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Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Muslim Scholars’ Views on Education A Brief Biography of Some Muslim Scholars Al-Farabi Farabi (Al-Fārābī) (259-339 H.G) was born in the village “Vasij” near of Farab. Farabi is a great philosopher and founder of Islamic philosophy. He spent many years in Baghdad in which he wrote most of his books (Seyyed Arab, 2007). His works in his life have been mentioned about 400 (Reshnou zadeh, 2007).

He went to court of Seyfoddowleh Hamdani by his invitation and spent some time in Halab, and also traveled to Syria and Egypt. He passed away in Damascus (Seyyed Arab, 2007 & Husayni Dashti, 1997). In addition to intellectual aspect and knowledge Abunasr Farabi was morally higher than many other philosophers. He was a contented person and was accustomed and attached to solitude. He was a man of charitable donation and almsgiving.

He believed that the greatness and happiness of a philosopher was in forsaking of the world (worldly matters) and the happiness of the soul in forsaking worldly interests and seclusion. Farabi considered morality as the result of knowledge and as the introduction of happiness, and considered no greatness, esteem and perfection for a scholar who had no morality.

All happiness is obtained through morality virtues, and one whose knowledge has not been cause of moral refinement, is not happy or lucky. Farabi was not much interested in fame, and preferred truth to all other things (Dehkhoda, 1998). Farabi first started to study and investigate Aristotle’s books. He summarized and improved Aristotle’s philosophy in such a manner that all people confessed his virtue, and so he made clear the errors of the translators of Aristotle’s works.

That was the reason why he was called “the Second Teacher” (Aristotle was called the First Teacher) (Husayni Dashti, 1997). Islamic Neo- Platonist, philosopher of language, culture, and society, called ‘the Second Teacher’ for his achievements in logic. Of Turkish origin, al-Farabi studied under Christian thinkers. He settled in Baghdad, traveled in Byzantium, and died in Damascus.

His Arabic commentary on Aristotle’s Deinter- pretention argues that divine omniscience does not imply determinism, since the necessary implication of a fact by the corresponding knowledge is not transferred to the fact itself.