User:Boomershah/Abu Zayd al-Balkhi

Biography
According to Abu Muhammad al-Hassan ibn al-Waziri, who was a student of the polymath, Abu Zayd al-Balkhi was a man whose face was covered in scars that he acquired following a bought with smallpox. In addition to this, he had a reserved and isolated character, leading scholars to have a lack of knowledge on his personal life. Approximately around the time of al-Kindi death, he traveled to Baghdad, where he spent close to a decade studying several subjects including philosophy, astronomy, natural sciences and disciplines of the Quran. Shortly after he went back to Balkh. There, Prince Ahmad ibn Sahl ibn Hashim al-Marwazi, the ruler of Balkh and its surroundings, appointed him as secretary or writer. In reality, he was offered both a writing and a ministerial position by the emperor. Al-Balkh, on the other hand, declined the latter and accepted the former. The king respected his decision and rewarded him handsomely. Sometime after this, he traveled to Baghdad again, before returning to Balkh for the last time and staying there up until he died.

Principles of Interaction
His balance between technical terminology and common ethical sense could be found in his monograph where, he talks about the interaction between the elements of the body, seasons, and the traditional "non-natural" health elements, such as food and sleep.

Politics
In a collection of works by al-Tawhidi, al-Balkhi describes politics as art that aims to contribute to the rise of a country. Furthermore, he mentions five separate sources that play into the overall outcome of politics. These include the tangible cause as corresponding to the subjects' affairs, the official reason as the overall well-being of the people, the driving force as "the ruler’s concern for the affairs of his subjects", the purpose as the preservation of the public welfare, as well as the instrumental cause consisting of using incitement and intimidation to achieve the goal.

Phobias
al-Balkhi initially wrote about phobia in the 9th century, calling it Fazaa'. As of today, it is still defined in a similar manner as to what was described by al-Balkhi. al-Balkhi details the disorder as an extreme type of fear that results in the anxiety levels of a person spiking due to increasing the depth of blood in the body. this causes the person become shaky and disoriented preventing them from making decision in a timely manner. Rather than taking medicine or proceeding with blood letting, which were common methods to help the individual, he suggested gradual exposers to the object or situation that caused the fear. This technique was known as reyadat al-nafs.

Sexual Attributes
While the topic of sex is more widely discussed today, al-Balkhi explored the subject in detail, specifically various sexual attributes and the affects that they have on an individual. A specific talking point that he mentioned in his work was the act of remaining abstinent. By doing so, an individual subjects themselves to physical ailments, since the act is deemed by him to be "unnatural". He also recommended a specific diet and to abstain from taking medications that were believed to enhance sexuality as a means to treat sexual impotence.