6).

In ancient Mesopotamia -- according to the Indiana University (IU) -- there were two kinds of medical practitioners; the "ashipu" was also called a "sorcerer" and one of his jobs was to give a diagnosis of the medical problem. He was also accountable to determine "which god or demon was causing the illness" (IU), and to figure out if the illness resulted from "some error or sin on the part of the patient." The curing of the patient also fell into the hands of the ashipu; he used charms and spells designed to push the spirit out of the body that had caused the problem in the first place (IU). When the situation called for it, the ashipu referred his patient to the other kind of medical practitioner, the asu, a specialist in herbal remedies who also knew how to treat wounds. The asu used three "fundamental techniques: washing,...
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