Instruct: Given a question, retrieve documents that answer the question.
Query: How long did Avempace live?
Avempace (c.1085– 1138) is the Latinate form of Ibn Bâjja (Arabic: ابن باجة‎), full name Abû Bakr Muḥammad Ibn Yaḥyà ibn aṣ-Ṣâ’igh at-Tûjîbî Ibn Bâjja al-Tujibi (أبو بكر محمد بن يحيى بن الصائغ التجيبي بن باجة ), was an Arab[1] Andalusian polymath: his writings include works regarding astronomy, physics, and music, as well as philosophy, medicine, botany, and poetry.[2]
Averroes writes the following comments on Avempace's theory of motion:
The unity of the intellect is a philosophical theory proposed by the Muslim medieval Andalusian philosopher Averroes (1126–1198), which asserted that all humans share the same intellect. Averroes expounded his theory in his long commentary of "On the Soul" to explain how universal knowledge is possible within the Aristotelian theory of mind. Averroes' theory was influenced by related ideas by previous thinkers such as Aristotle, Plotinus, Al-Farabi, Avicenna (Ibn Sina) and Avempace (Ibn Bajja).
Avempace rejects that feeling ultimate pleasure comes from witnessing the divine world internally.[18] For Avempace, the highest form of spiritual happiness comes from science and the truth. Science allows for the truth to be discovered. As a result, in order to be spiritually healthy and, therefore, happy, we must obtain knowledge and search for the truth.[13]
After the fall of Zaragoza in 1118 by the hands of King Alfonso The Battler, Avempace looked for shelter under Abu Ishaq Ibrahim ibn Yûsuf Ibn Tashfin, another brother of the Almoravid Sultan (Ali Ibn Yusuf Ibn Tashfin) in Xàtiba.[12] He worked, for some twenty years, as the vizir of Yusuf Ibn Tashfin.[13] Throughout these decades, it is clear that Avempace was not as agreeable with those close to the ruler, Ibn Tashfin, as he was during the previous reign of Ibn Tifilwit. Writings by Ahmad al-Maqqari gives us insight into the hostility and disagreements between Avempace and the father of a famous physician respected by Ibn Tashfin, Abd al-Malik.[14] A poetry anthology, Qala’id al-iqya (Necklace of Rubies), was also created by a courtier of Ibn Tashufin's, Abu Nasr al-Fath Ibn Muhammad Ibn Khaqan, which condescendingly placed Avempace in last place.[15] Under Ibn Tashfin, the Sultan of the Berber Moroccan Almoravid empire, Avempace was imprisoned twice. The details of the imprisonment are not well understood, but can be assumed. Despite being unwelcomed, Avempace remained with the Almoravid empire for the rest of his life until his death in 1138. There has been evidence presented that brings up the argument that the cause of Avempace's death was by poison from his peers. Al-Maqqari details in his writing that a physician, Abu l-'Ala' Ibn Zuhr, was an enemy of Avempace's whose servant, Ibn Ma‛yub, was suspected of poisoning him at the time but was never convicted.[14] Among his many teachers was Abu Jafar ibn Harun of Trujillo, a physician in Seville, Al-Andalus.[16][17]
The renowned polymath and Jewish philosopher, Maimonides, was possibly born in the same year of Avempace's death, yet he preserved and studied the works of the deceased Andalusian. Maimonides admired Avempace for his achievements, stating that "[Ibn Bajja] was a great and wise philosopher, and all of his works are right and correct". Maimonides also valued Ibn Bajja's commentary on Aristotle's works on astronomy.[24] In one of his three major works, The Guide for the Perplexed, Maimonides assesses Hebrew Bible theology with Aristotelian philosophy, directly drawing influence from Ibn Bajja philosophical and scientific ideas. Specifically incorporating Avempace's philosophies regarding the existence of a single intellect after death, the union of man with the Active Intellect, the division of man into three classes of increasing consciousness, and the proposal of the prophet as an ideal solitary man.[25][26]
Avempace was born in Zaragoza, in what is today Aragon, Spain, around 1085[8] and died in Fes, Morocco, in 1138. Rulers of Zaragoza shifted constantly throughout Avempace's young life, but in 1114, a new Almoravid governor of Zaragoza was appointed: Abu Bakr 'Ali ibn Ibrahim as-Sahrawi, also known as Ibn Tifilwit. The close relationship between Avempace and Ibn Tifilwit is verified in writings by both Ibn al-Khatib and Ibn Khaqan.[9] Avempace enjoyed music and wine with the governor and also composed panegyrics and muwashshahat to publicly praise Ibn Tifilwit, who rewarded him by nominating him as his vizier.[10] In a diplomatic mission to meet the overthrown Imad ad-Dawla Ibn Hud King in his castle, Avempace was placed in jail for some months for reasons unknown. Ibn Tifilwit was also killed during a quest against the Christians in 1116, ending his short reign and inspiring Avempace to compose mournful elegies in his honor.[10] Avempace also had a talent for singing and composition in music. In the beginning of his career, he wrote the manuscript Risālah fī l-alḥān (Tract on melodies) and incorporated his commentary on al-Fārābī’s treatise based on music. He determined the correlations between different melodies and temperament. According to biographer al-Maqqarī, Avempace's passion for music was due to poetry and had “the virtue of dispelling the sadness and pain of the hearts [sic].” He included his scientific knowledge and wit in many poems.[11] Avempace joined in poetic competitions with the poet al-Tutili.
He wrote nine medical treatises. Galen inscribed commentary on Hippocrates’ Aphorisms in “Commentary on Aphorisms” that includes Avempace’s view about medicine. Medical syllogisms are revolved by means of experience. Experience is obtained in a person’s life time through perception. Avempace defines experience:
Avempace also wrote on the health of a perfect man. He eluded to the idea that the perfect man does not just require physical health, but spiritual health too. Avempace goes into more detail about the soul, which he describes of having both an acquired intellect, as well as an active intellect. The active intellect has no basis coming from the physical world. Acquired intellect, however, is a result of experiences from the material world.[13] The perfect man can exist in either a perfect city or a non-perfect city. However, if a perfect man lives in a non-perfect city, he believes that they are to remain apart from the rest of the society. This is because a non-perfect city is full of weeds. In order for a perfect person to preserve themselves from the weeds, they need to live in solitude despite living in solitude being against human nature.[18]
These works are tough to understand. Nevertheless, Risālat al-ittiṣāl has interpreted the introduction. The treatise stated the overall point of Avempace's thinking:
Avempace was a critic of Ptolemy and he worked on creating a new theory of velocity to replace the one theorized by Aristotle. Two future philosophers supported the theories Avempace created, known as the Avempacean dynamics. These philosophers were Thomas Aquinas, a catholic priest, and John Duns Scotus.[16] Galileo went on and adopted Avempace's formula and talked about "that the velocity of a given object is the difference of the motive power of that object and the resistance of the medium of motion" in the Pisan dialogue.[16]
Averroes was another important philosopher, and while he was born shortly before Avempace's death, Averroes later in life would be in opposition to Avempace's theories the majority of the time.[17] Avempace starts with a good kinematic definition of motion and construes it as a force. According to Avempace regarding freely falling objects, what is moved the a heavy body falls, is the heavy body and what moves it downward is its 'gravity' or its 'form' or 'nature'.[17]
Avempace considers experience as the second essential part of medicine. Avempace’s theoretic system sketched out all reality. Reality comes in many forms that includes motion and action. Avempace categorizes them between natural and artificial. Natural reality forms move bodies with power while bodies within artificial reality forms are unintentionally moved. It also show how the body is viewed.
This shows as human involvement is design. Absolute necessity reigns over the heavens. Avempace views necessity into three kinds: absolute, design, and material. Avempace demonstrates the moon eclipses using absolute necessity over time. Based on the relations of the moon eclipses, Avempace indicates “possibility shares necessity”.[20] He defines the body as an artificial collection of matter, which acts as an instrument for the soul to work through. In doing so, he establishes the soul as an autonomous subject. Avempace believes that the human soul has three stages. It starts in the plant stage, then to the animal stage, and finally to human stage. Each stage has an important attribute that the soul grows from. The plant life is where the soul is provided with nourishment and growth. In the animal stage, the soul is introduced to sensations. When the soul moves to the human state, the soul gains common sense, imagination, and memory.[18] Additionally, Avempace writes that the soul is geometrically formless. Because its form is beyond our understanding of geometric shapes, he states, it exists on a plane higher than that which we perceive with our bodies.[11] Avempace is said to have been influenced by Platonic and Aristotelian views on the subject. He credits Plato with the theory of the soul as a substance:
3. "Avempace's appeal to an 'impressed force' was also reflected in the fact that 'if we use modern terms, it might be said that the force of gravity, for Avempace, is not determined essentially as a relation between the masses of different bodies, but is conceived as an absolute indwelling power of self-motion animating the body like a soul." [6]
Avempace is known to have made contributions to the field of botany in addition to philosophy and the physical sciences. His work titled Kitab al-nabat (The Book of Plants) is a commentary influenced by the work De Plantis[34]. In this commentary, Avempace discusses the morphology of various plants and attempts to classify them based on their similarities. He also writes about the reproductive nature of plants and their supposed genders based on his observations of palm and fig trees.[3] Kitab al-nabat was written in Arabic and has most recently been translated into Spanish.[11]
Avempace wrote one of the first (argued by some to be the first) commentaries on Aristotle in the western world. While his work on projectile motion was never translated from Arabic to Latin, his views became well known around the western world and to western philosophers, astronomers, and scientists of many disciplines. His works impacted contemporary medieval thought, and later influenced Galileo and his work. Avempace's theories on projectile motion are found in the text known as "Text 71".[6]
Avempace was, in his time, not only a prominent figure of philosophy but also of music and poetry.[4] His diwan (Arabic: collection of poetry) was rediscovered in 1951.
In addition, Avempace had changed forgotten non-syllogistic arts into “practical arts”, and wrote:
Avempace also describes four types of Intelligible forms. They are described as bodies that have an eternal circular motion, an acquired intellect, those with external senses, and those with internal senses.[18] These ideas are consistent with Aristotle's descriptions of the soul and its properties in his treatise De Anima, though there is speculation that there were no Arabic transcriptions available to Avempace.[11]
Avempace's work in botany is evident in his political works.
Despite diverging from Aristotle's theory of motion, it appears that Avempace largely agrees with Aristotle's ideas on projectile motion. While there is no known account that lay's out Avempace's ideas over this topic, Avempace gives a short explanation in his commentary of Aristotelian Physics book 8. An interesting piece by Avempace on the theory of projectile motion comes from his example involving a magnet and iron filaments. Magnets present a problem with Aristotle's theory on projectile motion because nothing can be seen physically moving the iron. Avempace, however, believes that a magnet is more complicated than one might think. He presents the idea that the magnet actually moves the air which, in return, moves the iron.[6]
1. "For Avempace...V = P - M, so that when M = 0, V = P. This opposes Aristotle's (supposed use of) V = P / M." [6]
Avempace also reported observing "two planets as black spots on the face of the Sun." In the 13th century, the Maragha astronomer Qotb al-Din Shirazi identified this observation as the transit of Venus and Mercury.[29] However, Avempace cannot have observed a Venus transit, as there were no Venus transits in his lifetime.[30]
In Islamic astronomy, Maimonides wrote the following on the planetary model proposed by Avempace: