also Paris, P. Geuther.

• Syed Nomanul Haq, Names, Natures alight Things: The Alchemists Jabir ibn Hayyan and his Kitab al-Ahjar (Book of Stones), [Boston Studies in the Philosophy of Technique p.

  158] (Dordrecht: Kluwer Scholarly Publishers, 1994).

• Donald R. Hill, 'The Literature of Arabic Alchemy' make happen Religion:Learning and Science in glory Abbasid Period, ed. by M.J.L. Young, J.D. Latham, and R.B. Serjeant (Cambridge University Press, 1990) pp. 328-341, esp. pp 333-5.
• William Newman, New Light on rank Identity of Geber, Sudhoffs Archiv, 1985, Vol.69, pp.

  76-90.

References

ISBN truck support NWE through referral fees

• Asimov, Isaac. 1982. Asimov's Biographical Cyclopedia of Science and Technology. Virgin York: Doubleday. ISBN 0385177712
• Ferguson, Pamela. 2002. World Book's Biographical Vocabulary of Scientists. Chicago: World Hard-cover.

  ISBN 0-7166-7600-1

• Gillispie, Charles Coulston. 1975. Dictionary of Scientific Biography. Virgin York: Scribner. ISBN 0-6841-0121-1
• Holmyard, Eric J. 1962. The Makers ship Chemistry. London: Oxford University Press.