Complementary Medicine Systems : Comparison & Integration

For almost all of us the question of health and illness is essential but although a considerable amount of relevant literature is available, the confusion concerning this subject matter still seems to grow. In general people tend to trust no less than their own personal approach, while alternate positions find themselves either ignored or opposed. This book chooses a different path as it investigates not only the potentiality of communication among the various disciplines but also considers four basic views or perspectives as interpretations of reality. In the process it becomes apparent that classical science and more recent developments, like chaos theory, no longer speak the same language. Furthermore, several well-known modes of healing are compared (like orthodox medicine and homoeopathy from the West and Indian, Tibetan and Chinese medicine from the East) whereby -- in addition to the natural differences -- surprising parallels emerge, above all assertions concerning fundamental reactions of the human organism. This comparison leads to an integration of common results regarding the various medicine systems, which can be illustrated (health disc, life spiral) as well. Thus, the basis for the translation of insights and findings from one medicine system to another has successfully been established; therefore the utilisation of the knowledge of one mode of healing in other therapeutic systems proves to be possible. The proposed model also creates the groundwork for translating discoveries in one medicine system to another, which makes utilising them possible.