The Oath of Maimonides is a traditional

oath Traditionally an oath (from Anglo-Saxon ', also called plight) is either a statement of fact or a promise taken by a sacrality as a sign of verity. A common legal substitute for those who conscientiously object to making sacred oaths is to ...

for

pharmacist A pharmacist, also known as a chemist (Commonwealth English) or a druggist (North American and, archaically, Commonwealth English), is a healthcare professional who prepares, controls and distributes medicines and provides advice and instructi ...

s and

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

s attributed to

Maimonides Musa ibn Maimon (1138–1204), commonly known as Maimonides (); la, Moses Maimonides and also referred to by the acronym Rambam ( he, רמב״ם), was a Sephardic Jewish philosopher who became one of the most prolific and influential Torah ...

. It is not to be confused with the more lengthy Prayer of

. It is widely used as the traditional oath taken by pharmacists, analogous to the

Hippocratic Oath The Hippocratic Oath is an oath of ethics historically taken by physicians. It is one of the most widely known of Greek medical texts. In its original form, it requires a new physician to swear, by a number of healing gods, to uphold specific e ...

for physicians, for which it is also used as an alternative.

The oath

The eternal providence has appointed me to watch over the life and health of Thy creatures. May the love for my art actuate me at all times; may neither avarice nor
miser A miser is a person who is reluctant to spend, sometimes to the point of forgoing even basic comforts and some necessities, in order to hoard money or other possessions. Although the word is sometimes used loosely to characterise anyone who ...
liness, nor thirst for glory or for a great reputation engage my mind; for the enemies of truth and
philanthropy Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...
could easily deceive me and make me forgetful of my lofty aim of doing good to Thy children. May I never see in the
patient A patient is any recipient of health care services that are performed by healthcare professionals. The patient is most often ill or injured and in need of treatment by a physician, nurse, optometrist, dentist, veterinarian, or other health c ...
anything but a fellow creature in pain. Grant me the strength, time and opportunity always to correct what I have acquired, always to extend its domain; for knowledge is immense and the spirit of man can extend indefinitely to enrich itself daily with new requirements. Today he can discover his errors of yesterday and tomorrow he can obtain a new light on what he thinks himself sure of today. Oh, God, Thou has appointed me to watch over the life and death of Thy creatures; here am I ready for my
vocation A vocation () is an occupation to which a person is especially drawn or for which they are suited, trained or qualified. People can be given information about a new occupation through student orientation. Though now often used in non-religious co ...
and now I turn unto my calling.

History and authorship

The prayer and oath were first published in 1783 by German-Jewish physician Markus Herz. While Herz described it as a translation from an original Hebrew text by Maimonides, modern scholarship strongly suggests that the text was actually Herz's own. In 1790, a Hebrew versionTfila le-rofeh
''Ha-Meassef'', 1790, 6: 242-244 by

Isaac Euchel Isaac Abraham Euchel ( he, יצחק אייכל; born at Copenhagen, October 17, 1756; died at Berlin, June 14, 1804) was a Hebrew author and founder of the "Haskalah-movement". He was born in Copenhagen on October 17, 1756. After his bar mitzvah ...

appeared in the journal Ha-Me'assef; this version also attributed the original text to Herz.

References

{{reflist, 25em Oaths of medicine Maimonides Works by Maimonides

The oath

History and authorship

See also

References