During
the first half of the 20th century modern medicine or allopathy has
made a tremendous progress in curing and controlling many chronic and
acute diseases all over the globe. Today some of those diseases namely
malaria, plague and smallpox believed to have been eradicated is reemerging
with increased intensity. At the same time certain new and more deadly
diseases are emerging. Speedy economic growth and consequent Urbanisation
are inflicting another set of stress environment & behavior related
diseases. And even age-old ailments such as diabetes infertility impotency
do not have complete cure from allopathy or modern medicine. Today modern
medicine is in the cross road and unable to answer all these diverse
range of human ailments while the human race is heading ahead in the
new millennia with a rapidly changing socio economic system. At this
juncture through out the world new women are turning towards alternative
system of medicine, particularly unani medicine in search of answers
to their sufferings. According to Hakeem Hashmi, a prominent unani physician
and researcher that unani stands apart from other alternative medical
systems, because of its enlargement way approach and the well-developed
treatment methods. Today the whole world recognizes unani as even unique
system of medicine. Even W.H.O has approved unani as one of the integral
part of health care system in their health programs & disease eradication.
The unani system of medicine owes as its name suggests its origin to
Greece. It was the great Greek philosopher-physician Hippocrates (460-377
bc) who feed medicine from the realm of superstition and magic and gave
the status of science the theoretical framework of unani medicine is
based on the teachings of Hippocrates after Hippocrates a number of
other Greek scholars enriched the system considerably. Of them Galen
(131 - 210 AD) stands out as the one who stabilized its foundation on
which Arab physician like Rhazes (850-925AD) and Avicenna (980-1037AD)
constructed an imposing edifice. Thus unani traveled from Greece to
Egypt, then to Spain from where it reached Baghdad. From Baghdad it
came to Iran where it made tremendous progress and produced great physicians.
Unani medicine got enriched by imbibing what was best in the contemporary
system of traditional medicine in Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Persia, India,
China & other Middle East & Far East countries. It also benefited from
the native medical system or folk medicine in practice at the time in
various parts of central & southern Asia. That is why this system is
known as different part of the world with different named such as Greco-Arab
medicine, ionion medicine, Arab medicine, Islamic medicine, traditional
medicine, oriental medicine etc.
In India unani system of medicine was introduced by the Arabs and soon
it took form roots in the soil. When Mongols ravaged Persian & central
Asian cities like Shiraz, Tabrez, and Geelan, scholars & physicians
of unani medicine fled to India. The Delhi sultans, the khiljis, the
Tughlaqs and the Mughal emperors provided state patronage to the scholars
and eve enrolled some as state employees and court physician. During
13th & 17th century unani medicine had its hey-day in India. Among those
who made valuable contribution to the system in the period were, to
name only a few, Abu Baker Bin Ali, Usman Kashni, Sadruddin Damash Qui,
Bahwa Bin Khwas Khan, Ali Geelani, Akbar Azazani and Mohd Hashim Alvi
Khan. Unani system is based on the Hippocratic theory that a perfect
balance of "Arkhan" (elements), "Akhlat" (humor) and "Mijaz" (temperament)
helps the body and mind healthy. Every individual has an inherent power
of self-preservation called the 'Quwat-E-Modabira'. The theory pre-supposes
the presence humors in human body-"Dum" (blood), "Bhalgam"(phlegm)"Safra"
yellow pile and "Soada" (black pile). This system aims at restoring
the equilibrium of various elements & faculties of the human body. It
has laid down six essential prerequisites for the prevention of diseases
places great emphasis on the maintenance of proper ecological balance
on one hand and one keeping water, food and air free from pollution
on the other. These essentials known as 'Asbab-E-Sita-Zarooriya are
air, food & drinks, bodily movements & response, sleep & wakefulness,
excretion and retention. Treatment in the unani system of medicine is
done mainly through diet control for simple diseases in the initial
stages followed by the administration of single drug, failing which
compound preparation may be administered. The various treatment such
as "Ilajbit-tadbeer"(regimental therapy) "Ilajbit-Ghiza"(dietotherapy),
"Ilajbit-dawa"(Pharmocotherapy) and "Jarahat" (surgery). In pharmoco
therapy the physicians use naturally occurring drugs, mostly herbal.
The advantage with naturally occurring drugs is that most of them do
not have any side or negative effects.
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