Omar Khayyam

Fictional drawing of Omar Khayyám

Omar Khayyám, Persian عمر خیام (born: May 18, 1048 in Nishapur, Persia – died: December 4, 1131), was a Persian poet, mathematician and astronomer.

He was originally named Ghiyath al-Din Abu'l-Fath Omar ibn Ibrahim Al-Nisaburi Khayyámi (غیاث الدین ابو الفتح عمر بن ابراهیم خیام نیشابوری). Khayyám (خیام) is an Arabic loanword meaning "tentmaker." He is best known for the collection of poetry, the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam.

Khayyam's shrine

The architecture of his shrine is like a tent because his ancestors' occupation was tentmaker.Some of his poems have been written on the walls surrounding the shrine.

Student

Khayyam is thought to have been born into a family of Nishapur artisans. He spent his childhood in the town of Balhi, studying there and being tutored by Sheik Muhammad Mansuri, one of the most well-known scholars of the time. In his youth, Omar Khayyám studied under Imam Mowaffak of Nishapur, who was considered one of the greatest teachers of the Khorassan region. According to one disputed account, two other exceptional students began studying under the same teacher at about the same time. One of these was Nizam-ul-Mulk, who went on to become the Vizier to two rulers of the Persian Empire. The other was Hassan-i-Sabah, who went on to become the leader of the Hashshashin.

It was commonly believed that any young man who studied under that eminent Imam would attain honor and happiness. These three students, who became friends, pledged to each other that whichever of them was to receive fortune would share it equally with the other two. After Nizam-ul-Mulk became Vizier, Hassan-i-Sabah and Omar Khayyám each went to him, and asked to share in his good fortune.

Hassan-i-Sabah demanded and was granted a place in the government, but he was ambitious, and was eventually removed from power after he participated in an unsuccessful effort to overthrow his benefactor, the Vizier. Many years later, he rose to become head of the Hashshashin.

Omar Khayyám was much more modest in his request, not asking for any office, but just a place to live, study science, and pray. He was granted a yearly pension of 1,200 mithkals of gold from the treasury of Nishapur. He lived on this pension for the rest of his life. As it was mentioned, this story, known as Three Schoolmates is questionable because the date of birth of these three schoolmates don't match.

Mathematician

He was famous during his lifetime as a mathematician, well known for inventing the method of solving cubic equations by intersecting a parabola with a circle. Although his approach at achieving this had earlier been attempted by Menaechmus and others, Khayyám provided a generalization extending it to all cubics. In addition he discovered the binomial expansion, and authored criticisms of Euclid's theories of parallels which made their way to Europe, where they contributed to the eventual development of non-Euclidean geometry.

In 1070 he wrote his great work on algebra. In it he classified equations according to their degree, and gave rules for solving quadratic equations, which are very similar to the ones we use today, and a geometric method for solving cubic equations with real roots. He also wrote on the triangular array of binomial coefficients known as Pascal's triangle. In 1077, Omar wrote Sharh ma ashkala min musadarat kitab Uqlidis (Explanations of the Difficulties in the Postulates of Euclid). An important part of the book is concerned with Euclid's famous parallel postulate, which had also attracted the interest of Thabit ibn Qurra. Al-Haytham had previously attempted a demonstation of the postulate; Omar's attempt was a distinct advance. Omar Khayyám also had other notable work in geometry, specifically on the theory of proportions.

Astronomer

Omar Khayyám was also famous as an astronomer. In 1073, the Malik-Shah, sultan of Seljuk, invited Khayyám to build and work with an observatory, along with various other distinguished scientists. Eventually, Khayyám very accurately (correct to six decimal places) measured the length of the year as 365.24219858156 days. This calendar measurement has only a 1 day error in every 5,000 years, whereas the Gregorian Calendar used today, has a 1 day error in every 3,330 years.

He also calculated how to correct the Persian calendar. On March 15, 1079, Sultan Jalal al-Din Malekshah Saljuqi (1072-92) put Omar's corrected calendar into effect, as in Europe Julius Caesar had done in 46 B.C. with the corrections of Sosigenes, and as Pope Gregory XIII would do in February 1552 with Aloysius Lilius' corrected calendar (although Britain would not switch from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar until 1751, and Russia would not switch until 1918).

Omar Khayyám was famous in the Persian and Islamic world for his astronomical observations. He built a (now lost) map of stars in the sky.

Omar Khayyam also estimated and proved to an audience included the then-prestigious and most respected scholar Imam Ghazali, that the universe is not moving around earth as was believed by all at that time. By constructing a revolving platform and simple arrangement of the star charts lit by candles around the circular walls of the room, he demonstrated that earth revolves on its axis, bringing into view different constellations throughout the night and day(completing a one-day cycle). He also elaborated that stars are stationary objects in space which if moving around earth would have been burnt to cinders due to their large mass. All these theories were centuries later adopted by Christian astronomers to their credit, as we know them now.

Islam

It is not clear whether he believed in the existence of God, but he objected to the notion that every particular event and phenomenon was the result of divine intervention. Nor did he believe in any Judgment Day or rewards and punishments after life. Instead he supported the view that laws of nature explained all phenomena of observed life. Religious officials asked him many times to explain his different views about Islam.

Khayyám eventually was obliged to make a hajj (pilgrimage) to Mecca in order to demonstrate that he was a faithful follower of Islam.

Skeptic

(These poems were translated by Edward FitzGerald)

And, as the Cock crew, those who stood before
The Tavern shouted - "Open then the Door!
You know how little time we have to stay,
And once departed, may return no more."

Alike for those who for TO-DAY prepare,
And that after a TO-MORROW stare,
A Muezzin from the Tower of Darkness cries
"Fools! your reward is neither Here nor There!"

Why, all the Saints and Sages who discuss'd
Of the Two Worlds so learnedly, are thrust
Like foolish Prophets forth; their Words to Scorn
Are scatter'd, and their mouths are stopt with Dust.

Oh, come with old Khayyam, and leave the Wise
To talk; one thing is certain, that Life flies;
One thing is certain, and the Rest is Lies;
The Flower that once has blown for ever dies.

Myself when young did eagerly frequent
Doctor and Saint, and heard great Argument
About it and about: but evermore
Came out of the same Door as in I went.

With them the Seed of Wisdom did I sow,
And with my own hand labour'd it to grow:
And this was all the Harvest that I reap'd -
"I came like Water, and like Wind I go."

Into this Universe, and why not knowing,
Nor whence, like Water willy-nilly flowing:
And out of it, as Wind along the Waste,
I know not whither, willy-nilly blowing.

The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ,
Moves on: nor all thy Piety nor Wit
Shall lure it back to cancel half a Line,
Nor all thy Tears wash out a Word of it.

And that inverted Bowl we call The Sky,
Whereunder crawling coop't we live and die,
Lift not thy hands to It for help - for It
Rolls impotently on as Thou or I.

Writer and poet

Omar Khayyám is famous today not only for his scientific accomplishments, but for his literary works. He is believed to have written about a thousand four-line verses. In the English-speaking world, he is best known for The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám in the English translations by Edward Fitzgerald (1809-1883).

Other people have also published translations of some of the rubáiyát (rubáiyát means "quatrains"), but Fitzgerald's are the best known. Translations also exist in languages other than English.

Miscellaneous

Omar's life is dramatized in the 1957 film Omar Khayyam starring Cornel Wilde, Debra Paget, Raymond Massey, Michael Rennie, and John Derek.
Omar Khayyám appears as a comedic sidekick in the film Son of Sinbad. He is portrayed by Vincent Price and parts of his poems are distributed throughout his dialogue.
He is also a topic of discussion between two characters in Jack London's novel The Sea-Wolf.
Appears as major character in the novel Samarkand by Amin Maalouf.
Most recently, his life was dramatized by the Iranian-American director Kayvan Mashayekh in "The Keeper: the Legend of Omar Khayaam" playing in independent theaters since June 2005.
A lunar crater Omar Khayyam was named after him in 1970.
An asteroid 3095 Omarkhayyam was named after him in 1980.
Salman Rushdie's novel Shame makes reference to Omar Khayyam with a character by the same name.
Khayyám is quoted in Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech, Why I oppose the war in Vietnam. "It is time for all people of conscience to call upon America to come back home. Come home America. Omar Khayyám is right 'The moving finger writes and having writ moves on.'"
One of the two founders of Discordianism, Omar Khayyam Ravenhurst, named himself after Omar Khayyam.
There is a treasure in the game Colossal Cave called 'the ruby yacht of Omar Khayyam.'
A 'ruby yacht of Omar Khayyam' appears in the television cartoon series, The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show.
The play and movie "The Music Man" contains a reference to Omar Khayyam's Ruba'iyat as a sinful piece of literature.

References

E.G. Browne. Literary History of Persia. (Four volumes, 2,256 pages, and 25 years in the writing). 1998. ISBN 0-700-70406-X
Jan Rypka, History of Iranian Literature. Reidel Publishing Company. ASIN B-000-6BXVT-K

External links

Works by Omar Khayyám at Project Gutenberg
The Rubaiyat
On Omar's solutions to cubic equations
Khayyam, Umar. A biography by Professor Iraj Bashiri, University of Minnesota.
O'Connor, John J.; Robertson, Edmund F., "Omar Khayyam", MacTutor History of Mathematics Archive, University of St Andrews
The Quatrains of Omar Khayyam
200 selected original Rubaiyat in Persian
The Keeper: The Legend of Omar Khayyam A recent movie depiction of Omar Khayyam's life

Template:Persondata

Template:Link FA