What is Special About this Postal Stamp?
This postal stamp issued by Pakistan Post in 1966, which projects the herbal wealth and an image of Ibn Sina (981-1037 C.E.), known Avicenna in the West, has been very popular at a global level, which is covered in different books on History of Medicine. In fact, no mention on history of Medicine can be complete without mentioning Ibn Sina. The British Pharmacology Society (BPS) decided to publish regularly in its Bulletin the postage stamps that portray the images of famous physicians and scholars of the past. Interestingly, this postal stamp occupied first place in this series (BPS Bulletin Spring issue 2001, www.bps.ac.uk). Later this was covered in a popular article (Trends in Ethnopharmacology) of Prof. Anwar Gilani (Chairperson, PCST), published in a reputed journal with circulation throughout the world: Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 2005; 100:43-49; doi:10.1016/j.jep.2005.06.001) (attracted 370 citations so far).
Ibn Sina authored one of the most famous books, al-Qanun fi al-Tibb, known as "Canon" in the west, which is considered an immense encyclopedia of medicine and remained supreme for over six centuries because of its systematic approach, formal perfection and intrinsic value. He laid the foundation of the Greco-Arab system of herbal medicine (Unani Tibb), based on the philosophy of individualized treatment considering the genetic variations amongst the individuals, similar to the concept of Pharmacogenetics in conventional medicine. Another distinguishing feature of Ibn Sina's philosophy was "treating body as a whole" taking also into consideration of emotions and including spirituality as a part of treatment modalities.
Abu Ali al-Hussain Ibn Abdallah Ibn Sina was a Persian polymath who is regarded as one of the most significant thinkers and writers of the Islamic Golden Age. Born in 980 A.D. at Afshana near Bukhara, the young Bu Ali received his early education in Bukhara, and by the age of ten had become well versed in the study of the Qur'an and various sciences. While still young, he earned repute for his expertise in medicine and at the age of 17, he was fortunate in curing Nooh Ibn Mansoor, the King of Bukhhara, of an illness in which all the well-known physicians had given up hope. On his recovery, the King wished to reward him, but the young physician only desired permission to use his uniquely stocked library.
Of the 450 works he is known to have written, around 240 have survived, including 150 on philosophy and 40 on medicine. His most famous books are Kitab al-Shifa (The Book of Healing )- a philosophical and scientific encyclopedia, and The Qanun fi al-Tibb, known as Canon in the West, a medical encyclopedia which became a standard medical text at many medieval universities and remained in use as late as 1650.
He was the most famous physician, philosopher, encyclopaedist, mathematician and astronomer of his time.