The Four Cardinal Principles

[David Little]

Dear Students and Colleagues,

I believe that their are four major pillars of homeopathy. These are
similars cure similars; the single remedy; the minimal dose, and the
potentized remedy. These are the checks and balances that Hahnemann
introduced to make our healing art a safe and effective method. Everyone
who follows these four principles is a true homeopath in my books no
matter what their particular style. I would like to review these points
more closely and elucidatw how the work together.

1. The principle of similars curing similars is part of Nature and the
foundation of our healing art. This principle comes first although it has
a very broad application and can be used in a number of different ways.
This principle can be applied on individuals as well as collective groups
suffering from fixed diseases of common cause and similar symptoms.
Hahnemann even pointed out that nosodes are potentized in a manner that
makes them similar to the natural diseases not the same as the infective
agent. It would be very dangers if one tried to use the same substance on
the physical level. The law of similars has been quote since the time of
Hippocrates but it has always had limited applications because of its
inherent dangers. Paracelsus did his best to overcame the dangers through
alchemical processes but only attained limited success. It was Hahnemann
who finally worked out a system of checks and balances that allows one to
use the law of similars in a global fashion.

2. The single remedy. Some misconstrue the principle of the single
remedy to mean one single remedy throughout treatment. This is not the
case. It simply means to give one single remedy at the time rather than
more than one remedy at once. This is because the vital force can respond
to its fullest potential to dynamic remedies when it can focus all of its
energy on one response at a time. It also allows one to know exactly what
their medicine is really doing without confusing the issue with several
medicinal substances at once. Hahnemann used a chief remedy over longer
periods of time but he also used tandem remedies, alternations and a series
of remedy when he thought they were needed. I always try to use as few
remedies as possible to get the job done. If you use your repertory and
materia medica well and build a base of clinical experience one finds that
one can do more and more with less and less.

3. The minimal dose. This maxim is rarely understood. Some persons
continue to mix this point up with the idea of using high potencies.
Hahnemann made it very clear that the size of the dose is different than
the original amount of the substances found in a potentized remedy. In the
6th Organon he wrote that the size of the dose becomes all that more
critical the more homeopathic the remedy and the higher the potency. Too
many pills, too drops and too many teaspoons lead to over medication and
causes unneeded aggravations, accessory symptoms and antagonistic counter
actions of the vital force.

This is why Hahnemann no longer used the full drop doses when he got to
30c and began to put 1 drop on 500 tiny poppy seed size pellets. Then he
only gave the patient 1 or 2 of these tiny pills. Later he began to take 1,
rarely 2 of these tiny pills and making up 8 tablespoons medicinal
solutions, etc. This was introduced to control the size of the dose and the
potency factors more precisely and make it possible to adjust the remedy
very carefully. The smaller the dose the more easy it is to repeat the
remedy, if and when needed to speed the cure.

4. The potentized remedy. Potency as we know it began when Hahnemann made
up the 3c potency, which was his Roman numeral I potency. This is when he
wrote the classical "What are Medicines and What are Poisons" and prove
Arsenicum on himself. Hahnemann did not used the C scale in the same manner
as many today. He potentized his remedy by 1, 000, 000s each time so he
only used used the roman numbers I (3C), II (6C), III (9C), IV (12C), V
(15C), VI (18C), VII (21C), VIII (24C), IX (27C), and X (30C). His favorite
potencies in the clinic were the 6c, 12c, 18c, 24c and 30c. The means his
scale increased in 3 degrees per potency and he like to use remedies 6
degrees in potency apart. This is Hahnemann's series and degrees! When he
started using the high potencies like 198c, 199c, 200c he started using
Arabic numbers in his casebooks. Of course his last experiments were with
the LM potency 0/1 to 0/30.

In his early career Hahnemann used grains and drops of single
remedies. Compared to others he was using the minimal dose because he
always tried to use a little as possible not as much as one can. Some
parties say that using crude doses is not homeopathy but I would say it is
early homeopathy. All editions of the Organon from the 1st to the 6th work
on their own levels. Once in a while I will use a drop of a remedy like
Crateagus in a serious heart failure, etc. This is more like Hahnemann in
1810 than 1840! Some homeopaths still swear by the "magic of mother
tinctures". Even Hahnemann still used the crude arnica tincture in bangs
and bruises while giving internal arnica even in his last years. I have
documented these prescriptions. There is still room for mother tinctures of
non toxic plants although the minerals, poisons and most animal remedies
can't be used in this way. The miracle of potency is that it opened up the
door to using *anything* as a medicine. That is truly fantastic. Before the
minimal dose and the potentized remedy the law of similar was hard to
control and only had limited applications.

I call these areas of homeopathy the four cardinal principles because
they are the lowest common denominator. These are the checks and balances
that Hahnemann introduce to make our system safe and effective. With this
as a basis there is a tremendous variety of schools and methods that do
good work. Lastly, I would like to say that the 4th, 5th and 6th Organon
all work well on their own levels. The dry dose, olfaction and the
medicinal solutions are all safe and effective methods when they are
applied in a proper manner. Although, I often speak about the medicinal
solution I am very well aware that the dry dose, when giving in a proper
small dose, is an effective method. The point is use the tiny amount
possible like 1 or 2 small pills. These should only be increased if
necessary. Too many pharmacies and practitioners still believe in Kent's
misguided idea that the size of the dose does not matter. It is time to
understand the importance of the minimal dose.

Hahnemann even spoke about using 1 dry pill fo the LM potency the 6th
Organon although I have yet to find a case where he used the LMs this way.
The key when using the dry dose is to keep the size of the dose to a
minimum. Large amounts and random numbers of pills are often counter
productive in the long run because they accumulate in the vital force and
can lead to over medication. Over medication is the number one cause of
side-effects. Once this is understood homeopathy is very safe because of
the system of checks and balances enshrined in the four cardinal
principles. When one ignores the cardinal principles they move into
experimental ground and uncharted waters.
Simila Minimus,
Sincerely, David Little

PS. All you old homeopaths and others who may have heard this all before
please excuse me. Those who don't like what I have written may press on
their trash icon. There are always persons new to homeopathy on these
lists. I always try to write things for them that I think are important.