Homoeopathy

Founded in 1790 by German physician, Dr Samuel Hahnemann, Homoeopathy is a system of healing based on the ancient Law of Similars as was known to healers such as Hippocrates.  In layman terms, a substance that is capable of producing symptoms in a healthy person, is capable of removing similar symptoms in an unwell person... or "like cures like".

Hahnemann was in disagreement with a fellow physician's description of the action of a herbal remedy used at the time, so decided to use himself as the test dummy to prove his theory.  He took the herb, cinchona bark, twice daily for some days until he developed the symptoms caused by the bark - fever with chilliness, thirst, flushing of the face and sleepiness.  Remarkably similar symptoms to malaria, and what was even more interesting was the symptoms ceased when he stopped taking cinchona bark yet returned when he commenced taking cinchona bark again. Incredible!

Hahnemann concluded he had just experienced the Law of Similars with his experiment and decided to conduct trials to determine the lowest possible dose needed for a therapeutic effect to use as a natural substitute for the toxic medications available at that time. As he began diluting doses, he noticed the toxic side effects reduced without a loss of the therapeutic benefit, and if he shook the remedy or banged it against a hard surface at each stage of dilution, he found that not only did the toxic side effects disappear, but the therapeutic benefits increased and extending to the mental and emotional areas of healing.