The Spiritual Physick (al-Tibb al-ruhani)

Introduction

A short ethical treatise in Arabic in twenty chapters, which al-Razi dedicated to al-Mansur ibn Ishaq, the Samanid governor of Rayy, as a counterpart to the medical handbook he had written for the same patron: one book for the body, one for the soul. After an opening chapter in praise of reason, each chapter treats a particular ailment of the soul, such as passionate love, envy, anger, lying, greed, excessive drinking and, at the end, the fear of death. The advice is practical and moderate rather than ascetic. A. J. Arberry’s English translation of 1950 made the text accessible outside the Arabic-speaking world.

Connections

Builds on

• Republicc. 375 BCE · Plato