Hundred Great Muslims

266 Hundred Great Muslims
the philosophical approach of Farabi and Zakariya Razi (Razes) who was his
contemporary. "While Farabi's system is deductive, rational and built entirely
on abstract logic". Writes a Western orientalist, "Razi's philosophy is experimental,
inductive and is more specially concerned with the concrete-but they
are two aspects of a more general system and not opposed to one another. Razi,
who was a physician and naturalist, emphasises the concrete side of the system,
while Farabi who had more inclination towards logic, mathematics and mystic
speculation, presents the abstract side of it. In Avicenna we find the two forms
reunited". Avicenna is no doubt clearer and more methodical in his approach.
The difference between Farabi and Avicenna is more pronounced on the
question of the immortality of soul which is accepted by the former and rejected
by the latter.
Like Plato, Farabi is a mystical thinker, whose reasoning leads him finally
to mysticism and metaphysics. With him, like all mystics, contemplation
dominates action.
He interpreted a number ofreligiousdogmasand concepts in a philosophical
manner. He tried to find the reasoned and logical explanation of such intricate
problems as prophecy, inspiration, heavens, destiny and celestialthrone. Prophecy,
according to Farabi, is a form of moral perfection rather than an innate gift. In
this way, he is considered as the founder of philosophical theology which later
on found its great exponent in Fakhruddin Razi. He was also first to preach
practical morality by recognising that the faculty of discerning good from evil
is possessed by oneself. Avicenna, thus, borrowed the idea of his mysticism of
right or reason from Farabi.
Farabi wasthe greatest musical theorist that the Muslimworld has produced.
He composed several outstanding works on music. Among them were the
Kitab Mausiqi al-Kabir (Grand Book of Music), Styles in Music, and On the
Oassification of Rhythms. Besides the above, he has also dealt with musical
topics in two of his voluminous works on the science: The Classification ofthe
Sciences, and The Origin of Sciences. His Grand Book of Music is universally
recognised as the highest authority on the oriental music and, according to
Farmer, a well-known writer on music, this work of Farabi, "deserves to be
ranked as one of the greatest works that has been written on music". Out of the
several works of Farabi on music, Kitab Musiqi al Kabir has survived, which in
the words of Sarton, "is the most important oriental treatise on the theory of
music". According to Farabi, he wrote this book, because he found that the
earlier books written by Greeks, Romans and Persians were full of obscurities
and shortcomings. H. G. Farmer pays glowing tribute to this immortal work
of the great musician, saying, 'AI Farabi's treatment of physical and physiological
principles of sound and music is certainly an advance on that of Greeks". Farabi
has given a detailed account of musical instruments which is non-existent in the
musical works of Greeks. He invented the musical instruments called 'Rabab'
and 'Qanun': He also knew mensural music and recognised the major third (4: 5)
and the minor third (5 :6) as consonances. Farabi made a valuable contribution