Malaysia plays the leading role in homeopathy in Southeast Asia. The history of homeopathy in the Malay civilization began in the 1930s. Since then, it has been practiced mainly by Malays who are all Muslims. Homeopathy in multiethnic Malaysia is embedded in Islamic culture and has to do with ethnic identity of the Malays within the Malay/non-Malay dichotomy of the society. This survey explores the relationships between homeopathy and Malay traditional medicine, as well as between homeopathy and Islam.
Throughout human history, doctors and healers have gathered and refined the knowledge inherited from the previous generations. Different methods of effective therapy have been designed during various historical periods; when each was developed, it was considered "modern scientific medicine" for their time. Mankind has gone through natural and social disasters and survived; hence, history has proved there was no time when medical knowledge was erroneous or ineffective. Classic medicine has grown to be divided into narrow, specialized branches, causing it to lose its holistic approach and general view on health, sickness and therapeutic methods. Many of traditional medicine's effective methods have been forgotten and removed from the mainstream medicine. It would be good for modern medical education to incorporate the general knowledge of historically effective therapeutic modalities and study practical cases. Medical students should be taught how to choose a "good method" or "good medicine" independent of when that method or remedy was discovered. However, he has to keep in mind the primary goal of medicine: "I will use treatment to help the sick according to my ability and judgment…"(from Hippocratic Oath).