Encyclopedia of Homeopathy

HOW REMEDIES ARE MADE• 29Preparation of homeopathic remediesHomeopathic remedies are made from substances derived from plant, mineral, and animal sources.Depending on their natural state, they may be prepared in a variety of different ways. Plant andanimal material may be used whole or chopped, depending on its size and density. Metals that areinsoluble in their natural states are combined with lactose sugar crystals and ground repeatedly toform a powder fine enough to be soluble in water: this process is called trituration. Crystallinesubstances, seeds, and beans may also be ground up if they are hard, large, or insoluble in water.CAUTIONThis information is not intended as aguide to making remedies. Homeopathicremedies should always be obtained froma reputable supplier.1 Plant material such as leaves, roots, andflowerheads (above), and some animalmaterial, such as starfish, is chopped finely,while other substances are dissolved in wateror ground to prepare them for use.4 After being macerated for the requiredperiod of time, the mixture is poured througha filter to strain it or expressed through apress to extract the liquid. This resultingliquid becomes the “mother tincture” for theremedy, and is stored in a dark glass jar.5 One drop of the mother tincture isdiluted in a mixture of pure alcohol anddistilled water according to one of severalscales (see opposite), although the two mostcommonly used scales are the decimal andthe centesimal.2 The substance is put in a large glass jar,into which is poured a solution of alcoholand distilled water (often 90 percent alcoholto 10 percent water, but this ratio variesdepending on the substance).3 The mixture is left to stand for avarying amount of time; mixtures that aremacerated for longer periods may be shakenat intervals. Plant material may be steeped forseveral days or weeks, while mineral-basedmixtures may be processed on to the nextstage almost immediately.6 This mixture is shaken vigorously(see right) or banged down firmly on a hardsurface, a process devised by Hahnemann.He called it “succussion” and believed thatthe action enabled the liquid to be“potentized” (see page 19).7 After the mixture has been succussed,steps 5 and 6 are repeated over andover again, as many times as necessary.Each time, the resulting mixture is dilutedafresh in a mixture of pure alcohol anddistilled water until, finally, the requiredlevel of dilution, and therefore the requiredpotency for the homeopathic remedy, isobtained (see left).8 Once the mixture has reachedthe required strength and potency,a few drops of it are added tolactose tablets, pilules, granules,or powder (see page 216), toimpregnate them with theremedy. These are then storedin dark glass bottles.