The astrolabe was an instrument of critical importance in [eleventh-century C.E.] Europe's intellectual advance. It permitted all sorts of astronomical observations to be made with hitherto unmatched accuracy; it made possible rapid and accurate terrestrial measurements, for example of height and distance; it could be turned to navigational use and it could serve as a clock. The astrolabe was invented in antiquity, but the Arabs were the first to grasp its potential and elaborate its design. Knowledge of it was quickly diffused throughout the Islamic world....

— Richard Fletcher, The Quest for El Cid, p. 53

"Do you have the patience to wait until your mud settles and the water is clear? Can you remain unmoving until the right action arises by itself?" — Lao-Tzu