Commelinales

by Jan Scholten

English: Dayflower family; Spiderwort family

Clades: Commelinoids; Liliidae; Lilianae; Angiospermae; Plants

Series: Hydrogen series; Carbon series; Silicon series; emphasis on Silicon series

Introduction
The Order of Commelinales was virtually unknown in homeopathy until a few years ago. The only remedy known was Lachnanthes, and the picture was quite insufficient. Lachnanthes was known for one keynote, torticollis, but there was no essence or mind picture. Gradually, the knowledge is growing as new remedies are added to this family and knowledge is coming from proving and cases.

Marriage
A central theme is that of marriage, the relationship with others in general – the basic theme of the Liliidae. Generally, people who need Commelinales experience relationships as something fixed and lasting. For them, relationships are obvious and they need to feel at home in their relationship, which they normally do. This is the quality of Phase 4. The Commelinales share this quality with the other Commelinoids.

Used
The problems often start in a situation where they feel used or abused. They get the feeling that they always have to give and get little in return. This can be with their spouse who is in trouble, sick or depressed. Usually, they like to give but it becomes too much, and they feel sucked dry. This makes them doubt whether they want to continue the relationship, which is in conflict with their original belief that relationships are forever. They can consider a divorce or they can stay in the relationship filled with bitterness and a feeling of injustice; the way they are treated feels unfair but there seems to be no way out of the situation. This quality of being used is an expression of the quality Phase 6; Commelinales is in Subphase 6.

The feeling of being used can arise from many situations. They can feel overburdened by their husband or wife, or their children can demand too much because they have mental problems like ADD, psychosis or depression, or because they are physically ill, mentally or physically handicapped. Another situation is that their parents become sick, demented or paralysed, and need care. If there is a combination of problems concerning the partner, the children or the parents, it is really too much. This is even more so because they are very loyal and it seems to them that it is their duty to take on the care of the family.

The Phase 6 quality can be seen symbolically in the plants deceiving pollinators by appearing to offer a larger reward than is actually present; they take more than they give.

Comment
The above picture has already been described in essence in Wonderful Plants. It has, however, become more developped. New cases of Lachnathes published on the Qjure (?)  website confirm the picture. A beautiful case of Tradescantia is described in this issue of Interhomeopathy. A proving has been done of Commelina mascarensis, which will be published in Nosy Be Provings.

There was a problem with the placement of the Commelinales in the Plant theory. In the APG3 classification: as an Order it is in the Superorder Commelinoids. The Plant theory, however, has no Superorders, which distort the structure of the classification. In the Plant theory, the solution is to treat Commelinoids as an Order and the Orders in it as Family. So, Commelinales is placed at the level of Family in the Plant theory and the Families are merged in Commelinales; one could say they are treated as Subfamilies.

This strategy is confirmed more and more. Lachnanthes, of the Subfamily Haemodoraceae, has the same basic picture as Tradescantia from the Subfamily Commelinaceae and Pontederia from the Subfamily Pontederiaceae. From the point of view of the Plant theory, it is best to treat the Order Commelinales as the Family Commelinaceae, including the members of the families Haemodoraceae, Pontederiaceae, Phylidraceae and Hanguanaceae, the last two of which have only one Genus.

Mind
Loyal to their family, relatives, and friends

Family is very important

Feeling used and abused by their family, relatives, and friends

Stable, quiet, going on, not easily disturbed

Feeling bitter, life is unfair

Seductive, coquettish, wanting to be attractive, and needing to be loved

Fear: being dirty, ugly; being unloved; being used

Botany
40 genera; 650 species; great variation in morphology, especially of the flower and inflorescence, flowers short-lived, lasting for a day or less, offer only pollen; deceive pollinators by appearing to offer a larger reward than is actually present. This is accomplished with various adaptations, such as yellow hairs or broad anther connectives that mimic pollen, or staminodes that lack pollen but appear like fertile stamens.

Subfamilies
- Commelinaceae: Aetheolirion, Amischotolype, Aneilema, Anthericopsis, Belosynapsis, Buforrestia, Callisia, Cartonema, Cochliostema, Coleotrype, Commelina, Cyanotis, Dichorisandra, Dictyospermum, Elasis, Floscopa, Geogenanthus, Gibasis, Gibasoides, Matudanthus, Murdannia, Palisota, Plowmanianthus, Pollia, Polyspatha, Porandra, Pseudoparis, Rhopalephora, Sauvallea, Siderasis, Spatholirion, Stanfieldiella, Streptolirion, Tapheocarpa, Thyrsanthemum, Tinantia, Tradescantia, Tricarpelema, Triceratella, Tripogandra, Weldenia

- Hanguanaceae: Hanguana

- Haemodouraceae: Anigozanthos, Barberetta, Blancoa, Conostylis, Dilatris, Haemodourum, Lachnanthes, Macropidia, Phlebocarya, Pyrrorhiza, Schiekia, Tribonanthes, Wachendorfia, Xiphidium

- Philydraceae: Helmholtzia, Philydrella, Philydrum

- Pontederiaceae: Eichhornia, Heteranthera, Hydrothrix, Monochoria, Pontederia, Scholleropsis

Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Commelinale communis; Raggaeman; Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license