Minutus

Dear Joy,

It would be wonderful if you would share with us what you know about the pond lillies. I found the lack of information on that family really frustrating -- just hints here and there (Nancy Herrick writes, for instance, about another member of this family, and hints at some of the family's possibilities... she indicates that the whole family might be considered among the drug remedies, which I found fascinating, and appropriate for my patient as well).

Basically, I took a few of the peculiars from the descriptions by Boericke and Allen (involuntary seminal emission during urination and also a sensation/ delusion of being covered with flea bites), along with the fixation on sexual matters combined with impotence. I told my client that the remedy I was going to give him was a wild experiment with something that could possibly work very well but about which I didn't have enough information, and gave it to him with his agreement on that basis. Someplace, I had also found a brief reference to giving Nuphar when Cenchris failed (I can't find this again) -- this is what made me look at it in the first place.

Anyway, I still feel frustrated that there's so little to go on in the literature about this remedy and its family members, especially since it worked! I did learn that it's a remedy to consider with deep mental illness when there's a strong sexual component with a lot of guilt and fearful (alternating with ecstatic) religious delusions.

I really appreciated your little essay on being buried in susceptibilities based on lost memories -- that was such a clear and valid insight and your description of it raised it in my consciousness to an important aspect to consider in cases of serious illness -- what lost memories may be buried under there? I guess "lost memory" is also a good metaphor for the concept of miasms -- tying in with another fascinating recent discussion on this list.

And your remark that it all happens under the mud -- brilliant memory hook for thinking of pond lillies!

Thanks. Rosemary

Dear Rosemary, I could easily get lost pondering on the enlightening
concept of miasms as lost memories - real food for thought, thank you


As far as the pondering lilies go I am not sure if I know more than you
and apart from what is already known. Jayesh Shah has done a new?
proving of Nuphar I believe and also one of the Indian Red Pond Lily
(Nymphaea rubra) so that is one link to further information. I will try
and bring together what is already known about the white and yellow
pond lilies, i.e. Nymphaea odorata and Nuphar luteum although I might
have to resort to signatures and such like and know some people do not
care for this, but what the heck, let's go for it.

It really does all happen under the mud, i.e. low down - it is the
lower intestines that are effected and both rx have the early morning
yellow (lutea) diarrhoea and both are rx for dysentary. Also they have
an affinity to the sexual organs - phallic above water but intention
deeply buried.

These rx belong to the Nymphaeaceae family and that says a lot about
them for obvious reasons. All are aquatic so the mud below and the
rising above is crucial. They live above and below; are visible and
invisible; above the water rots and dies away quickly; below the the
water it is buried deep and is productive. The plants reproduce by
rhizomes that are buried anything up to 6ft below the mud whereas the
plant above water soon dies back and rots. So here you have a situation
of a needy personality, unfulfilled and wanting constant attention
(this can take many forms) that can lead to narcissistic tendencies. A
need to rise up and above, be recognised before dying back. It is born
in the mud and has to push its way up to show its beauty.

Because it dies back quickly, the life apparently is short with little
time to fulfill, then this is compensated for by a rapid and powerful
reproduction rate - each plant can double in a day. Needless to say
then this is a very sexy group of rx.

Interestingly the roots have been used as contraceptives as a way of
overcoming this high sexual need and over population and the roots are
also anaphrodisiacs. Perhaps more importantly the roots contain some
kind of steroid that causes infertility. The roots, like so many
plants, also contain alkaloids as well as tannins, gallic acid, ammonia
(link to the diarrhoea??) and tartaric acid etc.

Herbal use = dysentary, gonorrhea, leucorrhea, boils, tumours, ulcers,
uterine cancer. Nymphaea odorata has an affinity to the mucous tissues
- bronchial, gastro, bladder - Tuberculosis, haemorrhage from the lungs
and kidney inflammations. It has a connection to purity (being a white
flower) and is known as the dissipater of venereal desires. Lilies
generally have links with goddesses.

Above water level so to speak, in Nuphar lutea there is a lot of skin
eruptions, scaly, intensely itchy, hair falls out. There is a heaviness
in the head and the brain feels as though shaken. The base of the brain
is especially effected. This shaking feeling might be a sensation
running through the family and it is felt in a number of organs. Why? I
think this is curious and might have something to do with possible
insect entrapment within the plant - shaking to get out - thus bringing
in another emotional/mental level - that of excessive moral sensibility
extending to religious mania and/or guilt as well as the intense
sympathy felt by Nuphar lutea as it connects with others who suffer as
much. This entrapment also links in with the feeling of being
unfulfilled before dying.

I am wondering if the association with drug remedies is because the
related rx include Agnus castus and Yohimbinum and to a lesser degree
Podophyllum and Gambogia although the latter two have a stronger
connection to the diarrhoea. This diarrhoea or dysentary state is
linked to the emotional one as well though because it is a purging in
the same way that the "headache, the feeling of shaking in the head is
linked to the depressed states of the generative organs" - shaking =
purging = ridding oneself of guilt.

There has to be a connection between Cenchris and Nuphar lutea because
of the yellow diarrhoea in the morning + other yellow discharges and
the lascivious nature in both rx. Nuphar also has an intolerance of
being contradicted and as it is a sympathetic rx there will be mood
changes that will be similar to that in Cenchris.

I hope this isn't too much of a leap into the unknown depths of the
pond. Best wishes, Joy
http://www.homeopathicmateriamedica.com
http://www.homeopathicmateriamedica.blogspot.com
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Thanks, Joy -- interesting! Rosemary