ORIGIN AND
DEVELOPMENT
Unani Medicinal System
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Physician Hippocratic (460-377 BC)
Unani system of Medicine owes
its origin to Greece. It was the Greek philosopher -
Physician Hippocratic (460-377 BC) who freed Medicine from
the realm of superstition and magic, and gave it the
status of Science. The theoretical framework of Unani
Medicine is based on the teachings of Hippocratic. After a
number of other Greek Scholars enriched the system
considerably. Of the Galen (131-210 AD) stands out as the
one who stabilized its foundation on which Arab physicians
like Rhazes (850-925 AD) and Avicenna (980-1037 AD)
constructed an imposing edifice. Unani Medicine got
enriched by imbibing what was best in the contemporary
systems of traditional medicine in Egypt, Syria, Iraq,
Persia, India, China and other Middle east and Far east
countries. |
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Avicenna (980-1037 AD)
In India,
Unani system of Medicine was introduced by Arabs and soon
it took firm roots in the soil. When Mongols ravaged
Persian and Central Asian cities like Shiraz, Tabrez and
Galan, scholars and Physicians of Unani Medicine fled to
India. The Delhi Sultan, the Khiljis, the Tughlaqs and the
Mughal Emperors provided state patronage to the scholars
and even enrolled some as state employees and court
physicians. During the 13th and 17th Century Unani
Medicine had its hey-day in India. Among those who made
valuable contributions to this system into period where
Abu Bakr Bin Ali Usman Ksahani, Sadruddin Damashqui, Bahwa
bin Khwas khan, Ali Geelani, Iqbal Arzani and Mohammad
Hashim Alvi Khan. |
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The
scholars and Physicians of Unani Medicine who settled in
India were not content with the known drugs. They
subjected Indian drugs to clinical trials. As a result of
their experimentation added numerous native drugs to their
own system further enriching its treasures. During the
British rule, Unani Medicine suffered a setback and its
development was hampered due to withdrawal of governmental
patronage. Since the system enjoyed faith among the masses
it continued to be practised. It was mainly the Sharifi
Family in Delhi, the Azizi family in Lucknow and the Nizam
of Hyderabad due to whose efforts Unani Medicine survived
during the British period. An outstanding physician and
scholar of Unani Medicine, Hakim Ajmal Khan (1868-1927)
championed the caused of the system in India |
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Unani Medicine is a
Traditional Medicine, which like other Traditional Medicines, e.g.,
Ayurvedic Medicine and Traditional Chinese Medicine, has a specific
and unique set of principles and methods that are used in the
diagnosis and treatment of health conditions.
Unani is an Arabic word that refers to its origins in Ionia in
ancient Greece, as Unani Medicine is primarily based on the ancient
methods of medicine that were used and taught by its traditional
founders.
Unani Medicine is both very old and very modern. As we have seen, it
was practised by Hippocrates over 2400 years ago. His medicine
however included a great deal of ancient Egyptian medicine as well
as important components of the ancient Mesopotamian traditions. Thus
it can be said that many aspects of Unani Medicine are over 6000
years old.Unani Medicine is also very modern, as it has been and is
still being practised as a traditional medicine in Europe, |
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the Middle East and
the Asian subcontinent. Although in Europe traditional medicine has,
to a great extent, been supplanted by modern medicine, there are
still those who are knowledgeable in, and practise Unani Medicine.
In the Middle East and in the Asian Subcontinent, Unani Medicine
continues to serve millions of people as their only or main
traditional medicine. Further, as modern medicine also originated
from the ancient Greek traditions, new scientific concepts can
readily be integrated into its practises. Thus Unani Medicine is
both an ancient medicine and the traditional medicine of the future.
Unani Medicine teaches that Natural Systems, which includes the human
body, are simply too complex to ever be understood as a whole, by only
looking at their individual component parts. Thus Unani Medicine uses a
holistic set of principles that make it easy for a practitioner of Unani
Medicine to turn a diagnosis into a treatment procedure.
In Unani Medicine there are two aspects or principles that are very
important; these are i. the life force or thymos (also called pneuma by
some authors) and ii. the four vital essences or humors. In disease the
thymos or the humors may be affected in various ways: there may be too
little thymos or life force, or too much in the body or in a part of the
body. The life force or thymos is primarily affected by the emotions, but
can also be affected by age or disease. Problems with the humors are
considered the most common however, and these may occur from having too
much of one or more humors in the body or in a part of the body, or too
little of a humor, or the humor may be corrupted by a poison or an
invasive micro-organism. Humors are affected to some extent by the life
force, or thymos, and to a greater extent by the food we eat, the
beverages we drink and by external influences, such as the environment.
Treatment usually involves some dietary approaches, but in most cases
includes Herbal Medicine, which in the case of Unani Medicine also
includes mineral substances. Generally also some work will be done on
specific body reflexes, most commonly by massage; but in the case of
musculoskeletal problems (e.g. arthritis, back pain) also by manipulation
or by the application of cold, heat or suction cups. Serious and acute
diseases may in rare instances be treated by puncturing certain reflex
points, during which a few drops of blood are released.
Hippocrates believed that whenever and wherever possible, medicine should
be gentle and safe, and this is the main objective of Unani Medicine. In
Unani Medicine, thousands of years of experience, and its practice by some
of the greatest minds the world has ever known, have ensured that it is
not only a safe and gentle medicine, but has unsurpassed efficacy in the
treatment of many acute and chronic conditions. |
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