Dr.S.K.M.SASTRY, M.D(Hom.)
Homoeopathy has its recognisable beginnings in the eighteenth century. Dr.Samuel initiated this system of medicine Hahnemann, who was born on 10th April 1755.
Since childhood, Dr.Hahnemann had an unquenchable thirst for knowledge. Despite being born in a poor family, and despite his Father’s conviction that the family could ill-afford his studies, he persevered with the help of- his teachers. His diligence led him to become an eminent allopathic doctor. Medicine in those times often took recourse to such practices as beating the insane, venesection, application of leeches, using large doses of strong medicines like mercury, calomel, quinine, Arsenic, sulphuric acid, foxglove, silver, iodine and its ointments, etc. None of the doctors was really curing the sufferer.
Instead, they were either palliating or suppressing or causing some artificial, drug - induced diseases in the individuals and the cases were becoming more and more complicated.
This kind of practice left Dr.Hahnemann distraught. He felt that the very purpose of his profession was defeated if he could not alleviate suffering by rational means. He did not want to cause further harm to the already suffering people by adopting such irrational practices. He gave up allopathic medical practice and took to reading and translating medical books in different languages into German.
It was in 1790, while translating Cullen's Materia Medica into German that found a reference the " Peruvian bark “ in curing `Ague fever’ (malaria) due to its bitterness and its stomach irritant properties. This lead Dr.Hahnemann to question the very concept of the properties of the "Peruvian bark", if the bitter taste and stomach-irritant factors of the "Peruvian bark"(China or Cinchona bark) could cure the ague fever, he wondered why many other substances, which also had similar properties, could not.
He himself took a decoction of the bark twice a day for a few days. He developed the fever, chills and sweating all of which are symptoms of malaria. He repeated that experiment on some healthy persons. They also produced these symptoms. Afterwards, when the it was administered to the sufferer it cured ague fever. This discovery impelled him to propound his Law Of Similar. He confirmed and reconfirmed this by conducting several experiments with several medicinal substances on several individuals. In the Course of his reading, he found similar statements given by many others prior to him, but they were all rather vaguely formulated.
Hahnemann proposed a three-fold classification of medical treatment. In homeopathic treatment, medicines whose symptoms had no Pathological relation to the patients were administered. For instance, a patient having pain in the abdomen was given a sedative, which had no direct relation to the pain in the abdomen. It never cured the patient. When a medicine that had no relation to the disease was administered, Hahnemann ruled out any possibility of a cure.
In the Antipathy method of medicine, medicine whose induced symptoms were in opposition to those of the given disease was administered. For instance, a patient with constipation was prescribed a purgative or a patient with oedema was prescribed a diuretic, etc. On account of this, the symptoms were temporarily alleviated- as long as the effect of the medicine lasted. After That there would be a relapse, some times in a more aggravated form. So, Hahnemann ruled out this method also.
In homeopathy, medicines whose symptoms were found to be similar to the symptoms of the patient were administered. Hahnemann observed that in nature no such similar states ever existed together and a weaker one was always extinguished by the stronger. Of the above-mentioned methods, Hahnemann adjudged the Law Of Similars to be the Therapeutic Law Of Nature for curing diseases.
As it happens, any new thing is not very easily received. The same thing happened in the case of Dr.Hahnemann. But egged on by the adage, sapere aude (dare to be wise), Hahnemann went on propounding his system.
The following facts that had been ignored or not given importance by the then practicing physicians were brought to light by him: Every living organism exists due to the presence of an invisible spirit or dynamis (vital force/ animating force). In the absence of that vital force, the material body is dead. This dynamis can be affected only by the spirit-like morbific (a disease - causing) agent. As long as the vital force is healthy, man does not become sick.
Sickness is nothing but the expression of deviated vital force in the form of signs and symptoms. Normalcy could be restored by a spirit-like curative agent - not by any other means. The curative agent must also produce effects similar to those of the disease.
HOMOEOPATHY IN INDIA
The application of the LAW OF SIMILARS attained recognition in India in the year 1839. Dr treated Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Henig Berger. Punjab takes the credit of introducing this system of medicine to India. till Independence, it did not become popular as we were ruled by the British, but since then homoeopathic institutions have started coming up. West Bengal took the lead, followed by Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala. Upton 1969 these were mostly run by private individuals and the government paid? Little attention to this system. But from 1970 onwards many institutions were recognised by the Government. There are now about 133 institutions offering under - graduate and graduate Courses in India and 28 research centers. A Central Council of Homoeopathy was also established in 1974 for the maintenance of Standards in homoeopathic colleges. In recent years PG Courses are offered by many Universities like Rajasthan, Karnataka, Gujarat, Orissa etc., Andhra Pradesh is likely to start PG Courses from this academic year onwards. There is a good career for being a homoeopath. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has given a boost to Indigenous Systems of Medicine by treating ISM and Homoeopaths on par with graduates from modern system in the recruitment and in other service matters. There is a changing trend in the minds of People and many are opting Homoeopathy as the best alternative system of medicine. Many Public Sector Undertakings are encouraging homoeopathic system of Medicine unlike in the past. The leading PSUs like ONGC, NTPC are patronizing and giving honor to ISM and Homoeopathic System of medicine. Good days are ahead for homoeopathy in general and homoeopaths in particular.
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