Background:
Repertory mistakes in modern homeopathy have been pointed out since the early years
after the publication of the sixth edition of Kent’s repertory. A structural error
of many current repertories is the use of Kent’s repertory as a basic information
source. ‘Fear of ghosts’ is widely considered to be a symptom of Lycopodium clavatum by the homeopathic community.
Objectives:
To demonstrate that the source of ‘fear of ghosts’ in Lycopodium clavatum was an inaccurate translation, that has been spread by secondary sources and to review
Hahnemann’s conception and efforts towards a reliable repertory.
Results:
The symptom ‘fear of ghosts’ does not exist in the primary source, being the product
of a misunderstanding of the English translation of Hahnemann’s original record, ‘fear
of frightful imaginary images’. Hahnemann’s efforts to compile a reliable and complete
dictionary of Materia Medica were also briefly presented, as well as Rückert’s repertory, which, in addition to
collating and classifying symptoms in alphabetical rubrics and sub-rubrics, displayed
them completely, as registered in primary sources.
Conclusion:
The misunderstanding about ‘fear of ghosts’ in Lycopodium clavatum exemplifies how distant current homeopathic information is from its primary sources
and from Hahnemann’s ideal of a symptom-lexicon. In spite of its technical limitations,
Rückert’s repertory, which was strongly recommended by Hahnemann, can be considered
as a template for new repertories based on primary sources.
Keywords
Homeopathy - Hahnemann - Repertory reliability - Rückert
