Health and Common Beliefs during Qajar Era

Sickness and death as a result of contagious and unknown diseases were the social realities of Qajar era. Pre-modern perceptions of peopleof human body and biological causes of diseases had a root in people conventional beliefs and were thus reflective of socio-cultural structure of the society of that time. The present study treats the common beliefs of the people and their related actions concerning diseases as part of social realities, and attempts to examine what these common beliefs of this era concerning the causes of diseases were and what solutions were prescribed for curing diseases accordingly. Analysis of historical documents and theoretical interpretation of the findings reveal that common beliefs played an important role in preserving health both with regard to disease causes and cures. Based on common beliefs, health and treatment were provided through reference to traditional medicine and common curing methods. By attributing diseases to metaphysical issues, people made use of magic and talisman as treatment. Moreover, taking advantage of the energy of individuals and holy objects for healing purposes suggests lack of facilities, lack of recognition of body structure in confronting infectious diseases and the complexities of diseases afflicting body organs on the one hand, and attempts for prevention of condition deterioration and maintainingsurvival on the other hand.