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The Lanthanides – fine points of remedy selection among the Lanthanide group by David Johnson, USA (Article courtesy of Homeopathy 4 Everyone)
Aphorism 119 ... “As certainly as each min- eral and each salt ... differs from each other; just as certainly are they all different and divergent from one another in their morbific and curative actions ...”
Samuel Hahnemann described the healthy human state as culminating in the ‘freedom to pursue the higher purposes of one’s existence’. Similarly, more than 100 years later, Abraham Maslow popularized the term self-actualization, defining it as ‘the full use and exploitation of one’s talents, capacities and potentialities’. If disease implies a degree of limitation to realiz- ing one’s fullest potential, then homeopathic remedies carry a solution to that limitation. And for complaints specifically relating to self-actu- alization, the Lanthanide remedies are espe- cially useful.
With atomic numbers ranging from 57 to 71, the Lanthanides lie beyond silver (47) and precede gold (79), and are usually printed near the bottom of the most common periodic tables. More precisely, they’re a subset of ele- ments “hidden” in the third column of the sixth horizontal row. The full homeopathic signifi- cance of this position becomes evident through Jan Scholten’s explanation of the framework of elements surrounding the lanthanides, first articulated in his book “Homeopathy and the Elements” and then expanded upon in “The Secret Lanthanides”.
To review, Scholten was a former chemist turned homeopath who recognized themes of homeopathic indications with increasing ele- mental weights. He described how the 4th, 5th and 6th horizontal rows (or “series” of ele- ments) reflect dilemmas related to one’s “per- formance” in life. The 4th row includes cuprum, which is task-oriented: “delusion he is selling green vegetables”. This row is also known as the Copper (or iron) series. The 5th row includes argentum, and relates to gifts of speech and writing, creative expression, new ideas, and reflecting well to others. This is known as the Silver series. The 6th row includes aurum, and relates to power, influence, and heightened responsibility—one holds oneself to a “gold standard” in which reflecting well to others is not enough. And this is known as the Gold series.
Progressing from the left to middle accord- ing to vertical columns of the table, Scholten recognized an “ascent” of elements reflecting progressive confidence and challenges. One’s confidence culminates in the peak performance of niccolum and cuprum–10th and 11th columns of the Copper series; palladium and argentum of the Silver series; and platina and aurum of the Gold series. Similarly, he recog- nized how the 12th vertical column of zincum, cadmium and mercurius marks the beginning sense of decline—the first signs of waning competency and capacity. This decline contin-
ues with the subsequent elements, and pro- gresses all the way to the right of the table.
To one degree or another, everyone is engaged in a performance in life, so a remedy from the periodic table is not chosen solely on that basis. For example, just because a person is a musician is not an automatic reason to look to the silver series for a remedy. Rather, the client needing a performance remedy may either directly state or imply that their perform- ance is not freely expressed. Instead, it’s “con- ditional”—that is, their desire to refine their performance reflects a conditional standard by which they either feel “okay” or not. In other words, the performance may reflect their sense of self-worth, value, feeling nurtured and con- nected, feeling appreciated, being noticed, avoiding blame, etc.
How does the above relate to Lanthanides? Positioned at the 3rd column of the periodic table, Lanthanides represent the first steps towards autonomy and self-actualization. Venturing beyond challenges with relationship (1st column) and external structure (2nd col- umn), the 3rd column marks the beginning of autonomous action, and is accompanied by confusion, irresolution and indecision. All Lanthanides also sit between silver and gold— symbolic of one’s desire to express silver gifts towards a golden ideal.
Dilemmas related to self-actualization are often expressed by words and phrases such as being ‘stuck’, ‘in a rut’, ‘trapped’, or ‘confused about the next step’. In other words, the person describes a frustrated desire for true and meaningful self-expression, to more fully express one’s inner gifts, and to be a more pos- itive influence and make a bigger difference in the world. There are also histories in which this problem is not immediately recognized or artic- ulated by the client; but the homeopath sees that the client is inhibited in their self-expres- sion, and by extension the higher expression of their gifts is thwarted. The client desires to direct their gifts towards making a positive influence in the world, whether through their interpersonal interactions or their role in life– and yet they’re repeatedly stymied in their efforts to do so.
Once the theme of thwarted self-actualiza- tion becomes apparent, the next step is to decide which Lanthanide to choose. This step is achieved by getting a sense of one’s confidence in relation to more “mundane” tasks. For exam- ple, the client can be asked ‘how is your confi- dence with respect to a new challenge?’ The answer is a reflection of their confidence rela- tive to their latent gifts and potential–the often sub-conscious sense of their inner capacity.
Discerning the client’s level of confidence can be challenging, because the homeopath will hear two co-existing threads of confidence.
The confusion and indecision of the 3rd column is demonstrated indirectly by the person’s dilemma with self-actualization. Because the Lanthanides sit beyond silver, the person may not have any qualms with respect to public per- formance. They may be fully confident with respect to their innate talents, but their work never seems to meet the light of day. Or they could be working in jobs with high responsibil- ity, and yet they relate a deep dissatisfaction with their work.
The choice of the particular lanthanide can be further complicated if the lanthanide is bonded with an anion which also embodies confidence issues, i.e., silica (“low” confidence) and sulphur (“high” confidence). But with care- ful discrimination one can distinguish the per- son’s confidence related to their inner capacity (lanthanide stage) as opposed to the confi- dence issues related to the anion. For example, sulphur is related to the ego’s need for appreci- ation, whereas silica is related to uncertainty about how they’re being perceived by others.
So the client’s level of confidence with respect to their inner capacity for more mun- dane tasks (or at least what they perceive to be mundane!) determines the homeopath’s choice of the particular lanthanide. Although the Lanthanides hold the 3rd column position, they also stretch horizontally, with each respective Lanthanide aligned with the vertical columns of remedies above them. For example, gadolinium is in the 10th column with niccolum, palladium and platina. The homeopath may hear the sense of one’s self-confidence being stymied (3rd column) but may also hear the strong con- fidence of peak performance with the sensitivity to not being appreciated (10th).
Progression of Lanthanide themes
Lanthanum (3rd): Confusion, irresolution, inde- cision in action, including new challenges on a relatively mundane level
Cerium (4th): Temporary plans develop, but usually change before any significant efforts have begun.
Praseodymium (5th): A feeling of needing to be “so much more” than one perceives oneself at present, and as efforts are made towards tackling a challenge, they seem to ultimately collapse—a frustrating feeling of 2 steps forward, two steps back.
Neodymium (6th): Anxiety with new challenges; a sense of “sink or swim”, that one is forced by circumstances to act even though one’s preparation feels incomplete.
Promethium (7th): Desire to gather facts from all available sources to gain control over a situation and ultimately insure success. Desires the team approach to solving problems.
Samarium (8th): Tackles challenges voluntarily as a means of testing one’s capacities. Once Continued on page 14 13