2. hansberger kitab al-hiss wal-mahsus aristotle's parva naturalia in arabic guise 2012.0

Kitdb al-fJiss wa-l-maJ;susAristotle's Parva naturalia in Arabic Guise

ROTRAUD HANSBERGER

King's College, Cambridge

By the end of the lOch century, most of rhe texts that constitute theAristotelian corpus had been translated into Arabic, 1 and on the face of itthe Parva naturalia are no exception to that: at least their first six treatises'were transmitted in Arabic, known by the collective title of Kiliib al-Ifiss wa-Imabslis, 'Book of Sense-Perception and the Perceived'. However, this 'transmission' was of a peculiar kind: Kztiib aI-Hiss wa-I-mabslis does not constiturewhat we would call a 'translation' of the Parva naturalia. Instead it is an adaptation that is, in fact, characterised far more by Neoplatonic and Galenicthan by Aristotelian ideas.

Given that the text ofKztiibal-Hisswa-I-mabsiis itself has only recently beenrediscovered, this circumstance has long put constraints on any enquiryinto the transmission of the Parva naturalia, since not much was knownabout the text Arabic authors were referring to by the title Kiliib ai-HIss wa-Imahsus - that it was not identical with the version of the Parva naturaliawe know, however, was obvious. Thanks to Hans Daiber's discovery, nowsome twenry years ago, of an acephalous copy of Kiliib ai-Hiss wa-I-mahslis ina 17ch century manuscript in the Raza Library in Rampur (India),' we arenow in a posirion to examine the text itself. While this presents a big srep

1. For details, see R. GOULET ed., Dictionnaire des philosophes antiques, Paris, 1989, S.Y.

"Aristote de Sragire"; for an (incomplete) ovenriew, see A. BADA'WI, La transmission de laphilosophie grecque flU monde drabe, Paris, Vrin, J 9G8.2. I.e. from De sensu et sensihilibus to De longitudine et brevitate vitae.3. Ms. Rampur 1752, fa!' 7a-S4b; see I.'A. 'ARSJ-Il, Catalogue ofthe Arabic Manuscriptsin Raza Lihrar}, Rampur, Rampur University Press, 6 vols., Rampur, 1963-1977, vol. 4,p. 534 f., H. DAIBER, "Salient Trends of the Arabic Aristotle", in G. EN DRESS, R. KRUK

cds., The Ancient Tradition in Christian and Islamic Hellenism: Studies on the Transmission ofGreek Philosophy and Sciences, dedicated to H.]. Drossaart Lulofs on his ninetieth birthday,Leyde, Brill, 1997, p. 29-41, p. 36 ff.; R. HANSBERGER, The Transmission o/Aristotle's Parvanaturalia in Arabic, D.Phil. Thesis, Oxford, 2006, p. 4 if. The thesis is scheduled to bepublished, in modified form, in the series Aristoteles Semitico-Latinus (ed. by H. DAlBER,Brill, Leyde). 1he Rampur manuscript also contains an anonymous commentary that isinserted into the text of Kitdbal-fjiss wa-I-ma~sris.

FOn,,\\ III IIANIBFHCEH

forward in our understanding of the transmission ofAristotle's Parva naturalia in Arabic, the text raises many questions of its own, and does not allowus to reach many definitive answers regarding its origins. A lack of reliableexternal data, for instance on date and authorship of Kitabal-Hisswa-I-ma~sus,contributes to the problem.

In this article, I will present, in summarised fashion, some of the resultsof my doctoral thesis, the first edition and study of Kitab al-/jiss wa-I-ma~sus. 4

After a general description of Kitiib ai-Hiss wa-I-mahsus and its relation to theGreek Parva naturalia (1) I will sketch the main theories that dominate theadaptation (2), and outline the tentative conclusions regarding the origins ofKitiib al-/jiss wa-I-ma!lsus (3); I will then illustrate the character of the adaptedtext, and the modus operandi of the adaptor, with textual examples (4), beforeconcluding with a brief survey of the reception of Kitab al-/jiss wa-I-ma~sus inthe mediaeval Arab world (5).

1. Kitiib al-/jiss wa-I-ma~sus is divided into three sections (maqalas). The firstmaqala contains the equivalent to De sensu et sensibilibus; its beginning ismissing in the Rampur manuscript. The second maqala is again subdivided;the first part represents De memoria et reminiscentia, the second one, entitled Bab al-Nawm wa-I-yaqa?a (Chapter on Sleep and Waking), comprises theequivalents of De Jomno et vigilia, De insomniis, and De divinatione persomnum. The third maqala contains the Arabic counterpart of De longitudine et brevitate vitae. That said, the Arabic text does by no means constitute a faithful rendering of the Greek Parva naturalia. First of all, only partsof the Aristotelian treatises are represented in the Arabic text; conversely,those passages in rhe Arabic text that do reflect text from the Parva naturalia do not themselves make up even half of the text of Kitab ai-Hiss wa-Imahsus. In the surviving parts of the first maqala we find nothing that wouldamount to a translation or paraphrase of any passage in De Jensu;5 in thecase of De memoria and De somno, roughly 30% of the Greek text can besaid to be represented (however vaguely) in the Arabic, accounting for about35 and 30% of the equivalent parts of the second maqala respectively. As forDe insomniis and De divinatione, only traces of the Greek text are left in theArabic version. The third and final maqala of Kitab al-/jiss wa-I-ma~sus reflectsabout 40% of the Greek De longitudine, the Aristotelian passages makingup about the same percentage of the Arabic text.

Apart from the issue of quantity, even where the Arabic representsAristotelian text it rarely does this in a faithful manner. This may partly be

4. R. H~NSBERGER, ibid5. cr. below p. 145, n. G, p. 150.

[(ITAIl AI,-l! ISS WA -L-MAI/SliS

due to shortcomings of the translation itself, but for the most part it is J

result of the adaptation, which fuses its additional, non-Aristotelian material together with passages taken from the Parva naturalia. In those caseswhere more substantial amounts of the Aristotelian text are identifiablein the Arabic, i.e. De memoria, De somno, and De longitudine, a recurringpattern can be observed: the beginning of the Greek treatise is translatedcomparatively exactly and completely; further on, however, the translationbecomes more patchy and less precise. More and more of the Aristoteliantext is omitted; the last chapters of the Greek treatises are more or less leftout altogether. G Meanwhile the passages ofadded material grow longer andlonger; in the last third or so of the Arabic counterparts ofDe memoria andDe somno, added material makes up the bulk of the text, with only occasional appearances ofshort phrases or keywords relating to the Greek Parvanaturalia.

Consequently, not much of the original philosophical content of theParva naturalia can be detected in Kitiib al-/jiss wa-I-ma~us. The Arabic Parvanaturalia are dominated by ideas expressed in the added material. At thesame time, the text does not reveal the author or the source of this additional material, maintaining Aristotle, and Aristotle alone, to be its author.As a result, the theories proposed by the adaptor (or adaptors) were introduced into later Arabic philosophy as those of the Stagirite.

2. The most prominent, and at the same time most influential, doctrine ofthe adaptation concerns divination through dreams - the issue in whichthe Arabic Parva naturalia most strikingly deviate from Aristotle's text.! Itsmost important psychological component, the 'three-faculty theory' (as Icall it), is based on the Galenic concept of the mental faculties of imagination, cogitation, and memory which are located in the brain ventricles andare operated by the 'animal spiri t'. 8 In Kitiib al-/jiss wa-I-ma~sus, these facul ties

G. This is the case to a lesser degree in the third maqala, where all chapters ofDe longitudineare represented in some way or other. - The recurrence of this pattern in all three casessupports the assumption that the lost beginning of the first maqala did in fact contain atranslation or paraphrase of (parts of) De sensu. This is further supported by the evidenceof Ibn Rushd's Epitome (Talkhis) ofKitrib aI-Hiss wa-I-mahsiis.7. For a more detailed account, see R. HANSBERGER, "How Aristotle Came to Believe inGod-given Dreams: The Arabic Version of De divinatione per somnum", in L. MARLOWcd., Dreaming Across Boundaries: lhe Interpretation a/Dreams in Islamic Lands, Cambridge,Mass., Harvard University Press, 2008, p. 50-77.8. The adaptor may have drawn upon translations ofworks by GaIen himself, or texts fromthe later medical tradition. Possible sources are mentioned in G. STROHMAIER, "AvicennasLehre van den 'inneren Sinnen' und ihre Voraussetzungen bei Galen", in ID., Van Demokritbis Dante Die Bewahrung antiken Erbes in der arabischen Kultur, Hildesheim-New York,Ohm, 19%, p. 330-341: 331: 337; cf also H. MHANA-SMILANSKY, "The Mental Faculties

IH)TRAUD l!ANSBERCER---------

play an all-imponanr role in dreaming: in conrrasr to rhe senses, they stayactive during sleep, producing dreams by occupying themselves with priorperceptions. However, through them the human soul may become the recipient of veridical dreams as well, which are not related to prior perceptionbut come to the dreamer from 'outside'. Here the second component of theadaptor's theory comes into play, a metaphysical framework that berraysNeoplatonic leanings. The ultimate cause of veridical dreams is God, theirdirect source, however, the 'universal intellect'. In one act of creation, Godhas created everything that is ever going to exist in this intellect; there itexists as 'intellectual form' before eventually coming to be in the world as'corporeal form'. 111erefore the universal intellect can reveal to human beingsin veridical dreams what will come to pass in the future. What is revealedin a dream is not, however, the 'intellectual form' of a thing or event, butits 'spiritual form' which, having the same qualities as the stored images ofpast perceptions, is accessible to the aforementioned three (at times called'spiritual') faculties of the dreamer. These faculties are not only responsible for the dream itself but also for assigning it the right interpretation,and for remembering both after awakening. The veridical dream owes itsprophetic character to the fact that it as well as the prophesied event are justtwo different representations of one and the same 'intellectual form'. 111isis also why it is sometimes possible for third persons to interpret divinatorydreams correctly: they are subject to the same revelation from the universalintellect, though they do not receive it in the form of a dream, but as 'spiritual words' (a concept not specified any further).

Although in this pan of the theory we find a three-tier hierarchy ofintellectual, spiritual and corporeal forms, suggesting that the 'spiritual'holds an intermediate position between the material and the immaterialrealm (perhaps even retaining the ultimately material aspect that 'spirit'carried in Greek medicine), the adaptor generally favours a clear dichotomybetween 'spiritual' and 'corporeal', where spiritualiry is practically equatedwith immateriality, and represents the realm of the pure, perfect incorporeal 'higher world', as opposed to the impure, imperfect corporeal world.Against the background of this dichotomy, the mental faculties are orderedhierarchically in terms of their 'spirituality', with perception belonging tothe corporeal world, and imagination, cogitation, and memory increasinglypartaking of spirituality. 9 The ambivalence with regard to the concept ofspirituality may suggest that several adaptors were at work - generally a very

and the Psychology of Sleep and Dreams", in G. FREUDE:-:THAL ed., Science in i>1edievalJewish Cultures, Leyde, Brill, forthcoming.9. 111is order reflects the location of the faculties in the ventricles of the btain as the adaptorwill have found it described in medical texts. ef. R. HANSBERGER, op. cit., n. 3, p. 138 If.

K[TAn A[~-/:I[SS WA-L-MAI-{SOS

real possibility in Kitab ai-Hiss wa-I-mahsus -, but in the present case it morelikely indicates that there are passages in Kitab al-fiiss wa-I-mabsus where theadaptor stays more closely to his source texts, and passages where he shapesthe text more actively.

While the added material introduces and discusses various other themesas well, many of them of medical nature, the three-faculty theory and thetheory of divinatory dreams are the issues closest to the adaptor's heart, aswe can see from the prominence and the space they are given in Kitabal-Hisswa-I-mabsUs. The three-faculty theory plays a role in both parrs of the secondmaqala and also appears in the extant pages of the first maqala. (It is absentfrom the third maqala, which of course deals with a rather unrelated topic,and which is the section of Kitab al-fiiss wa-I-mabsus to have received the leastattention from the adaptor.) Nevertheless it is the theory of divinatorydreams that seems to be the central concern of the adaptor: due mainlyto the added material, Bab al-Nawm wa-I-yaqO-.?a is the longest section of Kitabal-fiiss wa-I-mabsus (covering fifty-three of the surviving ninety-six manuscriptpages), and it is effectively permeated by the topic of divinatory dreamsfrom beginning to end.

In any case the theory of divinatory dreams is certainly the most eyecatching and defining feature ofKitabal-fiisswa-I-mabsus. Being diametricallyopposed to everything Aristotle has to say on the topic in De divinationeper somnum, it furthermore adds a particular edge to the question of howthe Arabic adaptation of the Parva naturalia came into being.

3. Unfortunately we have but little information on the origins ofKltiib al-fiisswa-I-mahsus. The situation is complicated by the fact that we have to accountfor both a translation process and an adaptation process, which may (ormay not) have been linked to each other. The Rampur manuscript does notreveal any dates or names that could help us identity the translator or theadaptor(s); and references in Arabic bibliographical works, although theydo exist, do not provide any reliable data, either. 10 The enquiry into genesisand provenance of Kitab al-fiiss wa-I-mabsus therefore has to rely entirely onclues provided by the text itself.

In my doctoral dissertation I have approached the problem through adetailed analysis of major parts of Kltiib al-fiiss wa-I-mabsus, with particularemphasis on the second maqala. In what follows I will present the mainresults of this study without, however, being able to broach the underlyingarguments in any detail.

10. See below p. 160 f.

I ROTRAUD HANSBERGER

play an all-important role in dreaming: in contrast to the senses, they stayactive during sleep, producing dreams by occupying themselves with priorperceptions. However, through them the human soul may become the recipient of veridical dreams as well, which are not related to prior perceptionbut come to the dreamer from 'outside'. Here the second component oftheadaptor's theory comes into play, a metaphysical framework that betraysNeoplatonic leanings. The ultimate cause ofveridical dreams is God, theirdirect source, however, the 'universal intellect'. In one act of creation, Godhas created everything that is ever going to exist in this intellect; there itexists as 'intellectual form' before eventually coming to be in the world as'corporeal form'. Therefore the universal intellect can reveal to human beingsin veridical dreams what will come to pass in the future. What is revealedin a dream is not, however, the 'intellectual form' of a thing or event, butits 'spiritual form' which, having the same qualities as the stored images ofpast perceptions, is accessible to the aforementioned three (at times called'spiritual') faculties of the dreamer. These faculties are not only responsible for the dream itself but also for assigning it the right interpretation,and for remembering both after awakening. The veridical dream owes itsprophetic character to the fact that it as well as the prophesied event are justtwo different representations of one and the same 'intellectual form'. Thisis also why it is sometimes possible for third persons to interpret divinatorydreams correctly: they are subject to the same revelation from the universalintellect, though they do not receive it in the form of a dream, but as 'spiritual words' (a concept not specified any further).

Although in this part of the theory we find a three-tier hierarchy ofintellectual, spiritual and corporeal forms, suggesting that the 'spiritual'holds an intermediate position between the material and the immaterialrealm (perhaps even retaining the ultimately material aspect that 'spirit'carried in Greek medicine), the adaptor generally favours a clear dichotomybetween 'spiritual' and 'corporeal', where spirituality is practically equatedwith immateriality, and represents the realm of the pure, perfect incorporeal 'higher world', as opposed to the impure, imperfect corporeal world.Against the background of this dichotomy, the mental faculties are orderedhierarchically in terms of their 'spirituality', with perception belonging tothe corporeal world, and imagination, cogitation, and memory increasinglypartaking of spirituality. 9 The ambivalence with regard to the concept ofspirituality may suggest that several adaptors were at work - generally a very

and the Psychology of Sleep and Dreams", in G. FREUDENTHAL ed., Science in MedievalJewish Cultures, Leyde, Brill, forthcoming.9. This order reflects the location of the faculties in the ventricles of the brain as the adaptotwill have found it desctibed in medical texts. Cf. R. HANSBERGER, op. cit., n. 3, p. 138 If.

KITAB AL-IjISS WA-L-MAJjSUS

real possibility in Kitab al-fjiss wa-I-mabsiis -, but in the present case it morelikely indicates that there are passages in Kitlib al-fjiss wa-I-mabsiis where theadaptor stays more closely to his source texts, and passages where he shapesthe text more actively.

While the added material introduces and discusses various other themesas well, many of them of medical nature, the three-faculty theory and thetheory of divinatory dreams are the issues closest to the adaptor's heart, aswe can see from the prominence and the space they are given in Kitlib al-fjisswa-I-mabslls. The three-faculty theory plays a role in both parts of the secondmaqala and also appears in the extant pages of the first maqala. (It is absentfrom the third maqala, which of course deals with a rather unrelated topic,and which is the section of Kitlib al-fjiss wa-I-mabsiis to have received the leastattention from the adaptor.) Nevertheless it is the theory of divinatorydreams that seems to be the central concern of the adaptor: due mainlyto the added material, Bab al-Nawm wa-I-yaqa;a is the longest section of Kitlibal-fjiss wa-I-mabsiis (covering fifty-three ofthe surviving ninety-six manuscriptpages), and it is effectively permeated by the topic of divinatory dreamsfrom beginning to end.

In any case the theory of divinatory dreams is certainly the most eyecatching and defining feature ofKitab al-fjiss wa-I-mabsiis. Being diametricallyopposed to everything Aristotle has to say on the topic in De divinationeper somnum, it furthermore adds a particular edge to the question of howthe Arabic adaptation of the Parva naturalia came into being.

3. Unfortunately we have but little information on the origins ofKitlibal-fjisswa-I-mabslis. The situation is complicated by the fact that we have to accountfor both a translation process and an adaptation process, which may (ormay not) have been linked to each other. The Rampur manuscript does notreveal any dates or names that could help us identify the translator or theadaptor(s); and references in Arabic bibliographical works, although theydo exist, do not provide any reliable data, either. ID The enquiry inro genesisand provenance of Kitlib al-fjiss wa-I-mabsiis therefore has to rely entirely onclues provided by the text itself

In my doctoral dissertation I have approached the problem through adetailed analysis of major parts of Kitab al-fjiss wa-I-mabsiis, with particularemphasis on the second maqala. In what follows I will present the mainresults of this study without, however, being able to broach the underlyingarguments in any detail.

10. See below p. 160 f.


As mentioned earlier, the Aristotelian text is not separated clearly fromthe added material in Kitiib al-Ijiss wa-I-mabsiis; we are not looking at the caseof a text accompanied by a clearly demarcated commentary. Aristotelianand added material are fused together to constitute one text; the translatedAristotelian text in Kitiib al-Ijiss wa-I·mabsiis can be identified as such solelyin comparison with the Greek text of the Parva naturalia. The often ratherfragmentary character of the Aristotelian text further reduces the numberof passages that can actually be used to assess the style and quality of thetranslation.

As far as one can tell from the Aristotelian passages that survive in Kitiibal-Ijiss wa-I-mabsus, the text of the Parva naturalia was in all likelihood translated directly from the Greek; there is no evidence for a Syriac intermediary. The translation seems to be comparatively early, produced perhaps inthe early 9th century A.D. It is generally of rather poor quality. Time andagain the translator appears to struggle with Greek syntax, and even in thosepassages that come closest to the Greek text the Aristotelian doctrines areconveyed in a simplified, if not distorted fashion. The poor quality of thetranslation supports the assumption that it is early, an assumption otherwise endorsed by terminological characteristics that place the text in vicinityto other early Graeco-Arabica. ll The regular presence of certain introductory and summarising formulae in particular links the text to the style ofthe so-called 'Kind! circle', 12 a group of translators working for the 9thcentury philosopher al-Kind! in Baghdad. However, these formulae are atleast equally prominent in the additional material, and hence could be afeature of the adaptation rather than the original translation of the Parvanaturalia. The same goes for the use of certain technical terms.

The distinction between features of translation and adaptation is in factgenerally problematic in Kitiib al-Ijiss wa-I-mabsus. This is directly related tothe poor representation of Aristotelian text in Kitiib al-Ijiss wa-I-mabsus (interms of quality as well as quantity). It means that we cannot quite be surewhether what we identifY as 'Aristotelian' text in Kitiib al-Ijiss wa-I-mabsiisrepresents the original Arabic translation of the Parva naturalia, or a subsequently altered version, all the more so as - not surprisingly, perhaps - theadditions of the adaptation are frequently linked to instances of'misrepresentation' ofAristotle's text. Where does a flawed translation or paraphrase

11. As, e.g., the doxographical work ofPs.-Ammonius, or Ps.-Ishaq's translation ofDe anima.See R. HANSBERGER, op. cit., n. 3, p. 212 If.12. For a comprehensive description of this group, their extant works and stylistic characteristics, see G. ENDRESS, "The Circle of al-Kindi", in G. ENDRESS, R. KRUK eds., TheAncient Tradition in Christian and Islamic Hellenism: Studies on the Transmission ofGreekPhilosophy and Sciences, dedicated to H.]. Drossaart Lutofs on his ninetieth birthday, Leyde,Research School CNWS, 1997, p. 43-76.

raTAB AL-lfISS WA-L-MA/fSUS

end and adaptation begin? What should count as an innocent mistake andwhat as deliberate distortion? Do deviations point to the translator's limitations, the poor condition of the Greek manuscript he used, or a deviantGreek archetype? To what extent are they the responsibility of the translator,the adaptor(s), or glossators? Again, was the Aristotelian text in Kitiib al-Ijisswa-I-mabsiis excerpted from a more complete Arabic translation of the Parvanaturalia? Or was the Greek text available to the translator already truncatedand altered in comparison to the extant Greek version we know?

Too little has survived of the Aristotelian text for us to determine towhat degree the Greek text used by the Arabic translator was identical withthe extant text of the Parva naturalia. This does not mean, however, thatwe have to assume that Kitiib al-Ijiss wa-I-mabsiis is, as it stands, a more or lessaccurate translation ofan altered Greek version of the Parva naturalia. 13 Onthe contrary, there are indications that the bulk of the additions and alterations that are now visible in Kitiib al-Ijiss wa-I-mabsiis were carried out in theArabic text, i.e. after the translation process, or perhaps also in the courseof it. The adaptation further seems to have been effected in several - twoor more - stages (not counting later glosses).

To begin with, the Arabic text does not give the impression of havingbeen penned by one single author. In particular, there are stylistic differences between passages devoted to the aforementioned three-faculty theory,and passages that contain mainly Aristotelian text, even if the translationmay in some instances have undergone alterations under the influence ofthe adaptation.

Furthermore, the added material is not homogeneous in itself and itsvarious themes and ideas are occasionally at odds with each other. Onthe one hand, there is the most distinctive theme of the adaptation, thethree-faculty theory and the theory ofveridical dreams. Some of the addedpassages, on the other hand, seem more closely connected to, or motivated by, the translated Aristotelian text. If the adaptation was carried outin several stages, the translator could thus have been the first (though notthe main) adaptor of the text.

The adaptation frequently takes its cues from, and builds on misrepresentations of the Aristotelian text. Prima facie this may appear to speak fordeliberate distortions of the text at the hands of the adaptor. But whether

13. That the Arabic tradition of the Parva naturalia points to the existence of a secondGreek version, adapted perhaps under Stoic influence, is a hypothesis suggested by S. Pinesin the context of a comparative study ofIbn Rushd's Talkhis Kitrib al-Ijiss wa-l-mabsus and IbnSina's al-Risrila al-Manrimiyya. See S. PINES, "The Arabic Recension ofParva naturalia accordingto al-Risrilaal-Manrimiyya and other sources", Israel Oriental Studies 4 (1974), p. 154-163;cf. R. HANSBERGER, op. cit., n. 3, p. 181 If., and R. HANSBERGER, op. cit., n. 7.

deliberate or not, in many cases the nature of those misrepresentationsis such as to be most easily explained within the scenario of a translation process. This not only concerns the general reduction and simplification of Aristotelian doctrine prevalent in Kitlib a/-Ijiss wa-/-maf.zsiis, but alsofeatures such as the rendering ofa sentence from the Parva naturalia whereevery Greek word is accounted for in the translation, but which nevertheless conveys a meaning entirely different from that of the original; or thedevelopment of a thought depending on the misunderstanding (and consequently mistranslation) of a word that is equivocal in Greek. This does notmean that all misrepresentations of the Aristotelian text are due to simpletranslation errors, but it does show that the translator experienced difficulties with the text, a circumstance which, in turn, may have made him moreprone to add to, and elaborate on his text, and which will have providedopportunities for a later adaptor to do the same.

While the translator may have been the first adaptor of the text, themost prominent additions, i.e. the passages containing the three-facultytheory, seem to have been introduced at a different stage of adaptation, bythe 'main' adaptor of Kitlib a/-Ijiss wa-/-ma~siis. He will have worked with atranslation of the Parva naturalia, possibly excerpting the text (if indeedit was originally more substantial), and combining it with material takenfrom other Graeco-Arabic sources. That he had ties to the KindI circle, agroup renowned for producing translations with 'a tendency towards interpretation with a markedly Neoplatonic preference', 14 is suggested not onlyby stylistic and linguistic characteristics, but also by certain theoretical anddoctrinal features, as for example the notion of 'spirituality' which we findin Kitlib a/-Ijiss wa-/-maf.zsiis as well as in other KindI-circle texts. 15

The link to the KindI circle is further corroborated by the extant pages ofthe first maqli/a, which contains what appear to be so far unknown excerptsfrom the Arabic translation of Plotinus' Enneads IV-VI, a work which wasproduced in the KindI circle. 1G The fragments we find in the first maqli/astem, appropriately enough, from Ennead IY.6: On sense-perception andmemory. I?

14. G. ENDRESS, op. cit., n. 12, p. 59.15. See e.g. G. ENDRESS, ProclusArabus, "BeiruterTexte und Studien" 10, Beirut-Wiesbaden,E Steinet, 1973, p. 127 ff.16. See G. ENDRESS, ibid., and further E W. ZIMMERMANN, "The Origins of the so-calledTheology ofAristotle", in J. KRAYE, W.E RYAN, C.B. SCHMITT eds., Pseudo-Aristotle in theMiddle Ages. The Theology andother Texts, Londres, The Warburg Institute, 1986, p. 110-240;P. ADAMSON, The Arabic Plotinus. A philosophical Study ofthe Theology ofAristotle, Londres,Duckworth, 2002.17. See R. HANSBERGER, op. cit., n. 3, p. 190 ff.

Kitaba/-fjisswa-l-maf.zsiis is not, however, in all aspects a typical KindI-circletext. It is unusual first of all in its general appearance: it is badly structured,inhomogeneous, repetitive, not always intelligible, and at times self-contradictory. This may partly be due to the incorporation of later glosses, or toother accidents of transmission; but nevertheless the text does leave theimpression of never having been subjected to a final revision.

4. Despite this somewhat untidy appearance of the text, the adaptationdoes not seem to have been produced in a rushed or superficial manner. Inthe following, I will discuss three passages from the second maqli/a wherewe can see the adaptor employ skill and diligence in fusing Aristotelian textand added material together. The examples are also meant to give a moretangible idea of the character of the text.

Clauses are numberedfor easy identification afparallelphrases in theArabicand the Greek version. In addition, words orphrases that represent Greek text areprinted bold in the English translation ofthe Arabic text. For editorial reasonsthe Arabic text (reproduced without critical apparatus) is printed on a separatepage at the end ofthis article.

i) Ms. Rampur l752,fols. lOb, 25 -Ha, 12

(1) I also say that whatever a man sees, hears, senses, looks at or touches,when he acts [on it] with [his] memory, he will not say in his soul: 'I have

sensed [I la] this' or 'I have heard it' or 'I have seen it' (2) bur he willsearch for it in another way which is more noble than finding it by sense

perception. (3) For memory is not sense-perception, (4) by which things

are perceived, because sense-perception can perceive things through a bodyonly. (5) As for memory, it is an innate faculty which perceives things [in]abstracted [form], (6) and it perceives them only after time [has passed].

(7) As for perceiving them at the time of their existence or in the time to come,this is not the function of memory, nor can it be attributed to memory.

Ar., De mem., 1, 449b22-25 18

(1) a.d yap (hav tvepyfj KaTa TO IlVllIlOVeUelv, O{)TCO~ tv Tn 'I'uxn Asyel,OTt npoTepov TOiho nKou<Jev nn<JeeTO ntvOTl<JEV.

(3) E<JTlIl€V oDv l] IlV~IlTl oihe al<JeTl(Jl~

oihe lmoATl'l'l~,

18. Greek passages of the Parva naturalia are quoted according to Ross' edition, WD. Ross,Aristotle. Parva naturalia, a Revised Text with Introduction and Commentary, Oxford,Clarendon Press, 1955.


(5?) aUu ,OUTCllV 'ClVOe; e~le; nn6.8oe;,

(6) amv yivllml xpovoe;.

(1) For whenever someone is actively engaged in remembering, he alwayssays in his soul in this way that he heard, or perceived, or thought this before.(3) Therefore memory is not perception or conception, (5?) but a state oraffection connected with one of these, (6) when time has elapsed. 19

This is a typical example of a passage where we can see the Arabic textfollowing the Greek words, while at the same time diverging from its senseand spirit. In several instances elements of the three-faculty theory have foundtheir way into the paragraph: in the description of memory as a 'faculty',20and in the contention that memory is 'nobler' than sense-perception, that it'perceives in abstracted form' and is not associated with corporeality in thesame way as sense-perception. These references to the adaptor's theory areall found in the additional material ofclauses (2), (4), and (5). Neverthelessthey are tightly linked to the 'Aristotelian' sentence (1) - to be exact: tothe negation (Id) that has somehow slipped in, converting the meaning ofthe translated sentence into the exact opposite of its original Greek counterpart. This negation could be the result ofa misreading of the Greek original: hout6s (which is in fact not explicitly translated in the Arabic) couldeasily have been mistaken for the Greek negation oup6s, or perhaps for ouor ouk, if the Greek manuscript was illegible or defective. Alternatively, thenegation could have been inserted deliberately by someone wanting to alterthe meaning of (1), the most likely candidate being, of course, the mainadaptor of Kitrib al-fjiss wa-l-mabsiis.

What is remarkable about this negation is that it seems extremely implausible. Up to this point, the one topic that the Arabic text has focused onmore than anything else (and much more so than Aristotle's De memoria) ismemory's being solely concerned with things that have happened, and havebeen perceived, in the past (c£ clauses 6 and 7). What would be more naturalin such a context than to say that memory is accompanied by the awarenessthat one has perceived before what one is now remembering? In the Arabicadaptation, however, the additional sentences (2), (4), and (5) let the matterappear in a new light, alter the emphasis within (1) and in effect providea coherent interpretation. (Needless to say, Aristotle's point is completelylost in the process!) The focus is shifted away from the thought that we can

19. English translation by R. SORABJI, Aristotle on Memory, second edition, Londres,Duckworth, 2004, p. 48.20. The term 'innate' (ghariziyya) appears, rather unusually, to be derived from Greek hexis;this is suggested by a parallel case in another passage of the second maqiila (fol. 1Gb) wherehexis is translated as ghariza, 'natural disposition'.

KIYAB AL-ijISS WA-L-MAIfSOS

remember only what we have perceived (thought, known) before; what theArabic text says is rather that even if that is so, we do not remember throughrecourse to sense-perception, but by means ofa higher, 'nobler' faculty thatis removed from the corporeal objects of sense-perception, dealing insteadwith 'abstract', immaterial objects. From the perspective of the adaptationthis is a masterful reinterpretation of the passage: building on Aristotle's ownwords, it promotes a concept of memory quite different from that of theStagirite. Most importantly, the adaptor avoids calling memory a 'state oraffection connected with perception'; according to the Arabic text, memoryis distinct from perception and of a very different quality.

The at first sight implausible negation in clause (1) hence turns out to bevery well suited to the adaptor's purposes, and this may tempt one to thinkhe inserted the negation deliberately, especially as this negation is implausibleenough in the context of the original text as to make one wonder whetherthe translator should not have realised the mistake. On the other hand, therewould have been no particular need for the adaptor to take this step which,after all, resulted in the statement of (1) - a statement that even within theadaptation strikes one as baffling and uncalled for, and that moreover is atodds with the paragraph directly preceding it (cf. De mem., 1, 449b9-2l).Without the crucial negation, clause (1) would have been perfectly compatible not only with the preceding, but also with the following lines, wherethe text comes back again to the point that memory is to do with the past(6, 7). There would have been little need or motive to change (1), and therewould have been easier ways for the adaptor to avoid committing himselfto theoretical points he did not want to endorse. AB there is a convincingtextual explanation for the appearance of the negation it is, on the whole,more plausible to assume that it was present already in the translation ofthe Aristotelian text, and that the theoretically charged parts of the passage(2, the second part of4, 5) were inserted by the adaptor in order to do awaywith the inconsistencies it created. That he should do so in the terms ofhisown favoured theory comes as no surprise.

The hand of the adaptor is even more visible in Brib al-Nawm wa-l-yaqa;a,where we can see him reworking the Aristotelian text in an even bolder,and more deliberate way than in the part corresponding to De memoria.The following example stems from the first part ofBrib al-Nawm wa-l-yaqa;a, aparagraph marking the transition from a passage of comparatively faithfultranslation ofAristotelian text (De som., 1, 453bll-31) to the first passageof mainly additional material in the chapter.

ROTRAUD HANSBERGER

ii) Ms. Rampur 1752, foL 21b, 6 - 22a, 24

(1) This may [be shown to] prove true, and can be known, from [considering] the waking and the sleeping person. For a sleeper may petceivemany things without doubting that those things that he is perceiving in hissleep are there while he is awake. (2) The difference between the perception of the waking and that of the sleeping person consists in that thesleeper perceives from inside only, whereby that [kind of] perception ofhis [takes place] without any movement on his part, whereas the wakingperson perceives from outside, that [kind of] perception [taking place]through movement. (3) Let us therefore say: the difference between senseperception of the sleeping and of the waking person has become clear,[i.e.] which one of the two [types of] sense-perception is more apt andmore correct; and this ought to be recognised and known. (4) The senseperception of the sleeper, we shall then say, is sense-perception potentially,whereas the sense-perception of the waking person is sense-perception actually. (5) Whatever is potential is hard to perceive, whereas what is actual canbe perceived and known. (6) However, the sense-perception of the sleeper,even though being potential, may emerge into actuality; although some ofit will emerge in a clear and plain manner, while some of it will be difficult[to perceive] and unclear. (7) As for [the question which one is] the mostperfect and the noblest ofthe two: the spiritual is nobler than the corporeal.However, [22a] the spiritual is not [considered] nobler than the corporealby the corporeal, nor is the corporeal [considered] nobler than the spiritual by the spiritual; rather, the spiritual is [considered] nobler than thecorporeal by the spiritual, whereas the corporeal is [considered] nobler thanthe spiritual by the corporeal; but it is not at all possible that the spiritualshould be [considered] nobler by the corporeal, whereas it may indeed bepossible that the spiritual, which we have said to be potential, is [considered] nobler by man than the corporeal, which we have said to be actual.(8) Evidence for the spiritual being nobler than the corporeal is that thespiritual indicates what will come to be in the future, whereas the corporeal indicates what has come to exist at the present time only. (9) When aperson unifies his faculties through the most subtle of things and makesthem one, he will see that thing which he sees potentially just as someonewho sees it actually. It is because his faculties are separated that a man isprevented from seeing things potentially in the same manner as when hesees them actually ...

Ar., De som., I, 453b31 - 454a4; 454a7-11

(1) En bE Kat EK Twvbs bf]AOV" 4J yap TOV €rPTlYOpOW YVCDpt~O).!SV, wu'tC(lKat TOV Ka8unvouVTa'

KITAB AL-lfISS WA-L-MAlfSOS

(2) TClV bE ata8avo).!svov EYPTlYOPEVUl VOflt~O).!SV, KUt TOV EYPTlYOPOTUreuna 11 TWV E~CD8EV nvoe; uia8uvw8ar11 TWV EV ulJ't('p Klv~asCDv.

[ ... ] End b£ oihs Tf]e; IjfUxf]e; '{blOV TO uta8Uvsa8ar oihs TOU aw).!uwe;

(4) (OD yap r, MVuflle;, TOUTOU Kat r, EVEPYS1U'

r, bE ASYOflEVTl u'(a8TlGle; we; EVEPYStU KtVTlcrte; ne; bta TOU aWflUTOe; Tile;Ijfuxf]e; Ean), <puvspov we; oihs Tfje; IJfUxf]e; TO nu8oe; '(blOV, oih' UljfuXOVaWflu bUVUTOV uta8uvsa8ar.

(1) Again, the point is clear from the following. We recognize a personas sleeping by the same mark as rhat by which we recognize someone aswaking. (2) It is the person who is perceiving thar we consider to be awake;and we take every waking person to be perceiving either somerhing externalor some movement wirhin himself [... ] But given that perceiving belongsneither to the soul nor to the body solely (4) (for what owns any capacityalso owns its exercise; and what is called perception, in the sense of exercise, is a certain movement of the soul by means of the body), it is plainthat the affection is not peculiar to the soul, nor is a soul-less body capableof perceiving. 21

The most prominent (and crucial) feature ofthis paragraph is the dichotomyof spirituality and corporeality which, as I have mentioned above, is one ofthe favourite themes of the adaptor. We can see here how certain conceptsstemming from the Aristotelian text, i.e. internal and external perception,movement, potentiality and actuality, are fitted into this dichotomy, which isat the same time equated with the distinction between waking and sleeping.Aristotle's description of the waking state - always to be perceiving something, be it external objects or events within ourselves - is split up, resultingin a comparison of two opposite states: while external perception remains acharacteristic ofthe waking state, internal perception is now made a featureof sleep. As a result, sleep and waking are not distinguished any longer bypresence and absence of perception, but by two different kinds of perception. Again, in Aristotle's text, a 'movement within oneself' constitutes anobject ofperception during the waking state. In the Arabic text, 'movementwithin' remains a feature of the waking state, but no longer as an object ofperception: it represents the mode in which perception takes place, havingbecome a criterion for the distinction between external and internal perception. The former is associated with movement, the latter with rest. The twokeywords 'potentiality' and 'actuality' (dunamis/energeia, clause 4), taken up

21. English translation by D. GALLOP, Aristotle On Sleep and Dreams. A Text and Translationwith Introduction, Notes and Glossary, second edition, Warminster, Aris & Philipps,1996, p. 61 ff.

~

1:fj~ 8' Ui(Jen(JE(D~ 1:ponov nvo: 1:J1V ~l6V aK1VTj(J{UV KUt olov /iE(JJlQV 1:QVUTl:VOV dvu{ <pUJlEV, 1:J1V 86 Matv KUt 1:J1V aVEatV €ypnyopatv.

And we maintain that sleep is, in a certain way, an immobilization or'fettering' of perception; whereas its liberation or release is waking. 23

(That the expressions 'bond of the faculties' and 'union of the faculties'refer to the same thing is evident from a further passage (fol. 23b-24a),where both terms are used.)

The quoted examples stand for many more passages of Kitab al-fjiss wa-Imal;sUs in which we can see the adaptor actively interfering with the Aristoteliantext, reshaping it for his purposes. Such passages are particularly instructivein that they can tell us something about the adaptor's very own interests andconcerns. The main theories that the adaptation of Kitlib al-fjiss wa-I-ma!zsusputs forward, such as the three-faculty theory, are presented most clearlyin the longer, continuous passages of additional material. These theories,however, are not the adaptor's free invention; based as they are on Greekmedical theory and philosophy, he will have drawn on Greek, or GraecoArabic, sources. So far, we do not know the specific sources he used; hence wecannot tell whether he quoted literally or freely, or how much of the addedmaterial in Kitlib al-fjiss wa-I-mabsiis he actually composed entirely himself.In those places, however, where he joins Aristotelian text and added material together, we can be certain to see himself at work, and the fruits of hiscreativity tell us something about his own preferences - as, for example,

iii) Ms. Rampur 1752, fol 27b, 20j

If this is so, then waking will inevitably [equal] the unfastening of thebond of the faculties, whereas sleep will [equal] the [fastened] bond ofthe faculties. Thus it has been established clearly and soundly that wakingis the opposite of sleep.

Ar., De som., I, 454b25-27

.Sleep, spirituality, and perception of the future are thus associated witheach other. 22 The other aspects mentioned in the table have supportive character. The integration of rest, potentiality, and internal perception into thesystem is, as we have seen, motivated by keywords in the Aristotelian text.The same is true of union versus separation of the faculties, as transpiresfurther down in the text:

KITAB AL-IfISS WA-L-MAIjSrJS

22. The adaptor seems to ignore an inconsisrency thar rhis dichotomy inrroduces inro hisrext rhrough suggesring thar dreams generally are endowed wirh divinatory power, a posirion rhar rhe rexr dearly does not hold.23. English translation by D. GALLOP, op. cit., n. 21, p. 67.

ROTRAUD HANSBERGER

actuality

external perception

separation of faculties

waking

corporeality

perception of present

motion

potentiality

internal perception

union of faculties

sleep

spirituality

perception of future

rest

isolation from their immediate context, are integrated into the systemith a similar manoeuvre. Potential perception is assigned to sleep, actual

perception to waking. In (7) and (8), the 'potential' is finally identified as'spiritual', perception during sleep hence declared spiritual; the 'actual' is identified as 'corporeal', and perception during waking accordingly pronouncedcorporeal. Spiritual things are then declared to be 'nobler' and 'more perfect'than corporeal things: while the corporeal (object of perception, we haveto understand) can indicate only what exists at present, the spiritual pointsto things that will come to exist in the future.

Obviously it has been the adaptor's aim, in redesigning the paragraph,to link the perception of future events not only to the realm of the spiritual, but also to sleep, thus setting the stage for the theory of divinatorydreams. The adaptor achieves this by associating sleep with 'internal' and'potential' sense-perception - both of them notions that are inspired bykeywords in the Aristotelian text. This is then relatively easily linked tothe spiritual realm, by contrasting it to 'external', 'actual' sense-perception,which belongs to waking, informs us of the present state of things and isassociated with the material world.

How 'potential', 'spiritual' perception is supposed to work at a psychological level, so that one will indeed perceive things that are potential as ifthey were actual (i.e. one will perceive future events as if they were realityalready) is indicated in the immediately following passage. This kind ofperception, we learn, requires the 'union' of the 'three faculties'. Once theyare separated, and perform each their proper function only, the facultieswill not be able to carry out the function of internal perception properly.There will still be perception during sleep, but it will consist in dreams thatdo not portray things correctly, i.e. that are not foretelling the future.

Even before the discussion of divinatory dreams gets under way, Babal-Nawm wa-Iyaqr1fa thus presents its reader with a clear-cut dichotomy thatis obviously developed with this topic in mind. Collecting a number ofaspects, the adaptor assigns them neatly to two sides:


his predilection for dividing things up along the lines of the dichotomybetween spirituality and corporeality.

The careful work that the adaptor has performed in adjusting theAristotelian text to his favoured theory demonstrates that the text transmitted in Arabic as Aristotle's Kitiib al-Ijiss wa-I-mal;siis was never supposed tobe a mere collection of several authors' proclamations on a certain rangeof topics. It was meant to be an adaptation. Whether its author (I meanthe adaptor) meant it to be transmitted under Aristotle's name is a question that one may speculate about; so far, however, there is no evidence tothe contrary.

5. Transmitted under Aristotle's name, Kitiib al-Ijiss wa-I-mabsiis was readand drawn upon by several mediaeval Arabic scholars. How big its impactreally was is yet to be determined by future research, but it is already clearthat the text had considerable influence. However, it is first and foremostthe ideas contributed by the adaptation, namely the three-faculty theoryand the theory ofveridical dreams, that commanded the scholars' interest,inspiring philosophical theories of prophecy and divination (naturally asalient topic in Islamic philosophy). Elements of the theories ofKitiibal-Ijisswa-I-mal;siis are reflected in theories ofdreaming and ofprophecy in the workofal-Parabi (d. _950),24 even though he does not explicitly quote Kitiibal-ljiSswa-I-mabsiis as his source; and the Arabic Parva naturalia have most certainlybeen a source of inspiration for important parts ofIbn Sinas philosophicalpsychology, including, most significantly, his famous theory of the 'internalsenses'.25 Furthermore the text may have inspired the theory of veridicaldreams in the Book ofthe Elements by the Jewish philosopher and physician Isaac Israeli (-855 - -955). 26 1he 'Brethren of Purity' Ukhwiinal-Safii:10th century) could also have been influenced by the Arabic Parva naturalia, a point that is yet to be studied. Kitiib al-ljiSs wa-I-mal;siis was, however,of interest not only to philosophers: it was, for example, also quoted by AbuSa'd al-Dinawari (fl. -1010), the author of a dream manual.l7

Kitiib al-Ijiss wa-I-mal;siis received a keen response also in mediaeval Spain,where it found the interest of both Muslim and Jewish thinkers, and fromwhere, through Ibn Rushd's (d. 1198) Epitome ofthe Parva naturalia (TalkhIs

24. E.g. in his Mabiidi'arii'ahlal-madinaal-fiil/zla; see R. HANSBERGER, op. cit., n. 7, p. 73 f.25. See R. HANSBERGER, op. cit., n. 3, p. 221 If. Ibn Sinas authorship of al-Risiilaal-Maniimiyya,which mentions rhe text explicitly, is still under discussion; orher texts that reflect Kitiibal-fliss wa-l-ma~sUs include al-Shlfii' and al-Nojiit.26. See R. HANSBERGER, op. cit., n. 7, p. 72 f.27. Kitiibal-Ta'bii-jl/-ru'yiiawal-Qiidirifil-ta'bir, see R. HANSBERGER, op. cit., n. 7, p. 69 If.

KITAB AL-ijISS WA-L-MAl;iSUS

Kitiib al-Ijiss wa-I-mal;siis) its influence was to reach the Latin West. 28 UntilKitiib al-Ijiss wa-I-mal;siis was rediscovered, Ibn Rushd's Epitome was the mostimportant witness to the text. As we know now, it is based on a version ofKitiib al-Ijiss wa-I-mal;siis that must have been the same as, or very similar to,the one preserved in the Rampur manuscript. 29 Before Ibn Rushd, it is inparticular the philosopher Ibn Bajja (d. 1138) who, with his theory of'spiritual forms', enthusiastically embraced some of the characteristic ideas ofKitiib al-Ijiss wa-l-mabsiis. 30

The reception of the Arabic Parva naturalia, in particular its theoriesconcerning sleep and dreams, within the Jewish scholarly community iscurrently being studied by Hagar Kahana-Smilansky.31 Direct quotationsfrom Kitiib aI-Hiss wa-I-mahsiis are found in the work Kitiib al-Muhiidara wa-Imudhiikara by Moshe ibn ;Ezra (-1060 - -1140)32 in the context'ofpoeticalinspiration during sleep; and quotations in Hebrew translation, again frompassages devoted to the theory of divination in dreams in Biib al-Nawm wa-IyaqCl?a, are attested in the 13th century Commentary on Maimonides' Guideofthe Perplexed by R. Zera.1:Iya b. Isaac b. She'alt!'el J:Ien. 33 Scholars that usedthe Arabic Parva naturalia as a source further include Maimonides (I 1351204), Joseph ibn ~addiq (d. 1149), and Joseph ibn Waqar (d. -1360).34

While the reception of Kitiib al-Ijiss wa-I-mal;siis is well attested from thelate 10th and particularly the 11 th century onwards, its early fate is muchmore in the dark: in the case ofearlier authors like the philosopher al-Kindi(d. - 870) or the physician Qusta ibn Luqa (d. 912), who wrote on the topicofsleep and dreams as well as on that oflength and shortness oflife, it so farhas not been possible to detect any particular influence ofKitiib al-ljiSs wa-Ima/;siis, and it is not easy to ascertain whether they were actually familiarwith the text itselfand, if they were, whether that version ofKitiib al-Ijiss wa-Imal;siis would have been the same as the one extant in the Rampur manuscript. 35 This is a particularly intriguing question with regard to al-Kindi,given that the adaptation ofKitiib al-ljiSs wa-I-mal;siis shows so many affinities

28. See C. DI MARTINO, "Les Parva naturalia dans la rradition arabe", in R. GOULET, Dictionnairedes Philosophes Antiques, supp!. 1, Paris; Editions du CNRS, 2003, p. 375-378, p. 378.29. See R. HANSBERGER, op. cit., n. 3, p. 230 If.; and R. HANSBERGER, op. cit., n. 7, p. 67 f.30. See R. HANSBERGER, op. cit., n. 7, p. 67.31. See her forthcoming article for details, op. cit., n. 8. I am indebted to Dr. KahanaSmilansky for allowing me to consult a draft of her article.32. See R. HANSBERGER, op. cit., n. 7, p. 66, and cf. S. PINES, op. cit. n. 13, p. 147 If.33. See A. RAVITZKY, "Hebrew Quotations from the lost Arabic Recension of Parva naturalia", Jerusalem Studies in Arabic and Islam, 3 (1981-82), p. 191-202 (1981-82), andR. HANSBERGER, op. cit., n. 7, p. 68 f.34. As documented in H. MHANA-SMILANSKY, op. cit., n. 8.35. See R. HANSBERGER, op. cit., n. 7, p. 241 If.; for al-Kindi see also P. ADAMsoN,AI-Ki'ndi,New York-Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2007, p. 135 If.


to texts produced in the 'Kindi circle'. In other cases, e.g. al-Parabi and IsaacIsraeli, who take up some of the characteristic ideas of the adaptation ofKitab al-fjiss wa-l-ma(zsTis, one still has to take into account the possibility thatthey may have encountered these ideas in other sources, perhaps the samethat were used by the adaptor of the Parva naturalia.

This uncertainty is reflected in reports about Aristotle's Parva naturaliain Arabic bibliographical works, starting with the Fihrist of Ibn al-Nadim(d. 990), which record information about Kztab al-fjiss wa-l-mabsUs that doesnot square with the extant text. Ibn al-Nadim states that Kitab al-fjiss wa-lmabsUs consists of two maqalas, and that no reliable translation of the work isknown. 36 While the latter claim may arguably be compatible with what wefind in Kitab al-fjiss wa-l-ma(zsUs, the first one is clearly wrong. Ibn al-Nadimgoes on to say: "What has been mentioned is that it is a small piece whichal-Tabari has commented on after Abu Bishr Matta ibn Yunus".37 Apart fromthe question of how Kitab al-fjiss wa-l-mabsTis could be described as a 'smallpiece' - could this perhaps refer to passages of Aristotelian text only? Oris Ibn al-Nadim speaking of a different text altogether? -, it has not beenpossible so far to link the translator Abu Bishr Matta ibn Yiinus (d. 940)to the extant text, and the same goes for al-Tabari. 38 The bibliographicalsources39 hence raise similar questions about the Arabic Parva naturalia tothose brought up by the analysis ofKitabal-fjisswa-l-ma!zszis: Was there ever a(more) complete Arabic translation of the Parva naturalia? At what pointof time did the extant version of Kitab al-fjiss wa-l-mabsUs begin to be transmitted, and to be accepted, as the translation of the Aristotelian work?And who are the people responsible for the text? Despite the new insightsthe text of Kitab al-fjiss wa-l-mabsUs offers, there are still many questions thatsurround this work, and the transmission ofAristotle's Parva naturalia inArabic certainly needs and deserves further study.

36. Cf. M.R. TAJADDUD ed., Ibna/-Nadim:Kltiiba/-fihrist, Tehran, 1971, p. 312.37. For the Arabic text, see M.R. TAJADDUD, ibid., r,. 312.38. On the identity of this person, see A. HASNAWl, 'Un eleve d'Abu BiSt Matta b. Yunus:Abu 'Amr al-TabatI", Bulletin d'itudes orientales, 48 (1996), p. 35-55, p. 35 If., 40 If.39. Cf. R. HANSBERGER, op. cit., n. 3, p. 253 If., where further bibliographical sources(partly dependent on Ibn al-Nadirn) are discussed as well; see also H. DAIBER, op. cit.,n. 4, p. 39 f.

KITAB AL-IfISS WA-L-MAlfSUS

Textual Examples from Kitab al-fjiss wa-l-mabsiis:

i) Ms. Rampur 1752, fols. 10b, 25 - lla, 12

Ij! .G~ ct.......l Ji 0Y'""':'i J1 .L.....:..1 J1~ J1.).1 01.) L, Js~! 4i J~1J (1)

J1~ Ji Il.b [lIa] ~.lQJ!~~J~ ~ .G,li fljJ~)w J.U:;~ (3) ~I JJ-;>oJ L1"" ..Jyl.1 y>).,1 JJ-;>oJ t.i>-!~ Lw! ~ (2) cGY'""':'1

~!.~VI~I~.)J;.:,i~ ~.GV.~VI,,":,~~~ (4) t"'""'"Y>~fljJl~! 4S.)~ ~J (6) bJ~ .~VI ~.)~ ~y'y. b~.G~ fljJl Cai..Q (5) f"~

J.U~ I~ i:?~1 .:,L,)I ~ Ji !..AlJJ-;>oJ .:,L,j 4S.)J; .:,i (.'tJ (7) .:,L,j .u.:... fljJl ~ J~.:,i~ ~J fljJl

ii) Ms. Rampur 1752, fols. 21 b, 6 - 22a, 24

'~'l.;' ~ .lQ ~LJI ~i .:J!jJ ~LJIJ .:,~I L1"" ...J~J Il.b F .lQJ (1)

(2)~~ ~1 ......". ~~ ~1.~VI.ill:i~i d.;, ~ Y>J b~.:J!j.L.....:..J ~IJ ~~ Lw(~LJI ~i ~LJIJ .:,~I ~ Lt-:' \?jJl J.-.QJIJ.lQ L! J~ (3) ~..>-"'7 ~I .:J!jJ (.)~ L1""~ ':'~b cC..o~..>"'" ~ L1""

':-'7"~1 L1""J ,,:-,~1J &J1~I ~1 .:,~IJ ~LJI:"""" Lt-:' L,~.:,~I

:.,...,.. .:,~I:""""J b:,.aJ~:"""" ~LJI:""""~! ~ (4) ~J 1l.b...J~.:,1f"~ ~.)J.<> .G~ ~~ .:,1S L,J 4.5:1.).11 y.=. .G,li b:,.aJ~ Y> L, JsJ (5) ~~

T-:"..9.p- (..P= L, cC..o ~1 ~ ~I -..1! (..P= .ill b:,.aJ~ .:,1S.:,lJ ~LJI :""""J (6)

~bJ)1 ~,li ~yl.1J ~i Cajj (7) ~ ~ y.=. Y> L, cC..oJ 6.....:,IJ 1.;~-~I .L..c ~~I L1"" ...Jyl.i :;bJ)1 [22a] ~..9 ~~I L1"" ..Jyl.1

- L1"" ...J~i ~bJ)1 ~ ~~)I.L..c ~b..9)' L1"" .jyl.1~~I ~J.G1~!:;~1~ ~bJ)I-L1""...Jy1.i~-~b~bJ)1~ ~~I~ -'1 ·c .lQ J.> ~I ' '~I .L..c""...s ·1'·b)l· .<.. i ~< __ ._u~ .. ..r. 'Y""..r '-' ~u~.J!:L

.G1 l:.flj csjJl ~~I ~ .).1 .L..c ...Jyl.i bjir~.Gi l:.flj csjJl ~bJ)1-..k JIJ :;6.J)I-~i ~~I L1"" ...Jy1.1 ~bJ)1 ~1 -..k ~;'IJ Oi) ~~

.:,~I .:,t.:j ~.:,1S L,--..k JIJ Y> Lw1 ~~I..9 ~~I .:,L,)I ~ .)1Sy> L,

.:J!j cs.>: .G~-b~ !..Al~J .~VI...ill'l.;' 0l,.Q .).i ~i Ij~ 6) .b.iQ L~~cs.>: .:,i L1"" .).1~ LwlJ ~~ .~I cs.>: csjJlS b:,.aJ~ 01.>: csjJl.~1

-- -' 1--'·1.., 1-'t~!..Al1 I I·. <~rL, WI.'I'" «.g~ I>~ ul UO'-"''7 .>: l..4~ 0-""" .• _ l

4 ~


iii) Ms. Rampur 1752, fo!' 27b, 20 £

-.~II.bL ·'·11 --~II.bL J)l:...:,1 d' illJl"j djb..,)\j I.AA l.:u 'IS Ij!..Q(5.Y'" • .) i"-J-'"' J (5.Y'" •.) ..r-. U U •

... i"~I~~I~i~Ju~.ill

Le feu agit-il en tant que feu?Causalite et synonymie dans les Quaestionessur le De sensu et sensato de Jean de Jandun I

]EAN-BAPTISTE BRENET

Universite de Paris-Ouest Nanterre-La Defense

Num ignis agat in quantum ignis? Cette question est extraite des Quaestionessur le De sensu et sensato du maitre es arts parisien du XIV" siecle Jean deJandun, «prince des averro'istes ,,2. Loin de se reduire au probleme techniquedu mode d'action d'un element, dIe lance, dans une ample dispute ou figurel' essentid du peripatetisme greco-arabe, une reflexion sur la causalite efficiente al'a:uvre dans l'ensemble des generations substantielles du mondesublunaire. On voudrait en prendre la mesure et en saisir I'issue. Deux chosesimportent dans les commentaires medievaux d'Aristote: le decoupage dutexte qu'ils proposent (ce qu'ils retiennent, isolent, negligent, rdient - lamaniere, done, qu'ont les auteurs d'investir le texte de base); et les bouleversements theoriques, explicites, maltrises, deliberes ou non, qu'ils lui fontsubir, i.e. leur charge proprement conceptuelle. Guide par Averroes, Jeande Jandun mise sur la synonymie pour sauver Aristote contre Platon et sessuccesseurs. Sous ce double rapport, son analyse merite examen.

Jean pose cinq questions apropos de la saveur, qui occupe le chapitre 4du traite De la sensation et des sensibles d'Aristote3. La troisieme, sur le feu,

1. Je tiens it remercier chaleureusement Cristina CERAMI pour son aide dans I'elaborationde cet article. J'ai pu beneficier de son livre, Generation et substance. Aristote etAverroes entrephysique et metaphysique, avant sa parution prochaine (chez De Gruyter, coil. "ScientiaGraeco-Arabica»). Sans ses conseHs, ses critiques, ce travail n'aurait jamais trouve sa formeactuelle.2. Sur]ean de Jandun (m. 1328), voirJ.-B. BRENET, Tramfertsdusujet. La noetiqued'Averroesselon Jean de Jandun, Paris, Vrin, 2003, et les references bibliographiques donnees en finde volume. Pour une presentation succincte de l'"averrolsme latin», voir ID., «Averroes,commentateur ou depravat.eur? ", dans M. A1u<:OUN dir., Histoire de l'islam et des musulmans en France, du MoyenAge anosjours, Paris, AIbin Michel, 2006, p. 223-235. Commetexte de base, nous utilisons Ioannis de Ianduno philosophi acutissimi Quaestiones super ParuisNaturalibus, Venise, apud Haeredem Hieronymi Scoti, 1589.3. Elles suivent le mouvement du texte, comme le voulait l'usage. La premiere (q. 21):l'humide est-Hie sujet propre de la saveur (utrum humidum sitproprium subiectum saporis) ?La deuxieme (q. 22): le chaud et le sec sont-ils les causes actives de la saveur (num calida

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Serie Philosophie - 28Universite Paris 1 - Pantheon-Sorbonne

Les Parva naturalia d'AristoteFortune antique et medievale

Sous la direction deCHRISTOPHE GRELLARD et PIERRE-MARIE MOREL

Ouvrage publit avec le concoursdu Conseil scientifique de Paris 1

Publications de la Sorbonne2010

Illustration de couverture:Arisrote, Traittfs et opuscules, 6, De sensu et sensato, xme-Xlv" siecle.© Bibliotheque municipale de Tours, ms 679, f. 166v. © CNRS-IRHT.

Composition rypographique: Benedicte Chantalou/Yuruga

© Publications de la Sorbonne, 2010212, rue Saint-]acques, 75005 Pariswww.univ-paris1.frLoi du 11 mars 1957

ISBN 978-2-85944-635-2ISSN 1255-183X

Presentation

CHRISTOPHE GRELLARD

Universite Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne

PIERRE-MARIE MOREL

ENS de Lyon

Les Petits traites d'histoire naturelle d'Aristote -les Parva naturalia pourreprendre le titre latin en usage depuis le xme siecle - posent une question essentielle pour toute enquete sur l'ame: quelles sont les operationsou les affections que nous pouvons dire «communes aI'ame et au corps»?Ces opuscules formulent et developpent en efIet, au coeur de la «psychologie» entendue en son sens etymologique, une problematique que l'ondirait aujourd'hui « physiologique ». Qu'ils enquetent sur la sensation etles sensibles, la memoire, le sommeil et les reves, la longevite du vivant, larespiration ou encore la vie et la mort, ils convergent tous pour confronterla definition generale de I'ame aux proprietes du corps. Sous ces dernieres,comprenons aussi bien: les proprietes elementaires, comme le chaud et lefroid; les proprietes organiques, comme la resistance des tissus, les mouvements du souffle; les accidents du vivant, comme les impressions sensibles,les maladies ou l'epaisseur du sang.

Cette maniere d'aborder la question de l'ame est incontestablementoriginale. La psychologie du Timee de Platon constitue, il est vrai, unprecedent remarquable, qu'Aristote n'ignore pas et qu'il doit affronter enplusieurs lieux de nos traites. Il n'est pas certain, cependant, qu'elle exercesur la philosophie de l'ame aproprement parler une influence comparableacelle d'Aristote. Il est vrai que le Timee sera la reference obligee en ce quiconcerne le theme de l'animation cosmique pour toute la tradition platonicienne posterieure. Toutefois, Aristote refuse d'envisager serieusementqu'il y ait une «ame du monde)} et sa philosophie de !'ame ouvre une toutautre perspective. Appliquant les grands principes formules dans le traiteDe i'ame, les Parva naturalia etablissent un lien nouveau, avec une precisionencore inegalee dans le corpus philosophique, entre la traditionnelle et venerable conception de l'ame comme principe de mouvement et de connaissance, et cette partie de la philosophie naturelle qui prend avec le Stagiriteun essor considerable: la science du vivant.

I LES PARVA NATURALIA D'ARISTOTE

YACK B., "A Reinterpretation ofAristotle's Political Teleology", History ofPoliticalThought, 12 (1991), p. 15-33.

ZIMMERMANN A., Verzeichnis ungedruckter Kommentare zur Metaphysik undPhysikdes Aristoteles aus der Zeit von etwa 1250-1350, Leyde-Cologne, Brill, 1971.

ZIMMERMANN EW, "The Origins of the so-called Theology of Aristotle », dans]. KRAYE, WE RYAN, C.B. SCHMITT dir., Pseudo-Aristotle in the Middle Ages.The Theology and other Texts, Londres, Warburg Institute, 1986, p. 110-240.

ZUPKO ]., John Buridan. Portrait ofa Fourteenth Century Master ofArts, NotreDame, Notre-Dame University Press, 2003.

Table des matieres

Presentation , 5Christophe Grellard, Pierre-Marie More!

Anomalies de l'intelligence, intelligence de l'anomalie.Note sur la representation de l'organisation du corps vivantchez Aristote entre les Parva naturalia et les Problemes 11

Andrea L. Carbone

Le jardin des Parva naturalia: les plantes chez Aristote et apres lui 31Luciana Repici

Stages in the reception ofAristotle's works on sleep and dreamsin Hellenistic and Imperialphilosophical and medical thought 47

Philip]. Van der Eijk, Maithe Hulskamp

Le Commentaire du De sensu par Alexandre d'Aphrodise 77Carla Di Martino

Aristotle's De memoria and Plotinus on memory 101Richard A.H. King

La premiere reception du De memoria et reminiscentiaau Moyen Age Latin: le commentaire d'Adam de Buckjield 121

]ulie Brumberg-Chaumont

Kitab al-Ijiss wa-l-mabsus. Aristotle's Parva naturalia in Arabic Guise 143Rotraud Hansberger

Le feu agit-il en tant que feu? Causalid et synonymiedans les Quaestiones sur le De sensu et sensato de Jean de Jandun 163

Jean-Baptiste Brenet

Secundum viam naturae et docrrinae. Lire le De motu animaliumet les Parva naturalia d'Aristote au Moyen Age 197

Pieter De Leemans

La reception medievale du De somno et vigilia. Approche anthropologiqueet epistemologique du reve, d'Albert le GrandaJean Buridan 221

Christophe Grellard

PostJaceApropos de l'enluminure de couverture: une incitation aLa recherche 239

Max Lejbowicz

Bibliographie 249

2. hansberger kitab al-hiss wal-mahsus aristotle's parva naturalia in arabic guise 2012.0

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ifiss wa

arabic aristotle

text arabic authors

title kiliib aihiss

kztiib aihiss wa

face of itthe parva

parva naturaliawe