647)ISMAILIMAIL Makes A Post On The Ikhwan Al-Safa Or Brethren Of Purity (Via One Land, One King’s Blog)

Quote from the article below:
"Their epistles, 52 of them, dealt with mathematics, natural sciences, psychical sciences and theology. They were inspired in parts by scholars of Greek, ancient Indian and Persian thoughts while incorporating scriptures of the Abrahamic tradition, the Torah of Judaism and the Canonical Gospels of Christianity. This behavior alone was odd for the time, however the ideas and sciences this elusive coterie propagated were what made it so particular. Indeed, the Brethren of Purity were very avant-gardiste for their time and their work not only helped shape medieval Islam but also Western culture."




The Brethren of Purity

Posted on September 1, 2010 by yshassan

I was researching influential secret societies of their time, beside the obvious ones, when I stumbled into the Brethren of Purity, a secret coterie of mystics that developed the Encyclopedia of the Brethren of Purity during the mid Tenth Century in Basra, Iraq. Their epistles, 52 of them, treated of mathematics, natural sciences, psychical sciences and theology. They were inspired in parts by scholars of Greek, ancient Indian and Persian thoughts while incorporating scriptures of the Abrahamic tradition, the Torah of Judaism and the Canonical Gospels of Christianity. This behavior alone was odd for the time, however, the ideas, sciences, this elusive coterie propagated were what made it so particular. Indeed, the Brethren of Purity were very avant-gardiste for their time and their work not only helped shape medieval Islam but also Western culture. Scholars believe that one of the many ways this was done was through the learned Jewish of Spain during the twelfth century who studied and used the epistles of the Brethren of Purity in the propagation of knowledge in Western Europe. The work of the Brethren of Purity was such that the secret society was classified as an early form of freemasonry by the West, and as a group of “free thinkers” by some scholars of the East. The influence however of the Encyclopedia of the Brethren of Purity does not end there. The views expressed in their epistles were so modern that many believe they inspired some of the greatest thinkers of our time. An example of such work is their view on evolution which is believed to have had an influence on Charles Darwin and his inception of Darwinism since English translations of the Encyclopedia of the Brethren of Purity were available from 1812:

“[These books] state that God first created matter and invested it with energy for development. Matter, therefore, adopted the form of vapour which assumed the shape of water in due time. The next stage of development was mineral life. Different kinds of stones developed in course of time. Their highest form being mirjan (coral). It is a stone which has in it branches like those of a tree. After mineral life evolves vegetation. The evolution of vegetation culminates with a tree which bears the qualities of an animal. This is the date-palm. It has male and female genders. It does not wither if all its branches are chopped but it dies when the head is cut off. The date-palm is therefore considered the highest among the trees and resembles the lowest among animals. Then is born the lowest of animals. It evolves into an ape. This is not the statement of Darwin, this is precisely what is written in the Epistles of the Brethren of Purity. Ape then evolved into a lower kind of a barbarian man. He then became a superior human being. Man then becomes a saint, a prophet. He then evolves into a higher stage and becomes an angel. The one higher to angels is indeed none but God. Everything begins from Him and everything returns to Him.”[1]

There is currently an undergoing project by the Oxford University in collaboration with the Institute of Ismaili Studies to publish a Critical Study in English of the Arabic Epistles of the Brethren of Purity. The first remarkable books of the serie can be found here.

[1] Comment and description of the philosophy on Evolution of the Brethren of Purity made by Muhammad Hamidullah.

http://onelandoneking.wordpress.com/2010/09/01/brethren-of-purity/
http://ismailimail.wordpress.com/2010/09/01/the-brethren-of-purity-via-one-land-one-kings-blog/


Related posts on the Brethren of Purity:

The Ikhwan Al-Safa(Brethern Of Purity), The Original Encyclopedists: Balancing Revelation And Reason; A Collection Of Posts; Quotes Of Aga Khan IV
http://gonashgo.blogspot.com/2009/05/483the-ikhwan-al-safabrethern-of-purity.html



Easy Nash
http://apps.facebook.com/blognetworks/blog/science_and_religion_in_islam_the_link/
http://gonashgo.blogspot.com/2009/08/500blogpost-five-hundred-is-blogpost.html
http://gonashgo.blogspot.com/2009/03/453a-blog-constructed-within.html

In Shia Islam, intellect is a key component of faith. Intellect allows us to understand the creation of God: Aga Khan IV(2008)
The Qur'an itself repeatedly recommends Muslims to become better educated in order better to understand God's creation: Aga Khan IV(2007)
The Quran tells us that signs of Allah's Sovereignty are found in the contemplation of His Creation: Aga Khan IV(2007)
This notion of the capacity of the human intellect to understand and to admire the creation of Allah will bring you happiness in your everyday lives: Aga Khan IV(2007)
Islam, eminently logical, placing the greatest emphasis on knowledge, purports to understand God's creation: Aga Khan IV(2006)
The Holy Qu'ran's encouragement to study nature and the physical world around us gave the original impetus to scientific enquiry among Muslims: Aga Khan IV(1985)
The first and only thing created by God was the Intellect(Aql): Prophet Muhammad(circa 632CE)