Homeopathy – Western or Oriental Medicine, or Both?
Many a doctrine is like a window pane. We see the truth through it but it divides us from the truth.
Gibran Khalil Gibran جبران خليل جبران
Homeopathy, the therapeutic discipline systematized by the German physician Christian Samual Hahnemann M.D. (1753-1843), is based on ancient therapeutic principles going back to the Greeks, the Persians, and even further to the Vedic manuscripts which are over 5000 years old. The concept of like cure like is one of the major therapeutic tenants of homeopathic medicine. In simple terms, it means that any substance that can produce a series of symptoms in a healthy person can cure similar symptoms in a sick person.
In the Indian classic, the Rig Veda, Srim Bhag Avatrum (5000 B.C.) states: The cure for a poison lies in the poison itself. Arun Kumar Upadhyay in his seminal book The Vedic basis of homeopathy presents a strong and compelling case for the origin of homeopathy going as far back is the Vedic texts. The Taitirya Upanishads, one of the oldest sacred texts written, contains this revealing statement, Oh good soul, does not anything applied therapeutically cure a disease which is cured by that very same thing?
In 400 B.C. Hippocrates prescribed a very small dose of mandrake root (Mandragora officinarum) to cure a mania knowing full well that Mandragora, when given in large doses will actually produce mania.
In the first century A.D., the Persian physician Avicenna, father of modern medicine and author of the Canon of Medicine described the very principals that gives homeopathy its raison d’être; the existence of a Vital Force, the concept of Like Curing Like, and the Energetic
Activation of Remedies. We know that Hahneman was familiar with the works of Avicenna and that they inspired him in laying down the principles that would become homeopathy as it is known today. Paracelsus the Swiss physician (1493-1541) also wrote that small doses of what makes a man ill will also cure him.
The second major precept of homeopathy is the belief in the existence is a Vital Force that permeates everything in the universe, even the universe itself. This Vital Force was described by the Master Indian physician Ustad-Al-Attiba (1296-1216 B.C) in the Doctrine of Tibb. This doctrine teaches that the body is composed of matter and spirit and interacts with the universe so harmonious life can exist in a state of health that is a balance between body and spirit. This concept of Vital Force goes even further back to the sacred Vedic texts (3000B.C.) which describe Prana- the Sanskrit word for Life Force, or the vital principal permeating the universe at all levels. For the ancient Egyptians, this Life Force was referred to as Ka, and to the ancient Greeks, Pneuma, the breath of life, and to the ancient Chinese Qi, the energy that animates and gives life to all humans and the entire universe.
Homeopathy like osteopathy, naturopathy, Chinese medicine and all holistic forms of medicine, seeks to correct any stasis or obstruction to the free flow of the Vital Force, be it on the physical, energetic or spiritual level.
There exist four major currents in homeopathic medicine today:
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The Classical School: follows Hahnemann’s teaching to the letter. Prescribe one single remedy.
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The Complexist School: Believes the body is a bio-energetic entity. Because each cell in the body can easily process at least 300,000 bits of information per second, multiple remedies with multiple dilutions can be presented to the patient with very favorable therapeutic results.
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The Pluralistic School: uses single classical remedies as well as complexes as needed, seeing both as therapeutically effective.
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The e-School of Homeopathy: Homeopaths using electronic homeopathy know that a homeopathic remedy is a carrier of a frequency, a vibration which is imprinted as a “bit” or multiple “bits” of information that can be decoded by every cell in the body, and hence produce a therapeutic effect. Electronic homeopathy, invented by the Americans, and widely used by the Germans, has proven to be as effective as conventionally prepared remedies.
As a point of interest, there exist nearly 186 homeopathic medical colleges in India. Approximately, 35 are government colleges, the remainder are private. It is estimated that there are over 250,000 homeopaths in India today and over 7000 homeopathic hospitals and dispensaries. The status of homeopathy in India is on par with allopathic or conventional medicine.
