by Maireid Sullivan
2012, updated 2025
Work in progress
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Introduction

Part 1
International Traditional Healing Modalities
- refined over thousands of years

Part 2
- What is Naturopathy and how does it work?
- What is Anthroposophic Medicine?
- What is Orthomolecular medicine?
- Celebrating Bach Flower Remedies

Introduction

WHO global report on traditional and complementary medicine 2019 (pdf) Excerpt: Traditional and complementary medicine (T&CM) is an important and often underestimated health resource with many applications, especially in the prevention and management of lifestyle-related chronic diseases, and in meeting the health needs of ageing populations … This report reviews global progress in T&CM over the past two decades and is based on contributions from 179 WHO Member States. It clearly shows that more and more countries are recognizing the role of T&CM in their national health systems. For instance, by 2018, 98 Member States had developed national policies on T&CM, 109 had launched national laws or regulations on T&CM, and 124 had implemented regulations on herbal medicines. Countries aiming to integrate the best of T&CM and conventional medicine would do well to look not only at the many differences between the two systems, but also at areas where both converge to help tackle the unique health challenges of the 21st century. In an ideal world, traditional medicine would be an option offered by a well-functioning, people-centred health system that balances curative services with preventive care. WHO is halfway through implementing the WHO Traditional Medicine Strategy 2014–2023… Download full report (pdf)

Samuel Hahnemann, MD, (1755-1843) - "Father of Homeopathy"

Washington DC monument dedicated in 1900 to German physician Samuel Hahnemann, MD

1. The only monument in Washington Honoring a Physician The Homeopathic Revolution (2007), by Dana Ullman, MPH, CCH - (See NCBI review) Excerpt: Although trained as a medical doctor, Hahnemann was a learned chemist and author of the leading German textbook for apothecaries (pharmacists) of the day. He was conversant in at least nine languages and even supported himself in his mid-twenties teaching languages at the famed University of Leipzig. Learning languages enabled Hahnemann to become familiar with the latest developments in medicine and science. He further expanded his knowledge and his growing prestige by translating twenty-two textbooks, primarily medical and chemistry textbooks (several of which were multi-volume works). Over a twenty-nine-year period, Hahnemann translated some 9,460 pages. 2. Homeopathy Plus: 17 Tutorials The Law of Similars Discovered Excerpt: Homeopathy emerged during a time when medical practices were unregulated and perilous. Patients faced treatments involving toxic substances such as lead, mercury, and arsenic, or procedures like bloodletting, purging, and blistering. Many individuals died from the treatments rather than the diseases they were intended to cure. Samuel Hahnemann (1755-1843), the founder of homeopathy, studied medicine during this period and established a practice after graduating from the University of Erlangen in 1781. However, he grew increasingly disillusioned with contemporary medical practices and stopped practicing medicine in 1790 out of concern for his patients’ well-being. . . . In 1796, Hahnemann published a groundbreaking essay detailing the Law of Similars phenomenon, demonstrating its effects in numerous substances. The concept of “like treats like” was finally validated. . .

Part 1
International Traditional Healing Modalities - refined over thousands of years.
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- Complementary and Alternative Medicines (CAM) - Traditional and Complementary Medicine (TCM) - Traditional Systems of Medicine (TSM) Eastern Europe In the persuit of happiness, avoid harming others: Epicurius was one of the major philosophers in the Hellenistic period, the three centuries following the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BCE. "The philosophy of Epicurus (341–270 B.C.E.) was a complete and interdependent system, involving a view of the goal of human life (happiness, resulting from absence of physical pain and mental disturbance)..." - Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy How to Be an Epicurean: The Ancient Art of Living Well. by Catherine Wilson (2019), Basic Books, New York, NY Abstract Although modern conveniences and scientific progress have significantly improved our quality of life, many of the problems faced by ancient Greeks -- love, money, family, politics -- remain with us in new forms. To overcome these obstacles, the Epicureans adopted a philosophy that emphasised reflective 'choice and avoidance', the observation and interpretation of nature, and the avoidance of harm to others, while recognising finitude and change as inevitable. By applying this ancient wisdom to a range of modern problems, from self-care routines and romantic entanglements to issues of public policy and social justice, Wilson shows us how we can all fill our lives with purpose and pleasure. Healthy and Happy Natural Being: Spinoza and Epicurus Contra the Stoics by Brandon Smith, 2014,(PDF) Ergo: An Open Access Journal of Philosophy Abstract In this paper I aim to undermine Stoic and Neo-Stoic readings of Benedict de Spinoza by examining the latter’s strong agreements with Epicurus (a notable opponent of the Stoics) on the nature and ethical role of pleasure in living a happy life. Ultimately, I show that Spinoza and Epicurus are committed to three central claims which the Stoics reject: (1) pleasure holds a necessary connection to healthy natural being, (2) pleasure manifests healthy being through positive changes in state and states of healthy being per se, and (3) pleasure is by nature good. The Stoics reject these three claims due to their views on pleasant sensations as preferred moral indifferents and passionate pleasures as diseases of the soul, views which Spinoza (due to the above mentioned commitments) is strongly opposed to, thereby placing him (at least on the subject of pleasure) outside the realm of merely following or improving on Stoic doctrines. From this comparative analysis we also gain deeper insight into both Spinoza’s engagement with ancient Greek philosophy and the value of Epicureanism and Spinozism in helping us achieve and maintain happiness in the present day, particularly with respect to the benefits and harms of bodily and mental pleasures Hippocrates of Kos, the father of clinical medicine, and Asclepiades of Bithynia, the father of molecular medicine. Reviewed by Christos Yapijakis, 2009, NIH/PubMed Abstract Hippocrates of Kos (460-377 BCE) is universally recognized as the father of modern medicine, which is based on observation of clinical signs and rational conclusions, and does not rely on religious or magical beliefs. Hippocratic medicine was influenced by the Pythagorean theory that Nature was made of four elements (water, earth, wind and fire), and therefore, in an analogous way, the body consisted of four fluids or 'humors' (black bile, yellow bile, phlegm and blood). The physician had to reinstate the healthy balance of these humors by facilitating the healing work of 'benevolent Nature'. The Hippocratic Oath contains the Pythagorean duties of justice, secrecy, respect for teachers and solidarity with peers. The clinical and ethical basics of medical practice as well as most clinical terms used even today have their origins in Hippocrates. His contribution in clinical medicine is immense. Asclepiades of Bithynia (124-40 BCE) was the first physician who established Greek medicine in Rome. Influenced by the Epicurean philosophy, he adhered to atomic theory, chance and evolution, and did not accept the theory of a 'benevolent Nature'. He suggested that the human body is composed of molecules and void spaces, and that diseases are caused by alteration of form or position of a patient's molecules. Asclepiades favored naturalistic therapeutic methods such as a healthy diet, massage and physical exercise. Above all, he introduced the friendly, sympathetic, pleasing and painless treatment of patients into medical practice, influenced by the teachings of Epicurus on pleasure and friendship. He was the first who made the highly important division of diseases into acute and chronic ones and to perform an elective non-emergency tracheotomy. As the founder of the Methodic School, Asclepiades was the first known physician who spoke about what is known today as molecular medicine. Western Europe Now being restored, European healing traditions were 'lost' during the 13th to 18th century so-called "witch hunt/burnings" See detailed references under Part 1, Economic History: Excerpt: Methods introduced by the expansion of the role of the RCC’s Inquisition (circa 1231) for the suppression of heresy, extended RCC scope to classify traditional and non-Christian beliefs, including traditional healing arts, as heresy and witchcraft. Since women on the Western rim of Europe traditionally held rights to land ownership, an accusation of heresy or witchcraft allowed immediate confiscation of their property, before trial, and without rights to counsel. Countless numbers of men and women were burned at the stake over a period of five long centuries, ending in the 18th century. This time span includes an initial 250 years of concentrated "witch hunts" and land confiscation, and suppression of the lifestyle, laws, and medical practices of traditional Western European cultures. >>> more Switzerland Alternative medicine no longer an ‘outsider’ in Switzerland’s health system By Anand Chandrasekhar, April 27, 2020 Once on the margins of the healthcare system, growing public demand for complementary medicine has led to increased regulation in a bid to eliminate bad apples and improve patient safety. It’s the result of much trial and error. Homeopathy Officially Recognised by Swiss Government as Legitimate Medicine to coexist with Conventional Medicine Excerpt: In May 2017, health insurance plans in Switzerland will be covering a variety of healing modalities, including homeopathy, acupuncture, traditional Chinese medicine, herbal medicine and holistic medicine. In this way, Switzerland will be bringing back the many healing arts that were used successfully in the past. . . A shift away from the disease management, synthetic drug system This shift toward integration will allow the Swiss healthcare system to heal, as it moves away from profiting off disease management. With the inclusion of these five eclectic healing modalities, Swiss healthcare will become more affordable. By legitimizing these true healing modalities, healthcare can compete to heal, empowering people instead of leaving them in an expensive cycle of side effects and negative outcomes. . . Now the interior ministry has determined what many holistic practitioners already understand about the healing arts." >>>more European Union Banning of Genetically Modified Organisms in the European Union Wikipedia Excerpt Until the 1990s, Europe's regulation was less strict than in the United States, one turning point being cited as the export of the United States' first GM-containing soy harvest in 1996. The GM soy made up about 2% of the total harvest at the time, and Eurocommerce and European food retailers required that it be separated.[2] Although the European Commission (EC) did eventually relent, this sparked American concerns that Europe would soon become a tighter regulatory environment - it was conditioned on sale as processed products and never as seed.[3] The Clinton Administration was widely urged to harmonize standards in its impending second term to guarantee an open European market.[3] In 1998, the use of MON810, a Bt expressing maize conferring resistance to the European corn borer, was approved for commercial cultivation in Europe. Shortly thereafter, the EU enacted a de facto moratorium on new approvals of GMOs pending new regulatory laws passed in 2003. Those new laws provided the EU with possibly the most stringent GMO regulations in the world.[1] The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) was created in 2002 with the primary goal of preventing future food crises in Europe. All GMOs, along with irradiated food, are considered "new food" and subject to extensive, case-by-case, science-based food evaluation by the EFSA. The criteria for authorization fall into four broad categories: "safety", "freedom of choice", "labelling" and "traceability".[4] The EFSA reports to the European Commission (EC), which then drafts a proposal for granting or refusing the authorisation. >>>more Ireland Banned Genetically Modified Organisms Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 26 November 2019 In 2018, Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment (DCCAE) obtained Cabinet approval to prohibit or restrict the cultivation of GM crops in Ireland, enabling Ireland to opt out of the cultivation of GMO crops approved for cultivation elsewhere in the EU. The Irish School of Herbal Medicine, founded in 2000 in Portlaoise, County Laois, Ireland, ". . . focuses on the use of organic, plant based and living food programmes, herbal medicines, and environmental and lifestyle awareness. . . to facilitate the rebirth of western herbalism as it was practiced in a time when people lived more in harmony with the natural environment." >>> more "Untilled Fields of Irish History" On 29 August 1998, Peter Beresford Ellis presented a lecture to the annual Desmond Greaves Summer School, Dublin, on the history of Irish medical literature, "Untilled Fields of Irish History" which was published in the September 1999 edition of the legendary Irish journal An Phoblacht. Excerpt: Before the turn of the 19th Century, the Irish language contained the world's most extensive collection of medical literature in any one language. Just think about that fact. The great medieval Irish medical books are scattered in many repositories. These books survive from the 13th and 16th Centuries. One would have thought that within the modern vogue for alternative medicine, these books would be examined by scholars and students producing their countless works on the ancient medicines of the world and medical histories. They are not. There are many Irish medical works that are not even catalogued. From the time of Charlemagne, Irish medical men have spread through Europe. Niall O Clacán (c. 1501-1655) trained in medicine in the old Gaelic tradition and became not only physician to Louis XIII of France but Professor of Medicine at Toulouse and Bologna, writing some of the leading medical works of his day, such as Cursus Medicus. The University of Bologna, where he taught, holds several Irish manuscripts and even printed books from his personal library. ... Until we can rescue all of the material that has been neglected in these European repositories, covering over 1,000 years of Irish history, we will only have glimpses of Irish historical reality and never a total picture. >>> more China “The history of traditional Chinese medicine begins in the neolithic period (10,000-4,000 years ago).” - Cavalieri, et al, 1997 On the extraordinary benefits of unity across China: China had enjoyed stable prosperity across multiple Golden Ages. "Taoism had influence on literature and the arts, but the biggest area of Taoist influence was in science. The Taoist focus on natural elements and observing how the natural world works helped to create Chinese medicine. Similar to the modern scientific method, Taoists observed how different medicines affected people and animals through experimentation. Their collective knowledge gained through trying to improve human longevity made a huge contribution to health sciences." - Chinese Religions and Philosophies, National Geographic Chinese philosophy and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Based on clinical diagnostics, herbal medicine and acupuncture progressed: “The key to a long healthy life is to follow the Tao, the natural way of the universe” (Curren, 2008). The Chinese way of looking at the body, and the world, is focused on processes. The earliest surviving work on Chinese medicine, “Huangdi Neijing” created between the Warring States period and the Qin-Han period, shows that acupuncture was widely used as a therapy from ancient times. Various kinds of acupuncture needles were discovered in the tomb of Prince Liu Sheng who died around 200BCE: "The Chinese word, or character, for medicine actually comes from the character for music." - Gao Yuan, composer, conductor, and pianist. Gao Yuan is steeped in both the Chinese classical and Western classical music traditions. 2019: Interview with Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra Composer Gao Yuan. Shen Yun Performing Arts in New York Excerpts: .... Q: There is an old belief, now being revisited, that music has the power to heal. Where does this idea come from, and how does it apply to traditional Chinese music? GY: Our ancestors believed that music had the power to harmonize a person’s soul in ways that medicine could not. In ancient China, one of music’s earliest purposes was for healing. The Chinese word, or character, for medicine actually comes from the character for music. During the time of the Great Yellow Emperor (2698–2598 B.C.E.), people discovered the relationship between the pentatonic scale, the five elements, and the human body's five internal and five sensory organs. During Confucius's time, scholars used music’s calming properties to improve and strengthen people’s character and conduct. Today, scientific research has also validated music’s therapeutic ability to lower blood pressure, reduce anxiety, enhance concentration, stabilize heart rate, and more. ... >>>more Selected References (1) What is Chinese Medicine? American College of Traditional Chinese Medicine (ACTCM) Chinese medicine is a rich medical system that has existed in some form for more than 3000 years. ... Ill health is understood as stagnation, deficiency, or the improper movement of qì or xuè, and may result in an imbalance of yin and yáng. >>> ACTCM (2) The Five Elements: What Science Has to Say About This Chinese Medicine Theory - Beth Ann Mayer, Oct. 2021, Healthline "...is this theory supported by science? Can the scientific approach and five element theory live side by side? Here’s what experts and scientists say about the five elements, plus what they can and can’t teach you about your health. What is the five element theory? Five element theory, also referred to as Wu Xing or the five phases, has been a part of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) for centuries. According to a 2008 report (Trusted Source), an early mention can be found in the ancient text Huangdi Neijing, which likely dates back to 300 B.C. Even so, this theory still has many believers today. “The five elements are used in pretty much every different style of TCM to some extent [to] diagnose and differentiate between different illnesses, dysfunctions, and people,” says Tiffany Cruikshank, licensed acupuncturist, registered yoga teacher and founder of Yoga Medicine. The five elements are each associated with an aspect of nature, a connection that runs deep. >>>more (3) My Kidneys Are What? - ChadD, 2009 "ChadD" is an American-based acupuncturist with schooling from the New England School of Acupuncture at MCPHS. "... the kidney system in Chinese medicine goes far beyond the role of the physical kidneys as defined by western medicine. The kidney system provides the root of our overall energy and has a large influence over our development. This begins while we are still in the womb and continues to influence how well we age throughout our life." >>> more (4) A brief history of acupuncture – A. White, E. Ernst, 2004 "… During the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644), The Great Compendium of Acupuncture and Moxibustion was published, which forms the basis of modern acupuncture. In it are clear descriptions of the full set of 365 points that represent openings to the channels through which needles could be inserted to modify the flow of Qi energy [7]. It should be noted that knowledge of health and disease in China developed purely from observation of living subjects because dissection was forbidden and the subject of anatomy did not exist." >>> more (5) "A History of The China Study" - 1980 - 2005, Cornell University "Revealing the Relationship Between Diet and Disease" "the China Study uncovered information on the links between what we eat and how we die." The China Study SUMMARY (pdf) Parliament of NSW, Australia What is the China Study? The project, begun in 1983, is a collaborative effort between Cornell University, the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine, the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, and Oxford University, England, as well as scientists from the United States, China, Britain, France, and other countries... (6) The China Project: A History of the China Study (includes courses, reports and chapters) Excerpt: In the early 1980’s, nutritional biochemist T. Colin Campbell, PhD of Cornell University, in partnership with researchers at Oxford University and the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine, embarked upon one of the most comprehensive nutritional studies ever undertaken known as the China Project. China at that time presented researchers with a unique opportunity. The Chinese population tended to live in the same area all their lives and to consume the same diets unique to each region. Their diets (low in fat and high in dietary fiber and plant material) also were in stark contrast to the rich diets of the Western countries. The truly plant-based nature of the rural Chinese diet gave researchers a chance to compare plant-based diets with animal-based diets... India One of the earliest of the Traditional Systems of Medicine, originating in India around 3,000 years ago, Ayurveda medicine evolved with the ancient schools of Hindu Philosophical teachings known as Nyaya-Vaisheshika School of logic: Nyaya (literally “rule or method of reasoning”). "In ancient India, the schools of Nyaya and Vaisheshika focused on logic and atomic approach to matter. In this paper, the idea of atomicity and other physical ideas given in Vaisheshika are reviewed in light of the central role the observer plays in Indian thought" – R. H. Narayan (2007), Nyaya-Vaisheshika: The Indian Tradition of Physics (pdf) Selected References (1) Ayurvedic medicine Key concepts of India's ancient Ayurvedic medicine include universal interconnectedness (among people, their health, and the universe), the body’s constitution, and life forces, which are often compared to the biologic humors of the ancient Greek system. >>> more “With the enormous knowledge of nature based medicine, the relationship of human body constitution and function to nature and the elements of the universe that act in coordination and affect the living beings…”  >>> NCBI (2) Principals of Traditional System of Medication (TSM) By Dr K Sudheer Kumar, Dec 19, 2015 Showcasing 21 Points of discussion Summary India is known for its traditional medicinal systems—Ayurveda, Siddha, and Unani. Medical systems are found mentioned even in the ancient Vedas and other scriptures. The Ayurvedic concept appeared and developed between 2500 and 500 BC in India Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous or folk medicine) comprises knowledge systems that developed over generations within various societies before the era of modern medicine. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines traditional medicine as "the sum total of the knowledge, skills, and practices based on the theories, beliefs, and experiences indigenous to different cultures, whether explicable or not, used in the maintenance of health as well as in the prevention, diagnosis, improvement or treatment of physical and mental illness.Alternative medicines are being used by about 60 percent of the world's population. These medicines are not only used by the rural masses for their primary health care in developing countries but are also used in developed countries where modern medicines dominate. India is the largest producer of medicinal plants. There are currently about 250,000 registered medical practitioners of the Ayurvedic system, as compared to about 700,000 of the modern medicine. In India, around 20,000 medicinal plants have been recorded; however, traditional practitioners use only 7,000–7,500 plants for curing different diseases. The proportion of use of plants in the different Indian systems of medicine is Ayurveda 2000, Siddha 1300, Unani 1000, Homeopathy 800, Tibetan 500, Modern 200, and folk 4500. In India, around 25,000 effective plant-based formulations are used in traditional and folk medicine. More than 1.5 million practitioners are using the traditional medicinal system for health care in India. (3) From the archives: A legendary 1903 tome from the Yoga masters Now in the Public Domain. The Hindu-Yogi SCIENCE OF BREATH by Yogi Ramacharaka (Download pdf) Excerpt: "We may be pardoned if we express ourselves as pleased with our success in condensing so much Yogi lore into so few pages and by use of words and terms which may be understood by anyone. Our only fear is that its very simplicity may cause some to pass it by as unworthy of attention, while they pass on their way searching for something "deep", mysterious and non-understandable. However, the Western mind is eminently practical and we know that it is only a question of a short time before it will recognize the practicality of this work." Egypt Records have been found dating from 3000BCE: "With the turn of the century, new archaeological discoveries... saw the academic study of Egyptian disease segregated into three distinct categories." >>> more here and here

Part 2
What is Naturopathy and how does it work?
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What is Anthroposophic Medicine?
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What is Orthomolecular medicine 
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Celebrating BACH Flower Remedies
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Between 1930 and 1936, English Pathologist & Bacteriologist Edward Bach (1886-1936) developed the Bach Flower Remedies. “Healing with the clean, pure, beautiful agents of nature is surely the one method of all which appeals to most of us.” - Edward Bach (1886-1936) Dr. Bach's assistant, successor, and biographer, Radiologist Nora Weeks, (1896-1978), in "The Medical Discoveries of Edward Bach" (1940), explained why Edward Bach closed down his London practice "to seek and find herbs which would heal the sick, but from which no ill effects could be derived." "We are all healers, and with love and sympathy in our natures we are also able to help anyone who really desires health. Seek for the outstanding mental conflict in the patient, give him the remedy that will assist him to overcome that particular fault, and all the encouragement and hope you can, and then the healing virtue within him will of itself do all the rest." – Edward Bach As the story goes, Bach placed his mortars and pestles in one suitcase and his shoes in another, and accidentally took the case with the shoes, only to discover that he needed the shoes because he walked the fields and forests before dawn every day collecting the first dew from wild flowers. While testing their impacts on himself, he experienced the potency of each flower and then developed his systematic dilutions of the "mother tincture' of each plant. Bach described the impacts of Flower Remedies: "The action of these remedies is to raise our vibrations and open up our channels for the reception of the Spiritual Self; to flood our natures with the particular virtue we need, and wash from us the fault that is causing the harm. They are able, like beautiful music or any glorious uplifting thing which gives us inspiration, to raise our very natures, and bring us nearer to our souls and by that very act to bring us peace and relieve our sufferings. They cure, not by attacking the disease, but by flooding our bodies with the beautiful vibrations of our Higher Nature, in the presence of which, disease melts away as snow in the sunshine." – Edward Bach "The Twelve Healers and Other Remedies" 1941 (PDF): Edward Bach, places the 38 remedies under the following 7 headings. The group names are based on the general emotional characteristics Bach identified for each of the seven Bach nosodes. The Bach nosodes were a set of homeopathic remedies made from bacteria, which Bach worked on between 1919 and 1928. 1. For Fear 2. For Uncertainty 3. For Insufficient Interest in Present Circumstances 4. For Loneliness 5. For those Over-sensitive to Influences and Ideas 6. For Despondency or Despair 7. For Over-Care for welfare of others In his Introduction, p. 12, Bach explained, . . . As the Herbs heal our fears, our anxieties, our worries, our faults and our failings, it is these we must seek, and then the disease, no matter what it is, will leave us. There is little more to say, for the understanding mind will know all this, and may there be sufficient of those with understanding minds, unhampered by the trend of science, to use these Gifts of God for the relief and the blessing of those around them. Thus behind all disease lie our fears, out anxieties, our greed, our likes and dislikes. Let us seek these out and heal them, and with the healing of them will go the disease from which we suffer. … In treating cases with these remedies, no notice is taken of the nature of disease. The individual is treated and as he becomes well the disease goes, having been cast off by the increase in health. All know that the same disease may have different effects on different people: it is the effects that need treatment, because they guide to the real cause... (Edward Bach, The Twelve Healer, 1941, p. 12- PDF) - Visit The Bach Centre

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