Moses Maimonides (1135-1204)
Overview
Moses Maimonides (March 30, 1135 Córdoba, Spain - December 13, 1204 Fostat, Egypt), was a Jewish Rabbi, philosopher, and physician in Spain and Egypt in the twelfth century and his writings form the basis of Jewish Orthodox faith. He is most renowned for his writings on philosophical concepts such as the existence of god, the problem of evil in a perfect world, and immortality. Additionally, he wrote a number of medical texts. The best known is his collection of medical aphorisms, titled Fusul Musa in Arabic ("Chapters of Moses", Pirkei Moshe in Hebrew).
Biography
Maimonides was born in 1138 in Cordoba, Spain. He was born to a Spain under Muslim rule during the end of the golden era of Jewish culture in Spain. When Cordoba was captured by the Almohodes in 1148, Moses' family, along with most other Jews, went into exile. They moved around southern Spain but eventually settled in Morocco.
He moved around after his formal schooling eventually settling in Egypt and quickly moving up to become chief doctor to many Egyptian nobles. He was buried in Tiberius (modern day Israel) and his son, a great scholar himself, gathered all his writings and was his staunchest defender.
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