Page 22 - Winter 21-22

Ten Ox-herding pictures by Peter Gregory, UK
In a meeting of a group of Buddhist friends recently (by Zoom of course) I was reminded by our teachers of the “Ten Ox-herding Pictures”, which depict the spiritual progression of a Zen student. The author is said to be a Zen master of the Sung Dynasty known as Kaku-an Shi- en belonging to the Rinzai school. He also wrote poems and introductory words for each picture.
I believe the stages are universal, and apply to anyone seeking their inner truth, wherever they may find it, but I also believe they are relevant to our personal progression in learning homeopathy; they certainly resonated with my own journey, so I though it might be interesting to look at them from a homeopathic perspective. The pictures I am using were painted by Shubun, a Zen priest of the fifteenth century. The original pictures are preserved at Shokokuji, Kyoto. He was one of the greatest painters in black and white in the Ashikaga period. I plan to take them one at a time and see how it goes. Instead of the original commentaries I will try and add a haiku for each one. I hope you may find it interesting and I don’t find I am being too ambitious!
Picture 6 ‘Coming Home on the Ox’s Back’
This picture shows the oxherder sitting on the bull. The rope has gone and he is relaxed, either singing a song or playing the flute. This is an image of ease, leisure, and freedom. The struggle is over – there is no going back. Saddling himself on the ox’s back, his eyes are fixed on things not of the earth. Even if he is called, he will not turn his head- nothing can tempt him away . His heart is filled with joy.
So now we have come to realise the potential of homeopathy. We have committed ourselves to study and we know where we are heading. And it is a joyful experience indeed. We have seen the potential and there is no letting go.
For several years, from 1995, I was involved in the
three year long veterinary course at the Homeopathic Physicians Teaching Group, in Oxford and subsequently overseas. After a while my colleagues and I noticed that somewhere around the middle of the second year, most students would experience a ‘light bulb moment’. There was a sudden shift in perception, when the light of understanding of homeopathy switched on. Quite suddenly they understood what homeopathy is all about; to use a common term: they ‘got’ homeopathy.
A few students didn’t have that experience – maybe they just weren’t ready for it, or didn’t have a need – and although they went on to use homeopathy effectively at an every- day level of Rhus tox for the arthritic dog, or Arsenicum for the cat with vomiting and diarrhoea, I always felt that they never really reached the depth of understanding that allowed them to use homeopathy to its full potential. Even so my first major success was a prescription based simply on the pathological modalities of Rhus tox., but it was a witnessing the fundamental improvement of my own dog with long standing atopic dermatitis that proved the potential of homeopathy. Such a response is a joy indeed. Sometimes it can be like watching the petals of a flower open. Other times it’s simply that the client uses the ‘m’ word – ‘it’s like a
miracle’. Or the client says simply: ‘I’ve got my dog back’. One or two of these experiences and there’s no going back to conventional, chemical medicine. That doesn’t mean we have to abandon it altogether – there may be times when we still need it, but that satisfaction
and the joy of homeopathic understanding is lifelong.
From here-on in homeopathy is going to be the vehicle that takes us along the Way. The journey isn’t always going to be easy – in fact as time goes on and we take on patients with more and more complex problems we will face frustration and disappointments, but we will continue to follow the path that homeopathy leads us on.
The journey will be life affirming and at times will be satisfying and truly joyful.
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