COMMENT BY EILEEN:
The first paragraph is so metaphysical that it begs to be observed from that perspective. In essence, "like cures like" here. Hahnemann was saying that no matter what the disease, which is strictly a certain vibrational frequency (like a radio station being tuned in, the disease has a frequency and modulation that must match our aura/energy field, in order to "disturb" it/us, as well as take root in us) that must be in agreement with our DYNAMIS or Vital Force in order to harm us or create symptoms within us. This is all about "susceptibility" on a larger scale or looking at it from another perspective.

This goes back to the age-old question of: why does one person in the family get the flu, but the others don't? Or why doesn't everyone in the office get the cold you had, but they don't? It goes back to frequency energy expression. We, as a human organism (and this includes our Vital Force as well) all emit a frequency. We are all broadcasting out an energy frequency. We are all absorbing other frequency transmissions all the time--seen and unseen--from people, places, animals and things not only in our 3rd dimensional world, but also the other unseen dimensions, as well. Our Vital Force, our DYNAMIS, is constantly inter-acting with all these similar or same frequency as we emit. That is why "like cures like." It takes a homeopathic remedy, a medicine, of the same frequency as yours, to cure you. It doesn't matter what level the disease (symptoms) expresses itself, either because once that frequency is tuned into by the potentized homeopathic remedy (or, indeed, an herb, herbal tincture or flower/gem essence, or laying on of hands, Reikie treatment, etc., etc.) then the disease will have to REACT. But so will the Vital Force. It is the reaction of the vital force to this natural medicine which is at a certain frequency, which will respond and react dramatically to it. In doing this, the body's immune system, energy system and chakras, all work in one instant of teamwork to overwhelm the invader. In overwhelming it with a reaction, the disease (symptoms) are eradicated and cure occurs. What is "spirit-like"?

That begs to be looked at, too. My own sense is that Hahnemann was referring to the energy or frequency of the medicine (homeopathic in this case), but that he saw or intuited that some of like nature and familiarity must be used in order to address the disease (symptoms). My own personal opinion is that everything has a frequency vibration. Even drugs have it. The key, as Hahnemann is pointing out, is that there must be a like or similar harmony or frequency between the disease symptoms we carry and the medicine that will affect such a dramatic and curing change within us.

I do not limit this to just homeopathic medicine. Indeed, I've seen many other alternative medicine modalities do the same thing. One is not more 'right' than another. The 'right' one is for the person who has the disease (symptoms) to determine and it is because they believe in or have trust/faith in this particular healing "tool" that they will get cure. The key, however, which Hahnemann was nailed accurately is that the vibration MUST be nearly the same as the vibration of the disease (symptoms). Then, and only then, cure will occur and the Vital Force engaged to surmount it, overwhelm it and neutralize it from not only our physical body, but our aura and energy systems.

COMMENT BY PAUL:
The vital force is a spirit-like dynamis. It can only be affected by (diseases) in a spirit-like (dynamic) way. The derangement can only be corrected by our remedies acting upon the vital force by means of dynamic alterative powers. This action is perceived through our sentient faculty of nerves. Another way of looking at this is that our nerves which "perceive" form our sensory apparatus or sensory body – our sentient being. This will re-establish health and vital harmony. In order to match the remedy, we first perceive through our senses, the disease as a total expression of symptoms.

The footnote has caused some Homoeopaths to assume that Hahnemann meant that all disease can be cured without a remedy, by merely imagining. While we can do a lot with a positive attitude and techniques such as visualization, there will always be a majority of people for whom this is difficult if not impossible. It is very easy for a psychologist to tell a patient "now I want you to be more positive about life" or " I want you to imagine your joints are less swollen. The problem is that if the joints are swollen, then that is reality. No imagination will help. However, if we go to the cause, perhaps an unhappy work situation, and we employ "mind techniques" to deal with this issue better, then perhaps we can see better results. This touches on the area of delusions, or "stuckness". The well chosen remedy will help the individual address this issue, whether we employ methods such as Sankaran's delusional states, Scholtens stages and series of situation, or good old Kentian style repertorizing and analysis. This "educational medicine" enlightens the subconscious and overcomes the cause of the disease. It is not so easily blocked by a conscious will effort to cling to the present pathological disease state. Call it subliminal if you wish, it is able to get the message through.

For example:
MIND; DELUSIONS, imaginations; fail, everything will (lose, he would) (Anxiety; success) (Succeed) (Undertakes; nothing) (9) : act-sp., arg-n., aur., bamb-a., cob-n., lac-c., merc., nux-v., sil.

For Aurum we could perhaps obtain:
"You have convinced yourself you will fail – this is not the truth. It is only because you are afraid of the consequences if you fail that you believe this to be true. You carry responsibility to an extreme and this is more than a human being can be accountable for. You only have to accept that which you are fairly accountable for. I will show you that extent".

After the dose of Aurum, the patient will start to understand the extent too which he should blame himself for failure. He will not be so afraid of failing and his self-confidence will improve. As a result he is more likely to succeed because he does not sabotage his own efforts or judge himself too quickly and sink the ship. He becomes quite capable of fulfilling any obligations of responsibility he may have.

For Lac-can we could obtain:
"You are a human being. You are capable of wondrous things. You are not the "dog" you believe yourself to be. This belief has been imposed by circumstances in your life and you believe you are looked down upon. This leads to your lack of confidence and to not believing in yourself or your opportunities in life. This is not so and I will show you your humanity."

After the appropriate dose, the Lac-can patient will value herself more and believe that she is truthfully created of spirit and able to rise above an animalistic view she held of herself before.

Coming back to the footnote, yes the perceptions which these two cases suffer from were caused by the imagination (delusion), and counselling can help to a certain extent, but the homoeopathic counsellor (the remedy) will prove to be most effective.

COMMENTS BY GABY ROTTLER:
What are those 'inimical potencies' , coming from the outside, that disturb our harmonious play of life in a dynamic way ? Well that can be a trauma, emotional or physical, all sorts of radiation (x-ray, microwave), any sort of infection (virus, bacterium, fungus), wet, cold environment, and so on...everything that causes our vital force to loose its firm step in its path. And to get back on the road again, all we need is the dynamic impulse of a well-selected remedy to retune the vital force. What we need is to see the changes in the patient first, and carefully observe them. Only then can a serviceable medicine be found. That is why not everyone will show a reaction after a vaccination - it all depends of the patient and the state of his vital force. And those patients _with_ a reaction may show a variety of symptoms, that could point to Thuya, Silica, Variolinum, but also to other remedies like Euphrasia, Apis, Belladonna, or whatever. The symptoms, the ESSENCE of symptoms, is the main point: what characterizes the state of disease will help us to find a cure for it.