Book recommendation
Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2007 3:09 pm
A few days back browsing thru the internet came across JHClarke's Homeopathy explained. This is one of my favorites about 20 -25 years ago when I started learning homeopathy. My homeopathic guru threw out some books -because he had duplicates or did not think highly of them- and I got this from him- along with an old thumbed copy of Knerr's repertory ( it is the same copy I have been using the past 20 years with my annotations etc)...
Anyway I quickly went thru this Clarke's book and it was as inspirational as ever. I recommend this to beginners of homeopathy and also to all homeopaths. Clarke introduces various topics in homeopathy nicely mixing some anecdotes, comments from the allopaths of Hahnemann's time etc.
Nice little introduction.
He defines a homeopathic medicine as follows:
"Homoopathic medicines are medicines which, having been tested on the healthy body, can be used homoopathically, and which have been specially prepared for homoopathic use".
And about "likes treats/cures likes" he has the following comments ( and it is also germaine to the scarlet fever discussion going on):
Not long ago it was announced in the daily press that an assistant of Edison's had lost his life through cancer set up by X-ray burns. This fact made some impression on the public mind, since at the present moment the treatment for cancer most in vogue in the profession (if the case is beyond the reach of the surgeon's knife) is by these same X-rays. "Is not this homoopathy ?" asked several inquirers ; " X-rays have caused cancer, and they are also used to cure it." Once wise allopathic medical man replied to the query that " he could not see any resemblance between X-rays and cancer." Very likely he could not ! But then Hahnemann never said that the likeness was to be sought between the physical characters of the remedy and the appearance of the disease from which a patient may be suffering. And it must be remembered that it is Hahnemann's definition of "likes" which counts, and nobody else's. The "likes" of homoopathy is resemblances between drug-effects and disease-effects. The effect of X-rays on some persons is to cause cancer ; therefore, says Hahnemann, under favourable conditions, and in suitable persons, X-rays must prove a cure of cancer. That X-rays will not cure all cases of cancer is certain ; the suitable cases must be found out by future observation of both the causative and curative effects of the rays themselves.
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The "likeness," then, which homoopathy looks for is resemblance in effects. There are some drugs which produce such complete pictures of natural diseases that cases of poisoning have been mistaken for them. The annals of poisoning are full of instances of this kind : the medical practitioners in attendance have given certificates of death from natural disease, when later investigation has proved that the death was caused by poisoning. An instance of this kind occurred not long ago in America, when poisoning by Cyanide of Mercury was certified as death from diphtheria. Again and again cases of Belladonna poisoning have been mistaken for scarlatina. When the resemblance between a drug disease and a natural disease is so close as this, it can be inferred with absolute certainty that the drug which manifests the "likeness" will be a remedy of wide usefulness in the treatment of cases of the disease. Accordingly Mercurius cyanatus is a remedy with homoopaths of proven usefulness in diphtheria ; and Belladonna not only modifies the course and symptoms of scarlatina, but it also acts as a prophylactic against infection. If Belladonna in the 3rd centesimal potency were given to the healthy members of a household when scarlatina breaks out in it, the epidemic will not spread. Were this fact generally known among school proprietors, and enormous amount of trouble, anxiety, and loss might be saved to them. This is one small point in the immense importance of a knowledge of homoopathy to the community at large.
Anyway I quickly went thru this Clarke's book and it was as inspirational as ever. I recommend this to beginners of homeopathy and also to all homeopaths. Clarke introduces various topics in homeopathy nicely mixing some anecdotes, comments from the allopaths of Hahnemann's time etc.
Nice little introduction.
He defines a homeopathic medicine as follows:
"Homoopathic medicines are medicines which, having been tested on the healthy body, can be used homoopathically, and which have been specially prepared for homoopathic use".
And about "likes treats/cures likes" he has the following comments ( and it is also germaine to the scarlet fever discussion going on):
Not long ago it was announced in the daily press that an assistant of Edison's had lost his life through cancer set up by X-ray burns. This fact made some impression on the public mind, since at the present moment the treatment for cancer most in vogue in the profession (if the case is beyond the reach of the surgeon's knife) is by these same X-rays. "Is not this homoopathy ?" asked several inquirers ; " X-rays have caused cancer, and they are also used to cure it." Once wise allopathic medical man replied to the query that " he could not see any resemblance between X-rays and cancer." Very likely he could not ! But then Hahnemann never said that the likeness was to be sought between the physical characters of the remedy and the appearance of the disease from which a patient may be suffering. And it must be remembered that it is Hahnemann's definition of "likes" which counts, and nobody else's. The "likes" of homoopathy is resemblances between drug-effects and disease-effects. The effect of X-rays on some persons is to cause cancer ; therefore, says Hahnemann, under favourable conditions, and in suitable persons, X-rays must prove a cure of cancer. That X-rays will not cure all cases of cancer is certain ; the suitable cases must be found out by future observation of both the causative and curative effects of the rays themselves.
----------------------
The "likeness," then, which homoopathy looks for is resemblance in effects. There are some drugs which produce such complete pictures of natural diseases that cases of poisoning have been mistaken for them. The annals of poisoning are full of instances of this kind : the medical practitioners in attendance have given certificates of death from natural disease, when later investigation has proved that the death was caused by poisoning. An instance of this kind occurred not long ago in America, when poisoning by Cyanide of Mercury was certified as death from diphtheria. Again and again cases of Belladonna poisoning have been mistaken for scarlatina. When the resemblance between a drug disease and a natural disease is so close as this, it can be inferred with absolute certainty that the drug which manifests the "likeness" will be a remedy of wide usefulness in the treatment of cases of the disease. Accordingly Mercurius cyanatus is a remedy with homoopaths of proven usefulness in diphtheria ; and Belladonna not only modifies the course and symptoms of scarlatina, but it also acts as a prophylactic against infection. If Belladonna in the 3rd centesimal potency were given to the healthy members of a household when scarlatina breaks out in it, the epidemic will not spread. Were this fact generally known among school proprietors, and enormous amount of trouble, anxiety, and loss might be saved to them. This is one small point in the immense importance of a knowledge of homoopathy to the community at large.