Prescription 8: Avoiding The Pitfalls Of Destruction

من تطبب فليتق الله

Whosoever practices medicine, must observe taqwa.
- Imam ʿAli (ʿa)

Amir al-Mu’minin (ʿa) is reported to have said:

من تطبب فليتق الله ولينصح وليجتهد

Whosoever practices medicine must be conscious of Allah (fa liyattaqi Allah), show good will, and struggle.1

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Prescription 7: Your Comprehensive Role

تَخَلَّقُوا بأخلاق الله

Condition yourselves with the traits of Allah.
- Holy Prophet (S)

The doctor must realize that the ultimate goal of the human creation, according to scholars well-grounded in the depths of religion, is to attain the sublime attributes of Allah (al-Asmaʾ al-Husna). That is why the Holy Prophet (S) is reported to have said:

إِنَّمَا بُعثت لأتمم مكارم الأخلاق

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Prescription 6: The Divine Visage Of The Patient

وَهُوَ مَعَكُمْ أَيْنَ مَا كُنْتُمْ

… And He is with you wherever you may be … (Qur’an Surah al-Hadid, 57:4).

The Holy Qur’an says:

وَلِلَّهِ الْمَشْرِقُ وَالْمَغْرِبُ فَأَيْنَمَا تُوَلُّوا فَثَمَّ وَجْهُ اللَّهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ وَاسِعٌ عَلِيمٌ

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Prescription 5: Understanding The Patient’s Agony

اه اسم من أسماء الله تعالى

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Prescription 4: You Are God’s Secret Agent

من ستر مسلما ستره الله عز وجل في الدنيا والآخرة

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Prescription 3: Every Malady Has A Treatment

إن لكل داء دواء

Indeed, for every malady there is a medicine.
- Holy Prophet (S)

One who has appreciated the reality that Allah alone is the healer, and that nothing transpires save by His leave and control, would easily comprehend that it is possible for every malady to have a medicine and treatment. For him, science would not be the criterion of judgement, for science is based on experimentation and generalizations’, both of which cannot be taken as proofs to establish reality.

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Prescription 2: Your Fundamental Role

كُنْ كَالطَّبيب الرَّفِيقِ

Be like a friendly doctor.
- Imam ʿAli (ʿa)

Names and their etymological roots can reveal the beliefs, culture and history of a nation. In the English language one who treats the ailing person is known as a physician or a doctor.

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Prescription 1: “He” Is The Real Healer

The Holy Qur’an, narrating Prophet Ibrahim (ʿa)’s monotheistic expressions, says:

وَإِذَا مَرِضْتُ فَهُوَ يَشْفِينِ

And when I get sick, it is “He” who cures me. (Surah ash-Shu’araa, 26:80).

In other words, He alone is the true healer.
In the well-known supplication of al-Jawshan al-Kabir we are taught to address Allah as follows:

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Introduction

In the Name of Allah, the All-Beneficent, the All- Merciful. O Allah shower Your mercy on Muhammad and his infallible progeny, the best physicians of every time and age.

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Foreword

In the Name of Allah, the All-Beneficent, the All-Merciful.
O Allah, shower Your Mercy on Muhammad and his Household.

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“O the Excellent Doctor!”
[One of the divine names mentioned in the supplication of al-Jawshan al-Kabir (the Great Armour)]

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