Abū Rayḥān al-Bīrūnī Biography

Abu Rayhan al-Biruni was one of the finest scholars the world has ever produced. He has made immense contribution to the world of science, geography, astronomy, physics and many other fields. His works, along with those of other great scientists, have established the grounds of modern science. Even though he lived in the medieval times, his speculations and observations hold good till date. He formulated many mathematical solutions to unsolved problems and even determined the latitudes and longitudes of many regions through his keen observation. He devised a few instruments to help determine certain values such as the radius of earth and the specific gravity of metals. He also had vast knowledge about the culture, customs, literature and religions of different places around the world, since he travelled to various regions along with his patrons. This helped him to write volumes about the places he visited, especially India. These books can be regarded as encyclopaedias about the places, and these are a manifestation of his observant quality, as these books contain minute descriptions of the topics he has dealt with. He was, however, against horary astronomy and considered it to be a kind of conjuring. This scholar was one who thought much ahead of his time and as such is one of the few scholars who have been revived by the Soviet science historians.