In his book ‘Hayy ibn Yaqzan’, Son of Awareness, Ibn Tufayl, a 12th-century philosopher, narrates the tale of a child named Hayy who is raised by a doe on a deserted tropical island. When his ‘mother’ dies, he dissects her heart to find it empty. He concludes that his mother’s love no longer resides in her body.
He then observes nature, meditating on the idea of an elemental power when he learns to light a fire. The harmony of celestial bodies points the way to a magnificent universal order. He retreats from the physical world when he is 50, meditating in his cave until, finally, he reaches transcendental revelation.
At this point, Absal, an ascetic, is shipwrecked on his island. Hayy is surprised to discover another being like him. They soon realise that the religion of Absal’s people is an inferior form of what Hayy has realised. To teach them the Truth, they sail to Absal’s island.
Absal’s islanders welcome Hayy. But soon Hayy’s constant attempts to sermonise irritate them. They are unwilling to deviate from the mores of behaviour developed over centuries.
Hayy returns to his island with Absal, where they enjoy a life of ecstatic contemplation. The Truth will be revealed to the seeker worthy of that wisdom.