“Medicine Cures Diseases, But Only Doctors Can Cure Patients”: Carl Gustav Jung
By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam
1 July 2024
A Tribute to All Doctors
“Medicine Cures
Diseases, But Only Doctors Can Cure Patients.” – Carl Gustav Jung
Iss Rengti Hayaat Ka
Kab Tak Uthaein Baar
Beemaar Ab Ulajhne
Lage Hain Tabeeb Se
Sahir Ludhianvi
(How long shall one carry the Cross of a crawling existence?
/ Those unwell have begun to question the doctor)
Note: Sahir's aforementioned couplet is from his famous
Ghazal, Dekha Hai Zindagi Ko Kuchh Itna
Qareeb Se / Chehre Tamaam Lagne Lage Hain Ajeeb Se. The cinematic version
of this Ghazal from the movie 'Ek Mahal
Ho Sapnon Ka' (1975) is simplified and it doesn't have the abovementioned
couplet.
Har Marz Ki Dawa Hai
Uss Shakhs Ke Paas
Jaadugar Se Kam Nahin
Chaaragar Mera
Inayat Merathi
(He has medicines for all maladies / No less than a wizard
is my doctor)
Once someone asked the legendary doctor Bidhan Chandra Roy,
what should be the qualities of a good doctor. Dr Roy said, “much more
important than a doctor's degree, he or she should have an angler's patience,
empathy, discernment and compassion.” Dr Roy himself possessed all these
qualities in abundance and to honour his birth and death anniversaries, July 1
is commemorated as Doctors' Day in
India. By the way, he breathed his last on the same day.
“A doctor is an angel on earth," said the Greek
physician and philosopher Hippocrates of Kos many centuries ago. Despite
changing ethos, ethics and earnings with the passage of time, a doctor is still
the most venerable figure across the globe and is seen as the saviour by the
masses.
What Dr Roy said about a medico is actually a metaphor;
metaphor for being human because the qualities, viz, patience, empathy,
discernment and compassion enshrined in a doctor are also the qualities of
being a good human. In other words, a doctor is considered a noble individual.
The constituents of the character of a lofty human are indeed patience,
empathy, discernment and compassion. All these sublime aspects of an individual
are actually interlinked. Patience and empathy go hand in hand. When you've
patience, you discern people, situations and circumstances with a sense of
discernment and compassion. That leads to empathy when you feel and discern the
pains and sufferings of others as your own.
The distillation of all these qualities may be expected of a
doctor but these virtues are also expected of every individual who's sensitive
and sensible. When empathy and compassion come together, you relate to everyone
sans an iota of prejudice. It creates an exalted perception that the whole
world is my home and all creatures, not just humans, are related to me.
A doctor saves life without ever thinking whether he's
saving the life of a friend or an enemy. All are the same to him. Yours truly
experienced this. We must imbibe this spirit of universal empathy from the
doctors.
When the French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte was incarcerated
at St Helena, one of the most isolated places on earth, the Brits appointed an
Irish surgeon for him. His name was Barry Edward O'Meara. In fact, O'Meara
accompanied Napoleon to St. Helena and became his physician. In his book 'Napoleon's Doctor ' by Dr Hubert
O'Connor wrote that one day, Napoleon asked the doctor, “Being a doctor, it's
quite easy for you to take my life.” The young Dublin doctor replied, “Let the
Brits do that. I'm here for your service and my only objective is to save your
life."
Yes, the sole, as well as the soul, objective of a doctor is
to save the life of his/her patients. Every patient is equally dear to him/her.
Famous English novelist William Somerset Maugham, a doctor
who never practiced, rightly said, “Only a fundamentally good human being is
also a good doctor. Since I didn't consider myself to be a very good human, I
never practiced and wrote novels instead." Take a bow, doctors on this
special occasion.
May your tribe increase.
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An abridged version
of this article has appeared in The Times of India's website edition
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A regular
columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in comparative
religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed articles to the
world's premier publications in several languages including Persian.
New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism