Ihwan as-Safa'

Ihwan as-Safa', also known as the Brethren of Purity or the Pure Brethren, was a predominantly Iranian Muslim philosophical, religious, and political group of scholars. It emerged in Basra in the second half of the 10th century, around 970, and had a branch in Baghdad. Its members exchanged views on religious knowledge, the history of peoples, religious laws, and different religions. Their most important work is the 52-part encyclopedic collection known as the “Rasa'il ichwan as-safa' wa-chillan al-wafa.” The treatises cover a broad range of subjects, from music and magic to the natural and religious sciences, as well as rational and social topics, seeking to combine Islam with the philosophy and exact sciences of their time.