Katie Grimes
Dr. Mohammad Khalil
REL 330
15 April 2014
Ibn Sīnā’s Medical Masterpiece: al-Qanun and its Influence on the History of Medicine
The great Muslim philosopher Ibn Sīnā was also a great physician—one of the most influential of his time. As part of his studies, he authored the Canon of Medicine, a massive encyclopedia of medical practice. He opens this book with a famous definition, writing: “medicine is the science by which we learn the various states of the human body in health and when not in health, and the means by which health is likely to be lost and, when lost, is likely to be restored back to health” (Bakhtiar 9). The text that follows this quote is considered a masterpiece by many; Ibn Sīnā had no way of knowing that his book would transform the field he defines, having a momentous impact on the study of health and disease. Ibn Sīnā’s al-Qanun has, in fact, acted as a monumental stepping stone in the history and advancement of modern medicine.
Let’s set the scene: the eleventh century marked some of the last years of a magnificent Islamic Golden Age, an era distinguished by the construction of elaborate mosques, mathematical innovation in the disciples of algebra, trigonometry, and geometry, and the formation of the modern hospital. Crucial ancient Greek writings were preserved and improved upon, providing future generations access to invaluable knowledge. It was in the midst of these movements of conservation and advancement that a soon-to-be genius would emerge. In the year 980 CE in what is now Iran, Abū ‘Alī al-Ḥusayn ibn ‘Abd Allāh Ibn Sīnā was born. Ibn Sīnā (known as Avicenna in Europe) was a true Renaissance man; in addition to his primary fields of philosophy and medicine, he studied and experimented wi...
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...ial drugs and medicinal recipes, and draws the connecting line between mental and physical health, bringing this information into a conduit that could be widely distributed throughout Europe and the Middle East. From the encouragement of the use of the scientific method and the development of holistic medicine to the diagnosis of meningitis, many can agree that the Canon made a permanent imprint on Western medicine. In a world in which people have the ability to live well into their nineties and neurosurgeons can detect miniscule tumors hidden in the folds of a human brain, it would be beneficial to look back to our roots, to the history of science and medicine, and pay tribute to the inventors and innovators—of which Ibn Sīnā is just one—that have brought us thus far. Hopefully, this reflection will inspire other budding scientists to strive for similar greatness.
In modern medicine when an ailment arises it can be quickly diagnosed, attributed to a precise bacteria, virus, or body system, and treated with medication, surgery or therapy. During the time before rational medical thought, this streamlined system of treatment was unheard of, and all complaints were attributed to the will of the multitude of commonly worshiped Greek gods (Greek Medicine 1). It was during the period of Greek rationalism that a perceptible change in thought was manifested in the attitudes towards treating disease. Ancient Greece is often associated with its many brilliant philosophers, and these great thinkers were some of the first innovators to make major developments in astrology, physics, math and even medicine. Among these academics was Hippocrates, one of the first e...
Medical Saints is a book backed up with experience, knowledge, and spiritual and scientific concepts. Duffin’s development of plot with her studies helps the reader conceptualize her stressed importance on Saints Cosmas and Damian and their relationship with medical miracles. By looking at the author’s experiences, her research, and her concepts, one can see that it is accurate information that can help the world we live in today. Duffin inspires the health care system and forms of spirituality to bridge the gap between them and understand that they coexist.
Health, how it is defined and how it is maintained, is a reflection of the dominant ideology in a certain society. The medical system of Western countries, including Australia, is based on the biomedical model of health or biomedicine. According to Lord Nigel Crisp, who is a global health reform advocate, former Chief Executive of the National Health Service (NHS) in United Kingdom (UK) and previous Permanent Secretary of the UK Department of Health, Western scientific medicine and the health systems based on them have exhibited spectacular success in improving health over the last century and it has come to dominate medical thinking, habits and institutions globally. It also served as the guide for health regulating bodies including the World Health Organization, health care professional associations and pharmaceutical companies. He argued, however, that presently Western scientific medicine is no longer capable of solely managing the health demands of peoples in both the industrialised and developing countries. There is a need to adapt and absorb new ideas to be able to meet the demands of the twenty first century(Marble, 2010). In order to get a better understanding of the current health system in Western societies this paper attempts to take a closer look at the development of scientific medicine as the foundation of modern medical practice. In addition to the overview of biomedicine, a few of the challenges to its discourse will also be presented throughout the discussion.
The understanding of health and the process of healing in regard to the religious belief of individuals goes beyond the realm of spirituality (Suzanne, 2008). Health is believed by every religion as the most important value at which insights can be created, and as well a practical means at which the health of individuals can be promoted. The secular perspective of religion is considered a contributing factor which broadens the unique religious contribution and individual’s concern to spiritual dimensions. However, the essay to be discussed is on the issue of the spiritual perspective of individuals from different religious faith, and our main religious focus will be on the Buddhist religion, Sikh religion and the Baha’i religious faith. Elaborations will also be made on the practices that hasten healing practice on each of these faiths and the role of healthcare providers in the provision of care to these patients.
This chapter will analyze the Hippocratic medicine using especially the study of the Hippocratic Corpus. In the texts of the Hippocratic Corpus, medicine becomes pragmatic and secular, with theories to explain natural causes of diseases and discussions about medical practices and professional ethic. The chapter will discuss fundamental theoretical and ethical changes in medicine after Hippocrates.
As we in become more evolved as a nation one of the problem that needs to be address is how to response to diverse faith within our healthcare practices. This essay serves to compare these three different religious philosophies: Yoruba, Hinduism (karma) and Buddhism, to a Christian’s perspective. These religions have wide perspectives but one will key in on health management and what to expect from healthcare point of view while caring for these patients.
Although the Christian church was very involved with public health, it wasn’t the only church embracing science. In fact, medicine and public welfare today more closely resembles Muslim systems and treatments during the Middle ages than the Christian system. One of the Five Pillars of Islam is to care for those less fortunate than themselves. Many Muslim rulers interpreted this by setting up hospitals in cities all over the Islamic world. By the 12th century, the city of Baghdad had 60 hospitals. Other Muslim hospitals were spread throughout Cairo and Damascus and the Spanish cities of Granada and Cordoba. London was just then building its first hospital. Not only more hospitals existed in the Islamic Empire than in Europe, but also the medical treatment was usually far superior. Our hospitals today still closely resemble those that existed in Muslim society during the Middle ages. Muslim hospitals had separate wards for different diseases, trained nurses and physicians and stores of drugs and treatments for their patients. Most hospitals taught medical students and were inspected regularly to ensure that they were up to standard. Studen...
Contemporary approaches in understanding health, illness and its treatment largely differ from the traditional way of treating people’s health conditions. For instance, before the “Age of Reason” beliefs about vindictive spirits, evil and divine intervention, and practices of sorcery and witchcraft were widely held (Porter 1997 as cited in Williams, 2003). Another example is the practice of Greek medicine; a more naturalistic approach used by the practitioner to tune the body through humoral theories of balance and lifestyle modification. Similarly, during this age, the combination of physical, emotional, and spiritual factors contributed to the development of the “sick man” (Williams, 2003). These medical teachings were authoritative until the eighteenth century. However, towards the nineteenth century, numerous discoveries such as Vesalius’ anatomical atlas and Harvey’s process of blood circulation challenged mainstream medicine, which paved the way for the rise of a newer and more systematic form of medicine (Williams, 2003, p. 11), marking the growth and supremacy of scientific medicine. The evolution of scientific medicine is well documented in several literature (Gabe, Keheller, & Williams, 1994; Longino, 1998; Marcum, 2008; Morris, 2000; Quirke & Gaudilliere, 2008; Williams, 2003). A progressive shift from preference of either licensed or unlicensed healers to the legitimization of the medical profession and medicalisation of natural life experiences had occurred (Gabe, et al., 1994). With this, scientific medicine, commonly known as biomedicine, continued to dominate the discourse of health and illness from the end of the 18th century up to the present (Williams, 2003). Despite this perceived supremacy, scientific medicine...
The bio-medical model of ill health has been at the forefront of western medicine since the end of the eighteenth century and grew stronger with the progress in modern science. This model underpinned the medical training of doctors. Traditionally medicine had relied on folk remedies passed down from generations and ill health was surrounded in superstition and religious lore with sin and evil spirits as the culprit and root of ill health. The emergence of scientific thinking questioned the traditional religious view of the world and is linked to the progress in medical practice and the rise of the biomedical model. Social and historical events and circumstances were an important factor in its development as explanations about disease were being found in biological systems of the body that contradicted the belief that linked causation to divine intervention or superstition. Cartesian dualism and Newtonian physics were influential in the academic world and there was a push to break away from the superstitions of the past. (Albrecht 2003 p: 15; Giddens 2009 p: 391; Barry & Yuill 2008 p 31).
The main elements of the medical model of health are the search for objective, discernable signs of disease, its diagnosis and treatment (Biswas, 1993). Therefore, by adhering to this reductionist view, the human body is seen as a biochemical machine (Turner, 1995) and health merely as an absence of disease, a commodity to be bought and sold. The rise of hospitals with their goal of curing and controlling disease has led to the marginalisation of lay medicine, and a focus upon the individual rather than society as a cause of ill health. Health education and promotion with their focus upon 'victim blaming' and individualism have extended the remit of the medical profession from the hospital into the community. With medical imperialism the power of medicina has grown and medicine has all but replaced religion as an institution of social control. Illich (1976, p53) describes medicine as a: 'moral enterprise.....[which] gives content to good and evil..... like law and religion [it] defines what is normal, proper or desirable'.
The improvement of medicine over the course of the human successes gave great convenience to the people of today. Science has cured and prevented many illnesses from occurring and is on its way to cure some of the most dreadful and harmful illnesses. As the world modernizes due to the industrialization, so does the ways of medicine. Some cures are approached by chance, some, through intense, scientific measures.
The theories of Hippocrates and Galen are of vital importance to the development of medicine, as they shaped medicine for many centuries to come. Hippocrates was the first to dismiss the notion that magic, spirits, or the Gods could cause or cure disease, reforming the course medicine took. Galen followed in the footsteps of Hippocrates, working relentlessly on human anatomy, endeavoring to fathom how the body functions and what happens when something goes wrong. Without Hippocrates’ belief in diseases being a product of nature revolutionizing medicine, and Galen’s extensive work on the anatomy of the human body, medicine may not have progressed to what it is today.
...healing process of the patient. Healthcare professionals should frequently ask questions in order to fully understand if certain needs are to be met because of religious practices or beliefs. For example, a fresh bed sheet can be offered to a Muslim in order for a clean space for their daily prayers (pg. 21, Singh, 2009). Certain medical decisions can be difficult to finalize since religion must be taken into consideration. Healthcare providers will come into contact with people of different faiths, nationalities and cultures. All patients should be treated with the same amount of respect and acceptance in order for their medical needs to be fairly met.
Every year, approximately 230, 000 to 400. 00 deaths are caused by iatrogenic deaths ( in other words, these are deaths caused by wrong medical treatments). Two of the prominent yet some what contrasting types of medicine are, Ayurveda, the Indian traditional medicine, and Modern (aka western) medicine. Both of these have their own processes and methods of healing, which over the years have created their own followers. While Ayurveda addresses the root causes of the disease through identifying the imbalances in the elements, called “Doshas”, it also emphasizes on a spiritual lifestyle which for most people in today's world is a sea change. On the other hand, western medicine addresses the symptoms and provides instant albeit temporary relief for suffering. Needless to say there are more followers of the western medicine due to its immediate impact on subsiding the pain. Out of lack of awareness to the significance of traditional medicine, especially Ayurveda, many doctors and researchers are against the use of Ayurvedic and traditional medicines, which limits the potential of curing certain ailments of patients without additional side effects.
There are many terms used to describe the period after the fall of Rome and before the Renaissance, three main terms being the Middle, Medieval, and Dark Ages. In general, these terms are used interchangeably, but are these fair substitutions? In recent years the term “Dark Ages” is becoming less and less acceptable as a phrase which describes the span of years it is meant to refer to. The use of the term “dark” implies a period of stagnation, which is becoming a questionable concept. In particular, the span of time referred to in this paper is 530-1452 BCE, with specific attention paid to the scientific discoveries and innovations rather than art or literature. These dates are significant because in 529 the Academy and Lyceum in Athens were shutdown by the Byzantine emperor, thus ending the Greek intellectual influence. The date of 1453 is chosen because many Greek texts arrived in Europe in 1453 after the fall of Constantinople at the hands of the Turks, thereby reviving the struggling European scientific fields (Bunch 93). This essay will show that the medieval period was not a so-called “dark age” because of scientific innovation in the Islamic world, and is only referred to as such because of the popular bias in the West of focusing on Europe. In order to make this clear, firstly, two objections to this proposition will be analyzed and clearly refuted. Following these counter arguments, the main weight of historical facts and events in the identification and explanation of Islamic scientific innovation will be presented, showing the inaccuracy of referring to the medieval period as dark. Finally, I will show that the misleading perception of the medieval era as stagnant is due to the modern bias for the superiority of Western...