BİRİNCİ FEN · İKİNCİ BÂB · BEŞİNCİ FASIL · Birinci Madde
Article One
The sphere of Mars’s Common Representative.
O Noble One! Know that the astronomers have said: Mars, one of the seven stars in the sky, is the fifth sphere relative to the lunar sphere and situated above the solar sphere. It is among the three spheres known as “Superior Spheres” (eflâk-ı ulviye), being the lowest of them and closest to the earth. In the star of Mars, only red predominates, and it is known by the name "Lesser Malefic" (nahs-i asgar).
The astronomers have also established three spheres for Mars and defined their order. The first sphere is like the sphere of the constellations in its center, girdle, poles, and movement; it is a Common Representative (mümessil). The second sphere has its center outside [the first sphere]. It is found enclosed within two parallel surfaces, as mentioned above, and carries the center of the Epicycle. The third sphere is the Epicycle upon which the star of Mars is fixed. As the Epicycle moves on its own center, it causes the star of Mars to move along with it.
Regarding the sphere of Common Representation for Mars; this is a universal sphere. It is a spherical body enclosed by two parallel surfaces. Its upper surface touches the concave surface of the Jupiter sphere that lies upon it, and its lower surface touches the convex surface of the solar sphere below it. This sphere of Common Representation, like the other planets above and below it, primarily follows the swift movement of the great sphere, moving necessarily from east to west around the center of the universe with that initial motion. Secondly, through its own movement, it proceeds slowly from west to east at a pace equivalent to the slow movement of the eighth sphere. It appears as though it is moved by the movement of the eighth sphere. Consequently, the points of ascending and descending nodes, along with the vernal and autumnal equinoxes, advance within their respective belts by approximately one degree every seventy years due to this motion.