Dhivehi beys is the local Dhivehi name given to the Traditional Medicine of the

Maldives Maldives (, ; dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ, translit=Dhivehi Raajje, ), officially the Republic of Maldives ( dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ, translit=Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa, label=none, ), is an archipelag ...

and

Minicoy Minicoy, locally known as Maliku (), is an island in Lakshadweep, India. Along with Viringili, it is on ''Maliku atoll'', the southernmost atoll of Lakshadweep archipelago. Administratively, it is a census town in the Indian union territory ...

Lakshadweep Lakshadweep (), also known as Laccadives (), is a union territory of India. It is an archipelago of 36 islands in the Arabian sea, located off the Malabar Coast. The name ''Lakshadweep'' means "one lakh islands" in Sanskrit, though the Lac ...

or the Dweep Unani / ''Dheebu Yoonaanee'', the islanders' system of herbal medicine. The term ''Dhivehi'' means Islanders' and ''beys'' means medicine. ''Dweep'' is another word used for islands and ''Unani'' is the term for Hippocratic humoral system of herbal medicine practiced in South Asia.

History

The

Maldive Maldives (, ; dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ, translit=Dhivehi Raajje, ), officially the Republic of Maldives ( dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ, translit=Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa, label=none, ), is an archipelag ...

Islanders still rely on

traditional medicine Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) comprises medical aspects of traditional knowledge that developed over generations within the folk beliefs of various societies, including indigenous peoples, before the ...

men and women. At the crossroads of the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by t ...

, healing secrets from Indians, Arabs, Persians, Malaysians, Sri Lankans and Chinese were acquired and synthesized, then used to develop local

herbal remedies Herbal medicine (also herbalism) is the study of pharmacognosy and the use of medicinal plants, which are a basis of traditional medicine. With worldwide research into pharmacology, some herbal medicines have been translated into modern remedies ...

. Legends abound about the feats of such special healers as "Buraki Ranin", the sixteenth-century queen of Sultan Muhamed, who was said to cure sword wounds overnight with her own dressings. The treatise written by El-Sheikh Ahmed didi of

Meedhoo (Seenu Atoll) Hulhumeedhoo (Dhivehi: ހުޅުމީދޫ) or Hulhudhoo-Meedhoo is an island located on the northeastern point of Addu City. It is the fifth largest island in the Maldives. Although Hulhumeedhoo is geographically one island, it is divided into two ...

who died in 1937 forms the foundation of today's traditional medicine. Known as hakeems, practitioners of this medicine are well respected by the village communities. A basic tenet of their philosophy is that good health is a result of a proper balance between the hot, cold and dry "humours" in the body, so "cold food" is recommended for someone with fever, and dry fish for flu. Some hakeems are schooled in "Unani" medicine, which treats the whole person, combining ancient remedies with new drugs. In recent years there has been an attempt to integrate traditional and

modern medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pract ...

. Advice and training, for instance, is offered to local midwives who learned their skill from older practitioners. Arabic system of Graeco-

Islamic medicine In the history of medicine, "Islamic medicine" is the science of medicine developed in the Middle East, and usually written in Arabic, the ''lingua franca'' of Islamic civilization. Islamic medicine adopted, systematized and developed the medi ...

in Maldives was introduced by Arabs.

Unani medicine Unani or Yunani medicine (Urdu: ''tibb yūnānī'') is Perso-Arabic traditional medicine as practiced in Muslim culture in South Asia and modern day Central Asia. Unani medicine is pseudoscientific. The Indian Medical Association describes Un ...

soon got acceptance by the masses due to its efficacy and non toxicity of the drugs. El-shaikh Ahmed didi ( son of El-Shaikh alhafiz Ibrahim thakurfan (Aisaabeegedharu Dhonbeyya) died in 1937 was most dedicated scholar of Arabic system of medicine in Maldives. He was known for his book Tibbl Fuqara fee hikmathil Umarai based on his lifelong clinical experience. He referred to more than 20 books and encyclopedias of Arabic in his book. He was the first person who opened the research in old Dhivehi system of medicine. He examined Dhivehi medicine in the light of unani medicine. Several spas in resorts are now adapting this traditional medicine with modern techniques and hygiene to offer tourists as taste of Dhivehi Beys. The first to create this was Kurumba Maldives quickly followed by Javvu Spa a
Amilla Maldives Resort and Residences

Reference books

* ''Tibbul Fuqaraai fee Hikmatil Umaraai'' - Al Allama As Shaikh Al Hakeem Ahmed Didi bin Al Faqeeh Ibrahim from Addu Meedhoo, Maldives.

References

External links

{{Traditional Medicine 01 South Asian traditional medicine History of medieval medicine Traditional medicine in India Health in the Maldives