This book describes medieval Islamic medicine and to explore a specific medical text, On the Prevention of Bodily Ills in Egypt by 'Ali ibn Ridwan (A.D. 998 - 1068). It seeks to answer the following questions: What did it mean to be a doctor in medieval Islamic society? What was the nature of the medicine that physicians practiced? And what was the relationship between physician and patient?

Translated by: Michael W. Dols