Omar Khayyam
Omar Khayyam
Omar Khayyám ; born Ghiyāth ad-Dīn Abu'l-Fatḥ ʿUmar ibn Ibrāhīm al-Khayyām Nīshāpūrī, was a Persian mathematician, astronomer, philosopher, and poet, who is widely considered to be one of the most influential scientists of the Middle Ages. He wrote numerous treatises on mechanics, geography, mineralogy and astronomy...
ProfessionPoet
Date of Birth18 May 1048
wine half stuff
I wonder what the vintners buy one half so precious as the stuff they sell.
drink knows
Drink! For you know not whence you came nor why.
drinking drink tales
A drink is shorter than a tale
fruit bitter pleasure
Better be jocund with the fruitful Grape Than sadden after none, or bitter, Fruit.
art determination numbers
By the help of God and with His precious assistance, I say that Algebra is a scientific art. The objects with which it deals are absolute numbers and measurable quantities which, though themselves unknown, are related to "things" which are known, whereby the determination of the unknown quantities is possible.
yesterday years may
Tomorrow! - Why, tomorrow I may be Myself with yesterday's sev'n thousand years.
blessed sadness wine
I hide my distress, just likethe blessed birds hide themselveswhen they are preparing to die. Wine! Wine, roses, music and yourindifference to my sadness, my loved-one!
song hate heart
Old Khayyám, say you, is a debauchee;If only you were half so good as he!He sins no sins but gentle drunkenness,Great-hearted mirth, and kind adultery.But yours the cold heart, and the murderous tongue,The wintry soul that hates to hear a song,The close-shut fist, the mean and measuring eye,And all the little poisoned ways of wrong.
fire heaven soul
Heaven but the vision of fulfilled desire, and Hell the shadow from a soul on fire.
doors doctors saint
Myself when young did eagerly frequent doctor and saint, and heard great argument about it and about: but evermore came out by the same door as in I went.
moving writing breaking-silence
The moving finger writes; and having writ, moves on.
life night thinking
Think, in this batter'd Caravanserai Whose portals are alternate Night and Day, How Sultan after Sultan with his Pomp Abode his destin'd Hour and went his way.
book thinking two
Whoever thinks algebra is a trick in obtaining unknowns has thought it in vain. No attention should be paid to the fact that algebra and geometry are different in appearance. Algebras (jabbre and maqabeleh) are geometric facts which are proved by propositions five and six of Book two of Elements.
moving hands sky
And that inverted Bowl they call the Sky, Whereunder crawling cooped we live and die, Lift not your hands to It for help-for it As impotently moves as you or I