Editing Jabir ibn Hayyan (section)

=== Alchemical writings <!-- [[Book of Mercy (alchemical treatise)]], [[One Hundred and Twelve Books]], [[Seventy Books]], [[Books of the Balances]], and [[Five Hundred Books]] all redirect here; please edit the redirect (via 'what links here') when changing the name of the section heading --> ===
{{Hermeticism|expand=Historical figures}}
Note that [[Paul Kraus (Arabist)|Paul Kraus]], who first [[Cataloging|catalogued]] the Jabirian writings and whose numbering is followed here, conceived of his division of Jabir's alchemical writings (Kr. nos. 5–1149) as roughly chronological in order.<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. I}}. Kraus based this order on an extensive analysis of the many internal references to other treatises in the corpus. A slightly different chronological order is postulated by {{harvnb|Sezgin|1971|pp=231–258}} (who places ''The Books of the Balances'' after ''The Five Hundred Books'', see pp. 252–253).</ref>

* '''The Great Book of Mercy''' (''Kitāb al-Raḥma al-kabīr'', Kr. no. 5): This was considered by Kraus to be the oldest work in the corpus, from which it may have been relatively independent. Some 10th-century skeptics considered it to be the only authentic work written by Jabir himself.<ref>All of the preceding in {{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. I, pp. 5–9}}.</ref> The Persian physician, alchemist and philosopher [[Abu Bakr al-Razi|Abū Bakr al-Rāzī]] (c. 865–925) appears to have written a (lost) commentary on it.<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. I, pp. lx–lxi}}.</ref> It was [[Latin translations of the 12th century|translated into Latin]] in the 13th century under the title ''Liber Misericordiae''.<ref>Edited by {{harvnb|Darmstaedter|1925}}.</ref>
* '''The One Hundred and Twelve Books''' (''al-Kutub al-miʾa wa-l-ithnā ʿashar'', Kr. nos. 6–122): This collection consists of relatively independent treatises dealing with different practical aspects of alchemy, often framed as an explanation of the symbolic allusions of the 'ancients'. An important role is played by [[Organic chemistry|organic]] alchemy. Its theoretical foundations are similar to those of ''The Seventy Books'' (i.e., the reduction of bodies to the elements fire, air, water and earth, and of the elements to the 'natures' hot, cold, moist, and dry), though their exposition is less systematic. Just like in ''The Seventy Books'', the quantitative directions in ''The One Hundred and Twelve Books'' are still of a practical and 'experimental' rather than of a theoretical and speculative nature, such as will be the case in ''The Books of the Balances''.<ref>All of the preceding in {{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. I, p. 11}}.</ref> The first four treatises in this collection, i.e., the three-part ''Book of the Element of the Foundation'' (''Kitāb Usṭuqus al-uss'', Kr. nos. 6–8, the second part of which contains an early version of the famous ''[[Emerald Tablet]]'' attributed to [[Hermes Trismegistus]])<ref>{{harvnb|Zirnis|1979|loc=pp. 64–65, 90}}. Jabir explicitly notes that the version of the ''Emerald Tablet'' quoted by him is taken from "Balīnās the Sage" (i.e., [[Pseudepigrapha|pseudo]]-[[Apollonius of Tyana]]), although it differs slightly from the (probably even earlier) version preserved in pseudo-Apollonius of Tyana's [[Sirr al-khaliqa|''Sirr al-khalīqa'']] (''The Secret of Creation''): see {{harvnb|Weisser|1980|p=46}}.</ref> and a commentary on it (''Tafsīr kitāb al-usṭuqus'', Kr. no. 9), have been translated into English.<ref>{{harvnb|Zirnis|1979}}. On some [[Shia Islam|Shi'ite]] aspects of ''The Book of the Element of the Foundation'', see {{harvnb|Lory|2016a}}.</ref>
* '''The Seventy Books''' (''al-Kutub al-sabʿūn'', Kr. nos. 123–192) (also called ''The Book of Seventy'', ''Kitāb al-Sabʿīn''): This contains a systematic exposition of Jabirian alchemy, in which the several treatises form a much more unified whole as compared to ''The One Hundred and Twelve Books''.<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. I, pp. 43–44}}.</ref> It is organized into seven parts, containing ten treatises each: three parts dealing with the preparation of the elixir from animal, vegetable, and mineral substances, respectively; two parts dealing with the four elements from a theoretical and practical point of view, respectively; one part focusing on the alchemical use of animal substances, and one part focusing on minerals and metals.<ref>{{harvnb|Forster|2018}}.</ref> It was translated into Latin by [[Gerard of Cremona]] (c. 1114–1187) under the title ''Liber de Septuaginta''.<ref>Edited by {{harvnb|Berthelot|1906|pp=310–363}}; the Latin translation of one of the seventy treatises (''The Book of the Thirty Words'', ''Kitāb al-Thalāthīn kalima'', Kr. no. 125, translated as ''Liber XXX verborum'') was separately edited by {{harvnb|Colinet|2000|pp=179–187}}. In the ms. used by Berthelot, the name of the translator appears as a certain ''Renaldus Cremonensis'' ({{harvnb|Berthelot|1906|p=310}}, cf. {{harvnb|Forster|2018}}). However, a medieval list of the works translated by Gerard of Cremona (Latin: ''Gerardus Cremonensis'') mentions the ''Liber de Septuaginta'' as one of the three alchemical works translated by the ''magister'' (see {{harvnb|Burnett|2001|p=280}}, cf. {{harvnb|Moureau|2020|pp=106, 111}}).</ref>
* '''Ten books added to the Seventy''' (''ʿasharat kutub muḍāfa ilā l-sabʿīn'', Kr. nos. 193–202): The sole surviving treatise from this small collection (''The Book of Clarification'', ''Kitāb al-Īḍāḥ'', Kr. no. 195) briefly discusses the different methods for preparing the elixir, criticizing the philosophers who have only expounded the method of preparing the elixir starting from mineral substances, to the exclusion of vegetable and animal substances.<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. I, p. 63}}.</ref>
* '''The Ten Books of Rectifications''' (''al-Muṣaḥḥaḥāt al-ʿashara'', Kr. nos. 203–212): Relates the successive improvements (“rectifications”, ''muṣaḥḥaḥāt'') brought to the art by such 'alchemists' as '[[Pythagoras]]' (Kr. no. 203), '[[Socrates]]' (Kr. no. 204), '[[Plato]]' (Kr. no. 205), '[[Aristotle]]' (Kr. no. 206), '[[Archigenes]]' (Kr. nos. 207–208), '[[Homer]]' (Kr. no. 209), '[[Democritus]]' (Kr. no. 210), [[Harbi al-Himyari|Ḥarbī al-Ḥimyarī]] (Kr. no. 211),<ref>Ḥarbī al-Ḥimyarī occurs several times in the Jabirian writings as one of Jabir's teachers. He supposedly was 463 years old when Jabir met him (see {{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. I, p. xxxvii}}). According to {{harvnb|Sezgin|1971|p=127}}, the fact that Jabir dedicated a book to Ḥarbī's contributions to alchemy points to the existence in Jabir's time of a written work attributed to him.</ref> and Jabir himself (Kr. no. 212). The only surviving treatise from this small collection (''The Book of the Rectifications of Plato'', ''Kitāb Muṣaḥḥaḥāt Iflāṭūn'', Kr. no. 205) is divided into 90 chapters:  20 chapters on processes using only mercury, 10 chapters on processes using mercury and one additional 'medicine' (''dawāʾ''), 30 chapters on processes using mercury and two additional 'medicines', and 30 chapters on processes using mercury and three additional 'medicines'. All of these are preceded by an introduction describing the laboratory equipment mentioned in the treatise.<ref>All of the preceding in {{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. I, pp. 64–67}}. On the meaning here of ''muṣaḥḥaḥāt'', see esp. p. 64 n. 1 and the accompanying text. See also {{harvnb|Sezgin|1971|loc=pp. 160–162, 167–168, 246–247}}.</ref>
* '''The Twenty Books''' (''al-Kutub al-ʿishrūn'', Kr. nos. 213–232): Only one treatise (''The Book of the Crystal'', ''Kitāb al-Billawra'', Kr. no. 220) and a long extract from another one (''The Book of the Inner Consciousness'', ''Kitāb al-Ḍamīr'', Kr. no. 230) survive.<ref>{{harvnb|Sezgin|1971|p=248}}.</ref> ''The Book of the Inner Consciousness'' appears to deal with the subject of specific properties (''khawāṣṣ'') and with [[talisman]]s (''ṭilasmāt'').<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. I, p. 69}}. On "the science of specific properties" (''ʿilm al-khawāṣṣ'', i.e., the science dealing with the hidden powers of mineral, vegetable and animal substances, and with their practical applications in medical and various other pursuits), see {{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. II, pp. 61–95}}.</ref>
* '''The Seventeen Books''' (Kr. nos. 233–249); '''three treatises added to the Seventeen Books''' (Kr. nos. 250–252); '''thirty unnamed books''' (Kr. nos. 253–282); '''The Four Treatises''' and some related treatises (Kr. nos. 283–286, 287–292); '''The Ten Books According to the Opinion of Balīnās, the Master of Talismans''' (Kr. nos. 293–302): Of these, only three treatises appear to be extant, i.e., the ''Kitāb al-Mawāzīn'' (Kr. no. 242), the ''Kitāb al-Istiqṣāʾ'' (Kr. no. 248), and the ''Kitāb al-Kāmil'' (Kr. no. 291).<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. I, pp. 70–74}}; {{harvnb|Sezgin|1971|p=248}}.</ref>
* '''The Books of the Balances''' (''Kutub al-Mawāzīn'', Kr. nos. 303–446): This collection appears to have consisted of 144 treatises of medium length, 79 of which are known by name and 44 of which are still extant. Though relatively independent from each other and devoted to a very wide range of topics ([[History of cosmology|cosmology]], [[Arabic grammar|grammar]], [[History of music theory|music theory]], [[Medicine in the medieval Islamic world|medicine]], [[Logic in Islamic philosophy|logic]], [[History of metaphysics|metaphysics]], [[Mathematics in medieval Islam|mathematics]], [[Astronomy in medieval Islam|astronomy]], [[Astrology in medieval Islam|astrology]], etc.), they all approach their subject matter from the perspective of "the science of the balance" (''ʿilm al-mīzān'', a theory which aims at reducing all phenomena to a system of measures and quantitative proportions).<ref>All of the preceding in {{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. I, pp. 75–76}}. The theory of the balance is extensively discussed by {{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. II, pp. 187–303}}; see also {{harvnb|Lory|1989|pp=130–150}}.</ref> ''The Books of the Balances'' are also an important source for Jabir's speculations regarding the apparition of the "two brothers" (''al-akhawān''),<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. I, p. 76}}; {{harvnb|Lory|1989|pp=103–105}}.</ref> a doctrine which was later to become of great significance to the Egyptian alchemist [[Muhammed ibn Umail al-Tamimi|Ibn Umayl]] (c. 900–960).<ref>{{harvnb|Starr|2009|pp=74–75}}.</ref>
* '''The Five Hundred Books''' (''al-Kutub al-Khamsumiʾa'', Kr. nos. 447–946): Only 29 treatises in this collection are known by name, 15 of which are extant. Its contents appear to have been mainly religious in nature, with moral exhortations and alchemical allegories occupying an important place.<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. I, pp. 100–101}}.</ref> Among the extant treatises, ''The Book of the Glorious'' (''Kitāb al-Mājid'', Kr. no. 706) and ''The Book of Explication'' (''Kitāb al-Bayān'', Kr. no. 785) are notable for containing some of the earliest preserved [[Shia Islam|Shi'ite]] [[Eschatology|eschatological]], [[Soteriology|soteriological]] and [[Imamate in Shia doctrine|imamological]] doctrines.<ref>{{harvnb|Corbin|1950}}; {{harvnb|Lory|2000}}.</ref> Intermittent extracts from ''The Book of Kingship'' (''Kitāb al-Mulk'', Kr. no. 454) exist in a Latin translation under the title ''Liber regni''.<ref>Edited and translated by {{harvnb|Newman|1994|pp=288–293}}.</ref>
* '''The Books on the Seven Metals''' (Kr. nos. 947–956): Seven treatises which are closely related to ''The Books of the Balances'', each one dealing with one of Jabir's [[Metals of antiquity|seven metals]] (respectively gold, silver, copper, iron, tin, lead, and ''khārṣīnī'' or "chinese metal"). In one manuscript, these are followed by the related three-part ''Book of Concision'' (''Kitāb al-Ījāz'', Kr. nos. 954–956).<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. I, pp. 111–116}}. On ''khārṣīnī'', see {{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. II, pp. 22–23}}. Excerpts from the first six ''Books on the Seven Metals'' (the ''Book of Gold'', the ''Book of Silver'', the ''Book of Copper'', the ''Book of Iron'', the ''Book of Tin'', and the ''Book of Lead'') and the full Arabic text of the seventh book (the ''Book of Khārṣīnī'') have been edited by {{harvnb|Watanabe|2023|pp=236–334}}.</ref>
* '''Diverse alchemical treatises''' (Kr. nos. 957–1149): In this category, Kraus placed a large number of named treatises which he could not with any confidence attribute to one of the alchemical collections of the corpus. According to Kraus, some of them may actually have been part of ''The Five Hundred Books''.<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. I, pp. 117–140}}.</ref>