Walk along the narrow twisted alleyways of a Middle Eastern
souk, or marketplace, past the displays of wicker baskets, abas,
knives and gold jewelry. Eventually you’ll round a corner and be
pleasantly overwhelmed by the sights and smells of herbs and
spices piled high in the stalls and shops. Bright orange
saffron, terra-cotta cinnamon, dark green thyme and dozens of
other herbs weave a carpet of diverse patterns, while the sweet
odors of cloves and cardamom waft through the air. In the Middle
East, herbs are not only used to flavor food. Many also are used
as medicine, based on recipes and formulas derived from careful
observation and experimentation performed more than a thousand
years ago by Islamic scientists and scholars. In fact, without
the work of medieval Muslim pharmacists, much of what we take
for granted in Western medicine might have been lost From the
Arabian Sands In the middle of the seventh century, Europe was
mired in intellectual stagnation. Barbarians from Germany and
Asia had destroyed li