Ilyas al-Qarmani, physician of Damascus

Ilyas ibn Ibrahim al-Qarmani, the Damascene Shafi'i physician — imam of his age and unique of his time; the Kawakib says he combined many arts: skilled in medicine, proficient in the readings, fara'id, prosody, grammar and history; he versified the materia medica naming it Nazrat al-A'yan fi Ma'rifat al-Adwiya; of good conduct, he did people good and took no fee for treating them; he never ceased decrying to himself and others excess in the pleasures of food and drink — and so he remained until he was killed in Dhu'l-Qa'da. ¹