More and more people today are becoming convinced in their hearts and minds that there is more to life than we perceive with our senses, there is more going on behind the scenes. There is a feeling of another world beyond what we perceive, one that underlies, informs, permeates and organises all our natural surroundings. The trust of this inner feeling is well known by homeopaths and many others. Some have known it since the beginning of time, others are just awakening to it and the group is growing ever bigger, ever more informed and ever more connected.

This inner realisation is strong and far-reaching with good consequences. With the feeling of connectedness comes the instinctive reaction to appreciate the damage being done, not only to ourselves but to our planet through our industry and technology.

Homeopathy is grounded in the belief that everything in life is connected. The student and practitioner study nature and life forms in terms of energy, processes and functions, embracing the dynamic qualities as well as physical. The closer you look at nature, or indeed anything in life, the more you come to realise how it relates with connects with everything around it. Like tugging a leaf on a tree, the more you pull the more the whole tree wobbles!

In homeopathy a substance is studied from every angle: so for example with a snake we would consider the toxicological effects of its venom and the clinical observations from the snake bite, as well as looking at how the snake lives and behaves, how it functions in its natural habitat, what and where it eats, if it is a social animal, how it sleeps, who its enemies are, the environment they dwell in. All this information will give us data about the medicinal qualities of the remedy. Homeopaths also ‘prove’ remedies on ‘healthy’ people. The ‘provers’ then share their experiences pooling common themes and these too inform the picture of the remedy. This method is especially useful for understanding the mental and emotional symptoms of the remedy picture. Physical pathology is largely gathered later through clinical observation. In doing this we discover the huge web of interconnected information about the snake and its medicinal qualities. In homeopathy we want to understand the energy of the snake, and how this energy would manifest itself in a sick person needing a snake remedy. Homeopathy works on the principle of like cure like, so someone experiencing snake will need a snake remedy.

In this way minerals, plants and animals come to be seen as organisms manifesting and organising themselves in their own right, each with its own healing properties related to the way it interacts with the world, they are not merely subject to chemical and physical laws, everything is connected.

We are part of this whole, in our physical bodies we experience this phenomena each and every moment. The food which we eat, the water we drink, the air we breathe all bind us inseparably to the whole and to work effectively we have to think of ourselves as participants. Homeopaths do not just manipulate physical matter to bring about health, they work at a much deeper level from with-in to out, from energy to matter. Homeopathy works with the energy of nature and it understands the dynamic forces. Homeopathy is a modern medicine for a modern world.

The study of Homeopathy is a mind, body and spirit awakening experience. It opens your head and heart to what you already knew was there but hadn’t taken the time to listen to. It is like going to a university all about you, all about life, and from this you get the gift to heal, the power to enhance and alter life, to make people happy and healthy.

I write personally here from my experiences from doing our attendance course, and from what I hear students say about our home study and attendance courses. There are many schools and colleges teaching homeopathy and many courses to choose from. At the School of Homeopathy we put an emphasis on philosophy and we are known for our rigour and creativity. We are committed to the homeopathic method of promoting health and curing disease, and because it provides us with an appreciation of what lies beyond the veil of suffering. If you’re considering homeopathy it is worth spending time finding a course that is right for you. Go and visit schools, compare websites and prospectuses. Speak to students, staff and homeopaths and ask the school, what makes them special, what do they believe and see how that fits with your values.

Homeopathy is a wonderful subject to study - all you need to do is wonder, have a healthy curiosity and want to know more. You can then begin to experience the rhythms and pace of life from within, the varying feelings and moods and what pre-cursors them and start to understand why. Slowly sharpening your powers of perception and noting changes in familiar scenes. Homeopathy helps you wonder, to be amazed, to admire and awe at life, nature, people, yourself, in sickness and in health.