Tatimmat Siwan al-Hikma
- Author died
- 565 AH
- Editions
- Tatimmat Siwan al-Hikma
Tatimmat Siwan al-Hikma (Completion of the Vessel of Wisdom) is a single-volume biographical dictionary of philosophers, physicians, and sages by the scholar and historian Zahir al-Din al-Bayhaqi (d. 565 AH / 1170 CE) .
Purpose and Methodology
Al-Bayhaqi composed the work as a direct supplement and continuation to Siwan al-Hikma, an earlier biographical and doxographical compilation authored by Abu Sulayman al-Sijzi (Abu Sulayman Muhammad ibn Tahir ibn Bahram al-Sijistani, d. after 391 AH) . In his introduction, al-Bayhaqi states that he intended to follow al-Sijzi's model by recording the biographical histories (tawarikh) and sayings (fawa'id) of learned figures whose legacies were fading into obscurity .
To avoid redundancy, al-Bayhaqi explicitly excluded any figure whom al-Sijzi had already documented in Siwan al-Hikma, deeming that the earlier work had already provided a thorough and equitable account of their lives and contributions . Consequently, al-Bayhaqi focused on subsequent Islamic philosophers, logicians, mathematicians, and physicians up to his own era, including personal contemporaries and scholars with whom he engaged in academic exchanges .
Translations, Manuscripts, and Editions
The work was translated into Persian by Nasir al-Din ibn Muntajab al-Din 'Umdat al-Mulk al-Munshi al-Yazdi al-Kirmani (fl. 725 AH) under the title Durrat al-Akhbar wa-Lam'at al-Anwar .
Surviving Arabic manuscripts of the text include:
- A manuscript preserved at the Abu Rayhan al-Biruni Institute of Oriental Studies in Tashkent (MS 1448), transcribed in Khwarazm in 697 AH .
- Multiple copies preserved in Istanbul, including at the Bashir Agha Library (MS 494), the Murad Mulla Library (MS 1431), and the Koprulu Library (MS 902) .
- A manuscript in the Berlin State Library (MS 1431) .
- A copy in the Razavi Library in Mashhad (MS 4096) .
Tatimmat Siwan al-Hikma was first edited and published in India in 1351 AH by Muhammad Shafi', and it was also printed in Lahore in 1358 AH . It was later edited by Muhammad Kurd 'Ali using the Berlin manuscript and published through the Arab Scientific Academy in Damascus under the title Tarikh Hukama' al-Islam (History of the Sages of Islam) .
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