About
Samuel Hahnemann, born April 10, 1755 in Meissen and died July 2, 1843 in Paris, was a German physician. After studying medicine in Erlangen, he practiced as a doctor and translated numerous scientific works. In 1790, while translating Cullen's materia medica, he experimented on himself with cinchona bark and observed symptoms similar to those of malaria, leading him to formulate the principle of similars ('similia similibus curentur'). He published his doctrine in 1796 and expounded it in his foundational work, the Organon of the Healing Art (1810). He also developed the miasm theory to explain chronic diseases. After teaching in Leipzig, he settled in Köthen and then Paris, where he practiced successfully until his death.
* 1755-04-10 — † 1843-07-02
Major works
- Organon der rationellen Heilkunde (1810)medical treatise
- Reine Arzneimittellehre (1811-1827)materia medica
- Die chronischen Krankheiten (1828)medical treatise
- Kleine medicinische Schriften (1829)collection of writings
Key milestones
- 1796Publication of his essay on a new principle for discovering the curative powers of medicinal substances, founding homeopathy.
- 1812-1821Taught homeopathy at the University of Leipzig.
- 1835Moved to Paris and practiced homeopathy with great popularity until his death.
Themes
Law of similarsDilution and potentizationSelf-experimentationMiasm theoryAlternative medicine
Sources: britannica.com · nature.com · collections.nlm.nih.gov