Homeopathy is a system of medicine developed in the late 18th century by Samuel Hahnemann, a reputed German pharmacist and physician. Hahnemann noticed that the current practices of his time, such as leachings, purgings, blood lettings, were very harmful. While fervently searching for another way to help his patients, he came across the fact that ancient Greek physicians use to state that ‘like cures like’.

Following self-experimentation with the antimalarial drug quinine, Hahnemann noted that when he self-administered the substance repeatedly he developed similar symptoms to malaria, the illness that quinine was effective for. Over years of experimentation Hahnemann discovered that by diluting the substance the toxic effects would diminish while that therapeutic effects would be maintained. And so homeopathy was born: a medicine which uses highly diluted substances on the principle ‘like cures like’.

The whole pharmacopeia of homeopathy (now up to 3000 remedies) have been developed in this way – through observation and experimentation. Many of these remedies have well described emotional pictures (for example Aconite for shock, Ignatia for intense grief). Many of these pictures are very elaborate and attuned to complex psychological states.

The other unique thing about homeopathy is that it uses highly diluted substances. According to 19th century medicine, after a certain number of dilutions (after a substance is diluted 12 times 1%), there are no molecules of the original substance left. This has sparkled much controversy about homeopathy. In the 21st century we understand much more about the micro-mollecular dimension and nano-particles. A complete scientific model is still to be finalised. However the high dilutions used in homeopathy have proved to be effective over more than 200 years.

In contrast, Herbalism has existed for thousands of years; possibly as long as the existence of humanity. Ancient traditions such as Chinese medicine and Native American medicinal practices hold thousands of years of knowledge and myths about plants. In the last century, research has found that the plants used in herbalism do indeed have some chemical properties which explain how their usage works.

For example, research suggests that polysaccharides in echinacea may stimulate immune cells, particularly macrophages and T-cells. Other research suggests that valerenic acid present in valerian root modulates GABA-A receptors—similar to how benzodiazepines work.

While herbalism has found scientific chemical evidence to explain its effects, common sense tells us that a few thousand years ago none of this research was available! The origin of herbalism predates any scientific proof of its effectiveness.

So how did they know?

An obvious answer would be tradition, information passed down through generations. Then the question arises: how was herbalism discovered in the first place? The scientific proof came millennia after herbalism was developed. We can only make plausible assumptions. We have observed that animals when ill are attracted towards the plant that can heal them. It makes sense to assume that the knowledge of herbalism dates to a time in the history of humanity when human beings had an intuitive, perhaps even clairvoyant, perception of the healing properties in plants.

Fully acknowledging the validity of herbalism requires accepting that human beings in the distant past were endowed with qualities that surpass those we possess today. Acknowledging the validity of homeopathy requires an acknowledgement that the model of science established in the last couple of hundreds of years is, at the very least, incomplete.

So, in summary, herbalism uses only plants, whilst homeopathy uses substances from all natural world (mineral, animal). Herbalism uses the plant in a measurable substance, whilst homeopathy useshigh dilutions and uses their ‘vibrational qualities’ more than the chemical quantity (see Everything is vibration and resonance). Herbalism focuses on physical symptoms whilst homeopathy addresses physical symptoms and also emotional and mental dimension.