The Ancient Tongue speaketh that which will satisfy the wise
in the absence of physicians.
Say! O people!
Do not eat except when hungry.
Do not drink after retiring to sleep.
Exercise is good when the stomach is empty;
It strenghteneth the limbs.
When the stomach is full it is very harmful.
Do not neglect medical treatment when it is necessary,
but leave it off when health has been restored.
Do not take nourishment until the digestion is complete.
Do not swallow until you have thoroughly masticated.
Treat disease first by diet, by preference,
refraining from the use of drugs;
and if you find what is required in a single herb,
do not resort to a compounded medicament.
Abstain from drugs when the health is good,
but administer them when necessary.
If two incompatible foods are put on the table, do not mix them.
Be content with one of them.
First take the soft or liquid food
before partaking of hard or solid food.
The intermingling of one food with another is a danger
of which you must beware.
Begin meals with the mention of My Name,
the All-Glorious
and end with the Name of the Possessor of heaven and earth.
When you have eaten walk a little,
that the food may settle.
That which is difficult to masticate is forbidden by the wise.
Thus the Supreme Pen commandeth you.
A light meal in the morning is as a light to the body.
Avoid all harmful habits; they cause unhappiness in the world.
Relate the diseases to their causes.
This statement in this connection is a conclusive decree.
Verily the most necessary thing is contentment
under all circumstances;
by this one is preserved from morbid conditions
and from lassitude.
Yield not to grief and sorrow,
they cause the greatest misery.
Jealousy consumeth the body
and anger burneth the liver;
avoid these two as you would a lion.
The main thing is to cleanse the body of its wastes,
but in a temperate season.
He who overeateth,
his illness becometh more severe.
We have arranged for each thing a cause
and we have bestowed upon it an effect.
All this is from the Effulgence of My Name
which permeateth all things.
Say! By adhering to that which We have set forth
the humors of the body will not depart from their equilibrium
nor will their set measure be upset by various conditions,
for the primary substance would remain in its pristine purity,
no change would occur in the normal proportions of one sixth,
and of one sixth of one sixth,
and the twin active agents (qualities, properties).
The twin passive agents would remain intact.
In God must our trust be.
There is no God but Him, the Healer, the Knower, the Helper.
The Supreme Pen hath not written such words but for love of thee,
that thou mayest know that grief hath not seized upon
the Blessed Beauty.
He is not sorrowful because of what hath befallen Him
from the nations.
How sad for a man to lose his chance when it ariseth.
Nothing on earth or in heaven is outside the grasp of God.
O physician!
In treating the sick,
first mention the Name of God,
the Possessor of the Day of Judgment
and then use what God hath destined
for the healing of His creatures.
By My Life!
The physician who hath drunk from the Wine of My Love,
his visit is healing,
and his breath is mercy and hope.
Cling to him for the welfare of the constitution.
He is confirmed by God in his treatment.
This science (of the healing arts) is the noblest of all sciences.
It is indeed the most potent instrument
for the protection of the bodies of men
provided by Him who breatheth life into bones.
He hath given it the foremost rank among all sciences
and the pursuits of the learned.
However,
this is the day for thee to arise to help My Cause,
while fully detached from all the worlds.
Say!
Thy Name is my healing,
O my God, and remembrance of Thee is my remedy.
Nearness to Thee is my hope,
and love for Thee is my companion.
Thy mercy to me is my healing and my succor
in both this world and the world to come.
Thou, verily, art the All-bountiful, the All-knowing, the All-wise.
Draft translation.
Original Arabic text in
Majmu‘ih-yi Alvah-i Mubarakih,
Egypt: 1920, pp. 222-26.