al-Kindi

Not to be confused withAbd al-Masih ibn Ishaq al-Kindi.

For the surname, seeal-Kindi (surname).

Abū Yūsuf Yaʻqūb ibn ʼIsḥāq aṣ-Ṣabbāḥ al-Kindī(/ælˈkɪndi/;Arabic:أبو يوسف يعقوب بن إسحاق الصبّاح الكندي;Latin:Alkindus;c. 801–873 AD) was an ArabMuslimpolymathactive as aphilosopher,mathematician,physician,andmusic theorist.Al-Kindi was the first of theIslamic peripatetic philosophers,and is hailed as the "father ofArab philosophy".

al-Kindi
al-Kindi on Iraqi stamp from 1962
Born	c. 801 Kufa,Abbasid Caliphate(now inIraq)
Died	c. 873(aged approximately 72) Baghdad,Abbasid Caliphate (now in Iraq)
Era	Islamic Golden Age
Region	Islamic philosophy
School	Aristotelianism
Main interests	Philosophy,Islamic theology(kalam),logic,ethics,mathematics,physics,chemistry,psychology,pharmacology,medicine,metaphysics,cosmology,astrology,music theory

Al-Kindi was born inKufaand educated inBaghdad.He became a prominent figure in theHouse of Wisdom,and a number ofAbbasidCaliphs appointed him to oversee the translation ofGreekscientific and philosophical texts into theArabic language.This contact with "the philosophy of the ancients" (asHellenistic philosophywas often referred to by Muslim scholars) had a profound effect on him, as he synthesized, adapted and promoted Hellenistic andPeripateticphilosophy in theMuslim world.He subsequently wrote hundreds of original treatises of his own on a range of subjects ranging frommetaphysics,ethics,logicandpsychology,to medicine,pharmacology,mathematics,astronomy,astrologyandoptics,and further afield to more practical topics like perfumes, swords, jewels, glass, dyes, zoology, tides, mirrors,meteorologyandearthquakes.

In the field ofmathematics,al-Kindi played an important role in introducingHindu numeralsto the Islamic world, and their further development intoArabic numeralsalong withal-Khwarizmiwhich eventually was adopted by the rest of the world.Al-Kindi was also one of the fathers ofcryptography.Building on the work ofal-Khalil(717–786),Al-Kindi's book entitledManuscript on Deciphering Cryptographic Messagesgave rise to the birth ofcryptanalysis,was the earliest known use ofstatistical inference,and introduced several new methods of breaking ciphers, notablyfrequency analysis.He was able to create a scale that would enable doctors to gauge the effectiveness of their medication by combining his knowledge of mathematics and medicine.

The central theme underpinning al-Kindi's philosophical writings is the compatibility between philosophy and other "orthodox" Islamic sciences, particularly theology, and many of his works deal with subjects that theology had an immediate interest in. These include the nature of God, thesoulandprophetic knowledge.

Early life

Al-Kindi was born inKufato an aristocratic family of theArabian tribeof theKinda,descended from the chieftainal-Ash'ath ibn Qays,a contemporary ofMuhammad.The family belonged to the most prominent families of the tribal nobility ofKufain the early Islamic period, until it lost much of its power following the revolt ofAbd al-Rahman ibn Muhammad ibn al-Ash'ath.His father Ishaq was thegovernorofBasraand al-Kindi received his preliminary education there. He later went to complete his studies in Baghdad, where he was patronized by theAbbasid caliphsal-Ma'mun(r. 813–833) andal-Mu'tasim(r. 833–842). On account of his learning and aptitude for study, al-Ma'mun appointed him to theHouse of Wisdom,a recently established center for the translation ofGreekphilosophical and scientific texts, in Baghdad. He was also well known for his beautifulcalligraphy,and at one point was employed as a calligrapher by Caliphal-Mutawakkil(r. 847–861).

When al-Ma'mun died, his brother, al-Mu'tasim became caliph. Al-Kindi's position would be enhanced under al-Mu'tasim, who appointed him as a tutor to his son. But on the accession ofal-Wathiq(r. 842–847), and especially of al-Mutawakkil, al-Kindi's star waned. There are various theories concerning this: some attribute al-Kindi's downfall to scholarly rivalries at theHouse of Wisdom;others refer to al-Mutawakkil's often violent persecution of unorthodox Muslims (as well as of non-Muslims); at one point al-Kindi was beaten and his library temporarily confiscated.Henry Corbin,an authority on Islamic studies, says that in 873, al-Kindi died "a lonely man", in Baghdad during the reign ofal-Mu'tamid(r. 870–892).

After his death, al-Kindi's philosophical works quickly fell into obscurity; many were lost even to later Islamic scholars and historians. Felix Klein-Franke suggests several reasons for this: aside from the militant orthodoxy of al-Mutawakkil, theMongolsalso destroyed countless libraries during theirinvasion of Persia and Mesopotamia.However, he says the most probable cause of this was that his writings never found popularity amongst subsequent influential philosophers such asal-FarabiandAvicenna,who ultimately overshadowed him.His philosophical career peaked under al-Mu'tasim, to whom al-Kindi dedicated his most famous work,On First Philosophy,and whose son Ahmad was tutored by al-Kindi.

Accomplishments

According toArabbibliographerIbn al-Nadim,al-Kindi wrote at least two hundred and sixty books, contributing heavily togeometry(thirty-two books), medicine and philosophy (twenty-two books each),logic(nine books), andphysics(twelve books).Although most of his books have been lost over the centuries, a few have survived in the form ofLatintranslations byGerard of Cremona,and others have been rediscovered in Arabic manuscripts; most importantly, twenty-four of his lost works were located in the mid-twentieth century in a Turkish library.

Philosophy

His greatest contribution to the development of Islamic philosophy was his efforts to make Greek thought both accessible and acceptable to a Muslim audience. Al-Kindi carried out this mission from theHouse of Wisdom(Bayt al-Hikma), an institute of translation and learning patronized by theAbbasidCaliphs, in Baghdad.As well as translating many important texts, much of what was to become standard Arabic philosophical vocabulary originated with al-Kindi; indeed, if it had not been for him, the work of philosophers likeal-Farabi,Avicenna,andal-Ghazalimight not have been possible.

In his writings, one of al-Kindi's central concerns was to demonstrate the compatibility between philosophy andnatural theologyon the one hand, and revealed orspeculative theologyon the other (though in fact he rejected speculative theology). Despite this, he did make clear that he believed revelation was a superior source of knowledge to reason because it guaranteed matters of faith that reason could not uncover. And while his philosophical approach was not always original, and was even considered clumsy by later thinkers (mainly because he was the first philosopher writing in the Arabic language), he successfully incorporatedAristotelianand (especially)neo-Platonistthought into an Islamic philosophical framework. This was an important factor in the introduction and popularization of Greek philosophy in the Muslim intellectual world.

Astronomy

Liber novem iudicum in iudiciis astrorum,1509

Al-Kindi took his view of the solar system fromPtolemy,who placed the Earth at the centre of a series of concentric spheres, in which the known heavenly bodies (the Moon, Mercury, Venus, the Sun, Mars, Jupiter, and the stars) are embedded. In one of his treatises on the subject, he says that these bodies are rational entities, whose circular motion is in obedience to and worship of God. Their role, al-Kindi believes, is to act as instruments for divine providence. He furnishesempirical evidenceas proof for this assertion; different seasons are marked by particular arrangements of the planets and stars (most notably the sun); the appearance and manner of people varies according to the arrangement of heavenly bodies situated above their homeland.

However, he is ambiguous when it comes to the actual process by which the heavenly bodies affect the material world. One theory he posits in his works is from Aristotle, who conceived that the movement of these bodies causes friction in the sub-lunar region, which stirs up the primary elements of earth, fire, air and water, and these combine to produce everything in the material world. An alternative view found in the treatiseOn Rays(De radiis) is that the planets exercise their influence in straight lines; but this treatise, written by a Latin author, probably around the middle of the 13th century, is apocryphal.In each of these, two fundamentally different views of physical interaction are presented; action by contact and action at a distance. This dichotomy is duplicated in his writings onoptics.

Some of the notable astrological works by al-Kindi include:

• The Book of the Judgement of the Stars,includingThe Forty Chapters,on questions and elections.
• On the Stellar Rays(spurious)
• Several epistles on weather and meteorology, includingDe mutatione temporum,( "On the Changing of the Weather" ).
• Treatise on the Judgement of Eclipses.
• Treatise on the Dominion of the Arabs and its Duration (used to predict the end of Arab rule).
• The Choices of Days(on elections).
• On the Revolutions of the Years(on mundane astrology and natal revolutions).
• De Signis Astronomiae Applicitis as Mediciam'On the Signs of Astronomy as applied to Medicine'
• Treatise on the Spirituality of the Planets.

Optics

De radiis,manuscript, 17th century. Cambridge,Trinity College Library,Medieval manuscripts, MS R.15.17 (937).

Al-Kindi was the first major writer onopticssince antiquity.Roger Baconplaced him in the first rank afterPtolemyas a writer on the topic.In the apocryphal work known asDe radiis stellarum,is developed the theory "that everything in the world... emits rays in every direction, which fill the whole world."This theory of the active power of rays had an influence on later scholars such asIbn al-Haytham,Robert GrossetesteandRoger Bacon.

Two major theories ofopticsappear in the writings of al-Kindi:AristotelianandEuclidean.Aristotle had believed that in order for the eye to perceive an object, both the eye and the object must be in contact with a transparent medium (such as air) that is filled with light. When these criteria are met, the "sensible form" of the object is transmitted through the medium to the eye. On the other hand, Euclid proposed that vision occurred in straight lines when "rays" from the eye reached an illuminated object and were reflected back. As with his theories on Astrology, the dichotomy of contact and distance is present in al-Kindi's writings on this subject as well.

The factor which al-Kindi relied upon to determine which of these theories was most correct was how adequately each one explained the experience of seeing. For example, Aristotle's theory was unable to account for why the angle at which an individual sees an object affects his perception of it. For example, why a circle viewed from the side will appear as a line. According to Aristotle, thecompletesensible form of a circle should be transmitted to the eye and it should appear as a circle. On the other hand, Euclidean optics provided a geometric model that was able to account for this, as well as the length of shadows and reflections in mirrors, because Euclid believed that the visual "rays" could only travel in straight lines. For this reason, al-Kindi considered the latter preponderant.

Al-Kindi's primary optical treatise "De aspectibus" was later translated into Latin. This work, along withAlhazen'sOpticsand the Arabic translations ofPtolemyandEuclid's Optics,were the main Arabic texts to affect the development of optical investigations in Europe, most notably those ofRobert Grosseteste,VitelloandRoger Bacon.

Medicine

There are more than thirty treatises attributed to al-Kindi in the field of medicine, in which he was chiefly influenced by the ideas ofGalen.His most important work in this field is probablyDe Gradibus,in which he demonstrates the application of mathematics to medicine, particularly in the field of pharmacology. For example, he developed a mathematical scale to quantify the strength of a drug, and a system (based on the phases of the moon) that would allow a doctor to determine in advance the most critical days of a patient's illness.According to Plinio Prioreschi, this was the first attempt at serious quantification in medicine.

Chemistry

Al-Kindi denied the possibility of transmuting base metals into precious metals such as gold and silver, a position that was later attacked by the Persian alchemist and physicianAbu Bakr al-Razi(c. 865– c. 925).

One work attributed to al-Kindi, variously known as theKitāb al-Taraffuq fī l-ʿiṭr( "The Book of Gentleness on Perfume" ) or theKitāb Kīmiyāʾ al-ʿiṭr wa-l-taṣʿīdāt( "The Book of the Chemistry of Perfume and Distillations" ), contains one of the earliest known references to the distillation of wine.The work also describes thedistillationprocess for extractingrose oils,and provides recipes for 107 different kinds of perfumes.

Mathematics

Al-Kindi authored works on a number of important mathematical subjects, including arithmetic, geometry, the Hindu numbers, the harmony of numbers, lines and multiplication with numbers, relative quantities, measuring proportion and time, and numerical procedures and cancellation.He also wrote four volumes,On the Use of the Hindu Numerals(Arabic:كتاب في استعمال الأعداد الهنديةKitāb fī Isti`māl al-'A`dād al-Hindīyyah) which contributed greatly to diffusion of the Hindu system of numeration in the Middle-East and the West. In geometry, among other works, he wrote on the theory of parallels. Also related to geometry were two works on optics. One of the ways in which he made use of mathematics as a philosopher was to attempt to disprove the eternity of the world by demonstrating that actualinfinityis a mathematical and logical absurdity.

Cryptography

The first page of al-Kindi's manuscript "On Deciphering Cryptographic Messages", containing the oldest known description ofcryptanalysisbyfrequency analysis.

Al-Kindi is credited with developing a method whereby variations in the frequency of the occurrence of letters could be analyzed and exploited to break ciphers (i.e. cryptanalysis byfrequency analysis).His book on this topic isRisāla fī Istikhrāj al-Kutub al-Mu'ammāh(رسالة في استخراج الكتب المعماة; literally:On Extracting Obscured Correspondence,more contemporarily:On Decrypting Encrypted Correspondence). In his treatise on cryptanalysis, he wrote:

One way to solve an encrypted message, if we know its language, is to find a different plaintext of the same language long enough to fill one sheet or so, and then we count the occurrences of each letter. We call the most frequently occurring letter the "first", the next most occurring letter the "second", the following most occurring letter the "third", and so on, until we account for all the different letters in the plaintext sample. Then we look at the cipher text we want to solve and we also classify its symbols. We find the most occurring symbol and change it to the form of the "first" letter of the plaintext sample, the next most common symbol is changed to the form of the "second" letter, and the following most common symbol is changed to the form of the "third" letter, and so on, until we account for all symbols of the cryptogram we want to solve.

Al-Kindi was influenced by the work ofal-Khalil(717–786), who wrote theBook of Cryptographic Messages,which contains the first use ofpermutations and combinationsto list all possibleArabicwords with and without vowels.

Meteorology

In a treatise entitled asRisala fi l-Illa al-Failali l-Madd wa l-Fazr(Treatise on the Efficient Cause of the Flow and Ebb), al-Kindi presents a theory ontideswhich "depends on the changes which take place in bodies owing to the rise and fall of temperature."In order to support his argument, he gave a description of a scientific experiment as follows:

One can also observe by the senses... how in consequence of extreme cold air changes into water. To do this, one takes a glass bottle, fills it completely with snow, and closes its end carefully. Then one determines its weight by weighing. One places it in a container... which has previously been weighed. On the surface of the bottle the air changes into water, and appears upon it like the drops on large porous pitchers, so that a considerable amount of water gradually collects inside the container. One then weighs the bottle, the water and the container, and finds their weight greater than previously, which proves the change. [...] Some foolish persons are of opinion that the snow exudes through the glass. This is impossible. There is no process by which water or snow can be made to pass through glass.

In explaining the natural cause of thewind,and the difference for its directions based on time and location, he wrote:

When the sun is in its northern declination northerly places will heat up and it will be cold towards the south. Then the northern air will expand in a southerly direction because of the heat due to the contraction of the southern air. Therefore most of the summer winds are merits and most of the winter winds are not.

Music theory

Al-Kindi was the first great theoretician of music in the Arab-Islamic world. He is known to have written fifteen treatises onmusic theory,but only five have survived. He added a fifth string to the'ud.His works included discussions on thetherapeutic value of musicand what he regarded as "cosmological connections" of music.

Philosophical thought

Influences

While Muslim intellectuals were already acquainted with Greek philosophy (especiallylogic), al-Kindi is credited with being the first real Muslimphilosopher.His own thought was largely influenced by the Neo-Platonic philosophy ofProclus,PlotinusandJohn Philoponus,amongst others, although he does appear to have borrowed ideas from other Hellenistic schools as well.He makes many references toAristotlein his writings, but these are often unwittingly re-interpreted in a Neo-Platonic framework. This trend is most obvious in areas such as metaphysics and the nature of God as a causal entity.Experts have suggested that he was influenced by theMutaziliteschool of theology, because of the mutual concern both he and they demonstrated for maintaining the singularity (tawhid) of God. A minority view however holds that such agreements are considered incidental.

Metaphysics

According to al-Kindi, the goal ofmetaphysicsis knowledge of God. For this reason, he does not make a clear distinction between philosophy and theology, because he believes they are both concerned with the same subject. Later philosophers, particularlyal-FarabiandAvicenna,would strongly disagree with him on this issue, by saying that metaphysics is actually concerned with being qua being, and as such, the nature of God is purely incidental.

Central to al-Kindi's understanding of metaphysics is God'sabsolute oneness,which he considers an attribute uniquely associated with God (and therefore not shared with anything else). By this he means that while we may think of any existent thing as being "one", it is in fact both "one" and many ". For example, he says that while a body is one, it is also composed of many different parts. A person might say" I see an elephant ", by which he means" I seeoneelephant ", but the term 'elephant' refers to a species of animal that contains many. Therefore, only God is absolutely one, both in being and in concept, lacking any multiplicity whatsoever. Some feel this understanding entails a very rigorousnegative theologybecause it implies that any description which can be predicated to anything else, cannot be said about God.

In addition to absolute oneness, al-Kindi also described God as the Creator. This means that He acts as both a final and efficient cause. Unlike later MuslimNeo-Platonicphilosophers (who asserted that the universe existed as a result of God's existence "overflowing", which is a passive act), al-Kindi conceived of God as an active agent. In fact, of God astheagent, because all other intermediary agencies are contingent upon Him.The key idea here is that God "acts" through created intermediaries, which in turn "act" on one another – through a chain of cause and effect – to produce the desired result. In reality, these intermediary agents do not "act" at all, they are merely a conduit for God's own action.This is especially significant in the development of Islamic philosophy, as it portrayed the "first cause" and "unmoved mover" ofAristotelianphilosophy as compatible with the concept of God according to Islamic revelation.

Epistemology

Ancient Greek philosophers such asPlatoandAristotlewere highly respected in the medieval Islamic world.

Al-Kindi theorized that there was a separate, incorporeal and universal intellect (known as the "First Intellect" ). It was the first of God's creation and the intermediary through which all other things came into creation. Aside from its obvious metaphysical importance, it was also crucial to al-Kindi'sepistemology,which was influenced byPlatonic realism.

According to Plato, everything that exists in the material world corresponds to certainuniversal formsin the heavenly realm. These forms are really abstract concepts such as a species, quality or relation, which apply to all physical objects and beings. For example, a red apple has the quality of "redness" derived from the appropriate universal. However, al-Kindi says that human intellects are onlypotentiallyable to comprehend these. This potential is actualized by the First Intellect, which is perpetually thinking about all of the universals. He argues that the external agency of this intellect is necessary by saying that human beings cannot arrive at a universal concept merely through perception. In other words, an intellect cannot understand the species of a thing simply by examining one or more of its instances. According to him, this will only yield an inferior "sensible form", and not the universal form which we desire. The universal form can only be attained through contemplation and actualization by the First Intellect.

The analogy he provides to explain his theory is that of wood and fire. Wood, he argues, is potentially hot (just as a human is potentially thinking about a universal), and therefore requires something else which is already hot (such as fire) to actualize this. This means that for the human intellect to think about something, the First Intellect must already be thinking about it. Therefore, he says that the First Intellect must always be thinking about everything. Once the human intellect comprehends a universal by this process, it becomes part of the individual's "acquired intellect" and can be thought about whenever he or she wishes.

The soul and the afterlife

Al-Kindi says that the soul is a simple, immaterial substance, which is related to the material world only because of its faculties which operate through the physical body. To explain the nature of our worldly existence, he (borrowing fromEpictetus) compares it to a ship which has, during the course of its ocean voyage, temporarily anchored itself at an island and allowed its passengers to disembark. The implicit warning is that those passengers who linger too long on the island may be left behind when the ship sets sail again. Here, al-Kindi displays astoicconcept, that we must not become attached to material things (represented by the island), as they will invariably be taken away from us (when the ship sets sail again). He then connects this with a Neo-Platonist idea, by saying that our soul can be directed towards the pursuit of desire or the pursuit of intellect; the former will tie it to the body, so that when the body dies, it will also die, but the latter will free it from the body and allow it to survive "in the light of the Creator" in a realm of pure intelligence.

The relationship between revelation and philosophy

In the view of al-Kindi, prophecy and philosophy were two different routes to arrive at the truth. He contrasts the two positions in four ways. Firstly, while a person must undergo a long period of training and study to become a philosopher, prophecy is bestowed upon someone by God. Secondly, the philosopher must arrive at the truth by his own devices (and with great difficulty), whereas the prophet has the truth revealed to him by God. Thirdly, the understanding of the prophet – being divinely revealed – is clearer and more comprehensive than that of the philosopher. Fourthly, the way in which the prophet is able to express this understanding to the ordinary people is superior. Therefore, al-Kindi says the prophet is superior in two fields: the ease and certainty with which he receives the truth, and the way in which he presents it. However, the crucial implication is that thecontentof the prophet's and the philosopher's knowledge is thesame.This, says Adamson, demonstrates how limited the superiority al-Kindi afforded to prophecy was.

In addition to this, al-Kindi adopted a naturalistic view of prophetic visions. He argued that, through the faculty of "imagination" as conceived of in Aristotelian philosophy, certain "pure" and well-prepared souls, were able to receive information about future events. Significantly, he does not attribute such visions or dreams to revelation from God, but instead explains that imagination enables human beings to receive the "form" of something without needing to perceive the physical entity to which it refers. Therefore, it would seem to imply that anyone who has purified themselves would be able to receive such visions. It is precisely this idea, amongst other naturalistic explanations of prophetic miracles thatal-Ghazaliattacks in hisIncoherence of the Philosophers.

Critics and patrons

While al-Kindi appreciated the usefulness of philosophy in answering questions of a religious nature, there would be many Islamic thinkers who were not as enthusiastic about its potential. But it would be incorrect to assume that they opposed philosophy simply because it was a "foreign science".Oliver Leaman,an expert on Islamic philosophy, points out that the objections of notable theologians are rarely directed at philosophy itself, but rather at the conclusions the philosophers arrived at. Evenal-Ghazali,who is famous for his critique of the philosophers, was himself an expert in philosophy andlogic.And his criticism was that they arrived at theologically erroneous conclusions. The three most serious of these, in his view, were believing in the co-eternity of the universe with God, denying the bodily resurrection, and asserting that God only has knowledge of abstract universals, not of particular things (not all philosophers subscribed to these same views).

During his life, al-Kindi was fortunate enough to enjoy the patronage of the pro-MutaziliteCaliphsal-Ma'munandal-Mu'tasim,which meant he could carry out his philosophical speculations with relative ease. In his own time, al-Kindi would be criticized for extolling the "intellect" as being the most immanent creation in proximity to God, which was commonly held to be the position of the angels.He also engaged in disputations with certain Mutazilites, whom he attacked for their belief in atoms, as not all Mutazilites accepted the belief of atomism.But the real role of al-Kindi in the conflict between philosophers and theologians would be to prepare the ground for debate. His works, saysDeborah Black,contained all the seeds of future controversy that would be fully realized in al-Ghazali'sIncoherence of the Philosophers.

Legacy

Al-Kindi was a master of many different areas of thought and was held to be one of the greatest philosophers. His influence in the fields of physics, mathematics, medicine, philosophy, and music were far-reaching and lasted for several centuries.Ibn al-Nadimin hisKitab al-Fihristpraised al-Kindi and his work stating:

The best man of his time, unique in his knowledge of all the ancient sciences. He is called the Philosopher of the Arabs. His books deal with different sciences, such as logic, philosophy, geometry, arithmetic, astronomy etc. We have connected him with the natural philosophers because of his prominence in Science.

Al-Kindi's major contribution was his establishment of philosophy in the Islamic world and his efforts in trying to harmonize the philosophical investigation along with the Islamic theology and creed. The philosophical texts which were translated under his supervision would become the standard texts in theIslamic worldfor centuries to come, even after his influence has been eclipsed by later Philosophers.

Al-Kindi was also an important figure inmedieval Europe.Several of his books got translated into Latin influencing western authors likeRobert GrossetesteandRoger Bacon.The Italian Renaissance scholarGeralomo Cardano(1501–1575) considered him one of the twelve greatest minds.

In 1986, theRoyal Commission for Riyadh Cityinaugurated theAl Kindi Plazain theDiplomatic Quarterdistrict ofRiyadh,Saudi Arabia.

Bibliography

English translations

• Adamson, Peter; Pormann, Peter E., eds. (2012).The Philosophical Works of al-Kindī.New York: Oxford University Press.

Works about al-Kindi

• Adamson, Peter (2007).Al-Kindī.Oxford University Press US.ISBN978-0-19-518142-5.Retrieved22 May2011.
• Adamson, Peter (10 January 2005). "Al-Kindī and the reception of Greek philosophy". In Adamson, Peter; Taylor, Richard C. (eds.).The Cambridge Companion to Arabic Philosophy.Cambridge University Press. pp. 32–51.doi:10.1017/CCOL0521817439.003.ISBN978-0-521-81743-1.
• Arrington, Robert L.,ed. (2001).A Companion to the Philosophers.Oxford: Blackwell.ISBN978-0-631-22967-4.
• Corbin, Henry(1993).History of Islamic Philosophy.London: Keagan Paul.ISBN9781135198886.
• Klein-Franke, Felix (2001)."Al-Kindi".In Leaman, Oliver; Nasr, Hossein (eds.).History of Islamic Philosophy.London: Routledge.ISBN9780415131599.
• Prioreschi, Plinio (2002)."Al-Kindi, A Precursor of the Scientific Revolution"(PDF).Journal of the International Society for the History of Islamic Medicine.2:17–19.
• Prioreschi, Plinio (1996). "Medicine: al-Kindi".A History of Medicine: Vol.4 Byzantine and Islamic medicine.Omaha: Horatius Press. pp. 227–235.

External links

• Adamson, Peter."Al-Kindi".InZalta, Edward N.(ed.).Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
• Cooper, Glen M. (2007)."Kindī: Abū Yūsuf Yaʿqūb ibn Isḥāq al-Kindī".In Thomas Hockey; et al. (eds.).The Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers.New York: Springer. pp. 635–6.ISBN978-0-387-31022-0.(PDF version)
• Alkindus (Bibliotheca Augustana)
• O'Connor, John J.;Robertson, Edmund F.,"Abu Yusuf Yaqub ibn Ishaq al-Sabbah Al-Kindi",MacTutor History of Mathematics Archive,University of St Andrews
• Al-Kindi– Famous Muslims
• Al-Kindi's website– Islamic Philosophy Online
• Dr. Mashhad Al-AllafDOC– Three texts by Al Kindi in theIslamic Philosophysection
• Benjamnin N. Dyke's translation of Al-Kindi'sForty Chapterswith PDF extracts from the Introduction and main text
• Texts on Wikisource:
  • "al-Kindi, Abu Yusuf Ya'ḳub ibn Isḥak".New International Encyclopedia.1905.
  • "Kindī".Encyclopædia Britannica(11th ed.). 1911.
  • "Kindi, Abu Yusuf Ya'kub Ibn Ishak Al-".Encyclopedia Americana.1920.