I want to see how well anyone here can answer this one. Try your very best to resist using google. Who was Maimonides?
[quote:17461deb2a="Electric_Man"]Can I use ask, yahoo or (if I'm feeling really brave) MSN search?[/quote:17461deb2a] Not really. I wouldn't want you to undergo horrible mental torture for the sake of one answer. Use google if it's the very first time you see that name. I'd just prefer that someone who already knows the answer without the aid of search engines gives the answer. Sacharissa should know, for example. I'd be terribly disappointed if she doesn't.
Is he one of these people that should be famous for something, like you get those Muslim/Hindu types who were doing astronomy and knew the Earth was not the centre of the universe like a thousand years before we (in Western Europe) discovered the potato, but isn't because of Western-centric education? P.S. I tried looking him up in an actual book, A Dictionary of World Mythology, and he's not in there, so he must be a real person.
OK, i've never seen the name before, so i checked in google. What is the significance of this person? :?: (Asks the uneducated youth of today)
Current day significance, beyond a bit of history? To most of the world, none. To me, plenty. Another hint for those still not with us.
Ba seemed to suggest he has another name in a different language, might he be better known by me with that name?
[quote:b341e8c5ec="Maljonic"] P.S. I tried looking him up in an actual book, A Dictionary of World Mythology, and he's not in there, so he must be a real person.[/quote:b341e8c5ec] An actual what? Oh, and I have no idea. To google!!
[quote:4aac1b5c1a="Smoking_GNU"]the site says his greek name was "Moses". Does that help?[/quote:4aac1b5c1a]Are you sure? Moses isn't a Greek name is it?
A non-greek philosopher who wrote several books on medicine that exists primarily today as quotes in the front of modern medical texts.
His first name was Moses. And Where's Avgi to tell use that Maimonides is literally Son of Maimon in Greek? And where's Ben, whom I told what his name means in Hebrew, and who can put two and two together most of the time?
I'm pretty sure Moses is a Jewish name. Anyway, back to the topic; was he the inventor of the modern cow?* *thinly disguised attempt to mask own ignorance with foolish humour.
it can give 47 diffrent flavours of milk, including curry, spagetti and brusselsprout. :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
Jewish Philosopher. Wrote the Mishneh Torah. I knew he had something to do with the Torah, (My religion teacher encouraged us to learn about ALL religion, no judgements made) had to look him up to get it right. Great quote: "Teach your tongue to say 'I do not know' and you will progress." edit:fixed link
He had written "the doctor's prayer", which some want it to replace Hippocrates' Oath. I believe if there is something to replace that oath, it should be "Life is Short, the Craft is Long (to learn), Times are Urgent, Experience is Misleading, Decision is Difficult (to make)". The "damned if you do, damned if you don't" message encapsulates much more accurately the essenc of the profession.
Good, good. The Rambam (Rabbi Moshe Ben Maimon) was more than just a philosopher, though his works in that make him the most widely known and respected man from that time, in the eyes of most of Judaism. He was a doctor, you see. The Wikipedia article sadly lacks much of the information on that, though. For example, I currently hold in my hands a book by Nissim Krispil, on the various medical plants recorded by the Rambam in his various works. He wrote an article on Asthma in 1190, where he shows how a proper diet and mental treatment are better to deal with the disease than medication. Another major medical work he wrote was The Drugs of Death and Their Antidotes (translating again, sorry). He didn't write much new in this one, but the accuracy of his dosages is quite amazing. It was written with both the patient and the doctor in mind, so the patient could administrate basic treatment before the doctor was there. His main work is Moses' Chapters of Medicine (translating from Hebrew again), which is three tomes which were origininally intended for his own use (in case his memory failed him), and which he published openly later. He stated that the books were intended for those who's medical education was lower or equal to that the book taught, and those who knew more should not read it. His Doctor's Oath is as follows: "The eternal providence has appointed me to watch over the life and health of Thy creatures. May the love for my art actuate me at all time; may neither avarice nor miserliness, nor thirst for glory or for a great reputation engage my mind; for the enemies of truth and philanthropy could easily deceive me and make me forgetful of my lofty aim of doing good to Thy children. May I never see in the patient anything but a fellow creature in pain. Grant me the strength, time and opportunity always to correct what I have acquired, always to extend its domain; for knowledge is immense and the spirit of man can extend indefinitely to enrich itself daily with new requirements. Today he can discover his errors of yesterday and tomorrow he can obtain a new light on what he thinks himself sure of today. Oh, God, Thou has appointed me to watch over the life and death of Thy creatures; here am I ready for my vocation and now I turn unto my calling." I like that oath, myself. As for his religious texts... If I were to say that he single-handedly affected Judaism today more than any other living person in his time, that would still be an understatement.
Shame on me... I've heard the name before in association with historical Hebrew philosophers, but that's as far as my knowledge extended. Thanks for the lesson, Roman Why did you choose to post it at the time that you did?
This is from the astronomy encyclopedia that I'm writing for Planet Surveyor MAIMONIDES, MOSES (1135-1204) Medieval Jewish philosopher and physician, also knowns as Rabbi Moses ben Maimon, or Rambam. Maimonides is considered to be the greatest Jewish scholar and philosopher of the Middle Ages. He had a more powerful impact on Jewish tradition than any other human being. In 1180, Maimonides completed the Mishneh Torah, the first code of Jewish law. The Mishneh Torah, a fourteen volume work, includes sections on astronomy, as well as on medicine and metaphysics. Maimonides' main contribution to astronomy was a complete rejection of astrology. In a letter written to a group of rabbis in southern France in 1194, Maimonides said that he had studied astrology, and that it did not deserve to be called a science. Maimonides argued that man should believe only what can be supported either by rational proof, by the evidence of the senses, or by trustworthy authority. He claimed that the idea that a man's fate could depend on the constellations is ridiculous; such a theory would rob life of its purpose and make human beings slaves to destiny.
I've come across brief mentions of him both in History and Philosophy classes. The little I've read of him suggests that he was a man with a fairly rigid world view, but that view was generally a wise one.
[quote:4ace4b9b8d="mowgli"]Shame on me... I've heard the name before in association with historical Hebrew philosophers, but that's as far as my knowledge extended. Thanks for the lesson, Roman Why did you choose to post it at the time that you did?[/quote:4ace4b9b8d] Oh, I got a book about him into my hands. Specifically, one which details the various plants he described in his medical works. So, I figured, why not post about him? One of my favourite things about him is that he detested superstition. He was a man who was both very religious and very logical at the same time.
