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Originally Posted by Luise there is some basic idea reoccurring through your mail, which I do not understand.

Dear Luise,

No, I am not saying that susceptibility is the miasms. I am saying that susceptibility is that which opens one up to contracting a miasm. If ten people come in contact with scabies or a staphylococcus infection perhaps only 4 or 5 contract the psoric disease. These 4 or 5 individuals share a similar susceptibility while the other 5 or 6 did not share that susceptibility. Susceptibility comes first, then the primary infection, then usually suppression, then the latent state, then the secondary symptoms. So I think we agree?

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(Let's forget in this connection about hereditary miasms: for one thing it would not change the matter as far as basic definition is concerned, for another: Hahnemann wrote about hereditary miasms only at one place, and that statement cannot be found in the original manuscript of the 6th Organon in the handwriting of H. or the copyist - it is only there in Haehl's handwriting. (I can reference this if anyone is interested).

The paragraph in question is aphorism 78 of the 6th edition.

Here is the important part it in German.

In den bluehendsten Juenglingsjahren und beim Anfange geregelter Menstruation, gepaart mit einer fuer Geist, Herz und Körper wohltätigen Lebensweise bleiben sie oft mehrere jahre unkenntlich; die davon Ergriffenen scheinen dann in den Augen ihrer Anverwandten und Bekannten, als wären sie völlig gesund und als wäre die, ihnen durch *ansteckung* oder *erbschaf* eingeprägte Krankheit völlig verschwunden----

Here is the same in English.

"These afflicted appear in the eyes of their relatives and acquaintances as if they were completely healthy and as if the disease, implanted in them through *infection or heredity*, were completely vanished. However, it inevitably comes to the fore again in later years and with adverse events and relationships in life."

Research contained in The Organon of the Medical Art by O'Reilly, 1996 refers to Schmidt's research. There are 7 different handwritings in the 6th Organon and related documents. Most of these insertions are minor involving grammatical changes, the addition of a word or two for the purpose of clarification and grammatical corrections. Schmidt says in the standard edition some of these to be dictations and carry a few notes by Hahnemann and appear authentic.

There are a few insertions noted in the passages that stand out as major changes. One of these is in an unidentified person's writing and the four others are by Haehl. These passages are found in the middle of aphorism 270 and its footnotes fn270g, fn270f. The others are changes in the footnote to 265 and the footnote of 284.

I, and my German colleagues, have checked the Organon der Heilkunst Textkritische Ausgabe der von samuel Hahnemann fuer die sechste Auflage vorgesehen Fassung- Bearbeitet, herausgegeben und mit Vorwort versehen von Joseph M. Schmidt Haug Verlag. We have gone to the text critical version in German and read exactly what Schmidt wrote about the footnote to aphorism 78.

The Schmidt's text critical version says that the footnote to aphorism 78 was written on a separate sheet of paper in italics and placed in Hahnemann's Organon but he did not say it was written in Haehl's handwriting. It is Schmidt's opinion that the statement about heredity of psora in aphorism 78 was written in Hahnemann's handwriting. The footnote to aphorism 78 was not contested by Dr. Schmidt.

The contested passage dealing with heredity is the second half of the footnote to §284. The first half §284 is in the handwriting of Hahnemann were he speaks of transmitting psora through the breast milk if it has not been already passed "by inheritance from the mother". So Hahnemann mentioned "inheritance" twice in his own handwriting. The second half if §284 is written in Haehl's handwriting and is where the text speaks of giving Sulphur to the mother to eradicate psora while she is pregnant and prevent the hereditary transmission of psora to the offspring. This is the contested part of the passage written in Haehl's handwriting.

Dr. Schmidt wrote that the first part of this passage was consistent with what Hahnemann wrote in footnote to §78, which speaks of psora being imparted by “infection and heredity”. In the foreword to the edition, in footnote 63 (p.XXVII) Schmidt explicitly quotes the footnote to aph. 78 as confirming what is written in Haehl's handwriting in the footnote to 284 about heredity through the mother. This statement is also in Hahnemann handwriting and is not contested.

In order to prove that Hahnemann wrote the footnote to aphorism 78, we will now quote exactly what Schmidt wrote in German:

"In § 78, Anm.1 schreibt Hahnemann, daß "chronische Krankheiten" durch Ansteckung oder Erbschaft eingeprägt werden können."

English translation:

"In § 78, footnote 1, Hahnemann writes, that "chronic diseases" can be imprinted through infection or heredity (Erbschaft)".

Turner's Dictionary, published in Leipzig, Germany in the 1830's defines Erbschaft in the following manner.

(1). Erbschaft - heritage, inheritance, succession, heirdom.

In 1840 Hahnemann used the word, Erbschft, to mean inheritance in the sense of biological heredity. At that time, Vererben only meant "to leave or transfer" and had nothing to do with inheritance. Vererbung is used as a modern scientific term in 2004 for inheritance in reference to "transferring" the genetic code. The nature of the DNA was not known in the days of Lamarck and Hahnemann.

I would also like to point out that Hahnemann used the term "hereditary disposition" (Erb-anlagen) in the Chronic Diseases in 1828 when explaining how constitution, temperament, hereditary predispositions and environment, etc., conditioned the symptoms of psora in individuals.

"The awakening of the internal Psora which has hitherto slumbered and been latent, and as it were, kept bound by a good bodily constitution and favorable external circumstances, as well as it breaking out into more serious ailments and maladies, is announced by the increase of the symptoms given above as indicating the slumbering Psora, and also by a numberless multitude of various other signs and complaints. *These are varied according to the difference in the bodily constitution of a man, his HEREDITARY DISPOSITION the various errors in his education and habits, his manner of living and diet, his employment, his turn of mind, his morality, etc.* (BJain publishing, New Delhi). Capitals by DL.

Here is the same passage from the German edition of the Chronic Diseases:

- verschieden je nach der verschiednen KÖRPER - KONSTITUTIONEN
Koerper-Konstitution des Menschen, seiner ERB-ANLAGEN, den verschiednen Fehlern in seiner Erziehung und seiner Angewohnheiten, seiner Lebensweise und Diaet, seiner Beschaeftigungen, seiner Geistes-Richtung, seiner Moralitaet u.s.w." Capitals DL.

1. Körper -konstitutionen means bodily constitutions
2. Erb-anlagen means inherited tendencies

Erb-Anlage was translated by a German-English translator I spoke to as: *hereditary disposition*. which agrees with Tafel's translation.

(1). First of all, Hahnemann used the term "Koeper-Konsititutionen", which is based on the Latin root, constituto, which is the same root as the English word, constitution. This definitely shows that Hahnemann used the term *physical constitution* in the Chronic Diseases and considered it a major conditioning factor along with the *hereditary disposition*, mental character, habits, diet, etc., in the way that psora and other miasms developed different symptoms in individuals. This shows that a study of innate constitution and temperament and their relationship to environment is an important part of homeopathic medicine.

Normally, Hahnemann uses the German word "Beschaffenheit", which general means the "make up" of something. I know that you, Luise, disagree with the definition of this word as constitution in the English translation of the Organon, etc.. Nevertheless, here is how the W. Turner’s Dictionary, published in Leipzig, Germany in the 1830s during the lifetime of Samuel Hahnemann, defines the German term in English.

Beschaffenheit, as nature, quality, temper, condition, constitution, disposition and circumstance.

Therefore, the term Beschaffenheit may include any condition, quality or circumstance related to the nature of the constitution, disposition and temperament when used as a medical term. This show how the term was used in Hahnemann's lifetime in a classical sense. Therefore, in homeopathic medicine, Beschaffenheit, may mean the nature or quality, condition of the constitution, disposition or temperament. The homeopathic usage is related directly to the practice of medicine not the common usage of a lay person on the street. Modern German may no longer clearly convey this meaning.

(2). Secondly, Hahnemann used the term *Erb-anlgen* (Hereditary disposition) in the Chronic Disease and the term, Erbschaft (Heredity) in fn 78. Both these words begin with and share the root *Erb* in German, which is the root for the word inheritance. In Hahnemann's medical usage Erbschaft and Erb-anlgen are terms used by Hahnemann for hereditary factors. Hahnemann did not use the term, Vererbung, in his statements on heredity in the Organon or Chronic Diseases because in the 1830s it only meant "to leave, transfer" not inheritance.

Hahnemann taught that psora (and the miasms) can be imparted in three manners.

1. Direct contact with an infected host.
2. Through infection such as by mother's milk or milk of a wet nurse.
3. By heredity through family (inheritance).

So Luise, I suggest you check Schmidt's text critical version to confirm what I have written. There are some German speaking persons on the list who can also confirm the above. There has been a lot of dis-information and rumors on this point but I believe Dr. Schmidt can be taken as today's most trusted scholar on this subject.

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I am not familiar with the writings of v. Boenninghausen or Allen on miasms, Kent's in this respect seems to be in line with H.

Boenninghausen wrote an article called Anamnesis of Sycosis in his lesser writing in which he used the symptoms of Thuja as characteristic for syscosis and compare some other remedies with it in order to expand the anti-sycotic remedies. Kent did some great work on sycosis! J.H. Allen wrote a fantastic book on called the Chronic Miasms Volumes 1 and 2. His writings on sycosis are brilliant.


I have cut the rest of the thread to make space for my extensive
comments on the heredity of psora


"It is the life-force which cures diseases because a dead man needs no more
medicines."

Samuel Hahnemann

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