Medieval Arabic Astrology and the Harran Tradition

In the passage reported by Abu Ma'shar, there is the belief that the Babylonian Hermes, namely the one venerated in Harran, had lived before the flood. This detail can be useful as the Sabians of Harran considered themselves holders of an astrological doctrine that had survived the flood and that, after the collapse of the Tower of Babel, had reached the patriarch Abraham through his father. In biblical tradition, Abraham was indeed the son of Terah, a maker of astrological idols in the city of Ur from which, however, he decided to move away in favor of the land of Canaan, stopping precisely in Harran.

The citizens of Harran took great pride in this tradition, and even in 1214 Ali al-Harawi reported the existence of a sanctuary at the rock where Abraham used to sit. In Harran, therefore, the Neoplatonism of the disbanded Platonic Academy and Alexandrian Hermeticism merged with a local cult strongly astrological in nature and traced directly back to the time of Abraham. Unfortunately, what the doctrines of Harran consisted of cannot be known except through traditional references, since the major details come to us from al-Dimishqi after a long and dark decline that had relegated it to oblivion. It is known, however, that in Harran there were five temples dedicated respectively to the First Cause, the First Intellect, the Ruler of the World, of Form, and of Soul. In addition to these main ones, there were seven other temples each entirely dedicated to one of the seven planets. The influence of this Arab community on the young al-Kindi was quite significant, so much so as to prompt a disciple, Sarakshi, to write a book about the community. It is not to be ruled out that in his De Radiis it is precisely the doctrines of the Sabians of Harran that are underlying.

Note: The Tower of Babel, traditionally formed by seven floors, each with an entire temple and ritual in relation to a planet, and "whose top could reach the heavens" (Gen. 11:4). Immediately after the collapse of the Tower of Babel, the biblical text speaks of Terah and Abraham.

Mashallah, al-Kindi and Abu Ma'shar

Among the astrologers of the Abbasid Caliphate, three were certainly the most relevant for European culture of the 12th and 13th centuries: Mashallah, al-Kindi and Abu Ma'shar. The first was a Jewish astrologer converted to Islam who, as we have said, took part in choosing the date for the foundation of Baghdad. Conversely, al-Kindi represents the philosopher-astrologer two generations after Mashallah and who, together with his disciple Abu Ma'shar, contributed to the recovery of Hellenic and Persian astrological doctrines and their systematization. The three astrologers were known in medieval Europe by the name of the "Three Judges" where the "judge" was the astrologer, capable of drawing the judgment decreed by the stars. The mere appellation of "Three Judges" can give an idea of the type of fatalistic approach with which these Arab authors were received by European scholars.

If, however, the idea of the necessity of the stars in the Arab astrological approach is an extremely widespread idea that can generally be accepted, the case of al-Kindi seems much more complex and multifaceted. First, it must be specified that unlike the case of Mashallah and Abu Mashar, in al-Kindi astrology covers only a minimal part of the vast area of interest of this Arab philosopher capable of ranging in every field of science known at the time. Al-Kindi was indeed one of the greatest Islamic philosophers of all time. Recognized immediately as a young man of notable intellect, he was directed by Caliph al-Ma'mun to the House of Wisdom so that he might be instructed in the best way. Indeed, within a few years al-Kindi became one of the most learned philosophers of his time, author of numerous books in many fields of science. Of him Ibn al-Nadim says in the Fihrist:

From an astrological point of view, he was the author of numerous treatises, the main ones being the Introduction to the Study of Astrology and the De Radiis which had success in Europe under the name of Theorica of the Magical Arts. In this treatise al-Kindi examines the way in which the stars exercise their influence on the cosmos. In it, some points are effectively advanced that have contributed to the conception of a profoundly deterministic al-Kindi:

In general, these two passages are pointed out as examples of al-Kindi's fatalism. In the first, it is indeed stated that he who would be able to know the entire condition of celestial harmony would know past, present and future things; in the second, that the realities of this world, being referred to celestial harmony, arise of necessity. Indeed, in this last passage al-Kindi simply wants to affirm that there is no chance or casualness but only causality dictated by celestial harmony.