Faith and Medicine: Views of Mental Illness in Islamic Medic

Religions, as well as cultures adhering to those religions have arguably had the greatest say in the treatment of the mentally ill at any one time during history. Even in the west, well into the 19th and 20th centuries, views of persons with mental deficits have carried with them a certain mystification which did more to hurt than to aid these persons. Islam as one of the major religions in the w

With Cordova falling to the Christians in 1236 and Baghdad sacked by the Mongols in 1258, Arab-Islamic civilization began to decline after1300. Early modern Europe gradually came to replace Arab-Islamic medicine with its own alternatives, and no longer found inspiration in Middle Eastern medical Institutions. And with the onset of aggressive European intrusions, most notably Napoleon’s invasion of Egypt in1798, Middle Eastern regimes would themselves embrace western biomedicine as part of their determined efforts to modernise for defence. The medical folklore described above continues to shape the way many conceive of their medical world (Prioreschi, 1996). In important ways the older traditions continued to survive and even flourish.

In fields other than psychology and philosophy, the Muslims made many scientific advances. The Muslims were fired with an enthusiasm by Greek and Hindu sources of knowledge (Prioreschi, 1996). They made numerous advances in mathematics, astronomy, chemistry, technology (such as paper making), and medicine. The most significant difference between the Muslim scholars and Western scholars of the time was that instead of being members of the clergy, they were often physicians. The study of philosophy, medicine, and some of the rudiments of natural science went hand in hand. These advances continued even until the fifteenth century, but by the twelfth century Muslim supremacy had come to an end.

Islamic medicine drew upon Hellenic medical tradition to form its own. Likewise, medieval and early modern scholars in Europe drew upon Islamic traditions and translations as the foundation for their medical enterprise. It was through Arabic translations that the West learned of Hellenic medicine, including the works of Galen and Hippocrates. Of equal if not of greater influence in Western Europe were systematic and comprehensive works such as Avicenna’s Canon of Medicine, which were translated into Latin and then disseminated in manuscript and printed form throughout Europe. During the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries alone, the Canon of Medicine was published more than thirty-five times (Goodman, 1992).

Rise of Islamic Culture and Medicine

Averroes in his Epitome of Aristotle’s Parva Natutalis, commented on Aristotle’s treatises on the senses, on memory, sleep and waking, and dreams. He also discussed the Avicennian chain from common sense to imagination to cognition to memory, and the localization of these faculties in the ventricles (Goodman, 1992); (For a complete description of the Avicenna’s theories see L.E. Goodman’s Avicenna). He contributed to this by pointing out the interdependence of the various faculties in the chain. Averroes also played a significant role in unifying the current knowledge of his time by adding to Aristotle what Galen and Avicenna had supplied (Murray,1983) .

Some topics in this essay:
Medicine Goodman, , Middle East, Greek Arabic, Mecca Arabia, Greek Hindu, Klienman Cohen, Roman Empire, Avicenna Persian, Ages Muslim, mentally ill, mental illness, prioreschi 1996, islamic culture, goodman 1992, muslim scholars, khan 1986, murray 1983, islamic scholars, porter 1998, persons mental deficits, treatment mentally ill, koran mentally ill, klienman cohen 1998, prioreschi 1996 islamic,