siddha: This system of medical practice is associated with the Tamil speaking parts of India. The term Siddha is derived from Siddh, which means attainment of perfection. The origin of this system of medicine is associated with the desire of saints who relentlessly took efforts to attain salvation.

These saints realised that a good physical body free from disease was required to attain eternal bliss. They evolved a system of medicine primarily for healthy living and also for the elimination of disease. This traditional Tamil system of medicine was refined into a science by the Saivite saints called Siddhars. The system is also called Agasthyar system after its famous exponent, sage Agasthya. Like all the traditional Indian medicines, Siddha is based on body humours and other characteristics similar to those in Ayurveda. According to the Siddha system, the universe consists of 5 elements - Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Ether which correspond to the five senses of the human body. A suitable proportion of these five elements in combination with each other, produce a healthy person.

Mercury and sulphur play a major role in the therapeutics of this medical science and often, they are used in combination. Siddha medicine has an interesting way of categorizing drugs. On the basis of mutual interaction, the drugs are called enemies or friends. The drugs which are compatible with each other are called friends, and drugs that are not compatible with each other are called enemies.

The Siddha practitioner considers these aspects while administering the drugs. The diagnosis in Siddha is based on findings from eight aspects; pulse, eyes, voice, touch, colour, tongue, faeces and urine.

Homoeopathy: Dissatisfied with the common medical practices of the time, Dr. Samuel Hahnemann sought to create a system of gentler healing- He began creating a new system using plants, minerals and animal substances, combining them into energetic compounds. With these substances, he stimulated and encouraged the body's natural healing forces of recovery.

The word 'Homoeopathy' is derived from two Greek words, homoeo meaning similar, and pathos, meaning suffering. Homoeopathy simply means treating diseases with remedies, prescribed in minute doses, which produce symptoms similar to the disease, when taken by healthy people. It is based on the natural law of healing - "Similia Similibus Curantur" which means "like is cured by like". For example, the effects of peeling an onion are very similar to the symptoms of acute cold. The remedy prepared from the red onion, Allium cepa, is used to treat that type of cold.

Conventional medicine believes that symptoms are caused by the illness of the body, whereas homeopathy views the symptoms as the body's natural reaction to fighting illness, and seeks to stimulate the symptoms rather than suppress them. Homeopathy is concerned with the treatment of the whole person, as an individual, rather than the disease alone. A homoeopath does not concentrate his therapy on, say arthritis or bronchitis or cancer.   Rather, he treats the mental, emotional and physical aspects of the patient. The physicians' interest is not only to alleviate the patient's present symptoms but also his long-term well being. Homeopathic medicines contain extremely small quantities of substances called potencies, prepared in a special way by diluting, shaking and pounding the mixture. These high dilutions not only enhance their curative properties, but also avoid undesirable side effects. Homeopathy has been serving humanity for over two centuries and has emerged as a time-tested therapy.

Homoeopathy came to India in 1839 when Dr. John Martin Honigberger was called to treat Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the ruler of Punjab, for paralysis of vocal cords and oedema. The Maharaja was relieved of his complaints and in return Dr. Honigberger received valuable rewards and was made the officer-in-charge of a hospital. This royal patronage gave Homoeopathy its roots in India. Homoeopathy has blended so well into the traditions of the country that it has been recognised as one of the National Systems of Medicine and plays an important role in providing health care to a large number of people.