He isn’t name dropping, he’s just stating facts. Check the roster; Prince Charles, Deepak Chopra, Sarah Fergusson, Madonna, Sting, Tina Turner and Pandit Ravi Shankar. Dr Isaac Mathai states matter- of-factly that some of these celebrities will lend their exalted presence at Soukya, the international holistic health center in Bangalore, later this year.
These International celebrities are his clients. In his quaint colloquial accent, he says, Sarah came down to India for three weeks
in 1987 for a weight management programme. She lost 13 kilos in three weeks. At that point of time, she had separated from Andrew. The whole experience cleansed her mind, body and spirit. I remember counseling her and soon afterwards, she moved into the palace. Now they live together as a happy family even though

they are separated. I’ve met Andrew too and he is very charming. They are a simple, unpretentious family.”
For those who come in late, he’s referring to royalty-Prince Andrews and his estranged wife Sarah Fergusson.
The lanky doctor does not offer a magical potion promising instant miracles. But his holistic health center, on the outskirts of the city, is worth a visit. Spread across 30 acres, Soukya, which stands for well-being in sanskrit, indeed stimulates the senses.
The tableau is replete with soothing shades of lush green and pretty nerium oleander flowers that emit a sweet fragrance. The farm grows its own organic vegetables and a stroll through the fruit orchard assails the olfactory nerves. There are 16 spacious suites for guests. The piece de resistance is the mud walled thatched room, which doubles up as a

meditation center by day and a stage for dance recitals by night.
Wait, there’s more. The goddess of pop, Madonna, has evinced an interest to visit the place. “Her representatives came down for a recce and felt the presidential suite was not good enough. She wanted an independent villa. So I told them that they were most welcome to construct a special apartment for her,” he ripostes, tongue firmly in cheek. “But if other celebrities have no problems with the place, why shouldn’t she? In any case, I’ll be meeting her next month to finalise the details.”
Meanwhile, Prince Charles, who is a patron of holistic medicine, has promised to drop by soon. “But nothing in life comes cheap, least of all a holistic holiday patronized by the rich and the famous. Our USP is our global presence. We have been in the field of integrated medicine for 20 years. But,

integrated medicine doesn’t mean that one doctor finds all the cures. It’s a process whereby experts in different systems of medicine work in tandem with each other,” says the doctor, who dreams of setting up a centre each in the seven continents.
His practice, which kick-started in England in the late ‘80s, draws clients from Japan, Africa, Israel and Argentina. He has clients in London, New York and Washington. There is a gleam in Mathai’s eyes, when he says, “The SOUKYA model is one of its kind in the world. We get inquiries from other countries where everybody wants to replicate it. And it has all happened purely through word of mouth.”

PRINCE Charles my be coming to Bangalore for a week of therapy using holistic medicine sometime next year. The heir to the British throne is believed to be deeply interested n integrated medicine and wants to visit Bangalore for a first-hand experience.
Renowned holistic healer Isaac Mathai, who was in London recently, met the personal secretary of Prince Charles who conveyed the prince’s willingness to visit India. If the prince does come to India, he would be the second member of the British Royal family to be treated by DR Mathai, In 1997, Duchess of Yark Sara Ferguson was in Bangalore for holistic therapy.
Dr Mathai said,” I had a meeting at St James Palace, London, recently and I have been told that Price Charles has accepted our invitation to visit Bangalore. We expect the visit to take place within a year. To fine-tune his programme, I will be meeting his secretary

and hopefully His Royal Highness himself when I visit London at the end of this year.”
Prince Charles has a special interest in holistic and integrated medicine and is the patron of the British Holistic Medicine, UK. “He has also shown a lot of interest in the Global Holistic Health Summit to be held in Bangalore from November 11 to 16 and has reconfirmed his support for it.
He will be sending a delegation consisting of the CEO, the Prince Charles Foundation for integrated medicine, and several of its board members for the summit.” At the time of Prince Charles visit, Dr Mathai said he would organize a small, high-level conference for which the Dalai Lama may be invited.

Organised by the international Holistic Health Association, the global summit will be the first of its kind in the world. It will be hosted by Soukya, the International Holistic Health Centre in

Whitefield, which will be inaugurated during the summit, but will be held in a five-star hotel in the city.

Dr Mathai explained, “The summit aims to project India and her rich heritage of diverse systems of healing on a global platform. It will also establish Bangalore as a centre for excellence in integrated and holistic medicine.”
Classical dancer Malliika Sarabhai and Jon Lord of Deep Purple will entertain the delegates.
Several spiritual leaders and experts in the field of integrated and holistic medicine grom around the world are expected to participate in the summit. Dr Mathai, who is the secretary general of the summit, said that more than 500 delegates from 60 countries have already confirmed their participation, The summit will be addressed by more than 100 speakers from 30 countries. Renowned surgeon R M Varma is the chairperson of the

summit.Of the spiritual leaders, head of the India Orthodox Church , Baselius Mar Thoma Mathews II; founder of the Art of Living Foundation, Sri Sri Ravishankar and Dharmadhikari of Dharmasthala Shri Veerendra Heggade will attend the conference. Deepak Chopra and Andrew Weil from the University of Arizona, USA will address the gathering, Besides them, there will be speakers from USA, UK. Israel, Japan, South Africa, Geneva, Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia. Among the Indian delegates will be Karan Singh, member of parliament, Dr KSS Reddy, from the All India Institute of Medical Science, Delhi. Dr Valiathan, former vice chancellor, Manipal Academy of higher Education and B M Hegde, vice chancellor , Manipal University.

The first international conference on "Holistic Health and medicine" organised by academy of holistic health Medicine was inaugurated by Dalai Lama here today.
In his inaugural address, the Dalai Lama hoped holistic health and medicine would make a valuable contribution to the future of humanity. The aim of holistic heath was to achieve a happier and healthier

living in a healthy environment.
Determination, enthusiasm and optimism were the key to success, and discoura- gement led to failure. The enthusiasm amount the people working in the field of holistic health would certainly make them successful, he observed.
The governor, Mr. P. Venkatsubbiah, in his presidential address, said despite the

tremendous progress made in science and technology, health hazards remained a challenge. Bearing the Holistic principle in mind, government had developed a network between various systems of medicine.
Earlier, Dr. R.M. Varma, chairman of the organising committee, said the World health Organisation was incorporating a spiritual dimension in the

definition of health. The importance of holistic health had been understood world wide.
Dr. Issac Mathai, Organising secretary, proposed a vote of thanks. The conference attended by delegates from various countries will conclude on November 12.

"The World health Organisation (WHO) is planning to include alternate and newer forms of medicine, which have been tried successfully in different countries, in the New Global Health Policy which will be presented at the WHO health assembly in 1998," This was announced by who representative Roberta Ritson at the foundation stone unveiling ceremony of the International Holistic Health centre(IHHC), on Thursday.

Mr. Ritson said,"IHHC will be a landmark for local and international health, as it combines modern medical practices with ancient systems. It is a visionary concept in health management." She added, "Holistic medicine is being viewed by the WHO as a model of health care and advocacy."

It is a Delivering the presidential address, H C Mahadevappa said, "Holistic medicine is not new.

The body mind and spirit are interconnected and inter-dependent and holistic medicine treats the whole person and not just a specific illness."
Dr Mahadevappa said, "Holistic medicine is not alternate medicine, nor it is opposed to modern medicine. It incorporates modern discoveries and developments and also ancient systems,

which precede modern scientific methods."
IHHC, to be set up in white field, attempts to reach this unique concept in health management. The health center will have facilities for more than 100 guests, including rooms, suits and cottages situated on 40 acres of landscaped gardens, including an organic vegetable farms, an equestrian club and recreational facilities.

Who`s the person who managed to bring Sarah Ferguson "Fergie" on her first visit to India, specifically Bangalore. He`s Dr. Issac Mathai, homeopath and holistic healer of the likes of George Harrison, Tin Turner, Sting, the heirs to the Hermes and Warner Bros empires and several others battling the stress of celebrity. It`s tempting to insinuate a romantic link, Fergie`s Indian doctor as the counter part of Diana`s Pakistani one. Tempting but untrue. Alas.

The duchess`s interest in the tall, dark and suave Dr. Mathai is purely medical. She`d heard of his healing abilities through impressed friends.
Clearly, it`s made enough of difference for her to have accepted his personal invitation to visit Bangalore and check out the International Holistic Centre now taking shape on its outskirts. It already has her formal support, and promises to become one more celebrity magnet for city. She`s also asked him to identify a charity, "one involving children".

Dr. Mathai - who gets flown to exotic Caribbean isles by his patients and today sports a tie with brands of fish and shrimp and saying "Tabasco" - is the soul of professional discretion. But as we sip lemon tea besides a lily pool, he does divulge that "Fergie is a very down-to-earth, very straightforward and spiritually attuned person. I can`t relate the women I know to the wild creature portrayed in the British tabloid press." It`s the fear of this same pack hunting her down in Bangalore is what has kept this visit so very confidential.

She hasn`t had the kind of break she`s getting here in the last 13 years. She`s feeling very good."

This isn`t the case with all Dr. Mathai`s patients. His mobile phone trills. It`s from one of Washington`s power-matrons. He purrs into it: "Take Belladonna 30, and report back to me in 24 hours."

It`s called 'Wellness Clinic' and is jet setting holistic medicine practitioner Dr. Issac Mathai`s latest offering to Bangalorians, who have set a hectic pace of themselves. with a combination of several therapies and programmes tailored with the individual as he focal point, the clinic aims to achieve what almost everything else has failed to provide - a feeling of well being.
Dr. Mathai, whose patient list includes the duchess of York, Tin Turner, Sting and George Harrison, says, "It is generally believed that we practice ancient medicine. But in reality, this is the medicine of 21st century, a combination of all major systems of medicine. We are not even discounting the value of allopathy.

The wellness clinic, he says, will start in small way what the international holistic center coming up on the outskirts of Bangalore intends to do by the turn of century. "We will have to believe that modern-day lifestyles leave the human being a big wreak. Even his diseases are treated in a manner where the focus is on chasing the bug away. No one thinks of the individual."
Dr. Mathai`s programmes include management of cardiac-hypertension problems, diabetes, arthritis, asthma and skin care. He has also included a unique smoking cessation and a rejuvenation-detoxification programme. Also thrown in will be a stress and weight management programmes which will include a practical

diet regimen combined with motivational sessions, spot exercises, deep tissue massage and naturopathic treatment. Among the therapies used are homeopathy, naturopathy, acupressure, acupuncture, yoga, nutrition, ayurveda and massotherepy.
The individual is vital in Dr. Mathia's scheme of things "Each individual has to be treated for his own specific requirements. However at the same time, multidisciplinary approach using natural resources like foods, herbs earth, water and air are crucial components." Holistic medicine is the physio-psycho-socio-nutritional-ecological as well as spiritual healing of a person , he explains "At the wellness clinic we will treat the

patient, not the disease. We see that very often a problem that could be easily treated turns into a complex disease because adequate preventive measures have not been taken. The holistic medicine practitioner finds the underlying cause of the ailment without suppressing the symptoms,"Dr Mathai points out.
He reiterates that a patient is made to believe that he can heal himself. Where required the options of specialists such as a cardiologist or a neuropathist is also taken.
"At the end of the day," Dr. Mathai says , "One should be equipped to sustain himself despite the aggressive modern day routine. One who feels well enough about himself is the only one who can do that."

--SRIRAJAN CHAUDHARI

Though a prominent homeopath, Dr. Issac Mathai is an internationally known homeopathic practitioner who believes in treating the patients as a whole, considering the pshyco-physio-socio-ecological and spiritual aspecgts of health and illness with the assumption that the body has an innate capacity to heal itself.


In which areas of illness is homeopathy most effective?
Homeopathy is most effective in pediatric conditions, chronic immune deficiency conditions and chronic diseases, for instance cervical cancer can be cured if detected early with homeopathy. It is most effective in allergic, and intestinal complaints. or auto immune diseases (like asthma). Homeopathy is also beneficial in treating mental problems., cases of schizophrena, and fibrosis in uterus.
But in clean cut surgical conditions, it would be foolish to go in for homeopathy. In cases like cardiac blockages, permanent pathological

changes such as growth, in accident cases where bones are broken etc homeopathy will not work.
Which are the areas of research in homeopathy?
Research in AIDS has been carried out nationally by the center council of research in homeopathy in Delhi. We`ve not reached the stage where it can be cured but we`re working on something where symptoms can be kept under check and the patients system is prevented from further breakdown and deterioration.There are support medicines in homeopathy for curing cancer in the initial stages, and many cases of cervical cancer can be cured completely if they are brought in for treatment at an early stage.

Which has been our most memorable case?
One of my memorable cases was of a lady suffering from cirrhosis of lever and who was told by her doctor that her condition was not curable and that she had a very few months to live. It was challenging for me because before I could prescribe medicines, I had to heal her emotionally. Her energy levels were rock bottom low because she felt defeated about life.I had to help her regain her mental and emotional health. She came to my clinic in 1992 lifeless but today she has gone back to her job, completely cured of her disease.
How do you yourself deal with anger and stress?
The secret is discipline. I am a meticulous person and I plan my appointments, my travel schedules, my seminars accordingly. I leave enough of buffer time between each case, always have a backup of half-an-hour to an hour in a day to squeeze an extra patient to avoid stress and

thankfully, my home is quite organised too. I spend time with my children; at least one hour in the morning. spend my weekends at home., Saturdays are half days for me, so I make it a point to take them out for a movie, a dinner. I go for Sunday mass with them.
What happens if the patients do not follow your advice or you are unable to cure them?
I am quite blunt with them, they can simply leave. However my patients come to me when they have tried almost every other course of treatment and it has failed so they are interested in following the treatment.
Have there been occasions when you have had to cross the clinical line of healing?
While trying to regain the emotional well being of the patient , I have often had to cross the line, in the sense, I had to play the role of not just a doctor, but a counsellor a priest, a guide, someone who listens without judgement.

The second charitable holistic homeopathic clinic of the Nooranal Foundation will open its doors on Wednesday (September 8) the clinic will provide high quality homeopathic treatment with a holistic approach to all sections of society and free to the poor. According to interna-

tionally renowned homeopath and holistic physician Dr. Issac Mathai, who is also the secretary of the foundation, "doctors trained by me will seeing patients at this clinic six days a week. A detailed case study will be done for

chronic cases and treatment will be provided under my guidance."
The first charitable clinic of the Nooranal Foundation was opened at St. Thomas Orthodox Church, Bangalore East, in September, 1996. It has already provided free treatment and

medicine to more than 20000 patients. On an average 35 patients are treated in the clinic everyday.
Apart from Bangalore, Dr. Issac Mathai has clinics in London and New York and has patients, who are being treated with the holistic method. In over 30 countries.