The Improvement of Human Reason

Improvement of Human Reason,
The

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Title: The Improvement of Human Reason Exhibited in the Life of Hai
Ebn Yokdhan
Author: Ibn Tufail
Release Date: October 8, 2005 [EBook #16831]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE
IMPROVEMENT OF HUMAN REASON ***

Produced by Marc D'Hooghe

THE IMPROVEMENT OF HUMAN REASON
Exhibited in the Life

of Hai Ebn Yokdhan
by
Ibn Tufail (Abu Bakr Muhammad Ibn Tufail al-Qasi)
Newly Translated from the Original Arabick by Simon Ockley
(1708)
* * * * *
The Improvement of
HUMAN REASON,
Exhibited in the LIFE of
_Hai Ebn Yokdhan_:
Written in Arabick above 500 Years _ago, by Abu Jaafar Ebn Tophail.
In which is demonstrated,
By what Methods one may, by the meer LIGHT OF NATURE, attain
the Knowledg of things NATURAL and SUPERNATURAL; more
particularly the Knowledg of God, and the Affairs of another Life.
Illustrated with proper FIGURES,
Newly Translated from the Original Arabick by SIMON OCKLEY, A.M.
Vicar of Swanesey in Cambridgshire.
With an APPENDIX,
In Which the Possibility of Man's attaining the True Knowledg of GOD,
and Things necessary to Salvation, without INSTRUCTION, is briefly
consider'd.

* * * * *
To the Reverend
Mr. Edward Pococke,
Rector of
MINAL, in Wiltshire.
Reverend SIR,
Hai Ebn Yokdhan _returns to you again, in a Dress different from that
which you sent him out in. Wherever he comes, he acknowledges you
for his first and best Master; and confesses, that his being put in a
Capacity to travel thro'_ Europe, _is owing to your Hand. I could not in
Equity send him to any other Person, you being the sole Proprietor.
And as your Learning enables you to do him Justice, so your Candor
will incline you to pardon what is by me done amiss. Both which
Qualifications you enjoy, as a Paternal Inheritance, descending from
the Reverend and Learned _Dr. Pococke,_ the Glory and Ornament of
our Age and Nation. Whose Memory I much reverence, and how much
I acknowledge my self indebted to him for his Learned Works, I
thought I could no way express better, than by taking some Opportunity
to pay my Respects to you, Sir, the worthy Son of so great a Father.
And no fitter Bearer than_ Hai Ebn Yokdhan, _with whose Character
and Language you are so well acquainted, and to whom you have long
ago shown so great a Respect, that I have no reason to fear but he will
be welcome_.
I am,
_SIR,_
Your most humble Servant,
Simon Ockley,
* * * * *

THE PREFACE.
When Mr. Pococke first publish'd this Arabick Author with his accurate
Latin Version, Anno 1671. Dr. Pococke his Father, that late eminent
Professor of the Oriental Languages in the University of Oxford,
prefix'd a Preface to it; in which he tells us, that he has good Reason to
think, that this Author was contemporary with Averroes, who died very
ancient in the Year of the Hegira 595, which is co-incident with the
1198th Year of our Lord; according to which Account, the Author liv'd
something above five hundred Years ago.
He liv'd in Spain, as appears from one or two Passages in this Book. He
wrote some other Pieces, which are not come to our Hands. This has
been very well receiv'd in the East; one Argument of which is, that it
has been translated by _R. Moses_ Narbonensis into Hebrew, and
illustrated with a large Commentary. The Design of the Author is to
shew, how Human Capacity, unassisted by any External Help, may, by
due Application, attain to the Knowledge of Natural Things, and so by
Degrees find out its Dependance upon a Superior Being, the
Immortality of the Soul, and all things necessary to Salvation.
How well he has succeeded in this Attempt, I leave to the Reader to
judge. 'Tis certain, that he was a Man of Parts and very good Learning,
considering the Age he liv'd in, and the way of studying in those Times.
There are a great many lively Stroaks in it; and I doubt not but a
judicious Reader will find his Account in the Perusal of it.
I was not willing ('though importun'd) to undertake the translating it
into English, because I was inform'd that it had been done twice already;
once by Dr. Ashwell, another time by the Quakers, who imagin'd that
there was something in, it that favoured their Enthusiastick Notions.
However,