Hahnemann says, “totality of MORBID symptoms, is the “outwardly reflected picture of the internal essence of the disease”. According to him, INTERNAL ESSENCE OF DISEASE means, “affection of the vital force”.
Medical practice of hahnemann’s time was actually TREATING THE SYMPTOMS, based on mere ‘experiences’ and ‘speculations’ of physicians, without any scientific understanding regarding the actions, effects and dangers of crude drugs and methods they utilized. They considered SYMPTOMS as DISEASES.
Hahnemann actually initiated a revolution by declaring that MORBID SYMPTOMS are not DISEASES, but only the “outwardly reflected picture of the internal essence of the disease”. He made physicians to understand the importance of INTERNAL ESSENCE rather than its REFLECTED PICTURE. Same time, he demonstrated how this REFLECTED PICTURE could be utilized to identify the peculiarities of underlying INTERNAL ESSENCE, and to select appropriate remedial agents to correct its DEVIATIONS.
It was hahnemann who for the first time taught physicians to look into the ‘internal essence’ of diseases rather than the ‘outward reflections’ or ‘morbid symptoms’, same time utilizing the ‘outward reflections’ as a tool for studying and manipulating the ‘internal essence’.
Remember, hahnemann was making this statement 250 years ago, when modern BIOCHEMISTRY has not even emerged to inquire into the “internal essence of disease” in a scientific way. Nothing was known regarding the BIO-MOLECULAR processes involved in the phenomena of life and disease. In such a knowledge environment, it was impossible for hahnemann to understand or explain what is exactly the “internal essence of disease”. Only thing he could do was to explain it as “affection of the vital force”.
Empowered with the great advancements in scientific knowledge during last 250 years after hahnemann, we are now in a position to explain “internal essence of disease” in scientific terms. Modern biochemistry and life sciences have proved beyond any doubt that “internal essence” of disease lies in the MOLECULAR LEVEL ERRORS.
We have to re-write hahnemann’s statement as follows:
“the totality of symptoms is the outwardly reflected picture of the internal essence of the disease, that is, of the MOLECULAR LEVEL ERRORS in ‘vital processes’.
READ Organon : Aphorism 7:
“Now, as in a disease, from which no manifest exciting or maintaining cause (causa occasionalis) has to be removed, we can perceive nothing but the morbid symptoms, it must (regard being had to the possibility of a miasm, and attention paid to the accessory circumstances, § 5) be the symptoms alone by which the disease demands and points to the remedy suited to relieve it – and, moreover, the totality of these its symptoms, of this outwardly reflected picture of the internal essence of the disease, that is, of the affection of the vital force, must be the principal, or the sole means, whereby the disease can make known what remedy it requires – the only thing that can determine the choice of the most appropriate remedy – and thus, in a word, the totality of the symptoms must be the principal, indeed the only thing the physician has to take note of in every case of disease and to remove by means of his art, in order that it shall be cured and transformed into health.
READ Organon : Aphorism 5:
“Useful to the physician in assisting him to cure are the particulars of the most probable exciting cause of the acute disease, as also the most significant points in the whole history of the chronic disease, to enable him to discover its fundamental cause, which is generally due to a chronic miasm. In these investigations, the ascertainable physical constitution of the patient (especially when the disease is chronic), his moral and intellectual character, his occupation, mode of living and habits, his social and domestic relations, his age, sexual function, etc., are to be taken into consideration.”
MAIN LESSONS TO BE LEARNED FROM THESE TWO APHORISMS:
1.”in a disease, we can perceive nothing but the MORBID symptoms”
2. “totality of symptoms are the outwardly reflected picture of the internal essence of the disease”
3. “totality of the symptoms must be the principal, indeed the ONLY thing the physician has to take note of in every case of disease and to remove by means of his art”
4. “symptoms are the only thing that can determine the choice of the most appropriate remedy”
5. In “acute diseases”, “particulars of the most probable exciting cause of the acute disease” has to be considered.
6. In chronic diseases, “the most significant points in the whole history of the chronic disease, has to be studied to discover its fundamental cause”
7. Chronic diseases are “generally due to a chronic miasm”.
8. “physical constitution of the patient should “ascertained” especially when the disease is chronic”
9. “regard has to be given to the possibility of a miasm”
10. MIASMS could be “discovered” only by “the most significant points in the whole HISTORY”
11. “Patient’s moral and intellectual character, his occupation, mode of living and habits, his social and domestic relations, his age, sexual function, etc., are to be taken into consideration in chronic diseases”
12. “manifest exciting or maintaining cause (causa occasionalis) has to be removed” as they are “useful” to the physician “in assisting” him to cure
From homeopathic point of view, what are the SYMPTOMS to be considered in the selection of SIMILIMUM?
NORMAL SYMPTOMS that represent normal physiological processes are of no value in selecting a homeopathic similimum. We need only ABNORMAL SYMPTOMS, which represent the ABNORMAL or DEVIATED bio-molecular processes happening in the organism.
Let us examine what Dr Hahnemann says about this issue. Read Organon(6th edition) Aphorism 6 :
“The unprejudiced observer – well aware of the futility of transcendental speculations which can receive no confirmation from experience – be his powers of penetration ever so great, takes note of nothing in every individual disease, except the changes in the health of the body and of the mind (morbid phenomena, accidents, symptoms) which can be perceived
externally by means of the senses; that is to say, he notices only the deviations from the former healthy state of the now diseased individual, which are felt by the patient himself, remarked by those around him and observed by the physician. All these perceptible signs represent the disease in its whole extent, that is, together they form the true and only conceivable portrait of the disease.”
Hahnemann rules out all “transcendental speculations which can receive no confirmation from experience” as “futile”.
According to him, physician should take note of ONLY “the changes in the health of the body and of the mind”. Kindly notice- The CHANGES only!
He elaborates further: “only the deviations from the former healthy state” should be “noticed” by the physician. It is obvious that he was asking to avoid SYMPTOMS OF PREVIOUS HEALTHY SATE, and consider only symptoms that represents DEVIATIONS from healthy state. According to this view, symptoms representing FORMER HEALTHY STATE or CONSTITUTION are of no value in determining the similimum
Hahnemann considers “these perceptible signs represent the disease in its whole extent” as “only conceivable portrait of the disease”
APHORISM 6 clearly shows, hahnemann was also of the opinion that only ABNORMAL SYMPTOMS that represent DISEASE should be considered for deciding a similimum.
REDEFINING HOMEOPATHY 