Editorial: the Rosaceae family and the thorny side of love

With this issue, we come to the end of the year 2012, a year, which according to ancient traditions, could held a special significance as being the end of an era. Some regard it with dismay, as though it heralds the end of the world, while others remind us that every ending is also a beginning; the end of old certainties and habits can create space for growth, room to breathe. To celebrate the occasion, we would like to offer you a beautiful bouquet of roses. With their capacity for healing traumas of the heart, the Rosaceae can help us along the way, shedding fear and bitterness, and opening our hearts to the fullness of life.

The rose family includes many unexpected members – not only the garden variety roses belong to it, but many of our fruits as well: apples, pears, peaches, cherries, plums, and raspberries, among others. According to Jan Scholten, the rose family relates to problems concerning romantic love, in all its varieties. The physical seat of love, the heart, is the main centre of their action on the body. From the epitome of lovelessness, as seen in Hydrocyanic acid (a component of many of the rose remedies), to the insecurity concerning love situations, as seen in remedies such as Malus (apple), to the peak of romantic love, as seen in Rosa damascena, to the hard-heartedness of disappointed love, as seen in Crataegus, one can see the full spectrum of the problematic side of love being played out. Thankfully, these remedies heal not only the physical aspect, sometimes in a spectacular fashion, but also relieve the underlying tensions that bring on these complaints. Sankaran points out the sensation found in these remedies: largely due to the presence of hydrocyanic acid, there is a feeling of suffocation, along with symptoms of cyanosis. Pinching sensations are also felt. In practice, it is often helpful to utilise both approaches for finding these remedies, as the patient’s story can give clues in this direction, which can be confirmed by the sensations.

An overview of the themes and the remedies in their various stages, as described by Jan Scholten, is given, as well as the miasms, according to Rajan Sankaran.

Ulrich Welte presents short cases of Agrimonia eupatoria, for those who feel an acute lack of love in their life, yet put on a cheerful face, and of Crataegus oxyacantha, for those who fight till the bitter end.

Laurie Dack proposes the moving case of a young girl whose pregnancy and childhood reflect the situation of not only her mother but also of her grandmother – holding their breath at the thought that their lover could leave them when they became pregnant.

Jan Scholten and Maarten van der Meer each present each a case of Sorbus domestica, a little known remedy which is useful when one suffers from the feeling that the partner is not open and trusting in the relationship.

A case of Anne Wirtz, earlier published in Interhomeopathy, is republished here, showing the problems related to disappointment in romantic love.

Alex Leupen’s patient, too, shows the thorny side of love, with a case of Prunus spinosa.

Included in this issue is an introduction to a thesis on the spiritual side of homeopathy and its application to practice: “Hahnemann’s Heavenly Rose”. Apparently, Hahnemann, with his deep spiritual understanding, implicit in “Know Thyself”, gave special significance to the rose, mentioning it three times in the Provings chapter of the Organon. The author of this thesis, Sarah Schall, has researched recent provings of rose species (the garden flower), regarding the material with an eye to its spiritual implications. She points out various ways in which one could better understand the patient’s experiences, if one has a spiritual framework in which to place them. By opening oneself to a broader scope, it is possible to understand and treat our patients more fully.

Finally, the last but not least rose of the bouquet. Jeremy and Camilla Sherr have sent us a follow-up on their progress in Tanzania, “Letter from Africa 2”. Words fail us to describe the amazing work that these two wonderful people, and those around them, are doing, and not least of all is the empowerment of African people trained to the wonders of homeopathy, so they can pass their knowledge on to their own people. In their own words: “It was beautiful to hear them teach homeopathy in Swahili. They did not need us!”      

We hope you will enjoy this excitingly fragrant issue and wish you all the best for the passing of this year to the next.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Flower bouquet; Ken Funakoshi