The Merit of Islam in Medicine

Islam did not neglect the value of experimental science; rather, it encouraged inference and experimentation. Medicine was one of the most important sciences that flourished under Islam, for the Messenger of God (peace be upon him) urged people to seek treatment, saying: “Seek treatment, for God has not created a disease without creating a cure for it” (narrated by Ahmad in his Musnad). A Muslim once went to him while sick, and he told him to go to al-Harith ibn Kalada, who was famed for his medical skill. Muslim scholars took wide interest in science and knowledge, finding encouragement from the caliphs that led them to translate many medical books into Arabic. The names of Muslim scholars such as al-Razi, Ibn Sina, Ibn al-Nafis and Ibn Qurra became widely famous. The Muslims’ contribution was not limited to mere transmission and translation; they were pioneers in several medical discoveries. Ibn Sina wrote his famous “The Canon of Medicine”, of which Dr. Osler said: “It was the Bible of medicine and was larger than any other medical work”, as he discovered several methods of performing surgical operations. Muslim scholars were also the first to recognise the psychological effect of diseases. Islamic medicine, and Arab science in general, influenced the Renaissance and, before it, the Middle Ages; the availability of paper made books easier to obtain, so the contributions of Muslim physicians passed to Europe and elsewhere. Dar Al-Farouk is pleased to present this book to its dear readers, hoping that God will make it beneficial and that it will spur the revival of the experimental sciences and the advancement of Muslims in them, God willing.