Organon & Philosophy

Miasms – Understanding and Classifying Miasmatic Symptoms

Miasms – Understanding and Classifying Miasmatic Symptoms

The symbol “<” means “worse from”
The symbol “>” means “better from”

In Hahnemann’s words,”the true natural chronic diseases are those that arise from a chronic miasm, when left to themselves, improper treatment, go on to increase, growing worse and torment the patient to the end of his life.” §78 Organon of Medicine

Hahnemann spent 12 years investigating miasms and collecting proof of his findings, the results of which can be found in his work, THE CHRONIC DISEASES. He named 3 miasms – Psora, Sycosis and Syphilis. Later a fourth miasm was added (by J. H. Allen), called Pseudo Psora or Tubercular Miasm.

The conditions that would modify a miasm in a person’s body would be things like: climate, and peculiar characteristic reactions of the person to it; mental delays; excesses, or abuses in life; dietary passions; habits and various customs. The medical profession (allopathic doctors) have put names on various diseases such as, jaundice, dropsy, leucorrhoea, hemorrhoids, eczema, asthma, hysteria, rheumatism, herpes, mania to name a few. Hahnemann considered all these were based on the same beginnings. The conventional medical profession treats each one of these diseases on an individual basis with seperate medical treatment for each one of them. But as far as homeopathy is concerned, all these names have no use and no influence on the practice of the true homeopathic physician, who believes in the theory of miasms.

In Homeopathy, only the totality of the symptoms of the individual state of each particular patient is used to cure the disease. So no real cure of miasms can take place without a strict particular treatment (individualization) of each case of disease. Chronic miasms are much hidden and the symptoms are much more difficult to be ascertained. Lot of questions need to be asked to trace the picture of disease, i.e., questions about the medical history of one’s family, mental delusions, dreams and peculiar symptoms.

Physical expressions of the miasms

The mind and body work together as a unit and the disturbances are expressed in both spheres.

A – Psoric Miasm: The reaction of body on exposure to environmental stimuli, to ones surroundings, like noise, light, and odors, producing functional disturbances like headache, nausea, and discomfort.
B – Sycotic Miasm: Hypersensitive (hypertrophic) response to something specific, arising from a deficiency of the normal response like tumors, allergies, keloids. Deficient feeling gives rise to an increased attempt to repair the fault.
C – Syphilitic Miasm: Not manageable, tissue destruction like gangrene, ulceration. Body and mind destroy itself, give-up.
D – Tubercular Miasm: Respiratory imbalance, weak lungs, offensive discharges, head sweating, worse from exposure to cold, reccourring epistaxis, bleeding gums, long eyelashes, craving for salt, enuresis, bloody stools, milk disagrees causing diarrhea, anemic, weakness, ringworm, acne, white spots on nails, nightmares.

Personality types

A – Psoric Miasm: Highs and lows, struggling with outside world, becomes apparent at times of stress, lack of confidence, constant anxiety feeling, fear, like he can’t do it, insecurity, anxiety about the future but always having hope, mentally alert.
B – Sycotic Miasm: Secretiveness, hides his weakness, tense, constantly covering up situations, fixed habits, suspicious, jealous, forgetful.
C – Syphilitic Miasm: Strong, pessimistic view on life, cannot modify what is wrong, gives-up, destroy, no point in trying to adjust, sudden impulsive violence directed at himself or others, distorted rigid ideas. Mental paralysis, mentally dull, suicidal, stupid, stubborn, and homicidal.
D – Tubercular Miasm: Dissatisfaction, lack of tolerance, changes everything, does harmful thing to one’s self.

General Nature of the Miasm

A – Psoric Miasm: Itching, burning, inflammation leading to congestion – philosopher, selfish, restless, weak, fears.
B – Sycotic Miasm: Over production, growth like warts, condylomata, fibrous tissue, attacks internal organs, pelvis, and sexual organs.
C – Syphilitic Miasm: Destructive, disorder everywhere, ulceration, fissures, deformities, ignorance, suicidal, depressed, memory diminished.
D – Tubercular Miasm: Changing symptomology, vague, weakness, shifting in location, depletion, dissatisfaction, lack of tolerance, careless, “problem child”, cravings that are not good for them.

Dermatological Symptoms of the Miasms

A – Psoric Miasm: Dirty, dry, itching without pus or discharge, burning, scaly eruptions, eczema, cracks in hands and feet, sweat profuse < during sleep, offensive.
B – Sycotic Miasm: Warts, moles, unnatural thickening of skin, herpes, scars, nails are thick, irregular & corrugated, oily skin with oozing, disturbed pigment in patches.
C – Syphilitic Miasm: Ulcers, boils, discharge of fluids and pus, offensive, slow to heal, leprosy, copper colored eruptions < by heat of bed, spoon shaped thin nails that tear easily, gangrene putrid.
D – Tubercular Miasm: Ringworm, eczema, urticaria, herpes, recurring boils with pus and fever. Does not heal fast. Leprosy < by warmth of bed > by cold; nails, white spots.

Pains of Miasms

A – Psoric Miasm: Neurological type, sore, bruised, >rest <motion.
B – Sycotic Miasm: Joint pains, rheumatic pains are < cold, damp > motion, stitching, pulsating, wandering.
C – Syphilitic Miasm: Bone Pains, tearing, bursting, burning.
D – Tubercular Miasm: Great exhaustion, never enough rest, sun ameliorates, gives strength.

Miasmatic Clinical Diseases

A – Psoric Miasm: Acidity, burning, cancer, sarcomas, constipation, epilepsy, flatulence, hoarseness, itching of skin, leprosy, burning of spinal cord, watery discharge from nose and eyes with burning.
B – Sycotic Miasm: Abortion, acne without pus, angina pectoris, anemia, appendicitis, cough (whooping), colic, pelvic disease + sexual organs, piles, prostatitus, nephritis (kidney), gout, arthritis, asthma, dysmenorrhoea, herpes, rheumatism, warts, urinary ailments, swellings without any cause, overgrowth of tissue anywhere in the body, benign enlargements.
C – Syphilitic Miasm: Discharges putrified, blindness, ulcerations in veins and bones, carcinomas, fistulas, gangrene, hyperextension, bone marrow inflammation, insanity due to depression, leucorrhoea, rheumatism of long bones, skin disease with ooze + pus, ulcerated sore throat, history of abortions, sterility, immature death, ischemic heart disease, suicidal deaths, insanity, destructive/last stage of cancer, disseminated tuberculosis, ulcers of ear, nose, urinary organs, mouth.
D – Tubercular Miasm: Aching pain in knees, swelling, bedwetting, cancer, carious teeth, destruction of bone marrow, diabetes, dry cough (barking), eczema, emaciation, epilepsy, extreme fatigue, weakness, glands enlarged, tonsils, influenza, insanity, obstruction of intestines, malaria, insomnia, nocturnal perspiration, palpitation, profuse hemorrhage of any orifice, pneumonia, ring worm, short temper, nasal coryza, worms.

Conclusion

Why is it necessary for a homeopath to know the chronic miasms? Some might say as long as one prescribes according to the law of simillimum, he cures his cases. The important factor here is “so long as he selects the most similar remedy as possible.” The fact is, we cannot select the most similar remedy possible unless we understand the phenomena of the acting miasm.

The true simillimum is always based on the existing miasm. It makes the difference between fighting the disease in the dark and in bright light when one knows the underlying principle that fathers the phenomena. If one has no knowledge of the laws of action and reaction, how can we watch the progress of a case without a definite knowledge of the disease forces (miasms) with their mysterious and persistent progressions. So, if we know nothing about the traits and characteristics of our enemy, it’s impossible to wage a war against the disease.

Hahnemann wrote about these things in his theory of Chronic Disease: The physician skilled in anti-miasmatic prescribing dips deeper into the case and applies an agent that has a deeper and closer relationship with the perverted life force. The results are always better.

A knowledge of all miasmatic phenomena would be a complete knowledge of all that is known as disease. Hahnemann discovered the miasms due to the fact these ailments kept coming back, year after year. Even when the correct remedy was given, there was no permanent cure. Hahnemann’s proof of the existence of miasms was the persistency of these chronic diseases even after taking care of other disease causing factors like diet, hygiene etc. They seem to come from within the organism, from some peculiar dynamis within, from something that was deranged within the life-force itself, inherent, internal, pre-existing within the dynamis.

Bibliography:

Organon 5th and 6th edition – Samuel Hahnemann
The Substance of Homeopathy – Rajan Sankaran
Miasmatic Diagnosis – S. K. Banerjea
The Chronic Miasms and Pseudo Psora – J. H. Allen

About the author

Gina Tyler

Gina Tyler (DHOM) is a homeopath living and working in California. She has travelled the world to study homeopathy including clinic work in India with Dr. Banerjea. A Reiki practitioner, she also makes use of herbs, essential oils, reflexology and kinesiology. After the Tsunami hit Sumatra in 2004, she made a number of trips to Indonesia, bringing homeopathic remedies and books and teaching homeopathy to local doctors, midwives and health care workers.
www.Gina-tyler.com

19 Comments

  • Studying or teaching miasms is always tough, owing to different perceptions of different homeopaths. This article by Gina I find is the most comprehensive, and perhaps the easiest one to look at miasms as the basic disease causing force and their varied therapeutic aspects. Thank you so much for this insightful article Gina!

  • i like your sistematic explanation about miasm,we want learn more practising in miasm,so plz give gide line

    thanku

  • Dear Gina,
    i like your sistematic explanation about miasm,i want learn more practising in miasm,so plz give gide line

    Thank you

  • very curious about homeopathy.. just a lay person .. but intuitive and chronically fatigued. ross river fever and grief and gluten intolerance and low cortisol.. and that is just the beginning. the very week my mother lay in palliative care and passed from this realm, an ugly skin canker? for want of a better description erupted at sight of childhood vaccination of either TB or Rubella, I healed it with oils. all gone yet filled me with more questions…I think I am tubercular miasmic?? love your work..

  • Very informatively ,well written andeasily understandable.
    Thanks Gina.looking forward for more articles on miasm.

    • Hi Gina, this article maybe have a clue what going on with my son. He is been on homeopathic remedies (Staphisagria, Lueticum, Sulpher, Psorinum, Anacardim) for 4 years. His symptoms ( schizophrenia or delusion disorder) sometimes settled but they comes again. Could it be miasm? Please help!

      Worried mum
      Zara

  • miasms expert CA Baldwin message on sycosis urethritis discharges suppression causes inside or outside with stacking up of redundant growths leading to chronic pelvic congestion induce sterlity,Gibson Miller describes face anaemic waxy shiny grey hollow cheeks and voice further merc sulph harm advanced sycosis cases.Kent said spasmo asthma is hereditary sycotic ipecac spongia carboveg bryonia only palliate.stacked growths are unwanted tissues self defense mechanism though struggling is chronic battle only showing sweet smell perspiration

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