The Message of Hayy ibn Yaqzan

Author's name: Ibn Tufayl Al-Andalusi

The Epistle of Hayy ibn Yaqzan by the Andalusian philosopher Abu Bakr Ibn Tufayl is a symbolic philosophical work written in the twelfth century and considered a masterpiece of Islamic thought. The book tells the fictional story of a child named Hayy, who grows up alone on a deserted island, devoid of human learning, and who, through contemplation and observation, comes to understand the world, the self, and God.

The story is a profound meditation on the relationship between reason and revelation, sensory and intellectual experience, and seeks to prove that reason alone is capable of reaching the highest truth, making it an affirmation of the Illuminati thought influenced by Greek philosophy.

The message influenced European thought and was translated into several languages. Some researchers considered it a prelude to the ideas of Enlightenment and rationalism in Europe.