Ibn Gabirol’s Ethics in the Light of Early Arabic Ethical Thought
Ibn Gabirol’s Ethics in the Light of Early Arabic Ethical Thought

Summary/Abstract: This article is derived from the author's ongoing translation of Ibn Gabirol's "The Improvement of Moral Qualities" (Iṣlāḥ al-aḫlāq) into Polish. This treatise is one of the two surviving philosophical works of the scholar, alongside Fons Vitae, and the only one preserved in its Judeo-Arabic original. It consists of two main segments: an introduction presenting the theoretical foundation of Ibn Gabirol's ethical system and the main part describing twenty praiseworthy ethical qualities and an equal number of blameworthy ones, along with methods for cultivating the former and combating the latter. A distinctive feature of this system is the association of specific ethical qualities with the functioning of individual senses.By analyzing the treatise, the article's author attempts to position the philosopher's ethics in the context of early Arabic ethical thought. To this end, he compares the theoretical foundation of the treatise, its structure, and the descriptions of selected ethical qualities with those found in the works of key representatives of this tradition, such as Abū Ya‘qūb al-Kindī, Abū Zayd al-Balḫī, Abū Bakr al-Rāzī, and Yaḥyā ibn ‘Adī. Comparing the similarities in the views presented and the structure of the texts suggests that Ibn Gabirol can be considered a representative of early Arabic ethical thought, inspired by Plato, Galen, and Neoplatonism.Thinkers of this tradition, despite belonging to different religions, built their ethical views on rational premises and references to the tradition of ancient gnomology rather than on theological or religious legal grounds. However, Ibn Gabirol's treatise, chronologically closing this stage, already contains the seeds of change by introducing numerous proofs from biblical books, aiming to give the author's views religious sanction. Thus, it can be considered both the final link in the discussed tradition and a work leading towards the ethics of Miskawayh, whose "Refinement of Character" (Tahḏīb al-aḫlāq) presents a synthesis of early Arabic ethical thought with Islamic theology and law.

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