In the case of what we may call secondary acute exacerbations of the Chronic miasmatic illness the internal hypersensitivity is the pertinent factor; only a constitutional treatment can be of real help. Thus the term “miasm” can be taken in the sense of a sum total of all the factors (exogeno4us and endogenous, psychological, biological and chemicophysical etc.) in the production of diseased conditions, of which the living micro – organism factor can, of course, never be excluded in case of many acute or Chronic diseases.
In corroboration of these ideas we may conclude this discussion with the apt remarks of Sir John Weir, which runs thus:
“The miasm came before the microbe. All the evidence would support the theory that the first imbalance was in the host, that the patient suffered form a miasm, an unbalance, a disease which allowed for instance, the B. Coli to mutate and become a Gonococcus.
He would however, also point out that once the mutation has taken place with the formation of a Gonococcus, it must be accepted that the transference of this infection carrying organism to a healthy person could give rise to Gonorrhoea, but even then one must also consider that there is such a thing as a miasm which could favour the growth of Gonococcus. The Pasteur theory of infection is only a part of the much greater and more scientific doctrine of Hahnemann regarding the true relationship between micro – organisms and disease or Miasm.”
N.B. The writer has incorporated many passages from an admirably lucid article from the pen of Dr. E. Whitmont, first published in the February 1948 issue of the Journal of the American Institute of Homoeopathy.
THE REAL SIGNIFICANCE OF CHRONIC DISEASES
Hahnemann was an out and out scientist. He always kept himself to the plane of phenomena, actually and correctly observed by him. All his inductions, deductions and generalisations were based on observed facts. He never started with pre – conceived notions and ideas. True to the spirit of the “New Philosophy” of the 17th century Hahnemann sought to deal with those ideas or concepts which arose from controlled experiments or observations and in turn led to further experiments and observations. He regarded science as a series of interconnected conceptual schemes which arose originally from experimentation or careful observation and were fruitful of new experiments or observations.
According to him the test of a new concept is not only the economy and simplicity with which it can accommodate the then known observations but its fruitfulness. He studied the nature of Chronic diseases not with a view to acquire more knowledge about the essential nature and functioning of the Life – principle but for the sole purpose of finding a better way for treating and curing those cases. To him the concepts of psora, syphilis and sycosis and their respective miasms were sufficient for the discovery of such a desired method of effectively treating those cases.
But as the facts accumulated there grew a necessity for evolving other sets of concepts which would be adequate and relevant to the category of life. His observations, ratiocinations and logical inferences led him to accept the existence of an entity like Life – principle; but as it turned out to be an immaterial, imperceptible substance (not falling under the category of matter which is perceptible to our senses) his intensely realistic mind dared not advance farther lest it might land him in the domain of unreal, imaginative speculations.
But there he made a cardinal mistake. Medicine may be, primarily an art, an art of healing: but if it is attempted to build a rational art of healing it must be founded on true principles which have their roots not only in matter but in life and mind as well. Our Organism is an apparently indivisible tri-une whole of body, life and mind. We cannot make a complete study of one aspect only ignoring the rest; this, in the long run, is always found to be incomplete and misleading.
The complete study of the phenomenon is impossible without a corresponding study of the noumenon. Hahnemann wanted to make a scientific study of diseases and drug – actions and therapeutics without attempting or ignoring the scientific study of life and mind. May be, the proper study of mind and life may require techniques and concepts totally different from those applied to the study of matter.
But that is no ground for leaving those out of our considerations. Science and scientific attitude of mind do not bind ourselves to a particular technique or a particular set of concepts. On the other hand science advances not by the accumulation of new facts (a process which may even conceivably retard scientific progress) but by the continuous development of newer and more fruitful concepts.
Let us attempt to make a critical estimate of Hahnemanns concepts underlying his study of Chronic diseases. He observed that the diseased processes might be classified into two broad divisions viz., acute and Chronic. The acute cases lead to either recovery or death; while the Chronic cases lead no where except life – long suffering unless they are counteracted by homoeopathic application of medicines discovered by Hahnemann.
By the time Hahnemann talked of acute and Chronic diseases he came to form a clearer and more definite conception of the Life – principle as having a substantive entity though belonging to an order of existence different from that of matter. It is the force of the Life – substance which animates the body, keeps the different parts of the body in a harmonious functioning order, preserves the body from death, disintegration and decay and automatically reacts with an attempt at repair, against any inimical agent threatening the integrated existence of the body, life and mind etc.
Disease “per se” consists in the disorderly functioning of the Life – force of the Life – substance – preceding and co – existing and ultimating in structural changes of the material parts of the organism. Thus in acute diseases, the life – force, though disordered to a great extent or even to the point of extinction still retains an inherent capacity to set itself right with or without medicinal help; whereas, in Chronic diseases, the life – force of the life -substance, though altered in an insidious way, gets deranged in a somewhat peculiar manner so that it seems to lose that inherent property of self – adjustment.
This was the problem which Hahnemann set for himself to solve. In acute cases, the life – force is changed but that is a more superficial change compared to what happens in Chronic cases. Here we may note also Hahnemanns conception of Infection which he developed later (as is evident from his writings in a long foot – note to the Sec. of the sixth edition of Organon). We discussed the subject in our earlier publications to which we refer our readers to refresh their memories. We would, here, try to explain the matter with help of an example from physical science.
Every student of physics is aware of induced magnets and permanent magnets. Any soft iron – rod behaves as a magnet (i.e. exhibits the general properties of a magnetised body) so long as it is placed and kept in front of a permanent magnet. But it loses its magnetic properties as soon as the inducing magnet – piece is withdrawn. But if that piece of soft – iron rod is permanently magnetised by a magnet (stroking across it in particular manner) it retains its magnetic properties even when the other magnet is withdrawn from its presence.
This shows a more or less permanent change in the configuration of the molecules of that piece of soft – iron rod, that has taken place and it requires a special process to demagnetise it. Might it not be an analogous case with acute and chronic infection?
With the passing of years and growth in experience Hahnemann came upon to regard man more as an organism than as a machine. A machine is composed of many parts, originally separate. Once these parts are put together, its manifoldness becomes unity. Like the human individual, it is assembled for a specific purpose. Like him, it is both simple and complex. But it is primarily complex and secondarily simple. On the contrary, man is primarily simple and secondarily complex. He originates from a single cell. His growth means multiplication and self – differentiation of the primitive cell to form diverse tissues and organs.
Thus an organism is not artificially made, but grows – not put together by the force from the outside, but evolve by a single power working from within – a self – evolving self – realising unity. The plan or idea contained in the evolving force from the beginning, manifests itself as the energy of Life, the unifying and controlling power of the whole over the parts differentiating and co – ordinating the parts and making them co -operate together for its own more perfect realisation. The parts derive their form and function from the whole; and the whole makes itself to be what it is by evolving and sustaining the parts as its organs.
