Ladud and sa'ut (oral and nasal drops)

Ladud is what a person is given in one side of the mouth, and sa'ut is what is poured into the nose ^{1 2}. The reports have the Prophet using a nasal drop ³, and his household giving him an oral drop in his illness while he signalled them not to, after which he said 'no one will be left in the house without being given a drop, except al-Abbas' ⁴; and Indian aloeswood 'is used as a nasal drop for the throat ailment and an oral drop for pleurisy' ⁵. In al-Tirmidhi: 'the best of what you treat yourselves with is the nasal drop, the oral drop, cupping and the purge', whose chain the editor calls weak ⁶.

Ibn al-Qayyim relays from Abu Ubayd, from al-Asma'i, that ladud is what a person is given in one of the two sides of the mouth, taken from the 'ladidayn' of a valley, its two flanks, while 'wajur' is in the middle of the mouth; he says ladud with fatha is the drug with which it is given, and sa'ut is what is brought in through the nose ¹. He describes sa'ut as what is poured into the nose, which may be of single or compound drugs, pounded, sifted, kneaded and dried and then dissolved when needed, and applied to a person's nose while he lies on his back with something under his shoulders to raise them so that his head is lowered, letting the drop reach the brain and bring out the disease in it by sneezing ².

Al-Bukhari reports from Ibn Abbas that the Prophet had himself cupped, gave the cupper his fee and used a nasal drop ³ al-Bukhari 5691, and Abu Dawud reports that he used one ⁷ Abu Dawud 3867. Ibn al-Qayyim says the Prophet praised treatment by sa'ut where it is needed ². In al-Tirmidhi, from Ibn Abbas, comes 'the best of what you treat yourselves with is the nasal drop, the oral drop, cupping and the purge', the 'mashiyy' being the drug that moves and softens the bowel and eases what is to pass, and the editor notes the chain is weak ⁶ al-Tirmidhi 2048. Of Indian aloeswood: 'it is used as a nasal drop for the throat ailment and an oral drop for pleurisy' ⁵ al-Bukhari 5692 Abu Dawud 3877; for detail see Indian and marine costus.

Abu Dawud reports from Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas that he fell ill and the Prophet came to visit him, putting his hand between his breasts until Sa'd felt its coolness on his heart, and said 'you are a man with a heart complaint; go to al-Harith ibn Kalada of Thaqif, who practises medicine; let him take seven ajwa dates of Medina, crush them with their stones and give them to you as an oral drop' ^{8 2} Abu Dawud 3875. Ibn al-Qayyim explains the 'mafud' as one whose heart is affected, and says dates have a marvellous property for this ailment, especially the dates of Medina and above all the ajwa, with the number seven having another property known through revelation, and he adds the report 'whoever starts the day with seven dates from al-Aliya will be harmed by neither poison nor magic that day' ². This is his own statement on dates and his attribution of it to a special property.

Al-Bukhari reports from 'A'isha: we gave him an oral drop in his illness and he began to signal to us not to give it; we said it was the sick person's dislike of medicine; when he recovered he said 'did I not forbid you to give me a drop?' We said it was the sick person's dislike of medicine; he said 'there will be no one left in the house without being given a drop while I look on, except al-Abbas, for he was not with you' ⁴ al-Bukhari 5709 al-Bukhari 4458. Ibn al-Qayyim also cites a report that Umm Salama and Asma' bint Umays feared he had pleurisy and gave him a drop of Indian aloeswood with some wars and drops of oil, and he said 'God would not strike me with that disease'; the editor notes that its chain is very weak and that Abd al-Razzaq has a similar report with a sound chain ¹. From this report Ibn al-Qayyim draws that a wrongdoer is punished with the like of what he did if his act is not forbidden by a right of God, and says this is the stated position of Ahmad and is established from the rightly guided caliphs ¹. For the wider topic see prophetic medicine and cupping.

This page describes the reports and what Ibn al-Qayyim says of oral and nasal drops; it gives no medical advice.