This idea began as a result of my study of holistic medicine and it’s origins in the Orient. The Hindu philosophy has deep roots over several millennia. Some of the older of their spiritual texts are a series of texts called the Vedas. The Ayur Veda is an entire book detailing the ancient holistic approach to health and healing. It seems that Buddhism spread from India to China and Japan. In Japan they practice Zen Buddhism which was introduced to modern Western society in the 1950’s by an Allen Watts. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) began seeping into American culture in the 1970’s after our president Regan normalized relations with China. Then by the 1990’s Western medicine was confronted with holistic ideas about health when consumers began asking their doctors about alternative medical practices – gleaned from study of these ideas which had suddenly become popular in Western culture. By the late 1990’s the Western medical societies began to approve conferences on these subjects for continuing education and this allowed me to accumulate a wealth of knowledge about a holistic approach to life.
Although there was an openness to study about these subjects it was a more contensious matter to use these ideas in actual practice. I had toyed with the idea of starting an integrative, holistic clinic however I was afraid that I would spend more time in court than treating patients in a manner that I believed would best serve them. I redirected my energy to writing because I felt that I could help people more by sharing my ideas than one on one in a clinic setting. My first book on this subject was in 2002, entitled: “Why Alternative Medicine and Why Now?” with subtitle ‘A Primer on Holistic Medicine’. This is still available but I summarized my thoughts in a table after the fact of publication. I will post that table on this site and also in my upcoming book: “The Art of Peace” which should be available soon.
It had become obvious to me that the problems in Western health care are mostly of a political nature. Medicine has become a big business and as a result good science often takes a back seat to business concerns. This is unfortunate but this fact has also exposed the solution to many of our problems. Western society is based on a materialistic social dogma. The above sequence of events has allowed an insight into an old holistic approach taken in the Orient. As Western people become more familiar with this Oriental holistic philosophy, a subtle understanding that something is missing in our Western materialistic approach is becoming painfully obvious.
This insight does not only apply to our approach to medicine and health care but also to society in general. There is a quote attributed to Mother Theresa that, “Whereas poverty is the curse of the East; loneliness in the curse of the West”. My personal feeling is that many problems in Western society would disappear if we adopted a more ‘holistic social dogma’.
The following quotation by Thomas Jefferson seems to summarize the problem that I seem to be trying to resolve through my research and also in what I hope to share with the world. He said, “The issue today is the same as it has been throughout all history, whether man shall be allowed to govern himself or be ruled by a small elite.” If a small elite is to succeed they need to enforce a materialistic approach in society. If the people are to succeed in developing a society where human rights are respected and peace and prosperity are the likely outcome then society will need to adopt a holistic approach.
I’ll leave you with a thought left us by Albert Einstein, “We will need to develop an entirely new manner of thinking if mankind is to survive”.