The Implementation of Science in The

Golden Age of Islam Towards the

Development of Science: A Study on
Abbasid Dynasty from 8th To 13th
Century

SHAHAZ KASARGOD
 INTRODUCTION
• The Islamic Golden Age lasted from the 8th to 13th centuries when major scientific
and medical advancements were made by Muslim scholars.

• Muslim physicians during this time were highly skilled and produced many
outstanding medical theories, practices and instruments.

• Major Islamic scholars like al-Tabari, al-Razi, Ibn Sina, al-Zahrawi and Ibn Zuhr
made significant contributions to medicine which influenced future generations.

• New medical ideas and theories were developed, along with new medical instruments
and literature on medicine.

• The Islamic Golden Age started with the reign of the Abbasid Caliph Harun al-
Rashid from 786 to 809 and ended after the Mongol invasions of Baghdad in 1258.
Defining the Islamic Golden Age
• The phrase "Islamic Golden Age" was coined by 19th century Orientalist scholars who
studied Middle Eastern societies.

• Orientalism brought with it stereotypes and assumptions about Islamic societies that
were often incorrect.

• Scholars differ on the exact time period of the Islamic Golden Age, but it is thought
of more as a process than a specific period.

• The Golden Age likely spans from around 750 CE up until the Mongol destruction of
Baghdad in 1258 CE, with some extending it to the 16th century.

• The Islamic Golden Age coincided with the European Dark Ages (500-1000 CE) and
the European Renaissance (13th to 15th century).
Science
• During the Dark Ages in Europe, the Middle East and western Asia
experienced a flourishing of culture and science, especially in medicine.

• Building on knowledge from ancient civilizations, these Middle Eastern

advances eventually influenced Europe during the Renaissance.

• From around the 8th century, Muslim regions experienced an Islamic

Golden Age with academic pursuits flowering in an atmosphere of
tolerance.

• Islamic teachings strongly encouraged and supported scientific research

which led to many discoveries and advancements.

• The Quran and Islamic texts view the pursuit of knowledge as worship,
fostering a tolerant and supportive attitude towards scientific research.
 Innovation and Achievements in the
Sciences during the Abbasid Period
• The Abbasid Caliphs patronized scientists who greatly contributed to mathematics,
physics, chemistry, and technology.

• Al-Khwarizmi wrote an important book on algebra and popularized the use of Arabic
numerals.

• Ibn Al-Haytham (Alhazen) significantly contributed to the field of optics and pioneered
experimental approach.

• Avicenna and Al-Kindi made important contributions to medicine by distinguishing

between body and mental illnesses.

• Many astronomers like Al-Battani improved the measurement of the Earth's axis and
developed astrolabes which aided navigation.
 Abbasid caliphate
• The Abbasids came to power after rebelling against the Umayyads. However, once in
power, they continued many Umayyad policies.

• The Abbasids embraced Persian culture and moved the capital to Baghdad, which
became the largest and most cultured city at the time.

• Under the Abbasids, Baghdad saw a golden age with art, literature, and science
flourishing under rulers like Harun al-Rashid and al-Ma'mun.

• Gradually, Abbasid power weakened due to independent emirs and a powerful military
that controlled the caliphs.
.
• The Abbasids became figureheads until al-Nasir reasserted power briefly in the 12th
century. However, his successors were unsuccessful.

• The Abbasid Empire was destroyed by the Mongols who sacked Baghdad.After
this, Abbasid caliphs continued as religious figureheads in Cairo until conquered
by the Ottomans.
Golden age of Islamic Medicine
•The 8th to 13th centuries were a period of great scientific discoveries and
achievements in the fields of mathematics, philosophy, astronomy and medicine in
the Islamic world.

•For centuries, the medical texts written during this period by the medical columns
of the time were the main medical education texts for the growing medical schools
in Europe.

•The golden age of Islamic medicine lasted from the 8th century to the 13th
century, when Muslim doctors were created.

•These doctors did not only recommend traditional medical theories and
treatments; they were the best experts and main medicals of the Middle Ages.
 Medical canon
•The explosion of medical science, research, theory, and writing during the Islamic
Golden Age was important to modern and later physicians, including the
philosopher and physician Ibn Sina, who was known in the West Avison's articles
reflect this.

•Ibn Sina began studying medicine as a teenager, and by the age of 18 he was
serving as the Samanid court physician
.
•The Medical Classics, which gathered knowledge from Greek and Roman texts,
Ayurveda, Persian and Arabic texts, as well as interviews and observations of
patients themselves, were translated into many languages, including Latin and
Chinese.

•Ibn Sina's influential writings contributed to the development of a comprehensive

medical system that used observation, systematic testing, and conclusions to
support medical practice.
Ibn Sina’s The Canon of Medicine
•Ibn Sina's work "Al-Qanun fi at-Tibb" ("The Law of Medicine") had a great impact on
medical education in the West and Arab countries.

•Ibn Sina's "Canon" - a huge book containing a million words in five volumes, is a
collection of everything that was known about medicine and surgery at the time,
including the teachings of Hippocrates, Galen and the Greek philosopher Aristotle.

•The second volume contains information on more than 700 drugs and medicines.

•The last volume was about the production of medicines.

•The Canon was translated into Latin in the 11th century and thus dominated the
approach to medicine in the Middle Ages.
Ibn Al- Nafis
•Ibn Al Nafis was the first to discover blood circulation, he wrote in his book ''Sharh
Tashrih al Qanun‘’.

•A common misconception about the circulatory system, dating from the time of Galen to
Avicenna, suggested that blood drawn from the right ventricle passes through an
"invisible" opening in the septum on the left side, where air and life force are added.

•In Sharh Tashrih al Qanun, Ibn Al Nafis said: "The blood from the right chamber of the
heart must reach the left chamber, but there is no direct passage between the two sides.

•"Blood must flow from the right ventricle through the aorta to the lungs, where it
disperses into the substance and enters the air while in the lungs.

•It reaches the left chamber of the heart through the pulmonary veins and forms the living
soul''.
Al-Zahrawi
•Another Islamic pioneer was Az-Zahrawi, who conducted experiments on human surgery.

•(2006:1582) indicate that due to Az-Zahrawi & #039;s revolutionary work, he is known as
the father of surgery.

•Al-Zahrawi's writings were outstanding and led to a keen interest in Muslim medical
knowledge among Western scholars.

•Al-Zahrawi's book on surgery was the most important book known at the time and became
a standard in Europe.

•For example, he described an eventual curved shot of a flare-up, rather than the initial
direct vaccine, to be taken as a liquid to treat a stomach bug.

•At the time, it was unusual to provide pictures of weapons in books, until the time of
Leonardo da Vinci.
 Al- Razi
•Muhammad ibn Zakariya Razi was born in the city of Rai, near present-day Tehran. He
became interested in medicine in his forties.

•Since he was fully familiar with the principles of medicine and its practice, students
traveled from faraway countries to receive further education from him.

•When he arrived at the hospital, his disciples and students surrounded him.

•If the work was difficult, it was handed over to his close students, and finally Razi solved
the difficult tasks.

•When he wanted to choose a suitable place to build a hospital in Baghdad, he hung meat
in different corners of the city and chose a place where there were no signs of decay.

•He was a master of divination and psychosomatic medicine. Razi was one of the greats of
the history of medicine.
Ibn-Rushd
•He studied medicine under the famous teacher of Seville, Abu Jafar Harun al-Tajali.

•Ibn Rushd served the ruler of Seville, Sultan Abu Yaqoob Yousuf (1163-84), and was
surrounded by great scholars, scholars, and physicians.

•Ibn Rushd's answer was clever; he later gained favor from the chief.
His greatest medical work was Kitab al-Kulliyat (The Laws of Medicine), written
between 1153 and 1169.

•It is divided into seven books: Tashrih al-Ada (Anatomy of Organs), Al-Sihha (Health),
al-Marad (About Diseases), al-Adwiya wal Aghziya (Medicines and Food), Hifz al-Sihha
(Hygiene) ), Shifa al-Marad (concerning medicines), al-Alamat (concerning symptoms of
diseases).

•An Italian Jewish scholar named Barnacosa translated the Kulliyat into Latin in Padua
He surpassed Ibn Sinan in applying Aristotle's philosophical principles to medicine.
 Age of discoveries

• Advances in medical knowledge, clinical observation, and specialized fields led to

progress in medicine.

• Physicians like al-Zahrawi and Ibn al-Nafis made significant contributions to

surgical procedures and understanding of the body's circulatory system.

• New drugs, testing methods, and processes such as dissolving and distillation
fueled advances in pharmacology.

• In the early 13th century, Ibn al-Baytar produced a groundbreaking encyclopedia

on herbalism that listed hundreds of herbal medicines and remedies.
Conclusion
•From the results of the research conducted, it can be concluded that the
Abbasid period was the heyday of Islam in various fields, especially in the
field of science.

•The Islamic world has played an important role in both religious and
popular knowledge.

•A re-exploration of the science of ancient Greece and Persia, which

formed the basis for the development of Islamic civilization at the time.