Abdul Aziz (''Muhammad 'Abd al 'Aziz''; 1855–1911) was a prominent

Unani Unani or Yunani medicine (Urdu: ''tibb yūnānī'') is Perso-Arabic traditional medicine as practiced in Muslim culture in South Asia and modern day Central Asia. Unani medicine is pseudoscientific. The Indian Medical Association describes U ...

physician in

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

Biography

Hakim Abdul Aziz was born into a family of Kashmiri migrants, and is regarded as the founder of the Lucknow tradition in Unani medicine. He started practising medicine in 1877. In 1902, he founded the Takmil al Tibb School at

Lucknow Lucknow (, ) is the capital and the largest city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is also the second largest urban agglomeration in Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and division ...

for research and excellence in Unani Medicine. The earliest biographical work on Hakim Abdul Aziz and his philosophical approach in Unani medicine was written by Hakim Syed Zillur Rahman. He wrote memoirs and life history of 'Azizi Family', prescriptions and formulations of Hakim Abdul Waheed,

formularies used by Azizi Family of Lucknow.

Epistemology

Abdul Aziz’s approach with regards to Unani medicine was that of a puritan and hence, significantly different from other notable practitioners like

Hakim Ajmal Khan Mohammad Ajmal Khan (11 February 1868 – 29 December 1927), better known as Hakim Ajmal Khan, was a physician in Delhi, India, and one of the founders of the Jamia Millia Islamia University. He also founded another institution, Ayurved ...

who advocated incorporation of concepts from alternative medical systems. Consequently, the

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...

and Lucknow schools of Unani medicine evolved in different directions. Hakim Abdul Aziz wished to systematise Unani instruction at the Lucknow Madrasa around the texts of Ibn Sìnà, supplemented by practical instruction in surgery and

anatomy Anatomy () is the branch of biology concerned with the study of the structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old science, having its ...

Impact

Hakim's fame was so widespread that students and practitioners of Unani medicine from as far and wide as the

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

, Afghanistan,

Balochistan Balochistan ( ; bal, بلۏچستان; also romanised as Baluchistan and Baluchestan) is a historical region in Western and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. ...

Bukhara Bukhara (Uzbek language, Uzbek: /, ; tg, Бухоро, ) is the List of cities in Uzbekistan, seventh-largest city in Uzbekistan, with a population of 280,187 , and the capital of Bukhara Region. People have inhabited the region around Bukhara ...

and the

Hejaz The Hejaz (, also ; ar, ٱلْحِجَاز, al-Ḥijāz, lit=the Barrier, ) is a region in the west of Saudi Arabia. It includes the cities of Mecca, Medina, Jeddah, Tabuk, Yanbu, Taif, and Baljurashi. It is also known as the "Western Provin ...

came to study with him. The Takmil al Tibb School (established by him at Lucknow) was instrumental in combating the widespread plague of 1902–03. Coming to terms with the singular promotion of colonialism to allopathic medicine, in 1910 Hakim Abdul Aziz and

and

Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya Madan Mohan Malaviya ( (25 December 1861 — 12 November 1946) was an Indian scholar, educational reformer and politician notable for his role in the Indian independence movement. He was president of the Indian National Congress four times an ...

formed the All India Ayurvedic and Unani Tibb Conference to defend traditional forms of healing. In 1904, recognizing the Hakim's stringent attitude towards adulteration in medicine, British India invited him to serve on the board of the Committee for Regulation of Medical Formulations. Hakim Abdul Aziz did not charge visiting patients, though it is recorded that he solicited fees of 16 rupees for visits within the city, 500 rupees for visits outside the city, and 1000 rupees for visits outside the state. Among his royal patients were Shahjahan Begum of

Bhopal Bhopal (; ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and the administrative headquarters of both Bhopal district and Bhopal division. It is known as the ''City of Lakes'' due to its various natural and artificial lakes. It i ...

and the son of

Sayajirao Gaekwad III Sayajirao Gaekwad III (born Shrimant Gopalrao Gaekwad; 11 March 1863 – 6 February 1939) was the Maharaja of Baroda State from 1875 to 1939, and is remembered for reforming much of his state during his rule. He belonged to the royal Gae ...

Baroda Vadodara (), also known as Baroda, is the second largest city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It serves as the administrative headquarters of the Vadodara district and is situated on the banks of the Vishwamitri River, from the state capital ...

Legacy

In 1910, shortly after returning from

Hajj The Hajj (; ar, حَجّ '; sometimes also spelled Hadj, Hadji or Haj in English) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for Muslims that must be carried ...

, the Hakim fell ill and died. His death was widely mourned by poets, journalists and commoners. After his death, his two eldest sons took over the maintenance of Takmil al Tibb. A road in Lucknow is named after him
Abdul Aziz Road
, and the college is now maintained by the government. The Azizi family is still involved in practice of Unani medicine. The Azizi Family also played a significant role in the

Indian independence movement The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events with the ultimate aim of ending British Raj, British rule in India. It lasted from 1857 to 1947. The first nationalistic revolutionary movement for Indian independence emerged ...

. Hakim Syed Zillur Rahman published his ''Tazkirah Khandan Azizi'' in 1978. The work was widely received and reviewed. Similarly, his earlier ''Bayaz Wahidi'' (1974) and ''Matab Murtaish'' (1976) were also reviewed in many Urdu journals.Matab Murtaish, Shahzad Ahmad, Blitz, Bombay, 20 November 1976. Matab Murtaish, Kausar Chandpuri, Hamdard, 1 December 1976. Matab Murtaish, Editor, Qaumi Awaz, Lucknow, 12 December 1976. Matab Murtaish, Editor, AI Jamiat, Delhi, 13 February 1977. Bayaz Wahidi, Kausar Chandpuri, Hamdard, 1 May 1976. Bayaz Wahidi, Editor, Nida-i Millat Lucknow, 11 July 1976. Bayaz Wahidi, Editor, Siyasat, Kanpur, 25 July 1976.

References

Literature

* ''Tazkirah Khandan Azizi'' by Hakim Syed Zillur Rahman, (First edition 1978), Shifaul Mulk Memorial Committee, Aligarh, 472 pp; (Second revised edition 2009) , Ibn Sina Academy, Aligarh, 458 pp. * ''The Azizi Family of Physicians'' by Tazimuddin Siddiqui and Hakim Syed Zillur Rahman, (1983), Studies in History of Medicine, Jamia Hamdard, New Delhi, 93 pp. * ''Bayaz Waheedi'' by Hakim Syed Zillur Rahman, (1974), Shifaul Mulk Memorial Committee, Aligarh, 228pp, (Second edition 1991), Tibbi Academy, Aligarh, 224 pp. * ''Matab Murtaish'' by Hakim Syed Zillur Rahman, (1976), Shifaul Mulk Memorial Committee, Aligarh, 230 pp. * ''Maqalat Shifaul Mulk Hakim Abdul Latif'' by Hakim Syed Zillur Rahman, (2002), Publication Division, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, pp 324. * ''Tajideed-i Tibb'' by Shifa-al Mulk Hakim Abdul Latif, (1972), Tibbi Academy, Aligarh. * ''Shifaul Mulk Hakim Abdul Latif (Nuqush wa Tassurat)'' by Hakim Mohammed Aslam Siddiqui (1985), Educational Book House, Aligarh.
Listing at the Open Library Archive
* Shifa-al Mulk Hakim Abdul Latif by Hakim Syed Zillur Rahman, Daily Dawat, Delhi, 24 Jun 1971. * Shifa-al Mulk Hakim Abdul Latif by Hakim Syed Zillur Rahman, Fikr-o-Nazar, Namwaran-i Aligarh, Vol. 1, Jan. 1987-Jul. 1988, pp. 361–70. * Shifa-al Mulk Hakim Abdul Latif Falsafi by Hakim Syed Zillur Rahman, Bazm-e-Wafa, Aligarh Muslim University Old Boys' Association, Lucknow Branch, 1998, pp. 50–54.

External links

*http://www.unani.com/timeline.htm *https://web.archive.org/web/20110511171609/http://www.chowk.com/Views/Science/Science-in-India-During-The-Muslim-Rule {{DEFAULTSORT:Abdul Aziz, Hakim 1855 births 1911 deaths Kashmiri people Scientists from Lucknow 19th-century Indian Muslims 20th-century Indian Muslims 19th-century Indian educational theorists 19th-century Indian medical doctors Unani practitioners 20th-century Indian medical doctors 20th-century Indian educational theorists Medical doctors from Uttar Pradesh