There was an Indian physician among the most striking physicians, reading medical books for al-Mansour and Dawaneeqi. Once, that happened when Imam al-Sadiq (as) was available in the meeting, listening to what he was reading. When he completed his reading, he turned to the Imam (as) and said: “O Abu Abdullah! Do you want anything from what I have?”
“No, because what I have is better than yours,” the Imam (as) replied. The physician hurried saying: “What is it?”
The Imam (as) replied: “I cure the hot with the cold; the cold with the hot; the wet with the dry; the dry with the wet. I return all the cases to what Allah, the Almighty, ordered and use what the Prophet (S) said: Know that stomach is the source of diseases and that zeal is the source of every remedy. So accustom your body to what it is accustomed.”
The physician was astonished and said: “Is medicine something other than this?”
The Imam al-Sadiq (as) went on saying: “Do you think that I read anything from the medical books?”
“Yes,” he replied.
Imam (as) said: “I swear by Allah the Almighty and Majestic, that I did not. Well now tell me, who is more knowledgeable in medicine, you or me?”
“Of course me,” he replied.
Imam (as) set forth precise questions about what is related to the human body regarding medicine, saying:
Question 1: “Why are there affairs in head?”
The physician was confused and could not reach a response and confessed his inability to answer by saying: “I do not know.”
Question 2: “Why did He put hair on it, that is on the head, from the top?”
“I do not know,” he replied.
Question 3: “Why is forehead hairless?”
“I do not know,” he replied.
Question 4: “Why does it have linings and lineaments?”
“I do not know,” he replied.
Question 5: “Why are the eyebrows located above the eyes?”
“I do not know,” he replied.
Question 6: “Why are the eyes created similar to almonds?”
“I do not know,” he replied.
Question 7: “Why is the nose situated in the middle, that is, in the middle of the eyes?”
“I do not know,” he replied.
Question 8: “Why is the hole of the nose in the bottom?” “I do not know,” he replied.
Question 9: “Why are the lips and moustache put above the mouth?”
“I do not know,” he replied.
Question 10: “Why are the teeth sharpened, molar teeth were widened and canine teeth were lengthened?”
“I do not know,” he replied.
Question 11: “Why do men have beards?”
“I do not know,” he replied.
Question 12: “Why do palms lack hair?”
“I do not know,” he replied.
Question 13: “Why do nails and hair lack sense?”
“I do not know,” he replied.
Question 14: “Why is heart akin to the pine nut?”
“I do not know,” he replied.
Question 15: “Why are there two lungs and their movements are in their places”
“I do not know,” he replied.
Question 16: “Why is the liver curved?”
“I do not know,” he replied.
Question 17: “Why is kidney akin to the cowpeas?”
“I do not know,” he replied.
Question 18: “Why is the bending of knee specified in the back?”
“I do not know,” he replied.
Question 19: “Why is there a curvature in feet?”
“I do not know,” he replied.
The Indian physician asked the Imam (as) to reply these affairs, so he said:
Answer 1: “Head has complex affairs because it has empty spaces; otherwise headache was soon to attack it. So, as it has empty spaces around, headache is farther from it.”
Answer 2: “Hairs are located on the top of head to facilitate the transformation of sebum to brain, to ease the egress of steam and to protecting it from coldness and hotness.”
Answer 3: “Forehead lacks hairs, because it enlightens the eyes.”
Answer 4: “There are linings and lineaments to keep sweat, which is coming from the head towards the eyes to the extent that human requires, just like the lakes on the earth which are keeping the water.”
Answer 5: “The eyebrows are located above the eyes to protect the eyes from the light to some extent. You have already seen someone who is putting his hands on his eyes to protect his eyes to the extent needed.”
Answer 6: “Eyes are similar to almonds in order to allow the drug enter the eyes and to have the disease out. If they were square or circle, there would not be the true circulation of drugs nor the exiting of disease.”
Answer 7: “Nose is located between two eyes to divide the light to each one equally.”
Answer 8: “The hole of the nose is situated at the bottom to allow the exiting of elements coming out from the brain and to have the smell up. If it was situated towards above, nothing was out from and no smell could be smelled well.”
Answer 9: “Moustache and lip are above the mouth and keep what are out from brain from mouth, in order not to putrefy and to allow the human enjoy his eating and drinking”
Answer 10: “The teeth are sharp, because biting is done through them. Molars are wide, because they are used for grinding and canines are high to support molars and teeth as pillar in construction.”
Answer 11: “Beard is specified for men in order to remove the need to have a difficult inspection for distinguishing male from female.”
Answer 12: “Palms are free from hair, because touching is done through them. If there were hairs on palm, there would not be the ability to sense what are touched.”
Answer 13: “Hair and nails are slow in growing, because their fast growing is the source ugliness, while their shortness is the source of beauty. If there were fast growing, that would hurt human in cutting them.”
Answer 14: “Heart is akin to the pine nut, because it is upside-down. Its top is precisely so to allow it to enter into the lung and get use of being cold and avoid the brain to be burned with its hotness.”
Answer 15: “Lungs are created in two to place the heart inside their pressures and get use of their movement.”
Answer 16: “The liver is curved to take the heaviness of stomach to be pressured in order to omit all its steams.”
Answer 17: “Kidney is akin to the cowpeas, because it’s the place where semen is stored point after another. So if it was square or circle, it would be locked from the first point to the second and there would be no joy when it is exiting, if semen was exiting from the back of the kidney. It is shrinking and extending and then ejecting it firstly towards bladder similar to a gun after passing a curved path.”
Answer 18: “The bending of knee is specified in the back, because human being is walking forwards and this way, his movement is balanced. Otherwise he would fall down during his walk.”
Answer 19: “The feet have curvatures because if walking is done entirely on the ground without it, the weight would be similar to a very heavy stone.”
The physician was astonished with this information that he did not know before while they are from the subjects of the medical sciences. Then, he went on saying: “Where did you get this science from?”
Imam al-Sadiq (as) replied: “I took it from the Prophet (S) and he took it from Gabriel and Gabriel took it from the Lord of the Universe, the Almighty, who created bodies and souls.”
The physician set about and said: “You are right! I witness that there are no Lord but Allah and that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah and that you are the most knowledgeable man in your era.”
THE LIFE OF IMAM JAF’AR AL-SADIQ (AS) – BAQIR SHARIF AL-QURASHI