Kent was one of the first people to suggest that there was a deeper level of understanding that could be gained about the patient than the physical symptoms. He suggested that the mental/emotion symptoms of the patient were more characteristic, and most homeopaths have accepted this to be the case. However, the real cause of ill health in a patient is at the energetic level, in a derangement of the vital force. Therefore an understanding of the emotional disturbance in a case is still far removed from the energetic disturbance that has given rise to the emotional disturbance. Our first aware of any energetic disturbance is the perception of sensations, and therefore an understanding of this level represents a much deeper level of understanding than the emotional level.

Therefore, if we accept that the emotional level is a deeper level of understanding, then we must be open to the idea that there are even deeper levels, and that these must represent an even better way of prescribing for the patient.