“This theory of life’s origin is rooted in an unrepentant holism, born not of mysticism, but of mathematical necessity “……………..Stuart Kauffman, At Home in the Universe
Western Herbal Medicine is practiced in UK and Europe that prescribes herbs for treating the imbalances of human body. General lifestyle and dietary advice is also included in the scope of practice of herbal medicine.
Western Herbal Medicine is based on the principles of healthcare that arose in central Europe from the 18thcentury. The most commonly used version of Western Herbal Medicine today is based on the work of Nicholas Culpeper, the 17th century English Herbalist and astrologer. Culpeper’s medicine was based on the medicine of Greek physicians Hippocrates and Galen that had been used for 1400 years throughout Europe.
Hippocrates lived around fifth and fourth century BC in the Greek island of Kos and wrote a complex series of writings with the emphasis on dietary, lifestyle, environmental and psycho-therapeutic means to improve health. Galen in second century AD plays a pivotal role in the Greco-Roman medicine that laid the foundations for the European medicine until the present time.
Galen was the first physician in the West to understand the effect of nature on human body and the medicines. All medicines are divided into either hot, cold, moist and dry or temperate. The qualities of the medicines were in relation to the person and not by themselves. Galen described hot, cold, moist, and dry herbs in first, second, third or fourth degree. The idea was to heat and thin the ‘offending humors’ or toxins in the body and to release them via sweating. Cooling herbs included more bitters and helped in digesting the humours and eliminating via urine and faeces.
Physicians of Islamic era took ideas from these predecessors and wrote extensively about the herbs and herbal medicine of that time. It is apparent that they put more emphasis on the knowledge of single herbs and that way of working is still prominent in today’s Western Herbal Medicine practice.
Most of the Herbal Medicine before Culpeper (1616-1654AD) was hidden from general public and was only available to the trained physicians. Culpeper practiced and wrote extensively about herbs to make this knowledge widely available to people. The practice of modern Western Herbal Medicine is largely based on Culpeper’s herbal principles.
Article by Guest Author
