Fever

The Prophet (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam) said, “Fever comes from the vehement raging of Hell, so cool it with water.” [Sahih Bukhari]

The treatment of fever described here is a method conveyed to us by Rasul Allah (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam) himself. This is what doctors suggest today; that the patient should be cooled and the body temperature lowered by cold compress, i.e., placing cloth dipped in cold water on the body.

When we study the history of science we see that Ibn-Sina was the first to recommend the use of waterbeds and Al-Razi cold water application for patients with typhoid fever. The same theory was later developed as Little's tubes, ice bags and cold sponging, now in use. Abu Ali Hussain ibn Abd Allah ibn Sina (known as Avicenna), born in 980 A.H., was one of the greatest scientists of all times. His most famous book was a medical work “Al-Qanun” (The Canon). It contained about a million words and formed half the medical curriculum of European universities until the latter part of the fifteenth century.

When revelation has been tampered with, distance from it leads to scientific and intellectual advancement. Medicine could not progress in Europe for centuries, because the Church taught that disease was a punishment for sins and should, therefore, not be treated.

When religion is based on unaltered revelation it cannot but lead to prosperity. This is why Muslims took so quickly to the sciences that allowed them to improve the human condition so effectively and efficiently. While washing the body was considered a dangerous custom at the University of Oxford, the Muslims were making extraordinary headway in the field of anaesthesia and the treatment of disease.
 
While the Renaissance in Europe could not come about without a separation between church and state, Muslims experienced their Renaissance when they followed revelation. True revelation keeps human beings pointed in fruitful directions, giving those who look to it for guidance a headstart.