The Book of Instruction in the Elements of the Art of Astrology was written for Lady Rayhanah, to whom it is dedicated. R. Ramsay Wright, the translator, said it could be regarded as a primer of 11th century science. Among its highlights are a comprehensive list of more than 150 Lots, various forms of aspects and planetary relationships, planetary positions relative to the sun, an excellent text on rulerships as well as comprehensive notes on weather and meteorological phenomena.
This book was unknown to medieval European astrologers. This edition, comprising the astrological part of the original (sections 347-530) has been taken from Wright’s pioneering 1934 translation, itself taken from Persian and Arabic sources. For this edition, text and tables have been reset, and a new index added.