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116-514: Although several sources (e.g. al-Biruni ) appear to have considered 'Arash' to be the origin of the name 'Arshak' (i.e. Arsaces ), the name of the Parthian dynasty derives from a Parthian or Eastern Iranian equivalent of 'Ardashir', i.e. 'Artaxerxes', specifically Artaxerxes II , from whom the Arsacids claimed descent. (Within the scheme of the mythologically conflated genealogies of Iranian dynasts,

232-412: A hydrostatic balance to determine the density and purity of metals and precious stones. He classified gems by what he considered their primary physical properties, such as specific gravity and hardness , rather than the common practice of the time of classifying them by colour. Biruni's main essay on political history, Kitāb al-musāmara fī aḵbār Ḵᵛārazm (" Book of nightly conversation concerning

348-455: A malaria outbreak during the flood season, Balkh lost its administrative status to the neighbouring city of Mazar-i-Sharif ( Mazār-e Šarīf ), about 20 kilometres (12 mi) southeast of Balkh. In 1911 Balkh comprised a settlement of about 500 houses of Afghan settlers, a colony of Jews and a small bazaar set in the midst of a waste of ruins and acres of debris. Entering by the west ( Akcha ) gate, one passed under three arches, in which

464-507: A common name for people that lived there. The basic story of the bowman runs as follows: In a war between the Iranians and Turanians over the "royal glory" ( khwarrah ), the Turanian general Afrasiab has surrounded the forces of the righteous Manuchehr , and the two sides agree to make peace. Both reach an agreement that whatever land falls within the range of a bow-shot shall be returned to

580-467: A cubit is not clear; with an 18-inch cubit his estimate would be 3,600 miles, whereas with a 22-inch cubit his estimate would be 4,200 miles. One significant problem with this approach is that Al-Biruni was not aware of atmospheric refraction and made no allowance for it. He used a dip angle of 34 arc minutes in his calculations, but refraction can typically alter the measured dip angle by about 1/6, making his calculation only accurate to within about 20% of

696-792: A cultural vacuum. He was sympathetic to the Afrighids , who were overthrown by the rival dynasty of Ma'munids in 995. He left his homeland for Bukhara , then under the Samanid ruler Mansur II the son of Nuh II . There he corresponded with Avicenna , and there are extant exchanges of views between these two scholars. In 998, he went to the court of the Ziyarid amir of Tabaristan , Qabus ( r.  977–981, 997–1012 ). There he wrote his first important work, al-Athar al-Baqqiya 'an al-Qorun al-Khaliyya ("The remaining traces of past centuries", translated as "Chronology of ancient nations" or "Vestiges of

812-595: A firm hold over lands beyond the Oxus for the Arabs. He fought and killed Tarkhan Nizak in Tokharistan (Bactria) in 715. In the wake of Arab conquest, the resident monks of the Vihara were either killed or forced to abandon their faith. The Viharas were razed to the ground. Priceless treasures in the form of manuscripts in the libraries of monasteries were consigned to ashes. Presently, only

928-597: A given group of people, learnt their language and studied their primary texts, presenting his findings with objectivity and neutrality using cross-cultural comparisons. Akhbar S. Ahmed concluded that Al-Biruni can be considered as the first anthropologist, others, however, have argued that he can hardly be considered an anthropologist in the conventional sense. Biruni's fame as an Indologist rests primarily on two texts. Biruni wrote an encyclopedic work on India called Taḥqīq mā li-l-Hind min maqūlah maqbūlah fī al-ʿaql aw mardhūlah (variously translated as Verifying All That

1044-555: A large number of stupas and other religious monuments. Xuanzang also remarked that Buddhism was widely practiced by the Hunnish rulers of Balkh, who were descended from Indian royal stock. During the 8th century, the Korean monk and traveler Hyecho (704–787 CE) recorded that even after the Arab invasion, the residents of Balkh continued to practice Buddhism and followed a Buddhist king. He noted that

1160-575: A number of times around the world, most notably at the Annenberg Auditorium at Stanford University , in July 2013. The unveiling ceremony of Arash Kamangir's golden arrow (peace, romantic defense) was held by the Nowruz World Institute on the occasion of World Peace Day (20 September 2020). Arash Kamangir's symbolic look at an arrow adorned with gold and jewelry is in fact an artistic ideal in

1276-462: A particular date for the event. The Middle Persian Mah i Frawardin notes the 6th day of the 1st month (i.e. Khordad of Frawardin ); later sources associate the event with the name-day festivities of Tiregan (13th of Tir ) "presumably" provoked by the homonymity with the Yazata Tir or tir "arrow." ( Tafażżolī 1987 , p. 266) The location from which Arash fired his arrow varies as well. In

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1392-453: A popular name among Iranians. Siavash Kasraie , an Iranian poet, wrote the long poem of Arash the Archer in 1959. This epic narrative, based on the ancient Persian myth, depicts Arash's heroic sacrifice to liberate his country from foreign domination. Bahram Beyzai wrote Āraš , which opened in 1977, as a response to Āraš-e kamāngīr. Neither a short story nor a play, Beyzai's Āraš was staged

1508-467: A refutation of astrology, in contradistinction to the legitimate science of astronomy, for which he expresses wholehearted support. Some suggest that his reasons for refuting astrology relate to the methods used by astrologers being based upon pseudoscience rather than empiricism and also to a conflict between the views of the astrologers and those of the orthodox theologians of Sunni Islam . He wrote an extensive commentary on Indian astronomy in

1624-416: A rich cultural context. He expressed his objectives with simple eloquence: He also translated the yoga sutras of Indian sage Patanjali with the title Tarjamat ketāb Bātanjalī fi’l-ḵalāṣ men al-ertebāk : I shall not produce the arguments of our antagonists in order to refute such of them, as I believe to be in the wrong. My book is nothing but a simple historic record of facts. I shall place before

1740-555: A scientific but also a religious dimension: in Islam worship and prayer require a knowledge of the precise directions of sacred locations, which can be determined accurately only through the use of astronomical data. In carrying out his research, al-Biruni used a variety of different techniques dependent upon the particular field of study involved. His major work on astrology is primarily an astronomical and mathematical text; he states: "I have begun with Geometry and proceeded to Arithmetic and

1856-791: A similar vein, the British author John G. Bennett , whose academic focus was on the teachings of the Armenian-Greek mystic George Gurdjieff , speculated in his works that Shambhala may have been a Bactrian Sun temple called Shams-i-Balkh , taking note of the Afghan author and mystic Idries Shah as the source of this suggestion. Wilhelm Eilers proposed that the region was named after the Balkh River (in Greek transliteration Βάκτρος ) from underlying Bāxtri- , itself meaning 'she who divides', etymologically from

1972-523: A term for part of the city was Zariaspa ( Ancient Greek : Ζαρίασπα), which may derive from the important Zoroastrian fire temple Azar-i-Asp or from a Median name * Ζaryāspa- meaning "having gold-coloured horses". The nickname of Balkh is "the Mother of All Cities". Balkh was earlier considered to be the first city to which the ancient Iranic peoples moved from north of the Amu Darya (also known as

2088-723: A vassal of the Seljuks. The next year, he marched against rebellious Oghuz Turks from Khuttal and Tukharistan . But he was defeated twice and was captured after a second battle in Merv. The Oghuzs looted Khorasan after their victory. Balkh was nominally ruled by Mahmud Khan, the former khan of Western Karakhanids, but the real power was held by Muayyid al-Din Ay Aba, amir of Nishabur for three years. Sanjar finally escaped from captivity and returned to Merv through Termez . He died in 1157 and control of Balkh passed to Mahmud Khan until his death in 1162. It

2204-409: A vast array of topics of Indian culture, including descriptions of their traditions and customs. Although he tried to stay away from political and military history, Biruni did indeed record important dates and noted actual sites of where significant battles occurred. Additionally, he chronicled stories of Indian rulers and told of how they ruled over their people with their beneficial actions and acted in

2320-400: A woman known only as the khatun (lady) of Davud, from 848 appointed governor of Balkh, had taken over from him with "particular responsibility for the city and people" while he was busy building himself an elaborate pleasure palace called Nawshǎd (New Joy). In 1220 Genghis Khan sacked Balkh, butchered its inhabitants and levelled all the buildings capable of defence – treatment to which it

2436-420: Is completely dilapidated and uninhabited, but anyone seeing it would think it to be inhabited because of the solidity of its construction (for it was a vast and important city), and its mosques and colleges preserve their outward appearance even now, with the inscriptions on their buildings incised with lapis-blue paints." It was not reconstructed until 1338. It was captured by Tamerlane in 1389 and its citadel

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2552-707: Is derived from the Persian word bērūn or bīrūn ("outskirts"), as he was born in an outlying district of Kath , the capital of the Afrighid kingdom of Khwarazm . The city, now called Beruniy, is part of the autonomous republic of Karakalpakstan in northwest Uzbekistan . His name was most commonly latinized as Alberonius . Al-Biruni spent the first twenty-five years of his life in Khwarezm where he studied Islamic jurisprudence , theology, grammar, mathematics, astronomy , medicine and philosophy and dabbled not only in

2668-412: Is found in the writings of the geographer Ibn Hawqal , an Arab traveler of the 10th century, who describes Balkh as built of clay, with ramparts and six gates, and extending for half a parasang . He also mentions a castle and a mosque. A large number of Sanskrit medical, pharmacological, and toxicological texts were translated into Arabic under the patronage of Khalid, the vizier of Al-Mansur. Khalid

2784-665: Is located at the north of the site and is oval in shape, having an area of around 1,500 by 1,000 m2 (c. 150 hectares) and to the south is the lower town. Another mound of the site, known as Tepe Zargaran, and the Northern Fortification Wall of Balkh, were occupied at a large extension in Achaemenid times ( Yaz III period, c. 540-330 BC). Since the Iranic people built one of their first kingdoms in Balkh, some scholars believe that it

2900-552: Is one, eternal, and omnipotent and eschewing all forms of idol worship. He recognizes that uneducated Hindus worshiped a multiplicity of idols yet points out that even some Muslims (such as the Jabriyah ) have adopted anthropomorphic concepts of God. Al-Biruni wrote about the peoples, customs and religions of the Indian subcontinent. According to Akbar S. Ahmed, like modern anthropologists, he engaged in extensive participant observation with

3016-414: Is part of Bactria. Balkh is well known to Buddhists as the hometown of Trapusa and Bahalika , two merchants who, according to scripture, became Buddha 's first disciples. They were the first to offer Buddha food after he attained enlightenment, and in return Buddha gave them eight of his hairs to remember him by. According to some accounts, Trapusa and Bahalika returned to Balkh, and built two stupas in

3132-520: Is particularly known for its archeological sites, which attest the presence of many different civilizations that influenced the town's society in various eras. The Belgian-French explorer and spiritualist Alexandra David-Néel associated Balkh with Shambhala , a mythical kingdom that features prominently in ancient Tibetan Buddhism , and also offered the Persian Sham-i-Bala ( lit.   ' elevated candle ' ) as an etymology of its name. In

3248-454: Is written in the Avesta as Bāxδi ( Avestan : 𐬠𐬁𐬑𐬜𐬌‎ ) . From this came the intermediate form Bāxli , Sanskrit Bahlīka (also Balhika ) for "Bactrian", and by transposition the modern Persian Balx , i.e. Balkh , and Armenian Bahl . This same root entered the Greek language as Baktra ( Ancient Greek : Βάκτρα), often written in the form Bactra . An earlier name for Balkh or

3364-468: The Taḥqīq mā li-l-Hind mostly translation of Aryabhatta's work, in which he claims to have resolved the matter of Earth's rotation in a work on astronomy that is no longer extant, his Miftah-ilm-alhai'a (" Key to Astronomy "): [T]he rotation of the earth does in no way impair the value of astronomy, as all appearances of an astronomic character can quite as well be explained according to this theory as to

3480-506: The Nava Vihara described by the Chinese traveller Xuanzang . There are the remains of many other topes (or stupas ) in the neighbourhood. The mounds of ruins on the road to Mazar-e Sharif probably represent the site of a city yet older than those on which stands the modern Balkh. Numerous places of interest are to be seen today aside from the ancient ruins and fortifications: The museum

3596-694: The Abbasids (next Sunni Caliphate dynasty) during the Abbasid Revolution . The city remained in Abbasid hands until 861 , when it was taken in 870 by the Saffarids captured it. In 870, Ya'qub ibn al-Layth al-Saffar rebelled against Abbasid rule and founded the Saffarid dynasty at Sistan . He captured present Afghanistan and most of present Iran . His successor Amr ibn al-Layth , tried to capture Transoxiana from

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3712-690: The Avesta (which does not mention places in Western Iran), it is Airyo.khshaotha , an unidentified location in the Middle Clime . Islamic-era sources typically place the location of the shot somewhere just south of the Caspian Sea , variously in Tabaristan (Tabari, Talebi, Maqdesi, Ibn al-Athir , Marashi) and (al-Biruni, Gardēzī ); Amol fortress ( Mojmal ); Mount Damavand (Balami) or Sari (Gorgani). The place

3828-704: The British Raj , were revisited. The lunar crater Al-Biruni and the asteroid 9936 Al-Biruni are named in his honour. Biruni Island in Antarctica is named after al-Biruni. In Iran, surveying engineers are celebrated on al-Biruni's birthday. In June 2009, Iran donated a pavilion to the United Nations Office in Vienna —placed in the central Memorial Plaza of the Vienna International Center . Named

3944-588: The Indian subcontinent and wrote a treatise on Indian culture entitled Tārīkh al-Hind (" The History of India "), after exploring the Hindu faith practiced in India. He was, for his time, an admirably impartial writer on the customs and creeds of various nations, his scholarly objectivity earning him the title al-Ustadh ("The Master") in recognition of his remarkable description of early 11th-century India. Al-Biruni's name

4060-706: The Kingdom of Israel during the Assyrian captivity . This account is discussed in the works of the Egyptian historian Al-Maqrizi , who wrote that the arrival and establishment of the Jews in Balkh had occurred in light of Sennacherib's campaign in the Levant . Additionally, a number of geographers from the Arab world attested the existence of a monument called Bāb al-Yahūd ( lit.   ' Gate of

4176-669: The Maimana Khanate . In 1751, Balkh was captured by Ahmad Shah Durrani of the Durrani Empire . The area of Balkh was governed by the Uzbek Qataghan dynasty, with its capital in Khulm , for the majority of the early nineteenth century, and only nominally acknowledged Kabul's suzerainty. During this time, the Qataghan dynasty also competed with Bukhara in interdynastic conflicts throughout

4292-581: The Mu'tazila , particularly criticising al-Jahiz and Zurqan. He also repudiated Avicenna for his views on the eternality of the universe. Of the 146 books written by al-Bīrūnī, 95 are devoted to astronomy, mathematics, and related subjects like mathematical geography. He lived during the Islamic Golden Age, when the Abbasid Caliphs promoted astronomical research, because such research possessed not only

4408-524: The National Statistics and Information Authority reported that the town had 138,594 residents. Listed as the eighth largest settlement in the country , unofficial 2024 estimates set its population at around 114,883 people. Historically, the site of present-day Balkh was held in considerably high regard due to its religious and political significance in Ariana . A hub of Zoroastrianism and Buddhism ,

4524-579: The Proto-Indo-European root * bhag- 'to divide' (whence also Avestan bag- and Old Indic bháj- ). The Bactrian language name of the city was βαχλο, i.e. Bakhlo . In Middle Persian texts , it was named Baxl, i.e. Bakhl ( Middle Persian : 𐭡𐭠𐭧𐭫 ). The name of the province or country also appears in the Old Persian inscriptions (B.h.i 16; Dar Pers e.16; Nr. a.23) as Bāxtri , i.e. Bakhtri ( Old Persian : 𐎲𐎠𐎧𐎫𐎼𐎡𐏁 ). It

4640-649: The Samanids , who were nominally vassals of Abbasids, but he was defeated and captured by Ismail Samani at Battle of Balkh in 900. He was sent to the Abbasid Caliph as a prisoner and was executed in 902. The power of Saffarids was diminished and they became vassals of the Samanids. Thus Balkh now passed to them. Samanid rule in Balkh lasted until 997, when their former subordinates, the Ghaznavids , captured it. In 1006, Balkh

4756-526: The Scholars Pavilion , it features the statues of four prominent Iranian scholars: Avicenna , Abu Rayhan Biruni, Zakariya Razi (Rhazes) and Omar Khayyam . A film about the life of Al-Biruni, Abu Raykhan Beruni , was released in the Soviet Union in 1974. Irrfan Khan portrayed Al-Biruni in the 1988 Doordarshan historical drama Bharat Ek Khoj . He has been portrayed by Cüneyt Uzunlar in

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4872-493: The Second Anglo-Afghan War : "a considerable colony of Jews, who have a separate quarter of the village to themselves, and appeared, so far as we could judge, to be fair-looking men with most unmistakably Jewish features ." Hiwi al-Balkhi , a 9th-century exegete and Bible critic , was born in Balkh and is widely believed to have been a Bukharan Jew , at least by ethnicity , as some scholars have asserted that he

4988-521: The 11th century, when Jews were forced to maintain a garden for Mahmud of Ghazni and pay a minority tax of 500 dirhams . According to Jewish oral history , under Timur of the Timurid Empire , the Jews of Balkh were given a gated city quarter of their own to live in. There was still a substantial Jewish community in Balkh as late as 1885, as attested by the British administrator Charles Yate following

5104-479: The 1640s. Nevertheless, Balkh was ruled by the Mughal Empire from 1641 and turned into a subah (imperial top-level province) in 1646 by Shah Jahan , only to be lost in 1647, just like the neighboring Badakhshan Subah . Balkh was the government seat of Aurangzeb in his youth. In 1736 it was conquered by Nader Shah . After his assassination, local Uzbek Hadji Khan declared the independence of Balkh in 1747, under

5220-601: The Arsacids also claimed to descend—via the other Arash—from Kai Kobad .) As is typical for names from oral tradition, there are numerous variations of 'Arash'. In the Avesta the name appears as 'Erekhsha' ( Ǝrəxša ) "of the swift arrow, having the swiftest arrow among the Iranians" ( Yasht 8.6). This Avestan -language form continues in Zoroastrian Middle Persian as 'Erash' ( Bundahishn , Shahrastanha-i Eran , Zand-i Vahuman Yasht , Mah i Frawardin ), from which

5336-507: The Caliphate of Uthman , 644–656 AD). Attracted by the grandeur and wealth of Balkh, they attacked it in 645 AD. It was only in 653 when Arab commander al-Ahnaf raided the town again and compelled it to pay tribute. The Arab hold over the town, however, remained tenuous. The area was brought under Arab control only after it was reconquered by Muawiya in 663 AD. Prof. Upasak describes the effect of this conquest in these words: "The Arabs plundered

5452-651: The Greco-Bactrian kingdom, it was ruled by Indo-Scythians , Parthians , Indo-Parthians , Kushan Empire , Indo-Sassanids , Kidarites , Hephthalite Empire and Sassanid Persians before the arrival of the Arabs . Bactrian documents - in the Bactrian language , written from the fourth to eighth centuries - consistently evoke the name of local deities, such as Kamird and Wakhsh, for example, as witnesses to contracts. The documents come from an area between Balkh and Bamiyan , which

5568-517: The Greek, the Arab/Muslim, and the Persian. Biruni also employed astronomy in the determination of his theories, which were complex mathematical equations and scientific calculation that allows one to convert dates and years between the different calendars. The book does not limit itself to tedious records of battle because Biruni found the social culture to be more important. The work includes research on

5684-609: The Indians Recount, the Reasonable and the Unreasonable , or The book confirming what pertains to India, whether rational or despicable , in which he explored nearly every aspect of Indian life. During his journey through India, military and political history were not Biruni's main focus: he decided rather to document the civilian and scholarly aspects of Hindu life, examining culture, science, and religion. He explored religion within

5800-419: The Jews ' ) and a settlement called al- Yahūdiyya at the site of Balkh. Some Muslims believe that the Israelite prophet Jeremiah fled to Balkh during the Babylonian captivity and that the Israelite prophet Ezekiel was buried there, though Jews revere Ezekiel's Tomb in modern-day Iraq as the site of his final resting place. Balkh's Jewish community was further noted in the Ghaznavid Empire during

5916-463: The Manuchehr and the Iranians, and the rest should then fall to Afrasiab and the Aniranians . An angel (in al-Biruni it is Isfandaramad , i.e. the Amesha Spenta Spenta Armaiti , in Middle Persian called Spendarmad ) instructs Manuchehr to construct a special bow and arrow, and Arash is asked to be the archer. Arash then fires the specially-prepared arrow at dawn, which then traveled a great distance (see below) before finally landing and so marking

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6032-461: The Oxus in Greek), between 2000 and 1500 BC. However it was only recently that archaeological remains before 500 BC were found by French archaeologists led by Johanna Lhullier and Julio Bendezu-Sarmiento in the section called Bala Hissar, which is the citadel of the site. They dated this first settlement to the Early Iron Age ( Yaz I period, c.  1500 -1000 BC) continuing until pre-Achaemenid times ( Yaz II period, c. 1000-540 BC). Bala Hissar

6148-528: The Past") on historical and scientific chronology, probably around 1000, though he later made some amendments to the book. He also visited the court of the Bavandid ruler Al-Marzuban . Accepting the definite demise of the Afrighids at the hands of the Ma'munids, he made peace with the latter who then ruled Khwarezm . Their court at Gorganj (also in Khwarezm) was gaining fame for its gathering of brilliant scientists. In 1017, Mahmud of Ghazni captured Rey. Most scholars, including al-Biruni, were taken to Ghazni,

6264-417: The Science of Numbers, then to the structure of the Universe and finally to Judicial Astrology [ sic ], for no one who is worthy of the style and title of Astrologer [ sic ] who is not thoroughly conversant with these for sciences." In these earlier chapters he lays the foundations for the final chapter, on astrological prognostication , which he criticises. In a later work, he wrote

6380-405: The Turkish television series Alparslan: Büyük Selçuklu on TRT 1 . Balkh Balkh is a town in the Balkh Province of Afghanistan . It is located approximately 20 kilometres (12 mi) to the northwest of the provincial capital city Mazar-i-Sharif and approximately 74 kilometres (46 mi) to the south of the Amu Darya and the Afghanistan–Uzbekistan border . In 2021–2022,

6496-407: The Valley. Whatever it be, their Kashmiri origin is undoubted and this also explains the deep interest of the Barmaks, in later years, in Kashmir, for we know they were responsible for inviting several scholars and physicians from Kashmir to the Court of Abbasids." Prof. Maqbool also refers to the descriptions of Kashmir contained in the report prepared by the envoy of Yahya bin Barmak. He surmises that

6612-426: The affairs of Ḵᵛārazm ") is now known only from quotations in Bayhaqī's Tārīkh-e Masʿūdī. In addition to this various discussions of historical events and methodology are found in connection with the lists of kings in his al-Āthār al-bāqiya and in the Qānūn as well as elsewhere in the Āthār, in India, and scattered throughout his other works. Al-Biruni's Chronology of Ancient Nations attempted to accurately establish

6728-442: The ancient city was also known to the Persians as Zariaspa and to the Greeks as Bactra , giving its name to Bactria . As such, it was famously known as the capital of Bactria or Tokharistan . The Italian explorer and writer Marco Polo described Balkh as "a noble city and a great seat of learning" prior to the Mongol conquests . Most of the town now consists of ruined buildings, situated some 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) from

6844-404: The ancient wall of the town, which once encircled it, stands partially. Nava-Vihara stands in ruins, near Takhta-i-Rustam. In 726, the Umayyad governor Asad ibn Abdallah al-Qasri rebuilt Balkh and installed in it an Arab garrison, while in his second governorship, a decade later, he transferred the provincial capital there. The Umayyad period lasted until 747, when Abu Muslim captured it for

6960-473: The anglicized 'Eruch' derives. New Persian forms include 'Erash' and 'Irash' in al-Tabari and ibn al-Atir; Aarashshebatir in al-Tabari; 'Arash' in al-Talebi; 'Aarash' in Maqdesi, Balami, Mojmal, Marasi, al-Biruni , and in the Vis o Ramin of Gorgani. Names with a stock epithet representing the Avestan "swift arrow" include al-Tabari's 'Aarashshebatir' and Mojmal's 'Arash-e Shewatir'. A surname form includes 'Arash/Aarash kaman-gir' "Arash, bow-expert." Also it’s

7076-547: The area. Only through the conquests of the Emirate of Kabul 's Dost Mohammad Khan in the 1850s (see also; Afghan Conquest of Balkh ), followed by those of Abdur Rahman Khan in 1888, did the region of "little Turkestan" to the south of the Amu Darya (also known as Oxus River) become a permanent part of Afghanistan. By 1885, Charles Yate reported that the city was "nothing but a vast ruin" and that there were no more than 500 houses, occupied mostly by "Afghan settlers" and with "very few Usbegs" (i.e. Uzbeks). In 1866, after

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7192-405: The argument of Aristotle, that there is a change in the creator. He further argued that stating there is a change in the creator would mean there is a change in the effect (meaning the universe has change) and that the universe coming into being after not being is such a change (and so arguing there is no change – no beginning – means Aristotle believes the creator is negated). Al-Biruni was proud of

7308-430: The arrow landed is variously identified as 'Mount Khvanvant' in the Avesta (likewise an unknown location); a river in Balkh (Tabari, al-Atir); east of Balkh (Talebi); Bactria / Tokharistan (Maqdesi, Gardizi); the banks of the Oxus River (Balami) or Merv (Mojmal). According to al-Biruni, it hit a walnut tree between " Fargana " and Tabaristan "in the furthest reaches of [Greater] Khorasan ." The name Arash remains

7424-438: The capital of the Ghaznavid dynasty. Biruni was made court astrologer and accompanied Mahmud on his invasions into India, living there for a few years. He was 44 when he went on the journeys with Mahmud of Ghazni. Biruni became acquainted with all things related to India. During this time he wrote his study of India, finishing it around 1030. Along with his writing, Al-Biruni also made sure to extend his study to science while on

7540-403: The compilers recognized the remnants of the former Jama Masjid ( Persian : جَامع مَسجد , romanized :  Jama‘ Masjid , Friday Mosque). The outer walls, mostly in utter disrepair, were estimated about 6.5–7 miles (10.5–11.3 km) in perimeter. In the south-east, they were set high on a mound or rampart, which indicated a Mongol origin to the compilers. The fort and citadel to

7656-413: The difference in daylight hours by latitude, seasons and Earth's relative positions with Moon and stars. At the same time, Biruni was also critical of Indian scribes, who he believed carelessly corrupted Indian documents while making copies of older documents. He also criticized the Hindus on what he saw them do and not do, for example finding them deficient in curiosity about history and religion. One of

7772-414: The envoy could have possibly visited Kashmir during the reign of Samgramapida II (797–801). Reference has been made to sages and arts. The Arabs managed to bring Balkh under their control only in 715 AD, in spite of strong resistance offered by the Balkh people during the Umayyad period. Qutayba ibn Muslim al-Bahili , an Arab General was Governor of Khurasan and the east from 705 to 715. He established

7888-408: The expeditions. He sought to find a method to measure the height of the sun, and created a makeshift quadrant for that purpose. Al-Biruni was able to make much progress in his study over the frequent travels that he went on throughout the lands of India. Belonging to the Sunni Ash'ari school, al-Biruni nevertheless also associated with Maturidi theologians. He was however, very critical of

8004-406: The fact that he followed the textual evidence of the religion without being influenced by Greek philosophers such as Aristotle. Al-Biruni contributed to the introduction of the scientific method to medieval mechanics . He developed experimental methods to determine density, using a particular type of hydrostatic balance . Al-Biruni's method of using the hydrostatic balance was precise, and he

8120-416: The field of physics, but also in those of most of the other sciences. The Iranian Khwarezmian language , which was Biruni's mother tongue, survived for several centuries after Islam until the Turkification of the region – at least some of the culture of ancient Khwarezm endured – for it is hard to imagine that the commanding figure of Biruni, a repository of so much knowledge, should have appeared in

8236-495: The first anthropologist . Al-Biruni was well versed in physics , mathematics, astronomy , and natural sciences , and also distinguished himself as a historian, chronologist , and linguist . He studied almost all the sciences of his day and was rewarded abundantly for his tireless research in many fields of knowledge. Royalty and other powerful elements in society funded al-Biruni's research and sought him out with specific projects in mind. Influential in his own right, Al-Biruni

8352-548: The form of depicting myths that are all peaceful. Al-Biruni Abu Rayhan Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Biruni / æ l b ɪ ˈ r uː n i / ( Persian : ابوریحان بیرونی ; Arabic : أبو الريحان البيروني ; 973 – after 1050), known as al-Biruni , was a Khwarazmian Iranian scholar and polymath during the Islamic Golden Age . He has been called variously "Father of Comparative Religion ", "Father of modern geodesy ", Founder of Indology and

8468-423: The former madrasah ( Arabic : مَـدْرَسَـة , school). The town was garrisoned as of 1911 by a few thousand irregulars ( kasidars ), the regular troops of Afghan Turkestan being cantoned at Takhtapul , near Mazari Sharif. The gardens to the north-east contained a caravanserai that formed one side of a courtyard, which was shaded by a group of chenar trees Platanus orientalis . A project of modernization

8584-536: The future border between the Iranians and the Aniranians. In Talebi and Bal'ami , Arash is destroyed by the shot and disappears. In al-Tabari , he is exalted by the people, is appointed commander of the archers and lives out his life in great honor. The distance the arrow travels varies: in one, it is a thousand leagues ( farsakhs ), and in another, forty days' walk. In several, the arrow traveled from dawn to noon; in others, from dawn until sunset. A few sources specify

8700-929: The interests of the nation. His details are brief and mostly just list rulers without referring to their real names, and he did not go on about deeds that each one carried out during their reign, which keeps in line with Biruni's mission to try to stay away from political histories. Biruni also described the geography of India in his work. He documented different bodies of water and other natural phenomena. These descriptions are useful to today's modern historians because they are able to use Biruni's scholarship to locate certain destinations in modern-day India. Historians are able to make some matches while also concluding that certain areas seem to have disappeared and been replaced with different cities. Different forts and landmarks were able to be located, legitimizing Biruni's contributions with their usefulness to even modern history and archeology. The dispassionate account of Hinduism given by Biruni

8816-446: The interior and four passages have been pierced below from the outside, which probably lead to them. The base of the building is constructed of sun-dried bricks about 60 cm (2.0 ft) square and 100 to 130 mm (3.9 to 5.1 in) thick. The Takht-e Rustam is wedge-shaped in plan with uneven sides. It is apparently built of pisé mud (i.e. mud mixed with straw and puddled). It is possible that in these ruins we may recognize

8932-509: The king of Balkh at the time had fled to nearby Badakshan . The most remarkable Buddhist monastery was the Nava Vihara ("New Temple"), which possessed a gigantic statue of Gautama Buddha . Located near the city of Balkh, it served as a pilgrimage centre for political leaders who came from far and wide to pay homage to it. Shortly before the Arab conquest , the monastery became a Zoroastrian fire-temple . A curious reference to this building

9048-423: The length of various historical eras. Biruni is widely considered to be one of the most important Muslim authorities on the history of religion. He is known as a pioneer in the field of comparative religion in his study of, among other creeds, Zoroastrianism , Judaism, Hinduism , Christianity, Buddhism and Islam . He assumed the superiority of Islam: "We have here given an account of these things in order that

9164-502: The looting. On March 9, 2023, the Taliban appointed Governor of Balkh Mohammad Dawood Muzammil was killed in a bomb blast. The earlier Buddhist constructions have proved more durable than the Islamic buildings. The Top-Rustam is 46 m (50 yd) in diameter at the base and 27 m (30 yd) at the top, circular and about 15 m (49 ft) high. Four circular vaults are sunk in

9280-442: The midst of a world of clashing swords, burning towns, and plundered temples." Biruni's writing was very poetic, which may diminish some of the historical value of the work for modern times. The lack of description of battle and politics makes those parts of the picture completely lost. However, many have used Biruni's work to check facts of history in other works that may have been ambiguous or had their validity questioned. Most of

9396-476: The monks residing there". The Arab attacks had little effect on the normal ecclesiastical life in the monasteries or Balkh Buddhist population outside. Buddhism continued to flourish with their monasteries as the centres of Buddhist learning and training. Scholars, monks and pilgrims from China, India and Korea continued to visit this place. Several revolts were made against the Arab rule in Balkh. The Arabs' control over Balkh did not last long as it soon came under

9512-486: The north-east were built well above the town on a barren mound and were walled and moated. There was, however, little left of them but the remains of a few pillars. The Green Mosque ( Persian : مَسجد سَبز , romanized :  Masjid Sabz ), named for its green-tiled dome (see photograph top right corner) and said to be the tomb of the Khwaja Abu Nasr Parsa , had nothing but the arched entrance remaining of

9628-412: The other. There are, however, other reasons which make it impossible. This question is most difficult to solve. The most prominent of both modern and ancient astronomers have deeply studied the question of the moving of the earth, and tried to refute it. We, too, have composed a book on the subject called Miftah-ilm-alhai'a (Key to Astronomy) , in which we think we have surpassed our predecessors, if not in

9744-532: The people of the Balkh. He was deposed and his son was placed in his position. Nazak Tarkhan is also said to have murdered not only the Chief Priest but also his sons. Only a young son was saved. He was taken by his mother to Kashmir where he was given training in medicine, astronomy and other sciences. Later they returned to Balkh. Prof. Maqbool Ahmed observes "One is tempted to think that the family originated from Kashmir, for in time of distress, they took refuge in

9860-423: The philosopher Ibn Sina in a multiple letter correspondence. Al-Biruni stated: "Other people, besides, hold this foolish persuasion, that time has no terminus quo at all." He further stated that Aristotle , whose arguments Avicenna uses, contradicted himself when he stated that the universe and matter has a start whilst holding on to the idea that matter is pre-eternal. In his letters to Avicenna, he stated

9976-474: The radius of the Earth using measurements of the height of a hill and measurement of the dip in the horizon from the top of that hill. His calculated radius for the Earth of 3928.77 miles was 2% higher than the actual mean radius of 3847.80 miles. His estimate was given as 12,803,337 cubits , so the accuracy of his estimate compared to the modern value depends on what conversion is used for cubits. The exact length of

10092-524: The reader may learn by the comparative treatment of the subject how much superior the institutions of Islam are, and how more plainly this contrast brings out all customs and usages, differing from those of Islam, in their essential foulness." However he was happy on occasion to express admiration for other cultures, and quoted directly from the sacred texts of other religions when reaching his conclusions. He strove to understand them on their own terms rather than trying to prove them wrong. His underlying concept

10208-997: The reader the theories of the Hindus exactly as they are, and I shall mention in connection with them similar theories of the Greeks in order to show the relationship existing between them. An example of Biruni's analysis is his summary of why many Hindus hate Muslims. Biruni notes in the beginning of his book how the Muslims had a hard time learning about Hindu knowledge and culture. He explains that Hinduism and Islam are totally different from each other. Moreover, Hindus in 11th century India had suffered waves of destructive attacks on many of its cities, and Islamic armies had taken numerous Hindu slaves to Persia, which – claimed Biruni – contributed to Hindus becoming suspicious of all foreigners, not just Muslims. Hindus considered Muslims violent and impure, and did not want to share anything with them. Over time, Biruni won

10324-473: The region in the early 5th century, and found Hinayana Buddhism prevalent in Shan Shan, Kucha , Kashgar , Osh, Udayana and Gandhara . Later, the Chinese monk Xuanzang (602–664 CE) visited Balkh in 630 CE, when it was a flourishing centre of Hinayana Buddhism. According to his memoirs, there were about a hundred Buddhist convents in the city or its vicinity at the time of his visit. There were 3,000 monks and

10440-409: The right bank of the seasonally flowing Balkh River , at an elevation of about 365 metres (1,198 ft). While it is one of Afghanistan's ethnically diverse settlements, Tajiks account for a substantial portion of Balkh's populace and have continuously inhabited the site for millennia. The main language of the town is Dari , which is spoken by a significant majority. Balkh's surrounding region

10556-469: The rule of a local prince, a zealous Buddhist called Nazak (or Nizak) Tarkhan. He expelled the Arabs from his territories in 670 or 671. He is said to have not only reprimanded the Chief Priest (Barmak) of Nava-Vihara but beheaded him for embracing Islam. As per another account, when Balkh was conquered by the Arabs, the head priest of the Nava-Vihara had gone to the capital and became a Muslim. This displeased

10672-473: The scientific language of his age, but al-Tafhim is one of the most important of the early works of science in Persian , and is a rich source for Persian prose and lexicography . The book covers the Quadrivium in a detailed and skilled fashion. Following Al-Biruni's death, his work was neither built upon or referenced by scholars. Centuries later, his writings about India, which had become of interest to

10788-460: The specific aspects of Hindu life that Biruni studied was the Hindu calendar . His scholarship on the topic exhibited great determination and focus, not to mention the excellence in his approach of the in-depth research he performed. He developed a method for converting the dates of the Hindu calendar to the dates of the three different calendars that were common in the Islamic countries of his time period,

10904-509: The topic of density, including the different types of densities and how they are measured. His work on the subject was very influential and was later used by scientists like Galileo and Newton in their own research. Bīrūnī devised a novel method of determining the Earth's radius by means of the observation of the height of a mountain. He carried it out at Nandana in Pind Dadan Khan (present-day Pakistan). He used trigonometry to calculate

11020-480: The town and killed the people indiscriminately. It is said that they raided the famous Buddhist shrine of Nava-Vihara , which the Arab historians call 'Nava Bahara' and describe it as one of the magnificent places, which comprised a range of 360 cells around the high stupas'. They plundered the gems and jewels that were studded on many images and stupas and took away the wealth accumulated in the Vihara but probably did no considerable harm to other monastic buildings or to

11136-587: The true value. In his Codex Masudicus (1037), Al-Biruni theorized the existence of a landmass along the vast ocean between Asia and Europe, or what is today known as the Americas. He argued for its existence on the basis of his accurate estimations of the Earth's circumference and Afro-Eurasia 's size, which he found spanned only two-fifths of the Earth's circumference, reasoning that the geological processes that gave rise to Eurasia must surely have given rise to lands in

11252-590: The vast ocean between Asia and Europe. He also theorized that at least some of the unknown landmass would lie within the known latitudes which humans could inhabit, and therefore would be inhabited. Biruni wrote a pharmacopoeia , the Kitab al-saydala fi al-tibb (" Book on the Pharmacopoeia of Medicine "). It lists synonyms for drug names in Syriac, Persian, Greek, Baluchi, Afghan, Kurdi, and some Indian languages. He used

11368-403: The way Buddha instructed. Balkh is therefore named after Bahalika, who is credited with introducing Buddhism to the city. This is reflected in literature, where the town has been called Balhika , Bahlika or Valhika . The first Buddhist monastery ( vihara ) at Balkh was built for Bahalika when he returned home after becoming a Buddhist monk. The Chinese pilgrim Faxian (337-422 CE) traveled to

11484-473: The welcome of Hindu scholars. Al-Biruni collected books and studied with these Hindu scholars to become fluent in Sanskrit, discover and translate into Arabic the mathematics, science, medicine, astronomy and other fields of arts as practiced in 11th-century India. He was inspired by the arguments offered by Indian scholars who believed earth must be globular in shape, which they felt was the only way to fully explain

11600-576: The words, at all events in the matter. In his major astronomical work, the Mas'ud Canon , Biruni observed that, contrary to Ptolemy , the Sun's apogee (highest point in the heavens) was mobile, not fixed. He wrote a treatise on the astrolabe , describing how to use it to tell the time and as a quadrant for surveying. One particular diagram of an eight-geared device could be considered an ancestor of later Muslim astrolabes and clocks. More recently, Biruni's eclipse data

11716-629: The works of Al-Biruni are in Arabic although he seemingly wrote the Kitab al-Tafhim in both Persian and Arabic, showing his mastery over both languages. Bīrūnī's catalogue of his own literary production up to his 65th lunar/63rd solar year (the end of 427/1036) lists 103 titles divided into 12 categories: astronomy, mathematical geography, mathematics, astrological aspects and transits, astronomical instruments, chronology, comets, an untitled category, astrology, anecdotes, religion, and books he no longer possesses. Biruni wrote most of his works in Arabic ,

11832-524: Was a practicing gnostic Christian . At the time of the Islamic conquest of Persia in the 7th century, however, Balkh had provided an outpost of resistance and a safe haven for the Persian emperor Yazdegerd III who fled there from the armies of Umar . Later, in the 9th century, during the reign of Ya'qub bin Laith as-Saffar , Islam became firmly rooted in the local population. Arabs occupied Persia in 642 (during

11948-430: Was able to measure the density of many different substances, including precious metals, gems, and even air. He also used this method to determine the radius of the earth, which he did by measuring the angle of elevation of the horizon from the top of a mountain and comparing it to the angle of elevation of the horizon from a nearby plain. In addition to developing the hydrostatic balance, Al-Biruni also wrote extensively on

12064-527: Was again subjected in the 14th century by Timur . Notwithstanding this, however, Marco Polo (probably referring to its past) could still describe it as "a noble city and a great seat of learning." For when Ibn Battuta visited Balkh around 1333 during the rule of the Kartids , who were Tadjik vassals of the Persia-based Mongol Ilkhanate until 1335, he described it as a city still in ruins: "It

12180-692: Was captured by Karakhanids , but Ghaznavids recaptured it 1008. Finally, the Seljuks conquered Balkh in 1059. In 1115, it was occupied and looted by irregular Oghuz Turks . Between 1141 and 1142, Balkh was captured by Atsiz , Shah of Khwarezm , after the Seljuks were defeated by the Kara-Khitan Khanate at the Battle of Qatwan . Ahmad Sanjar decisively defeated a Ghurid army, commanded by Ala al-Din Husayn and he took him prisoner for two years before releasing him as

12296-624: Was captured by Khwarezmshahs in 1162, by the Kara Khitans in 1165, by the Ghurids in 1198 and again by Khwarezmshahs in 1206. Muhammad al-Idrisi , in the 12th century, speaks of its possessing a variety of educational establishments, and carrying on an active trade. There were several important commercial routes from the city, stretching as far east as India and China . The late 12th-century local chronicle The Merits of Balkh (Fada'il-i-Balkh) , by Abu Bakr Abdullah al-Wa'iz al-Balkhi , states that

12412-693: Was destroyed, but Shah Rukh , his successor, rebuilt the citadel in 1407. In 1506 Uzbeks entered Balkh under the command of Muhammad Shaybani . They were briefly expelled by the Safavids in 1510. Babur ruled Balkh between 1511 and 1512 as a vassal of the Persian Safavids . But he was defeated twice by the Khanate of Bukhara and was forced to retire to Kabul . Balkh was ruled by Bukhara except for Safavid rule between 1598 and 1601. The Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan fruitlessly fought them there for several years in

12528-432: Was from this area that different waves of Iranic tribes spread to north-east Iran and Seistan region. The changing climate has led to desertification since antiquity, when the region was very fertile. Its foundation is mythically ascribed to Keyumars , the first king of the world in Persian legend ; and it is at least certain that, at a very early date, it was the rival of Ecbatana , Nineveh and Babylon . The city

12644-528: Was himself influenced by the scholars of other nations, such as the Greeks, from whom he took inspiration when he turned to the study of philosophy. A gifted linguist, he was conversant in Khwarezmian , Persian , Arabic, and Sanskrit , and also knew Greek , Hebrew , and Syriac . He spent much of his life in Ghazni , then capital of the Ghaznavids , in modern-day central-eastern Afghanistan. In 1017, he travelled to

12760-496: Was remarkable for its time. He stated that he was fully objective in his writings, remaining unbiased like a proper historian should. Biruni documented everything about India just as it happened. But, he did note how some of the accounts of information that he was given by natives of the land may not have been reliable in terms of complete accuracy, however, he did try to be as honest as possible in his writing. Eduard Sachau compares it to "a magic island of quiet, impartial research in

12876-440: Was that all cultures are at least distant relatives of all other cultures because they are all human constructs. "Rather, what Al-Biruni seems to be arguing is that there is a common human element in every culture that makes all cultures distant relatives, however foreign they might seem to one another." Al-Biruni divides Hindus into an educated and an uneducated class. He describes the educated as monotheistic, believing that God

12992-526: Was the son of a chief priest of a Buddhist monastery. Some of the family were killed when the Arabs captured Balkh; others including Khalid survived by converting to Islam. They would later come to be known as the Barmakids of Baghdad. Sennacherib , who reigned over the Neo-Assyrian Empire from 705 to 681 BCE, is said to have forcibly transferred some Israelites to Balkh after dispossessing them from

13108-576: Was to be found here, a temple so rich it invited plunder. Alexander the Great married Roxana of Bactria after killing the king of Balkh in the 4th century BC, and brought the Greek culture and religion to the region. The city was one of the capitals of the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom and was besieged for three years by the Seleucid Empire under king Antiochus III the Great . After the demise of

13224-529: Was traditionally a center of Zoroastrianism . For a long time the city and country was the central seat of the dualistic Zoroastrian religion , the founder of which, Zoroaster, died within the walls according to the Persian poet Firdowsi . Armenian sources state that the Arsacid dynasty of the Parthian Empire established its capital in Balkh. There is a long-standing tradition that an ancient shrine of Anahita

13340-691: Was undertaken in 1934, in which eight streets were laid out, housing and bazaars built. Modern Balkh is a centre of the cotton industry, of the skins known commonly in the West as "Persian lamb" ( Karakul ), and for agricultural produce like almonds and melons. The site and the museum have suffered from looting and uncontrolled digging during the 1990s civil war . After the Taliban 's fall in 2001 some poor residents dug in an attempt to sell ancient treasures. The provisional Afghan government said in January 2002 that it had stopped

13456-522: Was used by Dunthorne in 1749 to help determine the acceleration of the Moon , and his data on equinox times and eclipses was used as part of a study of Earth's past rotation. Like later adherents of the Ash'ari school, such as al-Ghazali , al-Biruni is famous for vehemently defending the majority Sunni position that the universe had a beginning, being a strong supporter of creatio ex nihilo , specifically refuting

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