This article discusses life of Sedîddudîn Mahmud İbn Raḳîḳa, one of the important physicians, mechanical engineers and poets of the Artuqid-Ayyubid period, and his poems about healthy living, asceticism and old wisdom. Ibn Raḳîḳa started his scientific life as a student and disciple of  the famous physician and philosopher of his time, Fahruddîn Abdüsselam el-Mârdînî. He worked under al-Mardînî for a long time and took medicine, philosophy and literature lessons from him. Ibn Raḳîḳa became a good physician at a young age, was very successful especially in performing eye surgeries. Because of this success, he was highly respected in the palaces of the Artuqid and Ayyubid emirs. In addition to his career in medicine, he was also involved in literature and poetry, wrote poems in various fields and compiled books of famous physicians in recez meter. Sources providing information about Ibn Raḳîḳa showed him among the most famous physicians of his period and also noted that he was a great poet. They especially drew attention to his skill in composing prose texts in the recez meter. However, unfortunately, most of his works and poems have not survived to the present day. In his work titled ʿUyûnu’lEnbâ fi Tabakâti’l- Atibbâ (History of Physicians), Ibn Ebî Uṣaybiʿâ recorded his 229 poetic couplets in different fields.

In this study, we tried to shed light on Ibn Raḳîḳa’s poetry, philosophy-mysticism, philosophymysticism, old wisdom and his advice on medical life, based on his poems in the sources. His available poems on such subjects are of a nature that can explain his relevant opinions. In our study, we tried to briefly present the developments and changes in Arabic poetry and literature during the Abbasid period. We presented brief information about al-Şiʿru’t-Taʿlimî (didactic poetry), ascetic and old wisdom schools that developed in this period. In addition, we presented information about his life and the political and cultural environment where he lived. We included some of his poems on these subjects that survived to the present day, and their Turkish translations. We gave information about his literary and scientific personality. We analyzed his poems to reveal his ideas on healthy living, asceticism and old wisdom. 

In an ode about healthy living, Ibn Raḳîḳa summarized the basic conditions of healthy living and emphasized the importance of moderate eating. In this context, he noted that eating a lot of food and having a lot of sexual intercourse would lead to various diseases. He recommended against drinking water right after meals and advised drinking a small amount of water before bed and when hungry. He said that drinking too much water on an empty stomach is harmful. He noted that drinking water after having a snack would be better when very hungry. He underlined the importance of digesting food well for a healthy life. He noted that although food is essential for human life, consuming too much food is harmful to human body. He mentioned that cleansing the intestines once a year with laxatives has benefits for health. He stated that a sedentary life harms human health. He emphasized the importance of an active life for human health. In this context, he advised against getting engaged in too much activity right after eating and recommended starting activities after digesting the food. He advised against drinking alcohol and stated that drinking alcohol was foolish. He said that the most important condition for a healthy life is to curb desires of the flesh. 

On his poems about ascetic life, Ibn Raḳîḳa emphasized self-purification. He recommended his soul to constantly think about his own self and said that thinking about one’s self means thinking about Allah. He advised people to be patient noting that worldly life is boring and full of pain, but that it is temporary and mortal. He said that the real and eternal life is the afterlife. He encouraged people to achieve a peaceful and eternal afterlife. He advised people to do good deeds and follow the right path in order to gain eternal life. He said people must always remember Allah and those souls that remember Allah will find peace. He advised people to be thankful for the blessings God gives. He heralded that people who do such things will enter heaven, that they will experience the happiness of living with good people in heaven, and most importantly, that they will see Allah, who has no partners or equals. He expressed that he was surprised by people who were immersed in worldly pursuits and who had strong attachments to the mortal life in this world. He reminded people that in this mortal world, human beings are faced with great calamities at any moment which gradually destroy the lives of human beings and invited people to repentance. According to Ibn Raḳîḳa, life (time) is the greatest enemy known to man. He drew attention to the dangers of youth and said that young people that follow the path of truth, despite seeing desirous paths, will gain eternal happiness. He stated that graying hair is not a disease, but rather a sign of a person’s maturity and experience. He said that he was surprised that people do not learn from graying hair that indicate maturity and experience, and regret. He said that people should not place too much confidence in their property or position in society and reminded that many people who had a lot of property and power lost them eventually and called people to repent. He said that God’s forgiveness is abundant for people who repent.

In his poems about old wisdom, Ibn Raḳîḳa encouraged people to learn knowledge and science. According to him, what makes people valuable in society is knowledge and science and not property and wealth. He said that property and wealth are temporary, but knowledge and science are permanent. He advised people who missed the training period to gain information by listening to scholars and knowledgeable people. Drawing attention to the difficult lives of people close to the sultans and rulers, he said that such people always live in fear and anxiety. Therefore, he wanted to say that a life spent in stress is a difficult life. He claimed that human beings can be liars, treacherous and manipulative by nature and that it is not correct to trust people. Therefore, he said that being too close to people would ultimately cause harm. He stated that one should not be deceived by an enemy’s fake smiles and noted that an enemy’s uncongeniality can be seen even from under a smiling face. He advised people living under oppression to migrate and to find new living spaces for themselves, regardless of the obstacles, for the sake of their dignity. He said that cruel people are forgiving when they are weak, and very cruel when they are strong. According to Ibn Raḳîḳa, a person who resists difficulties is a noble person. He stated that worldly life is not in a state of perpetuity, but in a state of constant motion, and that good days will follow bad days, and advised to resist difficulties and be patient. In his advice about good manners, he said that arguing with ignorant people would humiliate a person, and that ignorant people could do evil even while trying to do good. He recommended speaking concisely in society, and said that physicians gain respect in society because they speak concisely. He noted that one must pay attention to the word itself, not the person who said it and advised that correct information can be received from everyone.