Review Article
Year: 2018 | Month: June | Volume: 8 | Issue: 6 | Pages: 302-307
Greco Arabic Philosophy on Formation of Foetal Organs
Ansari Abdul Waqas1, Naziya Aejaz Rasool2, Obaidur Rahman1
1Dept of Kulliyat Umoor-i-Tabiya, 2Dept of Preventive and Social Medicine,
National Institute of Unani Medicine, Bangalore
Corresponding Author: Ansari Abdul Waqas
ABSTRACT
Background and Objectives: The philosophy is one of the oldest branches of knowledge by which ancient philosophers and physicians sought truth through reasoning rather than empiricism. Since, during the ancient time no any modern techniques or instruments were available to investigate truth of embryology; philosophy was found one and only approach for knowing the truth. This study provides the basic knowledge and philosophical reasoning about the complex phenomena regarding organogenesis during intra uterine life of the foetus. Current research addresses the issues like what kinds of faculties are inherent in sperm and ovum? How these faculties work for the formation of foetal organs?
Interpretation and Conclusion: Unani system of medicine or Ṭibb has very crucial concept of faculties regarding the foetal organogenesis. The transformative faculty forms the foetal organs through the action of Kayfiyāt-i-Arba‘a (four prime qualities of matter) i.e. heat, cold, moisture, and dryness. This faculty makes some changes in the embryo by transforming the thin consistency of Manī (sperm and ovum) and Dam (blood) towards the thickness. The formative faculty gives the shape and appearancewhich is similar to that particular species to which that sperm and ovum belongs or any other shapes close to that particular individual. This study furnishes more comprehensive view of the mechanism involved in the process of organogenesis. The significance of this study is that it reveals comprehensive work of earlier physicians on the topic of formation of foetal organs.
Key words: Embryo; Foetal organs; Nutfah; Unani Medicine.