Mammals - Spectrum of Homeopathy 02/2022

“Milk Remedies – Essence of Mammals” was the title we initially chose for this edition. Milk is the substance that represents the special characteristics of this animal and remedy class, for caring and nourishing, for closeness and warmth, for the protection of the group. The maternal bond is particularly strong in the marsupials, as we can see in Savitha Ananth’s case of Lac macropus. And Luke Norland’s history of another marsupial milk, the koala, is also characterised by dependence on the affection of others. In our practices we see especially the lack of typical mammal qualities – they suffer from coldness, distance and neglect, and are not properly taken care of. There are problems of dependence and addiction, eating or digestive disturbances, often in connection with milk or problems of the mammary glands.

We can find all these themes in an exemplary fashion in the familiar remedy Lac defloratum, which is found in Jonathan Hardy’s case, where he describes the great longing for warmth. The relation to the mammary gland is shown by Obidullah Nayaghar with a case of Lac bubali for mammary carcinoma. And Ghanshyam Kalathia, whose group of Indian homeopaths has again made a major contribution to this edition, summarises the similarities of the bovine remedies using a case of Lac ovis. The pronounced dependence in the remedy picture also originates from the fact that these animals are domesticated.

Although this is also the case for the milk remedy of camels, it is noticeably different from bovine remedies, as illustrated in the case by Ganeshwara Rao. Rao’s case of Lac lama shows streaks of stubbornness and dogmatism. This is quite different again in the remedy picture of Lac loxodonta africana, the milk of the wild African elephant. In the cases described by the South African homeopath Natalya Dinat, we see strong, dignified and caring personalities. All the remedies mentioned so far originate from the milk of peaceful plant eaters and herd animals. This group, together with the milk remedies of dogs and cats – which we already presented in SPECTRUM 01/2012 – has long determined our picture of the mammal remedies. In recent years our materia medica has been enriched by other facets of the most highly developed animals. Misha Norland introduced the weasels with the badger to homeopathy, based on a classical remedy proving. Deborah Collins, however, relies on the zoological knowledge of squirrels in the absence of a remedy proving. Her successful treatment confirms the hypothetical remedy diagnosis, and such ‘solved cases’ can extend our treasure chest of homeopathic knowledge.

Since the basis of many of these new remedies is no longer milk, we had to alter the title of this edition to make it more general. Mammal remedies does not automatically mean milk remedies. There is the blood of the bear, the flesh of a badger that has been run over, the hair of the fallow deer or the secretions of the scent gland of the musk deer. The two deer remedies have also found their way into the zoological pharmacy of this edition. It is an interesting question whether these lactose-free starting substances have a similar relationship to the female breast, milk allergies or eating disorders as milk.

This brief introduction to our topic mentions a range of different characteristics that enable a rough differentiation of the mammal remedies according to their origin. It can make a difference to the remedy picture whether we are dealing with the secretion of the mammary or scent gland, originating from a domesticated or wild animal, from a plant or meat eater, and from predator or prey. And then there is the differentiation between a land and sea animal. We could not omit the major marine mammals of the world from this edition and Sigrid Lindemann’s final article differentiates dolphins, killer whales and blue whales. So although this edition is certainly comprehensive, we must admit that it can still only offer a small selection of the vast range of our closest relatives.