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J Med Biogr OnlineFirst, published on March 21, 2014 as doi:10.1177/0967772014525105
Original Article
Akhawayni (?–983 AD): A Persian neuropsychiatrist in the early medieval era (9th–12th Century AD)
Journal of Medical Biography 0(0) 1–3 ! The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/0967772014525105 jmb.sagepub.com
Arman Zargaran1,2,3, Gholamreza Kordafshari4, Seyyed Rouhollah Hosseini2 and Alireza Mehdizadeh1
Abstract The early medieval era is also called the Islamic Golden Age because of the significant rise in sciences, including medicine. Abu¯ Bakr Rabi’ ibn Ahmad Akhawayni Bukha¯ri (better known as Akhawayni) was one of the notable medical practitioners in his lifetime. His fame was in neuroscience and he became known as Pezeshk-e-Divanegan (Physician to the Insane). His only surviving book, Hida¯yat al-Muta’allimin fi al-Tibb (The Students’ Handbook of Medicine), is the first medical textbook in Persian, after Islam. Akhawayni gathered and categorized available knowledge on neuropsychiatry and added his own. He was the first to describe sleep paralysis and to suggest pragmatic rather than supernatural treatment. He was also the first to present fever cure and his descriptions of meningitis (Lisarghos in Hida¯yat), mania, psychosis (Malikhulia), dementia (Ghotrab), etc., are close to current concepts.
Keywords Akhawayni, history of Medicine, Persia, Iran
Introduction The renown in medicine in the Islamic Golden Age1 is indebted to Persian scholars including Haly Abbas (949–982 AD),2 Rhazes (865–925 AD),3 Avicenna (980–1032 AD)4 etc. Muslims, mostly Persians, translated foreign medical manuscripts from Persian, Greek, Indian and Syriac into Arabic, the Linga Franca of that period.5,6 Medical schools (from ancient Persia and other civilizations under the rule of Muslims including Jundishapur) also enjoyed renown and the scientific atmosphere of the period as well as the notable works of Muslim physicians enriched medical sciences in early medieval times in Islamic territories. Among the prominent figures of medicine from this period was Akhawayni, a great physician who made numerous observations in neurology and psychiatry7 and became famous as ‘Physician to the Insane’ but unfortunately he is not well known today and his works have not been translated into Latin or English.
Biography 8
Akhawayni (who was called as Joveini in Latin) was born in Bokhara, a city in the north east of Old Persia,
in early 10th century AD and thus became known as Al-Bokhari.9 Bokhara was a great and important city, located on the Silk Road.10 Persia at that time was ruled by the Samanid dynasty, the first Persian kingdom that rose after the Muslims defeated, in 637 AD, the Sassanid Empire, the last ancient Persian dynasty. Akhawayni lived and worked in Bokhara and also in Tus (a city in eastern Iran).11 He studied medicine under Abu al-Qasem Maqanei Razi who was the student of Rhazes, the renowned Persian physician and chemist.12 He documented his 20 years’ experiments of medicine in four manuscripts, Kitab al-Nabz 1
Research Office for the History of Persian Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran 2 Student Research Committee, Department of History of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran 3 Pharmaceutical Sciences Research Center and Department of Traditional Pharmacy, School of Pharmacy, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran 4 Faculty of Traditional Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Corresponding author: Arman Zargaran, Research Office for the History of Persian Medicine, North Ghaani Avenue, Shiraz 7139748479, Iran. Email: [email protected]
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(the book on the pulse), Kitab al-Tashrih (the book on anatomy), Qarabadin (pharmacopeia) and Hida¯yat al-Muta’allimin fi al-Tibb (The Students’ Handbook of Medicine, the only book surviving today).13 Hida¯yat is the first medical textbook written in Persian in the Islamic era. In the Islamic Golden Age most of the scientific writings were in Arabic, the Franca Lingua of that period. But Akhawayni broke this tradition and wrote in his native Persian (Farsi).14 The book includes 184 chapters (Bab) covering wide aspects of medicine.15 It seems his main interest in medicine was psychiatry and especially melancholy, thus becoming known as Pezeshk-e-Divanegan (Physician to the Insane). He died around 983 AD and was buried in his hometown.
Akhawayni’s works on neurology and psychiatry In Hida¯yat Akhawayni wrote comprehensive chapters on psychiatry and neurology including anatomy, describing the brain and nervous system functions, neuropsychiatric disorders (diagnosis, signs, and symptoms) and treatment, and also his own experiments on his patients.16 He gathered and categorized available knowledge on neuropsychiatry. In his book we can see citations to Galen, Dioscorides, Tabari, Rhazes, etc.17 He also added his own findings, including novel works and observations in neuropsychiatry. He was the first to describe sleep paralysis and nightmares and suggested pragmatic rather than supernatural treatment.18 He is mentioned as the first person to describe the Circle of Willis circle19 and to present the fever cure in the history of medicine.20 He also described meningitis (Lisarghos in Hida¯yat), mania, psychosis (Malikhulia), dementia (Ghotrab) and other conditions with thoughts that are close to current concepts.21,22 Beside neurology and psychiatry, Akhawayni wrote novel works in other medical fields. He described many kidney and urinary diseases including the presentation of urinary stone, urine retention, urinary incontinence and bladder ulcer, based on his own experience.23 In cardiology Akhawayni was an expert and his work on the pulse was clearer and more valuable than that of contemporary scholars including Avicenna and Rhazes.24 He explained the pulmonary circulation too in terms close to current concepts.25 His book included the role of exercise in health.26
Conclusion Akhawayni was influential in the history of medicine. He was the first Persian physician to break the tradition of scientific writing in Arabic by writing in Persian, thus paving the way for Persian to flourish in scientific
writing and for Persian doctors to write in their mother tongue. A few centuries later, Persian became the scientific language of the Old Persian era and of related cultures including India. Akhawayni also had major influence on the progress of medicine especially in neuropsychiatry. As a tradition among Persian scholars, in his book he cited earlier works, of Galen, Dioscorides and Rhazes, and added his own findings. Hida¯yat thus became a medical encyclopedia of ancient knowledge of medicine as well as Akhawayni’s. References and notes 1. Zargaran A, Mehdizadeh A, Zarshenas MM, et al. Avicenna (980–1032 AD). Journal of Neurology 2012; 259: 389–390. 2. Zargaran A, Zarshenas MM, Ahmadi SA, et al. Haly Abbas (949–982 AD). Journal of Neurology. Epub ahead of print 5 January 2013. 3. Zarshenas MM, Mehdizadeh A, Zargaran A, et al. Rhazes (865–925 AD). Journal of Neurology 2012; 259: 1001–1002. 4. Zargaran A (op. cit. ref. 1): pp. 389–390. 5. Zarshenas MM, Zargaran A, Mehdizadeh A, et al. Mansur ibn Ilyas (1380–1422): a Persian anatomist and his book of anatomy, Tashrih-I Mansuri. Journal of Medical Biography 2014 [in press]. 6. Ardalan MR, Shoja MM, Tubbs RS, et al. Diseases of the kidney in medieval Persia – the Hidayat of AlAkawayni. Nephrology Dialysis Transplantation 2007; 22: 3413–3421. 7. Golshani SA, Yarmohammadi H and Daneshfard B. The effect of Jundishapur school on Baghdad medical school. The Journal of Research on the History of Medicine 2012; 2: 49–56. 8. Yarmohammadi H (op. cit. ref. 8). 9. Yarmohammadi H, Dalfardi B, Rezaian J, et al. AlAkhawayni’s description of pulmonary circulation. International Journal of Cardiology. Epub ahead of print 25 July 2013. 10. Changizi Ashtiyani S, Shamsi M, Cyrus A, et al. A critical review of the works of pioneer physicians on kidney diseases in ancient Iran. Iranian Journal of Kidney Diseases 2001; 5: 300–308. 11. Khodadoust K, Ardalan M, Ghabili K, et al. Discourse on pulse in medieval Persia – the Hidayat of AlAkhawayni (?–983AD). International Journal of Cardiology 2013; 166: 289–293. 12. Sajadi MM, Bonabi R, Sajadi MRM, et al. Akhawayni and the first fever curve. Clinical Infectious Diseases 2012; 55: 976–980. 13. Golzari SE, Khodadoust K, Alakbarli F, et al. Sleep paralysis in medieval Persia – the Hidayat of Akhawayni (?–983 AD). Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment 2012; 8: 229–234. 14. Khodadoust K (op. cit. ref. 10): pp. 289–293. 15. Al-Akhawayni Bukhari (op. cit. ref. 15). 16. Yarmohammadi H (op. cit. ref. 16).
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Akhawayni: A Persian neuropsychiatrist
17. Changizi Ashtiyani S (op. cit. ref. 9): pp. 300–308. 18. Al-Akhawayni Bukhari. Hidayat al-Mutaallimin Fi alTibb (A guidance to medical learners). Bodleian Oxford version. Tehran: Microfilms from Tehran Manuscript Library; circa 10th century AD. 19. Yarmohammadi H, Dalfardi B and Ghanizadeh A. AlAkhawayni Bukhari (?–983 AD). Journal of Neurology. Epub ahead of print 18 June 2013. 20. Al-Akhawayni Bukhari (op. cit. ref. 15). 21. Golzari SE (op. cit. ref. 11): pp. 229–234. 22. Yarmohammadi H, Dalfardi B and Ghanizadeh A. Joveini (Al-Akhawayni) and the early knowledge on
23. 24. 25. 26.
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circle of Willis. International Journal of Cardiology. Epub ahead of print 19 July 2013. Sajadi MM (op. cit. ref. 10): pp. 976–980. Ardalan MR (op. cit. ref. 6): pp. 3413–3421. Khodadoust K (op. cit. ref. 10): pp. 289–293. Nayernouri T and Azizi MH. The oldest known medical treatise in the Persian language (‘Hedayat al-Motaallemin fi-Tebb’ by Abubakr Rabi-ibn Ahmad Akhawayni Bukhari). Middle East Journal of Digestive Diseases 2011; 3: 74–78.
Author biographies Arman Zargaran (Pharm D) is a PhD candidate of traditional pharmacy and the Head of Research Office for the History of Persian Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences; research interest includes natural products and history of Persian medicine. Gholamreza Kordafshari (MD) is a PhD candidate of traditional medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences; research interest includes traditional medicine. Seyyed Rouhollah Hosseini is an MD student and works on history of medicine; research interest includes history of Islamic medicine. Alireza Mehdizadeh (MD, PhD) is an Assistant Professor whose research interests include the history of Persian and Islamic medicine and he is the Research and Education Dean of Research Office for the History of Persian Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences.
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(JMB)
[1–3] [PREPRINTER stage]
J Med Biogr OnlineFirst, published on March 21, 2014 as doi:10.1177/0967772014525105
Original Article
Akhawayni (?–983 AD): A Persian neuropsychiatrist in the early medieval era (9th–12th Century AD)
Journal of Medical Biography 0(0) 1–3 ! The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/0967772014525105 jmb.sagepub.com
Arman Zargaran1,2,3, Gholamreza Kordafshari4, Seyyed Rouhollah Hosseini2 and Alireza Mehdizadeh1
Abstract The early medieval era is also called the Islamic Golden Age because of the significant rise in sciences, including medicine. Abu¯ Bakr Rabi’ ibn Ahmad Akhawayni Bukha¯ri (better known as Akhawayni) was one of the notable medical practitioners in his lifetime. His fame was in neuroscience and he became known as Pezeshk-e-Divanegan (Physician to the Insane). His only surviving book, Hida¯yat al-Muta’allimin fi al-Tibb (The Students’ Handbook of Medicine), is the first medical textbook in Persian, after Islam. Akhawayni gathered and categorized available knowledge on neuropsychiatry and added his own. He was the first to describe sleep paralysis and to suggest pragmatic rather than supernatural treatment. He was also the first to present fever cure and his descriptions of meningitis (Lisarghos in Hida¯yat), mania, psychosis (Malikhulia), dementia (Ghotrab), etc., are close to current concepts.
Keywords Akhawayni, history of Medicine, Persia, Iran
Introduction The renown in medicine in the Islamic Golden Age1 is indebted to Persian scholars including Haly Abbas (949–982 AD),2 Rhazes (865–925 AD),3 Avicenna (980–1032 AD)4 etc. Muslims, mostly Persians, translated foreign medical manuscripts from Persian, Greek, Indian and Syriac into Arabic, the Linga Franca of that period.5,6 Medical schools (from ancient Persia and other civilizations under the rule of Muslims including Jundishapur) also enjoyed renown and the scientific atmosphere of the period as well as the notable works of Muslim physicians enriched medical sciences in early medieval times in Islamic territories. Among the prominent figures of medicine from this period was Akhawayni, a great physician who made numerous observations in neurology and psychiatry7 and became famous as ‘Physician to the Insane’ but unfortunately he is not well known today and his works have not been translated into Latin or English.
Biography 8
Akhawayni (who was called as Joveini in Latin) was born in Bokhara, a city in the north east of Old Persia,
in early 10th century AD and thus became known as Al-Bokhari.9 Bokhara was a great and important city, located on the Silk Road.10 Persia at that time was ruled by the Samanid dynasty, the first Persian kingdom that rose after the Muslims defeated, in 637 AD, the Sassanid Empire, the last ancient Persian dynasty. Akhawayni lived and worked in Bokhara and also in Tus (a city in eastern Iran).11 He studied medicine under Abu al-Qasem Maqanei Razi who was the student of Rhazes, the renowned Persian physician and chemist.12 He documented his 20 years’ experiments of medicine in four manuscripts, Kitab al-Nabz 1
Research Office for the History of Persian Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran 2 Student Research Committee, Department of History of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran 3 Pharmaceutical Sciences Research Center and Department of Traditional Pharmacy, School of Pharmacy, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran 4 Faculty of Traditional Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Corresponding author: Arman Zargaran, Research Office for the History of Persian Medicine, North Ghaani Avenue, Shiraz 7139748479, Iran. Email: [email protected]
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(the book on the pulse), Kitab al-Tashrih (the book on anatomy), Qarabadin (pharmacopeia) and Hida¯yat al-Muta’allimin fi al-Tibb (The Students’ Handbook of Medicine, the only book surviving today).13 Hida¯yat is the first medical textbook written in Persian in the Islamic era. In the Islamic Golden Age most of the scientific writings were in Arabic, the Franca Lingua of that period. But Akhawayni broke this tradition and wrote in his native Persian (Farsi).14 The book includes 184 chapters (Bab) covering wide aspects of medicine.15 It seems his main interest in medicine was psychiatry and especially melancholy, thus becoming known as Pezeshk-e-Divanegan (Physician to the Insane). He died around 983 AD and was buried in his hometown.
Akhawayni’s works on neurology and psychiatry In Hida¯yat Akhawayni wrote comprehensive chapters on psychiatry and neurology including anatomy, describing the brain and nervous system functions, neuropsychiatric disorders (diagnosis, signs, and symptoms) and treatment, and also his own experiments on his patients.16 He gathered and categorized available knowledge on neuropsychiatry. In his book we can see citations to Galen, Dioscorides, Tabari, Rhazes, etc.17 He also added his own findings, including novel works and observations in neuropsychiatry. He was the first to describe sleep paralysis and nightmares and suggested pragmatic rather than supernatural treatment.18 He is mentioned as the first person to describe the Circle of Willis circle19 and to present the fever cure in the history of medicine.20 He also described meningitis (Lisarghos in Hida¯yat), mania, psychosis (Malikhulia), dementia (Ghotrab) and other conditions with thoughts that are close to current concepts.21,22 Beside neurology and psychiatry, Akhawayni wrote novel works in other medical fields. He described many kidney and urinary diseases including the presentation of urinary stone, urine retention, urinary incontinence and bladder ulcer, based on his own experience.23 In cardiology Akhawayni was an expert and his work on the pulse was clearer and more valuable than that of contemporary scholars including Avicenna and Rhazes.24 He explained the pulmonary circulation too in terms close to current concepts.25 His book included the role of exercise in health.26
Conclusion Akhawayni was influential in the history of medicine. He was the first Persian physician to break the tradition of scientific writing in Arabic by writing in Persian, thus paving the way for Persian to flourish in scientific
writing and for Persian doctors to write in their mother tongue. A few centuries later, Persian became the scientific language of the Old Persian era and of related cultures including India. Akhawayni also had major influence on the progress of medicine especially in neuropsychiatry. As a tradition among Persian scholars, in his book he cited earlier works, of Galen, Dioscorides and Rhazes, and added his own findings. Hida¯yat thus became a medical encyclopedia of ancient knowledge of medicine as well as Akhawayni’s. References and notes 1. Zargaran A, Mehdizadeh A, Zarshenas MM, et al. Avicenna (980–1032 AD). Journal of Neurology 2012; 259: 389–390. 2. Zargaran A, Zarshenas MM, Ahmadi SA, et al. Haly Abbas (949–982 AD). Journal of Neurology. Epub ahead of print 5 January 2013. 3. Zarshenas MM, Mehdizadeh A, Zargaran A, et al. Rhazes (865–925 AD). Journal of Neurology 2012; 259: 1001–1002. 4. Zargaran A (op. cit. ref. 1): pp. 389–390. 5. Zarshenas MM, Zargaran A, Mehdizadeh A, et al. Mansur ibn Ilyas (1380–1422): a Persian anatomist and his book of anatomy, Tashrih-I Mansuri. Journal of Medical Biography 2014 [in press]. 6. Ardalan MR, Shoja MM, Tubbs RS, et al. Diseases of the kidney in medieval Persia – the Hidayat of AlAkawayni. Nephrology Dialysis Transplantation 2007; 22: 3413–3421. 7. Golshani SA, Yarmohammadi H and Daneshfard B. The effect of Jundishapur school on Baghdad medical school. The Journal of Research on the History of Medicine 2012; 2: 49–56. 8. Yarmohammadi H (op. cit. ref. 8). 9. Yarmohammadi H, Dalfardi B, Rezaian J, et al. AlAkhawayni’s description of pulmonary circulation. International Journal of Cardiology. Epub ahead of print 25 July 2013. 10. Changizi Ashtiyani S, Shamsi M, Cyrus A, et al. A critical review of the works of pioneer physicians on kidney diseases in ancient Iran. Iranian Journal of Kidney Diseases 2001; 5: 300–308. 11. Khodadoust K, Ardalan M, Ghabili K, et al. Discourse on pulse in medieval Persia – the Hidayat of AlAkhawayni (?–983AD). International Journal of Cardiology 2013; 166: 289–293. 12. Sajadi MM, Bonabi R, Sajadi MRM, et al. Akhawayni and the first fever curve. Clinical Infectious Diseases 2012; 55: 976–980. 13. Golzari SE, Khodadoust K, Alakbarli F, et al. Sleep paralysis in medieval Persia – the Hidayat of Akhawayni (?–983 AD). Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment 2012; 8: 229–234. 14. Khodadoust K (op. cit. ref. 10): pp. 289–293. 15. Al-Akhawayni Bukhari (op. cit. ref. 15). 16. Yarmohammadi H (op. cit. ref. 16).
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17. Changizi Ashtiyani S (op. cit. ref. 9): pp. 300–308. 18. Al-Akhawayni Bukhari. Hidayat al-Mutaallimin Fi alTibb (A guidance to medical learners). Bodleian Oxford version. Tehran: Microfilms from Tehran Manuscript Library; circa 10th century AD. 19. Yarmohammadi H, Dalfardi B and Ghanizadeh A. AlAkhawayni Bukhari (?–983 AD). Journal of Neurology. Epub ahead of print 18 June 2013. 20. Al-Akhawayni Bukhari (op. cit. ref. 15). 21. Golzari SE (op. cit. ref. 11): pp. 229–234. 22. Yarmohammadi H, Dalfardi B and Ghanizadeh A. Joveini (Al-Akhawayni) and the early knowledge on
23. 24. 25. 26.
3
circle of Willis. International Journal of Cardiology. Epub ahead of print 19 July 2013. Sajadi MM (op. cit. ref. 10): pp. 976–980. Ardalan MR (op. cit. ref. 6): pp. 3413–3421. Khodadoust K (op. cit. ref. 10): pp. 289–293. Nayernouri T and Azizi MH. The oldest known medical treatise in the Persian language (‘Hedayat al-Motaallemin fi-Tebb’ by Abubakr Rabi-ibn Ahmad Akhawayni Bukhari). Middle East Journal of Digestive Diseases 2011; 3: 74–78.
Author biographies Arman Zargaran (Pharm D) is a PhD candidate of traditional pharmacy and the Head of Research Office for the History of Persian Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences; research interest includes natural products and history of Persian medicine. Gholamreza Kordafshari (MD) is a PhD candidate of traditional medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences; research interest includes traditional medicine. Seyyed Rouhollah Hosseini is an MD student and works on history of medicine; research interest includes history of Islamic medicine. Alireza Mehdizadeh (MD, PhD) is an Assistant Professor whose research interests include the history of Persian and Islamic medicine and he is the Research and Education Dean of Research Office for the History of Persian Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences.
Downloaded from jmb.sagepub.com at WASHINGTON UNIV SCHL OF MED on November 15, 2015
