#Cure COVID by islamic medicine

[lucianalight]

I think it is a proper use of the word because the rise and favor of Traditional Iranian Medicine(which in fact is rooted in Greek medicine and is combined with Islamic medicine) is a policy that was specifically ordered by the supreme leader(like everything else). The goal was for people to stop asking for actual medical services and medicine and instead revert to superstitions for their health issues. Unfortunately the spread of their propaganda and disinformation was successful. People who are struggling with a lot of economic problems prefer to believe their illness is going to be cured with some relatively cheaper and easier medical methods. I say relatively cheaper because the mullahs have actually turned it into a market for themselves. They have integrated into Health department, interfered dangerously with medical procedures including claiming they can cure dangerous illnesses and opposed vaccination. In fact one of the consequences of their policy was refusing western covid vaccines-because West is EvIL(TM)-which resulted in death of thousands of Iranians. Some of them even question the credibility of modern scientific medicine. They even plan to include traditional medicine into insurance which does not include many necessary and expensive modern medicines. So while people are suffering and dying from all of this, they sell the necessary medicines they recieve which are NOT sanctioned because of the people, to foreign countries to support their proxies and the spread of their ideology. And the only thing we can do is try to counter the superstitions which most doctors and other educated people are trying to do. So yes it's biopolitics and only one aspect of many ways in which the regime tries to control people's bodies and lives.

Whoa, I just read the abstract for a talk that invoked the word "biopolitics" in support of modern evidence-based medicine against Traditional Iranian Medicine (basically, the four humors theory), which the Iranian government has been promoting in the name of "the ideological ideals of self-reliance and the superiority of Islamic heritage over Western ideas." I never thought I'd see that concept being wielded in *that* direction...

[khutbahs]

Cure COVID-19! by Black cumin, honey and more...

Nigella Sativa or Black Cumin  is a herb consumed as food, but it has health benefits that most of us don't know.. May Allah SWT bless you with the information. Our beloved Prophet said: “For every disease, there is a remedy and when the remedy is made apparent, and then the disease is cured by the permission of Allah Almighty". [Muslim]  He also said: “He who has put diseases on the earth, has also put its remedy there”. [Tirmidi] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1MYCWd8COA

[younusalgoharsvoice]

PSA: 😷Being Safe During the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic⁣ ⁣ As many people are confined to their homes and safety measures are taken all over the world, it is easy to be affected by the fear-mongering, misinformation and disinformation being spread across the media and social media. Please swipe right on this image for tips and valuable information concerning the virus.⁣ ⁣ Our viewers have informed us that they are being told by their local religious clergy to recite different verses of the Quran as the sole means to protect them against the virus. Such an approach is un-Islamic and not aligned to the Sunnah (Customs) of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH).⁣ ⁣ 💊When Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) would fall ill, he too would take the required medicine. ⁣ ⁣ In regards to contagious disease, Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) advised, 'If you hear of an outbreak of plague in a land, do not enter it; but if the plague breaks out in a place while you are in it, do not leave that place'. ⁣ ⁣ In other words, he advised containment in order to limit the spread of the disease.⁣ ⁣ It is widely believed, especially in Sufi circles and the medical community, that prevention is always better than the cure. ⁣ ⁣ 🌕A message from Sufi Master @Younus_AlGohar:⁣ ⁣ 'These are the end times and things like these will keep coming in different forms and shapes.⁣ ⁣ 'We are not asking you to believe it, but just listen to this message. There is an image of Imam Mehdi Gohar Shahi on the Moon. ⁣ ⁣ 'Maybe when there is this strife in this world and nobody shows up to help you - when you are in despair, you feel helpless and have nobody to turn to, then give it a try. Call upon His Divine Eminence Gohar Shahi for help'.⁣

[pooryakadivar]

The Promised Saviour

Hello.

My name is Poorya Kadivar.

I am 38-year-old Nutritionist in Isfahan,Isfahan Province, Islamic Republic of Iran.

I made this weblog two years ago but due to my busy schedule, I was unable to write anything on this blog for a long time. But for some reason, I'm going to post one or more articles a day on this blog. My main reason for restarting this blog is to introduce the twelfth Imam, Imam Mahdi (PBUH), to the world as much as possible.

You may have noticed that despite all the advances in medicine, there is no definitive cure for some diseases, the most recent of which is Covid-19. The mortal mankind think that they can manage the whole world with their little wisdom and little knowledge, but they have not been able to overcome a small virus with all the claims and ten thousands die every day from Covid-19.

God Almighty wants to show man that without a divine leader who is appointed and approved by God, they cannot achieve happiness and bliss. This divine leader is the promised savior who is acknowledged in various religions and sects

The Jews and Christians consider Jesus Christ (PBUH) to be the Messiah. But Muslims, especially Shiites, consider the Messiah to be the twelfth Imam, the ninth descendant of the third Imam, Imam Hussein (PBUH), the grandson of the Prophet of Islam, Muhammad (PBUH), and they are waiting for his reappearance.

In the following articles, I will make valuable and enlightening points about the Twelfth Imam.

[jeanjauthor]

Writers, homesickness is a genuine thing. It’s been around for generations, and while it can be mild to moderate in many cases, it can be severe enough to be debilitating...and it’s not just in Islamic medicine.

The children’s story Heidi talks abouty the central character being so miserable in the city and pining so heavily for the Alps where her grandfather lives that she literally becomes ill.  Heidi does not recover until she is allowed to return the mountain home where she was very happy and healthy.

Sometimes it may seem like a dramatization, an over-exaggeration...but there are genuine cases of homesickness so strong that it damages one’s health.

Topically...right now, there are people who are suffering that level of homesickness, but who dare not travel because of COVID-19.  Or if they do travel, they risk not only their own health, but the health of everyone around them.

Luckily, we have what Islamic medicine and Swiss Alps from more than a hundred years ago never had:  We have social media chat, cellphons and video chats and clear-as-life photographs and more.  It’s not a perfect cure...but it can help.

We may need to isolate physically...but don’t forget to reach out emotionally, mentally, and (for those who do this) even spiritually as needed.

[shitiomatic-blog]

COVID-19 disinformation

A lot of actors cashing in on the epidemic

The virus spreads around the world, along with a bunch of disinformation and potential malware / phishing campaigns. There are many actors, pushing many narratives—some similar, some different.

Interestingly, the three big players in the information warfare space—Russia, Iran and China seem to be running similar stories on their state-backed media outlets. While they all tend to lean towards the same, fairly anti-U.S. sentiments—that is, blaming the US for weaponizing the crisis for political gain—Iran and Russia’s content come off as more…conspiratorial. In essence, they claim that the COVID-19 virus is a “bioweapon” developed by the U.S.

Russian news agency RT tweeted:

Show of hands, who isn’t going to be surprised if it ever gets revealed that #coronavirus is a bioweapon?

RT also published an article mocking the U.S. for concerns over Russian disinformation. Another article by RT, an op-ed suggests the virus’ impact on financial markets might bring about the reinvention of communism and the end of the global capitalist system. Russian state-sponsored media can also be seen amplifying Iranian conspiracy theories—including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC) suggestion that COVID-19 is a U.S. bioweapon.

Iranian media outlets appear to be running stories having similar themese, as well. Here’s one by PressTV, where they very boldly claim that the virus was developed by the U.S. and/or Isreal, to use as a bioweapon against Iran. Another nonsensical piece by PressTV suggests that “there are components of the virus that are related to HIV that could not have occurred naturally”. The same article pushes another theory:

There has been some speculation that as the Trump Administration has been constantly raising the issue of growing Chinese global competitiveness as a direct threat to American national security and economic dominance, it might be possible that Washington has created and unleashed the virus in a bid to bring Beijing’s growing economy and military might down a few notches. It is, to be sure, hard to believe that even the Trump White House would do something so reckless, but there are precedents for that type of behavior

These “theories”, as is evident, are getting wilder and wilder.

Unsurprisingly, China produces the most amount of content related to the coronavirus, but they’re quite distinct in comparison to Russian and Iranian media. The general theme behind Chinese narratives is critisizing the West for…a lot of things.

Global Times claims that democracy is an insufficient system to battle the coronavirus. They blame the U.S. for unfair media coverage against China, and other anti-China narratives. There are a ton other articles that play the racism/discrimination card—I wouldn’t blame them though. Here’s one.

In the case of India, most disinfo (actually, misinfo) is mostly just pseudoscientific / alternative medicine / cures in the form of WhatsApp forwards—"Eat foo! Eat bar!”.1

I’ve also been noticing a ton of COVID-19 / coronavirus related domain registrations happening. Expect phishing and malware campaigns using the virus as a theme. In the past 24 hrs, ~450 .com domains alone were registered.

Anywho, there are bigger problems at hand—like the fact that my uni still hasn’t suspended classes!

https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/coronavirus-group-hosts-cow-urine-party-says-covid-19-due-to-meat-eaters/article31070516.ece

[clairehistorytrunk24]

The History of Medicine (Episode 1 of 3): Islamic Medicine—The Development of Hospitals and Medicine as a Profession

The History of Medicine (Episode 1 of 3): Islamic Medicine—The Development of Hospitals and Medicine as a Profession

A Bimaristan (or Islamic Hospital)                

Photo: Wikipedia (source cited in works cited below)

By: Claire’s History Trunk & Happy Place

Introduction:

Hi Everyone! It feels great to be back blogging after what feels like a year away (it’s only been maybe about 9 months), but it still feels like an eternity! Anyways, I have some really exciting news for you! TODAY, yes, today(!), marks the first official blog post in a really long time, and I am happy to introduce my much-awaited blogging series which is the “History of Medicine�� featuring our first episode titled: “Islamic Medicine!” So, come and join me for this exciting journey to learn a little bit more about history, the medical field, and the great contributions of Muslim physicians to the study and practice of medicine!

Development of Hospitals and Medicine as a Profession:

We begin our story at the beginning of the 9th century (around 800 AD), and meet a very important figure in Islamic medical history whose name was Al-Razi, and he is famous for running a “hospital in Baghdad [(now modern-day Iraq)], and this institution was built in 805 AD.” So, what did he do to make the field of medicine a competent profession besides running this medical hospital? Al-Razi was also an academic, in fact, he is credited with “writing one of the world’s first medical textbooks on children’s diseases as well as discovering the differences between smallpox and measles,” and this aided in the treatment of this horrid diseases which ran rampant back in medieval society.

During the medieval period, unfortunately, there were no vaccines to take care of dastardly diseases such as smallpox, measles, and so many others (side note: go get vaccinated, people(!) for COVID-19, it’s the only way we reach herd immunity, and return to a sense of normalcy. We don’t want to end up like the medieval world haunted by infectious diseases!).

Al-Razi served as a fantastic example of the greatness that Muslim physicians contributed to the field of medicine, but there are so many others—let’s meet, Ibn Sina (aka Avicenna) who is famous for writing a “giant medical encyclopedia known as the ‘Canon of Medicine.’” Both Al-Razi and Ibn Sina had major contributions to how we think about, study, and practice medicine even hundreds of years later.

Islamic Medical Hospitals in Medieval Period:

Islamic hospitals and their physicians had specific tenets that they had to follow in order to serve patients, deliver medical care, and this was specifically dictated by the Prophet Muhammad. For instance, “Islamic hospitals could not discriminate against any patient (yes, some hospitals used to be able to do that, unfortunately), they were meant to serve those in need and at times provided medical care at no cost, an early example of a medical school, and a place to form cures since the Prophet said God would not create a disease without a cure to take care of the illness.” Finally, Islamic hospitals were meant to be a place of “philanthropy” where they took care of all people because of the faith’s tenets of good will, service, and taking care of all needs.

Conclusion:

Thank you for joining me on this first journey into the history of medicine. It was exciting to learn more about the contributions of Muslim physicians to the development of medicine as a respected and scientific discipline. Stay tuned for the next installment! This will be announced soon! Leave your comments in comments section below! Please email me at claireshistorytrunk@gmail.com with any comments on sources, formatting, or any questions/concerns about my content, or suggestions for edits. Thank you for reading!

Sources:

BBC. “Science, Medicine, and Everyday Life in the Islamic World.” https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/zx9xsbk/revision/7

International Institute of Islamic Medicine. “History.” https://iiim.org/mscholar8.html

Wikipedia. “Bimaristan.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bimaristan

[watchonlinewds]

Fact check: COVID-19 variants come from mutations, not vaccines

Public health officials are monitoring five variants of COVID-19 circulating in the United States, all of which appear to spread more quickly than the original strain. Scientists say those variants are the product of coronavirus mutations spurred by its continued spread.

But online, an alternative explanation for the variants has taken hold. Its source: a Nobel laureate who helped discover HIV.

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"Bombshell: Nobel Prize Winner Reveals - Covid Vaccine is 'Creating Variants,'" reads the headline of a May 18 article from RAIR Foundation USA, an activist organization whose stated goal is to "combat the threats from Islamic supremacists, radical leftists and their allies."

The RAIR article, which has been shared widely on Facebook, linked to an interview with French virologist Luc Montagnier, who shared the 2008 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with his colleagues for their discovery of HIV in 1983. Since then, Montagnier has promoted several unverified medical claims, including that long-term antibiotic treatment can cure autism and that a "good immune system" is enough to protect someone from AIDS.

During the interview, which was conducted by Pierre Barnérias — a filmmaker who produced a documentary filled with debunked conspiracy theories about COVID-19 — Montagnier blamed vaccination for the coronavirus variants.

“It is an unacceptable mistake," he said, according to the RAIR translation of the video. "The history books will show that, because it is the vaccination that is creating the variants."

That's wrong — naturally occurring mutations are responsible for the coronavirus variants, not vaccines. Experts and public health officials say vaccines can help prevent the development of new variants by slowing the rate of virus transmission.

Factcheck:Nobel Prize winner did not say COVID-19 vaccine recipients have 'no chance of survival'

"The mutation itself does not occur because of immunization," said Dr. Stanley Perlman, a microbiology and immunology professor at the University of Iowa.

USA TODAY reached out to RAIR Foundation USA and Montagnier for comment.

Mutations cause virus variants

Public health officials say coronavirus variants are the result of changes to the virus's genes. Every time a virus replicates, mutations naturally occur in its genetic material.

When RNA viruses like SARS-CoV-2 circulate widely within a population, they change and adapt over time. One example is flu viruses, which change so frequently that a new vaccine is needed each year.

Since the pandemic began, the coronavirus has infected more than 169 million people worldwide, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. That high caseload, as well as its geographic distribution, has given the virus ample opportunity to mutate, experts say.

"If you think about a virus like a tree growing and branching out, each branch on the tree is slightly different than the others," the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says on its website. "These small differences, or variants, have been studied and identified since the beginning of the pandemic."

Coronavirus vaccines can help slow the evolution of the virus.

All three vaccines approved for emergency use in the U.S. are effective at reducing the spread of the coronavirus. As more Americans have received the vaccine, new COVID-19 cases have declined. That means the virus has fewer opportunities to replicate, mutate and produce new variants.

Fact check:No definitive evidence COVID-19 vaccine causes autoimmune disease

Perlman said there's no evidence the COVID-19 vaccines will make variants worse in the long run. New variants emerge through the process of natural selection when that strain is the one strong enough to overcome a host's immune system

Evidence suggests variants are more likely to develop in populations that have a weak immune response to the coronavirus, according to Perlman and other experts.

"So, in essence, stressed out, high-density human populations with poor access to health care are ideal settings for the origin and success of novel strains with novel mutations that can escape immune systems (or vaccines) and, at the same time, be more deadly," Rob Dunn, a biologist and professor at North Carolina State University, said in a March 4 university blog post.

Fact check:Peer-reviewed studies have shown safety, efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines

During the video, Montagnier said the antibodies produced by the coronavirus vaccines "enable an infection to become stronger."

Montagnier attributed that claim to Antibody-Dependent Enhancement (ADE), a phenomenon in which virus-specific antibodies can enhance the entry and replication of a virus. Those antibodies recognize and bind to a pathogen, but instead of preventing infection, they act as a "Trojan Horse" and allow the pathogen to enter cells. That process can lead to wider dissemination of the disease.

ADE has resulted from a few previous vaccination efforts, including vaccines for respiratory syncytial virus and measles in the 1960s and, more recently, dengue virus in 2016. Scientists have looked for ADE associated with the coronavirus throughout the pandemic, but they haven't found any cases.

Fact check:No, the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine will not make your body Bluetooth connectable

"The fact is there is no ADE, so that's why we're silent about it," Perlman said.

Our rating: False

The claim that COVID-19 vaccines are creating virus variants is FALSE, based on our research. Naturally occurring mutations in the coronavirus' genes are responsible for the variants, experts and public health officials say. Widespread vaccination can help prevent the development of new variants by slowing the spread of the virus.

[expatimes]

Iran imposes new restrictions as COVID-19 deaths surpass 30,000

Tehran, Iran - “The second time I was dealing with the virus, one night I was in so much pain that I said my prayers before going to sleep because I felt like I might not see another morning,” says Tehran resident Sadaf Samimi.

The 29-year-old journalist told Al Jazeera she first tested positive for COVID-19 in July at her workplace and has since been working from home.

But in early September, she got sick a second time with the coronavirus after she met two of her close friends, who had been isolating at home. One of her friends had shopped for groceries at a large market, where they might have contracted the virus.

Samimi said she experienced a shortage of breath and the symptoms of a strong cold the first time she was infected, but getting through the second time was a much more painful experience, marked by severe body pains and a splitting headache, among other symptoms.

“Now I use three face masks and three [pairs of] gloves whenever I go out, ”she said.

“I get so irritated and angry about people who go out unnecessarily and when I see friends posting about going on trips on social media. I feel they and their families have been fortunate enough not to be infected, so they don't know what they're doing to themselves. ”

Samimi said she feels many people are too relaxed considering how dire the situation is.

The authorities agree.

According to health officials, more than four in five Iranians adhered to health protocols in March, weeks after the pandemic began, but that has now dropped to as low as 40 percent.

Authorities maintain that reopening schools and holding public ceremonies to observe religious occasions have had no bearing on the number of cases.

Iran passed 30,000 official COVID-19 casualties on Saturday as health ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari announced 253 more people lost their lives in the past 24 hours.

Saturday also saw 4,103 more new infections, bringing the country's total to 526,490.

The highest number of single-day infections was recorded at 4,830 cases on Wednesday, when a worst single-day death toll of 279 was also reported.

The majority of Iran's 32 provinces, including Tehran, are still classified as red in a color-coded scale denoting the severity of outbreaks.

New restrictions for Tehran

In response to the alarming rise in the number of infections, deaths and hospitalisations, officials have introduced new restrictions for Tehran, which is bearing the brunt of COVID-19 cases in the country facing the worst outbreak in the Middle East.

Last week, a mandatory city-wide mask rule was implemented and President Hassan Rouhani announced fines for people and businesses who fail to adhere to the rules.

He said people who violate the mask rule will face a fine of 500,000 rials ($ 1.6), while the highest fine for individuals has been defined at 2 million rials ($ 6.6) for those who test positive for COVID-19 and knowingly endanger others by not quarantining.

Businesses have also been ordered to refuse offering services to people without masks and could face up to 10 million rials ($ 33) in penalties, and ultimately, closures.

Finalising the penalties took weeks and police officials, who have been tasked with issuing the penalties, say no fines have been issued yet.

At the request of the health ministry, officials also put in effect three-day travel restrictions on five metropolises that expire at the end of Saturday.

As part of the travel restrictions, which do not apply to travel by rail or air, only people whose license plates are registered in Tehran, Karaj, Mashhad, Isfahan and Urmia, or can prove they live in these cities, are allowed to travel to and from there.

The move came in response to an expected wave of travel during the three-day period, which coincided with national religious holidays.

On Saturday, Tehran's governor announced the city's partial shutdown - that saw the closure over the past two weeks of cafes, universities, cinemas and sport centers, among other places - will remain in place until at least October 23.

But authorities have been unable to impose more comprehensive lockdowns because the economy is still under immense pressure from sanctions imposed by the United States.

The sanctions have come relentlessly after US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers.

Samimi, who has lost several extended family members and family friends since the start of the pandemic, says after going through the COVID-19 ordeal twice, she strongly supports any restrictions that could help save lives.

“I'm no economic expert and I don't know what the financial toll will be for people and businesses, but I think human lives are more important than the economy,” she said.

"I think a damaged economy can recover, but the life that escapes a body will never come back."

But in an economy marked by high inflation and unemployment, many do not have the option to work from home or lose their limited incomes.

“I follow all the protocols as best I can, but a hungry stomach doesn't care about these things,” Shahrokh, a 50-year-old father of two who works as a driver in an online ride-hailing app, told Al Jazeera.

“I stayed at home for a few weeks when the pandemic first began, but I've been out working since. It's fate; if I'm supposed to die, I die, ”said Shahrokh, who suffers from diabetes, a condition that makes him much more vulnerable if he contracts the virus.

'Health workers are tired'

Meanwhile, health workers across Iran, especially in Tehran, are under increasing pressure.

“I'm not the most experienced person, but caring for COVID patients has been one of the strangest and saddest experiences I've ever had,” said 24-year-old Mahsa, a final-year medical intern who spent months working in hospitals affiliated with the Azad University in Tehran during the pandemic.

“What struck me the most was the amount of anxiety, frustration and concern in patients and their families,” she told Al Jazeera.

Mahsa said it was especially frustrating for her and her colleagues not to be able to console patients; In part because so much remains unknown about the virus, and because of restriction caused by having to observe physical distancing and wear so much protective gear.

At times, she said, hospital staff could not even keep patients in the emergency room for a few minutes to give them an oxygen boost before sending them away to another hospital.

Footage aired by state-run television from hospitals in the capital in recent days have also shown that many have no empty beds, even in emergency rooms, and have no choice but to leave patients waiting or to turn them away.

Last week, the health ministry announced hospitals across the country must refuse to admit all non-emergency patients.

What is more, many hospitals are facing shortages in medicine, especially treatments that have shown promise in helping COVID-19 patients.

This has forced distraught family members to scramble for medicine, at times from black markets, often at astronomical prices that many cannot afford.

Last week, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ordered all military hospitals to accept coronavirus patients, while commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Hossein Salamiged “the entire medical and support capacity of the IRGC” to help fight the virus.

According to Mahsa, “What is evident the most at the moment among health workers is fatigue and exhaustion from the overflow of patients, and having to wear protective gear and following strict protocols at all times, even during brief rest periods, because rest areas are shared as well. ”

The head of the Medical Council of Iran had the same message last week, saying “health workers are tired” in a news conference.

“Predominantly curing COVID in intensive care units is not feasible,” Mohammadreza Zafarghandi said.

"We must be thinking of preventing infections."

#world Read full article: https://expatimes.com/?p=12108&feed_id=10472

[glittergummicandypeach]

Religion and Science in a Time of COVID-19: Allies or Adversaries? - Scientific American Blog Network

When the Black Death spread across Europe starting 1346,  science didn’t yet exist; to cope with the bubonic plague, people relied on superstition, rumor and religion. Nowadays we have the advantage of modern medical science, but religion continues to be a cornerstone of many people’s lives as they struggle to understand awful events.

This is not necessarily a good thing. The Black Death was widely blamed on Jews and the advent of COVID-19 has led some people of religious faith to point the finger of blame at others. Israeli Rabbi Meir Mazuz, former spiritual leader of Israel’s Yachad party, for example has blamed gay pride marches, calling them “a parade against nature, and when someone goes against nature, the one who created nature takes revenge on him.”

Such incidents exemplify the tensions that often surround discussions regarding science and religion. Throughout history, it has been a common trope that science and religion are in conflict. Episodes such Galileo's struggles with the Catholic Church and the Huxley-Wilberforce Oxford debate on evolution in 1860 are regularly trotted out as exemplars of this antagonistic relationship.

The current zeitgeist tells us that we must pick a side, as we do in sports or politics; one cannot be an adherent of both. Either choose secular science, which is rational and rigorous; or religion, a matter of personal belief.

But perhaps this narrative represents a false dichotomy. Does the tension between science and religion really exist? And in the context of COVID-19, is it inconceivable that a scientist can wholeheartedly pray for a cure for a loved one whilst also working to develop a vaccine? For the rest of us, is it hypocritical to pray for good health whilst also taking all necessary public health precautions, grounded as they are in scientific evidence?

In fact, history is replete with examples of scholars who were comfortable with matters pertaining to both science and religion. The physicians of the past were typically knowledgeable in medicine but also in philosophy and literature, and were nearly always religious believers. In the 19th century, Michael Faraday established the basis for the concept of the electromagnetic field in physics, and discovered benzene; the principles of electromagnetic induction; and the laws of electrolysis. He was also a devout Christian who served as a deacon and an elder in his local Church. He believed that nature and the Bible had the same author, so that “the natural works of God can never by any possibility come into contradiction with the higher things that belong to our future existence …”

In the Middle Ages, science flourished during the Islamic Golden Age. Avicenna (Ibn Sina) is considered a pioneer of early medicine but is also revered as a scholar of Islam. Ibn Sina wrote the Canon of Medicine in 1025 and proposed that there should be a quarantine period of 40 days to halt the spread of infectious disease.

Furthermore, some traditionally religious practices have been proven to be scientifically effective. For example, male circumcision in Judaism, Islam and some branches of Orthodox Christianity has been performed for centuries, primarily as a mark of the covenant between God and his people. Yet, in recent years there has been compelling scientific evidence proving the benefits to health for boys and protection as men from HIV infection. We can also look further East for examples; for instance, the Buddhist practice of meditation has now been refashioned for a secular audience with evidence suggesting that regular sessions can prevent relapses into depression and anxiety.

Perhaps there is no better current example of someone who adheres to the values of both science and religion than Francis Collins, who on the 20th of May won the prestigious Templeton Prize—an accolade bestowed on those who try to bridge the gap between science and faith. Collins is the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and is currently working all his waking hours, as he puts it, to find a vaccine for COVID-19. He is also a born-again Christian and has written about his path from atheism to faith as a medical student, when he encountered life and death on a daily basis.

It goes the other way as well: the Catholic Church, for example, has affirmed many times that it acknowledges the fact of evolution, the Big Bang model of cosmology and the possible existence of extraterrestrial life. And the Dalai Lama has long championed the idea of a dialogue between science and religion.

The reality is that religion and science can complement one another, as indeed they are already doing by reinforcing public health messages during the current pandemic. Perhaps we can take solace from the observation that after President Trump’s declaration shortly before the start of the Memorial Day weekend that states must open up places of worship, some Christian leaders urged caution about returning to church, asking congregants to wait instead until it’s safe to do so. Over a range of different religions, many believers have had times when they have been unable to attend collective worship for persecution or other reasons. Such times can strengthen a community’s faith.

Read more about the coronavirus outbreak from Scientific American here. And read coverage from our international network of magazines here.

This content was originally published here.

[ericfruits]

Desperate Iranians are getting bad medical advice

Quackery in Iran Desperate Iranians are getting bad medical advice

Perfumes and fruit juice are not a cure for covid-19

Apr 18th 2020

Editor’s note: The Economist is making some of its most important coverage of the covid-19 pandemic freely available to readers of The Economist Today, our daily newsletter. To receive it, register here. For our coronavirus tracker and more coverage, see our hub

“DRENCH COTTON wool in violet oil before bedtime,” instructs Abbas Tabrizian, then “insert into your anus.” Not only will you smell flowery, you will ward off covid-19, says the Iranian ayatollah, who runs a popular online shop called the Islamic Medical Centre. Hossein Ravazadeh, another prominent quack, recommends bitter gourd oil dropped into the ears twice a day. If those remedies sound a little too uncomfortable, one could dab an ointment called the “Prophet’s perfume” under the nose, or drink a concoction of fruit juices.

None of this works, of course. There is as yet no cure for covid-19. But as the death toll mounts in Iran, home to one of the world’s worst outbreaks, desperate people are turning to alternative medicine. The country’s 15,000 attaris, or Islamic apothecaries, report a roaring trade. Their medicinal herbs and spices are an affordable substitute for scarce and costly drugs, which are difficult to import because of American sanctions. Palliatives such as peppermint arak are cheaper than aspirin—and work just as well, suggest some of Iran’s leaders.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader, says covid-19 might be the work of jinns (evil spirits) working with America. He champions alternative medicine as zealously as he spurns Western imports. His most trusted adviser, Ali Akbar Velayati, heads the Traditional and Islamic Medicine Group at the Academy of Medical Sciences in Iran. Both extol Avicenna, a Persian physician from the 11th century who attributed illness to an imbalance in bodily fluids, and prescribed herbs for relief. Under their leadership, Iran’s best medical schools have opened departments of homeopathy. The health ministry requires apothecaries to study it for a year before getting a licence.

All this quackery gives the virus a free pass. Several top clerics have died after relying on herbal remedies. They include Mahmoud Hashemi-Shahroudi, an ayatollah who was tipped to succeed Mr Khamenei, and Mohyeddin Haeri-Shirazi, another firebrand. In March a junior cleric, Morteza Kohansal, posted a video of himself in a hospital ward, not wearing any protective gear, applying the Prophet’s perfume to covid-19 patients. Hundreds of Iranians have died from drinking high-proof alcohol, which is wrongly believed to kill the virus. Mr Velayati went into self-isolation after showing symptoms of covid-19.

The more rational parts of Iran’s leadership are speaking out, denouncing charlatans and scams. Unauthorised clerics are “engaging in the darkness of superstition and ignorance”, said the health ministry. Police have raided Mr Tabrizian’s warehouses. On April 4th they arrested Mr Kohansal, who has since been released. Many quacks are still out there, peddling bad medicine in the name of Islam. ■

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This article appeared in the Middle East and Africa section of the print edition under the headline "A bad time for bad medicine"

https://ift.tt/2XGvn88

[khutbahs]

Black Seed Cures Everything Except DEATH

Narrated Khalid bin Sa`d: We went out and Ghalib bin Abjar was accompanying us. He fell ill on the way and when we arrived at Medina he was still sick. Ibn Abi ‘Atiq came to visit him and said to us, Treat him with black cumin. Take five or seven seeds and crush them (mix the powder with oil) and drop the resulting mixture into both nostrils, for `Aisha has narrated to me that she heard the Prophet saying, 'This black cumin is healing for all diseases except As-Sam.’ Aisha said, 'What is As-Sam?’ He said, 'Death. Sahih al-Bukhari 5687

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CYaOT6m8jw

[iasshikshalove]

PM ASKS STATES TO SUGGEST PLAN FOR STAGGERED END TO LOCKDOWN

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, at his second videoconference with Chief Ministers, on Thursday told them that it was “important to formulate a common exit strategy to ensure staggered re-emergence of the population once the lockdown ends”.

Modi emphasised that the collective goal of all should be to “save every Indian”.

He asked the States to brainstorm and send suggestions for the exit strategy.

Our first priority for the next few weeks should be testing, tracing, isolating and quarantine.

For this, all State to district level efforts must be coordinated,” he pointed out.

Modi urged that district-level disease surveillance officers should be appointed as soon as possible to make sure that penetration of this strategy is optimum.

Data collected from private laboratories allowed to test should be collated district-wise to be utilised for further strategising on tackling the pandemic.

He emphasised that the supply lines for medical equipment and drugs and raw mate

Separate Hospitals:

Every State should ensure that there are separate hospitals for COVID-19 patients, and the doctors attending to them need to be protected.

I would also urge you to step up online training of doctors in the treatment of COVID-19, he said.

This being the harvest season in many parts of the country, farmers and labourers, exempted from the lockdown, were engaged in harvest operations and they should maintain some physical distancing even on fields.

As for procurement, we must find ways to do it beyond the route of Agricultural Produce Marketing Committees (APMC).

A truck pooling scheme should also be worked out with farmers for ferrying produce to the market.

Harvesting will possibly need to be done in a staggered manner,.

The Centre would release ₹11,000 crore from the State Disaster Relief Fund by this month, and it should be used for efforts to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

The monies and grains released under the Pradhan Mantri Gareeb Kalyan Yojana should be disbursed speedily.

Significantly, he also told the Chief Ministers that volunteers of the National Cadet Corps and the National Service Scheme would also be recruited in the effort to combat COVID-19.

Other than this, crisis management groups should coordinate with as many NGOs as possible and strategies should be shared with all stakeholders as we need everyone’s help at this time.

Modi also urged the States that immunity boosting methods used by traditional systems of medicines in India such as Ayurveda should be promoted as fatalities were high among those with compromised immunity.

“These are our traditional ways of boosting immunity,” he said pointing to the fact that an advisory by the AYUSH Ministry had been issued in this regard.

VIRUS CASES DOUBLE IN INDIA IN FIVE DAYS

The number of COVID-19 cases in India has doubled in the past week, with 328 more cases and 12 deaths reported on Thursday.

The tally now stands at 2,069 cases, with 53 deaths and 155 cured of the novel coronavirus infection.

The Health Ministry said there were reports of several doctors, nurses and paramedics testing positive.

The number of cases increased sharply from 909 this weekend, and the Health Ministry confirmed that it was looking at tweaking the testing protocol

With a rapid anti-body test in hot-spots, where those indicating a positive would be sent for confirmation and the others would be quarantined.

The Health Ministry said extensive action was being taken in Asia’s largest slum, Dharavi in Mumbai, after a death due to COVID-19 was reported there.

GEO-FENCING APP WILL BE USED TO LOCATE QUARANTINE VILOATORS

The Centre is using powers under the Indian Telegraph Act to “fetch information” from telecom companies every 15 minutes to track COVID-19 cases across the country.

The government has tested an application that triggers e-mails and SMS alerts to an authorised government agency if a person has jumped quarantine or escaped from isolation, based on the person’s mobile phone’s cell tower location.

The “geo-fencing” is accurate by up to 300 m, a government communication said.

Used by Kerala:

Kerala was one of the first States to use geo-fencing to track COVID-19 cases.

On March 29, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) shared a standard operating procedure (SOP) with all telecom service providers regarding the application called COVID-19 Quarantine Alert System (CQAS).

The system will collate phone data, including the device’s location, on a common secured platform and alert the local agencies in case of a violation by COVID-19 patients under watch or in isolation.

Secure Network:

The SOP says that the DoT and C-DOT, in coordination with telecom service providers, have developed and tested the application.

It said the location information is received periodically over a secure network for the authorised cases with “due protection of the data received”.

The States have been asked to seek the approval of their Home Secretaries under the provisions of Section 5(2) of the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885, for the specified mobile phone numbers to request the DoT to provide information by email or SMS in case of violation of “geo-fencing”.

The particular provision under the Act, amended multiple times since 1885, authorises the State or the Centre to access information of a user’s phone data in case of “occurrence of any public emergency or in the interest of the public safety.”

The CQAS will prepare a list of mobile numbers, segregating them on the basis of telecom service providers, and the location data provided by the companies will be run on the application to create geo-fencing, the SOP said.

Data Will Be Deleted:

It said that the phone number should be deleted from the system after the period for which location monitoring is required is over and the data would be deleted four weeks from thereon.

“The data collected shall be used only for the purpose of Health Management in the context of COVID-19 and is strictly not for any other purposes. Any violation in this regard would attract penal provisions under the relevant laws,” the SOP said.

The SOP said that geo-fencing will only work if the quarantined person has a mobile phone from Airtel, Vodafone-Idea or Reliance Jio, as “BSNL/MTNL” do not support location based services. BSNL and MTNL are government owned.

TABLIGHI JAMAAT: ON A MISSION TO PURIFY ISLAM

At least 2,000 people, both from across the country and foreign nations such as Indonesia and Malaysia, had attended the gathering in Nizamuddin that started in early March and went on for a couple of weeks.

Maulana Saad Kandhalvi, leader of the group, has been booked by the Delhi police under the Epidemic Disease Act.

Jamaat’s Origins:

The Tablighi Jamaat (Society of Preachers) was founded by a Deobandi Islamic scholar Muhammad Ilyas al-Kandhlawi in Mewat, India, in 1926.

Al-Kandhlawi’s goal was to establish a group of dedicated preachers as a Muslim revivalist society, who could revive “true” Islam, which he saw was not being practised by many Muslims.

The slogan Al-Kandhlawi coined for his new organisation captured the essence of its activities — “Oh Muslims, become true Muslims”.

Al-Kandhlawi called upon his fellow Muslims to “enjoin the good and forbid the evil”.

Al-Kandhlawi’s mission was also to revive his faith, but based on its core teachings and lifestyle of its early leaders.

Also in Mewat where the Tablighi was founded, the Meos Muslims, a Rajput ethnic group, had followed syncretic traditions. Al-Kandhlawi wanted to end it all through dawa (proselytising).

He sent his volunteers to villages to spread “the message of Allah”.

The organisation grew fast in British India. In its annual conference held in November 1941, some 25,000 people attended.

After Partition, it grew stronger in Pakistan and East Pakistan (now Bangladesh).

Now, Tablighi’s largest national wing is in Bangladesh.

The group has presence in 150 countries and millions of followers.

Purify The Faith:

Inspired by the Deobandi creed, the Tablighis urge fellow Muslims to live like the Prophet did.

They are theologically opposed to the syncretic nature of Sufi Islam and insist on its members to dress like the Prophet did (trouser or robe should be above the ankle).

Men usually shave their upper lip and keep long beard.

The focus of the organisation was on ‘purifying’ the Muslim faith.

The organisation has a loose structure. The Emir is the leader of the international movement and is always related to the group’s founder Muhammad Ilyas al-Kandhlawi.

The current leader, Maulana Saad Kandhalvi, is the grandson of the founder.

The group also has a Shura Council, which is largely an advisory council with different national units and national headquarters.

Key Activities:

The Tablighi Jamaat members have declared they are not political.

They have also decried violence in the name of religion.

They say the Prophet Mohammed has commanded all Muslims to convey the message of Allah, and the Tablighis take this as their duty.

They divide themselves into small Jamaats (societies) and travel frequently across the world to spread the message of Islam to Muslim houses.

The group’s modus operandi is peaceful and it is focused entirely on the Muslim community worldwide.

“There is a culture of secretism in the organisation, which develops suspicion,” Ajit Doval, now India’s National Security Adviser and a former intelligence boss, said in 2013.

The Tablighi members have declared they are apolitical and decried violence in the name of religion.PTIPTI

Why in News?

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has blacklisted 960 foreigners, present in India on tourist visas, for their involvement in Tablighi Jamaat activities.

It has also directed the Directors General of Police of all the concerned States and Union Territories including Delhi Police to take necessary action against all such violators, on priority, under relevant sections of the Foreigners Act, 1946, and Disaster Management Act, 2005.

A blacklisted foreigner cannot get a visa from any of the missions abroad to come to India.

About 9,000 people linked to the Nizamuddin event have been traced in different parts of the country.

DOCTORS WARY OF BCG VACCINE STUDYBCG Vaccine:

Bacillus Calmette–Guérin(BCG) vaccine is a vaccine primarily used against tuberculosis (TB).

In countries where tuberculosis or leprosy is common, one dose is recommended in healthy babies as close to the time of birth as possible.

Adults who do not have tuberculosis and have not been previously immunized but are frequently exposed may be immunized as well.

Additionally it is sometimes used as part of the treatment of bladder cancer.

The BCG vaccine was first used medically in 1921.

It is on the World Health Organization’s List of Essential Medicines, the safest and most effective medicines needed in a health system.

What does BCG vaccination consist of?

BCG vaccine consists of the strains of bacterium that cause lung tuberculosis in humans.

The strain is named Mycobacterium Bovis.

During vaccine making, the strength of active bacteria is reduced so that it does not cause disease in healthy people.

It is called an active ingredient in the language of medicine.

In addition to this, the vaccine contains sodium, potassium and magnesium salts, glycerol and citric acid.

BCG vaccine in India:

The BCG vaccine was first introduced in India as a pilot project in the year 1948.

The very next year, in 1949, it was started in schools across the country.

In 1962, the National TB Program started in India and children were vaccinated soon after birth across the country.

According to this, it can be assumed that a large population in India is BCG vaccinated.

BCG Vaccination Scar on Arm.

Why in News?

Doctors and scientists in India have expressed caution on a study which argues that countries that have deployed the BCG-tuberculosis vaccine in their immunisation programmes have seen fewer deaths from COVID-19.

The study argues that 55 middle and high-income countries chosen for the analysis that have a current universal BCG policy had 78 deaths per million people.

Whereas middle and high income countries that never had a universal BCG policy (five countries) had a larger mortality rate, with 39 deaths per million people, a significant variation.

India wasn’t included in the analysis.

The BCG vaccine is known to confer a strong immune response that have protective effects beyond just staving off a tuberculosis infection and because COVID-19 was particularly lethal to the elderly, those countries where the elderly were likely to have had a BCG shot in their childhood were likely to be better protected against the coronavirus.

“Italy, where the COVID-19 mortality is very high, never implemented universal BCG vaccination.

Japan [and which has a BCG policy since 1947] has maintained a low mortality rate despite not implementing the most strict forms of social isolation. read more

[stupendoushumanoidpiedeputy]

PSA: 😷Being Safe During the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic⁣ ⁣ As many people are confined to their homes and safety measures are taken all over the world, it is easy to be affected by the fear-mongering, misinformation and disinformation being spread across the media and social media. Please swipe right on this image for tips and valuable information concerning the virus.⁣ ⁣ Our viewers have informed us that they are being advised by their local religious clergy to recite different verses of the Quran as the sole means to protect them against the virus. Such an approach is un-Islamic and not aligned to the Sunnah (Customs) of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH).⁣ ⁣ 💊When Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) would fall ill, he too would take the required medicine. ⁣ ⁣ In regards to contagious disease, Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) advised, 'If you hear of an outbreak of plague in a land, do not enter it; but if the plague breaks out in a place while you are in it, do not leave that place'. ⁣ ⁣ In other words, he advised containment in order to limit the spread of the disease.⁣ ⁣ It is widely believed, especially in Sufi circles and the medical community, that prevention is always better than the cure. ⁣ ⁣ 🌕A message from Sufi Master @Younus_AlGohar:⁣ ⁣ 'These are the end times and things like these will keep coming in different forms and shapes.⁣ ⁣ 'We are not asking you to believe it, but just listen to this message. There is an image of Imam Mehdi Gohar Shahi on the Moon. ⁣ ⁣ 'Maybe when there is this strife in this world and nobody shows up to help you - when you are in despair, you feel helpless and have nobody to turn to, then give it a try. Call upon His Divine Eminence Gohar Shahi for help'.⁣ ⁣ ⁣ #alratv #goharshahi #younusalgohar #peace #UniversalSufism #prevention #cure #precaution #caution #care #human #isolation #covid_19 #cough #corona2020 #mentalhealth #selfawareness #consciousness #pandemic #corona #coronavirus #stayhealthy #staystrong ##besafe #stayhealthy #virus #Sufism #picoftheday #photooftheday #selfcare https://www.instagram.com/p/B-EidyOnawC/?igshid=opyfo7e44skx

[sgbushi]

@alratv PSA: 😷Being Safe During the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic⁣ ⁣ As many people are confined to their homes and safety measures are taken all over the world, it is easy to be affected by the fear-mongering, misinformation and disinformation being spread across the media and social media. Please swipe right on this image for tips and valuable information concerning the virus.⁣ ⁣ Our viewers have informed us that they are being told by their local religious clergy to recite different verses of the Quran as the sole means to protect them against the virus. Such an approach is un-Islamic and not aligned to the Sunnah (Customs) of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH).⁣ ⁣ 💊When Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) would fall ill, he too would take the required medicine. ⁣ ⁣ In regards to contagious disease, Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) advised, 'If you hear of an outbreak of plague in a land, do not enter it; but if the plague breaks out in a place while you are in it, do not leave that place'. ⁣ ⁣ In other words, he advised containment in order to limit the spread of the disease.⁣ ⁣ It is widely believed, especially in Sufi circles and the medical community, that prevention is always better than the cure. ⁣ ⁣ 🌕A message from Sufi Master @Younus_AlGohar:⁣ ⁣ 'These are the end times and things like these will keep coming in different forms and shapes.⁣ ⁣ 'We are not asking you to believe it, but just listen to this message. There is an image of Imam Mehdi Gohar Shahi on the Moon. ⁣ ⁣ 'Maybe when there is this strife in this world and nobody shows up to help you - when you are in despair, you feel helpless and have nobody to turn to, then give it a try. Call upon His Divine Eminence Gohar Shahi for help'.⁣ ⁣ ⁣ #alratv #goharshahi #younusalgohar #peace #UniversalSufism #prevention #cure #precaution #caution #care #human #isolation #covid_19 #cough #corona2020 #mentalhealth #selfawareness #consciousness #pandemic #corona #coronavirus #stayhealthy #staystrong ##besafe #stayhealthy #virus #Sufism #picoftheday #photooftheday #selfcare https://www.instagram.com/p/B9yCpKkHCr8/?igshid=s280cl9l0665

[sgybabar]

#Alratv PSA: 😷Being Safe During the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic⁣

⁣

As many people are confined to their homes and safety measures are taken all over the world, it is easy to be affected by the fear-mongering, misinformation and disinformation being spread across the media and social media. Please swipe right on this image for tips and valuable information concerning the virus.⁣

⁣

Our viewers have informed us that they are being advised by their local religious clergy to recite different verses of the Quran as the sole means to protect them against the virus. Such an approach is un-Islamic and not aligned to the Sunnah (Customs) of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH).⁣

⁣

💊When Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) would fall ill, he too would take the required medicine. ⁣

⁣

In regards to contagious disease, Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) advised, 'If you hear of an outbreak of plague in a land, do not enter it; but if the plague breaks out in a place while you are in it, do not leave that place'. ⁣

⁣

In other words, he advised containment in order to limit the spread of the disease.⁣

⁣

It is widely believed, especially in Sufi circles and the medical community, that prevention is always better than the cure. ⁣

⁣

🌕A message from Sufi Master @Younus_AlGohar:⁣

⁣

'These are the end times and things like these will keep coming in different forms and shapes.⁣

⁣

'We are not asking you to believe it, but just listen to this message. There is an image of Imam Mehdi Gohar Shahi on the Moon. ⁣

⁣

'Maybe when there is this strife in this world and nobody shows up to help you - when you are in despair, you feel helpless and have nobody to turn to, then give it a try. Call upon His Divine Eminence Gohar Shahi for help'.⁣

⁣

⁣

#alratv #goharshahi #younusalgohar #peace #UniversalSufism #prevention #cure #precaution #caution #care #human #isolation #covid_19 #cough #corona2020 #mentalhealth #selfawareness #consciousness #pandemic #corona #coronavirus #stayhealthy #staystrong ##besafe #stayhealthy #virus #Sufism #picoftheday #photooftheday #selfcare