Jacob Qirqisani (Heb. Ya'akov ben Ephraim ha-Tzerqesi; Arab. Abu Yusuf Yaqub al-Qirkisani) was a Karaite dogmatist and exegete who flourished in the first half of the tenth century. He was a native of Circassia, which at the time probably still fell under Khazar overlordship ( his nickname Qirqisani means "man from Circassia"). He seems to have traveled throughout the Middle East, visiting the centers of Islamic learning, in which he was well versed. In 937 Qirqisani wrote an Arabic work on the Jewish precepts—under the title Kitab al-Anwar wal-Marakib (known in Hebrew as Sefer ha-Me'orot, or Sefer ha-Ma'or), with the subtitle Kitab al-Shara'i' (Sefer Mitzvot Gadol)—and a commentary entitled al-Riyad wal-Hada'iq (Sefer ha-Gannim we-Pardesim, or Sefer ha-Nitztzanim), on those portions of the Pentateuch which do not deal with the laws.

Contents

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• 1 Kitab al-Anwar
• 2 View of Christianity
• 3 Philosophy and Theology
• 4 Extant manuscripts
• 5 Resources

Kitab al-Anwar[edit]

Of these two volumes the more important is the former, which not only provides valuable information concerning the development of Karaism, but throws light also on many questions in rabbinical Judaism. It comprises thirteen treatises, each divided into chapters, and the first four treatises form an introduction to the whole work. In the first treatise, of eighteen chapters, Qirqisani gives a comprehensive survey of the development of the Jewish sects, the material for which he drew not only from the works of his predecessors, as David ibn Merwan al-Muqammash, whom he mentions, but also from his personal experiences in the learned circles in which he moved. The enumeration of the sects is given in chronological order, beginning with the Samaritans, and concluding with the sect founded by Daniel al-Qumisi. Qirqisani declares the Rabbinites to be a Jewish sect founded by Jeroboam I, although it did not make its appearance until the time of the Second Temple. Zadok, the founder of the Sadducee sect, in his excursuses against the Rabbinites, revealed part of the truth on religious subjects, while Anan ben David disclosed the whole. However, in spite of Qirqisani's admiration for Anan, he often disagrees with him in the explanation of the precepts.

View of Christianity[edit]

In the third treatise (ch. xvi.) he says that "the religion of the Christians, as practised at present, has nothing in common with the teachings of Jesus." According to Qirqisani, the Christianity of his day originated with Paul, who ascribed divinity to Jesus and prophetic inspiration to himself. It was Paul that denied the necessity of carrying out the Commandments and taught that religion consisted in humility; and the First Council of Nicaea adopted precepts which occur neither in the Law, nor in the Gospels, nor in theActs of Peter and Paul.

Philosophy and Theology[edit]

Qirqisani devotes a great portion of the first treatise to attacks upon the Rabbinites, in which he does not show himself impartial; but he is not blind to the faults of the Karaites. In the last chapter he draws a sad picture of the spiritual condition of Karaism in his time. "You can scarcely find two Karaites of one

Abū ʿAlī al-Ḥasan ibn al-Ḥasan ibn al-Haytham (Arabic: أبو علي، الحسن بن الحسن بن الهيثم‎), frequently referred to as Ibn al-Haytham (Arabic: ابن الهيثم, Latinized asAlhazen^{[Notes 1]} or Alhacen; c. 965 – c. 1040) was an Arab^[4] scientist, polymath, mathematician, astronomer and philosopher who made significant contributions to the principles of optics, astronomy, mathematics, visual perception and the scientific method. He also wrote insightful commentaries on works by Aristotle, Ptolemy and theAncient Greek mathematician Euclid.^[5]

He has been described as the father of modern optics, experimental physics and scientific methodology^[6][7][8][9] and could also claim to be the first theoretical physicist.^[7] In medieval Europe, he was nicknamed Ptolemaeus Secundus ("Ptolemy the Second")^[10] or simply called "The Physicist".^[11] He is also sometimes called al-Basri (Arabic:البصري) after Basra, his birthplace.^[12]

According to one version of his biography,^[13] al-Haytham, confident about the practical application of his mathematical knowledge, assumed he could regulate the floods of theNile. Having been ordered to do so by Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah, the sixth ruler of the Fatimid caliphate, he quickly realised its impossibility. Fearing for his life, he feigned madness^[1][14] and was placed under house arrest. Once Al-Hakim had died, he was able to prove that he was not mad and for the rest of his life made money copying texts while writing mathematical works and teaching.^[15]