moon

 acquires the power of lighting up from the sun, it is not from reflection. The sun renders it luminescent first, then the light emanates from it in the same way that it emanates from the other stars.

Because of its phases, the moon was not considered to be strictly self-luminous, so the above question was transformed to another: Is the moon solely reflective, or does it possess some property of luminosity' This second possibility is best understood through a short quotation from Averroes: 'It has been demonstrated that if the moon acquires the power of lighting up from the sun, it is not from reflection . . . . If it illuminates, it is by becoming a luminous body itself. The sun renders it luminescent first, then the light emanates from it in the same way that it emanates from the other stars... that is, an infinite multitude of rays are issued from each point of the moon.'18 Whether the moon is entirely reflective or strangely luminescent, as explained by Averroes, we are left to explain how a perfectly uniform heavenly body could have parts with different properties. There are also two answers to this: That the variation is caused by parts of the moon being of different densities or that the moon is an uneven mixture of two or more elements.

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Avi Liran