Admonition to the Physicians

This Hebrew text, Admonition to the Physicians (Musar ha-rof’im), thought to be written by Isaac al-Isrā’īlī, provides guidance on how a physician should act, particularly focusing on the limits of his craft and the ways that he might obtain medical knowledge. This work may originally have been part of another of his medical works. It appears to be a medieval translation from an Arabic original; references to the Hebrew Bible and rabbinic literature could conceivably have been added by the translator. These excerpts offer some perspectives on medical practice and the challenges faced by physicians.