Islam Creator of the Modern Age
3. Muslim Contribution to Science
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mentioned in ancient Indian books written in
Sanskrit. In the past this disease gripped many
countries in the form of dangerous epidemics.
Thousands of people fell prey to it. As far back as
1156 B.C. this disease was taking its toll of human
life, there being visible evidence in the pock-marked
face of the mummy of the Egyptian Pharaoh,
Ramses V, who died in that year. (His embalmed
body was found inside a pyramid.) Even then, it
took thousands of years for this dreaded disease to
be investigated scientifically.
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Now we know that smallpox is a contagious disease
resulting from virus infection, and such remedies
have been discovered as can ward off attacks,
provided suitable precautions are taken in advance.
But it was not until the end of the ninth century,
subsequent· to the emergence of Islam, that this
medical fact was unearthed for the first time. The
first name, which became prominent in history in
this connection was that of the well-known Arab
physician, Al-Razi (865-925), who was born in Ray
in Iran. In search of a remedy for the disease, he
investigated it from the purely medical standpoint
