Saleh eager to expand his knowledge of astronomy
Astronomer doesn’t rely on ready-made information
This is the second in a series of articles on Dr Saleh Mohammed Al Aujairi (1921), the first Kuwaiti astronomer and outstanding figure in the development of Kuwait cultural awakening.
— Editor
could remember, his passion for the wonders of the heavens grew as he grew older and he could appreciate the value of astronomy.
Any knowledge he could get on the subject was a thrill that opened his mind, evoking in him such a joy that kept him yearning for more.
His passion intensified when according to an ancient traditional custom Saleh was taken to live among the Bedouins for sometime.
It was an honored tradition for wealthy Arabs living in cities, to take their son from infancy to some tribes; a wet-nurse was provided to take care of the infant, who grew strong and healthy in the pristine air of the desert. He also grew up absorbing those noble qualities of loyalty, reliability, courage and altruism for which the Bedouins are notorious, as well as learning the essential skills of riding and warfare, besides the art of survival in the harshness of the desert.
In modern times this custom has died out except for sporadic cases.
From the “Rashayda” people Saleh learned how to find his way through the desert by observing the star constellations at night and the sun position by day. When the sky was over-cast by clouds or heavy-dust, he could still determine the four points of the compass by observing the triangular formations of sand around small objects or bushes, caused by the moist northernwind that blows in winter, and by the south-eastern windbearing dust, that blows in summer.
The beginning of Saleh’s serious involvement in the science of astronomy was in 1935, when Abdul Rahman Qasem Al Haggy taught him how to use the Gunner’s quadrant to determine direction and timing. Since then there was no stopping to his inquiring.
Lidia Qattan
During the Second World War Saleh came upon a copy of the Egyptian astronomy-almanac by Abdul Hamid Mursi Gaiz, published in 1920, dealing with the movements of the stars and the planets, of the sun and of the moon.
Saleh was so thrilled with his discovery that he could not rest till he met the author, so he decided to go to Egypt.
After a long, exhausting journey through desert, mountains and valleys by any means of transportation he could find, he finally reached the little village, “Beit Al Nakhas.”
Abdul Hamid Mursi Gaiz was then a venerable old man over eighty years old, feeble in body but still glowing in intellect.
Out of consideration for the young man, who traveled from so far away to see him, he received him kindly.
After teaching all he could teach him, the old astronomer directed him to a number of books indispensable to Saleh’s inquiry, and sent him to one of his pupils.
Yet more eager to expand his knowledge in astronomy, besides his direct contact with the Egyptian astronomers, Saleh began corresponding with Egyptian schools and foreign institutions.
In 1946 he received his first certificate in astronomy from the Egyptian school “Al Jahwari”.
That same year on the 10 of February (1946) he was awarded a scholarship to study at the Fuad University of Cairo, among his teachers was the astronomer, Dr Abdul Hamid Semaha.
After deepening his knowledge in trigonometry, Saleh completed his preliminary and secondary studies in spectroscopy and meteorology, and then joined the General Egyptian Astronomer’s Union at Mansuria city, where he received his second certificate in astronomy in October 1952.
While he was in Cairo Saleh met the astronomer, Dr Abdul Fetah Waheed Ahmad, and became familiar with many of his theories and the use of astronomical timing.
While deepening his study on the subject (which he actually never left throughout the years), Saleh was working in several government departments, he also engaged in free enterprises.
Saleh’s first tangible contribution through astronomy was in 1937 when he compiled the first Kuwaiti calendar. He was then a student at the Mubarakia School.
He presented his manuscript to the Amir Sheikh Ahmed Al Jaber Al Sabah, who gave it to Ezzat Jaafar, his personal advisor.
Taken to Egypt for printing, the calendar was never published, because the Second World War erupted halting all means of communication.
Never discouraged by his initial failure, Saleh’s made his second attempt at publishing his calendar in 1940. This time he contacted an Iraqi press in Baghdad, an agreement was settled for twenty Iraqi dinars.
It was a huge amount of money for Saleh to pay, but he found three wealthy Kuwaiti men who offered five dinars each, he had to gather the rest.
Unable to rise the extra five, Saleh was forced to drop his project.
In 1943 Saleh compiled another calendar and decided to print it on his own expenses.
The job was done on cheap-yellow paper, (the finer white quality of paper could only be used for internal purposes, hence prohibited to be taken out of the country). Though published on yellow paper, Saleh had a very hard time in getting his calendar out of Iraq.
In 1948 Abdullah Zakaria Al Ansary and Ahmed Zein Al Saccaf finally had the first “Al Aujairi Almanac” printed in Baghdad on white paper and brought it into the country.
It was not to be a business venture, but rather an encouraging attempt for spreading it around.
The real break was in 1952, when a good, presentable form of Al Aujairi Almanac was printed in Cairo by Abdul-Aziz Hussein and Abdullah Zakaria Al Ansary. This time it was well received by the Kuwaiti public.
That was the beginning of public recognition of the special value of Al Aujairi Almanac, which since then it has been steadily appearing on the market in four attractive forms to suit specific purposes.
The value of the wall and desk calendars is the wealth of information each includes: (eclipse of the moon or of the sun, the sun’s degree of inclination plane both at Greenwich and Kuwait, the Zodiac signs, dates of past events, and dates of future phenomena, as well as the timing for prayer.)
On the back of each leaflet are proverbs, or anecdotes.
Contrary to what people may think, in compiling his almanac Saleh Al Aujairi does not rely on ready made information. He has to compute his material and mathematically solve conjunctions in relation to astronomical data that involve a great deal of investigations and personal conclusions.
His calendar is an ethical as well as an intellectual consequence of exclusive occupation, in which Saleh compares the final results to confirm their validity.
To be continued