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Published on 12th
October, 2002
Abu
Ali al-Husayn Ibn Abdullah Ibn Sina
Provided with the kind permission of Dr
Shuja
Abu
Ali al-Husayn Ibn Abdullah Ibn Sina was born in Bukhara in 980. He is
also known as al-Sheikh al-Rais (Leader among
the wise men).
Sometimes
known in the West by the Latin name, Avicenna, this Persian physician
became the most famous and influential of all the Islamic
philosopher-scientists. He earned royal favour for treating the Kings of
Bukhara and Hamadan for ailments that other physicians could neither diagnose
nor cure.
His grave is still maintained in Hamadan, where he died in 1037.
Though trained as a physician, Ibn Sina made important contributions to
philosophy, mathematics, chemistry, and astronomy. His philosophical encyclopaedia,
Kitab al-Shifa ("Book of Healing") brought Aristotelian
and Platonian philosophy together with Islamic theology in dividing the
field of knowledge into theoretical knowledge (physics, mathematics, and
metaphysics) and practical knowledge (ethics, economics, and politics).
Medicine
His most enduring legacy, however, was in the field of
medicine.
His most famous book,
Al-Qanun fi al-Tibb ("The
Canon of Medicine") is still one of the most important medical books
ever written, and served as the medical authority throughout Europe for
600 years. Among the Canon's contributions to modern medicine was the
recognition that tuberculosis is contagious; diseases can spread through
water and soil; and a person's emotional health influences his or her
physical health. Ibn Sina was also the first physician to describe
meningitis, parts of the eye, and the heart valves, and he found that
nerves were responsible for perceived muscle pain. He also contributed to
advancements in anatomy, gynaecology, and paediatrics.
The Canon was
translated into Latin in the 12th century, and quickly became the
predominant textbook used in European medical schools until the 17th
century. It is still used today in Islamic medical schools in Pakistan and
India. No other medical book has remained so highly acclaimed for such a
long period of time. When the Arabic original was published in Rome in
1593, it became one of the first Arabic books to be produced on the new
invention of the printing press.
Today, Ibn Sina's portrait hangs in the
main hall of the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Paris.
Provided with the kind permission of Dr
Shuja
Ibn Sina Gallery:
http://www.muslimphilosophy.com/sina/gal/IS-gal-29.htm Further
Reading: http://www.muslimphilosophy.com/sina/
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