Foundations
Foundations of Traditional Persian Medicine
A small shelf of plain-English explainers. These pages teach the vocabulary you will meet throughout the Living Library — what the concepts meant to classical practitioners, and how we use them here.
- Educational — an introduction to a traditional concept.
- Not a health assessment, and not a diagnosis.
- Not personalized guidance or a recommendation engine.
What is Mizaj?
Traditional Persian Medicine teaches that every person has a natural temperament called Mizaj. It is the framework you will see referenced throughout the Living Library.
About 3 minutes · Educational only
The Four Qualities
Warm, cool, moist and dry — the two axes classical practitioners used to describe people, foods and seasons alike.
About 4 minutes · Educational only
In preparationSeasonal Living
How the traditional calendar shaped what people ate, when they rested, and how they adjusted through the year.
About 4 minutes · Educational only
In preparationTraditional Food Pairings
Why certain foods were traditionally served together, and what the pairing was thought to accomplish.
About 3 minutes · Educational only
In preparationUnderstanding the Terminology
A plain-English reading of the words you will meet in traditional sources, and what they did and did not mean.
About 5 minutes · Educational only
In preparation
Folio from a 13th-century Arabic translation of Dioscorides’ De Materia Medica. Public domain.