George Vithoulkas ( el, Γιώργος Βυθούλκας; born 25 July 1932, in
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
)
[
] is a Greek teacher and practitioner of
homeopathy
Homeopathy or homoeopathy is a pseudoscientific system of alternative medicine. It was conceived in 1796 by the German physician Samuel Hahnemann. Its practitioners, called homeopaths, believe that a substance that causes symptoms of a dis ...
.
[
]
He studied homeopathy in South Africa and received a diploma in homeopathy from the Indian Institute of Homeopathy in 1966. Upon receiving his diploma, he returned to Greece where he practiced and began teaching classical homeopathy to a small group of medical doctors. His alleged therapeutic success drew attention and led to the establishment in 1970 of what eventually became the Center of Homeopathic Medicine in Athens, a school exclusively for M.D.s.
In 1972, Vithoulkas started a Greek homeopathic journal, ''Homeopathic Medicine''. In 1976, he organized the first of an annual series of International Homeopathic Seminars. In 1995, he opened the International Academy for Classical Homeopathy (I.A.C.H.) on
Alonissos
Alonnisos ( el, Αλόννησος ), also transliterated as Alonissos, is a Greek island in the Aegean Sea. After Skiathos and Skopelos it is the third member of the Northern Sporades. It is (2 nm) east of the island of Skopelos. Alonnisos i ...
, to provide postgraduate training for homeopaths. It is dedicated exclusively to the teaching of homeopathy.
Vithoulkas has authored a number of books on homeopathy, two of which, ''Homeopathy: Medicine of the New Man'' and ''The Science of Homeopathy'', have been translated extensively, and is currently writing ''Materia Medica Viva'', a
homeopathic materia medica
Homeopathy or homoeopathy is a pseudoscientific system of alternative medicine. It was conceived in 1796 by the German physician Samuel Hahnemann. Its practitioners, called homeopaths, believe that a substance that causes symptoms of a di ...
or reference work on homeopathic remedies, to reach 16 volumes when finished. In addition to his books, he has published numerous articles in homeopathic journals and has developed an
expert system
In artificial intelligence, an expert system is a computer system emulating the decision-making ability of a human expert.
Expert systems are designed to solve complex problems by reasoning through bodies of knowledge, represented mainly as if ...
for homeopaths to use in choosing remedies for their patients.
Vithoulkas was a recipient of the
Right Livelihood Award
The Right Livelihood Award is an international award to "honour and support those offering practical and exemplary answers to the most urgent challenges facing us today." The prize was established in 1980 by German-Swedish philanthropist Jakob v ...
in 1996 for "his outstanding contribution to the revival of homeopathic knowledge and the training of homeopaths to the highest standards."
Praise and criticism
According to Vithoulkas's citation from the Right Livelihood award, his books "have had a profound influence upon the acceptance and practice of homeopathy worldwide."
He has been described as "the maestro of classical homeopathy" by Robin Shohet; Lyle Morgan says he is "widely considered to be the greatest living homeopathic theorist"; and Scott Shannon calls him a "contemporary master of homeopathy."
Paul Ekins
Professor Paul Ekins OBE (born 1950) is a British academic in the field of sustainable economics, currently co-director of the UK Energy Research Centre. He is a former member of the Green Party.
Political career
Ekins was a prominent member of t ...
credited Vithoulkas with the revival of the credibility of homeopathy.
Vithoulkas has also made an expert system 'VES'(Vithoulkas Expert System) that has been incorporated into the RADAR software.
His biography has been published in the book ''Georgos Vithoulkas Der Meister-Homöopath Biographie und Fälle'' by the journalist Peter Clotten and the homeopath Susan Pfeifer who studied at his International Academy for Classical Homeopathy.
In 1978,
Anthony Campbell, then a consultant physician at The
Royal London Homeopathic Hospital,
[Homeopathy in Perspective]
, Anthony Campbell. Accessed 2007-03-24 reviewed ''The Science of Homoeopathy''. He criticised Vithoulkas for substituting assertion for hard evidence and constructing an almost meaningless argument on the basis of a dubious theory of disease. He described rhetoric put forward by Vithoulkas (in presenting the argument that "allopathic drugging" is harmful and must be avoided) as including a thoroughly irresponsible statement which could mislead an unfortunate layman into refusing orthodox treatment, mentioning Vithoulkas' claim, "in the course of an argument designed to show that 'allopathic drugging' is harmful and must be avoided", that
syphilis
Syphilis () is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the bacterium ''Treponema pallidum'' subspecies ''pallidum''. The signs and symptoms of syphilis vary depending in which of the four stages it presents (primary, secondary, latent, an ...
, when treated with antibiotics, would have the early stages suppressed, but would go on to the secondary and tertiary stages. However, he felt the book also provided a good, if dogmatic, description of the principles and practice of "classical" homoeopathy. In response, Vithoulkas quoted various medical studies he claimed supported his assertion that
penicillin
Penicillins (P, PCN or PEN) are a group of β-lactam antibiotics originally obtained from ''Penicillium'' moulds, principally '' P. chrysogenum'' and '' P. rubens''. Most penicillins in clinical use are synthesised by P. chrysogenum using ...
"may suppress primary syphilis while failing to prevent the insidious development of a tertiary stage, especially as manifested in psychosis." Vithoulkas's claims conflict with scientific studies, which indicate that penicillin treatment produces a complete cure of syphilis in more than 90% of cases.
Selected works
* ''Homeopathy: Medicine of the New Man'' (New York: Arco, 1979)
* ''The Science of Homeopathy'' (New York: Grove Press, 1980)
* ''A New Model for Health and Disease'' (IACH, 2008
orth Atlantic Books,1991
* ''Homeopathy: Medicine for the New Millennium'' (IACH, 2000)
* ''Materia Medica Viva'' (IACH, 2000- ) 12 volumes completed to date, 16 planned
* ''The Essence of Materia Medica''
*''Classical Homeopathy for Anxiety & Jealousy'' (Baar: Groma Publishers, 2011
004 004, 0O4, O04, OO4 may refer to:
* 004, fictional British 00 Agent
* 0O4, Corning Municipal Airport (California)
* O04, the Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation
* Abdul Haq Wasiq, Guantanamo detainee 004
* Junkers Jumo 004 turbojet engine
* Lauda ...
*''Additions to Kent's Repertory of the Homeopathic Materia Medica'' (New Delhi: B.Jain, 1989)
*''The Bern Seminars 1987'' (IACH, 2009
lrich Burgdorf, 1989
*''The Celle Seminars'' (IACH, 2009
lrich Burgdorf, 1992
*''The Esalen Conferences Volume I'' (IACH, 2010)
*''The Esalen Conferences Volume II'' (IACH, 2010)
*''Levels of Health: The Second Volume of The Science of Homeopathy - Revised Edition'' (IACH, 2017
010 010 may refer to:
* 10 (number)
* 8 (number) in octal numeral notation
* Motorola 68010, a microprocessor released by Motorola in 1982
* 010, the telephone area code of Beijing
* 010, the Rotterdam
Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the R ...
References
External links
Vithoulkas' web siteReview from the British Homoeopathic Journal (1993)
Review from the British Homoeopathic Journal (2001)
*
"Interview: George Vithoulkas on Homoeopathy, by Rajesh Shah" published in Homeopathy Times, 1994
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vithoulkas, George
1932 births
Greek homeopaths
Living people
People in health professions from Athens