,the ,wisdom of the ,east ,series       
,,edited ,,by  ,l4 ,,cranmer-,,byng     
,dr4 ,s4 ,a4 ,,kapadia     ,,the        
,,awakening ,,of ,,the ,,soul   ,motto--
      ',twas what it was1 'tis not to be
 expressed4     ,enquire no further1 but
 conceive the best4                     
,,ghazali4         ,,wisdom ,,of ,,the  
,,east      ,,the ,,awakening     ,,of  
,,the ,,soul      ,,rendered ,,from     
,,the ,,arabic     ,,with ,,introduction
      ,,by ,,dr4 ,,paul ,,br,,nnle      
,f4,r4,g4,s41 ,f4,r4,,hist4,s41         
,m4,r4,a4,s41 ,,etc4      ,illustration 
,,fourth ,,impression      ,,london     
,,john ,,murray1 ,,albemarle ,,street   
#aiaj         ,,printed ,,by            
,,hazell1 ,,watson ,,and ,,viney1 ,,ld41
     ,,london ,,and ,,aylesbury4        
,to ,her ,excellency     ,,the          
,,countess ,,olga ,,xk,,ll-,,gyllenband 
,lady-in-,waiting to ,her ,majesty      
,the ,queen of ,wurtemberg              
,respectfully dedicated     by          
,,paul ,,br,,nnle     ,,contents        

,page    ,,introduction1                
#i     ,different ,accounts of the      
,birth of ,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan1          
#bi    ,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan1 son of a    
,princess1                          #cj 
,hayy is exposed by his ,mother1        
#cj    ,hayy is driven by the tide to   
another ,island1                 #ca    
,hayy is found by a ,roe1 which takes   
care of him1              #ca           
,spontaneous ,generation1               
#cb    ,hayy grows up nursed by the     
,roe1                              #cc  
,hayy learns to imitate animals' voices1
                       #cd    ,hayy     
begins to take a careful view of things1
                 #cd    ,hayy observes  
the difference between the animals and  
himself1 #ce    ,hayy as a boy of seven4
 ,he covers himself with leaves1        
#cf    ,hayy becomes aggressive1 and    
attacks wild beasts1             #cf    
,hayy covers himself with the skin of an
 ,eagle1                #cg    ,hayy    
spreads terror among the beasts1        

#cg    ,hayy is grief-stricken at the   
death of the ,roe1               #ch    
,hayy takes an aversion to the dead     
body1                      #ch    ,hayy 
buries the body of the ,roe1            
#ci    ,hayy observes divers kinds of   
living creatures and plants1    #ci     
,hayy discovers ,fire kindled by the    
friction of reeds1         #dj     ,,the
 ,,third ,,septenary    ,hayy makes     
himself clothes and shoes of the skins  
of animals1 #db    ,hayy learns to ride1
                                        
#dc    ,hayy examines the nature of     
bodies1                           #dd   
,hayy transfers his thoughts to the     
heavenly bodies1           #df     ,,the
 ,,fourth ,,septenary    ,hayy ponders  
over heaven and stars1                  
#dg    ,hayy finds that the body of     
heaven is finite1                 #dg   
,hayy contemplates sun1 moon1 and stars1
                       #dh    ,hayy     
concludes that the heaven is of a       
spherical figure1      #dh    ,hayy     

ponders over the creation of the world1 
#ej    ,hayy concludes that the world   
must have a ,creator without     bodily 
substance1                              
#ea    ,hayy admires the work of the    
,creator1                         #ef   
,,fifth ,,septenary    ,hayy is         
completely taken up with the            
contemplation of the     superior       
intellectual world1                     
#eh    ,hayy examines all his senses and
 faculties1                   #eh       
,,hayy ,,returns ,,to ,,the ,,sensible  
,,world                            #fc  
,,seventh ,,septenary    ,asal and      
,salaman appear on the scene1           
#fe    ,nature and character of ,asal   
and ,salaman1                     #ff   
,further differences of ,asal and       
,salaman1                      #ff      
,asal repairs to ,hayy's ,island1       
#fg    ,hayy and ,asal meet1            
#fi    ,hayy catches hold of ,asal1     
#gj    ,hayy and ,asal stroke one       
another1                             #ga

    ,hayy and ,asal try to understand   
each other1                   #ga       
,asal makes ,hayy eat of his food1      
#gb    ,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan at last joins
 ,asal at dinner1 but repents           
afterwards1                             
#gb    ,asal becomes ,hayy's companion  
and teacher1                    #gc     
,hayy enlightens ,asal on his inner     
life1                       #gd    ,asal
 tells ,hayy of the ,island from whence 
he had come1        #ge    ,hayy        
observes that men are dull1 stupid1 and 
brutish1         #gh    ,asal persuades 
,hayy to follow him to his ,island1     
#gi    ,hayy and ,asal return together  
to ,asal's ,island1               #gi   
,hayy begins to teach and instruct      
,salaman's subjects1         #hj        
,hayy despairs of being able to reform  
the vulgar crowd1       #ha    ,hayy's  
philosophical views on the value of this
 world1        #ha    ,hayy gives up his
 preachings and teachings1              
#hd    ,asal and ,hayy return to their  

,island1                         #he    
,epilogue of the ,author1               
#hf     ,,editorial ,,note   ,the object
 of the ,editors of this series is a    
very definite one4 ,they desire above   
all things that1 in their humble way1   
these books shall be the ambassadors of 
good-will and understanding between     
,east and ,west--the old world of       
,thought and the new of ,action4 ,in    
this endeavour1 and in their own sphere1
 they are but followers of the highest  
example in the land4 ,they are confident
 that a deeper knowledge of the great   
ideals and lofty philosophy of ,oriental
 thought may help to a revival of that  
true spirit of ,charity which neither   
despises nor fears the nations of       
another creed and colour4               
,l4 ,,cranmer-,,byng4                   
,s4 ,a4 ,,kapadia4      ,,the           
,,northbrook ,,society1         #ba1    
,,cromwell ,,road1                      
,,kensington1 ,s4,w4     ,,introduction 
,it is to two ,english scholars1 father 

and son1 ,edward ,pococke1 senior and   
junior1 that the world is indebted for  
the knowledge of one of the most        
charming productions ,arabian philosophy
 can boast of4  ,generally looked upon  
as a subject of repulsive aridity1 in   
its strange combination of the most     
heterogeneous philosophical systems1    
devoid of the grace and charm of        
attractive style1 unbrightened by       
brilliancy of wit or spirit1 ,arabian   
philosophy has1 for centuries past1 been
 subject to sad and undeserved neglect4 
,yet ,i cannot imagine a better and more
 eloquent refutation of this erroneous  
view than a rendering1 in fresh garb1 of
 this romance of ,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan1   
simple and ingenuous1 yet fragrant with 
poetry and withal fraught with deep     
philosophical problems the interest in  
which ,i wish to revive4  ,it was in the
 year #afga that there was published by 
the ,oxford ,university ,press1 as one  
of its first issues of ,arabic texts1 a 
book called1 ,philosophus autodidactus1 

edited by ,edward ,pococke the son1     
together with a ,latin translation4 ,it 
had a preface that bore the signature of
 ,edward ,pococke1 the father1 and this 
fact alone was sufficient to stamp it at
 once as a work in which vast erudition 
and thoroughness of investigation had   
joined hands--for both these savants    
were men of wide reputation and         
brilliant attainments4  ,england1 that  
has put students of ,oriental lore under
 such large obligations1 has never given
 to the world a greater ,arabic scholar 
than ,edward ,pococke1 the ,glory and   
,ornament of his ,age and ,nation1 the  
famous author of the ,specimen histori  
,arabum2#a a veritable store-house of   
historical1 scientific1 literary1 and   
religious information1 and the equally  
famous editor of the annals of          
,eutychius and of the history of        
,dynasties by ,abul faradj4      #a     
,this book1 by the way1 was the first   
book in ,arabic type     which issued   
from the ,oxford ,university ,press1    

just as his     ,porta ,mosis1          
containing the six ,prefatory           
,discourses of     ,maimonides on the   
,mishna1 was the first ,hebrew text 7in 
fact     ,arabic with ,hebrew           
characters7 printed at ,oxford4  ,in the
 splendid array of famous ,arabic       
scholars the last century has produced  
there are only two in ,england that rank
 with ,edward ,pococke on the same      
level--two men whose names stand out in 
bold relief1 namely1 ,edward ,william   
,lane1 prince among lexicographers1 and 
,william ,wright1 the brilliant exponent
 of the theories of the native ,arabic  
grammarians4  ,the co-operation of      
,edward ,pococke1 the father1 in the    
edition of this book1 ,philosophus      
autodidactus1 was indeed the best       
recommendation4 ,to ,edward ,pococke1   
the father1 is due the honour of having 
discovered and unearthed this priceless 
gem of ,arabic philosophical literature1
 whilst the son1 the worthy son of so   
great a father1 undertook the task1 by  

no means an easy one1 of editing the    
,arabic text and furnishing it with a   
,latin translation4#b ,this ,latin      
translation was undoubtedly for that    
time a praiseworthy performance2 yet1   
considering the enormous strides        
,oriental science has made during the   
last centuries1 and with all the new    
material at hand1 we are to-day able to 
put the philological groundwork on a    
more solid basis4      #b ,the value of 
the book was quickly recognised4 ,in a  
comparatively short time it quite caught
 the fancy of the     public--in fact it
 took the world by storm1 and for a long
 time     it remained greatly in vogue4 
,in casting about for the work of an    
,arabian philosopher for the ,wisdom of 
the ,east ,series1 ,i could not think of
 anything more engaging1 more           
captivating1 than this simple romance4  
,unfortunately1 for reasons of space1 ,i
 could not give a translation in full1  
but ,i have given the most interesting  
parts4 ,on the passages1 however1 which 

,i had to leave out1 ,i have dwelt at   
greater length in this ,introduction4   
,in the translation ,i have tried to    
preserve the cachet1 the archaic flavour
 and spirit of the book4  ,the idea     
underlying the story is1 as ,ockley puts
 it1 to show how human capacity may1    
unassisted by any external help1 attain 
to the knowledge of the higher world1   
and so by degrees find out its          
dependence upon a superior ,being1 the  
immortality of the soul1 and other      
questions of the highest importance4 ,in
 short1 it describes the gradual        
awakening of the soul1 the evolution of 
an original mind from its first groping 
in the dark to the most dazzling heights
 of philosophical speculation4  ,the    
great charm of the book lies in its     
simplicity and ingenuousness2 in its    
entire freedom from affectation of      
style2 in the transparent lucidity of   
its exposition1 which is in pleasant    
contrast with the ponderous works of    
other philosophical writers amongst the 

,arabs4  ,yet with all its              
ingenuousness1 what sustained power of  
thought1 what depth of philosophical    
penetration6  ,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan--this 
prototype of ,robinson ,crusoe--truly a 
pathetic1 yet inspiring figure6  ,the   
simple setting of a man1 living a       
solitary life on an ,island1 entirely   
given up to meditation and              
introspection1 is used by our author as 
an arena for the display of his         
philosophical views1 which1 in          
kaleidoscopic transformation1 cover the 
whole range of wisdom of those          
times--astronomical1 geographical1      
cosmographic1 physiological1--and so on1
 the whole picture touched with the wand
 of the master4  ,the author of the     
story1 ,ibn ,tufail1 though he is       
generally not reckoned among the most   
prominent in that brilliant array of    
,arabian philosophers for whom ,spain   
became the rallying-point in the        
eleventh and twelfth centuries1 yet his 
name will outlive centuries4 ,for the   

romance which he has given to the world 
is a work of everlasting beauty1 of     
immortal freshness2 one that will never 
grow stale in the flight of ages4       
,little is known of his private life1   
which seems to have passed by as        
uneventful as that of many of the       
philosophers and scientists of those    
ages4  ,he was born at ,guadix1 a little
 town of ,andalusia4 ,after having      
finished his education1 he became a     
secretary at ,granada1 and later on we  
find him as ,vezir and ,physician to    
,abu ,yakub1 one of the first           
representatives of the dynasty of the   
,almohades4 ,he died in ,morocco1 in    
#aahe1 leaving1 besides his story of    
,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan1 only a few poems of
 insignificant value2 whilst his        
principal work1 the ,self-taught        
,philosopher1 has secured for him       
immortality4  ,in the following pages ,i
 will endeavour to give a short rsum of 
this story1 though ,i am painfully aware
 of the fact that such an analysis can  

scarcely do justice to the beauty of the
 language nor to the wealth of          
philosophical thought and speculation   
represented therein4  ,from the outset  
the atmosphere is created with broad and
 happy touches4  ,on an ,island in the  
,indian ,ocean1 famous for its          
health-giving atmosphere1 abounding in  
fruits and inhabitants1 ,hayy ,ibn      
,yokdhan comes into this world1 as the  
son of a ,princess1 who is compelled to 
expose the child soon after his birth4  
,the tide carries him to another        
,island1 where he is found by a roe1    
that takes pity on him1 nurses him like 
a mother1 and watches over his every    
movement with tender affection4  ,under 
her care he quickly develops into a fine
 strapping boy who is not afraid to     
venture a passage with wild beasts that 
dare to oppose him4  ,after the death of
 the roe1 at which he is grief-stricken1
 he is wholly thrown on his own         
resources4 ,yet he knows how to look    
after himself4 ,he covers himself with  

leaves of trees1 and finds out other    
ways to keep himself warm and protected4
  ,as the repairing of the coverings of 
leaves was very troublesome1 he had a   
design of taking the tail of some dead  
beast and wearing it himself2 but when  
he perceived that all beasts avoided    
those which were dead of the same kind1 
it made him doubt whether it was safe or
 not4 ,at last1 by chance he found a    
dead eagle1 and observing that none of  
the beasts showed any aversion to that  
carcase1 he concluded that this would   
suit his purpose1 and so he cuts off the
 wings1 the tail1 and spreads the       
feathers open3 then he draws off the    
skin and divides it into two equal      
parts1 one of which he wears upon his   
back2 with the other he covers his      
breast3 the tail he wore behind and the 
wings were placed upon each arm4  ,this 
dress answered different ends3 for in   
the first place it covered his          
nakedness1 helped to keep him warm1 and 
then it made him so frightful to the    

beasts that none of them cared to meddle
 with him or come near him4  ,after     
awhile he began to make experiments with
 the body of the roe1 anxious to find   
out its composition4  ,he noticed1 when 
he shut his eyes or held anything before
 him1 he could see nothing at all till  
this obstacle was removed2 and so1 when 
he put his fingers in his ears that he  
could not hear till he took them out    
again4 ,from which he concluded that all
 his senses and actions were liable to  
obstacles and impediments1 upon the     
removal of which the same functions     
returned to their former course4  ,now1 
when he found no visible defect in the  
external parts of the body of the roe1  
and yet at the same time perceived a    
universal cessation of its motions1 he  
began to imagine that the hurt from     
which the roe had died was hidden in the
 inward part of the body4  ,now he had  
observed on the bodies of wild beasts   
and other animals that all their members
 were solid1 and that there were only   

three cavities1 viz4 the skull1 the     
breast1 and belly4 ,he imagined1        
therefore1 that the part the nature of  
which he wanted to find out must be in  
one of these cavities1 and he had a     
strong persuasion that it was in the    
middlemost of them4  ,and having by this
 way of reasoning assured himself that  
the disaffected part lay in the breast1 
he resolved to open the breast of the   
roe2 and1 providing himself with sharp  
flints and splinters of dry cane almost 
like knives1 he made an incision between
 the ribs1 and1 cutting through the     
flesh1 came to the ,diaphragm4  ,when he
 found this tough and not easily broken1
 he assured himself that such a covering
 must belong to that part for which he  
was looking out4 ,after great efforts he
 succeeded in breaking through1 and the 
first part he met was the lungs2 and at 
last he found the heart1 which he saw   
closed with a very strong cover and     
fastened with strong ligaments and      
guarded with a membrane4  ,on finding   

the same membrane on the inside of the  
ribs1 and the lungs in the same posture 
as on the other side which he had opened
 first1 he concluded the heart to be the
 part he looked for4 ,when1 however1 he 
found that the being which had dwelt    
there before1 had left its house before 
it fell to ruin1 and forsaken it1 the   
whole body seemed to him an             
inconsiderable thing4  ,then his mind   
was perplexed with a variety of thoughts
 as to its substance and subsistence1   
the reason of its departure1 etc4 ,after
 much deliberation1 at last he found    
that from that part of the heart which  
had departed proceeded all those actions
 by which the roe had shown her care of 
him and her affection1--that the body   
was only as an instrument or tool1 like 
his cudgel with which he used to fight  
with the wild beasts4 ,thus all his     
regard for the body was over and        
transferred to that by which the body is
 governed1 and by whose power it moves4 
,so he decides in the end to bury the   

body4  ,after its burial1 the impression
 of his loneliness and of his dependence
 upon himself being deepened1 he quickly
 develops his faculties4 ,in a short    
time he becomes an expert in different  
sports1 as hunting and fishing4 ,he     
makes himself clothes and shoes of the  
skins of wild beasts4 ,by the           
observations he made upon the swallows' 
nests1 being taught the art of building1
 he builds with his hands a room for his
 own use1 a store-house1 and a pantry4  
,then he contrives to make some wild    
horses so tractable that he can use them
 for riding1 which is a great help to   
him in his expeditions and excursions4  
,his material existence thus once firmly
 established and secured1 he begins to  
indulge in his speculations on all sorts
 of bodies1--on the different kinds of  
animals1 plants1 minerals and different 
sorts of stones1 earth1 water1          
exhalations and vapours1 ice1 snow1     
hail1 smoke1 fire1 etc4  ,by the time he
 attains to the age of twenty-eight     

7fourth ,septenary71 his mind starts to 
ponder over astronomical problems--over 
heaven and stars1 sun and moon2 and in  
the end comes to the conclusion that the
 body of heaven is finite and is of a   
spherical figure4  ,at last his mind    
finds itself occupied with the great    
problem of ,creation and ,creator4 ,with
 admirable skill the author delineates  
here the gradual development of ,hayy's 
reasonings on the ,creator and ,mover of
 the world1 and concludes with the      
panegyric words of the ,koran3 ,he is   
the ,existence1 ,he is the              
,absoluteness1 ,he is the ,perfection1  
,he is the ,beauty1 ,he is the ,glory1  
,he is the ,power1 ,he is the           
,knowledge1 ,he is ,he1 and all ,things 
perish beside ,him4  ,all his thoughts  
were henceforward confined to the       
contemplation of this necessarily       
self-existent ,being4 ,in order to do   
this1 he removed all his affections from
 sensible things1 shut his eyes1 stopped
 his ears1 and refrained himself as much

 as possible from following his         
imagination1 endeavouring to the utmost 
to think of nothing besides him4        
,whilst so1 on the one side1 the        
imagination and all the other faculties 
which make any use of the organs of the 
body grew weak2 on the other side1 the  
operations of his essence which did not 
depend upon the body grew strong1 so    
that sometimes his meditation was pure  
and free from any mixture1 and he beheld
 thereby the necessarily self-existent  
,being2 but then again corporeal        
faculties would return upon him and     
spoil his contemplation1 and bring him  
down to the lowest degree4  ,thus he    
continued1 he opposing his corporeal    
faculties1 and they opposing him1 and   
mutually struggling one against another4
 ,then1 when he observed that the       
negative attributes consisted in        
separation from bodily things1 he began 
to strip himself of all bodily          
properties--to remove and reject all    
those things from himself1 as being in  

no wise consistent with that state which
 he was now in search of4  ,thus he     
continued1 confining himself to rest in 
the bottom of his cave1 with his head   
bowed down and his eyes shut1 and       
turning himself altogether from all     
sensible things and the corporeal       
faculties1 and turning all his thoughts 
and meditations upon the necessarily    
self-existent ,being without admitting  
anything else besides him3 and if any   
other object presented itself to his    
imagination1 he rejected it with his    
utmost force1 and persisted therein to  
that degree that sometimes he did       
neither eat nor stir for many days      
together4  ,when he succeeded in        
preventing the admission of an          
extraneous object into that             
contemplation1 he endeavoured as it were
 to disappear from himself--to detach   
himself entirely from his corporeal     
faculties1 so as to be wholly taken up  
in the vision of that true ,being4      
,and1 thereto when at last he attained  

both the heaven and the earth1 all      
spiritual forms and corporeal faculties1
 and all those powers that are separate 
from matter1 all disappeared and        
vanished1 and were as if they had never 
been4 ,and amongst these his own being  
disappeared too1 till at last there     
remained nothing but this ,one1 ,true1  
,perpetually ,self-existent ,being1 who 
spoke thus in that saying of his 7the   
,koran73 ,to whom now belongs the       
,kingdom8 ,to this ,one1 the ,almighty  
,god4  ,thus he deeply immersed himself 
into this state1 and witnessed that     
which neither eye hath seen1 nor ear    
heard1 nor hath it ever entered into the
 heart of man to conceive4  ,when he    
came to himself from that state which   
was like drunkenness--he began to think 
that his own essence did not at all     
differ from the essence of that ,true   
,being1 and that there was nothing in   
him but this true essence4 ,it appeared 
to him that this ,true1 ,powerful1 and  
,glorious ,being was not by any means   

capable of multiplicity1 and that his   
knowledge of his essence was his very   
essence1 from whence he argued thus3 ,he
 that has the knowledge of this essence1
 has the essence itself1 but ,i have the
 knowledge of this essence4 ,ergo1 ,i   
have the essence itself4  ,now ,hayy    
,ibn ,yokdhan being wholly immersed in  
the speculation of those things1 and    
perfectly abstracted from all other     
objects1 saw in the highest sphere a    
,being devoid of any maker2 it was like 
the image of the sun which appears in a 
well-polished looking-glass4 ,in the    
essence of that separate sphere he saw  
such perfection1 splendour1 and beauty1 
as is too great to be expressed by any  
tongue and too subtle to be clothed in  
words4 ,it was1 as he perceived it1 in  
the utmost perfections of delight and   
joy1 exaltation of gladness4  ,the next 
sphere to it--that of the fixed stars1  
had an immaterial essence that was not  
the essence of that ,true one1 nor the  
essence of that highest1 separated      

sphere1 nor the sphere itself1 but like 
the image of the sun that is reflected  
upon a looking-glass from another glass 
placed opposite to the sun2 and in this 
essence he observed also the like       
splendour1 beauty1 loveliness1 and      
pleasure that he had observed in the    
essence of the other highest sphere2 the
 same splendour and delight he saw also 
in other essences4 ,in fact1 in all the 
spheres he observed immaterial distinct 
essences of the same kind2 he saw such  
beauty1 splendour1 pleasure1 and joy as 
eye has not seen nor ear heard1 until he
 came to the lower world1 subject to    
generation and corruption1 which        
comprehends all that is contained within
 the sphere of the moon4  ,this essence1
 immaterial like the rest1 had seventy  
thousand faces1 and every face seventy  
thousand mouths1 and every mouth seventy
 thousand tongues1 that sanctified and  
glorified incessantly that ,one1 ,true  
,being4  ,now1 he perceived in his own  
essence1 and in those other ones that   

were in the same rank with him1 infinite
 beauty1 brightness1 and light1 such as 
neither eye has seen nor ear heard1 nor 
has it entered into man's heart1 which  
none can describe nor understand1 but   
those which have attained thereto1 and  
know it by experience4  ,but1 on the    
other hand1 he saw a great many other   
immaterial essences that resembled rusty
 looking-glasses1 covered over with     
filth1 and having their faces marked    
from those polished looking-glasses that
 had the image of the sun imprinted upon
 them4 ,these essences had so much      
filthiness adhering to them1 and such   
manifold defects1 as he could not have  
conceived4 ,besides they were afflicted 
with infinite pains1 that caused        
incessant sighs and groans2 they were   
compassed with torments and scorched    
with the fiery veil of separation4      
,then1 when he came to consider the     
divine essences and heroic spirits1 he  
found them to be free from body and all 
its adherents1 and removed from them at 

the utmost distance1 having no          
connection or dependence upon them2     
their sole connection and dependence    
being that ,one ,true ,necessary        
,self-existent ,being who is the        
beginning and the cause of their        
existence4  ,now1 though the sensible   
world follows the divine world as a     
shadow does the body1 and the divine    
world stands in no need of it and is    
independent of it2 yet1 it is absurd to 
suppose a possibility of its being      
annihilated1 because it follows the     
divine world3 but the corruption of this
 world consists in its being changed1   
not annihilated4 ,and that glorious book
 7the ,koran7 spoke1 where is no mention
 made of moving the ,mountains and      
making them like the world1 and men like
 fire-flies1 and darkening the ,sun and 
,moon2 and eruption of the ,sea in that 
day when the earth shall be changed into
 another earth and the heavens likewise4
  ,this is the substance of what ,hayy  
saw when in his glorious state of       

ecstasy4  ,when ,hayy1 after his        
digression into the higher world1       
returned to the sensible world1 he began
 to loathe the troubles of this mortal  
life on earth1 and became very anxious  
to return to the same state he had been 
in before4--,and by dint of continued   
exercise and strenuous endeavour he was 
at last able to attain to that state    
whenever his desire drove him to do so4 
,while in this state he wished that ,god
 might detach him altogether from his   
body and bodily desires and necessities1
 so that he might give himself up for   
ever to his delight1 and be freed from  
all grief and pain4  ,in the meantime he
 had passed the ,seventh ,septenary1 and
 had attained to the age of fifty4 ,and 
then came suddenly the great            
metamorphosis in his life1 viz4 his     
connection and acquaintanceship with    
another human being1 called ,asal4      
,this came about in the following way3  
,not very far from the ,island where    
,hayy passed his days1 there was another

 ,island to which had retired one of    
those pious sects which abounded then in
 that part of the world4 ,among its     
votaries were the most zealous and      
devoted members1 two men1 named ,asal   
and ,salaman4 ,though both were constant
 in performing those ceremonies         
prescribed by the law of this sect1 they
 greatly differed in their character and
 in their propensities4  ,asal1 being of
 a contemplative and meditative         
disposition1 affected retirement from   
the world and a solitary life as the    
best means to attain to happiness and   
salvation4 ,salaman1 on the other hand1 
with his natural aversion to            
contemplation1 and subtle inquiries into
 the higher world of things1 preferred  
conversation1 human society1 and        
company1 as the best means to drive away
 evil thoughts4 ,though they were the   
best of friends1 this disparity in their
 views caused them in the end to        
separate4  ,asal1 advised of the        
fertility and health-giving atmosphere  

of that ,island wherein ,hayy ,ibn      
,yokdhan dwelled1 decided to go thither4
 ,after having sold his goods1 and      
having distributed part thereof among   
the poor1 he hired a ship and was       
transported into ,hayy's ,island4  ,as  
,hayy1 being wholly taken up in sublime 
speculations1 scarcely ever stirred out 
of his cave1 ,asal did not at first     
light upon him4 ,one day1 however1 when 
,hayy was stepping out of his cell to   
look out for some food1 he spied        
,asal--and the following episode forms  
one of the most charming chapters of the
 story in its description of how ,hayy  
brings ,asal to book1 and how they try  
to make themselves understood to one    
another4  ,hayy1 who is taken by ,asal  
to be one of those religious persons    
given to solitude1 like himself1 who had
 retired to that ,island to give himself
 up to contemplation and prayers1       
stands1 on his part1 in wonder and      
amazement at the appearance of ,asal4   
,he could not imagine what it was4 ,for 

of all the creatures he had ever beheld 
in his life1 there was none that in the 
least resembled him4 ,and in the end he 
came to the conclusion that he must be  
one of the essences1 that had the       
knowledge of the ,true ,one4 ,he is     
anxious to get into closer contact with 
him2 and therefore1 when he sees ,asal  
making off with all might and in great  
haste1 he follows him1 and1 being       
endowed with great bodily vigour1       
overtakes him1 seizes him1 and holds him
 fast so that he could not get off      
again4  ,when ,asal looked upon him1 and
 beheld him clothed with the skins of   
wild beasts1 and his own hair so long   
that it covered part of his body1 he    
felt great fear of him and tried to     
pacify him by stroking him4 ,hayy1 on   
the other hand1 when he perceived those 
tokens of his fear1 endeavoured to allay
 it with such vocal expressions as he   
had learned from some animals1 and      
furthermore by stroking1 with great     
gentleness1 his hand1 his head1 his     

neck1 until he succeeded1 by the        
expression of great kindness and joy1 in
 allaying ,asal's fears4  ,then ,asal1  
being a great expert in languages1 began
 to question him concerning his doings  
and ways of life in all the languages he
 was master of4 ,but ,hayy did not      
understand anything of all that was said
 to him2 and so they stood for a long   
time1 wrapped up in wonder1 looking at  
one another4  ,asal1 however1 did not   
lose hope that it should come to pass   
that he should teach him languages1     
knowledge1 and religion2 and by dint of 
patience and application1 he at last    
succeeded in teaching him the rudiments 
of language2 and then he very quickly   
advanced him so far that he could       
converse with him any length of time4   
,thereupon1 he began to question him    
about his past and about his manner of  
living1 and ,hayy described to him the  
progress he had made in knowledge until 
he had attained to that degree of union 
with ,god1 and told him of those        

essences that are separated from the    
sensible world2 and of that essence1 the
 ,true ,one1 the ,almighty and          
,glorious1 with all his glorious        
attributes4  ,when ,asal heard of all   
this1 the eyes of his heart were opened 
and his mind enlightened1 and he        
realised that all those rules and       
precepts he had been taught himself in  
his law1 regarding the ,almighty and    
,glorious ,god1 his ,angels and ,books1 
his ,messengers and the ,day of         
,judgment1 ,paradise and ,hell1 were1 in
 fact1 resemblances of what ,hayy had   
seen1 and that his religion and ,hayy's 
philosophy were only two different forms
 of the ,one ,eternal ,truth4  ,now1    
when ,hayy heard from ,asal1 in the     
course of their further conversations   
and discussions1 of the sad state of the
 inner life which the people on ,asal's 
,island lived in1 he was greatly        
affected with pity towards them1 and a  
resolution entered into his mind of     
going over to them in the hope and      

desire to become an instrument in their 
salvation4 ,asal quickly fell in with   
this plan4 ,so they took the first ship 
that passed the shore of their ,island  
and repaired to the opposite ,island4   
,when they arrived there1 ,asal's       
friends gathered round him1 anxious to  
hear of his adventures2 and when they   
heard his account of ,hayy ,ibn         
,yokdhan1 they flocked together from all
 sides1 surrounding him with all tokens 
of reverence and admiration4  ,hayy sets
 to work at once4 ,he begins to explain 
to them the mysteries of wisdom1 and to 
inculcate them with those precepts with 
which he was imbued4 ,but as they were  
diametrically opposed to the notions    
deeply rooted in their minds1 they began
 to withdraw themselves from him1 and to
 loathe and abhor him2 outwardly1       
however1 in his presence1 making a great
 show of kindness4  ,hayy soon found out
 that it was hopeless to reform these   
people1 whose only ,god was their lusts 
and appetites1 blinded and captivated as

 they were by the trifles and vanities  
of this world1 tossed up and down until 
they tottered to their graves4 ,he saw  
that ,god had sealed up their hearts and
 ears1 a thick mist being before their  
eyes and sore punishment abiding them4  
,when ,hayy saw how things stood--that  
there was no salvation for this weak1   
tractable1 and defective sort of men1 he
 craved pardon for the things he had    
spoken and desisted from further efforts
 in that direction4  ,greatly           
disappointed at being unable to         
regenerate ,salaman's subjects1 he bade 
him farewell and returned with ,asal to 
his ,island4 ,there they continued to   
devote themselves to contemplation and  
the search after the ,eternal ,truth1   
and did not cease worshipping ,god until
 death laid his hands upon them4  ,these
 are the outlines of the story of ,hayy 
,ibn ,yokdhan4  ,both ,myth and ,history
 are the parents of many of its most    
touching and tender motives4  ,stranded1
 or rather exposed on an ,island by his 

mother1 a ,princess--who is not reminded
 of the same motive in a biblical       
story8--nursed by a ,roe--another       
favourite motive of semi-mythical       
periods4  ,later on1 wholly left to his 
own resources1 yet nothing daunted1 by  
sheer pluck and energy he builds himself
 up a material existence1 then by the   
sharpness of his wit1 the originality   
and penetration of his thought1 the     
incisiveness of his intuition1 he       
rapidly builds up a spiritual structure 
of ,nature1 ,heaven1 and its ,mover and 
,ruler1 ,god1 until1 at the age of      
fifty1 he has attained to that highest  
stage of ,sufic evolution1 the ,ecstasy1
 the complete immersion in1 and         
absorption by1 the ,one ,essence1 the   
,true ,one1 that ,eternal ,being3       
,ecstasy1 the same state which is so    
beautifully described by that famous    
,arabian philosopher1 ,avicenna1 when he
 says3--,then when a man's desires are  
raised to a high pitch1 and he is       
sufficiently well exercised in that way1

 there will appear to him some small    
glimmerings of the ,truth1 as it were   
flashes of lightning1 very delightful1  
which just shine upon him and then go   
out4 ,then the more he exercises        
himself1 the more often he'll perceive  
them 4 4 4 till through frequent        
exercise he at last attains to a perfect
 tranquillity3 and that which used to   
appear to him only by fits and starts1  
becomes habitual2 and that which was    
only a glimmering before1 a constant    
light4  ,to detach and deliver the      
soul--if only for a few hours--from the 
withering despotism of everyday life and
 strife1 grey and monotonous with its   
eternal round of toil1 worry1 and       
trouble2 to bathe the soul in the full  
sunshine of sublime wisdom1 depicted and
 represented in this simple romance1    
with its exquisite charm and captivating
 grace1 clear as crystal yet pregnant   
with ideas that have moved the          
world--this was the idea which guided me
 in embarking upon this work4  ,if ,i   

have succeeded in this task1 even only  
in a small degree1 by resuscitating this
 gem of ,arabian philosophical          
literature--then ,i consider myself     
richly repaid for the labour ,i have    
bestowed on this little book1 which has1
 indeed1 been a labour of love4         
,,paul ,,br,,nnle4      #beth ,april    
#aijd4     ,,the ,,awakening ,,of ,,the 
,,soul  ,a ,,philosophical ,,romance4   
,different ,accounts of the ,birth of   
,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan4  ,our good         
,forbears--may ,god be gracious unto    
them--report3 there is an ,island       
amongst the ,indian ,islands 7in the    
,indian ,ocean71 situated under the     
,equinoctial1 where men spring into     
being without father or mother4 ,there  
is also planted a tree that produces    
women1 and they are those whom          
al-,masudi calleth the ,wakwak ,damsels4
  ,the ,island is so blessed with the   
influence of light and sun as to be the 
most temperate and perfect of places2 an
 opinion1 however1 that does not agree  

with that of the greatest philosophers  
and most famous physicians1 who hold    
that there is nothing more temperate in 
the world than the fourth climate4      
,according to them ,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan  
belonged to the number of those that are
 born without father or mother4 ,others1
 however1 relate the story in a         
different manner4 ,they tell us3   ,hayy
 ,ibn ,yokdhan1 son of a ,princess4     
,not far from this ,island there lay    
another ,island of great tract and large
 compass1 abounding in fruits and well  
peopled4 ,it was then governed by a     
,prince of haughty1 fierce1 and jealous 
disposition3 he had a sister1 graced    
with matchless beauty4 ,he kept her in  
close custody and would not permit her  
to marry2 for among her suitors there   
was not one he declared worthy of her4  
,yet in spite of his watchfulness1 his  
near kinsman1 named ,yokdhan1 succeeded 
in winning her affections1 and married  
her clandestinely according to the rites
 commonly known in those times4 ,and    

before long she was with child and      
delivered of a son4   ,hayy is exposed  
by his ,mother4  ,being in fear lest the
 matter should be discovered and her    
secret disclosed1 she put him into a    
little ark and closed it firmly after   
having suckled the babe4 ,accompanied by
 her most trusted servants1 she carried 
it to the seashore early in the night1  
her heart burning and distracted with   
love and fear1 and then 7tenderly       
kissing him with tearful eyes7 she took 
her last leave of him1 sending up this  
prayer to ,god3--  ,o ,god6 thou didst  
create this little child1 when as yet it
 was nothing2 thou didst cherish and    
nourish him while he lay confined within
 the dark closet of my womb2 thou didst 
take great care of him until he formed  
into perfection and harmony4 ,i1        
trembling before the haughty1 unjust1   
and violent ,prince1 commend him unto   
thy goodness and pray that thou who     
surpasseth all in mercy wilt be         
bountiful unto him4 ,be thou1 ,i pray   

thee1 a guide and assistance unto him2  
forsake him not1 and never leave him    
destitute of thy care4   ,hayy is driven
 by the tide to another ,island4  ,with 
these words she committed the little ark
 with the child into the sea1 and the   
waters swelling with the tide carried it
 in the same night to the shore of      
another ,island whereof we have just    
made mention4  ,it so happened that     
there was such a powerful current of the
 high water--as it does happen there    
once a year--that the ark was carried   
right to the shore1 and by its force    
cast into a shady grove1 thick set with 
trees1--a very pleasant place1 well     
sheltered from wind and rain1 and       
secured from the sun1 which at its      
rising and setting receded from it4     
,then when the waters subsided1 the ark 
wherein the infant peacefully slumbered 
was left stranded1 banked up by sands1  
safely aground1 sheltered from          
blustering wind or in-coming tide4 ,for 
when the wind blew1 the sands were      

heaped together and obstructed the      
passage to the grove1 and thus prevented
 the coming of any water into it so that
 the flood could not reach it4   ,hayy  
is found by a ,roe1 which takes care of 
him4  ,now it came to pass that the     
nails of the ark and its joints became  
loosened by the violence of the waves4  
,the child1 feeling hungry1 began to cry
 bitterly1 seeking relief and moving    
about in the ark4 ,fortunately it so    
happened that its cry was heard by a roe
 that was wandering about in search of  
her fawn1 which1 having ventured out of 
its den1 had been carried off by an     
eagle4  ,when she heard the cry1 she at 
first took it to be the cry of her fawn2
 so she followed it quickly up1 until   
she came to the ark4 ,she at once       
started to break it open with her hoofs1
 and1 aided by the struggling child     
within1 she at last forced a board      
covering the upper part of the ark4     
,whereupon1 beholding the dear child1   
she took pity on him1 and being moved   

with tender affection towards him1 she  
suckled him4 ,thus she fully satisfied  
him with milk1 and1 while he was weak   
and helpless1 did come and guard him1   
defending him from evil and keeping him 
from all harm4 ,and this is the tale    
that is told by those who refuse to     
believe that a man can come into the    
world without parents4 ,but we shall    
explain later on how it grew and how it 
progressed until it reached unto great  
perfection4   ,spontaneous ,generation4 
,those1 however1 who think he was born  
out of the earth1 without father or     
mother1 say that1 in a low piece of     
ground in that ,island1 it happened that
 in the course of years a certain mass  
of clay so fermented that the four      
qualities heat and cold1 moisture and   
dryness1 agreed in equal mixture and in 
equal strength2 and there was a great   
bulk of this clay in which some parts   
excelled the others1 being more equally 
tempered and therefore fitter for the   
generation 7of a mixed body72 the middle

 portion of the clay being of the most  
perfect temper1 and most closely        
approaching the human temper4 ,the      
matter being in a state of fermentation1
 bubblings arose by reason of its great 
clamminess2 and it came to pass that    
there was some clammy thing in the midst
 of it with a small bubbling1 being     
divided with a thin partition into two  
parts1 full of a spirituous and airy    
body1 of the most equal temper4         
,thereupon1 at the command of the most  
high ,god1 a spirit was infused into it 
and joined so closely thereto that it   
could scarcely be separated therefrom   
either by sense or thought2 this spirit 
constantly flowing out from ,god1 as is 
manifest in the light of the sun which  
constantly influenceth the world 4 4 4  
and creates4   ,hayy grows up nursed by 
the ,roe4  ,according to the other      
account 7which we follow7 the infant    
developed and grew1 being nourished with
 the roe's milk1 until he was two years 
old4 ,by this time he began to walk by  

degrees and grow his foreteeth4 ,he     
always followed the roe1 who guarded him
 with most tender affection1 and led him
 into places where there grew trees full
 of fruit1 and fed him with ripe and    
sweet fruits that fell from the tree1   
breaking those that had a hard shell    
with her teeth4  ,she suckled the babe  
whenever he pleased4 ,when he thirsted  
for water1 she led him thereto2 when the
 beams of the sun were in any way       
troublesome to him1 she shaded him4     
,when he suffered from the cold1 she    
cherished and warmed him4 ,and when the 
night approached1 she brought him home  
to his former abode and covered him with
 her own body and partly with feathers  
such as remained of those wherewith the 
ark was stuffed when he was first put   
into it4 ,when they went forth in the   
morning or came home of an evening1 they
 were always accompanied by a herd of   
deer that lay together with them1 in the
 same place4   ,hayy learns to imitate  
animals' voices4  ,in this way the boy  

keeping company with them also learned  
their voice1 which he imitated so       
exactly that scarcely any difference    
could be perceived between them4 ,in    
like manner1 whatever other voice he    
heard1 whether of bird or beast1 he came
 very near it by virtue of a very       
apprehensive faculty wherewith he was   
endowed4 ,but of all the voices he      
imitated1 he made most use of the deer's
 when they cried out for help or called 
their fellow-deer1 when they wanted them
 nearer by or farther off4 ,for as you  
know1 those creatures have diverse      
voices according to their various ends  
and uses4 ,thus the child kept company  
with the deer1 and they were not in the 
least afraid of one another4   ,hayy    
begins to take a careful view of things4
  ,now when the images of things1 after 
being removed out of sight1 became fixed
 in his mind1 it affected him so that he
 took a fancy to some things1 whilst he 
had a distaste for others4 ,in the      
meanwhile he took a careful view of all 

the beasts4 ,he saw them covered with   
wool1 hair1 and different kinds of      
plumes2 he beheld their great swiftness 
and strength and the weapons they were  
armed with for protection and defence1  
viz4 horns1 teeth1 hoofs1 spurs1 nails1 
and the like4 ,then he viewed himself   
and found he was naked1 destitute of    
weapons1 slow and weak4 ,for whenever   
they contended with him about the fruits
 they were to feed on1 he generally got 
the worst of it2 they pulled the fruit  
from him1 keeping it for themselves1 and
 he could not beat them off or flee from
 them4   ,hayy observes the difference  
between the animals and himself4        
,moreover1 he observed that his         
fellow-fawns began to have little horns 
which they had not had at first2 and    
while they were at first weak1 and      
unable to run far1 yet in progress of   
time grew to be very vigorous and       
nimble1 and active in their movements4  
,but none of all this he perceived to   
befall himself1 and as often as he      

pondered over the matter1 he could not  
make out what should be the reason      
thereof4  ,also1 when he beheld the     
creatures such as had any fault or      
defect of limbs1 he could not find one  
amongst them like himself4 ,all these   
matters evoked great grief and anxiety  
within him2 and after having earnestly  
pondered over the matter and perplexed  
himself therewith1 he at last gave up1  
in utter despair1 the hope of being     
supplied with that1 the want of which so
 sorely troubled his mind4   ,hayy as a 
boy of seven4 ,he covers himself with   
leaves4  ,thereupon he1 having by this  
time grown to be a boy of seven1 decided
 to put forth his own efforts and to    
help himself4 ,he took some broad leaves
 of trees 7wherewith to cover his       
nakedness7 and put some on the fore-part
 of his body1 covering the hinder parts 
with the others2 and having thus made a 
girdle of palm-leaves and rushes        
together1 he girded his waist therewith4
  ,but it was not long before the       

leaves1 growing dry1 withered and fell  
off from him4  ,hayy1 by no means       
discouraged1 at once took fresh ones in 
their stead1 and put them one on top of 
another1 thus forming double folds2 but 
even then1 though remaining somewhat    
longer1 they would not last but a short 
time4 ,thereupon1 he broke off the bough
 of a tree1 the ends whereof he made    
straight1 stripping off the twigs1 and  
then smoothed the middle parts thereof4 
,hayy becomes aggressive1 and attacks   
wild beasts4  ,thus armed1 he began to  
attack and affright such of the wild    
beasts as ventured to oppose him1       
assaulting the weaker and defending     
himself against the stronger4 ,in this  
way he came to understand to some degree
 his own strength1 and found out that   
his head by far excelled theirs1 as he  
had been enabled therewith to cover his 
own nakedness and to provide himself    
with a weapon wherewith to defend       
himself4 ,so that now he had no need of 
those natural weapons which he had      

formerly so much desired4   ,hayy covers
 himself with the skin of an ,eagle4    
,by this time he had grown up and was   
now past seven years of age2 and as he  
found the frequent repairing of the     
leaves wherewith he covered himself very
 troublesome to him1 it entered his mind
 to take unto him the tail of some dead 
beast1 and gird it about him4 ,but when 
he noticed that all the beasts shunned  
the dead bodies of those that were of   
the same kind1 and saw them flee from   
them1 he began to feel doubtful whether 
it was safe for him to do so1 until at  
length he lighted one day on a dead     
eagle2 and when he noticed that none of 
the animals fled before him1 he thought 
that from him he might get his desire   
accomplished4  ,so1 seizing the         
opportunity1 he stepped forward towards 
him and first cut off the wings and the 
tail complete just as they were2 then he
 smoothed the feathers1 and spread them 
open2 thereupon he tore off the         
remainder of the skin1 dividing it into 

two portions1 whereof he wore the one on
 his back1 the other upon his belly and 
the secret parts4 ,the tails he fixed   
behind and the wings on his arms4 ,thus 
he was at the same time covered and kept
 warm4   ,hayy spreads terror among the 
beasts4  ,moreover1 he spread such      
terror among the beasts that they did   
not venture to resist or oppose him1 and
 none dared to come near him except his 
roe which had suckled him and brought   
him up2 and he never separated from her 
nor she from him4 ,and when she became  
old and weakly1 he led her to those     
places where there was the best food to 
be found1 gathering the sweetest fruits 
and giving them to her to eat4   ,hayy  
is grief-stricken at the death of the   
,roe4  ,yet in spite of all the care he 
bestowed upon her1 she grew more lean   
and feeble every day1 and in the end    
death overtook her1 when all her motions
 stopped and her actions ceased4  ,when 
the boy noticed this1 sad grief overcame
 him1 and he was stricken with the      

greatest sorrow4 ,he called her with the
 same voice she used to answer2 and     
though he shouted at the top of his     
voice1 he could not perceive any        
movement or alteration in her4          
,thereupon he began to look closer into 
her eyes and ears1 but could not find   
any visible defect4 ,in equal manner1   
when he examined all the other parts of 
the body1 he could find nothing amiss4  
,he therefore earnestly desired to find 
out where the defect lay hidden1 so that
 he might be able to remove it and make 
her return to her former state of       
vigorous life4 ,but he was quite at a   
loss and utterly unable to find by what 
means to attain his ends4 4 4 4   ,hayy 
takes an aversion to the dead ,body4    
,in the meantime the dead body of the   
roe began to putrefy and to exhale      
noisome vapours1 which tended to        
increase his aversion to it and made him
 unwilling to look upon it4  ,not long  
after this he chanced to see two ravens 
fighting together1 and one of them      

struck the other down dead4 ,after that 
it began to scrape the earth with its   
claws1 till it had dug up a pit wherein 
it buried the carcase of its adversary4 
,when ,hayy observed this1 he said to   
himself3 ,how well has this raven done  
in covering the body of his companion1  
though he did ill in killing him4 ,how  
much greater reason was there for me to 
have performed this good office to my   
mother4   ,hayy buries the body of the  
,roe4  ,thereupon he digged a grave1 in 
which he laid his mother's body1        
throwing earth upon it4 ,then he went on
 meditating on the thing which had      
governed the body1 but could not        
apprehend what sort of thing it was4    
,but when he looked on the rest of the  
roes1 and saw that they all had the same
 figure and form as his mother had had1 
he gathered there was in every one of   
them something that governed and        
actuated them1 like that which had      
actuated and governed his mother4 ,and  
on account of that likeness he continued

 to follow them1 and liked to be in     
their company4   ,hayy observes divers  
kinds of ,living ,creatures and ,plants4
  ,in this condition he remained some   
time1 contemplating divers kinds of     
living creatures and plants1 and walking
 about the shore of that ,island to see 
whether he could find anything like     
himself1 as he observed many of the     
other animals and plants had many       
resembling one another4 ,but as much as 
he looked about1 he could not find one  
like himself4 ,and when1 on walking     
round1 he perceived that the ,island was
 everywhere compassed with the sea1 he  
fancied there was no other ,island      
besides4   ,hayy discovers ,fire kindled
 by the friction of ,reeds4  ,but once  
it so happened that fire was kindled by 
friction among a parcel of reeds1 which 
at first greatly frightened him1 being a
 thing he had never seen before1 so that
 he stood at a distance a good while1   
greatly wondering at it4  ,yet at last  
he ventured to draw nearer and nearer to

 it by degrees2 in amazement he observed
 the brightness of its light1 and that  
wondrous force in consuming everything  
it seized1 converting it into its own   
nature1 till in the end1 full of wonder 
and incited by that innate boldness and 
courage that ,god had implanted in his  
mind1 he felt induced to stretch his    
hand out to get hold of it4  ,but when  
it burnt his fingers1 and he saw he     
could not lay hold of it1 he endeavoured
 to take a stick from the burning tree  
which the fire had not as yet completely
 seized upon1 and taking hold of that   
part that was still untouched1 he easily
 gained his ends and carried the tree   
brand home to his lodgings1 which he had
 selected4  ,there he kept his fire and 
ceased not to tend it day and night4    
,particularly at night it was of great  
service to him1 inasmuch as its light   
and heat supplied the place of the sun1 
so that he was greatly pleased with it  
and began to look upon it as the most   
excellent thing he had yet had about    

him4  ,and when he noticed that it      
always tended upwards--he felt convinced
 that it was one of those celestial     
substances which he saw shining in the  
firmament4 ,he then tried the strength  
thereof upon all sorts of bodies by     
throwing them into it1 and he perceived 
it consumed them all sooner or later    
according to their natures1 which       
rendered them more or less combustible4 
,amongst other experiments wherewith he 
tried to prove its strength1 he flung   
therein certain fishes which the sea had
 cast upon the shore2 as the steam      
thereof came to his nose1 the smell     
whetted his appetite so that he ventured
 to taste of them2 and when he found it 
agreeable to his palate1 he began to get
 used to the eating of fish and flesh4  
,then he applied himself to fishing and 
hunting those creatures that are        
specially fit to feed on1 until he      
became a great expert in those sports4  
,thus his regard for the fire greatly   
increased day by day1 because it helped 

to provide him with various sorts of    
food with which he was quite            
unacquainted before4     ,,the ,,third  
,,septenary4   ,hayy makes himself      
,clothes and ,shoes of the ,skins of    
,animals4  ,by the time he had attained 
to the end of his third septenary1 viz4 
to the twenty-first year of his age1 he 
had found out many things which were of 
great use to him for the conveniences of
 life4 ,he made himself clothes and     
shoes of the skins of wild beasts after 
he had dissected them for use4 ,he made 
himself thread of their hair1 as also of
 the rind of the stalks of althea       
mallows1 and other plants that could be 
easily parted asunder and drawn into    
threads4 ,and he learned the making of  
these threads from the use he had made  
of the rushes before4 ,he made a sort of
 bodkin of the strongest thorns he could
 get and splinters of cane sharp pointed
 with stones4  ,the art of building he  
was taught by the observations he made  
upon the swallows' nests4 ,he built     

himself a room to repose and rest       
therein1 and also a store-house and     
pantry to lay up the remainder of his   
victuals4 ,he guarded it with a door    
made of canes twisted together to       
prevent any of the beasts from getting  
in when he happened to be away4 ,he also
 got hold of certain birds of prey which
 he made use of for hawking1 and others 
of the tamer sort which he bred up1 and 
fed upon their eggs and chickens4 ,he   
also took to him the horns of wild      
bulls1 which he fastened upon the       
strongest canes he could get and the    
staves of the tree ,alzan and others of 
similar kind4  ,thus1 by the help of    
fire and of sharp edged stones1 he so   
fitted them that they served him as     
spears4 ,he made himself also a shield  
of the skins of beasts folded and       
compacted together4 ,and thus he tried  
to provide himself with artificial      
weapons1 being destitute of natural     
arms4   ,hayy learns to ride4  ,when he 
saw that his hand supplied all those    

defects quite well1 and that none of the
 various kinds of wild beasts ventured  
to stand up against him1 but fled away  
from him and only excelled him in their 
swiftness1 he bethought himself of      
contriving some art how to be even with 
them1 and finally decided there would be
 nothing so convenient as to chase some 
of the strongest and swiftest beasts of 
the ,island1 nourishing them with food  
until they might let him get on the back
 of them1 so that he might pursue other 
kinds of wild beasts4  ,there were in   
that island wild horses and asses1 out  
of which he chose some that seemed      
fittest for the purpose1 and by dint of 
exercise he made them so tractable that 
he became complete master of his wishes4
 ,and when he had made out of the skins 
of those beasts something that served   
him instead of bridles and saddles1 it  
was an easy matter for him to overtake  
such beasts1 which he scarcely could    
have taken in any other way4  ,he made  
all these discoveries whilst he busied  

himself in the study of anatomy1        
studiously searching after the          
properties of the component parts of    
animals and their difference1 and all   
this he did1 as we mentioned above1 by  
the time he was twenty-one years of age4
   ,hayy examines the ,nature of        
,bodies4  ,after this he proceeded      
further to examine the nature of bodies 
that were subject to generation and     
corruption1 as the different kinds of   
animals1 plants1 minerals and different 
sorts of stones1 earth1 water1          
exhalations and vapours1 ice1 snow1     
hail1 smoke1 fire1 and hoar-frost4  ,in 
all these he observed different         
qualities and a diversity of actions and
 motions1 agreeing in some respects and 
differing in others4 ,he found that1 so 
far as they agreed1 they were one2 where
 they disagreed1 a great many2 and when 
he looked into the properties whereby   
they were distinguished from one        
another1 he found them so manifold that 
he could not comprehend them4  ,as to   

himself1 he knew that his spirit was one
 in essence1 and was really the         
substance of his being1 and that the    
other parts served only as so many      
instruments4 ,so he perceived his own   
essence to be but one4  ,then           
attentively considering the different   
kinds of animals1 he perceived that the 
one thing common to them all was        
sensation and nutrition and the faculty 
of moving of their own accord           
wheresoever they pleased1 all of which  
actions he was assured were the proper  
effects of the animal spirit1 and that  
those lesser things in which they       
differed were not so proper to that     
spirit4  ,for he considered that the    
animal spirit may differ with regard to 
some qualities1 according to the variety
 of constitutions in several animals4   
,and so he looked upon the whole species
 of living creatures as one4  ,then1 on 
contemplating the different species of  
plants1 he perceived that the           
individuals of every species were like  

one another in their boughs1 branches1  
leaves1 fruits2 and so1 taking a view of
 all the different kinds of plants1 he  
decided within himself that they were   
all one and the same in respect of that 
agreement between themselves in their   
actions1 viz4 their nourishment and     
growth4  ,he then contemplated those    
bodies which have neither sense1        
nourishment1 nor growth1 such as stones1
 earth1 water1 air1 and fire2 which he  
saw had all of them three dimensions1   
viz4 length1 breadth1 and thickness2 and
 that their differences only consisted  
in this1 that some of them were         
coloured1 others not2 some were hot1    
others cold1 and similar differences4   
,he noticed also that hot bodies grew   
cold1 and1 on the contrary1 cold ones   
grew warm4 ,he saw further that water   
rarefied into vapours1 and vapours again
 thickened and turned into water4 ,then 
he observed that the bodies which were  
burnt turned into coals1 ashes1 flame1  
and smoke2 and that the smoke1 when in  

its ascent it was intercepted by an arch
 of stones1 thickened them into soot1   
and became like other earthly           
substances4 ,from whence he concluded   
that all things were in reality one1    
like the animals and plants1 though     
multiplied and diversified in some      
respects4   ,hayy transfers his thoughts
 to the ,heavenly ,bodies4  ,now after  
he had attained thus far1 so as to have 
a general and indistinct notion of an   
,agent1 a vehement desire seized him to 
get a more distinct knowledge of him4   
,but since he had not yet withdrawn     
himself from the sensible world1 he     
began to look for this voluntary ,agent 
among things sensible2 nor did he know1 
as yet1 whether it were one ,agent or   
many4 ,therefore he took a view of all  
the bodies that were near him1 viz4     
which his thoughts had been continually 
fixed upon2 which he found all          
successively liable to generation and   
corruption1 either completely or in     
parts1 as water and earth1 parts of     

which are consumed by fire4  ,he        
perceived likewise that the air was     
changed into snow by extremity of cold1 
and then again into water2 and among all
 the other bodies which he had near him1
 he could find none which had not its   
existence anew and required some        
voluntary ,agent to give it a being4    
,therefore he laid all those sublunary  
bodies aside1 and transferred his       
thoughts to the consideration of the    
heavenly bodies4     ,,the ,,fourth     
,,septenary4   ,hayy ponders over       
,heaven and ,stars4  ,thus far had he   
arrived with his reflections about the  
fourth septenary of his age4 ,he        
recognised that the heavens and all the 
stars contained therein were bodies1    
because they are extended according to  
the three dimensions3 length1 breadth1  
and thickness4  ,then he began to ask   
himself whether their extension was     
infinite1 whether they extended to an   
endless length and breadth1 or whether  
they were circumscribed by any bounds   

and terminated by certain limits4       
,hayy finds that the ,body of ,heaven is
 finite4  ,this problem continually     
occupied his mind4 ,but soon1 owing to  
the power of his reflection and the     
penetration of his thought1 he perceived
 that the idea of an infinite body was  
an absurdity1 an impossibility1 a notion
 quite unintelligible4 ,and he confirmed
 himself in this way of thinking by     
numerous arguments that presented       
themselves to his mind4  ,and when1 by  
the singular sharpness of his wit1 he   
had satisfied himself that the body of  
heaven was finite1 he wanted to find    
out1 in the next place1 of what form it 
was and how it was limited by the       
superficies that compassed it round4    
,hayy contemplates ,sun1 ,moon1 and     
,stars4  ,first of all he contemplated  
the sun1 moon1 and stars1 and saw that  
they all rose in the ,east1 and set in  
the ,west2 and those lights which went  
right over his head described a greater 
circle1 whilst those at a greater       

distance from the vertical point towards
 the ,north or ,south described the     
lesser circle4 ,so that the least       
circles which were described by any of  
the stars were those two which went     
round the two poles1 the one ,north1 the
 other ,south1 the last of which is the 
circle of the star ,suhail 7that is     
,canopus7 and the circle ,al-farkadani1 
which was next the northern4  ,and1     
since he lived in an island situated    
under the equinoctial line1 all those   
circles cut the horizon at right angles 
and had alike reference to ,north and   
,south1 seeing both the poles appeared  
to him at once4 ,he observed that when a
 star arose in a larger circle and      
another in a lesser1 yet they both arose
 together and set at the same time1 and 
he noticed it to be the case with all   
stars at all times4   ,hayy concludes   
that the ,heaven is of a spherical      
,figure4  ,therefore1 it was evident to 
him that the heaven was of a spherical  
figure4  ,in this he was further        

confirmed by observing the return of the
 sun1 moon1 and the other stars to the  
,east after their setting2 and also     
because they always appeared to him of  
the same proportion of magnitude when   
they arose1 when they were in the midst 
of heaven1 and when they set2 for if    
their motions had not been circular1    
they must have been nearer to sight at  
some time than at others2 and then their
 dimensions would have appeared greater 
or lesser when they were nearer to him  
or further off4  ,but since there was no
 such appearance1 he felt assured that  
the figure of heaven was spherical4     
,then he considered the motion of the   
moon1 and saw that it was carried from  
the ,east to the ,west as the other     
planets were4 ,so that at length a great
 part of astronomy became known to him4 
,it appeared to him1 further1 that the  
motions of the planets were in different
 spheres1 all of which were comprehended
 in another that was above them all1 and
 which turned about all the rest in the 

space of a day and a night4 ,but it     
would be too tedious to set down1 to    
explain in particular1 how he advanced  
in this science2 and what we have       
already said is quite sufficient for our
 present purpose4  ,now1 when he had    
attained to this degree of astronomical 
science1 he found that the whole of the 
heavens and whatever it contained was   
one thing composed of parts mutually    
joined together2 and that all those     
bodies which he had before              
considered--as earth1 water1 air1       
plants1 animals--were all of them       
contained in it1 so that none of them   
went beyond its bounds4 ,he found also  
that the whole body was like one animal 
in which the stars answered to the      
senses2 the spheres joined together     
answered to the limbs2 and all those    
bodies therein1 which were liable to    
generation and corruption1 resembled    
those things which are contained in the 
belly of an animal4   ,hayy ponders over
 the ,creation of the ,world4  ,now1    

whereas it appeared to him that the     
whole world was only one ,substance     
which stood in need of a voluntary      
,agent1 and that its various parts      
seemed to him but one thing1 in like    
manner as the bodies of the lower world 
which is subject to generation and      
corruption1 he took a broad view of the 
whole world1 and debated within himself 
whether it existed in time after it had 
been1 and came to be out of nothing2 or 
whether it was a thing that had existed 
from eternity and never wanted a        
beginning4  ,in respect to this matter1 
he had many and grave doubts within     
himself1 so that neither of these       
opinions prevailed over the other4 ,for 
when he proposed to himself the belief  
of eternity1 there arose many objections
 in his mind with regard to the         
impossibility of an infinite being1 just
 as the existence of an infinite body   
had seemed impossible to him4  ,he saw1 
furthermore1 that any substance that was
 not void of qualities produced anew1   

but always endued with them1 must also  
itself be produced anew1 because it     
cannot be said to be before them2 and   
that which cannot exist before qualities
 newly produced1 must needs itself be   
newly produced4  ,on the other hand1    
however1 when he proposed to himself to 
believe in a new production thereof1    
other objections occurred to him--in    
particular this1 that the notion of its 
being produced after non-existence could
 in no wise be understood1 unless it was
 supposed there was some time antecedent
 to its existence2 whereas time was     
amongst the number of those things that 
belonged to the world and was           
inseparable therefrom1 wherefore the    
world cannot be understood to be later  
than time4  ,he then reasoned within    
himself3 if the world be produced anew1 
it must needs have a producer or        
creator2 and if so1 why did this creator
 create the world now and not before8   
,was it because some motive supervened  
which it had not before8 ,but there was 

nothing besides him1 the ,creator4  ,was
 it1 then1 owing to some change in his  
own nature8 ,if so1 what has caused this
 change8  ,thus he did not cease to     
consider these things within himself for
 some years1 and to ponder over its     
different bearings2 and a great many    
arguments offered themselves on both    
sides1 so that neither of those opinions
 preponderated in his judgment over the 
other4   ,hayy concludes that the world 
must have a ,creator without bodily     
,substance4  ,since it seemed difficult 
to him to make a definite decision on   
this question1 he began to consider     
within himself what would be the        
necessary consequence which did follow  
from either of those opinions1 and that 
they might both be alike4 ,and he       
perceived that1 if he supposed the world
 to be created in time1 and to have had 
an existence after non-existence1 it    
would necessarily follow therefrom that 
the world could not come forth into     
existence by its own power1 but required

 some agent to produce it2 but this     
agent could not be perceived by any of  
the senses2 for if it were an object of 
the senses1 it would be body1 and if    
body1 part of the world1 and would have 
had its existence anew2 so that it would
 have stood in need of some other cause 
which should have produced it anew4 ,and
 if this second creator were also a     
body1 he would depend upon a third1 and 
that third upon a fourth1 and so on ad  
infinitum1 which1 however1 would be     
absurd and irrational4  ,the world1     
therefore1 must necessarily have a      
creator that has not a bodily substance2
 and as the creator is1 indeed1 without 
such a bodily substance1 it is quite    
impossible for us to apprehend him by   
any of our senses2 for we perceive      
nothing by the help of the five senses  
but bodies or such qualities as adhere  
to bodies4  ,and since it cannot be     
apprehended by sense1 neither can it be 
comprehended by imagination4 ,for       
imagination is nothing else but a       

representation of the forms of things1  
when their bodily objects are absent4   
,and seeing it is not a body1 we must   
not attribute to him any bodily         
properties1 the first of which is       
extension into length1 breadth1         
thickness2 but he is free from that1 and
 also from all other properties of body 
that flow from it4 ,and seeing he is the
 ,creator of the world1 doubtless he    
knows whatsoever is in it1 and has the  
sovereign command over it4 ,shall not he
 know1 that created it8 ,for he is most 
eminent in knowledge and omniscient4    
7,koran47  ,on the other side he saw    
that if he believed in the eternity of  
the world1 and that it was ever as it is
 now1 and that no time of chaos preceded
 it1 that necessarily it would follow   
that motion was from eternity also1     
without any period of beginning1 because
 there could be no rest before it whence
 to take its beginning4  ,now1 every    
motion necessarily requires a mover1 and
 that mover is either some power        

diffused in some body1 to wit1 either in
 the body of the thing moved or else    
through some other body without it1 or  
else some other power that is not       
diffused or dispersed through anything  
at all4  ,now every power diffused in   
any body and dispersed through it1 is   
divided or doubled4 ,for example3       
gravity in a stone which causes it to   
move downwards4 ,for if the stone be    
divided into two parts1 the gravity is  
also divided into two parts2 and if you 
add thereto another stone of equal      
weight1 the gravity is doubled4 ,and if 
it were possible that the stone grew ad 
infinitum1 the gravity would also grow  
ad infinitum4 ,on the other hand1 if the
 stone should grow to a certain size and
 remain there1 also the gravity would   
increase to the same extent1 and no     
farther4  ,now it has already been      
demonstrated that every body must       
necessarily be finite1 and consequently 
every power inherent in a body is also  
finite4 ,if1 therefore1 we can find a   

power which produces an infinite effect1
 it must needs be such a power that is  
not inherent in any body4  ,now we find 
that the heaven is moved with a         
perpetual motion1 without any cessation 
at all4  ,therefore1 if we affirm that  
its motion has no beginning1 it         
necessarily follows that the power that 
moves is not inherent in its own body   
nor in any other body that is without   
it2 but proceeds from something         
altogether abstract from bodies1 and    
which can be described by no terms      
applicable to bodies4  ,then it was     
evident to him1 from his former         
contemplation of the lower world which  
is liable to generation and corruption1 
that the true essence of body consisted 
in its form1 which is its disposition to
 various motions1 but that that part of 
its essence which consisted in matter   
was very mean and poor1 and can scarcely
 be conceived4 ,therefore the existence 
of the whole world consists in its      
disposition to be moved by this ,mover1 

who is free of all matter and of all    
adjuncts belonging to the body1         
abstracted from everything which senses 
can apprehend or imagination can reach4 
,and since he is the efficient cause of 
the motion of the heaven1 in which      
7though there be different kinds7 there 
is no difference1 no innovation or      
cessation1 doubtless he has power over  
it and a perfect knowledge of it4  ,thus
 his contemplation brought him to the   
same conclusion to which he had arrived 
before4 ,nor did it trouble him in any  
way that he doubted the eternity of the 
world and its existence anew4 ,for      
either way it was manifest to him that  
the ,creator of the world was no body   
nor joined to body nor separated        
therefrom4 ,for conjunction and         
separation1 to be within and without1   
are the qualities of bodies1 from which 
the ,creator is quite free4 ,and because
 every body stands in need of a form to 
be added to their matter1 considering it
 cannot subsist but by that1 nor exist  

without it1 but by this voluntary       
,agent1 it appeared to him that all     
things owed their existence to this     
,agent2 and that none of them could     
subsist but through him2 and            
consequently this ,agent was the cause  
of them all1 and they the effects1      
whether they were newly created after   
non-existence or whether they had no    
beginning with respect of time1 without 
any privation foregoing it4  ,for upon  
either of these two cases their         
existence depended1 for they could not  
continue1 unless he continued1 nor exist
 unless he existed1 nor be eternal      
without his being eternal2 but he stood 
not in any need of them nor in any way  
depended upon them4  ,and how should it 
be otherwise1 considering it has been   
demonstrated that its power and virtue  
is infinite1 whereas all bodies are     
finite and terminated and equally       
whatsoever adhereth unto them or        
dependeth upon them2 therefore that the 
whole world1 and whatsoever is in it1   

heaven1 earth or stars1 and whatsoever  
belongs to them1 above or beneath them1 
is all his work and creation and        
consequently posterior to him in nature 
though not in time4 ,as if you take any 
body in your hand and then move your    
hand1 the body must necessarily follow  
the motion of your hand with a motion   
which is posterior to the motion of the 
hand in nature1 though not in time1     
seeing both motions began together4  ,so
 all this world is created and caused by
 this ,agent out of time1 whose command 
is1 when he would have anything done3   
,let it be1 and it is4   ,hayy admires  
the work of the ,creator4  ,now1 when he
 saw that all things existing were the  
work of the ,creator1 he again          
considered the power of the same1       
greatly admiring so rare a workmanship1 
such accurate wisdom and profound       
knowledge4  ,there appeared to him in   
the most minute creatures 7much more in 
the greater7 such signs of wisdom and   
marvels of the work of creation that his

 mind was filled with the greatest      
admiration4 ,then he became assured that
 all these things must proceed from a   
voluntary ,agent of infinite perfection1
 even above all perfection1 to whom even
 the weight of an atom could not be     
unknown whether in heaven or earth1 nor 
any other thing whether lesser or       
greater than it4  ,thereupon he         
considered all the different sorts of   
animals1 and how this ,agent had given  
to every one of them such a fabric of   
body and then taught them what use to   
make thereof4 ,for if he had not taught 
them to use the members he had given    
them for those employments for which    
they were designed1 they would not have 
derived any benefit or advantage        
therefrom1 but on the contrary would    
rather have found them a burden4  ,hence
 he knew that he was most bountiful and 
most gracious of all4 ,and then1 when he
 perceived among the creatures anything 
that had beauty1 perfection1 power and  
strength1 or whatever other excellency  

it had1 he concluded that it must       
necessarily proceed from that voluntary 
,agent1 from his existence and by his   
operation4  ,he knew that the qualities 
that were in him were much greater1 more
 perfect1 more absolute1 more bountiful1
 more excellent and more lasting2 and   
there was no comparison between those   
things that were in him and those that  
were found in the animals4  ,nor did he 
cease to go on with his search till he  
had run through all the attributes of   
perfection1 and found that they were all
 in the ,agent and proceeded from him1  
and that he was worthy of them more than
 any to whom they should be ascribed4   
,also he searched all the attributes of 
defects1 and saw him free from them and 
void of them4 ,and how was it possible  
for him to be otherwise1 since the      
notion of imperfection is nothing but   
mere privation or what depends upon it4 
,how should he in any degree partake of 
privation1 who is a most simple being1  
the very essence himself1 and giving a  

being to everything that exists1 and    
besides whom there is no existence4 ,for
 ,he is the ,existence1 ,he is the      
,absolute1 ,he is the ,perfection1 ,he  
is the ,beauty1 ,he is the ,glory1 ,he  
is the ,power1 ,he is the ,knowledge1   
,he is ,he1 and all ,things perish      
beside ,him4 7,koran47     ,,fifth      
,,septenary4   ,hayy is completely taken
 up with the ,contemplation of the      
,superior ,intellectual ,world4  ,thus  
far he had advanced in his knowledge by 
the end of the fifth septenary from his 
birth1 that is when he was thirty-five  
years old4 ,and the consideration of    
this supreme being was then so fixed in 
his mind that it hindered him to think  
of any other thing1 so that he forgot   
altogether the consideration of their   
existence and of their nature1 until in 
the end it came to this1 that as soon as
 he cast his eyes upon any thing of any 
kind whatsoever1 he at once saw in it   
the prints of this ,agent1 and in a     
moment his thoughts were diverted from  

the ,creature and transferred to the    
,creator1 so that his heart was         
altogether withdrawn from thinking on   
this inferior world1 which contains the 
objects of sense 7inferior sensible     
world71 and entirely taken up with the  
contemplation of the superior           
intellectual world4   ,hayy examines all
 his ,senses and ,faculties4  ,having   
now attained the knowledge of this      
supreme being of permanent existence1   
which has no cause of its own existence1
 but itself is the cause of the         
existence of all other things1 he was   
next desirous to know by what means he  
came to this knowledge and by what      
faculty he had apprehended this being4  
,therefore he first examined all his    
senses1 viz4 his hearing1 seeing1       
smelling1 tasting1 and feeling1 and saw 
that all these apprehended nothing but  
what was bodily or what is in the body4 
,for the hearing apprehended nothing but
 sounds1 and these arose from the       
agitation of the air1 by the friction of

 bodies4 ,the sight apprehends colours1 
the smelling odours2 the taste savours1 
the touch temperatures of the body1     
hardness and softness1 roughness and    
smoothness4 ,nor does the imagination   
apprehend anything which has not length1
 breadth1 and thickness4  ,now all these
 things which are thus apprehended are  
the adjuncts of bodies1 and our senses  
apprehend nothing else1 because they are
 faculties diffused through our bodies  
and divided according to the division of
 bodies1 and therefore cannot apprehend 
anything else but divisible body4 ,for  
as this faculty is diffused through the 
visible body1 it must necessarily1      
whenever it apprehends anything1 be     
divided as the faculty is divided4      
,therefore every faculty which is seated
 in the body can apprehend nothing      
except a body1 or what is inherent in a 
body4  ,now it has already been shown   
that this necessarily existent being is 
free from all material qualities in any 
respect1 and consequently cannot be     

apprehended except by something which is
 neither matter nor any faculty inherent
 in matter1 or in any way dependent upon
 it1 neither within it nor without it1  
neither joined to it nor separated from 
it4  ,it appeared also to him that he   
apprehended this supreme being1 and that
 he gained a firm knowledge of it by    
that which was his own essence4 ,it was 
therefore clear to him that his essence 
was something incorporeal without any   
material quality2 and whatever material 
thing he apprehended by his outward     
sense1 was not in reality his essence2  
but that it was something of an         
incorporeal substance1 whereby he       
apprehended that absolute and perfect   
being that is necessarily and of itself 
existent4  ,having thus learnt that his 
real essence was not a corporeal        
substance perceived by his senses and   
compassed about by his skin1 his body   
seemed to him something altogether      
contemptible1 and so he wholly addicted 
himself to the contemplation of that    

noble essence whereby he apprehended    
that noble and necessarily existent     
being4 ,then he considered within       
himself1 whether this noble essence     
could possibly be dissolved1 corrupted1 
and vanish altogether1 or whether it    
were of perpetual duration4  ,now he    
knew that corruption and dissolution    
were properties of bodies1 and consisted
 in putting off one form and putting on 
another2 as for instance when water is  
changed into air and air into water1 or 
when herbs are turned into earth or     
ashes1 and earth into herbs--for this is
 the true notion of corruption4 ,but an 
incorporeal being1 independent of body  
and altogether free therefrom1 cannot be
 liable to corruption4  ,having thus    
quite assured himself that his real     
essence could not be corrupted1 he      
desired to know in what condition it    
would be itself when it left the body   
and was separated therefrom2 but now he 
knew that it was not so1 until the body 
was no longer a fit instrument for its  

use4  ,therefore weighing in his mind   
all his apprehensive faculties1 he saw  
that every one of them apprehended its  
object1 sometimes potentially1 sometimes
 actually--as when the eye is shut or   
turns itself away from the visible      
object1 it is potentially               
apprehensive--which means1 though it    
does not actually apprehend it at       
present1 yet is able to do so for the   
time to come4 ,and when the eye is open 
and turned toward the effect1 it is     
actually apprehensive1 which means1 it  
apprehends it at present4 ,and so it is 
with all the other faculties4           
,furthermore he saw that if any of these
 faculties never actually apprehended   
its proper object1 yet so long as it is 
potentially apprehensive1 it has no     
desire to apprehend any particular      
object1 because it has no knowledge     
thereof1 as is seen in a man who is born
 blind4 ,but if it did ever actually    
apprehend1 and becomes afterwards       
potentially apprehensive1 it is inclined

 to apprehend its object actually1      
because it has been acquainted with the 
object and is intent upon it1 as a man1 
who has before enjoyed his sight1       
continually desires visible objects     
after he is blind2 and the more         
glorious1 perfect1 and beautiful the    
object is1 the more his desire increases
 and the greater is his grief for the   
loss4  ,so if we can find out anything  
which has an unlimited perfection1      
infinite beauty1 brightness and         
splendour1 that does not proceed from   
it1 then he who is deprived of the sight
 and knowledge of that thing1 after     
having once known it1 must necessarily  
suffer inexpressible anguish1 so long as
 he remains destitute thereof2 whereas  
he that has it continually present      
before him1 must needs enjoy            
uninterrupted delight1 perpetual        
felicity1 boundless joy and gladness4   
,,hayy ,,returns ,,to ,,the ,,sensible  
,,world4   ,as to the end of his story1 
,i will tell you all about it1 with the 

help of ,god4  ,when ,hayy returned to  
the ,sensible ,world1 after his         
digression into the ,divine ,world1 he  
began to loathe the burden and troubles 
of this mortal life on earth1 and to be 
filled with a most earnest and          
passionate desire of the life to come2  
and he strove to return to the same     
state in the same way as at first1 until
 he attained thereto with less labour   
than he had done formerly4 ,and he      
continued in it the second time longer  
than at the first4  ,then he returned to
 the ,sensible ,world2 and then again he
 sought to re-enter into that state of  
speculation1 and found it easier than   
the first and second time1 and continued
 therein much longer4  ,in this way it  
grew easier and easier unto him1 and his
 remaining therein became longer and    
longer1 until at last he could attain it
 whenever he desired1 and remain therein
 as long as he pleased1 except when the 
necessity of his body required it4      
,those necessities1 however1 he had     

restrained within so narrow a compass   
that a narrower could hardly be         
imagined4  ,and1 while in this state he 
often wished that ,god1 the ,almighty   
and ,glorious1 would altogether detach  
him from this body of his that called   
him away from that place1 so that he    
might wholly and continually give       
himself up to his delight1 and might be 
freed from all that pain and grief with 
which he was afflicted1 as often as he  
was forced to turn his mind from that   
state to attend on his bodily           
necessities4     ,,seventh ,,septenary4 
,asal and ,salaman appear on the ,scene4
  ,thus he continued in this state until
 he had passed the seventh septenary of 
his age1 that is1 until he was fifty    
years of age4 ,then it happened that he 
made the acquaintance of ,asal4 ,and the
 account of this meeting with him we    
shall now relate1 with the help of ,god4
  ,they report that there is an ,island 
near unto that where ,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan
 was born--according to one of those two

 different accounts as to the manner of 
his birth--unto which had retired one of
 those pious sects that had for its     
founder some of the ancient ,prophets   
7the ,mercy of ,god be upon them671 a   
sect which used to discourse on all     
things that had a new existence in      
nature and by way of parables to        
represent their images to the           
imagination1 so that their impressions  
fixed themselves in the minds of men4   
,this sect spread itself in that ,island
 and began to prevail and become famous1
 till at length the ,king himself       
entered it and forced his subjects also 
to adhere to it4  ,now there were born  
in that same ,island two men of great   
endowments and excellence1 great lovers 
of goodness--their names were ,asal and 
,salaman4 ,meeting with this sect1 they 
embraced it most heartily1 addressing   
themselves to the punctual observance of
 all its precepts and the continuous    
exercise of the works required thereby2 
and to that end they entered into a bond

 of friendship with each other4 ,they   
studiously made careful inquiries into  
the passages contained in the law of    
that sect1 amongst others on the        
descriptions of ,god1 the ,almighty and 
the most ,glorious1 and ,his angels2 on 
the resurrection1 and the rewards and   
punishments of a future life4   ,nature 
and ,character of ,asal and ,salaman4   
,now1 of the two ,asal was the one who  
made a deeper search into the inside of 
things1 was more given to studying      
mystical meanings and senses of words1  
and diligently endeavoured to interpret 
them4 ,salaman1 on the other hand1 his  
fellow student1 mostly observed the     
outward things1 never troubling himself 
about such interpretations1 and         
abstained from a curious search and     
speculation of things4 ,apart from this 
difference1 however1 both were constant 
in performing those ceremonies          
prescribed1 and strove to fight against 
their unruly passions and affections4   
,further ,differences of ,asal and      

,salaman4  ,now1 in this law there were 
contained some sayings which seemed to  
exhort and encourage men to affect      
retirement and a solitary life1 and to  
intimate that salvation and happiness   
were to be attained thereby2 other      
sayings1 again1 seemed to encourage men 
unto conversation and fellowship and    
applying themselves to embrace human    
society4  ,asal addicted himself wholly 
to retirement1 and he preferred those   
sayings which tended thereunto1 seeing  
that he was by nature inclined to       
perpetual contemplation1 and searching  
into the meanings of things2 for he had 
great hopes of attaining to his ends by 
selecting a solitary life4  ,salaman1   
however1 applied himself to conversation
 and human society and those sayings of 
the law that tended that way1 because he
 had a natural aversion to contemplation
 and more subtle inquiries into things2 
and it occurred to him that society and 
company tended to drive away evil       
thoughts1 and banished that diversity of

 opinions which intruded themselves into
 his mind and kept him from attending   
the motions and suggestions of evil     
spirits4 ,and in the end their          
disagreement on this particular point   
caused them to depart one from another4 
,asal repairs to ,hayy's ,island4  ,now 
,asal had heard of that ,island wherein 
it is reported that ,hayy grew up4 ,he  
knew the fruitfulness and conveniences  
thereof and the health-giving temper of 
its air1 so that it would afford him    
such a resting-place as he wished to    
find4 ,he decided1 therefore1 to go     
thither and to withdraw himself from    
company and society for the remainder of
 his days4  ,therefore1 gathering all   
his goods together1 with a part thereof 
he hired a ship to convey him to that   
,island1 whilst the rest he distributed 
among the poor people4 ,then he took his
 farewell from his friend ,salaman and  
went abroad4 ,the mariners transported  
him safely unto the ,island1 set him    
ashore1 and departed4  ,there he        

continued serving ,god1 the ,almighty   
and ,glorious1 sanctifying him and      
meditating upon his glorious names and  
attributes1 without being in any way    
interrupted or disturbed4 ,when he felt 
hungry he took of the fruits of the     
,island or he got by hunting as much as 
satisfied his hunger4  ,in this state he
 remained for some time1 enjoying the   
greatest possible pleasure and complete 
tranquillity of mind1 arising out of the
 communication he had with his ,lord2   
and every day experiencing his favours  
and most precious gifts1 he easily      
brought to his hand such things as he   
wanted and were necessary for his       
support1 which confirmed his belief in  
him and gave him great comfort4  ,hayy  
,ibn ,yokdhan in the meantime was wholly
 taken up with sublime speculations1 and
 never stirred out of his cave but once 
a week1 to take unto him such food as   
most readily presented itself4 ,thus it 
happened that ,asal did not light upon  
him at first4 ,for walking round the    

utmost parts of the ,island1 and        
compassing the extremes thereof1 he     
neither met any man nor could he        
perceive the footsteps of any one3 which
 increased his gladness of mind1 and he 
was delighted with what he had proposed 
unto himself--that was solitude and     
retirement4   ,hayy and ,asal meet4  ,at
 last it came to pass at a certain time 
that1 ,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan stepping out  
of his cell to look out for some food in
 the same place to which ,asal had      
retired1 they spied one another4  ,asal1
 for his part1 had no doubt but that the
 man he saw was some religious person   
given to solitude who had retired into  
that ,island as he had done himself4 ,he
 was afraid1 therefore1 lest if he      
should come up to him and make himself  
known1 it might spoil his meditation1   
and thus become an impediment to him in 
accomplishing his desires4  ,but1 as for
 ,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan1 he could not      
imagine what it was3 for of all the     
creatures he had ever beheld in his     

life1 there was none that resembled him 
in the least4  ,now ,asal was clothed in
 a black coat1 made up of hair and wool1
 which he fancied was a natural cover2  
at which ,hayy stood a long time in     
utter wonder and astonishment4          
,thereupon ,asal1 being afraid lest he  
should disturb his meditation and divert
 his attention therefrom1 turned his    
back and fled4 ,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan ran  
after him1 driven by an innate desire to
 know and find out the truth of things4 
,when he saw1 however1 that ,asal fled  
from him with all his might in such     
haste1 he retired a little into the     
background and hid himself there1 so    
that ,asal thought he had gone off      
altogether and gone far away from that  
place where he had seen him4 ,asal      
therefore began to betake himself1 as   
his custom was1 unto his prayers and    
reading1 to invocation and weeping1 to  
supplication and complaining1 and these 
exercises had quite turned him away from
 any other thing4   ,hayy catches hold  

of ,asal4  ,in the meantime ,hayy drew  
near little by little1 while ,asal did  
not perceive him at all1 until at length
 he came so near as to hear his reading 
and the prayers he uttered4 ,he also    
took notice of his humble gesture and   
his weeping1 whence he heard a pleasant 
voice1 consisting of words quite        
distinct1 such as he had never observed 
before in any kind of animals4 ,then1   
beholding his shape and lineaments1 he  
observed that he was of the same form   
with himself4 ,he was satisfied that the
 coat with which he was clothed was not 
a natural skin1 but an artificial habit 
like unto his own clothing4 ,and when he
 observed the decency and comeliness of 
his behaviour and his supplication and  
weeping1 he did not at all question but 
that he was one of the ,essences1 which 
had the knowledge of the ,true ,one4    
,therefore1 he felt a passionate desire 
to get acquainted with him1 to find out 
what was the matter with him and what   
was the cause of that weeping and       

supplication4 ,thereupon he came nearer 
unto him1 until ,asal1 observing it1    
took to his heels again4 ,but ,hayy ,ibn
 ,yokdhan1 endowed with vigour and      
power1 both of knowledge and body1      
bestowed upon him by ,god--pursued him  
with all his might1 till at last he     
overtook him1 seized him1 and held him  
fast that he could not make again his   
escape from him4   ,hayy and ,asal      
stroke one another4  ,thereupon1 when   
,asal looked upon him and beheld him    
clothed with the skins of wild beasts   
with the hair on1 and his own hair so   
long that it covered part of his body1  
and observed his great swiftness and    
strength1 he was greatly afraid of him  
and began to pacify him by stroking him1
 and to entertain him in words4 ,but    
,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan did not understand a
 word of what he said nor knew any of   
his meaning1 only he perceived the      
tokens of his fear and endeavoured to   
allay his fear with such voices as he   
had learned from some of the animals3 he

 gently stroked his hand1 his head1 and 
the sides of his neck1 and showed       
kindness unto him and expressed much    
gladness and joy1 till at last ,asal's  
fear was assuaged1 and he perceived that
 he intended no evil to him4   ,hayy and
 ,asal try to understand each other4    
,now ,asal1 in his earnest desire to    
obtain the knowledge of things1 had     
studied most languages and was skilful  
of them4 ,so he began to speak to ,hayy 
,ibn ,yokdhan1 and to interrogate him   
concerning his condition in every tongue
 he knew1 and asked him questions       
concerning his doings and ways of life1 
and took pains to make himself          
understood by him4 ,but it was all in   
vain3 for ,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan1 taking   
notice of all this1 stood all the time  
wondering at what he heard1 being quite 
at a loss to know what it all meant4 ,he
 observed only the serenity of his      
countenance and manifest signs of       
goodwill4 ,thus they stood wrapped in   
wonder1 looking at one another4   ,asal 

makes ,hayy eat of his food4  ,now ,asal
 had by him some of the remainder of the
 food which he had brought along with   
him1 from the inhabited ,island from    
whence he came4 ,this he offered now to 
,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan1 but he did not know
 what it was2 for he had never seen     
anything of that kind before4 ,then     
,asal1 eating some of it himself1       
invited ,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan to take some
 of it with him4 ,but ,hayy ,ibn        
,yokdhan bethought himself of those laws
 which he had prescribed to himself     
concerning the taking of his food1 and  
seeing he knew not the nature of those  
things that were set before him1 and    
whether it was lawful for him or not to 
partake thereof1 restrained himself from
 eating4 ,whereupon ,asal continued     
urging him on and kindly invited him    
thereunto4   ,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan at last
 joins ,asal at dinner1 but repents     
afterwards4  ,at last ,hayy ,ibn        
,yokdhan1 being desirous and very       
anxious to get acquainted with him1 and1

 besides1 being afraid that in          
continuing to insist on his refusal1 he 
might alienate his affections from him1 
ventured to partake of that meat and to 
eat thereof4 ,but as soon as he had     
tasted it and found it very pleasant to 
his taste1 he recognised that he had    
done amiss by breaking his contract and 
the resolution and promises he had made 
to himself concerning his diet4 ,thus he
 became greatly repentant of what he had
 done1 and had a mind of withdrawing    
himself from ,asal1 and to betake       
himself unto his former state by        
endeavouring to return to his former    
exercise of sublime speculation4   ,asal
 becomes ,hayy's ,companion and         
,teacher4  ,when he found that this     
intellectual vision did not immediately 
return to him1 he thought it best to    
remain with ,asal in the sensible world1
 until he had thoroughly satisfied      
himself as to his condition1 so that    
afterwards there might remain no further
 inclination towards him1 and then he   

might return to his former state and    
apply himself to his former             
contemplation without any interruption4 
,so he joined himself to the company and
 fellowship of ,asal3 and when ,asal saw
 that he could not speak1 he was fully  
assured that no danger could arise to   
his religion by keeping company with    
him2 and besides he had hopes that it   
might come to pass that he should teach 
him ,language1 ,knowledge1 and          
,religion1 when he should obtain a very 
great reward and a nearer approach unto 
,god4  ,so ,asal began to teach him to  
speak1 first by showing him particular  
things1 and pronouncing their names1 and
 by repeating them often unto him he    
made him to pronounce them again1 which 
he presently did1 until he had taught   
him all names1 and so by degrees he     
advanced him so far that he could speak 
in a very short time4   ,hayy enlightens
 ,asal on his ,inner ,life4  ,then ,asal
 began to interrogate him concerning his
 condition1 and from whence he had come 

into that ,island4 ,but ,hayy ,ibn      
,yokdhan1 in his reply1 told him that he
 knew nothing of his own origin1 nor of 
any father or mother that he had1 but   
only that ,roe that brought him up4     
,then he described to him his whole     
state and manner of living1 from        
beginning to end1 and what progress he  
had made in knowledge1 until he had     
attained to that degree of conjunction  
with ,god4  ,then ,asal heard from him  
the declaration of those truths which he
 related1 of those essences which are   
separated from the sensible world and   
which have the knowledge of the         
,essence1 of that ,true ,one--the       
,almighty and ,glorious--and heard him  
give an account of the ,essence of that 
,true ,one--the ,almighty and           
,glorious--with all his attributes1 and 
had described to him as far as it was   
possible for him to describe that which 
he had witnessed when he had reached the
 joys of those that are joined unto     
,god1 and the torments and griefs of    

those that are separated from him4      
,asal then had no doubt but that all    
those things which were delivered in his
 law1 concerning the commandment of that
 ,almighty and ,glorious ,god1 his      
angels and books1 his messengers and the
 last day1 ,paradise and ,hell--all     
these were resemblances of what ,hayy   
,ibn ,yokdhan had seen4 ,and the eyes of
 his heart were opened1 and his mind was
 enlightened1 when he saw that the      
things which he apprehended and         
discerned by reason1 and that which he  
had received by tradition 7the ,original
 and the ,copy71 agreed very well       
together4 ,and now the ways of mystical 
interpretation became easy unto him1 nor
 was there anything difficult or        
remained dark of those precepts which he
 had received that was not now quite    
plain and perspicuous4  ,in this way his
 intellectual faculty grew strong and   
vigorous1 and he began to look upon     
,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan with such admiration
 and respect that he greatly reverenced 

him1 and assured himself that he was one
 of the ,saints of ,god1 such as were   
not molested with any fear upon them1   
and who shall not suffer through pain4  
7,koran47  ,thereupon he made himself   
ready to wait upon him1 to imitate him1 
and to follow his admonitions in the    
performance of such works as did occur  
unto him1 in those legal things which   
formerly he had learned in his religion4
   ,asal tells ,hayy of the ,island from
 whence he had come4  ,then ,hayy ,ibn  
,yokdhan began to enquire of him        
concerning his condition and his manner 
of living1 and ,asal gave him an account
 of the state of that ,island from      
whence he had come--what kind of people 
inhabited it1 and what sort of life they
 led before that religious sect which we
 mentioned came among them1 and how it  
was now1 since his coming thereinto4    
,he also gave him an account of all     
those things that were delivered in the 
law1 concerning the description of the  
divine world1 of ,paradise and the fire 

of ,hell 7,gehenna71 of the awakening   
and resurrection of mankind1 of their   
gathering unto ,judgment1 of the account
 then to be given up1 of the scales     
wherein the actions of men should be    
weighed1 and the way through which they 
were to pass4  ,now1 ,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan
 understood very well all those things1 
nor did he perceive that any of them    
were unsuitable to that which he had    
seen when in that exalted condition2 and
 he knew that he who had described those
 things and delivered them unto men1 was
 true in so declaring them1 and that in 
these his sayings he was a true and     
faithful messenger sent from ,god4 ,and 
he believed him and acknowledged the    
truth thereof and bore testimony to his 
mission4  ,then he began to ask him     
concerning the precepts which the       
messenger of ,god had delivered and the 
rites of worship which he had ordained4 
,thus ,asal told him of ,prayer1 ,alms1 
,fasting1 and ,pilgrimage1 and the like 
external works3 which he received and   

practised1 and took upon him the        
performance thereof1 in obedience to    
that command of the ,lawgiver1 being    
persuaded and assured of the truth and  
faith of him who delivered the same4    
,notwithstanding1 there were two things 
that fixed themselves into his mind     
which he wondered at1 neither could he  
perceive wherein the wisdom thereof     
consisted4  ,one of those two things    
was1 why this messenger of ,god1 in     
describing most things that relate to   
the divine world1 used to express them  
unto men by parables of similitudes and 
abstained from a clear unfolding        
thereof1 which caused a good many men to
 fall into that error by affirming      
corporeity in ,god and believing that to
 be something of that ,essence the ,true
 ,one1 the ,almighty and ,glorious1 from
 which1 however1 it is absolutely free1 
and in the same manner concerning those 
things which relate to the rewards and  
punishments of a future world4  ,the    
other was why he did not proceed beyond 

those precepts and rites of worship1    
permitting men to seek after riches and 
the amassing of wealth1 and to enjoy    
their liberty as to the matter of food3 
by which means they vainly delivered    
themselves unto vain things and turned  
themselves away from the truth4 ,whilst 
his judgment was that nothing ought to  
be taken from any2 but only so much as  
may enable him to sustain the remainder 
of his life4 ,but as to riches1 he      
considered them of no value at all4     
,now when he saw what was laid down and 
prescribed in the law concerning those  
things that belonged to the employment  
of riches1 namely alms1 and the         
distribution thereof and trading with   
them1 also with regard to usury1 mulcts1
 and punishments1 these things seemed   
all very odd and uncouth unto him1 and  
he judged them to be quite superfluous4 
,for he said that if men would judge of 
the matter according to truth1 they     
would certainly withdraw themselves from
 those vain things1 and only follow the 

truth1 so that all this would be quite  
superfluous1 nor would any man challenge
 the property in riches as to have those
 dues exacted from him1 or to cause his 
hands to be cut off for those things    
secretly stolen1 or that lives should be
 destroyed by taking them away openly4  
,hayy observes that men are dull1 stupid
 and brutish4  ,this was what he        
thought2 and that which put this opinion
 into his mind was that he thought that 
all men were imbued with an ingenuous   
temper1 a penetrating understanding1 and
 a mind constant unto themselves4 ,nor  
did he know how stupid and dull they    
were1 how ill advised and how inconstant
 in their resolutions2 so much so that  
they were entirely like brutes1 even    
more apt than they to wander out of the 
way4  ,therefore1 since he was greatly  
affected with pity towards mankind1 and 
anxiously desired that he might be an   
instrument in their salvation1 a        
resolution entered into his mind of     
going over to them that he might be able

 to unfold and lay before them the truth
 of things4 ,this desire he therefore   
made known to his companion ,asal1 and  
asked whether he could find out any way 
whereby he could come unto them and     
discourse with them4   ,asal persuades  
,hayy to follow him to his ,island4     
,asal1 on the other hand1 told him what 
sort of people they were--how much      
lacking in ingenuousness1 and how averse
 from obeying the commandments of ,god4 
,but ,hayy could not understand this2   
and his mind was intent upon that which 
he hoped to compass4 ,asal also greatly 
desired that it would please ,god1 by   
his means1 to direct some of his        
acquaintances which were of a more      
pliable temper and more easily to be    
guided than the rest1 and not so far    
distant from sincerity as the others1   
into the right way4 ,thus he was ready  
to support the design of ,hayy ,ibn     
,yokdhan4   ,hayy and ,asal return      
together to ,asal's ,island4  ,thereupon
 they resolved to betake themselves unto

 the seashore1 nor to depart thence     
either by day or night till ,god should 
please to afford them an opportunity of 
crossing the sea4 ,and always they were 
intent upon this thing1 and continued   
with their prayers and supplications to 
,god to direct them in this work and    
bring it to a successful issue4  ,at    
last it came to pass1 by the commandment
 of ,god1 the ,almighty and ,glorious1  
that the winds and waves drove a ship   
that had lost its course to the shore of
 that ,island4 ,and as it drew nearer   
unto the land1 they who were in it1     
seeing two men upon the shore1 made     
towards them4 ,then ,asal bespeaking    
them1 expressed the desire that they    
should carry them with them2 they       
readily acquiesced therein1 took them   
both into the ship2 and it pleased ,god 
to send them a fair wind1 which in a    
very short time conveyed them unto the  
desired ,island4 ,there they landed and 
went into the ,city4  ,now1 the friends 
of ,asal all gathered round him1 and he 

gave them an account of ,hayy ,ibn      
,yokdhan4 ,whereupon they flocked       
together from every side1 surrounding   
him with reverence and admiration4 ,then
 ,asal told him that this sect was      
superior in understanding and sharpness 
of comprehension to all others1 so that 
if he were not able to instruct them in 
the truth and work upon them1 there was 
much less hope that he would be able to 
teach the ordinary lot of men4   ,hayy  
begins to teach and instruct ,salaman's 
subjects4  ,now the ,sovereign and      
,prince of that ,island was ,salaman the
 friend of ,asal1 of whom we have given 
an account above4 ,he was the one who   
thought it best to join and apply       
himself to human society1 and considered
 it unlawful to give himself over to    
solitude4 ,therefore ,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan
 began to instruct them and to explain  
the mysteries of wisdom unto them4 ,but 
when he began1 and had proceeded a      
little beyond that which was plain and  
obvious to them1 and began to inculcate 

that which was quite contrary to their  
notions deeply rooted in their minds1   
they began to withdraw themselves from  
him1 and their minds abhorred from what 
he spoke4 ,and inwardly in their hearts 
they were very angry with him1 though in
 his presence they made a great show of 
kindness1 both because he was a stranger
 and out of regard to his friend ,asal4 
,hayy despairs of being able to reform  
the vulgar crowd4  ,hayy ,ibn ,yokdhan1 
however1 continued day and night to deal
 gently with them and manifest the truth
 both in private and public1 which only 
increased their hatred towards him and  
made them avoid his company2 though     
otherwise they were lovers of that which
 is good1 and desirous of the truth4    
,but from that defect in their nature1  
they did not search for it in the right 
manner nor apprehend it as they should  
do3 but sought the knowledge of it after
 the common way1 like the rest of the   
world1 after the vulgar fashion3 so in  
the end he despaired of reforming them1 

and lost all hope of bringing them unto 
a better condition which was less       
acceptable unto them1 because he        
perceived they were not willing to      
accept what he taught them4   ,hayy's   
philosophical views on the value of this
 world4  ,and afterwards looking round  
about him and reviewing the several     
ranks and orders1 degrees and conditions
 of men1 he found that every sect and   
company of them rejoiced in those things
 which they had and possessed at        
present1 and that their lusts and       
appetites were their ,god1 and that they
 destroyed and lost themselves by       
gathering together the trifles and      
vanities of the world1 the eager desire 
of getting them into their hands still  
captivating and blinding them until they
 tottered to their graves2 and that no  
good counsel prevailed upon them1 and   
that disputing with them had only the   
effect of making them the more          
obstinate4 ,as to wisdom1 they had no   
way open to it or access thereto1 nor   

did any portion thereof belong unto     
them4 ,for folly has wholly overwhelmed 
them1 and what they eagerly sought after
 has corrupted their hearts as rust2    
,god has sealed up their hearts and     
ears1 a thick mist is before their eyes1
 and a sore punishment awaits them4     
7,koran47  ,thus he saw that they were  
encompassed within the cauldrons of     
punishment and covered over with the    
darkness of a veil1 and that all of     
them--a few only excepted--minded their 
religion no otherwise than with respect 
to the world1 and cast the observance of
 religious performances behind their    
backs1 and made little or no account    
thereof1 and that merchandise and       
trading took up their minds and diverted
 them from thinking upon ,god1 so that  
they had no fear of that day in which   
both their hearts and eyes shall be     
turned round 7,koran7--continually      
employed about their worldly affairs4   
,when he saw all this1 it was apparent  
to him1 and he held it for certain1 that

 it was impossible for him to speak unto
 them to any purpose1 and that it was   
not expedient that any works should be  
enjoined unto them beyond this measure1 
and that the greatest benefit which     
accrued to the common sort of men by the
 law was wholly in relation to their    
life in this world1 namely1 that the    
course and manner of their life1 whilst 
they continued here1 should proceed on  
in good order1 so that none of them     
should be injurious to another in the   
things which he may call his own2 he saw
 that none of them attain unto the      
felicity of another world but some very 
few1 viz4 those who prepare themselves  
to that world and rightly endeavour to  
attain to the same2 that is1 such as    
believe and follow the truth3 but to him
 that erred from the truth1 and prefers 
the life of the present world before it1
 ,hell shall be his place of habitation4
 7,koran47  ,and what labour can be     
greater1 and what misery more grievous1 
than his who works1 if you well observe1

 from the time he awakes till he goes to
 sleep again2 there will not be found so
 much as one amongst them who does      
anything but what tends to the attaining
 of some one or other of these vile     
sensible things that are of no value1 to
 wit1 either riches--to heap them up1 or
 pleasure which he may take1 or lust    
whereby to satisfy his mind1 or wrath   
and revenge whereby he may satisfy his  
mind1 or power whereby to defend        
himself1 or some outward work commanded 
by the law1 whereof he may make a       
vain-glorious show or whereby he may    
care to save his neck8 ,now all these   
are darkness upon darkness in the deep  
sea3 nor is there any of you who doth   
not go in thither3 for such is the      
unchangeable decree of the ,lord4       
7,koran47  ,when1 therefore1 he         
understood the state and condition of   
men to be such as this1 and seeing that 
most of them might be justly ranked     
amongst unreasonable creatures--were1 in
 fact1 like brute beasts--he knew that  

all wisdom1 discretion and success was  
grounded on and consisted in that which 
the messengers of ,god spoke and the law
 delivered1 and that there was no other 
rule possible1 and that there could be  
nothing added to it1 and that these were
 men appointed to every work1 and every 
one was mostly capable of that thing    
unto which he was ordained by nature3   
and that the law of ,god was the same   
unto those that had gone away before1   
neither was there any change in the law 
of ,god4   ,hayy gives up his           
,preachings and ,teachings4  ,whereupon1
 returning to ,salaman and his          
companions1 he craved pardon for those  
things that he had spoken amongst them  
and desired to be excused1 and told them
 that he was of the same opinion with   
them1 and went on in the same way and   
persuaded them to stick firmly to their 
resolution of respecting and following  
the customs of the law and the          
performance of the external rites       
without intruding themselves upon things

 that did not concern them or           
intermeddling therewith1 that in        
doubtful things they should give credit 
and yield a ready assent to those rules 
that they had of old received3 that they
 should be averse to novel opinions and 
to their appetites1 and follow the      
examples of their good ,forbears1 and   
leave novelties severely alone4  ,he    
also commanded that they should shun and
 avoid that neglect of the laws that is 
seen in the vulgar sort of men1 and the 
love of the world1 and this he specially
 bade them to take heed of3 for he and  
his friend ,asal well knew that there   
was no salvation to this weak1          
tractable1 and defective sort of men but
 by this means2 and that if they were   
forced away and raised above this to    
curious speculations1 their condition   
would be much worse1 so much so that it 
would be impossible for them to obtain  
the state and degree of the ,blessed2   
but that they would be wavering in their
 motives1 and tossed up and down1 and at

 last meet with a bad end4 ,but if they 
remained in that state of things in     
which they were till death overtook     
them1 they should obtain salvation and  
should be placed amongst those that are 
on the right hand4 ,but1 on the other   
side1 as for those who had gone before  
and outwent them1 those came near unto  
them3 yet these came next after and     
approached near to them4   ,asal and    
,hayy return to their ,island4  ,thus   
,asal and ,hayy1 after this admonitory  
talk1 having bid farewell to ,prince    
,salaman and his people1 took leave of  
them and waited for an opportunity of   
returning to their own ,island1 till at 
length it pleased ,god1 the ,almighty   
and ,glorious1 to afford them a         
commodious passage thither4 ,and ,hayy  
,ibn ,yokdhan endeavoured to attain to  
his lofty state of speculation in the   
same manner as formerly1 until he       
attained thereto3 and ,asal followed his
 steps till he came near him or was not 
far therefrom4 ,so they continued       

worshipping ,god in that ,island until  
death seized upon them4     ,epilogue of
 the ,author4   ,and this is that--,god 
help thee and us by his spirit--which we
 have received of the history of ,hayy  
,ibn ,yokdhan and ,asal and ,salaman4   
,in its setting down we have made such  
choice of words as are not found in any 
other book nor accustomed to be heard in
 common and vulgar speech4 ,and it is   
part of that hidden knowledge which no  
man receives but he who has the         
knowledge of ,god2 nor is any man       
ignorant of it1 but those that have not 
the right knowledge of ,god4 ,we have   
indeed followed a method quite contrary 
to that of our good ,forbears1 as to    
their keeping secret these matters and  
their sparingness of divulging them4    
,but the reason that readily persuaded  
us to divulge this secret1 and to break 
through this veil1 was1 these evil      
opinions which have risen up in this our
 time1 the corrupt notions which are    
being devised by some pretenders to     

philosophy in this world1 so that they  
are dispersed and diffused into various 
regions1 and the mischief and evil      
arising therefrom has grown epidemical4 
,so that we are solicitous on behalf of 
the weak--who have rejected what they   
received by tradition from the ,prophets
 of blessed memory and make choice of   
that which is delivered them by foolish 
men--lest they should think those       
opinions to be a secret that ought to be
 kept from them who are not capable     
thereof1 and this should increase their 
desire after them1 and would awake a    
more eager appetite after them4         
,therefore1 it seemed good to us to give
 them a glimpse of this secret of       
secrets1 whereby we may lead them into  
the way of truth and divert them from   
that wrong path4  ,nevertheless1 we have
 not committed the secrets that are     
comprehended in these leaves as to leave
 them without a thin veil which will be 
easily unveiled by those who are capable
 of understanding them1 but shall be so 

thick and gross to those who are        
unworthy to go further on and pass      
beyond it1 that it will be impossible   
for him to pierce through it4  ,and now1
 ,i crave pardon of those of my brethren
 as shall read this treatise1 that they 
would excuse me with regard to those    
things which ,i have so readily declared
 and so freely described4 ,for ,i would 
not have done this1 unless ,i had been  
carried and elevated to such heights as 
transcend the reach of human sight1     
which cannot attain thereunto4 ,i       
endeavoured to render my discourse easy 
to be understood1 by fitly placing and  
ordering its parts so that ,i might stir
 up in men a keen desire to enter into  
the right way4 ,but ,i crave of the     
,lord pardon and forgiveness1 and that  
,he will please to bring us to the true 
and certain knowledge thereof4 ,for he  
is bounteous and liberal of ,his        
favours4 ,peace be to thee1 my brother1 
whose promotion is decreed1 and the     
mercy and blessing of ,god come upon    

thee4  ,praise be unto ,god alone4      
,,the ,,end4   ,printed by ,hazell1     
,watson  ,viney1 ,ld41 ,london and      
,aylesbury4     ,,the ,,wisdom ,,of     
,,the ,,east ,,series  ,edited by ,l4   
,,cranmer-,,byng and ,dr4 ,s4 ,a4       
,,kapadia  ,,the ,,series ,,and ,,its   
,,purpose   ,the object of the ,editors 
of this ,series is a very definite one4 
,they desire above all things that1 in  
their humble way1 these books shall be  
the ambassadors of good-will and        
understanding between ,east and         
,west--the old world of ,thought and the
 new of ,action4 ,in this endeavour1 and
 in their own sphere1 they are but      
followers of the highest example in the 
land4 ,they are confident that a deeper 
knowledge of the great ideals and lofty 
philosophy of ,oriental thought may help
 to a revival of that true spirit of    
,charity which neither despises nor     
fears the nations of another creed and  
colour4         99       99       99    
99       99   ,,new ,,volumes  ,in the  

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 the ,mystical ,philosophy of ,leih     
,tzu4      ,translated by ,,lionel      
,,giles1 ,m4,a4 #b_/- net4         99   
99       99       99       99   ,,indian
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,sketches in the ,history of ,hindu     
,religion      and ,morals4 ,by ,l4 ,d4 
,,barnett1 ,m4,a41 ,,litt4,d41          
,professor of      ,sanskrit at         
,university ,college1 ,london4 #b_/-    
net4       ,,brahma-,,knowledge3 ,an    
,outline of the ,philosophy of the      
,vednta4      ,as set forth by the      
,upanishads and by ,sankara4 ,by ,l4 ,d4
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,professor of ,sanskrit at ,university  
,college1 ,london4 #b_/- net4           
,,the ,,path ,,of ,,light4 ,rendered for
 the first time into ,english      from 
the ,bodhi-charyvatra of ,snti-,deva4 ,a
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#b_/- net4       ,,legends ,,of ,,indian
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,,street1     ,,london1 ,w4       ,,john
 ,,murray1 ,,albemarle ,,street1 ,w4    

,,london            99       99       99
       99       99     ,transcriber's   
,note    ,italics are indicated by      
underscores like this4    ,all          
inconsistencies and archaisms of        
spelling and punctuation have   been    
retained4 ,the use of italics and       
,,upper ,,case letters is also          
inconsistent throughout the book and no 
attempt has been made to   alter it4    
,this text version uses ,latin-#a       
7,,iso-#hhei-a7 encoding4 ,some         
diacritical   marks1 particularly in the
 advertisements1 have been omitted 7e4g4
 u   with breve7 or altered 7e4g4 a with
 macron changed to a with acute74       
,footnotes have been moved to the ends  
of the paragraphs to which they   refer4