A History of Indian Medical Literature v2.c30.846

v2.c30.846

8 G. Flügel (1857): 149. M.S. Khan (1981): 49. M.Z. Siddīqī (1959): 61. M. Ullmann (1970): 104. R.L. Verma (1992): 473. E.C. Sachau mentions that al-Bīrūnī was acquainted with the Caraka edition of ‘Alī ibn Zayn, a Christian physician in Merw, whose son, according to tradition, was the author of the Firdaws al-ḥikma (Preface XXXV and XL; II, 349). R.L. Verma (1992: 477) suggests that ‘Alī ibn Sahl, the author of the Firdaws al-ḥikma, derived his knowledge of Caraka from the defective Arabic translation made by ‘Alī ibn Zayn of Ṭabaristān. Al-Bīrūnī, however, once says that he bases himself on quotations from Caraka in a book by ‘Alī ibn Zayn (E.C. Sachau, 1964: I, 382), which cannot be but the Firdaws al-ḥikma, since its author is called ‘Alī ibn Zayn by most of the Muslim writers; on another occasion (E.C. Sachau, 1964: I, 162), al-Bīrūnī refers to his own, defective, copy of an Arabic translation of Caraka. See on the identities of ‘Alī ibn Sahl and ‘Alī ibn Zayn, as well as on the former’s faith and that of his father: M.Z. Siddīqī (1959): 46–48.