Zahabiya is the name of a treatise on healthcare and treatment attributed to Imam Reza (AS), the eighth Imam of the Shia Muslims. The work has always been revered as the most important Islamic writing in medicine throughout history. The introduction ceremony was held in a research meeting known as “Tabib”.
The title "Golden Treatise" is because it is narrated that this work was written and decorated with gold ink at the order of Ma'mun, the Abbasid caliph.
This treatise contains notes on histology, psychology, chemistry, and pathology. According to this book, human health is determined by four factors namely blood, yellow bile, black bile, and phlegm.
In this treatise, Imam Reza (AS) describes the body as a land whose king is the heart, while the blood vessels, organs, and brain are its workers.
Renown and and unknown Shia scholars have equally written commentaries on Zahabiya, considering it the first of its kind in Islam. This book has been translated into Persian and Urdu.
There are 17 manuscripts of Zahabiya at Malek National Library and Museum of which seven are copies from the original text.
"Tabib" program was held on May 3 with the aim of examining and introducing existing examples of this lasting heritage and valuable legacy in the Malek National Library and Museum.
It is worth mentioning that the Malek National Library and Museum was endowed to Imam Reza Shrine in 1937 and is currently open to culture enthusiasts every day except official holidays, from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM.