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78
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.FOURTH DISCOURSE. O*N PHY^ s
dcnvn in the Quran what sJ\flll be a Healing aid a Mercy to true
believers^"' For I was 'filled with regret, seeing that he, was a
young man, 'and wealthy, and in easy circumstances, and hada\\
things needful for a 1
life.
pleasant Then I performed the
minor ablution, went to
tfye oratory and acquitted myself of the
knocked at door of the house.
tjfe
customary prayer 2 . One
I looked and saw that it 'was one of his people, who gave good
tidings, saying, '
'
! I Open enquired what had happened, and
he replied, 'This very hour he obtained relief.' Then I knew
that this was through th.e blessing of the Fdtiha of the Scripture,
and that this draught had been issued from the Divine Dis-
pensary. For I have put this to the proof, administering this
draught in many cases, in all of which it proved beneficial, and
resulted in restoration to health." Therefore the physician should
be of good faith, and should venerate the commands and prohibitions
of the 'Holy Law.
On the Science of Medicine the student should procure and
read the "Aphorisms" (Fusiil) of Hippocrates, the "Questions"*
(Masd'il) of Hunayn ibn Ishaq 3
the "Guide" , (Murshid) 01
4
Muhammad ibn Zakariyya of Ray (ar-Razi) and the , Commentary
of Nih' 5
who has made abstracts of these. After he has , carefully
read [these works] with a kind and congenial master, he should
diligently study with a sympathetic teacher the following intermediate
works, to wit, the " Thesaurus "
(Dhakhira) of Thabit ibn
Qurra 6
, the \_Kitdbu' t-TibbVl-~\ Mansuri of Muhammad 'ibn
Zakariyya of Ray 7
; the "Direction" (Hiddya) of Abu Bakr
Ajwi'n(, or the "Sufficiency" (Kifdya) of Ahmad [ibn] Faraj and
the "vAims "
(Aghrdd) of Sayyid Isma'il Jurjani' 8 . Then he