The mind of Bovista lycoperdon: a tri-miasmatic analysis

Dr Kuruvila Sebastian 

ABSTRACT
Bovista Lycoperdon is a remedy belonging to the family of fungi. The evolution of mind of this particular remedy is not well depicted in most of the Materia medicas and therefore, this remedy has not been explored as a constitutional remedy, though there are many mental symptoms mentioned in the various repertories. This article is a humble attempt to trace the evolution of mind of Bovista Lycoperdon by classifying the rubrics at a tri-miasmatic level.

INTRODUCTION
Bovista lycoperdon commonly known as puff ball, is a remedy belonging to the family of fungi. Though it has a wide range of symptoms recorded in the various Materia medicas and repertories, clinically most of the practitioners limit its use to cases of skin complaints and female complaints. And very rarely it has been prescribed constitutionally or based on mind symptoms. One of the reasons behind this is that the mind symptoms of this remedy have not been well depicted in most of the Materia medicas, though there are 254 rubrics in the ‘Mind’ chapter of Synthesis repertory and 300 symptoms in the ‘Mind’ chapter of Complete repertory.

Also, it is important to study a remedy from the miasmatic point of view, especially the mind symptoms as it helps to understand the evolution of the personality/constitution of the remedy. So, it becomes easy to select the similimum by matching with the patients’ symptoms. Grading of symptoms based on miasms also help in selecting the best suitable rubrics for the given case.

Listed below are the tri- miasmatic evolution of mind of Bovista:

PSORA	SYCOSIS	SYPHILIS
ABSENTMINDED	ABSORBED	ABSTRACTION OF MIND
ANXIETY	AILMENTS FROM – sexual excesses	ALCOHOLISM
ANXIETY – chill – during	AMBITION – increased	ANGER – alternating with – exhilaration
ANXIETY – driving from place to place	ANGER	ANGUISH
ANXIETY – fever – during	ANGER – work – aversion to	AVERSION – everything, to
ANXIETY – headache; with	ANXIETY – fear; with	AVERSION – everything, to – dinner; after
ANXIETY – health; about – own health; one’s	ANXIETY – inactivity, with	AVERSION – everything, to – urticaria; in
ANXIETY – perspiration – during	CAPRICIOUSNESS	AWKWARD
ANXIETY – stool – before	COMPANY – aversion to	AWKWARD – drops things
ANXIETY – vexation – after	COMPANY – aversion to – alone amel.; when	CHAOTIC
ANXIETY – waking, on	COMPANY – desire for	COITION – after agg.
CHEERFUL	COMPANY – desire for – alone agg.; when	COMA
CHEERFUL – company, in	CONCENTRATION – difficult	CONFUSION of mind – coition – after
COMMUNICATIVE	CONCENTRATION – difficult – attention, cannot fix	CONFUSION of mind – knows not where he is – night
COMPANY – desire for – amel. in company	COURAGEOUS	CONFUSION of mind – knows not where he is – waking, on
CONFUSION of mind	CURSING	CONFUSION of mind – rising – after
CONFUSION of mind – vertigo, with	DISCONTENTED	CONFUSION of mind – standing, while
CONFUSION of mind – wine; after	DISCONTENTED – everything, with	CONFUSION of mind – stooping, when
FORGETFUL	DULLNESS	CONFUSION of mind – time; as to
HURRY	DULLNESS – head – complaints of head; with	DELIRIUM – look fixed on one point
INTROSPECTION	DULLNESS – headache, with	DELIRIUM – pains – with the
IRRITABILITY	DULLNESS – mental symptoms; during	DELUSIONS –Enlarged
IRRITABILITY – headache, during	DULLNESS – standing – agg.	DELUSIONS – enlarged – body is
IRRITABILITY – Head; with complaints of	DULLNESS – waking, on	DELUSIONS – enlarged – body is – parts of body
IRRITABILITY – sadness, with	EXHILARATION	DELUSIONS – enlarged – distances are
IRRITABILITY – taking everything in bad part	EXPANSIVE	DELUSIONS – enlarged – objects are
IRRITABILITY – waking, on	FEAR	DELUSIONS – large – parts of body seem too large
MEMORY – active	FEAR – contagion	DELUSIONS – specters, ghosts, spirits – seeing
MILDNESS	FEAR – disease, of impending	DELUSIONS – strange – familiar things seem strange
MISTAKES; making	FEAR – disease, of impending – contagious, epidemic diseases; of	DELUSIONS – – swollen, is
NAÏVE	FEAR – driving him from place to place	DELUSIONS – vermin – seeing vermin crawl about
QUARRELSOME	FEAR – infection, of	DELUSIONS – water – of
RESTLESSNESS	FEAR – insanity	DELUSIONS – worms – creeping of
RESTLESSNESS – anxious	FEAR – waking, on – dream, from a	DESPAIR
RESTLESSNESS – chill – during	FIGHT, wants to	EATING – after – agg.
RESTLESSNESS – heat – during	GRIEF	HEEDLESS
RESTLESSNESS – perspiration – during	IDEAS – deficiency of	HOPEFUL – alternating with – despair
SADNESS	JESTING – aversion to	HYSTERIA – hypochondriasis; with
SADNESS – alone – when	LASCIVIOUS	IMBECILITY
SADNESS – company – amel.	LAZINESS	INDIFFERENCE
SADNESS – gloomy	LAZINESS – sadness, from	INDIFFERENCE – company, society – while in
SADNESS – work-shy persons; in	LAZINESS – eating, after	INDIFFERENCE – everything, to
SENSES – vanishing of – vertigo; with	LOQUACITY	INDIFFERENCE – external things; to
SENSITIVE	MEMORY – weakness of memory	INDIFFERENCE – life, to
SENSITIVE – opinion of others; to the	MEMORY – weakness of memory – done; for what he just has	INDIFFERENCE – company, society – while in – amel.
SENSITIVE – urticaria, in	MISTAKES; making – localities, in	INDIFFERENCE – morose
STARTING – dreams, in – from a dream	MISTAKES; making – speaking, in	INDISCRETION
STARTING – sleep – during	MISTAKES; making – speaking, in – words	INSANITY
UNCONSCIOUSNESS – vertigo, during	MISTAKES; making – time, in	IRRITABILITY – alternating with – cheerfulness
	MISTAKES; making – writing, in	IRRITABILITY – coition – after
WEEPING – spasmodic – asthma; with	MISTAKES; making – writing, in – omitting – syllables	LAUGHING – alternating with – weeping
	MISTAKES; making – writing, in – vertigo; with	LAUGHING – asthma; with
	MISTAKES; making – writing, in – wrong – words	LOATHING – life
	MOROSE	LOQUACITY – openhearted
	MOOD – changeable	MENTAL SYMPTOMS – accompanied by – physical symptoms
	ORIENTATION; sense of – decreased	MISTAKES; making – space; in
	OFFENDED, easily	MISTAKES; making – space; in – time; and in
	PROSTRATION of mind	MOOD – alternating
	QUARRELSOME	MOROSE – alternating with – cheerfulness
	SECRETIVE	SENSES – vanishing of
	SENSES – dull	SHRIEKING – pain, with the
	SERIOUS	SHRIEKING – Head; with complaints of
	SOCIAL MEETING – amel.	SPEECH – inarticulate
	SPEECH – affected	SPEECH – jerks, by
	SPEECH – slow	STRIKING
	SULKY	STUPEFACTION
	TACITURN	SUICIDAL disposition
	VIVACIOUS	THOUGHTS – vanishing of
	UNOBSERVING	TRUTH – telling the plain truth
	WEARISOME	UNCONSCIOUSNESS
		UNCONSCIOUSNESS – dream, as in a – does not know where he is – night
		UNCONSCIOUSNESS – eyes – fixed; with
		UNCONSCIOUSNESS – standing, while
		WEARY OF LIFE

CONCLUSION
As per the above information, we can conclude that Bovista is a remedy with sub-normal intelligence, who make a lot of mistakes while talking and writing, have difficulty in concentrating, forgets things very fast, lacks ideas, and has indiscretion, confusion of mind and abstraction of mind. Very naive people who because of their excessive loquaciousness – talk everything openly, like their very personal and private matters without thinking whether it has to be told or not.

The above study also demonstrates that Bovista lycoperdon is predominantly a Syco- syphilitic remedy, and the curative abilities of this remedy should be explored when prescribed as a constitutional remedy.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT
I heartfully thank my PG guide Dr Renuka S Patil, HOD & Prof Dept of Materia Medica, GHMC, Bengaluru for her valuable guidance.

REFERENCES:

1. Radar Software: Frederik Schroyens Synthesis Repertory, Version 9.1.
2. Complete Repertory by Roger van Zandvoort (CARA software).
3. Hahnemann S. The chronic diseases: their peculiar nature and their homeopathic cure. New Delhi: Jain Publishing; 1995.
4. Dr Kapil K Sharma Mental Personalities with Their Linking Rubrics and Important Remedies .2nd corrected and added ed. New Delhi: Indian Books And Periodicals Publishers (P) Ltd; 2009.

Dr Kuruvila Sebastian
PG Scholar, Department of Materia Medica,
Government Homoeopathic Medical College & Hospital, Bangalore