What Homoeopathy is:

Panchasheel Homoeopathic medical college and hospital khamgaon

The word “homeopathy” is derived from two Greek words: homoios which means “similar” and pathos which means “suffering.” Homeopathy’s basic premise is called the “principle of similars,” Homoeopathy can be defined as a  method of curing the sufferings of the person by administration of a drug which has been experimentally proved to possess the power of producing similar suffering in healthy human being or This is defined as the therapeutic art, which tries to stimulate the rational mode of the patient by administering a remedy analogous in potentize micro dose, which has been determined by cortico – viseral - pharmadynamic research in sub toxic dose having provoked same morbid phenomenon in a normo-physical individual.
It refers to recurrent observation and experience that a medicinal substance will elicit a healing response for the specific syndrome of symptoms (or suffering) that it has been proven to cause when given to a healthy person in overdose.
The beauty of the principle of similars is that it not only initiates a healing response, but it encourages a respect for the body's wisdom. Because symptoms represent the best efforts of our body in its defenses against infection or stress, it makes sense to utilize a medicine that helps and mimics this defense rather than that inhibits or suppresses it. The principle of similars may be one of nature's laws that, when used well, can be one of our most sophisticated healing strategies.
It is important to note that immunizations and allergy treatments are two of the very few applications in modern medicine today that actually stimulate the body’s own defenses in the prevention or treatment of specific diseases, and it is NOT simply a coincidence that both of these treatments are derived from the homeopathic principle of similars.
HISTORY OF HOMOEOPATHY:
This is true that from the early days of the human population was severely tormented by the question of keeping the community healthy. Health, as understood today, a state of normal functioning of the body, was true to that days also. The deviation from it was designated as disease. The sole aim of the slowly forming society was to make free the persons of the community from such assaults. The causes that is why the diseases attacking the community were a great question in front of them. They thought primarily this is due to some divine, extraordinary power, which cannot be explained by empirical terms. They had adopted the easy way of pleasing that oracle by means of worshipping, offering and sacrificing. But the most unwanted thing happened when this process of pleasing could not able to bring any undeviating solution. Then they were turned on searching the natural virtue of some plants and minerals or stones. Probably they have had seen the lower animals to eat those leaves or soil to attain health. Some plant has got red blood colored secretion resembles blood or some leaf looks like eye. They put the analogy that for example that eye shaped leaf may do some thing good for the eye as the tree produces dark red juice should be valuable for bleeding. Like this way the drugs for definite disease started of coming forward.
Now the question comes what will be the mode of the application? Doctrine of Analogy said something about the application in a similar way. But in every cases this analogy were failed to found. So such blind dependence on this notion received no confidence for the common mass. So, as in natural dealing, i.e. putting water in to the fire, the application of opposite started rising. This is very difficult to declare among these two ways which, came at first as a therapy but these two, as most popular mode of therapeutics, has proved their long lastingness.
A brief history of homoeopathy
Pythagoras (the very same one that mathematicians will be familiar with, born 582BC) was a deep thinking, philosophizing about religion, society, etc. He gave us the idea of 'first does no harm.' Later Hippocrates used that same thinking which led to the Hippocratic Oath.
Hippocrates of Cos (born 460BC), considered the father of medicine, did not believe in intervention and was one of the first people to separate disease from superstition and religion. He did not think that disease was a result of a 'hex' or a person's character. He thought that the body possessed 'humours' and that all diseases and disabilities result from an excess or deficit in one of these four humours. The four humours corresponded to the four elements which were earth, fire, water and air. The humours were blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile. He believed that these humours had to be balanced for health. The humours eventually became associated with the personality types.
Then in the late 14th/early 15th century, there was a fellow called Paracelsus. He was a unique thinker, an avid student and traveller. He was a medical student, but no one is quite sure if he ever graduated. However, he was an acclaimed alchemist. Though he lost every job he had held (mainly due to his arrogance and his different ideas), was always frowned upon by the medical associations and governing bodies of his time, he was in tremendous demand by patients wherever he travelled. His reputation as a healer ensured that he was never without patients and support. Paracelsus started the whole tablet/drug phenomenon. Being an alchemist, he realised that the body was collection of interwoven processes. These processes could be altered by chemicals and minerals. He learned much from his travels to the east and incorporated this knowledge and some eastern philosophies into his thinking. He is regarded as the father of toxicology/medical pharmacy and coined the phrase: "The dose makes the poison."
Both Hippocrates and Paracelsus described the law of similars. This was a philosophy already held by the Mayans, Chinese, Greeks, Native American Indians and Asian Indians. When Hahnemann came along in the late 17th century, he was a doctor disillusioned with the medicine of his time. He did not agree with the bloodletting and the over-use of very poisonous substances (such as arsenic, laudanum, etc.). He turned to research instead, applying his substantial and remarkable intelligence to trying to make medicine work better. Hahnemann was extremely clever, speaking many languages even during his teens.
Whilst doing some research for another doctor, he observed that the men working on the cinchona tree bark developed similar symptoms to that of malaria. The cinchona tree bark is the source of quinine, which is used to treat malaria. Once he saw the evidence of the law of similars, he started thinking deeply about this phenomenon. He was a great observer, quietly experimenting with homoeopathy on him for years before making his ideas public and writing a book (the Organon, which means the investigation). Because Hahnemann was so vituperative about the doctors of his time, and because he prescribed such tiny amounts of medication and so the chemists made no money, he made enemies. Hahnemann rewrote his book six times as he gathered knowledge and experience, being continuously willing to change and improve his methods. He had many followers in the form of patients and fellow doctors who were intrigued and amazed by the success of his treatments.
However, in his time (the early 18th century), there were limited models for him to use. Nowadays, we can talk about chakras and ayurvedic medicines, Chinese medicine and energy meridians, etc. We know about our soul, mind, reincarnation, heaven, hell, brain waves, etc. There are many belief systems today, religious and scientific and we can avail ourselves of this knowledge and find the one relates to us best. Hahnemann did not have access to this thinking in his day, so he called that thing which animates a body and prevents it from being a corpse, the vital force. He said that homoeopathic remedies stimulated the vital force to bring about health. Doctors and the pharmaceutical companies in his time and now did not understand how the remedies worked, talked about the placebo effect and tried to stop Hahnemann from practicing. However, the continuous excellent results that Hahnemann got guaranteed that his patient list was long, his admirers and supporters many and his legacy lives on today.
Hahnemann died just as he finished the sixth edition of the Organon. However, his wife feared that the new edition would bring criticism and encourage his detractors. Hence, she held on to this work until she died. As she was much, much younger than Hahnemann (in her thirties whilst he was in his eighties), the latest edition was not published for many years. By this time, many homoeopaths were devoted to the fifth edition and were also developing their own methods. Upon the publishing of the sixth edition, there was much controversy as homoeopaths were forced to think about the new ideas set forth.
During the smallpox epidemics, homoeopathy became very popular as it was more successful for treatment than the hospitals of that time. However, as homoeopathy spread to different countries and practitioners started treating patients using different methods, applying religious beliefs to their practice, experimenting, sticking rigidly with Hahnemann's either 5th or 6th edition, in-fighting broke out. Added to this, orthodox doctors and particularly, pharmaceutical companies, put a lot of pressure to stamp out homoeopathy. Without a cohesive, collective body, homoeopathy almost fell into obscurity.
Luckily, due to the effectiveness of this system, some very talented practitioners and growing knowledge, homoeopathy has survived today.
As the life cannot take any rest so also the science. Science is like a flowing river that is born to flow and flow to get life. Stagnancy is never pardonable in science. So the flow from the Pre Historic Era passes to the Old Greeks, The Indians, and the Chinese and to all the all the ancient civilization. The example of Similia and Contraria both are found in these literatures.  Hippocrates the father of medicine, in his Cannon (Corpa Hippocarticum)
said about both the systems. But he has stressed on application the similar one. There had been many followers who followed Hippocrates. But Hippocratic school faced the first resistance when Galen gave sole importance on application of the opposite in the treatment of diseases. This storm is blown for few thousand years. The founder of Arabic i.e. Islamic medicine was mostly followed Galen. The school as Dogmatic, Empirical, Herophytes, Erasistrates, and Methodists is formed. Ultimately period of Renaissance started (1400-1600 A.D.). The great personalities as
Stahl (1660 – 1734 A.D.), Barthez (1734 – 1806 A.D.) and Hoffman (1660 – 1742 A.D.) started saying against Galen and this revolution got its crescendo when in public Theophrastus Von Hohenheim popularly known as Paracelsus (1490 – 1541 A.D.) burns the book of Galen and said that the system running is the most worst as a therapy. 
During the time of birth of Hahnemann that at the mid of Eighteenth Century the whole medical school had been divided in to two schools of thought one is Vitalistic school and Materialistic School.
Materialism can be defined as belief or a philosophy that believes that nothing of the world can exist but the matters and its various expressions. For them disease is due to the entry of certain bad products in the body and if these are removed heath can be restored. This school had got its base from Galenian philosophy.
Vitalism

is the philosophical doctrine that says that the life process possess a unique character that is radically different from physio-chemical phenomenon and therefore cannot be explained by empirical terms. This is echoed by Stuart Close when he writes ‘To those agents which effect the organism as to healthy in ways not governed by chemistry, mechanics, or hygiene, but those capable of producing ailments similar to those found in sick’. This school had got its base from Hippocrates, Aristotle, Bacon, and Paracelsus and got its rebirth in the hand of Hahnemann.
This is well known that Hahnemann, the protagonist in the history of medicine, stood before the inhuman, cruel and unjustified therapeutics prevailing at his time. The middle age ‘Black Era’ still existed. The charlatans were the most important health workers and charms were the most accepted therapy.  Few decades passed with the dilemma then Hahnemann ultimately becomes sure of the efficacy of application of similar drugs by his experimentation through China bark. The result of this experiment came out in the article ‘Essay on new principal for ascertaining the curative power of drug” published in Hufeland’s Journal for practicing physician Vol. II in the year 1796.
The basic concepts of this system, as postulated were

As we have seen Dr. Hahnemann was born at a time where was a great upsurge of different philosophical and scientific thoughts which seemed to dominate the European mind by turns what particular philosophic system Hahnemann supported cannot be ascertained by his writings it seems very probable that he did not support any system “in toto” he accepted the reality of mind life and matter
Homoeopathy school starts with the conception of list as a real or substantial initiative power of principle having laws of its own and refers all the phenomena of health and disease to it under two names “The dynamis” and “The life force” this is Hahnemann greatest discovery and the obsolete bed rock of his system i.e. Homoeopathy
In Homoeopathic school man is to be studied from an organismal stand point and hot from that of a mechanism
A mechanical system is not a real but only an artificial whole is has no central power of self construction self evolution of self preservation a mechanism has no internal unifying and self regulating principle whereas an organism is not artificially made but grows not put together by the forces acting from the outside but evolved by a single power working from within a self evolving self sustaining unity in an organism the result has something to do with its own producing.
Life is both the beginning and the resultant of the organism it is beginning because it is power which evolves it from the primordial cell onwards it is the resultant because the organism is the system of parts by means of which it completes and perfects itself and make it self to be concrete life.
Life is not primarily a phenomenon it is the cause of phenomena in a dynamical sense life is energy the universe principle and cause of vital action and reaction organization growth self preservation and reproduction inherent in all living things energy must exist before work can be done hence life and mind logically and necessarily precede organization and this must be not only the cause but the controlling power of organization life built the body and life preserves it as ling as it is needed for purpose of our indwelling relational spirit as Hahnemann cause it all school of modern philosophy how agree that life can come only from previous life.
BASIC PRINCIPLES OF HOMOEOPATHY:
SIMILIA SIMILIBUS CURENTOR
It was simply an intelligent observation of our natural resources those in their closet proximity to our daily lived in the vegetable kingdom and their relation to disturbed and disordered condition arising in mankind himself. It was found that ills of individual man could be successfully treated thus first doubtless these substances were found in the vegetable kingdom later in mineral and animal kingdoms also stil later came the knowledge that this was not by chance an occasional means of cure but that by law these substances acted in an ordered and ordering manner under certain definite conditions and circumstances.
Ancient Hindu manuscripts recorded its application. Certainly Aristotle recognized it and hippocrated sensed the possibilities of this law and applied it in some recorded cases from time to time all through medical history this hypothesis was demonstrated in greater and lesser extent. In other words in even the embryonic stages of homoeopathy in was found that law governed.
As observation became focused upon the unfolding of the law of cure this time pertaining to direction of cure was formulated.
This was cure takes place from above downwards from within outwards from an important organ to a less important organ; symptoms disappear in the reverse order of their appearance the first to appear being the last to disappear.
Simple disappearance of symptoms is by no means cure symptoms often have periods of recurrence but no true cure has ever been observed that did not follow the law of direction.
Another law equally applicable throughout the universe is that of mutual action. ACTION AND REACTION ARE EQUAL AND OPPOSITE.
This law was formulated by Maupertius, the French mathematician. According to S. close, “The predominant thought of substantialism is that all things in nature which exist or can form the basis of a concept are really forces of nature or the atoms of corporeal bodies even extending to the life and mental powers of every sentient organism from the highest to the lowest.”
Nothing comes every follows causes in unbroken succession no substantial effect can be produced upon any subject without an absolute substance of some kind connection the cause with effect

Law of Quantity and does:-
Quantity of action necessary to effect any change in nature is the least possible, the decesive amount is always a minimum an infenitisimal.
Health is a water of perfect equilibrium, perfect balance trifling circumstances may sway it and even as seemingly trifiling circumstances may sway it so may it be balanced by the least possible in medication which may in conditions of perfect health cause the same loss of balance or a corresponding loss of equilibrium.
Law of Quantity :-
The quantity of the drug required is in inverse ratio to the similarity.
i.e. greater the similarity of the drug symptoms to those of the patient the less quantity will be required for the greater will be the state of susceptibility of the patient.
A corollary of the law of quantity is THE QUANTIY OF ACTION OF THE HOMOEPATHY REMEDY IS DETERMINED BY ITS QUANTITY IN INVERSE RATIO.
That means the laws of quality & quantity goes hand in hand.
Biological Law :-
FUNCTION CREATS AND DEVELOPS THE ORGAN.
Function symptoms are produced by the vital force in exact proportion to the profundity of the disturbance. However pathological changes greatly in that functional symptoms do not manifest themselves in as great a degree. The disease condition has struck deeper and manifest itself lesson the surface. Following the biological law therefore homoeopathy postulates the law of symptoms development. FUNCTIONAL SYMPTOMS PRECEDE STRUCTURAL CHANGES.
Law of repetition of the dose –
NEVER REPEAT YOUR REMEDY SO LONG AS IT CONTINUES TO ACT.
This governs the administration of remedies of individuals in states of disease i.e. drug proving by which we get our guidance for the administration of drugs to the sick. The object of proving drugs is the production of artificial disease that we may observe the symptoms and apply the substances so proven in like states of natural disturbances. The law grooving this must be closely allied to the law of administration in states of disease stating –
NEVER REPEAT THE DOSE IN PROVING WHILE SYMPTOMS ARE MANIFEST FROM THE DOSE ALREADY TAKEN.
If the natural cycles of development is interfered with we gain no knowledge of the true nature of the substance being proved at best we can get but a distirted comprehension of its nature when there is any interference. Continuing to administer repeated by a remedy while it is producing disease symptoms in a prover would make chaos out of normal cycle of disease symptoms which have been in process of development. This is simply the result of logical reasoning.
There are laws govering the various states or types of substances which we desire to prove. These laws follow closely the law of mutual action law of least action and laws of quantity and quality.
Law of Drug Proving –

According To S. Close :-
Fundamental laws of homoeopathy rest upon the following general interpretation of the system of nature-

 OTHER USEFUL PRINCIPLES OF HOMEOPATHY TO UNDERSTAND:
Aggravation
A carefully chosen homeopathic medicine stimulates the body’s healing process. The idea is to gently encourage the movement toward health. A remedy that is too strong or given too often can result in an aggravation, where symptoms are temporarily intensified. While some homeopaths believe an aggravation is necessary to procure a healing, this isn’t so. However, aggravations are sometimes unavoidable if there have been many years of suppression of symptoms with western medications.
Individualization
A homeopathic remedy must be customized to fit the individual with that disease, an approach called "individualization." The totality of the symptoms gathered -- physical, emotional and mental -- will guide the homeopath to the correct diagnosis and treatment.
Provings
Each homeopathic medicine is first tested in healthy volunteers and their symptoms recorded to develop a complete profile of the remedy. Such trials are known as "provings." Since all remedies have been proved before used clinically, we can predict the kind of symptoms they will cure in advance. This is one of the great things about homeopathy
WHAT ARE HOMEOPATHIC REMEDIES?
Any plant, mineral or animal substance can be used as a remedy. The original substance is diluted in alcohol, either 1:10 or 1:100 and then each dilution are forcefully shaken. This step is then repeated for up to 100 million times if a remedy of this high potency is required. The potency indicates the number of times the remedy has been diluted and each dilution increases the strength of the remedy-- this may be due to diluting out inhibitors as well as changing the molecular structure.
The strength or potency is measured by an "X", or "D" in Germany which is a ten-fold dilution i.e., 6x, or D6 is a one to one million dilution) or by a "C" which is a 100-fold dilution (3 C is a one to one million dilution). Homeopathy works on the Vital Force or Chi by fine- tuning the essential balance of the vital force to bring about patterns of energy similar to those of the disease state but focused in a way, which restores the body's equilibrium and thus affects a cure or health. In comparison, most conventional medicines act by suppressing a part of the body's system rather than focusing on the CAUSE of the energy imbalance and thus are crude and have the potential for side effects and toxicities.
Homeopathy treats the patient rather than the disease. Homeopathy remedies are chosen to fit all the symptoms of body, mind and spirit being expressed, rather than the disease diagnosis. This is true in animals too. It goes beyond the physical into the energetic expression of the total being. Having practiced EAV with the energy-reading machine, the Dermatron, I was able to see the energy matches of specific homeopathy remedies to that of the energy- disturbed organs of my animal patients.
It was these "energy matches" that were used to cure the animals of their ailments. Disturbed energy within the weakened protective electromagnetic field (EMF) allows the energy fields of parasites (bacteria, virus, fungi, worms and ectoparasites, and cancer cells) to enter and find fertile ground for reproduction. It is this that produces disease. It is the right energy fields that must be administered to the sick patient (man or animal) to strengthen his EMF. Once strong, the energy environment makes it impossible for the parasites to live and they disappear.
WILL HOMEOPATHY INTERFERE WITH OTHER DRUG THERAPIES?
No, but one may find the homeopathy remedies do not work as well if at the same time drugs, pesticides, cortisone and other immune depressive chemicals are being used.
CAN HOMEOPATHY BE USED ON ANY SPECIE ANIMAL?
Yes, homeopathy has used on dogs, cats, birds, lizards, horses, goats, calves and most recently on a python who was suffering an infection of the urinary bladder. My Custom Homeopathic Formula for Cystitis cleared up her problem. Her owner sent me the nicest email with thanks from him and "Peaches".
ARE THERE ANY PRECAUTIONS WHEN TAKING HOMEOPATHY?
Because homeopathy is energy medicine, the majority of which potencies are beyond Avogadro’s number; it is unlike taking a substance medication. It is a very fragile, but powerful energy therapy. The fragility of its essence is overcome and rendered neutral in affects by other strong substances exposure: like most herbs, garlic, onions, camphor, perfumes, strong smelling soaps and hand lotions.
Care must be taken when taking homeopathy and eating; homeopathy remedies should be taken no less than ½ hour before and 1 hour after eating. Remedy tablets should be handled as little as possible for maximum affect. The amount of homeopathy in tablets, or drops do not dictate amount of affect, it is the potency (the number of dilutions and succussions) and the frequency of taking the remedy that matters. There is as much affect of taking two drops of a homeopathy remedy as there is in a bathtub full of the same remedy.
ARE THERE OTHER FORMS OF HOMEOPATHY PRACTICED?
Homeopathy, the Law of Similars, is basic to all other variations on the original classical form of single remedies laid down by Hahnemann. Today homeopaths may use combination remedies, nosodes (homeopathy made from actual causative agents of specific chemicals, bacteria, viruses, fungi, vaccinations, etc. as detected by the use of EAV, and an electronic machine that reads the energy fields that normalize the imbalanced reading of the actual organs via their acupuncture points), high potency, or low potency remedies. I have found that in the hands of a skilled homeopath, all forms work.
HOW ARE THE REMEDIES MADE?
When Hahnemann first started treating patients homoeopathically, he found that patients initially became more ill and then improved. He called this temporary degeneration an aggravation. He wanted to reduce aggravations, so he started reducing the quantity of the similar substance. Many remedies are made from very toxic substances, e.g. arsenic and strychnine (so they were used to treat poisonings with symptoms that typically included vomiting, diarrhoea, headache, etc.). Hence, the doses had to be as small as possible to avoid worsening the problem.
At this point, Hahnemann started diluting the substances and immediately noticed that aggravations were lessened. He started doing sequential dilutions, i.e. a small quantity of the similar substance in 10 or 100 drops of water, then one drop of this dilution into another 10 or 100 drops of water. Hence when you see remedies labelled 6C, this means that the dilution using 100 drops of water has been repeated 5 times (plus the first dilution), so 6 sequential dilutions in total. Similarly, 3X means that the first dilution was made using 10 drops of water and then repeated twice, so 3 sequential dilutions. 6C and 3X are called potencies. They identify how the remedy has been diluted. In homoeopathy, the more diluted a substance, the more potent it becomes.
So, substances are diluted to minimise any side-effects of the substances. Some of the remedies are so diluted that they have none of the original molecules. However, the lingering after-effects of the original molecules in the water (the controversial memory of water) stimulate healing on physical, emotional and mental levels. Thus, remedies are based on sequential dilutions and succussions (shakings) of substances.
The succussions are supposed to have started when Hahnemann noticed that his patients that he visited at home seemed to be getting better quicker than those he saw at his clinic. The only difference in the remedies was that his travel case carrying his remedies was shaken by the movement of his horse. Hence, he started shaking or succussing his remedies and noticed that they were more effective.
Radionics machines also produce remedies. Just like a television can transmit information and pictures, these machines can transmit the energetic signature of remedies onto liquids and pills. I use a radionics machine and find that the remedies are just as effective for most potencies. In smaller potencies, where you are also providing nutrition for the body, I use traditional remedies as I need the real molecules of the substance and not just the energetic information.
Science does not fully understand exactly how the remedies work, but recent research in quantum physics and molecular chemistry suggests that molecular patterns transmit information to the body. From an esoteric point of view, I believe that if you can see your reflection in water with your eyes, then that property probably means that water can also give your body information in the form of a reflection of health via that part of us which animates our physical bodies (the vital force, see A Brief History). This information then stimulates the body to heal. Water is an amazing substance that we take for granted because it is so plentiful in lucky regions of the world. Please read up more about water to get a better understanding of its magical properties.