Isamic Medicine

From an Ottoman manuscript, two   doctors telling the pharmacist how to make different medicines

A History of Islamic Medicine

Islamic medicine is primarily based on the Quran   and Sunnah of our beloved Prophet Muhammad   (saw).   Human life and preservation of its health is of paramount importance in Islamic culture. The Quran clearly states:

“...anyone who saves one life, it is
as if he saved the whole of mankind...”

Islamic Medicine is known by many names such as Yunani Tibb (Greek Medicine), Hikamh, Islamic, Eastern and Sufi Humoral Medicine amongst many other names.   In Islamic medicine there is a belief that every disease has a cure apart from old age. Our Prophet (saw) advised people to seek treatment. Early Muslim physicians and scholars such as Hunain ibn Ishaq used Greek, Persian and Indian manuscripts which they translated into Arabic for medical research purposes in order to find a cure. The differentiation of smallpox from measles and its first vaccinations were also given by the Muslim Physician Abu Bakr Al-Razi.  

Islamic medicine revolutionised not only the Islamic world but also played a huge part in Western medicine. The works of Ibn Sina a Persian physician amongst many other titles, wrote numerous treaties and his major work included The Canon of Medicine which was the principal text book for Medical Science in Western medicine from the 12th - 17th century.

If you look in to the history of the Islamic civilisation, you find numerous accounts, books and monuments reflecting the higher level of thinking and living at the time. If you would like further information regarding the history of Islamic Medicine you can purchase Hakim M Salim Khan’s book titled An Introduction to Islamic Medicine which is available online or from Hakim Salim’s clinic based in Leicester.  

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[ 1 ]. Taken from: http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/islam/science/medicine/
[ 2 ]. Chapter 5, verse 32
[ 3 ]....