Critical Reflection the story Hayy Ibn Yaqzan by Ibn Tufail
The writer, Ibn Tufail, is referring to the style of this tale, which is a Sufi story in the sense that it attempts to discuss something theosophically significant, namely, teaching about God and the universe based on mystical understanding. In the narrative of the castaway, Hayy ibn Yaqqzan is a newborn abandoned as a castaway on a desert island off the coast of India, who grows up to be a feral adolescent in the narrative of the castaway. He is adopted by a doe, a female deer who feeds him, and he grows up. The doe then dies, and he stares around throughout his entirely ignorant upbringing, seeing nothing but pristine nature, himself, and the white skies above him (Holm, 2018).
The writer is employing this as a type of thought experiment to show what we’re capable of in a condition of absolute solitude if we’ve never seen another human being but are merely surrounded by fitrah, “innate nature,” by virgin nature’s splendour. Observing how everything on his island has a cause, he concludes that there cannot be an infinite series of physical causes, but that there must be something that causes. He asserted that there must be a causative agent who cannot be physical, who is so abstract and pure that he cannot be seen with ordinary eyes, heard with ordinary ears, or felt with ordinary human senses. The writer is also using this as a way to show how the human mind is capable of creating its reality and how it can be used to create a world of its own. As a result, he came up with the concept of the Creator. Similarly, the existence of the Spirit, which he discovers by looking within himself and contemplating what happened on the tragic day when the doe died, and that she is, but she isn’t there, and also looking at the order of the world, the balance of the world, the beauty of the world, and concluding that one needs to have a spiritual life and devote oneself in adoration to the source of that life.
In his utter solitude on his desert island, Hayy Ibne Yaqqzan addresses himself to the Lord of Heaven and devises some rites for himself. This is the realization that we have this surging up of a yearning for our origin, our place of return, and our Creator. It begins to feel this way when the heart is no longer engrossed in the dross of worldly existence. When the heart is free of the dross, it is free to feel this yearning for the Creator. It is the yearning for God that is the beginning of the spiritual journey. Then, Hayy ibn Yaqqzan observes the purity of the stars in the sky and the celestial bodies. It’s inconceivable to imagine the moon being contaminated. Thus, the fact that those higher objects are clean and pure implies that, to progress, we humans must likewise clean ourselves (Zargar, 2017).
Another thing he learned in his solitude was the magnitude of compassion. If we sense God’s beauty in everything in the universe, which is made possible by the tranquillity that isolation provides, and we witness the compassionate God’s kindness, we want to be beautiful people. Therefore, a compassionate person cannot just sit by while others suffer. This is not part of perfection, nor is it one of the fruits of worship. We must do something to help others, even if it means sacrificing our comfort. We are not perfect, but we can strive for perfection.
Then the storyline shifts and someone named Absal lands on the island. He’s from some other island. He tells Hayy about how the inhabitants of his island had gone out of step with their creator and the creation and were in a state of upheaval, worry, consumerism, and a craving for status and goods. Hayy travels to Absal’s island with the intent of preaching to these miscreants, who appear to be fairly modern-sounding. But they can’t hear it, so it doesn’t go well. They haven’t got that inner condition of clear serenity that allows them to do so (Zargar, 2017). This makes a lot of logic, but they’re too preoccupied with possessions and prestige. According to the story, he returns with Absal, and they spend the remainder of their days in worship and unwavering devotion to the divine.
What are the most important takeaways from this plot? First and foremost, I believe in the value of nature in our lives. Hayy ibn Yaqqzan understood the existence of the Creator through pondering on nature, and there is another depth to contemplating nature and seeing it. It is a starting point. I feel that there is an abundance of opportunities to become a better, more compassionate, and kind person. Such a concern for nature as it relates to humanity can be seen in the way Hayy ibn Yaqqzan engages with the natural world. I appreciate the tree’s serenity and tranquillity; it’s a powerful reminder to me to remain quiet and peaceful amid turmoil; the sensation of companionship, especially when I gaze at the vastness of the sky; thus, nature provides us with much more than teachings; we can add the sense of companionship to that. I am not a human being having a spiritual experience. I am a spiritual being having a human experience.
What more can we glean from this tale? I feel that one of the things that this narrative urges us to do is to go on an inner trip within ourselves and examine our beliefs and why we believe them since many of us do. Our opinions are passed on through our family or acquired through friends. Society and the media may have a big impact on us and cause us to think about things that aren’t true. We may not think we are influenced by our culture, but sometimes it is hard to distinguish between what we might consider our own opinions and what others have forced upon us. How did you figure that out? Perhaps you will inquire; perhaps they are correct, perhaps these points of view are useful, and perhaps they are incorrect! So we need to make this a voyage from time to time, so we can be conscious of our views and know where they come from, and this, this voyage, is about more than just great philosophical issues. It might be about anything. If something arouses one of your beliefs or contradicts one of your ideas, rather than ignoring it, you may consider, question, inquire, and occasionally live with it, because a good question is half-knowledge.
References
Zargar, C. A. (2017). The Polished Mirror. Oneworld Press.
Holm, F. (2018, February 14). Ibn Tufayl’s “Hayy Ibn Yaqzan” — A historical review. YouTube; www.youtube.com. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGDcVoPxydo
