Miasms in labour’ discusses a revision of the homoeopathic theory of the miasms. It starts with researching an analogy between the birth process and the miasms. A deeper analysis of the miasms leads to a new perception of them. By discussing their connection with the individuation process their function in the development of the human psyche is clarified. A book with a refreshing and challenging view on the miasms, written in a clear and comprehensive way.

Corrie Hiwat

For some two centuries homoeopathy had no connections with the mainlands of science. In this book Harry van der Zee is building a bridge with psychology. He makes a connection between the miasms and the birth process … and succeeds in giving the miasms a much greater depth by connecting them with the individuation process. Apart from this ‘Miasms in labour’ is already a valuable book for all the beautiful cases and remedy pictures. Jan Scholten This book of Harry van der Zee on a new understanding of the miasms and the essences of many remedies through the process of pregnancy and birth is brilliant.

Jan Scholten

This book is an important step towards a deeper understanding of miasms and its application into practice. The connection that Harry made between pregnancy, birth, biblical stories on the creation of the world, mythology and psycholo-gy is wonderful. This book helped me in realizing better the truth and depth of homoeopathy. After reading the book, I felt much more confident in the ability of homoeopathy to treat and cure severe pathologies, by using the miasmatic approach.

Intro

For some two centuries homoeopathy was like an island emerging in the ocean of subconsciousness. Homoeopathy didn’t have any connections with the mainlands of science like mathematics, physics, chemistry, allopathy, psychology, sociology, philosophy et cetera. The last decade bridges are being built between the island of homeopathy and the mainlands. In this book Harry van der Zee is building a bridge with psychology. He makes a connection between the miasms and the birth process as discovered by Stanislav Grof. The title ‘The Birth of the Miasms’ makes this clear. Harry shows the connections between the stages in the birth process as found by ‘rebirthing’ and the miasms.

Important here is the concept of ‘process’. For a long time homoeopathy has been dominated by static thinking. We see this in the idea of constitutional remedies expressed as ‘this is a Sulphur patient’, in the idea of fixed remedy pictures and in the idea of ‘the patient was cured’. Harry emphasizes the dynamic aspects in homoeopathy, in the miasms. Just as the birth in itself is a process, as life is a process. It’s not by chance that Hahnemann named the life force ‘dynamis’.

A second bridge is build to the psychology of Jung. Harry succeeds in giving the miasms a much more depth by connecting them with the individuation process.

One of the consequences of his search is that the miasms are not only disease, bad and ugly. Harry makes it clear that the miasms are needed in the process of development. For instance, the syphilitic miasm is not only destruction, but also unification; it’s not only the dragon, but also the hero conquering the dragon. Harry gives the example of the beautiful fairy tail of the princess and the frog. We can see the princes as the psoric stage and the frog as the sycotic stage. When they come together we get the syphilitic stage. First as a split with the uglyness of the frog and disgust of the princess. Later we see the unification in the princess kissing the frog and the marriage with the prince. This is a beautiful example of ‘the unity of the two opposites’. Often in homoeopathy we start with he ugly, dirty, bad and diseased side of remedy or patient. It’s one of the merits of Harry not to stop at this point, but to go further and search for the healthy, curing side of the miasms.

Now we can also build a bridge to the philosophy of Hegel. Hegel developed his dialectics, a philosophy of development and process. He made three stages: thesis, antithesis and synthesis. In these we can see psora, sycosis and syphilis. Important for this bridge is notion that the concept of unification is strongly connected to syphilis. And that’s one of the ideas Harry gives us in this book.

We are lucky that Harry van der Zee by accident (!) came in contact with ‘rebirthing’ and also by accident (!, a dream) came in contact with homoeopathy. So he could give homoeopathy and the homoeopathic community this bridge. Harry did that not only by knowing the two ‘islands’, but also by thinking it over, giving his attention and energy to it and let it ripen in his subconsciousness.

Apart from all the above gifts ‘The birth of the Miasms’ is already a valuable book for all the beautiful cases and remedy pictures Harry is giving.

Content

0 Introduction 17
1 Realms of the human unconscious 21
2 What the fetus experiences 23
3 Birth language 27
4 Symptoms from pregnancy and birth 31
5 Trillium pendulum: the wise owl 39
6 Birth, a guided tour along the miasms 47
6.1 Pre-miasmatic state 48
6.1.0 Pre-miasmatic remedies 54
6.1.1 Hydrogenium 54
6.1.2 Helium 55
6.1.3 Cannabis-indica 56
6.1.4 Anhalonium 57
6.2 Psoric miasm – the ‘expulsion from paradise’ 58
6.2.0 Psoric remedies 61
6.2.1 Sulphur 61
6.2.2 Lycopodium 62
6.2.3 Calcarea carbonica 62
6.2.4 Silica 63
6.2.5 Psorinum 64
6.3 Transition from psora to sycosis 66
6.3.1 Tuberculinum 66
6.3.2 Calcarea phosphorica 68
6.4 Sycotic miasm – ‘no exit’ or ‘eternal hell’ 70
6.4.0 Sycotic remedies 76
6.4.1 Thuja occidentalis 76
6.4.2 Sabina 78
6.4.3 Anacardium 79
6.4.4 Lac caninum 80
6.4.5 Staphysagria 81
6.4.6 Nitricum acidum 81
6.4.7 Mancinella 82
6.4.8 Medorrhinum 82
6.5 Transition from sycosis to syphilis 85
6.5.1 Gelsemium 85
6.5.2 Cimicifuga 87
6.5.3 Chamomilla 88
6.5.4 Coffea cruda 89
6.5.5 Argentum nitricum 90
6.5.6 Lyssinum 90
6.5.7 Mezereum 91
6.5.8 Carcinosinum 93
6.6 Syphilitic miasm and the ‘death-rebirth struggle’ 94
6.6.0 Syphilitic remedies 98
6.6.1 Lachesis muta 98
6.6.2 Tarentula hispanica 99
6.6.3 Platinum 100
6.6.4 Aurum 101
6.6.5 Mercurius 103
6.6.6 Thallium 103
6.6.7 Plumbum 103
6.6.8 Bismuth 104
6.6.9 Arsenicum album 104
6.6.10 Nitricum acidum 105
6.6.11 Fluoricum acidum 105
6.6.12 Cuprum 105
6.6.13 Syphilinum 107
6.7 Transition from syphilis to acute 109
6.7.1 Radium bromatum 109
6.7.2 Plutonium nitricum 109
6.8 Acute miasm and the ‘death-rebirth experience’ 111
6.8.0 Acute remedies 114
6.8.1 Stramonium 114
6.8.2 Belladonna 116
6.8.3 Aconite 117
6.8.4 Opium 118
6.8.5 Hyoscyamus 120
6.8.6 Veratrum album 121
6.8.7 The Uranium series 123
7 Miasms and the individuation process 124
7.1 Pre-individuation 127
7.1.1 Jungian psychology 127
7.1.2 Mythology 129
7.1.3 The kingdoms 130
7.1.4 Qualities 131
7.2 Departure 132
7.2.1 Persona 133
7.2.2 Psoric miasm 133
7.2.3 Psoric miasm and mythology 134
7.2.4 Psoric miasm and the mineral kingdom 134
7.2.5 Psoric qualities 136
7.3 Descent 136
7.3.1 Shadow 136
7.3.2 Sycotic miasm 137
7.3.3 Sycotic miasm and mythology 139
7.3.4 Sycotic miasm and the plant kingdom 140
7.3.5 Sycotic qualities 140
7.4 Ascent 142
7.4.1 The soul image: anima and animus 142
7.4.2 The spiritual principle: spirit and matter 144
7.4.3 Syphilitic miasm 144
7.4.4 Syphilitic miasm and mythology 145
7.4.5 Syphilitic miasm and the animal kingdom 146
7.4.6 Syphilitic qualities 146
7.5 Atonement 148
7.5.1 The Self 148
7.5.2 Acute miasm 149
7.5.3 Acute miasm and mythology 149
7.5.4 Acute miasm and the human kingdom 150
7.5.5 Acute qualities 151
8 A cosmological survey 154
9 An artistic expression of the miasms 159
10 Miasms in perspective 170