The Creation of Genius: Early Origins of Ismail al-Jazari
Every man ought to be known by his true name. But, following the age-old Muslim custom, al-Jazari’s full name could be a bit of a challenge to grasp. He was born in 1136 AD, as Badīʿ az-Zaman Abu l-ʿIzz ibn Ismāʿīl ibn ar-Razāz al-Jazarī. The last part of his name, al-Jazari, denotes his place of origin. While history does not remember the exact location of its birth, it is widely agreed that it was in the historic region of Upper Mesopotamia. Some scholars argue that he was born in the town of
Introduction
The screams and cries of the innocent Muslims who were massacred in Jerusalem 88 years ago were still present in the minds of the Sultan. The horrific stories of horses swimming in Muslim blood in the streets of Jerusalem were igniting the fire of revenge in the hearts of an army standing at the doors of Jerusalem. This army was none other than the army of Sultan Salahuddin Ayyubi which was on the verge of taking back the holy city of Abrahamic faiths. The terrified Christian population was only waiting for their end because they also had a clear picture of what they did to Muslims 88 years ago in their minds.