Staphysagria A Live Image.
NATIONAL JOURNAL OF HOMOEOPATHY 1994 May / Jun Vol III No 3.
Parinaz Humranwala.
Materia Medica.
` Staph.
On Independence Day, as I went about my customary morning walk, I noticed scores of children with a miniature tricolor Indian flag pinned on their shirt pockets, enthusiastically on their way to school for the flag hoisting.
The sight of these children brought me back a whole just of memories of Independence Day and Republic Day celebrations, of the sacrifices made by the number of freedom fighters, the aspirations that we had from free India and how badly we had let ourselves down after Independence.
Quite naturally my mind traveled to the man who did the most to Indias struggle for Independence Mahatma Gandhi. As I reached out into the past and ruminated over all that the history books had to say about Mahatma, my Homoeopathic mind raced to the most pertinent question of all What could be the closest Constitutional remedy of the late Mahatma?
Let us go back in time: Mohanlal Gandhi was born in an ordinary family in Porbunder and had an honest and upright childhood and imbibed high values and a disciplined life from his parents. As was the tradition in those days, he travelled to England to study Law, qualified as a Barrister and returned to India. During his stay in England, despite the physical hardships and inconvenience and the various temptations that life in the West offered, he abstained from drinking and remaining a strict vegetarian. When the Mahatma went to South Africa, he found the treatment meted out to Asians and Blacks by the White dominated society shocking, disgusting and most inhuman.
When he was evicted from the First class railway compartment meted only for whites Gandhiji protested and incurred the wrath of the white ticket checker who threw him and his luggage out of the train at the very next station, in the middle of the night. This prompted him to fight and protest against the gross injustice and inhuman conduct of the whites.
(RUBRIC- Ailments from rudeness to others, Ailments from chagrin, Indignation, Mortification, Ailments from wounded honor)
When Gandhiji returned to India, he realized that the only answer to Indias social and economic problems was a free India. He strongly believed that so long as India remained subservient to the British, the British would continue to exploit India socially and economically. Thus came his freedom struggle on a mass scale. He however disapproved of any violent methods for achieving freedom and made ahimsa (non-violence) the basic means for his agitation for freedom.
(RUBRIC- Cannot look at blood wounds)
Gandhiji traveled far and wide throughout India, visiting the remotest areas to understand the problems of the people. He was terribly moved by extreme poverty that he saw amongst people and the sheer brutality with which their hopes and aspirations had been smothered by the dictatorial British regime. He was much disturbed and distressed when he saw that an average Indian did not have access to two square meals a day. Disease and poverty was rampantly widespread.
(RUBRIC- Horrible and sad sores affected him profoundly)
When Gandhiji found that not only was the treatment of Indians by the British deplorable, the conduct of our own people towards the backwards classes of our society was equally shocking and disgusting. He therefore made the abolition of untouchability his war cry and fought for the treatment of Harijans as he preferred to call the backward classes as to the equal to all citizens.
(RUBRIC- Cannot support injustice)
When Gandhiji found that India was being plundered by the British by dumping Indian goods in India thereby crippling the local industry altogether and breaking the backbone of Indias economy, Gandhiji re-enforced the concept of Swadeshi propounded by Dadabhai Nowroji and launched a non-violent movement of boycott of foreign goods. Foreign goods that were brought into India were set to fire to drive home the message to the British that the destruction of the local industry and the economy could not be tolerated.
(RUBRIC- Throw things away, fire wants to set things on)
Gandhijis life was a long series of experiments. He firmly believed in frugality and moderation and was a perfect picture of self-control. In his writings, he has dealt with his experience with truth and self-control in considerable detail and was almost obsessed with the idea of physical, mental and sexual control over the mind and body.
(RUBRIC- Fear of losing self control)
As I walked back home with these thoughts crowding my mind, I was convinced that the closest constitutional remedy for Mahatma Gandhi would have been Staphysagria. On returning home I checked out Clarkes Dictionary to explore more about Staphysagria. Incidently, I found that Clarkes Dictionary mentions Staphysagria as an effective medicine for head lice. Arent the feelings of Staphysagria quite the same as that of any girl who has been spotted having lice on her head by a friend? The feeling of embarrassment and shame would show on her face.
(RUBRIC- Ailments from embarrassment, Ailments rudeness of others).
She launches into deep emotional trauma thinking about how others found the condition of her hair.
(RUBRIC- Despair, Social position in society).
She would be keen to have the lice out of her hair at the earliest
(RUBRIC- Throwing things, desires to).
Lice multiplies very rapidly and that probably accounts for the sexuality of the remedy too.
Staphysagria is often spoken of as a volcano which remains dormant for a long time and then bursts out all of a sudden with red hot lava flowing out of the volcano. The materia medica lists a remedy- "Hecla-lava" a drug made from the fine ash from Mount Hecla falling in the distant localities on eruption of the volcano. The ash of this volcano contains Silica, Alumina, lime, magnesia and some oxide of iron. Unfortunately, the mentals of this remedy are not available and is not proven well. On an experimental basis I recently prescribed to a lady with Staphysagria symptoms (in the eruptive volcano like stage) Hecla-lava. Not only did she feel better after administering of Hecla-lava but also reported toothache which is an essential symptom of the remedy.
