Homeopaths use to talk all sorts of totally absurd and irrational theories and baseless claims about homeopathy, and when asked for scientific proof, they will declare that it is the duty of scientists to prove all those things.
Scientists can prove and explain only what is really scientific in homeopathy. Do not expect science to justify all those nonsense beliefs of homeopaths regarding vital force, dynamic drug energy, dynamic miasms, healing energy, potencies, mesmerism and other innumerable fanciful ideas propagated as ‘fundamental principles’ of homeopathy. Nobody can prove them!
High dilution homeopathic cure involved in ‘similia similibus curentur’ is an objective natural phenomenon, and science has to explain it in terms of modern scientific paradigms and methods of biological sciences and pharmacology. That means, science has to find out what are the active principles drugs diluted above avogadro limit, and explain its therapeutic actions using a biological model that fits to modern scientific knowledge system.
Only when modern scientists succeeds in that job, homeopathy will get recognized as a branch of modern scientific medicine. In that process, homeopathy will have to discard all its unscientific beliefs and notions from its theoretical system, and mercilessly throw away most of its most revered innumerable volumes of ‘literature’ into the archives of medical history.
Most homeopaths are deeply obsessed with ideas such as ‘vital force’, ‘dynamic energy’, and many other superstitious beliefs. They cannot imagine a homeopathy devoid of such ideas, principles and laws, which are according to them ‘immutable’! They fear the whole system of homeopathy would fall down if these ‘basic principles’ are not safeguarded, as they are deemed to be the foundation of homeopathy. They fight tooth and nail to defend their absurd and unscientific ‘theories’ which challenge the common sense of even a common man.
They cannot tolerate anybody criticizing the ‘master’ or pointing out any mistakes in any of his aphorisms. According to them, if anything is found in aphorisms that disagree with modern scientific knowledge, it is due to the ‘limitations’of science, as the master is ‘beyond’ any mistakes or limitations! It is the duty of scientists to change their methods and update their knowledge so as to fit to the ‘ultimate’ science of homeopathy created by Hahnemann!
These faithful ‘hahnemannians’ hope that a day will come when all their ‘beliefs’ and fancies are ‘proved’ scientifically. They believe that modern science is presently lagging much behind homeopathy, and they wait for science to advance so that scientists can understand and accept the theoretical blunders promoted by modern gurus as homeopathy!
The concept of ‘vital force’, on which the whole philosophical system of homeopathy is built up on, stands as a formidable stumbling block in its way of harmony with modern science and its methodology. The theoretical system of Hahnemannian homeopathy is based on the spiritual oncept that there is an abstract ‘vital force’ alien to the physical body, existing as a part of ‘universal force’ which enters the body and possess to enliven it, and leaves it with the advent of death. Homeopaths perceive diseases as disordered states of this ‘vital force’, and believe that it is only on this “immaterial, conceptual level of ‘vital force’ that the cure of diseases might take place.
Whatever be one’s philosophical world out look, at least when dealing with a science of therapeutics, we have to be capable of replacing the concept of ‘vital force’ with a more rational expression, ‘vital process’, if we could discuss homeopathy as a system of scientific medicine. ‘Vital processes’ exist through complex chains of interconnected molecular interactions known as biochemical pathways. A state of disease is created through some or other deviations in these normal biochemical processes. Hence, according to our scientific perspective, every pathology starts as an error at the molecular level. We cannot proceed further with our scientific discourse on homeopathy, without recognising at this fundamental position of modern science. Scientists belonging to various disciplines, engaged in the study of various natural phenomena, adopt such a practical stand even if ideologically they happen to be absolute spiritualists. It is impossible even for a most ‘spiritualist’ nuclear physicist to engage himself in his particular research activities, viewing the atoms, sub-atomic particles or forces as mere ‘spiritual entities’. The homeopathic theoreticians also should at least follow this example. They should be able to deal with phenomena of life, disease, therapeutics, and medicinal substances primarily as material substances and processes. It would be better for homeopathy at large, if these ‘masters’ and ‘gurus’ of homeopathy could confine themselves to a scientific vocabulary, refraining from mixing it up with unnecessary spiritualistic and philosophical jugglery of words such as ‘vital force’ and ‘non-corporeal’ ‘dynamic power’, while talking about a scientific theory of therapeutics.
Using medicinal agents having specific material qualities, we can deal with these ‘vital processes’ only at the material level. It is an absurdity to think that physicians are dealing with an ‘immaterial’, ‘spirit-like’ ‘vital force’, that too, using instruments and medicinal agents of purely material nature. If homeopathic physicians were dealing with ‘immeterial dynamic forces’, instead of using ‘material medicines’, they could have done it better through prayers, ‘pujas’ and other occult practices!
The argument that homeopathic drugs act not by their ‘material qualities’, but by an ‘immaterial’ medicinal force, called ‘dynamic force’ is nothing but absurdity. Would these theoreticians agree that this so-called ‘dynamic power’ of individual drugs’ are determined by the specific ‘material’ properties of their constituent molecules? It is undeniable fact that this so-called ‘dynamic power’ varies from drug to drug, depending up on their molecular level structure and composition. If we were dealing with an immaterial ‘vital force’ and ‘dynamic power’, why should we use all those different types of drugs existing in homeopathy? While talking about ‘immaterial’ ‘spirit-like’ ‘dynamic healing power’, ‘liberated’ through potenization, which can be carried in corked bottles and swallowed as sugar pellets, we should be aware, how much homeopathy would become a laughing stock in the eyes of scientific community. If we still continue to claim that there is a ‘spirit-like’ force in homeopathic medicines, independant of their material qualities, a ‘force’ that is soluble in water and alcohol, that could be transferred from bottles to bottles, acts on the ‘vital force’ when applied on tongue, lost when subjected to physical forces such as heat or electricity, how can we engage in a scientific dialogue? What type of ‘liberated’ ‘non-corporeal ‘dynamic force’ is we talking about?
We have to be well aware that the theory of ‘vital force’ was adopted by Hahnemann from the vitalistic philosophy then existed in Europe. Since modern material science was only in its rudimentary stage, he was not able to explain the phenomena he observed, in scientific terms. Due to inescapable historical limitations, he was naturally compelled to accept some sort of vitalistic explanations for his new inventions.
Now, we live in a new era of enlightenment, totally different from that of Hahnemann. Modern science has unravelled the molecular processes of life and diseases to such a level that we can logically explain the fundamental principles of homeopathy on a new scientific basis. It is an unpardonable injustice done to the great genius of Hahnemann, if we still continue to stick on to his obsolete unscientific explanations. We should exhibit the intellectual courage to mercilessly discard the evidently irrational parts of Hahnemannian homeopathy. Same time, we should safeguard its inner kernel of the great natural therapeutic law of ‘similia similibus curentur’ and therapeutic application of ‘molecular imprints’, which our master called ‘potentized’ drugs. We should bravely replace the concept ‘vital force’ with scientific understanding of ‘vital process’.
As long as ‘classical’ homeopaths continue to cling to their unyielding stand that homoeopathy is a ‘complete-in-itself’ philosophical and therapeutic system, beyond any scope for change and development, I find no chance for a meaningful scientific dialogue to happen. Claiming homeopathy to be a ‘science beyond science’, or ‘post-modern science’ may help somebody to appear fashionable, but they should realize that all these exercises contribute a lot in enstranging this great therapeutic system from main stream science.
Main challenge we face when attempting to offer a scientific explanation for homeopathy is that these homeopathic theoreticians make the situation more and more complicated by mixing up the basic concepts regarding life, disease, drugs and therapeutics, with their idealistic philosophical speculations and unscientific spiritualistic world outlook.
From the very onset, we have to adopt following fundamental factors as the basis of our intellectual inquiry:
Therapeutics is a totally materialistic activity. If we do not agree upon at least this much of fundamental propositions, no meaningful discussion will be possible regarding scientific understanding homeopathy.
Since we are now competent to offer a scientific molecualar interpretation of ‘similia similibus curentur’, and ‘potentization’, the main fundamental principles of homeopathy, there is no need for relying upon the obsolete vitalistic explanations and speculations of Hahnemann, based on the concept of ‘vital force’ and ‘non-cprporeal’ ‘spirit-like’ ‘dynamic medicinal force’. Instead of repeating the unscientific concept of ‘dynamic medicinal force’, we can now logically explain the homeopathic potencies on the basis of ‘molecular imprinting in water’.
The concept of vital force belongs to the pre-scientific era of medical philosophy. During that period, nothing was known about the material basis of vital processes. Modern biochemistry and knowledge of complex biological molecules and biochemical processes were unknown. The wonderful phenomena of life were considered to be due to an immaterial, spirit-like vital force that ‘animates’ the body during life, and leaves the body during death. Vital force was believed to exist even without a body, and disease was considered to be due to some deviations in this ‘dynamic’ vital force. This idea was the basis of all sorts of ‘spiritual helaing’ practices of the primitive society.
Hahnemann also used this ‘vital force’ philosophy in building his homeopathic theortical system, since he could not explain the phenomenon of high dilution therapeutics by any other way.
The idea of ‘vital force’ has no any role in modern biological sciences or pharmacology. We cannot even reasonably communicate with scientific community unless we discard this unscientific concept from the paradigms of homeopathic therapeutics.
REDEFINING HOMEOPATHY 