Words That Fell Upon the Heart from Ibn Rushd
The wisdoms of Ibn Rushd are a selection of short sayings that touch the human heart, character, and inner discipline. Although each saying may appear as a simple note on its own, behind it lie fundamental matters such as the discipline of the nafs (the lower self), awareness of mortality, knowledge, adab (proper conduct), and maturity of the qalb (the heart).
01
"Knowledge is a light that illuminates our darkness."
02
"Wherever we may be, knowledge is our homeland; ignorance is a foreign land."
03
"A person's deliverance from ignorance is only possible by becoming aware of their own ignorance."
04
"If you want what you have written to be known by others, show your writings."
05
"The fool says in his heart: 'There is no God.'"
06
"If a person's character must be repaired, he should do it with his own hand."
07
"The intellect is acquired in order to learn the unknown."
08
"Be humble enough to understand that you are not better than anyone, and wise enough to realize that you are different from everyone."
09
"Nothing that is not rational can be religious either; the spirit is the development of the body and is positive; negativity means living on in future generations, not the survival of the human spirit, but the survival of humanity."
10
"A just ruler governs with wisdom, honesty, and compassion."
11
"The only thing beautiful in the world is virtue."
12
"God creates people so that they may be happy."
13
"Injustice arises when one deviates from reason and wisdom."
14
"Knowledge should be used for the betterment of society and the world."
15
"The beginning of knowledge is wonder."
16
"The true leader takes wisdom and justice as his guide, not power."
17
"The most important thing in learning is not what you learn, but how you learn it."
18
"For a claim to be considered knowledge, it must be based on experiments; it should not rely solely on authority."
19
"No matter how much you learn, it will never be enough, because there will always be something more to learn."
20
"Imagination makes truth more beautiful and falsehood more convincing."
21
"The better you know your enemy, the more respectful you will be towards him."
22
"Wisdom begins with calling things by their right names."
23
"A society should be judged by how it treats its weakest member."
24
"Ideas have wings; no one can prevent them from reaching people."
25
"Self-satisfaction is above all other pleasures."