The genius of Al-Biruni : a strategy of codifying knowledge assets and personalising flows.

Abstract

The works of Abu Rayhan Al-Biruni (973-1048AD), a Persian polymath scholar who made significant contributions in diverse fields of study, were examined using frameworks of knowledge assets and knowledge flows. The contributions of this great scholar were revisited and the individual, his environment and the link between them were studied. The individual was studied using Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences, Sternberg's triarchic theory of intelligences and Sternberg's balance theory of wisdom. The knowledge flows of knowledge assets were plotted and studied using Boisot's I-space model and the knowledge transfer to and from Al-Biruni was studied using Gupta and Govindarajan's knowledge transfer framework. The factors that have contributed to the tremendous achievements in scholarship by the genius of Al-Biruni were found to be the possession of multiple intelligences, a balance of wisdom with an ability to positively influence his environment and a strong Islamic value system within which he operated.