Tra il serio e il faceto: massime di medici e filosofi sul vivere raffinato nel Laṭāʾif al-ẓurafāʾ min ṭabaqāt al-fuḍalā

Scholarly attention to the medieval Arabic concept of ẓarf (refinement) remains limited. This article addresses this gap by presenting the full annotated Italian translation of the seventh chapter of al-Ṯaʿālibī’s (d. 1039) Laṭāʾif al-ẓurafāʾ min ṭabaqāt al-fuḍalāʾ (Refined Pearls from the Classes of Excellent). The chapter brings together a selection of aphorisms and anecdotes attributed to physicians and philosophers of the 9th and 10th centuries, which convey recepts on bodily and spiritual care rooted in an ethics of “hedonism” emphasizing balance and moderation – qualities that, in al-Ṯaʿālibī’s view, define the ẓarīf (refined person). Based primarily on ʿA. K. al-Raǧab 1999 edition, the translation also makes use of manuscript variants to resolve problematic or ambiguous passages, compensating for the absence of a critical apparatus in the printed text.