to the circle produced by the alif. The proportions
held regardless of letter size, which resulted from
the actual size of the nib. Ibn Muqla applied this
system to six modes of writing, producing the six
pens (al-aqlam al-sitta) of what is known as Arabic
calligraphy or, more accurately, khatt.
The reform produced a new aesthetic canon;
later medieval scribes and connoisseurs judged
the beauty of writing according to the degree of
clarity and harmony produced through the new
system. Although the reforms may have been orig-
inally intended for secular texts, their adoption
for copying scripture was complete within two
generations. The change in the visual appearance
of the holy text reflected controversies over the
nature of the Quran and its message, which the
Abbasids considered eternal and accessible to all.
The clarity and legibility of proportioned writing
mirrored this ideological position and combated
proponents of an esoteric message accessible only
to a chosen elite.
Ibn Muqla, too, fell victim to the politics of
the Abbasid court at the end of his life. He was
imprisoned, suffered the amputation of his right
hand, and died in disgrace.
See also alphabet; art; ibn al-baWWab, abU al-
hasan ali; orientalism.
Nuha N. N. KhouryFurther reading: Yasin Safadi, Islamic Calligraphy (Boul-
der, Colo.: Shambhala Publications, 1978); Yasser Tab-
baa, The Transformation of Islamic Art during the Sunni
Revival (Seattle: University of Washington Press, 2001).
Ibn Rushd, Muhammad (also known
in the West by his Latinized name,
Averroës) (1126–1198) a leading philosopher in
the Middle Ages famed for his learned commentaries
on Aristotle and his refutation of Muslim theological
teachings
Ibn Rushd was born in cordoba, one of the
major centers of Islamicate culture and learning
in andalUsia. At that time, it was ruled by the
almohad dynasty of North Africa, known for its
puritanical adherence to Islamic law and interest
in philosophy. Both his grandfather and father had
been leading judges of the maliki legal school,
and as a youth he also studied Maliki law, theol-
ogy, medicine, mathematics, and astronomy. It is
not known exactly when he took up the study
of philosophy, but it may have been through his
teacher of medicine and mathematics, Abu Jaafar
ibn Harun. (In medieval Islam, medicine, math-
ematics, and philosophy were seen as related areas
of learning.)
At the age of 27, Ibn Rushd was retained by
the Almohad court in Marrakesh, the Almohad
capital in what is now Morocco, as an astrono-
mer. Around 1169, the prominent court physician
and philosopher Ibn Tufayl (d. 1185) introduced
him to the caliph Abu Yaaqub Yusuf (r. 1163–84),
who engaged him in a discussion about whether
heaven was created or eternal, a controversial
question because it pitted conventional Muslim
theological doctrine about God’s unique eternity
against the philosophical view that the world
was eternal. Ibn Rushd, reportedly a modest and
discreet man, made a favorable impression on
the caliph with his answers, and this helped him
obtain coveted appointments as a judge in Seville
and Cordoba and as successor to Ibn Tufayl as
court physician in 1182. He began to write the
philosophical works and commentaries during
this time, prompted, perhaps, by the caliph’s com-
plaint that the works of Aristotle (384–322 b.c.e.),
the ancient Greek philosopher, were difficult to
understand. Ibn Rushd enjoyed the favor of Abu
Yaaqub Yusuf’s successor, Yaaqub al-Mansur (r.
1184–99), until 1195, when he was banished to
Lucena, a small town south of Cordoba. This may
have been for political reasons, but it led to an
order by Cordoba’s city council to have his philo-
sophical works burned because they were thought
to undermine the faith. He was restored to favor a
few years later but died shortly thereafter in 1198.
Ibn Rushd was buried in Marrakesh, but his bodyK 336 Ibn Rushd, Muhammad