Dr. CLEMENS VON BOENNINGHAUSEN
INTRODUCTION
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HISTORY |
PHILOSOPHY |
CONSTRUCTION OF
HIS SIGNATURE
REPERTORY
OTHER WRITINGS
OF THE AUTHOR
INTRODUCTION
Dr. Clemens Maria Franz Von Boenninghausen
[12 March 1785 – 26 January 1864]
Dr. Boenninghausen belonged to an old titled Westphalian family and was born in the
ancestral estate Herinckhave, in Oberyssel, Netherlands.
He attended school in Munster, Germany and graduated as a Doctor of Civil and Criminal
Law from the University of Groningen in 1806. He also studied Natural History and
Medicine at the University.
Thereafter Dr. Boenninghausen practiced as a lawyer at the court of Louis Napoleon, King of
Holland, before returning to home in 1810. On returning home, he devoted himself to the
study of agriculture and botany and then onwards worked as an agriculturalist and botanist.
He formed the first agricultural society in the western part of Germany.
In autumn of 1827, he contracted pulmonary purulent tuberculosis. His health continued to
decline until the spring of 1828, when all hope of his recovery was given up. At this time his
close friend, Dr. August Weihe, a Homoeopath prescribed him Pulsatilla based on a detailed
account of his symptoms. Under Homoeopathic treatment, Boenninghausen's recovered
gradually and by the end of the summer, he was considered as cured.
This event transformed Boenninghausen into a firm believer in Homoeopathy. He revived his
knowledge of medicine and began to practice Homoeopathy. He became an ardent follower
of Dr. S. Hahnemann and remained in close touch with him until his death.
In 1843, Boenninghausen was allowed to practice Homoeopathy by Royal Decree.
Therapeutic Pocket Book, law of Grand Generalization, classification of symptoms in
seven categories to identify individualising symptoms are some of Dr. Boenninghausen’s
greatest contributions to Homoeopathy.
Today Dr. Boenninghausen is considered as one of the greatest Pillars of Homoeopathy.
HISTORY
Since Hahnemannian time and as guided by Dr. Hahnemann, many homoeopaths had
attempted to develop a comprehensive index to the ever-expanding Homoeopathic Materia
Medica. But none were able to produce a repertory that could fulfill all the requisites of the
profession.
Understanding the requirement of the profession, Boenninghausen first introduced the
“Repertory of Anti-psoric Medicines” in 1832 and consequently he published “Repertory of
Medicines which are not Anti-psoric” and “Attempt at showing the relative kinship of
homoeopathic medicines” in 1835 and 1836 respectively.
“Therapeutic Pocket Book for Homoeopathic Physicians to Use at the Bedside and the
Study of Materia Medica” was published in the year 1846 and is seen as his attempt to
produce a concise comprehensive index to the Homoeopathic Materia Medica. This volume
contained the principles, and general method of construction set forth in the former volumes,
much improved and perfected from his constant observations of many years and neatly
constructed to avoid the bulky & confusing features of other early repertories.
This book was originally written in German language and two years after its publication it
was translated into English by an anonymous German homoeopathic physician. However, the
translation was found flawed and was not approved by many physicians of those times.
Later, Hempel and Allen both attempted to translate the Therapeutic Pocket Book.
Hempel’s maintained the same general outlines of the book but his translation was once
again not approved by many; rather he was criticised for his not so careful attempt.
Allen’s edited translation of Therapeutic Pocket Book is considered as the most important
one. He added 220 new remedies to the existing 126 remedies and deducted four remedies
[totaling 342 remedies]. He also rearranged the book.
In 1835, Dr. H. A. Roberts brought out a new edition of Boenninghausen’s Therapeutic
Pocket Book with some minor changes. Now, the number of remedies in Therapeutic Pocket
Book is 360.
PHILOSOPHY
In his writings, Boenninghausen gave clear-cut concepts on the classification of symptoms
of a case. He explained that there were 7 categories into which symptoms could be
effectively classified. They were:
Quis (PERSONALITY OF INDIVIDUAL)
Quid (NATURE OF DISEASE)
Ubi (SEAT OF DISEASE)
Quibus auxilis (ACCOMPANYING SYMPTOMS)
Cur (CAUSE OF DISEASE)
Quomodo (MODALITIES OF AGGRAVATION AND AMELIORATION)
Quando (MODALITIES OF TIME)
While constructing the Therapeutic Pocket Book, Boenninghausen based his grouping of
symptoms on Hahnemann's concepts that the prescription should be based on the “totality of
the case”.
Finding that many symptoms lacked one or more components in their recording, making
them incomplete, Boenninghausen was the first physician to note such incomplete symptoms
both in the case records as well as in the Homoeopathic materia medica.
According to him, a complete symptom consists of the following four components –
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Location – It includes the part, organs or tissues, system, direction and extension
involved in the disease process.
Sensation – Sensation is the change observed in normal function. The kind of pain,
functional or organic change characterizing the morbid process are included under
sensation.
Modality – It includes the circumstances causing, exciting, increasing, or otherwise
causing modification or relief to the suffering.
Concomitant – Along with the three other components of the symptom, there may
occur some expressions which are not directly related to the symptom, but they may
appear or disappear simultaneously with the complaints, called as Concomitants.
These are the expressions of the individual and deserve utmost importance as they
help to individualize and differentiate one case from another and help in prescribing.
Boenninghausen’s Therapeutic Pocket Book is viewed as a logical repertory constructed on
clear-cut concepts –
DOCTRINE OF GRAND GENERALIZATION
Boenninghausen focused more on completing the symptoms with all their components.
However, in practice he found that it was always not possible to find a complete symptom in
case taking or in proving.
To complete the symptom, he applied the modalities and sensations relating to one part of the
body to the other, i.e. he took the local symptoms to the general level, using them for the
whole person.
This is known as the theory of “Grand Generalization”.
Boenninghausen considered that what is true of the Part must be true of the Whole and
concluded that the patient is ill as a whole and not in his parts.
DOCTRINE OF CONCOMITANTS
Concomitant symptoms are those which occur simultaneously with the chief complaint, but
have no physiological or pathological relation with it. It is any unexplainable, unexpected
accompaniment of a symptom.
Therapeutic Pocket Book says the word ‘concomitant’ means “existing or occurring
together”; “attendant”; the noun means “attendant circumstance.”
Boenninghausen was the first one to identify the concomitant symptoms in each case. He
observed that usually these symptoms remain unnoticed by patient as well as by physician.
However, they are vital in individualising the case and prescribing the similimum and hence
Boenninghausen insisted on the inquiry of such symptoms occurring before, during & after
the chief complaint.
“The concomitant symptom is to the totality what the condition of aggravation or
amelioration is to the single symptom.”
CONCORDANCES
Boenninghausen’s keen mind observed that there exists a relationship among many remedies
& added a chapter named as “Concordance of Remedies” in his Therapeutic Pocket Book.
Although Boenninghausen used the word “Concordances”, Allen named it as “Relationships
of Remedies”.
This chapter describes the relationships of remedies under the following headings –
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Head,
Mind,
Localities,
Sensations,
Glands,
Bones,
Skin,
Sleep and dream,
Blood,
Circulation and fever,
Aggravation, other remedies,
Antidotes,
Inimicals
Dr. Robert says that “Some remedies are in harmony with others, some neutral, some
inimical. The most similar ones, as a rule, are complementary. They antidote each other’s
bad effects, follow each other well and often make up for the deficiencies of others.”
CONSTRUCTION OF HIS SIGNATURE REPERTORY
The Therapeutic Pocket Book is planned & constructed in a very simplistic manner to use
and apply it efficiently in practice. Further, Allen’s additions in the plan of Therapeutic
Pocket Book have proved to be useful making its use more clear and precise.
REMEDY GRADATION
The remedy gradation is based on frequency and intensity of the symptoms as reported by the
prover.
Boenninghausen embodied the variation in sizes of type, signifying the varying importance
of the symptom – rubric to the various drugs listed. These five variations indicate the
individual evaluation of each remedy to the given symptom or rubric.
Remedy gradation in Therapeutic Pocket Book is as follows:REMEDY WRITTEN IN
GRADE
CAPITALS
5 marks - I Grade
Bold face
4 marks - II Grade
Italics
3 marks - III Grade
Roman
2 marks - IV Grade
Roman in parenthesis
1 marks - V Grade
PROFORMA OF THE BOOK
Therapeutic Pocket Book is divided into seven parts, as listed below:
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Mind and Intellect
Parts of the Body and organs
Sensations and Complaints
Sleep and Dreams
Fever
Alterations of the State of Health
Relationship of Remedies
MIND AND INTELLECT
We find comparatively few rubrics listed under the section of Mind. This is because
Boenninghausen based his work on the concept of “whole man” simultaneously maintaining
the equation of concomitant symptoms and modalities. He remained solid on his concept of
complete symptom & stated that it is the only method of securing the totality of the case.
He has commented in his preface to Therapeutic Pocket Book that – “ Our Materia Medica
Pura contains nowhere more consecutive effects than amongst the symptoms of the mind and
that on the other hand very often overlook this part of a complete picture of the disease. I
have therefore deemed it advisable to give here only the most essential and predominant
points under as few rubrics as possible, in order to make it more easy to find them out.”
PARTS OF THE BODY AND ORGANS
This section of the book follows, in general, the anatomical plan used by Hahnemann. It
begins with the upper parts[Head] and proceeds downwards to the Mouth, then following the
Alimentary tract downward; next are the Urinary organs, Sexual organs and then the
Respiratory organs[from above downwards].
The plan observed in book is as follows
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Head – External
Head– Internal
Eyes
Vision
Ears
Hearing
Nose
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Smell
Face
Teeth
Mouth
Throat
Hunger and Thirst
Taste
Eructations
Nausea and Vomiting
Abdomen – Internal
Abdomen– External
Flatulence
Stool
Urinary organs
Urine
Micturition
Sexual organs
Menstruation
Leucorrhoea
Respiration
Cough
Air passages
External Throat and Neck
Chest – Internal
Chest – External
Back
Upper Extremities
Lower Extremities
SENSATIONS AND COMPLAINTS
This section contains not only subjective symptoms in the way of true sensations, but many
complaints and many objective symptoms as well, and a few locations. The symptoms also
follow alphabetical order throughout the chapter.
This section is further divided as followsSensations and Complaints
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In general
Of Glands
Of Bones
Of Skin
SLEEP AND DREAMS
This section mainly covers symptoms such as Yawning, Sleepiness, Sleeplessness with their
various modifications; positions in sleep; dreams etc.
FEVER
The original edition of Therapeutic Pocket Book provided seven sub-sections for the chapter
of Fever but in Allen’s edition, they have been removed though the same general outline is
followed.
The original outline was as followsi.
ii.
iii.
iv.
v.
vi.
vii.
Circulation of Blood
Cold Stage
Coldness
Heat
Perspiration
Compound Fevers
Concomitant Complaints
The new outline for Fever chapter is as followsi.
ii.
iii.
iv.
v.
vi.
vii.
viii.
Circulation
Chill – concomitants of chill
Heat - concomitants of heat
Coldness
Shivering
Sweat - concomitants of sweat
Compound Fever
Concomitants – before fever
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during fever
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after fever
ALTERATIONS OF THE STATE OF HEALTH
The original edition of Therapeutic Pocket Book had three sub-sections i.
ii.
iii.
Aggravations according to time
Aggravations according to situations and circumstances
Amelioration by positions and circumstances
In Allen’s edition we find that these sub-sections are removed and only two sub-sections are
maintained, namely Aggravations and Ameliorations.
The section on Aggravations covers a number of conditions, while the section devoted to
Ameliorations is comparatively small. This is because aggravations are much more often
reported by the patient than ameliorations.
RELATIONSHIPS OF REMEDIES
This chapter on relationships is divided into sections, each section being devoted to a
remedy, in alphabetical order. Each of these remedy sections is sub-divided into rubrics.
But unlike other chapters of the repertory, in this chapter, rubrics are not particularized as
symptoms but are generalized in symptom groups.
Each rubric in this chapter of the book corresponds to a general section heading in the first
part of the book.
OTHER WRITINGS OF THE AUTHOR
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1831- The Cure of Cholera and its preventives.
1832- Repertory of the Antipsoric Medicines
1833- Summary view of the chief sphere of operation of the Antipsoric remedies and their
Characteristic Peculiarities, as an appendix to the repertory.
1834- Homoeopathy, a Manual for the Non-medical Public.
1835- Repertory of the Non-Antipsoric Remedies
1836- Attempt at showing the Relative Kinship of Homoeopathic medicines.
1845- Essay on the Homoeopathic treatment of Intermittent Fevers. (Translated by Charles
Julius Hempel)
1846- Therapeutic Pocket Book for Homoeopathic Physicians to Use at the Bedside and
the Study of Materia Medica
1847- Therapeutic Pocket Book for homoeopathist, to be used at the bedside of the patient
and in the study of the Materia Medica (This book contains Concordances of Homoeopathic
remedies)
1849- Brief instructions for non-physicians as to the preventions and cure of Cholera.
1853- The two sides of the human body and relationship.
1854- The sides of the body and Drug affinities, Homoeopathic exercises
1860- The Homoeopathic treatment of Whooping cough in its various forms.
1863- The Aphorisms of Hippocrates, with notes by a Homoeopath.
1873- Homoeopathic Therapies of intermittent and other fevers.
1891- Therapeutic Pocket book for Homoeopathic physicians, to use at the bedside and in the
study of Materia Medica (A new American edition, by Timothy Field Allen where remedies
were included). The index to this book was printed later and placed in the copies as they
were sold.
1808- Lesser writings. Pages 358, B and T. The Indian print of this book is available. It
contains articles written by Boenninghausen and published in contemporary journals.
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