Avos (05:22) BEN BAG BAG SAID: Turn the Torah over and over for all is within her
Chasam Sofer (Orech Chaim 1:208): “Whoever says wisdom even if he not Jewish is called a wise man.” The obvious question is why shouldn’t he be called a wise man? Don’t we in fact even say a beracha on the wise men of the non Jews “who gives of His wisdom to human beings”? The answer is that without this gemora we would have mistakenly thought that Divinely inspired wisdom only comes to Jews while if a non Jew said something brilliant that seems to transcend his intellectual capabilities - we would have thought it was just blind chance. Thus divinely inspired wisdom comes also to non-Jews.
Maharal (Derech Chaim 6:10): In the time of the Rambam there were those who were attracted by philosophy i.e., the secular wisdom which was not illuminated by the light of Torah. If he had not explained the verses according to their philosophical understanding there was a danger of even greater loss. In fact, the essential understanding was never concealed to those with proper wisdom…
Maharal (Menachos 64b): Greek Wisdom is what we call the natural sciences. All the natural sciences are included in Greek Wisdom which is outside of the Torah. Even though it is a mitzva to calculate the seasons and astronomical movements…(Shabbos 75a) – it is prohibited to learn these except from the Torah. This is the desire of G d that everything be from the Torah and this is the way it should be done. However to learn them for their own sake without using the Torah – it is prohibited.
Meiras Einayim of R’ Yitzchok of Akko (Parshas Noach 9:12): The Ramban said that Greek Wisdom is not the natural sciences because our Sages knew more science than the Greeks and in fact this knowledge was obtained by the Greeks and other nations from the Jews. In fact the wisdom that our Sages warned against is a wisdom that the Greeks made up and those who find it attractive end up rejecting the Torah. This wisdom consists of knowledge of signs and hints that people communicate with each other which enable a person to understand the intent of the speaker. You should know that our Sages in fact studied the natural sciences and were experts in it, but this was only after they satiated themselves on wine and meat i.e., the Torah.
Rabbeinu Yonah (Avos 5:22) Search in it, etc.: Review the words of Torah, as all the wisdom of the world is included in it.
Moreh Nevuchim (01:71): You should know that the many sciences which had existed in our community to validate these theological matters have been lost in the passage of time because of our being dominated by foolish nations and because these matters were not permitted to be divulged to all the people. In fact, the only thing that can be divulged to all people is the text of the books…
Ramban (Introduction to Torah Commentary) King Solomon whom G-d had given wisdom and knowledge, derived it all from the Torah, and from it he studied until he knew the secret of all things created, even of the forces and characteristics of plants, so that he wrote about them even a Book of Medicine, as it is written, And he spoke of trees, from the cedar that is in Lebanon even unto the hyssop that springeth out of the wall. And it is further said there: “It is G-d alone Who gives knowledge that contains no falsehood, enabling one to know how the world arose, the composition of the constellations, the beginning, the end and middle of the times, the angles of the ends of the constellations, and how the seasons are produced by the movement of heavens and the fixed positions of the stars, the benign nature of cattle and the fierceness of beasts, the power of the wind and the thoughts of man, the relationship of trees and the forces of roots; everything hidden and everything revealed I know.” All this Solomon knew from the Torah, and he found everything in it — in its simple meanings, in the subtleties of its expressions and its letters and its strokes, as I have mentioned.
Ramban (Introduction to Torah Commentary) And Solomon’s wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east. That is to say, he was better versed than they in divination and enchanting, for this was their wisdom, as it is said, For they are replenished from the east, and with soothsayers like the Philistines. (The Sages similarly said: “What was the wisdom of the children of the east? They knew and were crafty in the divination of birds.”) And all the wisdom of Egypt means that Solomon was better versed in sorcery, which is the wisdom of Egypt, and in the nature of growing things. As is known from the Book of Egyptian Agriculture, the Egyptians were very well versed in the matters of planting and grafting different species. Thus the Sages have said: “Solomon even planted peppers in the Land of Israel. How was he able to plant them? Solomon was a wise man, and he knew the essence of the foundation of the world. Why was this? It is written Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, G-d hath shined forth. Out of Zion the whole world was perfected. How is this known? Why was it called ‘the Foundation Stone?’ Because the world was founded from it. Now Solomon knew which of its arteries extends to Ethiopia, and upon it he planted peppers, and immediately it produced fruits, for so he says, And I planted trees in them of all kinds of fruit.
Rema (Toras HaOlah 1:11): In truth all the wisdom of philosophy and intellectual analysis originated from the Jews. All the secular wisdom is in fact contained within the Torah as the Rambam demonstrates in great detail. In Moreh Nevuchim he says that all philosophical wisdom is found in the medrash and agados of our Sages. You should know that I saw a very ancient document that described the development of all philosophy. It stated that Socrates was considered the first philosopher. It also says that he obtained this wisdom from Assaf and from Achitofel. It also says in the Paths of Faith, that the philosophy of Aristotle was stolen from the wisdom of Shlomo HaMelech. When Alexander the Great captured Jerusalem, he gave control of Shlomo HaMelech’s library to his teacher Aristotle. Whatever good things he found there he wrote his name on it and then added some of his own incorrect thoughts - such as the world had no beginning and the denial of Providence. This was done in order to conceal the fact that his material was in fact stolen from the wisdom of the Jews. Alternatively, it is possible that whatever he found that did not have clear cut proofs in the works of Shlomo he simply did not believe. We see however that the basis of all wisdom hangs from this vine. In truth, every Jew should believe in this system and not to give a pride and glory to strangers - the wise men of the gentiles. In fact, Shlomo was praised for being able to speak to the cedars of Lebanon and the hyssop growing on the wall. If it hadn’t been for the fact that the basis of this wisdom was stolen from him, there would be nothing praiseworthy in Aristotle and those that came after him…Therefore it is proper to believe in these things. What we have written is the way it happened.
Shalsheles Hakabbala (The Wisdom of Philosophy page 241): It is written in the sefer Shvili Emuna that when Alexander came to Jerusalem he gave Aristotle the book of the wisdom of Shlomo and what he copied from it is the philosophy that is known by his name. Moreh Nevuchim (1:71): “You should know that the secular wisdoms had originally been the possession of the Jews, but when we became dominated by the nations it became their possession.” Consequently when we learn something from them it appears that the origin is with them when in fact the opposite is true.
